While tending to the vast herds of cattle grazed by Devuli ranch, Jimmy Whittall came upon and became familiar with a fascinating tract of what was then crown land, bounded on two fronts by the Turgwe and Save Rivers. This was the land that would come to be known as Humani, officially established in 1933. After years of hardship and repaying loans, Jimmy finally became the sole owner of Humani, and spent the rest of his working life building on the foundation he had laid, running successful cattle and cropping operations, furthering the area and people.

In those days, wildlife had next to no value and was considered a hindrance to cattle ranching – predators killed stock and plains game competed for grazing. As a result, game was persecuted vigorously, and Jimmy hunted and shot many lions and leopards on Humani, with hounds and over kills. During the 1960s, Jimmy handed control of Humani to his sons – the cattle to Roger and the cropping to Richard. Then came Roger’s visionary ideas pertaining to wildlife and the pioneering work he carried out in that field –the work that would ultimately lead to the formation of the Save Valley Conservancy so many years later.