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Game Viewing in the Soft Light of the Klaserie Bushveld

The soft light of the Klaserie bushveld floods the landscape with golden hues and creates a gentle, surreal atmosphere; enamouring onlookers with its ethereal golden glow. Smothering the colourful landscape below with its pastel colours, this is the time of day that heightens our feelings, softens the senses and ultimately gives the bushveld a romantic hazy glow.

These images are a far cry from the slew of big cat images we’ve recently shared. We decided you needed a much needed break from the tumultuous world of big cat ruthlessness. The dark and death-defying stunts of cats that shred the crimson flesh of plains game always provides a certain emotive complexity to a safari.

While kills can be awful to watch, at the same time it’s beautiful to watch the wild unfold before your eyes. Today we focus on the simplicity of the Klaserie and leave the myriad of mixed emotions alone for a day. Even if its just for a moment that we indulge in the hazy glow hovering over the reserve before the unpredictable night sets in, we still need to celebrate this sliver of the soft side of the bushveld.

Photographers Em Gatland and Kevin MacLaughlin; and the rest of the talented photography team at Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp often wax lyrical about the natural light of golden hour. It’s a much celebrated time in the bushveld and provides they idyllic natural setting and backdrop for award winning photos. This is also the time when we see herds and dazzles of plains game settling into a safe zone before blackness descends.

What do our herbivores and non-predatory plains game do after the sun sinks into the horizon? Well, for one lets look at zebra. They tend to sleep standing up and will only rest while in the safety of herds. The most interesting of the plains game is the giraffe. They don’t sleep for longer than five minutes at a stretch and are incredibly vigilant while resting. An adult giraffe can survive on just 30 minutes of sleep a night! As for the Cape buffalo, they don’t have the greatest night vision but do have acute hearing and also function on a minimal amount of sleep – roughly an hour!

Dreamy, placid and peaceful. We welcome you to the warm glow of the bridge between day and night.

BREAKING NEWS : 6 Mhangeni Breakaway Lionesses KILL Another Lioness

WARNING : GRAPHIC VIDEOS AND IMAGES AHEAD

Ranger Nadia and her guests from Umkumbe Safari Lodge witnessed a rare and historical moment in the Sabi Sand towards the end of last week. While on out game drive, guests spotted the 6 Mhangeni Breakaway lionesses enjoying the company of the Matshipiri males. After a series of unfortunate events regarding the loss of a kill, their attitude was somber and somewhat twitchy. While this was unfolding, a lone lioness wandered over into the Mhangeni Breakaway turf and then the mayhem began.

She most certainly was in the wrong place at the wrong time. Armed with an arsenal of anger and attitude, the 6 Mhangeni lionesses attacked, mauled and brutally killed the lone lioness. Below is the history, the story and the harrowing events leading up to this rather surprising event showcasing the tumultuous world of lions.

There’s speculation abound that the dead lioness is one of the older Sparta females. We have yet to formally identify the deceased lion, but we do suspect it is actually the Airfield/Airstrip female and not one of the Spartas. However, we are still speculating at this stage. Our initial reason for thinking it was one of the older Sparta’s was because they were recently on Umkumbe traverse, so it wasn’t a far stretch. A few days prior to the sighting of the duel -to-death, the Sparta lionesses were spotted. There was a huge commotion with the elephant herds close to the vehicle and it turns out that the herds were chasing the Sparta Pride lionesses and they ended up in the midst of our traverse.

The Spartas had just made a kill off of our boundary and eaten a sufficient amount to display gorged bellies. It’s clear they were displaced by the hyenas because of the whooping and cackling heard in the distance. One of the lionesses was chased up a tree by an elephant, which led us to photograph rare moments of tree climbing lions. A sight normally only reserved for the tree-climbing lions of Lake Manyara National Park in the Serengeti. But here in the Sabi Sand, we defy the textbooks – one only has to look at the reign of terror of the mighty and ruthless Mapogos that ended circa 2012!

