Friday, August 31, 2012

Sightings:

 

30 August 2012 pm drive

2 Leopards mating (Xikavi and Dewane)

Hippo out of the water

2 Male lions (Selati males) with 2 female lions (Ottawa pride)

Impala

Bushbuck

Nyala

Waterbuck

Warthog

Scrub Hare

 

31 August 2012 am drive

7 Adult wild dogs and 6 pups chased a female leopard (Hlab’nkunzi) into a tree.

Female leopard (Hlab’nkunzi)

Buffalo herd

1 Elephant bull

4 Female lions (Ximungwe pride)

2 Hyena

Impala

Waterbuck

Nyala

Warthog

Kudu

Wildebeest

 

Regards

Wessel

Thursday, August 30, 2012

Sightings for last night and this morning

26 August pm

Elephants

Buffalo herd

Wild dogs

2 x Selati male Lions

Impala

water buck

Warthogs

Nyalas

27 August am

Giraffe

Elephants herd

zebras

Hlabankundzi female leopard hunting impalas

2 x Selati male

Lions mating

kudu

Impalas

warthogs

27 August pm

Hippos

Crocodile

Elephant Bull

1 x Selati male

Giraffe

Impalas

Kudus

28 August am

Hlabankundzi on a Impala kill

2 x Selati males

Herd of Zebras

Kudus

2x Elephant bulls

Kudus

Impalas

Warthogs

Bushbuck

Wildebeest

28 August pm

2 x Bull Elephants

Hlabankundzi feeding on an impala

2 x Selati males

Hippos

impalas

Giraffes

Kudus

29 August am

Day one male and Shangwa female leopards mating

4 X Elephant bulls drinking water and swimming

Herd of Buffalos

Kudus

Impalas

Water bucks

Nyalas

warthogs

Steenbok

Duiker

Monday, August 27, 2012

Sightings:

 

26 August 2012

Female leopard (Hlab’nakunzi)

Wild dogs hunting impala but was unsuccessful

Elephant herd

Hippo

Impala

Bushbuck

Waterbuck

Nyala

Warthog

 

 

27 August 2012

Wild dogs (7 Adults and 6 pups). While we were in sighting the dogs caught a Duiker and a scrub hare. They also chased Hyena away from pups several times.

Hyena

1 Male Lion (Selati male)

Herd of buffalo

Impala

Duiker

Giraffe

Crocodile

Hippo

Waterbuck

Warthog

Unlucky Scrub Hare

 

Regards

Wessel

Saturday, August 25, 2012

Sightings for last night and this morning

24 August pm

Herd of buffaloes

Elephant

Zebra

Kudus

Impalas

Warthogs

Nyalas

Hippo

25 August am

Elephant

Pack of Wild dogs

herd of Buffaloes

Warthog

Impala

Nyalas

Friday, August 24, 2012

Sightings for 23 August (afternoon game drive) and 22 August (morning game drive)

 

Male leopard (Dawane) stalking Bushbuck and was unsuccessful with the hunt.

3 Male lions (Selati males)

2 Female lions (Ximungwe)

Elephant herd

Giraffe

Impala

Bushbuck

Waterbuck

Warthog

Duiker

Steenbok

Wildebeest

 

Regards

Wessel

Thursday, August 23, 2012

Sightings for 22 August (Afternoon drive) and 23 August(morning drive)

 

Female leopard (Ravenscourt) and 2 cubs with a Impala kill in a tree.

