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Week in Pics: Wildlife Behaviour in the Rain

The skies have opened and torrents of fresh water can be seen soaking the parched lands of the Kruger. The rain is here in full force and it’s creating a playground for our wildlife ! Dagga boys are spoilt for choice with waterholes, elephants are frolicking in the water like first time beach goers at the seaside; and some strange, yet wonderful things are happening in the Kruger. The rains have breathed new life into the arid landscape and Africa is dancing with delight.

This week in pictures, we’re celebrating the diversity of wildlife and focussing on the creatures both large and small who’ve emerged while the rains have pelted down. Because our focus today is the abundance of water and changing weather patterns, we’re going to look at how wildlife behaves with the wet weather.

Ezulwini Game Lodges

Our pride of the Balule is Ezulwini River Lodge and Ezulwini Billy’s Lodge. The lodges enjoyed heavy but intermittent rains over the past week, with a few days of dry weather and heavy clouds looming above. Last night there was a light rain and 34mm was recorded! The Balule bushveld is looking green and waterholes are looking quite full.

This week the accomplished scavengers hyenas, curious zebra, gentle elephants and stoic buffaloes have taken centre stage. Buffalo need to drink twice a day and the “pathfinders” normally lead the heard to the closest water source. Dagga boys are the old bulls who you see wallowing in mud pools. All this rain is making the dagga boys very happy!

The huge breeding herds of elephant are spending plenty of time coating themselves in mud and their moisture laden bodies is a relief for everyone to see. Even the hyenas have taken to cooling off in the newly replenished waterholes. They’ll be sure to scurry away when they catch a whiff of a kill somewhere!

Umkumbe Safari Lodge

Despite the incredible downpours and the mud soaked lands; our delicate water-fearing big cats have been seen in abundance this week at Umkumbe Safari Lodge. Leopards are one of the most adaptable cats and can live in a range of conditions. If there’s a downpour, they’ll seek shelter under the shrubbery or in a drainage line, which is preferable to the soaking weather, but nothing stops an opportunistic leopard on its quest to kill; even when the weather is undesirable.

White Dam, the notoriously shy leopardess, was seen with her cub just relaxing in the thickets. This week, the elegantly patterned leopard Mahlatini was seen guarding his duiker kill. This elusive leopard hasn’t been seen in 3 months, so this definitely topped the sightings of the week.

Bloats of hippo have been enjoying the high water levels of the Sand River, which runs in front of the lodge. Water loving species like waterbuck, buffalo and elephants have come out of the woodwork. Honey badgers and civet cats were also seen just flittering about under the cover of the starlit night sky. Antelope and plains game have certainly enjoyed the new growth and fresh grass on offer – the rains have delivered a fresh buffet!

This week, Umkumbe has just released an interview with Marius Zeilinga about the rains and the cause-effect it has on nature and the bio-diversity of the area.

Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp

The Klaserie team happily reported a sighting of the Ross Pride Breakaway females. Albeit a brief sighting, the lions were spotted. They were on the move during the drier parts of the day and the gentle pitter patter of paws could be heard crunching through the thickets. We’ll tell you about that later on today…!

In other news, as predicted, the huge buffalo and elephant herds are enjoying the wet weather. These two mammoth sized herbivores need water sources in order to survive; more so than other species. The smaller creatures have been out to play and there was a rare sighting of a deadly puff adder. Clearly the snakes are on the move to find sources of heat during the day and drier areas to hibernate from the rains.

Wading birds, such as the unfortunate looking marabou stork, also seem to be celebrating the rains. Raptors such as the fish eagle clearly love the full dams – more fish and reptiles. Plenty of activity from nThambo Tree Camp and Africa on Foot game drives.

Enjoy the week in pictures and let’s celebrate the birth of a more “green” Kruger. Our lands have been thirsty.

Third Kill for Leopardess White Dam & Cub

White Dam is a notoriously shy leopardess roaming the traverse surrounding Umkumbe Safari Lodge. With stealth and grace she darts between shrubbery dotted along the landscape. The past week she has exhibited unusual behaviour, quite uncharacteristic of her rather coy demeanour. You’re not going to believe this, but White Dam has been hunting out in the open together with her cub and is unfazed by the limelight!