So now you can see how we made the correlation between the recently passed lion and the Sparta lionesses. They were in the area, so it made sense. This, we thought, was the only rare sighting of the week. How wrong we were.

After the Sparta lioness sighting, Nadia took her guests on early morning game drive the following morning. Little did her excited guests know what lay ahead – the beauty of the wild. The unknown!

Nadia sent us this message shortly after the mind-blowing scenario unravelled.

On morning game drive we stumbled across the 6 Mhangeni Breakaway lionesses along with the 2 Matshipiri males. They were all just lazing around but the females seemed to stir a bit and was keen to hunt. The eventually got up and moved into a drainage line to settle in for the day. In the afternoon game drive we returned and they were still sleeping. One Matshipiri and one of the Mhangeni’s were off to the side mating. After some time they all got up and went in search of prey. After one failed attempt, eventually an impala kill was made. The males greedily devoured the whole kill without sharing a morsel!

Out of the blue a lone lionesses – not part of the breakaways – appeared. All 6 of the Mhangeni Breakaways decided to attack her. They wounded her really badly and we watched, horrified, as she took her last breath. After she passed away, the females walked over to make sure she was dead – grabbing her one last time. It was truly one of the most amazing thing I’ve ever witnessed! We managed to grab a bit of cell phone footage, but it was too heartbreaking and a “can’t-believe-this-is-happening” moment to whip out our cameras.

The Sabi Sand seems to have a bloodline of ruthless warriors and aggressive fighters upon their landscape. When war is upon them, prey sources are taken and turf lines are crossed; lions duel to the death to survive. Violent killers or war heroes, lions are the almighty kings of the wild. As humans, we are their observers – we do not interfere and we understand the careful synchronicity between beast and the wild.

We watch the cataclysmic flying of fluff, shredding of flesh during a kill and listen to powerful roars echoing through the land. We standby, watching in awe as the food chain unfolds before our eyes. However, when a lion kills another, it’s tremendously sad and horrific for us, but this is the way of the bushveld. It is the war of the warriors and the clash of the titans out there. And the Mhangeni lionesses share a fearless bloodline that hath no mercy!

The Sabi Sand was home to the mighty Mapogo coalition of terrifying and fearless male lions. They ruled over a massive area using fear tactics and took no prisoners during their reign of terror. Their behaviour was documented and studied – never in the world have we seen such a gruesome and ruthless warrior instinct. With such a strong bond and being large in size and stature; the Mapogos ruled the Sabi Sand for 6 years until circa 2012 when the Majinglanes (4 young males originally from the Kruger National Park) entered their grounds. It is believed the Mapogos killed in excess of 40 lions and cubs. The stats are actually probably higher given their coverage of such large territories. It is rumoured that the Mhangeni lionesses could be the grand daughters of Mapogo lions Mr T and Kinky Tail. Could the killer instinct be rife within them?

Have any questions? We all do! The combination of powerful genetics coursing through the veins of these lionesses and their ruthless will to survive is an incredible thing to watch, not a moment easily forgotten.

Week in Pics : The Genius of Genus Panthera

The Felidae family comprises the genus Panthera which refers to lions, leopards, tigers, jaguar and snow leopards. Snow leopards aren’t common in the bushveld; but our precious Panthera pardus (leopard) and Panthera leo (lion) are found in abundance throughout Botswana and Kruger. Now that you’re more aware of the taxonomic hierarchy of our cats, it’s time to celebrate the pure genius of these master stalkers, powerful pouncers and finely-tuned killing machines. This week we’ve experienced an unusually high rate of big cat sightings across the board, so it’s time to give them a bit of air time.

Umkumbe Safari Lodge

The Bicycle Crossing male and Mxabene male were seen during the course of the week. Spotting leopards while out on drive in the Sabi Sand is nothing unusual for Umkumbe. The highlight was stumbling across the Sparta Pride females – one of which was up in a tree ! It seemed they’d conducted a kill close to the boundary fence and sought refuge in a tree when chased by a herd of elephants. Tree-climbing lions? What a sighting for ranger Nadia and guests.

