Johannesburg - A predominantly South African-led research team hopes to be the first to explore the mysterious, upper reaches of the Cuito River, the source of the Okavango River.
Steve Boyes, a South African National Geographic Emerging Explorer, and a team of scientists will start their 1 900km Source to Sand Okavango River expedition from next month.
Theirs is a expedition from the source of the Cuito River across the delta and into its pans over the next three months.
“We’re going to discover new species, help establish new protected areas, and support transboundary conservation efforts,” said Boyes of the Wild Bird Trust. “We want to meet the people of the river, learn the river’s secrets and make sure the world’s largest undeveloped river catchment remains pristine, an example to the world.
“We have poled ourselves across the Delta five times and are committed to preserving the Okavango River in its current state by stimulating tourism development.”
Through their project, Boyes and his team hope to stop encroaching development. He has travelled the world and “raised millions” to make this expedition a possibility, he explains.
The Okavango River starts in Angola, flows through a small part of Namibia and continues to Botswana, where it empties into the Kalahari desert, forming the world’s largest inland delta.
Boyes’s team is not just conducting biodiversity surveys when they cross the Okavango Delta. “We’re conducting the first ever live data expedition that makes it possible for anyone to follow our progress. We have the world’s top biodiversity experts joining us, and we’re working with the governments of Angola, Namibia and Botswana.
“We’re going on a great adventure to a place that has not been seen for decades. No one in government has been up there for a least 15 years. The last two boats that went up there to do a census were never seen again,” he said.
Saturday Star