Your bush knowledge, ability to guide people on walks or drives safely and your experience in the field, are all essential and absolutely necessary tools. I commend FGASA for its high standard syllabus and mission.

I would like to talk about interpretation and communication – skills that are often overlooked by guides. Not the interpretation of the bush in any particular situation, but the guide’s ability to share his/her knowledge to their clients.

There are a few relevant synonymous words that represent interpretation and for the purpose of this story – It may be worth mulling over their meanings before you take a client out on a walk or drive.

Translation (your ability to describe what you see)
Explanation (the reason/science of what you are looking at)
Interpretation (analogy with interpretation – personal)
Demonstration (a physical interpretation – “we learn what we do or the things that relate to us”)

Example:

You are walking with clients, and come across a rhino midden

“ Once upon a guide”

“This is a rhino’s midden – the bulls always excrete in the same place to mark their territory – notice the dung beetles – they break up the shit to lay their eggs in.”

“Bull rhinos have block-like territories in which they excrete their dung – to let the other bulls know that the woman running through it is theirs.”

“The rhino might be close by – let’s move on – perhaps we will come across it.”

“actual account by a guide on a walk”

Before I attempt to discuss opportunities to rectify the above communication/interpretation – my own interpretation of this particular guide is that, although his/her knowledge and bush skills are not specifically under criticism, his/her ability to translate and interact with the guests (of which I was one) needs to be re-assessed.

Firstly:

1. Both sexes use middens
2. We have two species of rhino in SA – which one is it?
4. ‘Shitting’ is defecating and so is excrement in this case
5. Dung beetles are a whole different conversation….

The above inaccuracies in the interpretation are purely lack of knowledge based and although this particular guide has a vast practical experience – he/she certainly did not A) make use of it, and B) has found a way of moving on quickly – perhaps towards a waiting cigarette or other pressing matter.

Let’s try and establish what of the following is appropriate to discuss with your clients at a rhino midden.

Translation

This is a white rhino midden. I know this because of the dung and dunging that has been going on here. Although both rhino species in South Africa do this – the dung of this midden contains grass – white rhinos are grazers of grass. (We could go on about signs in and around the actual midden – but this is enough for the purpose of this document)

Explanation

See how the dung is scattered and spread. We need to look around this midden for tracks, and other signs of urine spraying and scratching of the ground. I know that white rhino (square lipped) rhinos use these middens as message boards. The term is olfactory communication, both sexes use the midden but bulls on territory will make more of a ceremony of it than the females and bulls that are not. The females will add their deposits, but they will not kick it around (to get the smell on their feet like the bulls do)

Interpretation

(This part of the communication will allow the guide to use a personal analogy – and allow the guide an opportunity to show individual personality, style and demeanour.)

These middens are like our own Internet chat rooms. They are the post offices and message boards in rhino communication, and serve a necessary and very important part of rhino social behaviour. I am only able to use my eyes to see the level of activity at this midden but rhinos will smell signatures, gather an understanding of the individuals within this area – the males will know if they should set about ‘looking for a female approaching oestrus, or defend a territory from another bull – rhino ranges overlap like a checkerboard sometimes and the bull on territory needs to know – perhaps to follow her and check whether she is ready for mating, and if she is, he will try to keep her in his territory. If there is another bull around – the bulls will defend their right. Often the bulls will stop and scratch at the earth and they will certainly spray urine at a nearby bush or tree – let’s look for this sign.

Demonstration

Funny – We still use our sense of smell to locate intrusion like the rhino standing in the midden – when we stand in a pile of dog poo – see how quickly we are found out and asked to look under our shoes as we walk through the house.

More serious – We also use our sense of smell a lot but we are not aware of it as much anymore – unless it has a direct significance to us like the smell of food when we are hungry, or the smell of the perfume of a partner in a new romance, or a dangerous smell like smoke in our house or office, etc.

Now – if there is time, if you choose to discuss dung beetles or if one of your guests ask you about the dung beetles, and their ecology – you can talk about dung beetles, or you can combine the two interpretations but do it from a base of knowledge, and as in the above situation – your own interpretation and style is sure to shine through when discussing the ‘nuptial ball’ or ‘brood ball’.

The biggest problem a field guide will have at a rhino midden is when to stop discussing the midden and move on – there are several hundred ecologically fantastic areas of discussion you can have.

Try these:

Nutrient and energy cycles
Co evolution and mutualism
Food chains

By the way – leave all these conversations out of the equation if you can’t talk over the “gasp-puffing” or “ horn whipping” and loud “ksss ksss” or “tsik tsik” of the oxpeckers around you.

Hope this has given you something to think about

Neil Heron
The Bearded Heron