Projects
1000 Echoes for Elephants
Every echo carries further than you think.
Elephants speak in frequencies we cannot hear. Low vibrations. Deep connection. Messages that hold families together. Now it’s our turn to respond. Join us in building the Limpopo Research Centre and help raise $280 000 (R4,5 million) to secure the future of ethical elephant research.
Semi-habituated elephants live at the intersection of wild systems and human influence. If we care about ethical conservation, we need evidence.
THE 'IN MEMORY OF LIMPOPO' RESEARCH CENTRE
A permanent, purpose-built research centre dedicated to ethical elephant research.
The Limpopo Research Centre will help us understand how environmental factors, including temperature, rainfall, seasonal changes, and herd dynamics, affect stress levels and overall well-being in semi-habituated African savanna elephants. By combining behavioural observations with non-invasive dung sample analysis, we gain a clearer picture of how elephants respond to both natural and human-influenced environments.
The centre will:
- Conduct non-invasive dung hormone analysis
- Monitor glucocorticoid levels as indicators of stress
- Track environmental variables such as rainfall and temperature
- Connect behavioural observations with biological data
- Build reliable datasets for long-term conservation strategy
We already collaborate with researchers, including:
- Dr André Ganswindt, Director of the Mammal Research Institute, University of Pretoria
- Dr Yolandé Pretorius, Wildlife Ecologist
The new laboratory gives this work a permanent scientific home.
LIMPOPO'S ECHO LIVES ON AT HERD
In September 2025, HERD made the devastating decision to euthanise Limpopo, one of our beloved elephants, to ensure the safety of both humans and elephants.
This tragedy highlighted the importance of better understanding elephant behaviour and predicting stressors.
In her memory, HERD is establishing this research centre dedicated to monitoring elephant stress levels through regular faecal analysis. By combining these results with behavioural observations, we hope to better understand the emotional well-being of our herd and, as far as possible, prevent situations that could compromise the safety of both elephants and carers.
The ‘In Memory of Limpopo’ Research Centre, will be a daily reminder of the lives we lost in a single week. It is a call to learn, to grow, and to honour Limpopo not only through remembrance, but through meaningful change.
Buy an Echo. Leave a Legacy.
Forever immortalise your love of elephants by buying one of the 1000 Echoes for Elephants. These 1000 Echoes for Elephants symbolise HERD’s commitment to better listening to the needs of these amazing animals.
For every echo you donate, a name of your choice will be displayed forever at HERD. Donate an echo in your name, in honour of a loved one, or as a business.
The names will form part of our Echo Wall inside The Limpopo Research Centre. The Echo Wall is composed of 1000 metal plates, arranged in the shape of a sound wave for the name “Limpopo Research Centre”.
1 Echo – $200 | R2,000
- Your chosen name engraved on a metal plate
- Permanent placement on the Echo Wall
- Part of a 1000-piece soundwave forming the name “Limpopo”
- Located inside the Limpopo Research Centre
Donate:
- In your own name
- In honour of a loved one
- As a business
- As a collective gift
Only 1000 Echoes will ever exist.
Once they’re gone, they’re gone.
fundraise for herd
Would you like to host a third-party fundraiser in aid of the Limpopo Memorial Laboratory?
Get your fundraiser cap on and make a difference in the world.
We are extremely grateful for any interest in supporting HERD and fundraising initiatives are without doubt a vital way to help, especially when you can’t donate financially yourself.
