Sighting in our open area

Another beautiful, sunny day here in the bush. Great to have seen the male Lion on the webcam in the early hours of the morning. As the vehicles left the lodge for game drive the guys found the herd of Buffalo just north of our open area. Unfortunately the Lion was nowhere to be found... He might be resting in the shade not too far from the herd. We also had some Elephants just west from here and lots of general game around our open area...Zebra, Wildebeest, Warthog, Impala and Kudu.

18 February - 19 February

  Knowing full well a pack of wild dogs were lying up in the midday heat close to Nkorho, we stayed in the east and bumbled around, biding our time and waiting for the draining heat to abate.
The crepuscular canines most active at dawn and dusk, they made their appearance before 6pm, running down Gowrie Main straight past the Nkorho sign and on to our open area where they lay down and watched our resident herd of wildebeest. They eventually decided it wasn’t worth the energy and headed northward straight on to Torchwood, furry white tails the last thing we saw as they disappeared in the long grass.

Leaving the dogs behind, we stopped at Kudu corner in the hopes they would return for a drink of water before heading into the Kruger Park. Alas, we were not met by dogs, but we did gain great pleasure from visitations by first a lone buffalo bull, then as the sun set, a breeding herd of elephants. Not too shabby I’d say...

  The guests woke this morning a little sad that this would be their last safari before heading off on new adventures untold. So, in true Nkorho fashion we did our utmost to give them a final drive to remember!
First we managed to see a wonderful group of giant odd-toed ungulates, but thereafter we made a beeline for the west where purportedly, Tingana was atop a Maurla and straddling an impala ram in the early morning light.

It certainly was all it was reported to be, out on the edge of Simba open area with golden light almost making Tingana glow, he was still shuffling is kill about, trying to find the most comfortable and safe place to leverage it.

Hanging the impala over the main fork of the Marula, Tingana hopped out the tree, satisfied that his kill was safe. A good thing too, as there were two hyaenas milling about at the base of the tree, waiting for a costly mistake.

Once Tingana had settled in some shade to escape the morning heat, the hyaenas opted to do the same and moved off to the edge of the open area, maybe just a little too far from the kill for as they lay-up, the kill came crashing down, landing on the ground with a loud thud!

Like a lightning bolt Tingana sprang into action, sprinting out of his hidey-hole and grabbing the impala by the throat. With no time to waste he took two great strides and a single giant leap, clasping the trunk of the Marula with talons as sharp as a surgeon’s knives.
In another two bounds he was already in the first fork of the tree, and moments later, high up in the canopy and totally safe from the hyaenas.

What a sighting to behold, I can sincerely say I have never seen such a swift and powerful response. It is this that ensures the health of a great survivor. By his actions Tingana will maintain his health and dexterity and thus, remain king of the west.

  The trip home was no less eventful. First, on Triple M north Karula was found walking down the road. By the time we got there she had already moved off on to Vuyas but no matter, because just a little further down the road was Mvula, the reigning champion of the east.
He wasn’t interested in anything but patrolling his territorial boundaries having come from Double M boundary and walking all the way up Triple M, scent marking and ensuring that no other leopards were encroaching in to his area.

 At one stage he picked up the scent of a female, possibly in oestrus as once he picked up her scent, he exhibited flehmen gesture- a sheepish grin-like curling of the upper lips, exposing the large canines and front teeth, this gesture is commonplace amongst most male mammals when discovering females ready to be mated with.

After three phenomenal walk-bys we left Mvula walking up the road and headed home, a great sending off for the departing guests.

 

Wild dogs At Nkorho

The wild dogs gave us a beautiful sighting on our driveway. Beautiful animals with the Alpha Female leading the pack back into the bushes having a sneak peak at our Blue wildebeest in our open area. 

17 February - 18 February

 Monday afternoon never truly gathered pace. We on a single stretch of road, found female leopard and her cub’s tracks, a male leopard track (walking in the opposite direction) and a lone male lion’s tracks, also heading in the same direction as the female and cubs.

Luckily, the lion veered off and headed eastward while Shadow and her cubs made headway for 2^nd windmill and the Marakene riverbed. A little later on we found her tracks sans the cubs, indicating that she had likely left them somewhere in the drainage line and was now off to hunt for the next few days, unless of course favour is kind and she makes a kill sooner.
This is not unusual behaviour for leopards and young cubs can be left for days at a time while their mothers are out hunting.

It is during this time that cubs learn to become independent, initially hunting small game like mice and rats, then migrating on to larger prey like francolins, hares, mongoose, et cetera.

  While the evening before presented a bounty of general game and some exciting birds like the African black duck, a female white-faced duck with multiple hatchlings in tow ( I think we counted a total of eight ducklings), Steppe eagle and Bateleur. This morning was once again, a different kettle of fish.
Within minutes of departure a staff member driving out the reserve made a quick call to one of the camps stating a pack of wild dogs was presently running down Gowrie Main and straight towards Nkorho.
This worked out rather nicely as we were in the east, so driving westward we got our first glimpse of dogs running straight towards us, the sunrise directly behind and shining on the dogs with a golden brilliance.
Ignorant of our presence we watched in awe as the entire pack ran right past the side of the Cruiser, thrilling the guests and leaving all with sheepish grins of delight.

