Ever wondered how far a pangolin travels in a single night? At Okonjima Nature Reserve, AfriCat's researchers have spent eight years tracking Africa's most trafficked and least understood mammal to find out.
On International Day for Biological Diversity 2026, AfriCat Foundation reflects on how three decades of wildlife research and conservation at Okonjima Nature Reserve in Namibia contribute directly to global biodiversity goals. From leopard and brown hyena population studies to night-based pangolin fieldwork and the pursuit of OECM status, discover how local conservation action in a semi-arid Namibian landscape is helping to shape a more biodiverse world.
The brown hyena is one of Africa's least-studied large carnivores: nocturnal, wide-ranging, and persistently misunderstood. At Okonjima Nature Reserve, long-term research is changing that. Drawing on GPS telemetry, camera traps, and over a decade of field observation, this programme has produced one of the most detailed datasets available for Hyaena brunnea. What it reveals is a species far more ecologically complex, socially structured, and behaviourally flexible than its reputation suggests.
Private nature reserves in Namibia are playing a critical role in protecting leopard, pangolin and brown hyena. At Okonjima Nature Reserve, the AfriCat Foundation combines long-term scientific research, ecological restoration and responsible ecotourism to support wildlife conservation across the region.
AfriCat Foundation’s 2025 research update at Okonjima Nature Reserve details long-term leopard, pangolin and brown hyena monitoring, tracking technology and collaborations.
AfriCat has entered a new era of science-driven conservation. Once focused on carnivore rescue, the Foundation now centres its work on long-term ecological research in the Okonjima Nature Reserve, using evidence-based methods to understand wildlife, restore habitats and strengthen conservation practices.
In 2024 AfriCat expanded its LoRa network, grew its camera trap systems, improved identification methods, organised historic samples, strengthened security, advanced pangolin, leopard and brown hyena research, supported staff changes and deepened collaborations, while engaging visitors and planning further conservation work for 2025.
