Greg Coates Photography

Wild Dogs

The pack spent most of the last week on our concession and provided some amazing viewing. Two of the females are definitely pregnant and they spent a lot of time in the south exploring some of the large termite mounds, some of which have been used previously by hyenas as den sites. This is a sure sign that they are now looking to den! We are all hoping that they will decide to den on our concession as the last time they also showed a lot of interest in denning here but then moved off at the last minute. During their explorations they did also tree leopards on two occasions. The first was Ndlevane, an aggressive old male we do not see often. He had an impala kill but had not hoisted it so after being treed the dogs chewed on the carcass a little before eventually losing interest and moving off. The second incident involved Metsi and her two cubs who had also made a kill, this time a duiker. All three leopards hastily made for the trees and it was an amazing spectacle to see seven wild dogs and three leopards in the same sighting! On one afternoon the dogs also managed to make a kill of their own, a young Kudu, which was devoured within minutes.

 

 

 

Mapogo Male Lions and Ximungwe Pride

After having being somewhat disjointed the week before the brothers spent quite a lot of time together this week. Skoro did leave the coalition for a couple of days to court one of the Ximungwe females but otherwise it has been intensive patrolling of the territory including some impressive roaring displays. This may be due to the brief visit of the Southern Pride from the east who have some up and coming young males who might pose a threat to the Mapogo in the near future. On more than one occasion the coalition was seen in close proximity to the large herd of buffalo and then quite well fed the next day. With the abundance of young calves in the herds the brothers are making the most of what are comparatively easy pickings. All three brothers have now also been seen with the 7 month and 3 month old cubs so it seems that Sataan has accepted them (or will not attempt to kill them while Makhulu is still around!). Some sad news though is that the youngest cubs have not been seen since the end of Feb but the mother has been seen and she seems not to be lactating anymore which suggests that the four cubs did not make it. The female that Skoro was courting was also the same mother which further supports the notion that the cubs are dead. Could Sataan be responsible for their dissapearance?

 

 

Southern Pride

Our first hint of the Southern Prides presence was a multitude of lion tracks along our eastern boundary that appeared to be following the herd of buffalo. This is the first sign of them coming this far west for many months and although we did not find the pride on this occassion there was one female that had been separated from them and she was wondering around near the lodge trying to locate them. A couple of days later some more tracks were seen in the same area, also following the buffalo, and this time we did get a brief sighting of three young males and three females. They were on the move along our eastern boundary and headed east off the concession shortly after being located. This is exciting news though as the three young males that were viewed are looking big already and might become contenders for the western sector along with two young Ottawa males when they come of age.

 

 

Kashane Male Leopard

Kashane only made one appearance in the last week, although tracks suggested he had been in the area a few more times than that. He was spotted while vehicles were viewing a herd of buffalo and a herd of elephants drinking at a dam. He casually wondered past, although he did take care to stay fairly concealed as both elephants and buffaloes do not take kindly to large male leopards getting too close. He was followed for a while and then left to routinely mark his boundaries.

Shinzele Male Leopard

It is safe to say that Shinzele has officially taken over Tegwaans territory south of the Sand River. He has now been seen courting three different females and was seen this week to be chasing two other males out the area, one of which was Ndlevane who is quite a large old male. His confidence has doubled in just a few short months and he has also become completely relaxed around vehicles which is fantastic for us. He also treated us to a great sighting of him in a tree with a kill. He wasted no time in finishing the carcass before heading off to further assert his dominance in his new found territory.

Ndlevane Male Leopard

After not seeing this elusive and somewhat aggressive male for months he popped up three times in the last week. The first sighting was of him with a kill which he defended under no uncertain terms. His annoyance with the vehicles was all too apparent as he charged one of the landrovers, stopping two meters short of the bulbar before returning to his kill while grumbling under his breath. Needless to say the landrovers extricated themselves hastily and he was left to finish his meal in peace. The next two sightings were of him being chased around, firstly by Shinzele, and then by the wild dogs. Shinzele took obvious objection to this older male traversing his newly acclaimed territory and escorted him rather briskly from the area. Ndlevane made his way south where the next day the dogs rudely interrupted yet another one of his meals as he fed on a fresh impala carcass in a drainage system. He scrambled up a tree and watched from his rather uncomfortable perch as the dogs chewed on his prize. He eventually did get it back though as the dogs lost interest and moved off which allowed him the come down the tree and retrieve his meal.

Hlabankunzi Female Leopard and Cub

Hlabankunzi seemed quite busy this week as every time we saw her she was quite active, whether just traversing her territory or seeking a potential meal. She was seen in just about every extent of her territory, perhaps in response to the pressure coming from Hlangisa in the south. Her cub was seen once, although not with her, and was quite nervous so the vehicles did not push her. She was left no doubt waiting for the return of her mother, hopeful in the prospects of a meal.

Metsi Female Leopard and Cubs

There was exceptional viewing of these leopards this past week, which is a relief as it means she has stopped going outside the fence. Perhaps the most excitement was their encounter with the wild dogs. Unbeknown to us Metsi had made a kill near McKenzie Camp and while we were following the wild dogs one morning they bumped into Metsi with the cubs at the kill and sent them scrambling up trees. It was early morning and the dogs had just got active so they were full of energy and spent a good 30 minutes harassing the leopards. It was incredibly surreal to have three leopards above you and seven wild dogs around you at the same time! Eventually the dogs decided they had better move on to more important things and the leopards came down to reunite near the remains of the kill. There was still some skin of the carcass in a tree and the one cub proceeded to tug and play with it, seemingly oblivious to the close encounter they had just experienced. Metsi joined the cub and provided some amazing photo opportunities with the sun just rising and throwing a golden light on the scene. They were eventually lost as they entered a drainage line where they no doubt took refuge in the coolness as the day became hotter.

 

 

Hlangisa Female Leopard

Hlangisa made her usual frequent appearances and seemed to be rather predictably traversing a set route to the north of McKenzie Cutline, perhaps trying to establish it as an addition to her core territory on Alicecot. She also had some interaction with the wild dogs but managed to avoid being chased by them. On the contrary she seemed to be following them and even chased after some impala that the dogs had tried to catch. Perhaps it is her inexperience with dogs and youthful instincts to explore the unknown!  There is never a dull moment with her.

Xikavi Female Leopard

Xikavi made a surprisingly high number of appearances this week, twice with kills and another twice just moving through the area. Both kills were impalas but she was not taking any chances and took both kills in to thick bush so the viewing was limited. Her frequenting the property is encouraging though as it is hoped that she will relax down quicker through more exposure to vehicles.

Cheetahs

The good cheetah viewing continued this week with both the young male and Makamisa (the older male with the drooping bottom lip) made appearances. It was however the younger males turn to show off his hunting prowess as he killed a female impala and fed on most of it before being driven off by a horde of vultures. Makamisa was however already well fed when he arrived and just lazed about near his favourite seclude, Jackal Alley. He did get up every now and then to shift his bulging belly and to drink some water, but otherwise he was content to sleep off his meal in the long grass.