4 Male lions (Selati Males)

2 Female lions (Ximungwe pride)

Buffalo herd

Elephant bull relaxing in water

Impala

Waterbuck

Nyala

Kudu

Duiker

Steenbok

Warthog

Bushbuck

Hippo

Wildebeest

Wednesday, August 22, 2012

Sightings for last night and this morning

21 August pm

Herd of Buffalos

4 x Selati males

Hlabankundzi female leopard

Kudu

waterbuck

Impalas

Zebras

Genet

Hyena

 

22 August am

1 x Selati male with 2 x shimungwe females

Herd of Elephants

Nyala

Warthog

Impalas

Tuesday, August 21, 2012

Sightings:

20 August 2012 PM

 

Elephant herd

Impala

Hyena

Waterbuck

Giraffe

Nyala

Warthog

Bushbuck

Crocodile

Bushbuck

Hippo

 

21 August PM

4 Male lions (Selati males) just sleeping around

Buffalo herd

3 Elephant bulls

Female leopard (Hlabi’nkunzi)

Hyena

Bushbuck

Kudu

Duiker

Steenbok

Impala

Warthog

Waterbuck

Nyala

 

Regards

Wessel

Monday, August 20, 2012

Sightings for last night and this morning

August 19pm

lions mating

Elephants

Kudus

Zebra

White tailed mongoose

Nyala

Impalas

Crocodile

August 20am

1 x Selati male

Day one male

Herd of Elephants

Herd of Hippos outside the water

Giraffe

Zebra

Impalas

Warthogs

Baboons

Sunday, August 19, 2012

Sightings:

 

18 August 2012

 

Female leopard (Ravenscourt) patrolling her territory

Female leopard (Xikavi) walking around

3 Male Lions (Selati Males) and one Ximhungwe female lion sleeping

Elephant herd

Giraffe

Impala

Kudu

Waterbuck

Crocodile

Hippo

 

19 August 2012

 

Female leopard (Xikavi)

Lions mating (Selati male and Ximhungwe female)

Male leopard (Kashane) stalking a warthog unsuccessfully

Elephant herd

Impala

Hippo

Waterbuck

Kudu

Steenbok

Zebra

Water monitor

Duiker

Giraffe

Saturday, August 18, 2012

Sightings:

17 August pm

Elephant herd

2 male lions (Selati males)

Impala

Kudu

Nyala

Warthog

Duiker

Giraffe

 

18 August AM

Buffalo herd

Elephant herd

Side striped jackal

Hyena

Zebra

Impala

Waterbuck

Kudu

Wildebeest

Warthog

Duiker

Martial Eagle

 

Regards

Wessel

Friday, August 17, 2012

Sightings

16 August PM
Xikavi female leopard in the river
Elephant herd
Hippo
Crocodile
Kudu
Baboon
Giraffe
Zebra
Waterbuck
Impala
Duiker

17 August AM
Maxabeni 3:3 young male leopard sleeping
2 Selati male lions
Ximhungwe pride 3 females and 2 subs
Big buffalo herd
Elephant herd
Elephant bulls
Hippo
Giraffe
Kudu
Bushbuck
Warthog
Steenbok
Duiker
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Thursday, August 16, 2012

Sightings:

14 August PM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard trailing the scent of another female (Xikavi)
3 Selati males stretching and yawning north of the lodge
Big buffalo herd
Elephant bulls
Hippo
Crocodile
Nyala
Impala
Waterbuck
Bushbuck
Duiker
Civet

15 August AM
Elephant herd
Giraffe
Zebra
Kudu
Wildebeest
Bushbuck
Nyala
Waterbuck
Impala
Hippo
Crocodile
Duiker
Steenbok

15 August PM
Mating pair of lions - Selati/Ximhungwe
Hippo
Elephant herd
Elephant bull
Zebra
Impala
Duiker
Steenbok
Waterbuck
Zebra
Hippo
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard walking across the lawn in the lodge


16 August AM
3 Ximhungwe lionesses and 2 Sub-adults (one male, one female - the younger male has not been seen for almost 2 weeks now) in front of the lodge
Elephant bulls walking past the lions
Big buffalo herd
Hippo
Impala
Waterbuck
Nyala
Duiker
Warthog
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Tuesday, August 14, 2012

Sightings:

