The landscape is still holding on to its green sheen, although the ordeal trees are starting to lose their leaves. The false mopane trees are in full fruit, providing many herbivores with sustenance.

Wildlife sightings have been pretty awesome as we have been graced by large herds of wildebeest, eland, zebra and giraffe all around. A herd of 44 sable was seen at Mbiza, which is most definitely one of the monthly highlights.

One did not have to venture far from camp for action, as we had a herd of no less than 200 buffalo settle around camp for a couple of days – adding to this excitement was the two young male lions that harassed this herd under cover of darkness during the night. Imagine being welcomed to camp by camp staff, 200 buffalo, a breeding herd of elephant and two cheeky lions – just amazing!

A group of guests had an action-packed morning when they were treated to a male lion sighting, which was then followed by a sighting of a cheetah and then of a leopard – all before breakfast.

It seems the cold mornings have affected wildlife movements, as we did not find much activity in the open areas such as Ngamo Plains before the environment warmed up. Once things warmed, however, the elephant herds moved out of the thicker vegetation, allowing us some picturesque sightings of them along the plains.

Other great sightings for the month include a striped polecat and a honey badger.

It is always a special moment for a birder when they see a ‘Lifer’, adding another tick to the life list – a lifer for the camp and many of our guests this month was a Black-eared Seedeater.

Many of the summer migrant species have left in search of warmer conditions, but the resident birdlife has provided us with great sightings.

This month we notched a total of 141 bird species on the camp bird list.

Our staff members continue to strive for service excellence as they ambitiously follow the Lobster Inc. training modules. Lobster Inc. has provided a great system to provide honed skills for staff in the hospitality industry.

This month, staff from all the Wilderness camps in Hwange pitched in and were able to get a new wheelchair for a disabled child from one of the local villages.

Zimbabwe Safaris to Davison’s Camp in the Hwange National Park

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The annual inundation has reached Duba Plains, and will continue to flow in over the next couple of months. This alone has made game drives an extremely exciting activity, as the water logged areas require expert measures to ensure that the guests are in the best position to view the action…without getting bogged down in the muddy soils. The new game vehicles ensure that our guests get the best photographic opportunities possible as they are able to get into previously inaccessible places. This has produced some outstanding buffalo and lion interactions.

Photographic safaris have been the order of the month, as we hosted many avid photographers with the latest gear, all expecting to get the world-class images which Duba has become renowned for producing. Some of the highlights that we all experienced included African wild cat, Pel’s Fishing-Owl in full flight, hundreds of lechwe bounding through the water, male lions, lion cubs, five different kingfisher species and herds of elephant getting fully submerged in the channels.

The new vehicles will allow us to traverse more amazing terrain which was impossible to get too previously. Whether you are a first-time birder, a returning guest or a professional wildlife photographer, you won’t be disappointed!

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We did not have any rain this month, adding to the already dry conditions that will kick off the end of the wet season.

What an awesome month April was in terms of game viewing, it was absolutely fantastic – leopard, elephant and buffalo were sighted almost every day. All in all we had a total of 23 different leopard sightings which is fantastic!

The 3rd of April was clearly “leopard day” – Godfrey and his guests spotted a large male close to Crooks Corner, enjoying the sighting for around 45 minutes as the large tom stalked an unsuspecting bushbuck. Fortunately for the herbivore, the hunt was unsuccessful, but provided the guests with an amazing sighting nonetheless.

During the same afternoon, Enos was investigating the source of baboon alarm calls emanating from the Fever Tree Forest when he came across a very fresh set of leopard tracks on the road. Shortly after picking up the tracks, a female leopard appeared and then disappeared into the bush. Enos managed to relocate the leopard, which was now in full hunt mode – she was stalking a nyala. As it was dark, we did not want to give either the predator or the prey an unfair advantage, so the game viewers turned off all lights and sat quietly, waiting for story of nature to unfold … and it did. The leopard caught the nyala shortly after it started stalking. The game viewers were then able to enjoy a great view of the leopard subduing and feeding on its prize – what a build up to an amazing sighting!

The Pafuri Pride of lion made their presence known by killing two baboons at the beginning of the month. Throughout the rest of the month, the pride was seen moving along the Luvuvhu River, often crossing to the southern bank. Towards the end of the month, the pride of eight killed a nyala very close to Tent 13 followed by a buffalo calf a couple of days later in the same vicinity – fantastic sightings right on our doorstep. The young nomads have been seen this month, but it is very hard to predict their movements as they have been sighted all over the concession. With the Luvuvhu River water levels dropping, the Pafuri Pride can easily cross to the southern bank, so we anticipate a drop in lion sightings in the months to come.

