Kunjane! (which is Shangaan for "how's it")

The past few days have been very work intensive. We spent two days writing scientific papers for our independent field projects revolving around the impacts of elephants on biodiversity. We sorted through thousands of dung beetles and identified them at the species level. OTS is very group oriented so all of the scientific papers are writen as a group, which is not the norm for most of th Elon science classes. The day was a bit intense everyone was vigorously working in our kitchen area in the heat of the afternoon without a con (air conditioning). I got a lot of experience with field biology statistics and played around with our results which was fun ( i know i'm becoming a science geek). I now have a lot of knowledge about dung beetles.

After a day/night of paper writing everyone went to the pub. yes, there is a pub in the park. It used to be an old train station so the bar is located inside a train, and the tables are outside where the cues were. It's a nice place to escape to at night so that we can socialize and be loud. Everyone let loose and we were all finally able to relax and blow off steam after so much work. The following morning we had a statistics lecturee in the morning and headed to Afsaal (which is an aafrikans word for hall). I had an egg, cheese, and bacon sandwhich that I had been craving and we all relaxed and hung around the camp. On our way back we saw zebras and wildebeest about 5 meters away. Zebras could possibly be my new favorite animal. We also were lucky enough to see lions (both a male and a female), a white rhino, and a Marshall eagle (which are endangered). The drive was about an hour long and incredibly scenic. It is such a nice change to see never ending grasslands and woodlands for miles on drives rather than restaurants and billboards.

Throughout the day we have lectures from various park employees. This morning we had a very interesting lecture on controlling elephant populations and the issues behind contraception and culling. It is has been a big issue here in South Africa politically and socially for many decades. Culling was used in the past and there is a lot of current debate now that elephant populations are increasing and effecting biodiversity in the area. It is an interesting time to be in the park and hearing so many different perspectives.

In terms of work, I am currently working on a history and culture presenation where we analyse a political cartoon. Also I am in the process of writing a paper about elephant culling. The work has given me a grasp on the culture here as well as ecology and conservation in the park.

On saturday we will be heading north in the park to Shingwedzi and then Sabie for a four day break. I will write in a week or so when internet is once again available

Sala Kakuhle (that means "goodbye" in Xhosa)