Ezulwini Game Lodges

Recently, the team in the Balule have indulged in plenty of quality time with blue-eyed beauty, Chavaluthu the male leopard. The highlight was the sighting of lions cubs. We have yet to ascertain which pride they belong to, but we do know that the Mohlabetsi males were mating with a variety of lionesses towards to end of last year.

Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp

The Klaserie Camps have had an interesting development in the world of lions. Duma, the golden-haired male has become fairly elusive but a lone male from the Mafikizolo Pride wandered over onto Klaserie turf. The Ross Pride breakaway lionesses made a comeback and so have the leopards. Leopards Bundu and Cleo have dominated this week’s sightings.

Tuskers Bush Camp

The lions are hovering around the perimeter of this Kwatale Concession camp and are often seen at the pan in front of camp. Photographer Dan went out in search of them and found a male and female enjoying a mating session! Unable to get photos, this week we’ve decided to share images of our other rewarding sightings at Tuskers Bush Camp.

Feeling the Frequency of the Kwatale Concession

Tuskers Bush Camp lies deep within Botswana’s unexplored tract of land in the Kwatale Concession and is proving to be quite consistent with big game sightings. Large bovids, intelligent pachyderms and elusive cats are beginning to, more so than ever, emerge from the thickets and reveal their presence.

The frequency of sightings has definitely improved since the camp’s inception, which clearly indicates that wildlife sees no threat with out existence. The pan in front of the camp is a major drawcard for our big cats. It’s not uncommon for guests to pull up a canvas chair, put their feet up and watch the stream of plains game filter down to the pan. It’s like watching a live wildlife documentary! As the sun sets and the fires are lit in the boma area, that’s the time to watch out for lions.

The lions have been hanging around camp recently. When the air is still and night is pitch black, that’s when you hear the contact calling – and its been happening consistently for days on end. These Tusker lions are hovering around the perimeter of camp and their raspy roars are quite audible. Their powerful calls can not only be heard, but also felt rippling through the sandy surrounds.

Dan said, “On one of the nights, we were all standing in the car park, listening carefully for their whereabouts and the next thing we heard a huge herd of buffalo stampeding. After ten minutes we actually heard the lions again and took the game viewer out to locate the cats. We searched high and low; and couldn’t find them. Their calls could be heard and we knew we were close. Suddenly, two meters in front of us two figures stood up.”

Of course, the lions being fairly skittish meant that Dan was unable to capture the magic moments on camera. The lions rapidly disappeared into the scrub before the cameras were ready. The two lions were the blonde male and female – they probably wanted a bit of privacy to continue their mating session! It appears the pair are using the animal paths through the untamed bushveld and not the open road, making it tricky for us to track them.

Sandy-haired bush loving photographer, Daniel Dugmore is based at Tuskers Bush Camp and will be going out on a guided walk to track our resident pride. He is on a mission to document their activity. In the words of dear Dan – “This place is pumping with sightings!”.

In between the lion drama, the sightings of other wildlife is definitely on the rise.

The vibrations of roaring cats, waves caused by hippos in the pan brimming with water and the gentle oscillation of the branches teeming with birds certainly makes us feel the frequency of the Kwatale Concession!

Unusual Sightings in Klaserie : The Eye of the Tiger Snake

There are estimated to be over 54 species of snakes slithering through the vast Kruger landscape. These fork-tongued species are gravely misunderstood and, contrary to alarmist belief systems, not all snakes are killing machines.

The dangerous, mildly venomous, deadly and harmless variety of snake species can be found in abundance in the Klaserie. Hate them, love them or respect them; the Serpentes is one of the most fascinating reptiles to study. There’s a certain mysterious and eerie aura surrounding snakes.

Humans cannot read their emotions and identify with their behaviour, so naturally, that which we do not understand we fear. In many African tales of myths and legends, the snake is perceived as being an evil entity and hence there is plenty of superstition surrounding their existence.