Rangers and guests at Umkumbe often report sightings of White Dam together with her cub. She is clearly teaching her offspring how to hunt successfully and arm her cub with finely tuned ambushing techniques. Has her playful cub brought out an extroverted side to White Dam? It appears so – this was the third kill in a space of 4 – 5 days. During this period of time, the cub clearly upped its skill set.

We’ve told the tale of two of her kills, now here is the third. When this famously elusive leopardess made her first kill, the youngster hung back. At 10 months old the cub will accompany its mother on a kill – nothing better than on-the-job training. Cubs are often left to their devices while the adults patrol and hunt; and clearly the cub wasn’t confident enough to take centre stage. When the kill was made, the smell attracted our infamous scavengers – the hyenas.

The antics from the second leopard kill were caught on the sneaky camera trap. The antics were incredible and it’s amazing to observe what happens when the game viewers aren’t around ! There’s plenty of playfulness, gentle ambushing and ripping apart of the carcass. Due to successful scavenging from our hyena species, the carcass was stolen, leaving them without a much anticipated meal. At least both leopards were sufficiently full from their first kill. However, this expectation of a meal obviously left them salivating. Leopards are also opportunistic hunters which is why the third kill happened. And this time, the cub was more involved!

Unfortunately guests didn’t see the kill happen but caught a glimpse White Dam’s cub dragging the fleshy carcass up a tree. White Dam was nowhere to be seen but she has clearly taught her cub how to stash a kill for safekeeping.

Watch this space, White Dam and cub are dominating the Sabi Sand leopard sightings!

Not a bad trilogy of leopard kills for the Sabi Sand !

Week in Pictures: Predators and Plains Game

This week was the week that brought the rain to the Kruger. At such a late stage in the summer, the earth was scorched from the incessant heat and lack of replenishment from the rain. Then, the growl of distant thunder and flicker of lightning behind giant grey clouds announced the arrival of relief, all the way from the Sabi Sand, through the Klaserie, and into the Balule Nature Reserve and beyond. Dreams came true this week, as the heavens opened and watered the land at long last!

On the days before game drives got rained out, our guides and photographers took to the bush with their cameras and captured some of the highlights in wildlife action, which we now present as the Week in Pictures: Predators and Plains Game.

Leopards dominated this week at Umkumbe Safari Lodge, Africa on Foot, and nThambo Tree Camp, while Ezulwini River Lodge and Billy’s Lodge saw the return of the lions. Chavaluthu, Ezulwini’s blue-eyed leopard made numerous appearances, while Umkumbe’s famous leopardesses, White Dam and Kigelia, paraded through their Sabi Sand territories. Cleo and Zero dazzled at Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp where their territories lie.

In addtition to some astounding cat sightings, game drives were sprinkled with the mesmerising presence of giraffe, zebra, and amber-eyed owls. An elephant carcass naturally became the subject of a scavenger’s feast, where vultures and hyenas celebrated the abundance of food in Balule. The golden sunlight that shone ahead of the merciful clouds illuminated the playful forms of African wild dogs in the Klaserie, concluding a week’s worth of spell-binding safari moments.

Umkumbe Safari Lodge, Sabi Sand Wildtuin

nThambo Tree Camp, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve

Ezulwini Game Lodges, Balule Nature Reserve

Africa on Foot, Klaserie Private Nature Reserve

Leopard & Cub Captured on Camera Trap

This outstanding footage from a camera trap shows some of the intimate details of a leopard’s feeding habits, behaviour, and the bond between a mother and cub. Umkumbe Safari Lodge guide, Marius Zeilinga, placed the camera trap strategically at the location of a fresh leopard kill, and the result is truly something special…

This female leopard, known as White Dam, and her male cub, were seen on a kill only days ago, but the predator instinct in her ensured that they would be eating once again. The footage shows both mother and cub feeding intermittently on the carcass throughout the day and night, but it also allows us the rare glimpse into a leopard’s life ‘behind closed doors’.

White Dam’s youngster demonstrates what he has learnt from his mother by clinging to the face and neck of the (already dead) impala carcass, and attempting to ‘suffocate’ it. This is a skill he needs to strengthen if he is to go out and live on his own, which is part and parcel of being a wild leopard.

