It’s always just great being out here in the wilderness but when all the animals perform in front of you it’s an ultra special experience! Today was one of those very special days.
Of course the wild dogs were first on the agenda and we arrived there at dawn. BB’s pups were out wandering a fair distance from the den. I thought this was really brave or stupid of them as there were no other dogs around. Only about an hour later an adult suddenly appeared out of nowhere and fed the pups. Then we realised that the whole pack was around, lying under bushes a short distance from the den, close to where we found BB’s pups. So just when I thought I knew it all, presuming the adults and alpha pups to be out hunting, I was of course wrong!
With the dogs being out of action we were on the look out for more entertainment from Malilangwe’s other stars. Bandama pan (21 02.99 south, 031 57.41 east) was our next stop. With the cool weather not many animals came in to drink. Some warthog, zebra and impala made brief appearances. But the place was alive with doves and flocks of Red-billed Quelea coming in to drink and the occasional raptor diving in on them but without success. An immature Owambo Sparrowhawk also dropped in for a drink.
All morning we had been criss-crossing elephant tracks and finally they were headed west. We took our last chance and headed on to Chekwa pan (21 05.88 south, 031 53.21 east). Sure enough a breeding herd of elephant were already drinking. But what was really special this time was the elephant calf enjoying a mud bath while the rest of the herd stood around her watching and even helping her when she seemed to be having difficulty in the mud. But there was nothing stopping her. She wanted mud! And she wanted to be covered in mud! Rolling in it, falling in it, throwing it all over her body and just having a whale of a time. These little ones are just so playful and we can’t but help seeing our children in them in the way they just love water and mud.
While they were all peacefully enjoying themselves at the pan, the 2 big bulls there suddenly turned tail and took off. Of course the rest of the herd panicked too and disappeared. At first we were a little perplexed as to what had panicked them. Initially I thought they had caught our wind, but the breeze was fairly strong and blowing to us from them.
Then from the bushes behind us another herd of elephants were rushing on to the pan. They weren’t concerned about us at all. By why did the other herd spook at their approach?
This herd too entertained themselves in the mud including a bull with a floppy ear. He got right down into it, just like the calves. It’s quite something to see this huge beast rolling around at ease in the mud.
All psyched up we had to leave Chekwa and get back to the dogs. They had their first afternoon greeting ceremony and then headed straight out hunting. This was the earliest I’d had them go hunting in the afternoon, and BB led the way. She headed off at a brisk pace with all the adults and alpha pups following. What was the rush? Before long they had travelled about 4kms and were already at Manyuchi pan. Milling around here for a short while the pups seemed to be encountering water for the first time. Even the adults were cautious to approach the water. Maybe they were used to the flowing water of the Chiredzi with its hidden danger of lurking crocodiles.
BB took the pack on further south to about 6kms from the den. The alpha pups had never been so far from home and were now looking tired. BB and 2 adults disappeared up front while the rest of the pack including the Alpha male and female milled around, then headed back to the den with the pups. It was now well after dark.
Cassiaabbreviata - another tree bringing on the signs of spring.
On our way out to the wild dog den in the dark we encountered a different pack of dogs that are denning in the Sandstone hills. I’ve seen them around, a pack of 7 adults, but had never seen the pups. This morning we saw at least 3 little guys about 8 weeks old. They were obviously on their way out hunting.
Of course the warm weather didn’t last, it is after all still winter. Not that it was that cold this morning but a very miserable soft drizzle set in putting a dampener on things and the vultures weren’t impressed either, although it didn’t seem to affect the dogs still being their boisterous selves.
By the afternoon the clouds were clearing and at least the drizzle had stopped. But the cold front was now upon us and by sunset the chill had set in.
While BB stayed at the den with her little ones, the others all went hunting, including the alpha pups. Of course they like to believe they are big time hunters too but really it was an exercise teaching them about their surroundings, the way the pack operates and where they stand in this wild dog world.
The adults seemed quite happy to have the pups along and went about their hunt preparations as usual.
