Monthly Archive for September, 2009

Handling Fire: Video

Published

on September 25, 2009

. 6 Comments Tags:adventure, africa, animal-kingdom, blog, blogumentary, bush, bush-knowledge, bushfire, bushveld, cites, conservation, documentary, ecotraining, education, endangered-species, experience, film, filmmaker, fire, flickr, GLTP, gonarezhou, Great-Limpopo-Transfrontier-Park, Impala, IUCN-Red-List, lions, malilangwe, mashable, narrowcasting, Open-Content-Alliance, pamushana, peace-parks, photo, photos, podcasting, predators, teach, video, wild, wild dogs, wildcasting, wilderness, wildlife, wildlife-documentary, youtube, zimbabwe

The lions have been back.
I saw male lion tracks in the area of the wild dog den and on getting to the den, no sign of the dogs. This was in the afternoon as I’d spent the morning with Mark on the giraffe carcass with the hyaenas.
For the last couple of hours of light I searched the area, but picked up no sign of the dogs.

With an early start the next day I was back in the area searching, climbing all the highest koppies hoping to get a signal from Chevvy’s transmitter. In this mountainous country, using telemetry becomes rather hit and miss, but being up on the highest peaks usually produces success. By lunch time and with many conquered hills under my belt, I was still no closer to finding the dogs.

So I’d decided that I’d fly in the late afternoon. But just before heading to the airstrip, I climbed another mountain, this time close to home base, and sure enough I got a signal a long ways to the west.

The whole pack, including the pups had moved to another den having travelled about 5kms from the previous den. This is a long way for these 12 week old puppies, but they all seemed just fine.

They only spent a couple of days at this den and moved to another further south. This was far more user friendly to me than the last one.

But after being there only 2 days, disaster struck. Getting to the dogs at dawn, I only counted 10 puppies. One was missing and the pack had now moved away from the den. Searching the area there was no sign of foul play, until I got to the den and peering into the crevice I saw the curled up body of an African Rock Python. I could only see the one coil and then I saw the dead puppy. Shortly the python had disappeared. Not an easy feeling as I wondered which crevice it might appear from next. And then of course I went even more against the grain and wedged myself deep into the crevice to retrieve the puppy. Which I did and found its upper body covered in saliva. The python was already beginning to swallow the pup and my appearing on the scene must have disturbed it. I left the puppy there, but the python never returned.

The pack subsequently moved their den back to the previous one. Hopefully no more pythons up there!

Burning Rhino Backdrop: Video

Published

Wildcaster

on September 21, 2009

in videopost

. 1 Comment Tags:adventure, africa, animal-kingdom, blogumentary, bush, bush-knowledge, conservation, contolled fire, documentary, ecotraining, education, endangered-species, experience, film, filmmaker, flickr, GLTP, gonarezhou, Great-Limpopo-Transfrontier-Park, hunting, Hyena cubs, hyena den, IUCN-Red-List, kill, lions, malilangwe, mashable, narrowcasting, Open-Content-Alliance, pamushana, peace-parks, photos, podcasting, polls, predators, teach, wild, wildcasting, wilderness, wildlife, wildlife-documentary, zimbabwe

Yellow to red, filled with blue and white a fire flickers through the colour spectrum. It’s that time of the year that ecologists recommend burning certain areas of the bush veld. This would normally be a natural phenomenon, but has to be calculated and self-acted in our controlled environments.

It’s amazing how the animals are not really perturbed by the blaze and carry on as normal, just keeping out of its way. The fire swept past the hyena den but was stopped short by the trampled, there was no sign of any panic at the den, they just go underground and let the smoke pass over. I surprised the cubs at the Manuchi crossing yesterday and they were quite glad to see me tagging along.

The mothers were doing their usual “Jack-in the Box” type neck stretches eyeballing me out, but just making sure the cubs were alright. The cubs then scurried back to the den, which gave me an opportunity to follow the females on a little hunting excursion in the cool drizzle. Temperatures soared at around 40 degrees during the week and then dropped to 20 degrees on the week-end. The drizzle brings a little relief from the harsh rays of the sun, allowing the hyenas to move around during the day. They eventually came nose to nose with a herd of zebra, but nothing came of it. This is the first time I’ve been able to follow them with my vehicle and they were quite relaxed about it. So a small staring session and everyone went their own way. The hyenas headed in-between the hills and I was left stumped.

