Kruger National Park

Researchers looking to do work in Kruger National Park are required to do so with a certified and armed game guard. That’s because outside of the paved roads and comfortable secured camps, there are real dangers here.

Fire can be a destructive force, but an essential and natural driver of ecosystem functioning in the African savanna. It turns out the savanna both shapes and is shaped by fire. But such a process is difficult to untangle.

Utah hosts just 18 species of bats, however, Kruger National Park in South Africa boasts many more. It is unclear whether these bat-rich communities are somewhat randomly assembled or if they are dependent upon natural drivers. A recent study sheds some light on the topic.

In episode five, we take a look at some of the 34 species of frogs that make the Kruger their home and a park researcher who wants to know more about them.

We follow Utah State University scientist and UPR reporter Ryan Helcoski and UMP student Mirandah Mnisi as they scope out a fresh kill.

Utah State University scientist and UPR reporter, Ryan Helcoski, explores how carcass sites may become attractive to grazing herbivores as their nutrients aid in plant growth.

In late November, Ryan Helcoski and his team search for an elephant carcass in South Africa, and detail what a carcass site search and recording looks like.

Elephants in South Africa repeatedly visit the carcasses of other elephants and move the bones around. Researchers at Kruger National Park are working to understand this mysterious behavior.

Part two of the series, "Tindleve ta Ndlopfu," or "Elephant Ears" we follow Utah State University scientist and UPR reporter Ryan Helcoski and his team into Kruger National Park, South Africa, as they search for a elephant carcasses.

Elephants in South Africa repeatedly visit the carcasses of other elephants and move the bones around. Researchers at Kruger National Park are working to understand this mysterious behavior.