13 August Walk
Big herd of elephants

13 August PM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard outside the lodge
Xindlevhana male leopard finishing the remains of the impala that Hlab'nkunzi killed a few days ago
Dewane male and Dam 3 female leopards mating - seen briefly from a distance
2 Ximhungwe lionesses sleeping
Herd of elephants
Elephant bulls
Buffalo herd
Buffalo bulls
Hippo
Impala
Slender mongoose
Banded mongoose
Dwarf mongoose
Civet
Kudu
Crocodile
Bushbuck

14 August AM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard
3 Selati male lions on patrol (#4 was reported mating with a Ximhungwe lioness but not seen by us)
One Ximhungwe lioness walking and roaring
Herd of elephants
Zebra
Giraffe
Hippo playing outside of the water and one pair mating in the river
Kudu
Duiker
Waterbuck
Wildebeest
Crocodile
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Monday, August 13, 2012

Sightings

12 August Walk
2 male hippo fighting in the bushes

12 August PM
Xikavi female leopard close to her impala kill
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard and one hyena around the kill site
3 Ximhungwe lionesses
Elephant bulls
Elephant herd
Hippo
Crocodile
Giraffe
Bushbuck
Impala
Waterbuck

13 August AM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard patrolling territory
4 Selati male lions sleeping
Elephant herds
Elephant bulls
Big buffalo herd
Impala
Kudu
Duiker
Waterbuck
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Sunday, August 12, 2012

Sightings:

11 August Walk
Big herd of elephants

11 August PM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard at her kill site
Tassleberry female leopard chasing a porcupine
One Selati male lion (#3) sleeping early on drive then roaring later on
Giraffe
Hippo
Buffalo herd
Elephant herd
Waterbuck
Kudu
Crocodile
Bushbuck
Zebra
Impala
Side-striped jackal
Scrub-hare

12 August AM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard feeding
Xikavi female leopard with a fresh impala kill
Four Selati male lions and three Othawa lionesses chasing the buffalo herd across the river
Hippo
Bushbuck
Wildebeest
Impala
Elephant herd
Waterbuck
Nyala
Giraffe
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Saturday, August 11, 2012

Sightings:

10 August Walk
Kashane male leopard
Big buffalo herd

10 August PM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard going for a drink close to where her impala kill was hidden.
Xikavi female leopard walking along the northern bank of the river
Xindlevhana male leopard, joined Xikavi briefly then went and lay down a short distance away
Crocodile
Buffalo herd
Elephant herd
Elephant bulls
Giraffe
Impala
Waterbuck
Kudu
Duiker

11 August AM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard still around the kill site
2 Selati male lions (#1 + #4) relaxing
2 Selati male lions (#2 + #3) chasing a herd of buffalo bulls, losing interest and resting
Hippo
Crocodile
Giraffe
Elephant bulls
Elephant herd
Impala
Kudu
Waterbuck
Wildebeest
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Friday, August 10, 2012

Sightings:

09 August PM
3 Ximhungwe lionesses outside the lodge
Big buffalo herd drinking at Scotia dam
Elephant herd
Elephant bull
Giraffe
Zebra
Hippo
Crocodile
Kudu
Waterbuck
Nyala
Impala

10 August AM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard with an impala kill, she was hiding in thick bush
Kashane male leopard in long grass close to the lodge
Big buffalo herd close to the lodge
One fat Selati male lion, all four have left the kill
Hyenas and vultures finishing the buffalo carcass
Hippos
Elephant herd
Elephant bulls
Kudu
Baboon
Nyala
Duiker
Impala
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Thursday, August 9, 2012

Sightings:

08 August PM
Kashane male leopard close to the lodge
4 Selati male lions feeding on the buffalo kill
Elephant bull
Elephant herd
Buffalo herd
Impala
Duiker
Wildebeest
Waterbuck
Nyala

09 August AM
Ravenscourt female leopard north of the lodge
3 Ximhungwe lionesses west of the lodge
Buffalo herd at Scotia dam, behind the lodge
Elephant herd north west of the lodge
Impala
Nyala
Waterbuck
Warthog
Banded mongoose
Dwarf mongoose
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Wednesday, August 8, 2012

