Late yesterday afternoon I took an easy drive past the old favourite, Banyini Pan; there is just so much activity at the moment. This might not last with the grass growing tall and showers of rain to help it along. I was just in time to catch the young pride of lions from the South poaching on Sjambok’s territory – I would not want to be in their paws if they were caught out!
Lions are known to kill other lions in their territory, but I think they know the pride is moving up in the hills with cubs on the way, we hope. The interesting thing is that these guys were just as relaxed with us around as Sjambok’s pride.
After taking a few photographs of them lying sprawled out next to the pan, they were provoked by the sound of Zebra passing by. In typical lion style, each lion was waiting for the other to kick into action and catch themselves some dinner. At first I thought there were only four lions, but then as the hunt began we counted six lions. We don’t see much of these lions so it was good to spend time with them and hunt with them. They are really in good shape; the male is still young and does not even have a mane yet.
This morning was rescue the terrapin day. There is a pool of water we drive through to get to our house and there were a few very small baby terrapins inside. Each time a car came driving through, there would be a whole lot of paddling going on as they made a break for the bushes. I thought I’d give them a fighting chance and dropped them down at the dam. There were only two left to save, but at least they can now go on their merry way.
Kim is out flying to see if he can pick up on the dogs, I hope we see them soon, I’m getting withdrawal symptoms – hey, the thrill of the bush!
What began as an ordinary early start in search of the dogs ended up a little extraordinary. It is not surprising that those wild dogs have moved off and disappeared like transparent phantoms in the night - without a trace. However, that did not stop me having a go at finding them, but my enthusiasm soon petered out when Kylie spotted some Elephant tracks in the road. I could hear that low rumbling sound they make. Soon we could smell their fresh dung and we knew they were close, but that does not guarantee anything in this thick bush. Heading East toward Chibi pan, I thought we might have been too late, so we parked and enjoyed some bird watching, which included: a Red-crested Korhaan, Three-banded Plover, a Red-backed Shrike and White faced Ducks.
For me, a really good Elephant watch has been scarce at Malilangwe Reserve and I really wanted to capture some of those little guys in the breeding herd. Heading south is like driving into an ocean of clay, so it was back to the main road out of there. Just when I hit the intersection, a midsized bull Elephant peeked his head out the bush…followed by a King sized big tusker!
They were a little weary at first with a succession of trumpet blowing and ear flapping, but then they let us be. We were surrounded by thirty to forty elephant coming out of the woodwork. The little guys were suckling on their mothers, while the entire herd indulged in some real graze for a change.
They were finding little mud pools from the rain and throwing the mud all over themselves, even rolling in the little pools. During the dry season they resort to browsing, but when the opportunity arises they really tuck into that grazing.
When they eventually made their way back into the thickets, we took a drive past the hill where Manyari was last seen and she was still in the area, we are hearing her call almost everyday now. We continued to the top of a hill overlooking Malilangwe dam – talk about ending the morning on a high note!
We seemed to have brought the rain with us on our return from South Africa to pick up supplies. Yesterday we only had one shower, but it was enough to have Kim return early from the dogs, soaking wet. After attending to a few things on my vehicle, I set out later in the afternoon to catch up with the dogs, but Kim was tracking them and left them running west into sum slippery terrain. The sun set to the sound of one of our lionesses’ calls echoing through the hills – feels good to be back!
Early this morning the rain set in and now I’m back to “sticking” to the roads. Unable to track the dogs through muddy terrain, I always enjoy seeing flowing water, so I was keen to check out how the dams were filling up. At Nduna dam the river was flowing into the dam and the water level was rising. What an awesome morning listening to running water, bird-life in abundance and the hippo snorting in the background! Just as I got comfortable, an ominous looking cloud crept over the horizon, which was when I felt it a good idea to expedite my morning drive.
A quick spin past Banyini and Nyari pan revealed some big herds of Zebra and Impala, with a few interesting looking butterflies to photograph. The great success of today, though, was in the afternoon when we were introduce to a new character – a male leopard.
Alan and the Malilangwe team have managed to tag him, so we will have a lot more time to spend with him.
The rains have arrived! I thought I could rush off to Mala Mala when the rains started so I’d be in camp if the flood waters got too high that I had to remove all my equipment. But the rain arrived in a hurry and it wasn’t long before there was no access to Mala Mala from the outside world. So here I sit at home (that’s pretty good) worrying about what the floods are going to do.
The north eastern parts of South Africa have received the brunt of these rains causing more flooding and widespread damage and leaving many people homeless. Many have had their houses washed away. But many live in huts constructed of mud and with all the rain these have just “melted” and collapsed.
Tjololo we are thinking of you and trusting you are safe!
But even more concerned about Tjellers. We are expecting her to have her next litter of cubs any day now, if she hasn’t had them already. She should be high up in a rocky outcrop and alright.
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