December 2009 Travel Zimbabwe 25

GONAREZHOU LOOK OUT FOR THE LITTLE SIX ORIBI ( 66CM) Extremely slender, these antelope have a long neck. The white, crescent- shaped band of fur above the eye is the key characteristic distinguishing it from similar species. Oribi emit a shrill whistle when alarmed. They can run at speeds up to 50 kilometres per hour. 26 Travel Zimbabwe December 2009 KLIPSPRINGER ( 58CM) The bounciest of the bunch, klipspringers can leap up to 7m in a single bound. If one is stationary, look closely and you'll see that it stands on the tips of its hooves. Klippies are sometimes called the ' African chamois' for their agility on steep rock slopes. Lowveld LIVINGSTONE'S SUNI ( 33CM) Very tiny. Look for the big, translucent- pink ears and, if it's a male, the short, straight, heavily ridged horns and the prominent facial scent gland. These preorbital glands are the largest, relative to size, of all African antelope. from the tourism it generates." This has been Clive's mantra during the past 30 years in the steamy lowveld. When he fi rst came to the Mahenya community's land, east of Save River, he was drawn into the human-wildlife confl ict. " The local Shangaans had been removed from Gonarezhou when it became a national park in 1975. Understandably resentful, they also saw animals as a destructive force due to the damage they infl icted on their crops," explained Clive. Fluent in Shangaan, he brokered a deal in 1982 that set up a hunting concession on their 10,000ha communal lands. " Revenue fl owed into the community, and poaching in Gonarezhou National Park seemed to stop overnight," said Clive. His vision also laid the groundwork for the revolutionary Communal Areas Management Programme For Indigenous Resources ( CAMPFIRE) that became a model for community involvement across Zimbabwe. And by the mid- 1990s, Chilo Gorge Safari Lodge was an embryonic example of a community-involved lodge, with Mahenye villagers receiving a share of the lodge's profi ts plus lease fees. " The local community is still proud of Chilo and believes it will benefi t them again when tourists return," explained Thomas Mutombeni, a Shangaan who worked his way up from waiter to become the lodge's manager. Before leaving Gonarezhou for Malilangwe we visited its pièce de résistance, the mighty Chilojo Cliffs. Its bands of yellow and rhubarb- pink sandstone strata run for kilometres before breaking away into teetering, 200m- high stacks above the River Runde. The only other landscape of comparable magnitude I'd seen in Africa was Namibia's awe- inspiring Fish River Canyon. Malilangwe, once a cattle ranch, is now a 50,000ha private estate that provides another shining example of conservation benefi ting local community causes. However, their approach is very different to Clive's. Malilangwe Trust projects are funded by wealthy backers, and revenue raised from its world- famous community- " Our most wonderful resource is our wildlife, but we can't successfully protect it unless the local communities benefi t from the tourism it generates" MARK STRATTON