The mother leopard’s patience and reciprocation shown to her cub’s playful antics is astonishing and heart warming. Watch how he pounces on her from a hiding place behind the tree trunk – she flies through the air in fright, and then approaches him for a nuzzle of affection, reaffirming the close bond they have.

It is known that leopards pluck the fur or feathers from their prey before eating the meat, but it is not every day we get to witness it ourselves. In this footage, it can be quite clearly seen that White Dam begins to pluck the fine fur out with her teeth.

Eventually, darkness falls and the leopards can be seen feeding on the carcass before it is dragged into the tree before hyenas approach. Unfortunately, the Umkumbe guides confirmed that the leopards did lose this kill to the scavenging hyenas – they were there to witness it with their guests during game drive!

Luckily, this was White Dam’s second kill in a couple of days, so she and her cub were good and full; however, the behaviour of hyenas is proving to be a proper nuisance for leopards who, very often, lose their kills to them.

Top 5 Reasons to Chase a Glamping Safari in Botswana

I’m balancing on the edge of turning 40 but still have the heart of an explorer and indulge in the follies of youth. I like adventure but also enjoy the creature comforts of home. I’m a little bit city, little bit rough-it. John Chase Safaris is the perfect safari option for someone like me. It combines splatterings of roughing-it mixed in with lodge-style living. It’s the ideal “glamping” style holiday in Botswana for the in-between crowd. Botswana is a country priding itself on the high concentration of wildlife, diverse landscape and incredible people. Who would NOT want to experience Botswana in its entirety?

John Chase is the way to do it in style.

Here are my top 5 reasons to chase a glamping safari in Botswana:

1. The opportunity to explore tourist areas and off-the-beaten track areas

The Chobe waterfront is a region bustling with safari goers, but with good reason. There is prolific game in this area and sightings of predator kills and big game is common. Bloats of hippo occupy waterways, the Nile crocodiles sun themselves on the banks of the river, breeding herds of elephant spend their days frolicking in the waters and birds flock to the region.

For this reason, John Chase Safaris includes the Chobe waterfront in their itinerary. The less crowded areas are where the pre-prepared campsites are located. These areas are normally only reserved for the Botswana Guides Association. These are sites located in off-the-beaten track areas, where sightings of other game vehicles is quite rare!

2. You can stick to a set itinerary or plot your own route

Itineraries include luxury camping or lodging in Moremi Game Reserve, Central Kalahari, Makgadikgadi Pans, Nxai Pan, and Chobe National Park. Kwando Safaris luxury lodges are utilised for the Nxai Pan or Tau Pan leg of the itinerary. The elegant campsites are set-up in exclusive private areas. John Chase Safaris have numerous itineraries catering for different lengths of safari. There are 6 night and 12 night itineraries exploring a range of areas scattered throughout Botswana, all of which ensure an introduction into both a water and land based safari.

3. Healthy mix of luxury camping and lodge accommodation

Meru-style tents are erected in well-positioned spots. Tents have a covered verandah with chairs and table – just the perfect spot to relax and read a book! The interior of the tents have hanging shelves, bedside tables, mirrors, beds and separate area leading into your en suite make-shift bush bathroom! The tents are all beautifully appointed and set-up before arriving at the campsite. A central campfire sets the scene for storytelling and gourmet food is served under the gazebo which serves as a lounge area.

Lodge accommodation with John Chase includes nights at Kwando Safaris luxury lodges, but that’s only for itineraries including the Nxai Pan or Tau Pan leg.

4. Well-priced for what’s on offer

Rates for John Chase Safaris are from $4990 per person and they include meals, accommodation, laundry, twice daily game drives, local beverages, return transfers, light aircraft flight at end of itinerary, park entry fees and a guide at your beck and call !

5. A host of optional activities available

Morning and afternoon game drives take place with John Chase Safaris. This allows you to view a range of different wildlife activity. There’s often activity during the night around camp and fantastic bird viewing at the campsites. There are plenty of optional activities, such as mokoro trips, boat safaris and sunset cruises. This allows you the best of both water and land based safaris.

