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KNYSNA NEWS AND VIDEO - A report on consultations between SANParks scientists, South African and international wildlife groups, and communities, due to be released in the first quarter of next year, will mark a significant step towards a decision being made on whether or not to reintroduce elephants into the Knysna Forest.

Revealing this on Monday 14 October during a media excursion to the forest, part of the Garden Route National Park, Lizette Moolman, a wildlife ecologist working in the park, said SANParks "will be the responsible body" for making such a decision, "but we want to make it inclusive".

Inclusivity to date had included a survey on the matter, among people living next to the forest, to which there had been a "massive response": many of the around 400 respondents had indicated they wanted elephants to be reintroduced with the provisos that "specialists must be involved" and such a process be undertaken with "caution".

'Low level of nutrition'

In addition to this, some scientists had said that for elephants there was a "low level of nutrition" in the forest, and therefore claimed it would be unwise to locate any in the vicinity of the last remaining Knysna elephant, called Strangefoot, estimated to be about 54 years old.

Veteran rangers Wilfred Oraai and Karl Maswati, based at the Knysna Forest's Diepwalle forest station, last saw Strangefoot, a cow, in 2017.

"It was after the fires; she was roaming here for two months, in Diepwalle forest - after that she crossed the Knysna River," Oraai said.

Moolman, who has been studying Strangefoot for 17 years, said "it would be inhumane to bring in elephants if the research (suggesting there was a low level of nutrition) is true".

VIDEO: Protecting the last Knysna elephant: SANParks' management plan & why you shouldn't try to find her

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