I met up with Sjambok earlier in the week, he was looking like a true king. He had eaten far too much, was over weight and lazy. He’s in charge, so I guess he can do what he likes.
One interesting thing I spotted was a White-tailed Mongoose.

This light footed creature is a little larger than a Spotted Genet and shows a lot of intelligence by hanging low and sitting on its white tail while I was scanning for it using the spotlight. Kim and I swapped blogging days while I head off to my sisters wedding for the week, so until next week – over and out.

Chasing Vultures: Video

Published

Wildcaster

on September 18, 2009

in videopost

. 4 Comments Tags:adventure, africa, animal-kingdom, blogumentary, bush, bush-knowledge, conservation, documentary, education, endangered-species, experience, film, filmmaker, flickr, GLTP, gonarezhou, Great-Limpopo-Transfrontier-Park, hunting, hyaena, hyena, kill, lions, malilangwe, narrowcasting, Open-Content-Alliance, pamushana, peace-parks, photos, podcasting, predators, teach, video, vulture, waterhole, wild, wild dogs, wildcasting, wilderness, wildlife, wildlife-documentary, zimbabwe

The dry sand atomized by a gust of wind that terminates in a dusty whirlwind. The hyena clan then appearing through the hazy glare from the sun setting through the mopane. The cubs awaken from their slumber after the boiling hot day and the sports begin.

The cubs have been extremely playful of late and just amazing to watch.The adults often join in the fun surrendering to their social nature. Its been another week at the hyena den and also up on the hill with Kim catching a few extra shots of him with the wild dog pups. Two nights ago we spent the night out close to Lojaan Dam, where a giraffe had died. It didn’t seem like anything killed it, probably just a natural death, but this is any predators dream find. I took along the “Bose” boombox and sounded the hyena calls at full volume.

I was amazed at the immediate response from across the valley. Leaving it at that and catching a little shut eye, it wan’t twenty minutes later that the first male hyena arrived on the scene ready to devour. He ran around scouting the area confused by the lack of other hyena presence. A nibble and a lick and he guarded the carcass until the others arrived. Nothing much happened until early morning besides one adult chewing on my car during the night. I was hoping a lion would appear or something interesting would happen, but nothing of the sort.

Sunrise came and the hyenas had barely made a dent in the carcass. A giraffe has such a thick hide, even hyenas battle to penetrate to the meat. Guided by a fresh morning breeze the vultures arrived in their hordes trying to stake their share of the carrion.

The fun then started all over again, the adults are such a laugh chasing the vultures, chasing each other up and down, basically, it was one big party for the hyenas – and they were enjoying every minute of it.

Dove Mania: Video

Published

Wildcaster

on September 14, 2009

in videopost

. 6 Comments Tags:adventure, africa, animal-kingdom, blog, blogumentary, bush, bush-knowledge, bushveld, cites, conservation, documentary, dove, ecotraining, education, endangered-species, experience, film, filmmaker, flickr, GLTP, gonarezhou, Great-Limpopo-Transfrontier-Park, IUCN-Red-List, kill, laughing, malilangwe, mania, mashable, narrowcasting, Open-Content-Alliance, pamushana, peace-parks, photo, photos, podcasting, predators, teach, video, waterhole, wild, wild dogs, wildcasting, wilderness, wildlife, wildlife-documentary, youtube, zimbabwe

The puppies of course are growing and their colours coming through nice and strong now. And unfortunately for me they’re still in the same den.

Having got back from a successful hunt yesterday and fed the pups, 4 of the adults headed back in the direction they came from, but just at a stroll. The pups followed across the valley and up the next hill. Somewhere along the way they got separated and half the pups headed home. Chevvy took the others up the hill and rested up at a cave. The pups checked it out but didn’t go in.

I thought the adults were possibly taking the pups back to their kill, but then having got to the cave, it seemed like they were trying to get them to move den. But that didn’t last and soon the adults were ushering the pups back to their old den.

It seems to have been a quiet week with the dogs. All doing their normal thing and hunting successfully.

Thankfully no more visits from lions and actually no sign of them in the area. A hyaena did pitch up near the den today but it didn’t even have time to smell the roses and the dogs sent it packing.

I’ve been flying my microlight again to help with some work on the reserve. Not having flown for 4months, my first flight ended up with engine failure. Thankfully I was near the airstrip and managed to glide in safely. With a complete carburettor overhaul the machine is purring again and I’ll be taking to the skies again tomorrow in search of some sable antelope.

