A Week in the Bush Vol. 448
on Feb 22, 2023With all the heavy rains experienced at Sabi Sabi, wildlife are still going about their daily activities and adapting to the circumstances. This hyena was seen crossing the Msuthlu River in front of Bush Lodge.
We have been spoilt with amazing birdlife action as a breeding pair of Saddle-billed Storks came flying in and landed right next to us. These storks are monogamous (pair for life) and both male and female build the nest, which is located high off the ground, positioned on the main branch of a tree, usually close to wetland.
Proudly looking out into the distance from a termite mound. This wildebeest is in peak condition and displaying that he is the dominant male in the area, and all should be aware of his massive horns.
While the oxpecker is feeding on ticks and other parasites found in the hair of the impala, they provide an extra “alarm system” for the individual as the antelope feeds.
Baby Vervet Monkeys are always fun to watch as they are forever up to something and more than likely, something naughty. With the mother not far away, this baby monkey made a break to a nearby branch to have a closer look at us sitting in the vehicle. It gave us a moment to appreciate his beauty, he quickly ran back to the safety of mom.
A relatively uncommon sighting of a Marabou Stork had us super excited. Although not an aesthetically pleasing bird, they perform a natural function by cleaning our environment through their feeding habits. Securing a large portion of the food intake through scavenging, it wouldn’t be uncommon to find this giant stork around a lion kill, waiting to feed alongside the vultures. The large powerful beak is clearly noticeable here and is used to break into thick hides of deceased mammals, thus allowing weaker scavengers access and speeding up the decomposition process.
The animals have been enjoying the lush green vegetation that summer rain provides. This zebra has decided to join the impalas to the feast. Zebras are vitally important to the environment as they shorten the longer grass to allow other species to have access to shorter grass like wildebeest and white rhino.
We found this young female leopard after tracking her for a short while. This exercise proved rather tricky as the ground is drenched and there were certain networks we could not access, however, we stuck to the general direction of where we thought she was headed, and we were lucky to find her as she was crossing the road again into the thick bush. We were patient enough to go around the big block and as luck would have it, she came towards us.
Normally in this wet weather the leopards will avoid the water on the roads and manoeuvre around, taking the path of least resistance, but it has been many days of non-stop rains and Golonyi was left with very little choice but to face the waterlogged terrain. She took advantage of the rains to get close to the impala that were not far from the road, and we left her as she was trying hunt.
After following tracks, we found Ntsumi’s cub just walking around chasing little birds and lizards. He moved on to find a small patch of dry land and rested a bit before moving between shady thickets.
At this stage the young leopard still relies on his mother for food and protection. When mom is hunting, the cub is left alone in a secure place, but true to his inquisitive nature, he seldom stays where left and ventures around trying to perfect his hunting skills…
After all the rain, the leopards are out and about to remark their territories. This provides us with amazing sightings as the leopards walk down the road scent marking. We found N’weti casually strolling down the road as he searched for a place to lay down for the rest of the day. The sun started to peek through the thick clouds, providing us with a beautiful hot summer afternoon, but this will influence Nweti's choice of resting place. Finally, he settled down under a thick bush, out of the blazing hot sun. We left him be, planning to follow up on him again on the afternoon safari.
Unfortunately for us he decided to move along before we got there in the afternoon, but as we drove back to the lodge later that night, we found him again on his scent marking walk.
After having found tracks of male lions close to Selati Camp, our tracking was made easier by their vocalisation. We followed these calls and located them not too far away. As the rain begins to slow down, these males will be hard at work remarking their territory.
On one of our first dry afternoons on the reserve, we decided to seize the moment and stop for a sundowner drink with a beautiful view of the thick clouds with a small sliver of sunlight shining through. We started with our usual set up of drinks and snacks when we were interrupted by the most amazing sound…
The powerful roar of a male lion is a sound that can send shivers down your spine and as we heard the roars, we all looked at each other and without a second of doubt, started to quickly pack away our drinks and follow the sounds that echoed throughout the bush. We found the two Gijima males lying in the middle of the road and as we arrived, they began calling as loud as they could, making their presence known.
Until next time
Blog by Wendy Claase
Images by Ally Ross, Daniel Greyvenstein, Dieter Lategan and Ronald Mutero
Videos by Coenraad Stapelberg and Lauren Wyndham