The elephant herds are now plentiful along the Luvuvhu River and some herds are seen at the pans along the Limpopo Floodplains. This year is drier compared to other years and the Limpopo River has stopped flowing already, making the Luvuvhu River and the larger pans the only substantial water sources in the concession. For this reason the front of house game viewing is getting better and better every day: elephant, buffalo, and variety of general game are seen coming to drink. Buffalo herds are now moving back to the Limpopo Floodplain as the grass is rapidly getting dry elsewhere.

General game is phenomenal, and the game drives are action packed as there is always something to see out there.

Most of the migratory birds, such as Lesser Grey Shrike, European Bee-eater and Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, have been seen earlier this month and one by one they started to leave us. However, birding this month continued to be phenomenal, despite the migrants leaving – our resident specials such as Pel’s Fishing-owl, Racket-tailed Roller and Three-banded Courser have been sighted.

We have done educational presentations with some of our guests in camp on certain topics related to wildlife and the Makuleke Concession. We have also sent several of our guest to the Thulamela archaeological site to learn about the past history and culture of the people who inhabited the area. Some of our guests enjoyed visiting the Makuleke community, as they are interested in the current culture – all of these activities adding to the special Makuleke Experience.

Newsletter by Enos
Photographs by Caroline Culbert

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This year, we have experienced the complete opposite to last year in terms of rainfall, as last year we experienced excess rain and this year has been very dry. These dry conditions have provided our guests with some wonderful scenery and photographic opportunities.

At present we are driving to the Klip River area to look for the desert-adapted elephants (as this is one of their ‘wet’ season home ranges). While it’s quite a drive to get there, our guests are enjoying it very much as the scenery is breathtaking, with lots of animals en route, including a few sightings of the rare and near-endemic black-faced impala on several occasions.

This month we haven’t sighted the Huab Lion Pride, but they are still moving between the Krone area, the Huab River and Peter’s Pools. We also recorded two oryx kills for the month made by the lioness, judging by the tracks which we found. From the spoor records the cubs are still doing well and joining the females to feed on the kills.

In terms of reptiles, we also had a good few sightings of some unusual critters. We found a dwarf-plated lizard basking on the rocks behind camp. This secretive active hunter of the arid west has a bright blue tail that attracts would-be predators away from its head and body. When attacked, the tail is easily shed and the autonomic nerves keep the tail twitching, thereby keeping the attacker busy while the lizard escapes. Also spotted was a puff adder – slow moving but fast striking, so a lot of respect was shown to it.

This month we had the privilege of having the local school visit us for a fun day. An assortment of fun activities were arranged for the kids, and for many of them, this was the first time that they had ever been in a swimming pool.

Later on in the month we also hosted the Born to Explore film crew from ABC. Apart from the wildlife, the crew were also documenting the link between ecotourism and how the local communities benefit. Pascolena Florry and management organised a lunch for them in Bergsig with entertainment that included song and dance. This was great as it allowed key personalities from the community to interact with the film crew.

Namibia Safaris to Damaraland Camp in Damaraland

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It was an Honour for us to have such a great man on our safaris and the memories of Vidal will last forever.

We send our condolences to the Family

R.I.P

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The water level in the Kunene River has dropped a considerable amount, revealing hundreds of tiny little crocodile hatchlings that have recently emerged after their 90-day gestation.

Bee-eaters are a familiar sight at Serra Cafema. The area boasts two different species: the Madagascar Bee-eater and the Little Bee-eater. As the name suggests the Little Bee-eater is the smallest bee-eater in the family, measuring just over 15cm from the tip to tip. With its bright yellow chin and throat and olive green body this little bird is a pretty bird to watch. Although it can be found throughout sub-Saharan Africa, it has a very small range in Namibia, occurring mostly along the northern perennial rivers. Little Bee-eaters have mostly been seen perching in pairs or small family groups always at the ready to dart off to catch a meal.

This month, the camp has welcomed three new assistant managers, two of them already members of the Wilderness family, having been transferred from Little Kulala and Palmwag respectively. We wish our three new staff members a happy and productive future at Serra Cafema.

Namibia Safaris to Serra Cafema Camp in the Kunene Region

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As usual, Seba Camp is surrounded by some of the most beautiful vegetation seen in the Delta. Magnificent African mangosteen trees are always in full bloom, as are the sausage trees and sycamore figs. The large fever-berries also make for a different shade of light green. The marula trees are in full fruit, and this attracts many different creatures, small and large. The world-famous sausage trees are equally as impressive, with their magnificent large fruits hanging for all to see, and these in particular attract the Meyer’s Parrot, who enjoys ripping the hard flesh apart.

This month, the elephant have been the main attraction, with many bulls coming into the camp to feed on the falling marula fruits. The elephant are attracted to the very sweet smell of these fruits, and will stay in the immediate area as long as the trees are fruiting, followed closely by the baboon troops who are very entertaining as they quarrel and argue over who gets which snack. The vervet monkeys are much more inclined to eating the many fruits of the sycamore fig trees in the main area, often found munching away alongside the many Green Pigeons.