Leopardess White Dam & Cub on a Kill

The legendary leopards of the Sabi Sand just don’t disappoint, do they? Even in the scorching hot weather, White Dam and her cub made an appearance as they feasted on an impala kill in a tree above a giant termite mound, and – uncharacteristically for White Dam – remained in fantastic view of the Umkumbe game viewer for a photo shoot.

This famously elusive leopardess had made her kill the day before, but there was still a fair amount of meat left on the carcass, so the pair of leopards wasn’t ready to abandon it yet. The smell, however, had attracted the usual scavengers: spotted hyena. As we sat admiring White Dam’s elegant form, leisurely splayed out at the foot of the tree, she flattened her ears ever so briefly and gave a subtle curl of the lip. At first we thought this fiesty leopard had her eye on Tracker Forward, but soon enough we realised she had seen a hyena lurking in the thicket.

At our first visit to this outstanding sighting, White Dam’s cub was nowhere to be seen, but when we returned after sundowners to see if the cats would resume feeding on their impala, we saw the young male leopard hanging back in the shadows. His mother was in the tree, and, indeed, was feeding on the last of her kill, and at the foot of the tree were at least 2 hyenas. At one point, the young leopard attempted to climb the tree, but soon backed off again to avoid conflict with the pesky hyenas!

White Dam gnawed on the cartilage of the imapala’s remaining hind leg, much to the envy of the hovering scavengers, and after a while, our own stomachs started to grumble and we left the scene to follow the scent of Umkumbe’s kitchen aromas in the distance! Fantastic game drive in the presence of leopards, as always.

Elephants, Sundowners & Rain at Umkumbe Safari Lodge!

The heat had been building all day in the Sabi Sand, but the guests at Umkumbe Safari Lodge weren’t going to let 45-degree temperatures deter them from an afternoon game drive. As Cameron, Marius, and Mauritz pulled their vehicles up front, guests gathered their cameras and peak caps and climbed aboard to begin their safari. Trackers – Josef, Moses, and Forward – took their seats and the Land Rovers spluttered to life before departing in various directions in search of wildlife.

It didn’t take long before a regal kudu bull emerged from a leafy drainage line and posed for his audience. A journey of giraffe ambled through the thicket with their gentle eyes gazing down at us, skeptically. Birds perched in the trees with their beaks slightly open and their wings hanging slackly against their sides – every creature was feeling the heat!

Soon enough, a herd of elephants appeared in and alongside a sandy riverbed, feeding on the lush foliage that is found there, while everywhere else seems stricken by drought. Rain has been very scarce this season, and the evidence is all over the Sabi Sand. Thankfully, relief was written in the sky in the form of ominous clouds and a gusty warm wind that swept around our faces.

After a lengthy encounter with the herd of jumbos, guests were whisked off to see the star of the show: White Dam – one of Umkumbe’s well known leopards. She had made a kill with her subadult cub, and they had been located at a large termite mound, relaxing. This incredibly special sighting is an Umkumbe classic, and luckily for all, White Dam was in the mood to be admired.

Before dark, it is tradition to stop and unpack a cooler box at a remote and scenic place on the traverse. Cameron stopped near a small waterhole, from where we could see the elephants continuing their feeding mission through the bush, and a herd of blue wildebeest grazing in the last light of the day. The clouds gathered overhead, creating a dramatic backdrop for sundowners, and attention soon turned to the wine!

After sunset, guests climb aboard once more, and Forward pulled out the spotlight and began scanning the darkness for any sign of nocturnal creatures. A quick check back with White Dam and her cub revealed that they had been joined by a couple of hyenas, ready and waiting for a morsel of impala to fall from the tree. The wind began to blow passionately, threatening to bring what we have all been waiting for: rain. Just as the guides returned to the Umkumbe entrance, a porcupine made a rare and rushed appearance in the spotlight – a delight for guests and guides alike.

What’s more? The rain did arrive, and it arrived by the bucket-load!

Magic Mike Stumbles Across Zero the Leopard

They don’t call him Magic Mike for nothing…Ranger Michael Beard delivered a leopard sighting of mammoth proportions last night, which enthralled his guests. Here’s the story of Zero, the hero and the ultimate showdown between cat and antelope.