We turned around and followed the pack for a few kilometres as they ran along the road, only stopping occasionally to investigate various scents that only their noses could pick up.
Eventually, about half a kilometre from the Nkorho driveway they veered northward into Torchwood and lay up about 120 metres into the block to sleep the remainder of the day away.
Hopefully this afternoon will bring them back to the man road and past the Nkorho sign where we can then get some shots of Nkorho wild dogs!

  Last but not least, Bahuti (young male leopard) was found sleeping next to a small pan behind a dam wall. He lay there, yawning and occasionally glancing about when a bush rustled, or bird traipsed through the grass, but in the end, went completely flat cat and like the wild dogs, began his heat-of-the-day siesta.

  We took this as our cue and elected to walk the remainder of the distance from Fig tree back to camp looking at various tracks, dung, scats, tress with their uses, butterflies and birds.
By the time we got back to camp the temperature was already a feisty 26 degrees in the shade leaving only ice cold water and a hearty breakfast ahead.

16 February -17 February

 It’s a new day and a full turnover of guests at Nkorho Bush Lodge.

As it was Sunday afternoon and no African veterans were on the vehicle, we took a nice slow amble around the east and though the rangers in the west had found signs of wild dogs again, we opted to continue on our sedate route.

  Approaching the largest dam in the eastern sector, we switched off the vehicle and took in our surroundings. 

Hippos splashed about, occasionally billowing and stretching their magnificent maws as they showed of their prowess to any willing to watch. The youngsters imitated the adults in playful connotation, preparation through observation, a tactic employed by so many creatures of this world including ourselves!
While the hippos cajoled, green-backed herons stalked their prey along the margins of the dam, waiting for their quarry to make their presence known. A wily bird, they have been known to use bait like balls of bread to coax fish to the surface, with the bait often being reused time and again in their innovative exploits and making them part of a unique handful of creatures to actually employ such specialized, learned tactics.
Pied wagtails, African jacanas, a lone Wood sandpiper and a pair of Fish eagles completed the majestic setting. Or so we thought. That was, until a small memory of elephants (memory-collective noun) came sauntering across the open area adjacent to the dam, in an expedient hurry they gathered at the water’s edge to quell a thirst after a long, hot day!

A single tiny elephant was among the great pachyderms (thick-skinned animals) and unlike the rest of the family who used their trunks to suck up water and then squirt down their throats, this little character splashed about joyously, savouring the moment and grateful for the opportunity to cool down and of course, engage in an elephant’s favourite pastime, swimming.

Once the herd had their fill they marched past our vehicle and off into the thicket after their next meal.
Our hearts warmed, we left the dam and stopped for sun-downers where we had the great pleasure of a single hyaena walking right past us on the runway and off towards the closest pantry- in this instance a lodge at the top of the rise.

  En route home another great setting wa
We sat silently beneath the blanket of stars above, taking in this truly surreal setting with sight, sound and smell all playing an integral role in our absorption of a special moment in time. The clock stopped, with all worries becoming but a distant memory as we immersed ourselves in the scene before us. No longer outsiders looking in, but a part of the system, we find our place and ourselves and know what it is to feel peace, if only for a while.

s provided by three interlinked participants. A bright moon having just completed its crux at the full and now slowly waning, its red sphere aglow on the eastern horizon while in the fore, fireflies all about us, adding their bio-luminescence to the mix and all around us, hundreds and hundreds of buffalo, slowly feeding while walking in a northerly direction mooing, chewing and sparring as they marched forth.

  Monday morning was no less eventful with the day starting right where the evening had left off. Thandi and Bahuti (leopards) walked across game lodge airstrip and down towards a drainage line further south.
While mother and cub walked, Thandi led the way when suddenly she pounced and a small flock of francolins took flight, sans one unlucky chick. Too slow to react to danger its life expunged as quickly as it had begun.
Thandi, the good mother that she is, ate nothing of the tasty aperitif but rather handed over the prize in its entirety to her waiting son who quickly disposed of the feathered chick in one or two mouthfuls before again entering into a playful routine with his mother. Jumping right over raisin bushes and chasing one another out on the flimsiest branches of bushes not at all capable of supporting their bulk they played and played.
However, they soon walked down into the aforementioned drainage line where we lost sight and elected to leave them be, having had another quality sighting with some magnificent cats.
The rain set in soon after leaving us no other option then to return to the cosy, dry warmth of the lodge and a hearty breakfast of our own.

  

Amazing facts about Pangolins

Our beautiful Buhuti checking out Giraffes...

 In the wild its hard not to get lost in these beautiful animals. Here we have Buhuti having a peak at the Giraffes. He is turning into a magnificent Leopard.