Monthly Archive for January, 2007

Elephants move into grasslands: Video

What was Mandlovu thinking?

Erythrina livingstonei
The elephant moved a long way today, right from the eastern boundary all the way to Chimize. That’s quite something for a little Chipfongwe.

Herd safety
It was nerve wracking driving on those clays all day and on several occasions I nearly went down. I would be driving in what looked like normal grassland and suddenly thick black sticky mud.

In the pastures
(I remember when I was in the army with the Mounted Infantry. One day our whole company, about 60 horses, went for an outride. The area was rolling grasslands. We saw a Steenbok on the far rise. In between it and us was a little valley but it was all grassland. Our commander gave us the order to charge after it. 60 horses at full gallop across the grasslands. It was quite exhilarating, until CRASH! In the bottom of the valley, covered in grass, was a seep and mud. All the horses went down in a mass pile up. Only 4 were left standing. Somehow the horses were all fine but there were riders with broken collar-bones, broken noses, broken arms and many cuts and bruises. A real mess and one laughing Steenbok)
Earlier today Mandlovu seemed to be having a bad day.
A bull was at a pan and she charged in butting him out the way. And then when I approached she charged. It was just a mock charge and she backed off.

Mandlovu charge

Then she did something really strange. She went down on her front legs on top of a little bush trashing it before rolling over on her side. This was obviously some sort of display to threaten me? But it also meant she was in a very vulnerable position which she obviously intended. So what was she telling me? Just telling me to stay away or that she’s not scared of me?

Mandlovu loses it
It really was strange. And then only a minute or so later she ambled on a few meters past me.
They are just like people, we never will be able to understand them fully. (Take note, I didn’t say women)

On eggs?

Chinzwini No.6

bushmanlogo.jpg

Chinzwini 3A

These drawings must surely have been done at different times. The large kudu is painted with such accuracy, whereas the other figures don’t seem to be. And what are these other animals?

The one is possibly a wildebeest but I can’t make out the others. And strange how the ‘wildebeest’s’ back legs are drawn so finely and the front legs so heavy.
IMG_6686

Tjololo 28th January 2000

The Tjololo Diaries

28th January 2000
Our normal 16 hours a day in the saddle is a rough ride, but yesterdays 20 hours (because of being stranded between flooded rivers) was a bit too much for us. We were exhausted, and combined with all the rain we’d had restricting us to staying on the roads, meant not much filming. Rather no filming. Will be catching up on sleep.


Tjololo and Tjellers both travelled on the roads for short periods and then moved into the bush where we had to leave them.

Elephants create bushveld pans: Video

After the good rains yesterday the elephant herds moved back into the sandveld they so love when it’s moist.

Chocolate?
They can stand around for ages digging and throwing the moist red soil over themselves while Chipfongwe falls into these holes getting in the way rolling around.

Wanting attention
Of course further south in the clays the rain had filled up a number of mud wallows and as soon as temperatures showed any tiny sign of getting hot, the herds ducked into a wallow.

Mud wrestling
I think I too have to master this art then at least I won’t be cooking in the heat.
While following the elephant I disturbed a pair Wahlberg’s Eagles on the ground. They took off and on investigation I found they had killed this European Roller which they had been feeding on.

Roller kill
When the elephant kept moving south into the clays I abandoned them.

Cheeky Fellow
Arriving at Lojaan dam soon before sunset a lone hippo started displaying for me. Or rather at me in the vehicle. It was fun to watch him open his mouth as wide as possible as if yawning, but it was a dominance display to say watch out I’ve got a big jaw and big teeth. Then he jumped half out the water only to crash back in again. And when he wasn’t doing that he would surface in spray of water. Quite the display. But then he is just a young bull all on his own trying to make it in the world.

Neat bum
(Earlier in the day I had been challenged by a 22year old American guy working here as a volunteer for a few months. How rude of him to want to challenge me, more than twice his age! This challenge has been on for several weeks now and soon became America vs South Africa. The challenge was to kayak around the Malilangwe dam, about 20 minutes and then a 6km run. He sure was a confident fellow with a big mouth, but lots of fun! Unfortunately he let America down badly in both events!!! Now he’s calling for a mandatory drugs test! Next he’ll be calling his mother.)

Chinzwini No.5

bushmanlogo.jpg

Chinzwini 3A
This animal is also part of the animal assembly.

It looks like another female kudu, in front of the previous one I posted. This appears to be a herd as seen by hunters?
Chinzwini 5

Tjololo 27th January 2000

The Tjololo Diaries

27th January 2000
Eventually got back to camp. The rains came again in the early hours and every donga on the property was flowing feet deep. We had a frustrating night putting up our cover and taking it off. This prevented us keeping up with Tjololo most of the time.


The downpour at dawn flooded everything again. On our way back to camp we found Flockfield Drift in full flood. On the radio we heard that the long way around was flooded too. All we could do was sit it out until the flood waters dropped several hours later.