Motorists on the R56 were met with an unusual sight at sunrise on Tuesday: a full-grown male giraffe lying against a tree with its hind leg trapped, the result of a dramatic fall from Bisley Nature Reserve moments earlier. The call for help came in shortly before 6 am, reporting that a male giraffe had become stuck on the R56 Richmond Road in Pietermaritzburg, outside the reserve’s boundary fence. According to Friends of Bisley Nature Reserve (FoBNR) chairperson, Peter West, the giraffe had been involved in a fierce fight with another male shortly before the fall.
“Two males had been fighting near a steep slope, and one knocked the other down, causing him to roll down the hill,” he said. He snapped the fence, flattened it, and rolled over into a tree where his leg became trapped in the fork. West said the second giraffe had pushed through the broken fence and stood guard over its rival; a behaviour typical of male dominance fights, where one prevents the other from standing up again.
Members of Remington Risk Management were first on the scene, monitoring the giraffe and keeping motorists at a safe distance. West then sent a message to a local security group requesting additional assistance. Within minutes, volunteers from several private security companies arrived and began managing traffic along the busy morning route.
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The second giraffe was carefully coerced toward the Gladys Manzi Road entrance of the reserve, where a hole was cut in the fence to herd him safely back inside. Meanwhile, the trapped giraffe remained wedged in the tree, kicking intermittently as it struggled.
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