The truth is, snakes don’t seek to attack. Most of the time they’re quite placid, apart from when provoked, handled or accidentally stood on – which is when most bites happen. Snakes will feel the vibrations of an object approaching and soundlessly retreat to a safe space. We actually have no real reason to irrationally fear snakes. Despite their scaly and slimy looking appearance they’re quite smooth and almost velvety to the touch!

Snakes can be very tricky to classify in the wild, so it’s always recommended that you don’t ever handle one. Rhombic markings could be mistaken for complex chevron markings. An example of mistaken identity might be that the deadly haemotoxic Boomslang can easily be mistaken for the harmless placid spotted bush snake.

While out on game drive with Africa on Foot, photographer/videographer and passionate guide Kevin MacLaughlin spotted a common tiger snake in the darkness. Its burnt orange colourings with typical banded markings reflect similar markings to that of a tiger – a dead giveaway to the type of snake species.

While the pinpricks of stars shone on the land below, the only other beacon of bright colour was this delightful “Telescopus semiannulatus” snake. This snake is also known as the African tiger snake, tiger snake, tiger cat snake, striped cat snake and gewone tierslang.

After a few minutes of snapping away with their mighty zoom cameras, the snake decided it was time to disappear into the abyss of darkness, leaving another memorable sighting for the books. This rarely talked about snake is classified as mildly venomous and isn’t a threat to man. You’ll find this nocturnal species feasting mainly on lizards, fledglings and small rodents. The common tiger snake has a wide distribution and can be found in arid areas, savannah and lowland forest. During the day it seeks refuge in hidden areas and will come out at night to feed.

Often confused with the coral snake, the common tiger snake does have striking similarities; but thanks to Kevin’s experience in Herpetology he was quickly able to identify this graceful species.

A Few Interesting Facts About Snakes:

There are three types of deadly venom found in venomous species of snakes. Certain snakes contain a cocktail of venoms, making them ultra potent. Haemotoxic venom which means the venom causes blood to ooze and eventually involves internal bleeding. Neurotoxic venom attacks the neural pathways and their is pain at the site of the bite. Expect blurred vision, slurred speech and difficulty breathing. Cytotoxic venom involves the attack and necrosis of the tissues within the body.

More than 98% of snakebites will not be fatal (ref: Snakes of Southern Africa, Johan Marais)

Juvenile snakes that are in the venomous category are born with venom glands and a full set of fangs; making them equally as venomous as their parents.

When snakes hatch from their eggs, the parents show no interest in them. They are left to fend for themselves, which is why there is such a high mortality rate in the wild. Only the strong survive!

Week in Pictures: The Spirit of the Wild

Photography has given us moments in time. Frozen forever in an instant never to be repeated or replayed – maybe similar, but never identical. The beauty of the bush has captured the hearts of travellers and residents alike, and it falls upon photography to translate the beauty of the wilderness into images to cherish forever. Technology has developed in such a way that we can zoom in and out, adjust colour and light, add and remove elements, sharpen or blur lines, and crop to perfect an artist’s vision. What truly makes an image unforgettable is the energy – the spirit of the wild. Emotion and character captured in living beings, the hypothetical breaths of the wind, tidal energy of the sea, the instinct in the eye of an animal. Our photographers have been busy, absorbed in the bush and breathing the wild air; now, we can look back on the week in wildlife photography and indulge once more in the natural beauty of safari. Enjoy the Week in Pictures: The Spirit of the Wild!