Sightings:

07 August PM
Selati Male lions on their buffalo kill
Big buffalo herd
Big elephant herd with a new calf
Impala
Kudu
Waterbuck
Zebra
Hippo
Baboon
Civet
Scrub-hare

08 August AM
Hlab'nkunzi female leopard
3 Othawa lionesses
Big elephant herd
Giraffe
Zebra
Hippos out of water
Impala
Kudu
Wildebeest
Waterbuck
Duiker
Saddle-billed stork
Sent from my BlackBerry® wireless device

Tuesday, August 7, 2012

Update and Rangers Pictures From The Last Month (July 2012)

 

IMG_6967Othawa Lioness (Photo: Wessel)

July has left us and with it the coldest part of the year. Already we are seeing the first few migratory birds returning. Lesser striped swallows, white-faced ducks and yellow-billed kites have all been spotted over the last few days.

The guests have been spoilt with photo opportunities recently and the rangers have also been taking advantage of the lovely winter light. So here are the updates, accompanied by pictures from Promise, Wessel and Rob:

Lions

DSCN3410Selati Yawn (Photo: Promise)

The four Selati males have been all over the reserve, spending time with both the Othawa pride and three Ximhungwe lionesses.

Blog2aSelati male and Ximhungwe lioness mating (Photo: Rob)

Mating was witnessed on numerous occasions between all of the coalition and the Ximhungwe lionesses.

DSCN3394Selati male feeding (Photo: Promise)

The males also varied their diet a bit more and were seen feeding on a variety of animals including impala, nyala and an old hippo carcass.

DSCN4617Selati male with an impala kill outside the lodge (Photo: Promise)

2 of the males brought down their usual buffalo prey at Schotia dam at the back of the lodge and fed there for a few days. One of the males also caught a buffalo calf one evening, the commotion attracted the attention of what seems to be the last remaining member of the Mapogo male lion coalition that the Selatis ousted in March. The lone Mapogo cautiously approached the area until he could see what was happening, the Selati noticed the watching intrude and the two spent at least 30 minutes staring at one another from a distance of about 150m, eventually the Mapogo male broke the standoff by running away. A sensible move as soon after another Selati male was seen approaching the area with two Ximhungwe lionesses in tow.

IMG_7067Selati Male with the baby buffalo, just before the Mapogo male arrived (Photo: Wessel)

PIC_1196Selati Male watching the buffalo herd (Photo: Rob)

DSCN4060Selatis on patrol (Photo: Promise)

The Ximhungwe pride has fragmented, with one female staying with the three sub_adults and the other three spending time with the Selati males. The group of 1+ 3 has done a great job of avoiding the males and are looking very good. Occasionally they join with the other lionesses and even courted danger by arriving at the smelly hippo carcass whilst at least one of the Selati males was in the area mating with one of the other pride members.

SnapShot(346)Ximhungwe 1+3 (Photo: Rob)

At the end of June it was rumoured that one of the other three lionesses had given birth to cubs up on one of the rocky hills in the west, there was much debate as to whether the cubs were fathered by the Selati coalition or the Mapogo males as the lioness was seen mating with both groups prior to the takeover by the Selatis. It would be possible that different cubs in the litter could be fathered by different males. As the den was inaccessible it would be a while before any sightings of any cubs were possible.

IMG_6879Ximhungwe lioness after a successful hunt (Photo: Wessel)

The three lionesses were found hunting together under the power lines on the edge of Idube property and soon enough they caught a wildebeest on the open clearings to the west of the power line road close to Ebony dam. The pride spent the whole morning feeding. by afternoon there was only one lioness at the kill, one other was found at the dam having a drink but the third was not around. It turned out that the third lioness had gone to her den, her tracks were seen returning towards the kill and she was soon found, carrying her single cub, barely 3 weeks old towards the kill. To young to eat meat, the cub was left in the long grass surrounding the carcass whilst the mother went to feed. It seemed strange that the lioness would risk bringing such a small cub to a kill with the possibility of other predators arriving at any moment. the next morning it became clear that the little cub was not well, close inspection of the mother showed that she had no recent suckle marks. bringing the cub to meat must have been an attempt to get it to eat as it was not drinking milk. The attempt proved futile and the cub was found dead the next day.