In the early hours of the morning, a cacophony of sound enveloped Africa on Foot. It was the deep throated barking and roaring of lions contact calling. Enoch, a highly-skilled and knowledgeable tracker decided to track the lions in the hopes of finding the beloved Ross Pride Breakaway lionesses or even the Trilogy males.

In the wild, when you’re dead set on finding one thing; something else always appears. While searching for the hard-to-get lions, Enoch discovered a neat line of fresh leopard tracks heading towards Tower Pan dam. Interestingly enough, the tracks backtracked along the same path. This is often an indication that a kill has just been made. Leopards will drag their kill up into a tree for safekeeping, feast on it until they are sufficiently satisfied and then seek out an available water source to replenish their thirst. After quenching their thirst they’ll return to their meal.

Enoch followed the loop of tracks and sent Magic Mike on a mission up ahead. Zero (commonly spotted male leopard) has been spotted hiding out in a drainage line close to the area where the tracks were seen; so Mike reckoned the probability of seeing him there again was pretty high. Mike reckons the area is actually a hotspot for Zero sightings!

Mike heard the alarm calls from birds above him and a general frenetic twittering from birds. An obvious giveaway that a deadly predator was about. So Mike kept his wits about him and traced Zero’s prints until there were no more tracks…

Lo and behold, there was Zero, hiding out in the drainage line ! Mike kept his distance and returned to his vehicle. Enoch reckons that Zero was watching Mike the whole time. Out of respect fro Zero and his need for space; the team ventured off into a clearing to enjoy a few well-deserved sundowner drinks. When night fell and the all-encompassing colours of the Klaserie sky fell into oblivion, Mike led the team back to the drainage line to show guests the leopard sighting.

They watched Zero for a few minutes while he re-positioned himself in the thickets. The next minute Zero spotted a herd of impala and the stalking began. Mike, Enoch and their guests watched a cruel but incredible act of nature unfold before their eyes. Zero then sprinted for about 60 metres and killed an impala calf! Guests watched the entire scenario unfold RIGHT IN FRONT of the vehicle. When the kill was made, Zero sauntered off into the thickets and stashed his prize in the fork of a tree.

The following morning, the carcass was still draped over the branches of the tree. We’re willing to bet that Zero will return to his meal tonight; and hopefully guests will enjoy yet another epic Klaserie leopard sighting.

Thank you Mike and enoch, for being our hero’s and delivering a leopard kill sighting. Moments like this don’t come around very often.

Hyenas feed on fallen giant, Shoshangane

Sad news broke in the Balule last week, when the lifeless body of big tusker, Shoshangane, was discovered. This collared elephant had been monitored for over a decade by the Save the Elephants foundation, contributing invaluable data towards studies on elephant movements in the Greater Kruger. His natural death was a shock, but it was a relief to know that he was not poached for his magnificent tusks.

Now, as nature continues to take its course, Shoshangane’s body has become part of the ecosystem, feeding a variety of carnivorous critters. Ultimately, only his ivory-white bones will remain as evidence of his life with us at Ezulwini. We revisited his carcass to see what sort of animal activity would be there to receive us, and sure enough, the hyenas are having a feast.

An elephant carcass will feed a variety of carnivores for a long time. If lions find the body first, they will most likely dominate it. The size of some of the lion prides we see at Ezulwini would be large enough to fight off a couple of hyenas, but in this case, the hyenas won out. We haven’t seen lions at the carcass at all, and it is possible that the hyenas’ reliable noses led them to the carcass first, and they laid claim to the feast.

Ezulwini guests arrived to the smelly scene, intrigued by the sight of the world’s largest land mammal lying, defeated, by another of its kind. It’s a sobering sight, especially due to the endangered status of elephants in this day and age; however, this one life lost provides an essential meal for a clan of hyena cubs that rely on the strength a good meal gives them. The natural circle of life is a privilege to witness.

There is evidence of vulture activity in the white streaks covering Shoshangane’s enormous body. These incredibly powerful birds are a compulsory part of the decomposition process, ensuring that carcasses are disposed of in the cleanest and most efficient way. They hone in on a rotting carcass from kilometres away, dipping lower and lower in circular motions in the sky, as they descend on the feast. The effectiveness of the ‘vulture cleanup’ is essential in preventing the spread of diseases, as they dispose of the rotting meat, but sadly, these key environmental role-players are on the decline and are now classified as endangered.

