We drove off from the camp to see what the day would bring – hoping to see a predator somewhere amongst the large number of preys species that are in the area at the moment. As we were driving on the western edge of the pan, we saw one cheetah that was hunting. We drove closer to see what it was stalking. The cheetah trotted slowly towards a group of three impalas when something spooked the antelope and they bolted away, raising clouds of dust. When the dust settled, we saw that there were now two cats in front of impala. The cheetahs wheeled around, running into the path of the impala. One of the cheetah picked his target and at full speed launched himself at the running animal, and with his right claws hooked into the shoulder. He struck its rump whit his other paw to try to bring it down, but the impala was not about to give up. The other cheetah now attacked it from behind, using both front paws on the impala’s rump in an effort to overpower it’s prey. Wrested to the ground, the finally managed to kill the impala by throttling it for about ten to fifteen minutes.
Tails, however, were literally turned on another morning drive, when we came upon a chase happening across the Middle Road Loop – a large male lion was chasing a cheetah! With little hope of actually catching the cheetah, the lion was probably just hoping to chase him out of the immediate area, as he is viewed as a competitor for the same prey species.
The peak of the zebra migration in February, and they are surely exceeding the 10,000 mark. Far outnumbering the usually more prolific springbok, the zebras are at almost every corner you turn, moving too and fro from the open plains to the shelter of the trees, and the many watering holes that are collecting the rain water. Soon, it will be time for them to move on, with still several hundred choosing to ‘winter-over’ in Nxai Pan, the vast majority moving closer to the Delta, or down into the Makgadigadi region.
If you have ever felt the need to get near enough to a some raptors to tell the difference between a Steppe buzzard and a yellow billed kite, this is the time of year! The yellow-billed kites, in their hundreds, far out number the buzzards, and both species are sharing the feast of insects and frogs with the Abdims storks. The kites again and again swoop close to the termite mounds to snatch a meal on the wing as the termites fly out of their homes on a once a year flight to try and find mates. The kites target a termite, make a few quick adjustments of ‘flaps and rudders’, seize the prey in its talons and the passes it to its beak. At these times, you hear only the occasional chirp of a cicada, and the constant swishing of wing beats through the air. Now and then there is a louder swish as two kites go for the same termite and their wings touch – but never a collision.
We also had a surprise visit at the end of the month, with three wild dogs being seen along Middle Road, chasing springbok. We were able to watch them for some time, but they did not make a kill, and eventually moved away.