The Alpha female will mark several times as they move on their way. And each time the Alpha male has to mark/urinate on the same spot. You would think doing it once would be fine, but no he has to mark on the same spot several times each time checking whether he’s hit the mark. It’s hard to imagine what the alpha pups must think of this. When they want to urinate they just let it all out at once, none of this dancing on the spot having to nip it each time. Maybe that’s what all the dancing is about, having to nip it each time. At least we can cross our legs when we’re desperate.
They all continued west, then followed the power lines north. Just before the northern boundary fence they continued on west about 100m to a spot that was probably the site of their last kill. Here 3 adults pulled on a fresh piece of impala skin while the pups found scattered bones to chew on.
The pups were all over it and didn’t see the adults leave or just weren’t interested in the adults leaving. They continued searching for pieces of bone to chew. It was now almost dark.
Then one pup took the initiative and all followed as they headed back to the den following the exact same route they had come in on. It was clear all the way that they were using the scent they had left earlier to help them retrace their steps back to the den. Is this possibly why wild dogs have such a strong scent and are always rolling in smelly things?
The warm weather had all the wild dog pups out early this morning. The alpha and BB pups were out playing at dawn, all already looking well fed.
Things were calm at the den when suddenly the Alpha male and female came sprinting in with faces covered in fresh blood and the meat spilled from their mouths as they fed the ‘hungry’ pups. More like the greedy pups. If the others are eating then they must eat, even if they’re full to falling over.
This was a sign that played out badly for BB. Last night when the adults went hunting, BB split off from following the Alpha male and female. And in doing so the other adults followed her. This is not the way it’s supposed to be in the wild dog world. All must follow the Alpha pair.
And then this morning we find the other adults well fed and the Alpha pair coming in later having made their own kill obviously.
Well this afternoon BB was quietly suckling her little ones. Then one by one the alpha pups barged in and claimed a teat. Suddenly from nowhere the Alpha female was on the scene biting BB as she suckled ‘peacefully’. With BB screaming in submission and trying to get up the Alpha female continued to bite her on the back and the alpha pups too joined in. Although this didn’t last long it gave BB a strong message and she wondered off away from the commotion.
At dusk only some of the adults went hunting and BB was again upfront with another male. This time the Alpha female took her pups back to the den and didn’t participate in the hunt.
This continuous harsh treatment of BB appears to be the Alpha female cementing her status as the Alpha queen and no insubordination will be tolerated.
Leaving the dogs at mid-morning to chill out in the heat of the day, we travelled down onto the Chiredzi River. With this early hot flush, the Albizia’s are already flowering.
The Acacia tortilis (Umbrella Thorn) trees are also heavy in seed. This is always a big attraction to the antelope, baboons, giraffe and elephant. Most of the antelope rely on baboons to drop seed or elephant to push over trees as the tree canopies are out of their reach. As usual the Tortilis woodlands on the Chiredzi were full of animals, impala, zebra, giraffe, kudu and waterbuck.
We arrived at Chekwa pan after midday and the elephant had already left as some zebra made their way in to the pan. They’re always watchful scanning the surroundings for danger before settling in to drink.
Chekwa is always a great waterhole to chill out at in the heat of the day resting under a Mopanie tree listening to the woodlands alive with the call of doves.
It’s always a tense time going back to one’s film subjects having been away for a few days. Life is so hard out in the wilds of Africa that anything can happen as all animals struggle to survive.
Arriving at the Wild Dog den at dawn masses of vultures were scattered in trees in the area. This is always a bad sign. Were they after Doby’s carcass or had another dog died? Hopefully they had just come to roost joining the few hooded vultures that hang out at the den looking for any little titbit left over from the dogs.
Well all was well with the dogs. Doby’s carcass was still lying there untouched except for it having decayed.
The adults were just back from a successful hunt, faces red with blood and the pups well fed. With belly’s full activities had been cancelled for the morning.
BB’s pups had grown considerably in the last few days and were now fully agile running around like bloated ticks on legs. Their ears too were all now erect, having been floppy for the last 4 weeks. They were now beginning to look like wild dogs, except for one pup which had to take on the name “Floppy”, as its one ear was totally floppy. Floppy seems to be quite a character. So keep tuned to see the latest on Floppy’s development.