Week in Pics : Feisty & Wide-mouthed Wildlife !

Our animal kingdom certainly has a voice of its own ! We celebrated World Wildlife Day yesterday and made quite a noise on our social media channels in an effort to create awareness about our planet’s endangered species. Little did we know that our wildlife have also been quite vocal about their presence. Our rangers sent through a flood of images taken during the course of the week and there appeared to be a common thread throughout. Plenty of feisty behaviour and wide-mouths !

This week, we’re bringing you photos of our feisty and wide-mouthed wildlife found in abundance throughout our camps.

Ezulwini River Lodge and Ezulwini Billy’s Lodge

Ezulwini experienced great sadness surrounding the untimely death of Shoshangaan, the magnificent Tusker who was a frequent visitor to River Lodge. He was fitted with a satellite collar and wandered over from the Kruger National Park in 2005. He died of natural causes due to injuries sustained while in battle with another bull.

Despite the rather tumultuous atmosphere of a great sprit leaving the earth, the Ezulwini Game Lodges have had incredible sightings this week. Just like a battery, with every negative there is a positive!

Last night guests enjoyed two leopard sightings and observed close-up elephant interactions. Both Watsikile and Chavaluthu leopards were seen during the week and again last night. Last night, guests also saw a curious, unknown leopard patrolling new territory. Then there were two unknown male lions who haven’t been seen in over a year. Seems like this week the Balule has been a playground for big cats! Zebra stallions were also seen fighting for dominance and photographer, Jochen Van de Perre, caught the sequence on camera.

Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp

Rangers at Africa on Foot and nThambo Tree Camp set up a camera trap recently at a small pan called Sneaky Pan, which is a hotspot for thirsty animals. A handful of species were photographed at the pan (some of them human) and the camera captured the pan drying up at a rapid rate. The harsh reality of a drought caught on camera!

Both camps have recorded a plethora of Dagga boy sightings. Old buffalo bulls spend their days wallowing in waterholes and with such scarce availability of water, it’s quite easy to predict their whereabouts! Buffalo actually need to drink twice a day so we’ll often see them being led by their pathfinder to the closest source of water.

The elephants have been out in full force and have visited the lodge swimming pool on a regular basis. Plains game are always about and there seem to be plenty of giraffe towering over the landscape.

Greg from Africa on Foot spotted a leopard and also had a sneaky glimpse of Ross Dam’s cubs ! The drought is bringing about leaps of leopard which are normally quite elusive. Leopards and wild dogs are dominating our sightings over the past few weeks.

nThambo even had a cheetah sighting 7 – 10 days ago. Interesting times ahead !

Umkumbe Safari Lodge

Do we ever NOT have a leopard sighting at Umkumbe Safari Lodge? This week, Tatowa stole the limelight and made an appearance for guests on Wednesday night. She seemed to be idling under a tree and completely unfazed by the presence of the vehicle. But she wasn’t the only female around – Little Bush was spotted being lazy and eventually she got up to hunt later, when it was cooler and darker.

Firm favourite, Toothfairy the hyena, was also spotted. Complete with missing teeth and a mischievous attitude, this hyena comes packed with attitude. She’s renown for stealing leopard kills shortly after a kill has been made. Toothfairy was actually seen with her cub – probably looking to scavenge on a ready-made meal!

The Southern Pride lionesses strolled past camp – they’re normally seen with the Charleston males but they were alone this time. Interestingly enough, new lions were spotted on the Umkumbe traverse – they’re the Talmati males which were seen feeding on a wildebeest carcass.

What a week for the Sabi Sand !

John Chase Safaris in Botswana

Our mobile safari operation based in Botswana always has a variety of incredible sightings. Set itineraries cover wildlife rich areas such as the Chobe Waterfront, Moremi Game Reserve, Central Kalahari, Makgadikgadi Pans, Nxai Pan and Chobe National Park.

Here are a few game viewing highlights from their mobile safaris.