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History Behind The Establishment of Selous Game Reserve
Selous Game Reserve - Contents Table
• Before an official establishment of the region currently named Selous Game Reserve, the area was a vast ecosystem that had the burden of being a slave and ivory route from the interior regions of Tanganyika all the way to the coastal region of Kilwa.
• In 1896, the German Governor stopped hunting in an area north of the Rufiji River and officially declared it a Game Reserve making Selous' region the first protected area in Africa. Further areas to the west and east of the already protected area were officially declared as German controlled Game Reserves.
• In the years later, efforts were made by the German Government and George Schillings to enact Wildlife Conservation Laws and develop sustainable wildlife conservation policies.
• After the British Empire declared Tanzania, then called Tanganyika, a protectorate, it expanded the already existing German Game Reserves to more areas, and in 1922 it officially named the region "Selous Game Reserve."
• In the 1930 and 1940's, the British Protectorate moved natives of the region who were affected by Nagana or Sleeping Sickness, outside the tse-tse fly affected areas and declared those empty areas part of the Game Reserve.
• Because Selous was an area so blessed with large concentrations of wildlife, some of the animals like elephants would move into human habitats, which would end up posing a big problem. Constantine Ionides, Tanzania game officers and scouts participated in the control and protection of wildlife.
• Brian Nicholson, Selous' last European Chief Warden proposed an idea to turn Selous into wildlife hunting block, which would bring in the necessary finances to keep up with the resources necessary to build an infrastructure and establish an anti-poaching team.
• The Tanzanian Government imposed a hunting ban in the Selous, which put a stop to revenues coming into the region from professional hunters who were paying tens and thousands of dollars. Thus, the whole region suffered terribly during this period.
• Around 1975, efforts to boost energy supplies in Tanzania led to the development of a dam and hydroelectric scheme, which recruited over 2000 workers to area which consequently led to poaching of the many rhinos that were resident to the Selous.
• Further oil exploration in the early 1980's led to opening up of more paths that were previously inaccessible due to the pristine and dense vegetation, creating an easy entry and exit for wildlife poachers.
• In 1982, the Selous Game Reserve was granted "World Heritage Site" status, which formally put it on the map.
• From early 1980's to early 1990's poaching continued to intolerable numbers. The Selous elephant population decreased from 110,000 to below 30,000 but world attention the Selous Game Reserve had received created an awareness among young wardens, Tanzanian Government and its wildlife sector, and international organizations like Frankfurt Zoological Society, who worked on constructive policies that focused on restoring Selous' reputation of being home to one of the greatest numbers of wildlife and being untouched by man's deliberate activities.
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