DSCN3818Ximhungwe Lioness with the wildebeest kill (Photo: Promise)

DSCN3877Ximhungwe lioness feeding at night (Photo: Promise)

The Othawa females were seen frequently, some of the time in the company of the Selati males but often just the three lionesses. It seems that at least two of the three are pregnant and hopefully they will find space to raise their cubs here in our traversing area.

SnapShot(347)Othawa lioness with a Selati male (Photo: Rob)

 

Leopards

DSCN4236Maxabeni 3:3 young male (Photo: Promise)

The leopards in our area have been busy, there have been plenty of interesting interactions that we have been fortunate enough to witness. The three dominant males – Dewane, Kashane and Xindlevhana - have all been seen regularly which is unusual as Xindlevhana is quite hard to spot. These males have been complimented by sightings of up and coming young males – Maxabeni 3:3 young male, Tai Dam Male (Son of Shangwa) - and the son of the Tai Dam female was seen on a couple of occasions too. Female leopards seen included all the regulars – Hlab’nkunzi, Shangwa, Xikavi, Metsi, Tassleberry and Tlangisa (Who is now spending a lot of time in the far north-west). Sightings of Dam 3 female and Mobeni were logged too. The Ravenscourt female left plenty of tracks on the north-eastern portion of Idube property along with tracks of her cub but we were unable to get a sighting of her or the little one. Mobeni also seems to have at least one cub but again we have had no sightings.

DSCN3762Kashane Male (Photo: Promise)

DSCN3954Dewane Male (Photo: Promise)

One of the best sightings of the Xindlevhana male came about when he and the Dewane male crossed paths along the northern bank of the Sand river, Dewane managed to chase Xindlevhana up a tree where he was forced to pose in the late afternoon sun!

DSCN4322 Above: Xindlevhana up the tree

Below: Dewane watches his rival intently. (Photos: Promise)DSCN4313

The Dewane male was also seen mating with the Shangwa female, the urge to mate took Shangwa far south of her usual territory as she followed Dewane on his routine patrols. At a shade under 14 years old there may not be many more litters for Shangwa so we all hope she successfully conceives and raises yet another relaxed litter for us to view!

SnapShot(345)Dewane rejecting Shangwa’s advances (Photo: Rob)

Also seen interacting were the Tassleberry female and the Maxabeni 3:3 young male, Tassleberry did not seem too happy with the attention the young male was giving her, just as the Metsi female was not pleased with him a few weeks earlier. Tassleberry was seen climbing up into the highest branches of a marula whilst a perplexed looking Maxabeni watched from the ground!

DSCN3677Above: Tassleberry trying to avoid the Maxabeni 3:3 young male

Below: Maxabeni watches with a puzzled look on his face (Photos: Promise)DSCN3721

Another mating pair of leopards was seen – Xindlevhana male and the Dam 3 female. Both of these leopards are fairly shy  but as they were in the vicinity of an impala kill and surrounded by hyena a view of them was possible.

blog3 Dam 3 female on the impala kill (Photo: Rob)

Quite a few other feeding leopards were seen over the course of the last month as you will see from the following pictures:

DSCN3194Hlab’nkunzi with an impala kill (Photo: Promise)

DSCN3865Dewane male with an impala kill (Photo: Promise)

PIC_1211Hlab’nkunzi with another impala kill (Photo: Rob)

DSCN4021Metsi female with an impala kill (Photo: Promise)

The Kashane male was seen sitting above the entrance to a warthog burrow in a termite mound, waiting for the occupants to show themselves. It seems his wait was in vain as he was not seen with a kill!