Rhino Pick Up Lines: Video

Published

Wildcaster

on September 10, 2009

in videopost

. 4 Comments Tags:adventure, africa, animal-kingdom, blogumentary, buffalo, bush, bush tails, bush-knowledge, conservation, dagga boy, documentary, ecotraining, education, elephants, endangered-species, experience, film, filmmaker, flickr, GLTP, gonarezhou, Great-Limpopo-Transfrontier-Park, hunting, hyena, IUCN-Red-List, kill, lions, malilangwe, mashable, narrowcasting, Open-Content-Alliance, pamushana, peace-parks, photos, podcasting, polls, predators, story, teach, video, waterhole, wild, wild dogs, wildcasting, wilderness, wildlife, wildlife-documentary, youtube, zebra, zimbabwe

She put her head down and built up the courage to move over to the crouched figure on the ground. The sun had already set and the sky was a fiery red – the colour of blood. There’s something that switches over in the mind of a hyena when night falls and this hyena mum wanted desperately to give me the once over, or just a friendly sniff.

Whichever one it was, I wasn’t about to find out and blocked her determined approaches as the cubs came to lie on the ground completely chilled out. They are so relaxed that I think mum wants a little attention or lies down next to me to keep an eye on me. The saga at the den continues as I widen my terrain, finding males at Manuchi pan drinking at night and then I’m hoping to get them feeding on an old dagga boy that has died down at Malilangwe Dam.

This old buffalo survived a lion attack by the skin of its teeth as it tore down the park managers fence and in coming to see what all the commotion was about, scared off the lions. This whole event must have put too much stress on the poor animal and drove the last nail in his coffin as he lay at the dam to die.

I’ve also been going far and wide during the week to pick up a few extra shots. Nduna dam is still pumping with wild life. I spotted a leopard on the banks of the Chiredzi River and it looks like Sjambok is still with the Lioness from the Nduna pride. Cheetah have been spotted all over the Banyini area and one still with five cubs. Things are happening and the temperatures are rising well into the upper thirties. This is bringing in Elephant and Rhino to drink at mid-morning to suppress the heat – Come on summer, come on!

Bon ‘up-a-Tree’: Video

Published

Wildcaster

on September 7, 2009

in videopost

. 9 Comments Tags:adventure, africa, animal-kingdom, blog, blogumentary, bush, bush-knowledge, bushveld, cites, conservation, documentary, ecotraining, education, elephants, endangered-species, experience, feed, film, filmmaker, flickr, flowers, giraffe, GLTP, Great-Limpopo-Transfrontier-Park, hunting, IUCN-Red-List, malilangwe, mashable, narrowcasting, Open-Content-Alliance, pamushana, peace-parks, photo, photos, podcasting, predators, spring, teach, tongue, video, wild, wild dogs, wildcasting, wilderness, wildlife, wildlife-documentary, youtube, zimbabwe

The wild dogs are still at the same den, which continues to frustrate me as the area is covered in long grass and the entrance to the den is obscured by bush. AND of course there’s hardly any sun reaching the area either.

And to add to that I can’t drive to the den. Which of course makes things not so easy for me as I have to carry everything up there, but I also really need the pups to get used to the vehicle.

The pups are now 10 weeks old and the brown/yellow colours are really coming out on them. One pup seems to have the beauty of her mother. She’s the one I named Domino.

The adults/yearlings are still hunting like demons and more than coping with feeding the pack. And Puzzles is enjoying the easy life staying at home most of the time. She very seldom goes hunting. But then I suppose somebody has to babysit.

Yesterday the pups followed the adults hunting for the first time. They ventured a good half a kilometre from the den with the adults repeatedly trying to send them back home, but they were all psyched up for an adventure. Eventually Puzzles came trotting past me to the pups, gave a whine and then trotted back past me to the den with all 11 little ones following hot on her heals.

It wasn’t 5mins and the little guys were back down the hill, this time on their own. Half way down they seemed a little, sort of ‘lost’, I suppose. For 15mins they milled around and then thought better of it and ran back home.
Even with all going on the frustrations grow, as I haven’t had the camera out the box all week! Bleak!
The only predictable shooting we’ve been doing is me in front of the camera for a change. Mark has been shooting me for material needed for the wild dog film. The beauty of this is, I’m getting around the reserve again. And always happy to bump into a bunch of elephant bulls!

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Monthly Archive for September, 2009

Handling Fire: Video

Burning Rhino Backdrop: Video

Chasing Vultures: Video

Dove Mania: Video

Rhino Pick Up Lines: Video

Bon ‘up-a-Tree’: Video

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