Tuskers Bush Camp, Kwatale Conservancy, Northern Botswana

Africa on Foot, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, Greater Kruger Park

Umkumbe Safari Lodge, Sabi Sand Wildtuin, Greater Kruger Park

nThambo Tree Camp, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, Greater Kruger Park

Ezulwini Game Lodges, Balule Nature Reserve, Greater Kruger Park

Leopardess Cleo on the Look Out in Klaserie

This morning’s safari at nThambo Tree Camp was one for the books. We consider ourselves lucky every time we see a leopard, as they are the most elusive member of the Big 5 and their solitary, nocturnal lifestyles make them difficult to spot. Fortunately, our traverse in the Klaserie seems to provide the perfect habitat for these sleek cats, giving us fantastic opportunities to see them in action: there are ample prey species (particularly impala), there are lots of beautiful leadwood trees, and some shady, rocky drainage lines the leopards seem to like. A day or two ago we chanced a sighting of Bundu (Ross Dam’s cub), and this morning we laid eyes on the famous lady, Cleo!

She has a definitive face, and an incredible, relaxed manner. We have enjoyed many sightings of her over the years, and every time she has lingered for a while, unperturbed by our presence, and given our guests plentiful photo opportunities. This morning, she was spotted slinking through the tall grass, keeping low and stealthy, clearly trying not to be seen by any potential prey. However, her cover was soon blown by a herd of elephants, which has stuck around over the last couple of days (much to our delight). Elephants are famously grumpy when it comes to predators, and seldom leave them to themselves, opting, rather, to chase them off and assert their dominance in the situation.

nThambo guests were on the scene, watching from the game viewer, and enjoyed the comical and astonishing events that followed. Cleo bounded around, trying to keep out of the way as the feisty elephants chased her around, trumpeting in disgruntled manners, and flapping their ears at her. Eventually Cleo leapt into a nearby marula tree and gave us a perfect, cat-like show as she settled down on a branch and scanned the area.

She was clearly looking out for a herd of impala, or perhaps a family of warthog to stalk and eventually pounce on, rewarding herself with a meal. As we gazed up at this magnificent female leopard against the perfect blue backdrop, we saw how agile and confident she is above ground. After about 10 minutes, Cleo had sussed out her next move, swiftly descended the tree and slunk off into the thicket. What a privilege to watch!

Week in Pics : A Trace of Green for St Patrick’s Day

Pantone awarded green as the colour of the year for 2017 and it happens to be the signature colour of St Patrick’s Day, which is today. Green represents rebirth, life, motivation and freshness. When the season’s change and bring the rains, the bushveld changes from crunchy and dull to lustrous and green.

St Patrick’s Day and the natural hues of the bushveld go hand-in-hand. Today, for Week in Pictures, we’re showcasing the most vibrant photos with green as the dominant theme. Whether it’s the texture, lighting, wildlife markings or vegetation; if it’s green we’re sharing it!

St Patrick’s day, or St Paddy’s day, is the day we celebrate the patron saint of Ireland. The day is not confined merely to the delightful Irish heritage, but has actually become a global phenomenon. Originally meant to signify the arrival of Christianity in Ireland, the day has since evolved to mean much more than its origins. On St Paddy’s day it is suggested the masses wear shamrocks or green clothing. The shamrock is a three-leaved plant that was used to explain the Holy Trinity to the pagan Irish.

Here’s a quick catch-up:

This week’s sightings we’ve a few stand out wildlife experiences from Umkumbe Safari Lodge. These have included a failed hunt by White Dam the leopard, sightings of Mxabene the leopard, a lone cheetah an a herd of elephant soaking up the muddy delights on offer in the Sabi Sand.

Ezulwini Billy’s Lodge, the Klaserie Camps and our Botswana camps continue to enjoy their fill of sightings. Birding, plains game and huge herbivores have been enjoying the spoils of the lush and thriving landscape.

Here’s to all those that are celebrating St Paddy’s Day. Find your green and enjoy our trace of green for this week’s “Week in Pics”.

Umkumbe Safari Lodge

Ezulwini Billy’s Lodge and Ezulwini River Lodge

Xobega Island Camp and Tuskers Bush Camp

Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp

Umkumbe Leopard News : Dashing and Daring, Courageous and Caring…

Kids of the nineties were enamoured with the mythical fluffy cartoon creatures called the “Gummi Bears”. Their theme song became synonymous with adventure and exploration. The opening lyrics detail their constant quest for the thrill-seeking life. The theme song begins with “Dashing and daring, courageous and caring, faithful and friendly with stories to share” and these are just a few of the attributes we can also assign to our aloof cat species. I understand it’s quite a leap, but the song certainly represents the qualities of the leopards of the Sabi Sand.