A small family of bushbuck can also be found prancing between the trees in camp, following in close proximity to the primates due to their higher vantage points for predator alert. Peter’s epauletted fruit bats are found elegantly floating around the fig trees at nightfall, almost at eye level due to the high main deck, and are a special sight as they fly from branch to branch searching for the ripest fruits to eat.

A lone hippo bull is also seen quite regularly munching and splashing away in the lagoon in front of camp. Lion have been spotted several times, and leopard are also making their presence known in the immediate area. Hyaena are regular visitors to the camp, and many guests have witnessed their strange beauty as they lumber past the main area during dinner time.

A very exciting day for the guests occurred with Matamo, one of our very experienced guides, on a drive. He spotted several oxpeckers flying from a beautiful baobab tree, and told his guests that there were most likely buffalo in the area. Sure enough, as they followed them, the birds flew straight onto a herd of buffalo. The guests continued to follow the buffalo, and soon were rewarded with an even more incredible spectacle – a beautiful leopard sleeping in a tree. Experience proved to be everything, and Matamo’s brilliant knowledge and skill was rewarded tenfold by that amazing experience.

On the cold-blooded side of the scale, very few reptiles have been found this month due to the change in weather. As it gets colder the exothermic creatures are moving around less and making it more difficult to spot them. The crocodiles are still around the many channels though, and they create lots of excitement among the guests.

The magnificent Abu Concession is phenomenal when it comes to birdlife. Around Seba Camp, there have been many different species spotted, particularly the water birds which make the lagoon in the front of camp their home. Species such as Malachite and Pied Kingfishers, Green-backed Herons, Pygmy Geese, African Jacanas, Red-billed Teals and African Crakes are but a few of the aquatic species that have been spotted around the camp.

An uncommon sight that was found during a drive was a beautiful Striped Kingfisher, and although the migratory Woodlands Kingfishers have left the Okavango, some have remained behind.

Many Common Scimitarbills are also found in the camp, along with their cousins the Green Wood-Hoopoe. Bearded Woodpeckers are also heard and seen knocking in the trees around camp. A beautiful African Harrier-Hawk made its appearance during tea one day, and due to the constant badgering from the Fork-tailed Drongos, his beautiful characteristic yellow face turned a pale shade of red, indicating his constant annoyance from the diving drongos. Another unusual spot was the White-browed Coucal which was found rummaging through the bushes outside Tent 1.

Newsletter by James Moodie

Botswana Safaris to Seba Camp in the Okavango Delta

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The adult male leopard,Tingana, has been extending his territory for some time and recently has been seen all over our western traverse area. We hear his characteristically short territorial call from the deck of the lodge while we have coffee in the morning and after setting out on safari with high expectations of finding him close by eventually follow him all the way to Arathusa Safari lodge and only find him later in the morning. The distance he travels and the time in which he covers it is astonishing. As he becomes more accustomed to the vehicles he is becoming the most frequently seen male leopard in the west.

The territorial male leopard, Tyson made a rare appearance last week when we found him on a large impala ram kill close to the Londolozi boundary. We were led to his kill by Salayexe, whose tracks were all over the area, one can only assume that she had her hard earned kill stolen by the former territorial male who once used to dominate the area. It was great to see this impressive male again, although he didn’t stay for too long, maybe Tingana had something to do about that as we found his tracks passing through the area the next morning.

Leopards climb trees to get a good vantage point of their surroundings, hoist kills up them to keep the hyenas and other predators at bay, to get away from any dangerous encounter with marauding lions for example or just to get some shade in the foliage. Salayexe however just loves to climb trees. Climbing up a tree is always a lot easier than getting down and in the above picture you can see how agile she needs to be on her way down. Lions can also climb, especially trees like this Marula and often do steal kills away from a leopard but they are extremely vulnerable when trying to get their heavy weight down and can injure themselves seriously, a big risk to take for a meal.

The young break-away Tsalala lions’ moved into our area from the south west after a long period away. Being as young as they are (about 3 and a half) they haven’t established a defined territory as yet and therefore are traveling great distances to avoid confrontation with other lions but also in search of food. They were apparently seen in Singita not long before we found them at Arathusa Big Dam. We were pleased to have their presence back in the north after some time. They are such beautiful lions especially when they treat us to such wonderful sightings like this one where they stalked a herd of impala, unsuccessfully, before playing around in the open. Their affection for each other is amazing to witness, a true sisterly bond that will keep these lionesses together for the duration of their lives. At three and a half they should start coming into oestrus soon and we have received rumours that they were in fact flirting with the Selati males (Southern pride coalition) in the South West of the Sabi Sand. We are hoping the Majingilane males will catch on and take what’s rightfully theirs.

