Two male lions took on a fairly formidable foe in the form of a herd of eland. The largest antelope in Africa, these huge animals could easily kill a lion with one well-placed aim of a hoof. Luckily for both parties, the prey proved too alert, as the wind blew the scent of the lions towards the eland, they departed at speed.
A very interesting interaction with leopard, hyenas and wild dogs. With the female leopard doing all the hard work, she managed to kill an adult male impala. Too big for her to carry it up into the safety of a tree, she could not protect her meal against the arrival of a pack of wild dogs, and two hyenas. Losing the kill, she sprinted off to safety, whilst the dogs and the hyenas tussled over the remains.
Two female wild dogs were seen running through the camp, looking for the rest of the pack. A group of five adult dogs had been seen in the area the day prior. This smaller pack was seen twice this month, with the bigger pack of 8 found ten times.
When guests arrive on safari, many of them say that they want to see a kill. Managers and guides nod knowingly, and say things like ‘Well, we’ll see. It’s quite rare to see.” The reason that they are nodding knowingly, is not because they know how rare it is to see, but that they know how most people, when a kill is put in front of them, really don’t want to see it. Or, more to the point, hear it. Many are the times when those guests most keen to see it, have been left in tears, and asked to leave. What you see on National Geographic documentaries, is highly edited. It is tamed down, sounds stripped away, and trimmed down to usually a couple of minutes. Real life, is not like that. Some guests discovered that when the pack of eight dogs came upon a warthog and proceeded to kill it. Bearing in mind that an animal being killed by wild dogs is actually one of the fastest processes, compared to say, lions killing something, it is still exceptionally distressing. And the screams of a warthog, are amongst the most bone-chilling on the planet. So, just bear that in mind when you ask to see a kill…you might not like what you see/hear/smell.
And speaking of kills, a big male lion spent several days feasting on a buffalo that it had killed. About three days after the kill, the lion left, satiated, and eight hyenas moved in to giggle and fuss and crunch over the remaining bones. Two lionesses and three cubs were also seen in the Twin Pools area, cubs playing whilst the mothers relaxed. A little later, they managed to kill a giraffe, providing a huge amount of food for the two lionesses, and little cubs.
Sadly, no sign of the cheetahs in the concession this month – off on their far reaching travels yet again.
An unusual sighting this month was of an aardwolf – an animal that looks somewhat like a hyena, but eats only termites!