Dashing after their quarry, daring for being opportunistic hunters, courageous for fighting off hyenas from kills, the caring love between leopardess and cub, faithful to their territory, friendly (tolerant) towards new cubs exploring the periphery of a female’s territory and of course, there are plenty of stories to share!

These qualities owned by both the fictional Gummi Bears and one of Africa’s most elusive cat species were exhibited this week during Umkumbe’s leopard sightings, hence the correlation between the two.

The most recent sightings have included our resident stocky males, Bicycle Crossing and Mxabene. Slender leopardesses White Dam, the youthful Tatowa and Kigelia were also present for our game drives.

The Boys : Mxabene, Bicycle Crossing and Inyathini

Mxabene is often spotted on the confines of our traverse and having a history deeply entrenched in the Sabi Sand, he has quite the dominant presence. Not one to shy away from game viewers, we often enjoy close-up encounters with this lightly amber colour cat. In 2008, Mxabene was born as one of two twin males to the Mxabene female – a well known and revered leopardess in the area. She was incredibly relaxed around the presence of game viewers, which Max naturally and quickly became accustomed to the presence of vehicles.

Our dear Max oozes confidence and courage!

Bicycle Crossing occupies a different territory to Max and sightings of this broad male are somewhat more elusive. It’s always rewarding spotting this powerful machine of muscle swaggering through the drainage lines.

Male leopards are highly territorial and “homes” don’t often overlap. Males home range can overlap with that of several females – after all they select their turf based on availability of females and abundance of food sources.

Inyathini was spotted over the past few days and ranger Marius Zeilinga says that he has been spotted in close proximity to the lodge almost on a daily basis. He has been aggressively staking claim on new turf and scent marking excessively. Leopards mark territory by scent marking and emitting a series of low growls.

The Girls: White Dam, Tatowa and Kigelia

Our slender female leopards are slightly different from their male counterparts when it comes to territory and will seek out turf based on availability of prey and potential den sites. The territory they occupy is a lot smaller than the male. When their cubs come of age and are ready to leave their side, they will occupy the peripheries of their mother’s territory.

Females will even tolerate sub-adults coming over to their territory when they begin their solitary lifestyle. Because a female’s territory is smaller, we often see plenty of females on our traverse. This past week we’ve managed to observe Tatowa, Kigelia and White Dam. All in a day’s work really !

White Dam managed to take down an impala in front Marius’s guests but a fast-paced, sneaky hyena stole the kill within a few seconds of the kill being made.

Week in Pictures: Sunday Blues Pick-Me-Up

A delayed release of the Week in Pictures this week due to adventure, safari, and that blissful lack of connection we all enjoy out in the bush! Our media team has been on location over the weekend at a new and highly anticipated Sun Destinations Kruger camp soon to join the portfolio. Picture this: views of the Klaserie River, rocky outcrops perfect for sunset views, bush breakfasts complete with bubbles, sunrise photo shoots, and surprise sightings of African wild dogs. It has been a whirlwind weekend in the bush to finish off a week of unforgettable wildlife sightings and safari experiences.

From morning walking safaris at Africa on Foot, to monochrome moods at Ezulwini, Okavango boat cruises at Xobega Island, and artistic impressions at Umkumbe in the Sabi Sand; we have the highlights of the week’s safari sightings. Just as you might be contemplating the responsibilities of a Monday and mourning the loss of another weekend, we would like to offer a soothing gallery of wildlife moments captured on camera to serve as a Sunday Blues pick-me-up! Enjoy this edition of the Week in Pictures and escape to the blissful world of the wild…

Xobega Island Camp, Okavango Delta, Northern Botswana