The Styx Pride of lions were also found feeding on a large Kudu they had killed one morning. Even at the age of about 7 months you can see how aggressive lions can be with each other around a carcass. This pride has been spending more and more time in the western sector of our traversing.

Other sightings

The highlight of the week was definitely the wild dogs. Reports that a pack was crossing in from Vuyatela got everyone very excited and when we found the pack of 11 dogs they were busy hunting a herd of impala, after narrowly missing they then headed further west. What’s interesting is that no-one could recognise them, a new pack to the area!

A few months ago in leopard diaries we posted a sighting of a new Hyena den site that was found. After the flooding in January that den site was abandoned and we managed to finally find where the clan had established a new den site which is actually a lot closer to the lodge. The large matriarch (pictured above on the left) is not pregnant, just very well fed, and she has one four month old cub (pictured on the right). The similarities of the genitalia of male and female Hyena’s at this age makes it very difficult to distinguish, but we have witnessed this cub dominate the adult males around the den site so we are assuming that it is a female who will carry her high status in the clan forward throughout her life.

Young Elephant bulls playing in Simbambili Dam have been a common occurrence of late. We found a nesting pair of Martial Eagles on the property and we should start seeing them bringing food back to their hatchling soon, it will be interesting to see what type of prey they do bring back to the nest. One of the reasons why Martial Eagles are so widely distributed is the fact that their diet varies a lot more than their specialist cousins, the Crowned and Verreaux’s Eagles.

Regards,

The Simbambili team
(Text and Pictures by Liam Rainier)

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Autumn is upon us and I am looking at a new paint of red and yellow coloured leaves through the window while writing this report. The days and nights reverberate with the rutting calls of impala rams advertising their territories while jealously guarding over ewes that might have wondering eyes.

This is a great time for photography as the contrasting colours works wonders on any photograph.

It looks as this might be the end of an era in the western part of Balule as Big Boy, the territorial male lion of the western region of Balule, seems to have lost his status as the undisputed king as he was seen chased around by his younger sons while they were following a lioness in oestrus. I 1st saw him as a young male, together with his coalition partner Mazinyo, 9 years ago. He subsequently became a living legend winning many battles and fathering many offspring. It is sad, but the future coalition of 6 would be something to behold as normally a coalition only consists of 2-4 lions.

Black rhino are highly endangered and seldom seen. Pondoro is one of the best places in Africa to see this amazing animal and April did not disappoint as we had an incredible 17 sightings during the month. Their much bigger cousin, the white rhino, was seen frequently as well.

We also enjoyed regular leopard, elephant and buffalo sightings as well. The area is great for general game with zebra, giraffe, wildebeest and impala a near certainty. The river is also a bit lower with winter approaching and guests have regular sightings of hippos and crocodiles during bush walks with an armed guide.

Highlights of the month were sightings of the Olifants west pride feeding on a giraffe calf on the 1st of April close to Chavaluthu road as well as a seeing the same pride feeding on a buffalo kill on Impalabos west on the 7th and 8th of April.

South African Safaris to Pondoro Game Reserve in the Balule Nature Reserve

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The persisting dry conditions and heat have left the landscape equally very dry and dusty, with small isolated stands of greenery jutting out from the dry, brown and gold vegetation.

Due to the lack of adequate rainfall at Doro Nawas, the riverbeds and vegetation are dry and as the result the desert-adapted elephant made a move to some other surrounding areas where they can find greener pastures. The desert giants are now in the Khoadi-Hoas Conservancy area which is a two-hour drive away. Guests who have driven to us from the Grootberg Lodge have been very lucky with spotting the elephants along the way. Hopefully we receive a little rain before the winter fully sets in in order to refresh the vegetation.

One of the highlights we had for the month was the sighting of a desert lion which we came across in the Huab Valley in a dry riverbed. The lioness crossed the riverbed in front of us and walked to the comfort of some shade… so we thought. Shortly after arriving at the vegetation, we heard the tell-tale call of some cubs. We did not want to disturb them, so we did not want to stick around for too long. We had a brief visual of four cubs. Just as we were about to leave the sighting, a bull elephant strolled onto the scene and we viewed him for around 35 minutes. A two-in-one sighting!

On the smaller side of the predatory scale, one of the camp staff members came running to Michael (one of the guides). She was very excited and said she had seen a big lizard eating a small lizard. Michael explained to her that most lizards are predatory and are opportunistic and will eat whatever prey presents itself. We then got a photo of the action.

Our guests have still been enjoying meals out in the bush, as we offer breakfast whilst out on drive as well as bush dinners. This month, we had our first bush barbeque, whereby all the guests were treated to a surprise dinner under the stars.

Namibia Safaris to Doro Nawas Camp in Damaraland

African Safaris with Taga Safaris Africa