With a new waterhole, everyone is queuing up to make use of it. A regular visitor is a solitary spotted hyena, who has the unfortunate timing of arriving when elephants are on the way as well. Elephants, not known for their love of anything other than elephants, make the hyena’s life a little more exciting, and chase him at any opportunity possible.
Other drinkers at the lodge waterhole included the lion pride – three adults and seven youngsters. A few days later, they were seen out towards Kgamakgama road. There are intruder males passing through the Nxai area as well, so this may be why they have moved off a little, till the dust settles somewhat.
The mother cheetah with two young cubs (now around five months old) still frequent the open plains of the central Nxai Pan. All look in good condition, though it must be harder to hunt a little now, as stalking cover is vastly reduced as the grass dies away. The mother had managed to kill a springbok using the cover along Baobab road, and she and her cubs were found there for a couple of days, feeding on the carcass, before moving along to the lodge waterhole for a drink.