In the afternoon life had returned to the pack. BB continues to be abused at suckling times with the alpha pups still taking advantage of her last remaining days of milk. She’s already showing signs of drying up.
So it’s a good thing her pups are a lot more agile and able to sprint to any adult offering food where they have to wrestle with the alpha pups for a meal.
At sunset the adults headed east on the hunt towards Picanini James where there are usually good numbers of impala. By nightfall they were still out hunting and we had to call it a day.
But there were only 9 adults out on the hunt. Fila, a yearling male, was missing. A few weeks ago he had lost the tip of his tail, but only the last few inches. Could this have got badly infected? He also had a sore back left foot but this shouldn’t have been a cause for concern as he was able to use.
Maybe Fila had stayed behind to look after the pups.
A few weeks ago these game scouts came across this huge 14ft crocodile lying dead on the sand in the Chiredzi River water course. Of course they were very hesitant to approach this huge beast but after some time they realised it was dead.
On closer investigation they found the croc had what looked like bite wounds on its belly and around the neck. Curious as they were they took to reading the scene like we would read a book. Checking out all the signs they could find in tracks in the sand, scrape marks on the tree, flattened grass and reeds they were able to piece together the puzzle.
A leopard had killed an impala and dragged it up a tree to get it out the way of hyaenas and lions. Well that’s the idea.
The crocodile had either heard the commotion or had smelt the kill and leaving the water tracked down the kill only to find it in a tree. At the same time a pride of lions had arrived on the scene. But now they were doubly puzzled. The kill they were after was in the tree AND there was an enormous crocodile at the base of the tree laying claim to the kill too. All the while the leopard was probably in the tree not daring to leave its place of safety.
The lions wouldn’t have cared less for the leopard but the 14 ft monster was something to think about. From the tracks in the sand the scouts were able to make out that there was quite a skirmish between the lions and the crocodile. But outnumbered the crocodile got away although it was injured and died about a 100m from the tree where the kill was.
The lions in the meantime had managed to scale the tree and steal the leopards kill. At this stage the leopard had probably climbed into the very highest branches where being lighter it would be safe from lions blundering around the tree.
This would have been quite an event to witness indeed. And just finding the croc there dead on the sand wouldn’t have told the story. But the great tracking skills of the Malilangwe game scouts was able to bring to us this incredible event.
Stay tuned for more exciting events as we venture back to the wild dogs tomorrow.
Having been on Mala Mala Game Reserve in South Africa for about 10 years it was time for me to move on. I knew Malilangwe having worked here some 10 years ago for about 3 months. So I knew the area fairly well. But it’s the absolute beauty of the area, the stunning landscapes of Sandstone ridges, Acacia tortilis woodlands forming a closed canopy and open under story for hundreds of meter, Mopanie woodland, Brachystegia woodland, savannahs, grasslands and rivers just provide for such amazing diversity which is reiterated in the diversity of animal species. The look of Malilangwe is very different to other areas in Africa and it is this new look on Africa that I want to give to audiences around the world.
What is the movie going to be about?
At present we are working on a film about wild dogs. We’ll be following their lives over a period of 2 years. But not continuously. We are working with the wild dogs for about 4 months this year while they are denning. This is because they are then restricted to the area around the den. Once they leave the den they travel such vast distances we just wouldn’t be able to keep up with them. We will then film them again next year when they den. And should we pick them up in the course of the year we will spend time with them when possible. Then when not filming wild dogs, we’ll be working on a number of other projects that include: Elephants, Leopards, Lions, Ground Hornbills, the Baobab tree, hyaenas. As we’ll be based at Malilangwe for the next 4 years we’ll be working on all these projects and also anything else that may crop up.
What is it about wild dogs that makes them such a special subject?
Wild Dogs are a highly endangered species and today are restricted to very few areas in Africa. These animals are incredibly social and probably Africa’s most efficient hunters. They are very charismatic animals and provide for much entertainment. But it is their plight that will be central to the project in that I’m hoping we’ll provide entertainment that will spark action to help conserving these amazing animals.
