Wild Dogs
As everyone knows these nomads are one of the hardest carnivores to see in the African bush especially now that the pups are getting to a size when they can almost keep up with the rest of the pack and travel far and wide. We were very lucky to have had two sightings of these highly endangered animals in the last couple of weeks and it was as most wild dog sightings are a bit chaotic as they ran back and forth in search of prey zig zagging thru the dense bush making it impossible to keep up but none the less it is always a privilege to be able to see them.
Elephant and Buffalo
Elephants have become harder to find after the recent rains which were very sporadic in terms of the amount of rain in different areas, but these giants with an extensive memory of which areas provide the best water or grazing after rains never forget and this would explain why as usual around this time of the year after the first rains and especially after the drought they all move off in different directions. But we still have had various sightings of some nice bulls and smaller breeding herds. They will return as always and it has given the area some much needed time to regenerate after they remained here because of the lack of water. While last month took its toll on the Buffalo as mentioned above after the rain except for the odd Buffalo bull they have all but disappeared due to the promise of much needed green grass which will be sprouting in the coming weeks and as always as it returns to hopefully normal summer rain the big herds will start to come back from the north to our open plains.
Birds
As the seasons change and we receive our first Woodlands Kingfishers return for the breeding season as their song is heard far and wide throughout the bushveld. As well as lots of the Cuckoo family have also returned. It would seem most of our White backed vulture chicks have grown up fast and are starting to test their flight feathers around their nest going from tree to tree but not ranging to far yet and still waiting for the adults to bring them some tasty morsels for food.
So the drought is not broken but the rains we have had have given a much needed lifeline to all animals large and small and we have spotted our first new born Impalas this week as well and after almost 18 months of desolate looking bushveld it brings joy to our souls to see some greenery again.
Hope to see you all soon here with us on the Mluwati Concession – till then
“May the call of the African Fish Eagle ring out through the savannas and may the roar of the lion vibrate through your soul….”
THE GUIDES OF THE MLUWATI CONCESSION.