DSCN3244Kashane, waiting for a warthog (Photo: Promise)

Kashane’s failure at his attempt to get a meal of warthog was not repeated by the Maxabeni 3;3 young male, he was able to stalk up to a warthog burrow and time his run well enough to catch himself a huge female warthog. The warthog did not go down without a fight and it took close to 20 minutes for the leopard to win the battle!

SnapShot(348)Maxabeni, battling to take down a huge warthog. (Photo: Rob)

The warthog kill was such a big meal that Maxabeni was in one spot for 5 days providing fantastic viewing opportunities.

IMG_7107Maxabeni feeding on the ground (Photo: Wessel)

DSCN4585Maxabeni feeding in a tree (Photo: Promise)

Other Predators

Many of the smaller predators were spotted regularly – Serval, civet, genet, side-striped jackal and a variety of mongoose species being the usual line-up.

DSCN3914Africa’s smallest predator – the dwarf mongoose (Photo: Promise)

Hyena sightings have been on the rise recently too, perhaps as a result of the frequent buffalo carcasses being left around by the Selati male lions…

IMG_6825Hyena watching vultures (Awesome Photo: Wessel)

For the first time in many months we had a cheetah in the Western sector, a young male came through and killed a young Nyala on the clearings just to the north of Idube lodge. He was found feeding, glancing around nervously. 200m away from the kill was the three Othawa lionesses and a Selati male, oblivious to the presence of the cheetah. We watched the cheetah feed until it was too dark to see, the next morning the tracks showed that the lions eventually did notice the cheetah and chased him away. Hopefully the young cheetah will return again soon.

DSCN4184Cheetah and kill (Photo: Promise)

Crocodiles have been sighted regularly along the banks of the Sand river as the reptilian predators need the winter sun to regulate their body temperature.

DSCN3299Massive crocodile (Photo: Promise)

Other Animals

Hippo sightings have been fantastic over the past few weeks as these usually water-bound beasts com out onto the banks of the rivers and dams taking advantage of the week winter sun to warm themselves

DSCN3605Hippos out of water (Photo: Promise)

There were also some spectacular hippo interactions with fights and play fights breaking out at random. One fight resulted in a huge hippo taking shelter under a tree in which Hlab’nkunzi female leopard was feeding!

Blog1Hippo aggression (Photo: Rob)    

There were also some lovely sightings of tiny baby hippo to compliment all the other hippo sightings.

DSCN3622Little hippo (Photo: Promise)

There were many sightings of elephants as herds wandered through the area breaking down the round-leafed teak thickets to feed on the cambium layer beneath the bark of the stems. big bulls also wandered the area, sometimes in quite big groups.

PIC_1208Elephant family (Photo: Rob)

DSCN3839Bull elephant (Photo: Promise)

DSCN4132Female elephant with backwards tusk (Photo: Promise)

The buffalo population was represented by two large herds, one close to 200 strong and the other numbering around 400, it was from one of these herds that the Selati male lions made their buffalo kills. Many old “dagga boy” bull buffalos were seen around the area and had somewhat of a break whilst the lions targeted other prey.

IMG_7227Big Buffalo herd coming to drink (Photo: Wessel)

DSCN4294Buffalo bull (Photo: Promise)

The general game population was well represented. There were many giraffe, zebra and wildebeest sightings as well as the various other antelopes – Kudu, nyala, bushbuck, reedbuck, waterbuck, impala, duiker and steenbok. Warthogs were spotted regularly, as were baboons and monkeys.

DSCN4518Male steenbok (Photo: Promise)

Birds

As mentioned at the start, many of the migratory birds are starting to return to the area. there were also sightings of Goliath heron, saddle-billed stork, a black morph of the Gabar goshawk and plenty of vulture activity.

   DSCN3567White-backed vulture (Photo: Promise)

One fascinating sighting was that of a pair of male Egyptian geese having a territorial battle along the bank of the river. The two bird were busy biting and kicking one another, eventually after being dunked under the water the losing bird broke free and flew off.

IMG_7033Egyptian goose fight (Photo: Wessel)