The well established lion pride of two males and two females were seen in Watercart area, at the start of the month. This area is currently full of general game, that are focussing on the water channels and green grass that is like an oasis We witnessed a lovely moment as well the following week, when a brother and sister of the pride that have not been seen for some time, were reunited with the pride. Not all were happy members of the pride though – a dominant male fought with one of the younger males. Later, territoriality was taking over… there were several fights between the Lebala pride of four, and the Lagoon pride of seven , so very exciting action all around!
A dead elephant was found floating in the water by one of the army patrols. Investigating whether it had been poached or not, they pulled it out of the water, and discovered that it had likely died of natural causes. This was a bonus for two male lions that then happened upon it, and who then spent an extended amount of time eating away at it.
A relaxed female leopard was located not far from the lodge, walking along the edge of the water.
The big pack of 23 wild dogs were in the area, and were seen making several attempts at bringing down impala. They eventually succeeded with one, though that is not a major meal to last a pack of that size any length of time. They were also seen several times playing, a wonderful sight to see with so many puppies. And made even better, when the entire pack runs through the camp hunting!
At the end of the month, the pack appears to have split into two – one pack of 8 dogs, and one pack of 9 dogs with the six puppies. This will help reduce the pressure of finding enough food for all 23 dogs at once, and allow more territory to be covered by the two groups. It will be interesting to see if they rejoin again a little later, or remain as independent packs.
Not far away from where the pack were seen, is a bat eared fox den, currently with six little kits! The parents were present at the den, caring for their young.
A large herd of around 300 buffalo was found east of the camp, and everywhere you move, there are more and more elephants. T
he hard-to-see african antelope, the sable, was not so hard to see when 35 of them grouped in front of the camp to drink. Pushed out of the woodland that they favour by thirst, they felt relaxed enough to approach the river so close to camp. One sable wasn’t so lucky and was killed by the two male lions nicknamed the “rebel leaders”.
However, there were also regular spots of groups of roan and eland as well this month. Cheetahs that had appeared last month for a week, completely disappeared again, only returning in the last week of the month, and were found feeding on impala. Interesting that they are only favouring us for very rare visits in the last year or two, but this is probably due to the large numbers of lions that have established their territories in the area now.
The fast drying up pools of water that are left behind as main channels recede, are meeting grounds for a large variety of birdlife – storks, herons and pelicans. All of them are searching the pools for the fish that are trapped there – an easy catch compared to trying to harvest them from the free-flowing waters.