How long will it take you to complete?
We’ll work for about 2 years on the project but not full time on the dogs. I expect each project will get 9 t0 10 months shooting time allocated to it.
Take us through your typical daily routine?
Our day usually starts at about 15h00 when we wake up and have our main meal of the day. (Other meals are eaten out in the field and for me it’s usually a peanutbutter and syrup sandwich and some fruit. Can’t do without my daily dose of nutbutter!).
Leave camp around 16h00 and spend the afternoon and then the whole night out filming. (We get some rest in the night sleeping on our camera boxes. That’s if our subjects are sleeping). Then we return to camp any time from 8h00 to 10h00 depending on what’s happening out there. There have been times when I’ve been in the field for 3 days without returning to camp.
What equipment do you use?
I’m shooting on High Definition, using the Panasonic Varicam. I use Fujinon HD lenses. The 16.5mm to 413mm and a wide angle 4.5mm to 59mm.
How do you find the animals each day?
Finding the dogs daily is easy while they’re denning. But once they’re on the move they travel such vast distances that we’ll battle to keep up with them. We are planning on using radio telemetry in the future.
Do you have a script in mind before you start filming or does it all happen on the fly?
We have rough ideas of a story before we start filming which is mainly based on my knowledge of the animals. But the real script only comes at the end of shooting in the field and we can assess what material we have and how to structure it into the film.
Where in the process do you start editing the film?
We’ll start editing only once we have about 90% of the film shot. The rough edit will helps us to see what shots are still necessary to polish the edit.
Which parts of the production process can be done onsite in the bush?
We have an edit suite in the field and will take the project at least to the rough cut stage, but we do have the capability to take it to picture lock which we hope to do in the future.
What has been your most exciting moment so far during filming?
Seeing a leopard in action has to be one of the most spectacular things to witness. And not many do and even less get to film it. I’ll never forget the day I filmed a leopard in the film “Beauty and the Beasts”, take out a male impala in mid air. Such acrobatic splendour.
Do you ever feel in danger when you’re up close and personal with some of your subjects, especially the big cats?
Whenever I’m in my vehicle, which is totally open, I feel totally secure. Well except when an angry elephant cow charges and hits the vehicle several times. But all cats are to be respected and only after having worked with a specific animal for 6 months or more will I trust that I can read that animals behaviour and start feeling safe around it.
How do you film at night without interfering in the action with lights, etc?
We film animals at night using lots of tungsten light. I’ve been doing this for the last 18 years and am totally aware of the effects lights can have on animal behaviour, and I’m very sensitive about it. Because of this we use a lot of light that lights up the whole scene and not just the animal we’re focussing on. In this way the animals aren’t blinded and go about their natural behaviour.
We have the lights on a separate vehicle to the camera. So whenever we’re out filming at night we are always in 2 vehicles. This allows me to have the lights where I want them, and the whole time I’m trying to create as natural a look as possible. So we invariably are backlighting the subject and getting the image to look as moonlit as possible.
What has been your greatest filmmaking achievement thus far?
I think my greatest achievement so far has been my latest film “Hyena Queen” (or “Hyenas at War” in the US). This film has only just been released so time will tell how well it does. But this film took me right into a clan of hyaenas that I literally became accepted as a clan member. I had access to the clan the far beyond anything I had ever imagined. This is a beautiful film and I’m hoping to get a strong message across in it to reverse the myths that surround this incredible animal, and put it on the map where it rightfully should be. A cuddly hyaena toy? No you won’t find one anywhere in the world. But just imagine and hyaena cub toy that whoops and giggles when you press it?! [The film airs on National Geographic in 2,3,10 September 2006)
What can we expect from the wildcast blog over the coming months?
The wild dogs will be the focus of our filming for the next 2 months and then the dogs will be on the move. Then it will be on to the elephants. But in the next couple of months it’s going to be interesting to see how BB’s pups fare. Will they all make it as the pressure to feed them all rises as they get bigger.
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