Nestled in the heart of the Sabi Sand Wildtuin lies a quiet gem of lodge called the Umkumbe Safari Lodge. Located in one of South Africa’s premier big five reserves, Umkumbe is in the enviable position of being a central area for big cat sightings. In particular, the area offers unrivalled leopard sightings. Leopards are accustomed to vehicles and do not see the entity as a threat. They are territorial cats and have found the perfect habitat in the Sabi Sand.
Lions are also seen on a regular basis around the Umkumbe property and in front of the lodge on the banks of the Sand River. The Sparta and Charleston pride are the prides that dominate the area. Today we are going to introduce you to the cats we see on a regular basis.
This is the start of “Meet the big cats” series where we will bring you updates about the lion pride dynamics of the area, the history of the majestic leopards and keep you up-to-date with what is happening in and around our traversere within the Sabi Sand Wildtuin.
Leopards of the Sabi Sand
When guests at Umkumbe see a leopard, it is generally a young male called Maxabeni. Often spotted on early morning and afternoon game drives, he is easily identifiable by the scar on his upper lip. Guests have also reported seeing Maxabeni when they arrive at the main gate en route to camp. This majestic leopard is the dominant male within the Umkumbe and neighbouring traverse.
How did he get his trademark scar? It’s a battle wound from when he was defending his territory from another male. Although fantastic at defending his territory, his hunting skills are not something to be revered. Rangers have noted many failed attempts at bringing down prey !
We love Maxabeni because of his determination during hunts. He is often seen enjoying his solitary wanderings and, when not alone, we have noticed him with a female called “Little Bush” and her cub.
We believe Maxabeni is the father of the White Dam/Kalabash female’s two cubs. They were seen mating close to the lodge last year October. In April this year, ranger Cameron and his guests witnessed a fantastic sighting of the White Dam female with two healthy cubs. The cubs looked roughly 4 months old and the three leopards were spotted very close to the lodge. White Dam has quite a shy demeanor about her but put on quite display for the guests. This is was one of the first sightings of the cubs. However, there is a twist to the tale.
At one stage, rangers were concerned because White Dam’s tracks were discovered close to tracks of another male leopard called Machlatine; who they’ve not seen in a while. There was speculation that these two were mating, which means the cubs would have died. However, Cameron’s sighting of White Dam and her cubs proved otherwise !
So we have Little Bush, White Dam and two Cubs, Maxabeni and the Notten’s female. And the appearance of Machlatine. What will Maxabeni do if he discovers Machlatine on his territory?
Lions of the Sabi Sand
This year we have seen plenty of activity close to the lodge from the Southern Splits females, the Charleston pride, the Four-ways males and the Sparta pride. The Sparta pride is 7 strong, comprising 3 males and 4 females. Below we have images of the Spartas literally tripping over each other in an attempt to attack a buffalo. When confronted with the herd, they stumbled over each other – it appears this is one of their first hunt without help ! This happened 100 metres from the lodge and it turns out the Charleston pride was also in the area – attempting to do the same thing !
The coalition of males, previously from the Four-ways pride have also been spotted around the Umkumbe traverse. They gave a huge herd of Cape buffalo a run around when they tried to take them down. The buffalo chased the males and the hunt was unsuccessful.
Keep posted for regular lion updates – we’ll give you a concise history over the next few weeks so you can start to identify the big cats of the Sabi Sand.
Leana Welgemoed