Caracal

The highlight of the week for me was definitely a young male caracal, the first caracal I have ever seen in the Sabi Sands in four years!! Vehicles departing from Exeter River Lodge came across him simply sitting next to the road outside the camp, completely unfazed by the vehicles. This is a long way from Savanna but we made the journey at haste to catch a glimpse of what is a very difficult cat to spot in this area. The light was fading and our first glimpse was of a ghostly figure moving through the grass, but we still managed to get some great photographs of him when he sat and groomed himself. He then moved down the road in front of us and spotted some spurfowls on the road ahead and made an attempt to stalk them but gave up after a few minutes. After about 20 minutes of following him he did eventually move off the road and into long grass where we could not follow, but it was a sighting to remember for a very long time.

Mapogo Male Lion Coalition

The brothers continued their patrols for most of the week, but were not as united as last week. Makhulu spent the first couple of days on his own down in the south where he followed the large herd of buffalo for a while. His black eye is not looking as swollen anymore and he gave some good roaring displays. In the mean time the other two brothers were with three Ximungwe lionesses up north where they treed Shinzele and the Dam Three Female one morning. They were very well fed and did not move at all even after the leopards had come down the trees and moved off. Later in the week Makhulu did reunite with his brothers but the coalition soon broke up again as Skoro started courting one of the lionesses. Makhulu and Sataan stayed with the other two lionesses that moved south and our last sighting found them very well fed again, suggesting the females are providing well for them.

Ximungwe pride

The pride is still fragmented but again all the members were seen at one stage or another. All are in good condition and the cubs are growing quickly. The older lioness with the 8 month old cubs is back down south and while on the move one afternoon they came across a colony of dwarf mongoose that scampered down the road straight towards the lioness without seeing her. The lioness lay flat and watched them come closer only to have the cubs come along and chase the small critters into the grass. The mother is looking a bit hungery and the cubs are becoming more and more insistent for milk, even though they should be weaned off by now. Their teeth are getting bigger and razor sharp which is an obvious discomfort for her as she growls and rolls over to deter the cubs from suckling. The mother with the two younger cubs is still up north and all three are doing well.

Ottawa Pride

The Ottawa pride made a very brief appearance one evening around portion 5 up in the north. The oldest female was missing but they seemed to have detected the Mapogo and two Ximungwe lionesses close by. The seven youngsters approached from the east, brazenly vocalising, but still somewhat cautious as without the adult female they are not quite confident enough to tangle with their fathers just yet. The Ximungwe lionesses could be heard replying in the distance and that seemed to be enough to send the Ottawa pride back east again.

Shinzele Male Leopard and Dam Three Female Leopard

Shinzele had a bad start to his week by being treed by the Mapogo and Ximungwe lionesses. He must have had a kill in the area as he looked well fed and again he had a female with him, this time the Dam Three Female. When the lions eventually lost interest the Dam Three Female wasted no time in coming down and scampering away, not to be seen again in the week. Shinzele however took his time and sauntered off as only a male leopard can do! He dragged his full belly eastwards where he disturbed a lone impala ram which realised the leopard was not hunting and so stood its ground and snorted his disapproval. Shinzele decided to avoid the impala and entered a drainage line where we lost him. He did pop up again later in the week where he was found near Ulusaba old airstrip, intently watching some waterbuck. The antelopes sensed his presence though and moved off after which he decided to patrol some territory instead. He must have picked up the scent of the Bushlodge Male having moved through that area the week before as he thoroughly marked and roared his way north up the western boundary. He also looks as though he has had a couple of run ins with competitors recently as his face bares the scars of some recent fighting.

Kashane Male Leopard

Kashane made one appearance down in the south of his territory. He somehow sensed prey in the area while we followed him and crept up against the side of the vehicle for concealment which was quite a thrill! It became a little too close for comfort though and as we backed away a male reedbuck exploded from the long grass not even 10 meters from our vehicle. Kashane did not even bother to chase it though and moved further south where he found a perfect tree which he climbed, giving us some great photo opportunities. He then noticed something in the distance which he watched intently for a while before descending the tree and going to investigate. It turned out to be a big male warthog which he crept up on to within 10 meters again, however the pig noticed him just in time and high tailed it out of there in a flurry of grunts and squeals.

Hlabankunzi Female Leopard

Hlabankunzi has been a bit more elusive now that her cubs are gone. The only times we saw her this week was when she had kills, of which there were two. The first was right at Dulini camp but she had it in thick bush and the visual was difficult. The second was again in thick bush and visual of her was limited. We hope to see a bit more of her this next week.

Metsi Female Leopard and Cubs

While viewing a sleepy cheetah (Makamisa) movement in the distance alerted us to the presence of Metsi who was making her way towards McKenzie Airstrip. Neither animals spotted each other so there was no interaction and we left the cheetah to follow Metsi. She became interested in something in the long thatching grass and all of a sudden leapt into it. All hell broke loose as warthog piglets came scurrying out but the high pitched squealing indicated that Metsi had caught one. Then an unbelievable scene followed as the mother warthog charged Metsi and forced her up a tree which meant Metsi had to let go of the piglet which was luckily unharmed. Metsi remained in the tree until the warthog family moved off before coming down and choosing to hunt less dangerous prey like impalas and duikers. She made a few attempts but was not seen to be successful, although the next day she was found leading the cubs to a kill. It was a young impala which the cubs fed on intermittently. They did not have it for long though before a male leopard came in and stole the prize for himself. It was a nervous male so an ID was not possible but it may have been the shy male from Alicecot. As it turns out though Metsi had made two kills during the night as she lead the cubs further east and to another young impala carcass. This time they had the carcass to themselves and finished it in one morning. Later in the day some interaction was seen between Metsi and Hlangisa as Metsi did not take kindly to her younger sisters return. Metsi roared and salivated her disapproval and Hlangisa was forced to move north again.

Hlangisa Female Leopard

Hlangisa was still up north in the beginning of the week and provided some good viewing as she lounged in trees and caught flies in the late morning heat. She did have some interaction with Xikavi up north who appeared to have stolen the remains of a kill from Hlangisa, but no interaction was actually witnessed. This seemed to convince Hlangisa that it was better to head south again towards here familiar area of McKenzie Windmill/Airstrip. She did not get a warm welcome though as she bumped into the wild dogs and then got chased by Metsi who seems to have claimed her mother’s territory (Mambiri) from under her sisters nose (Hlangisa).

Xikavi Female Leopard

Xikavi was again seen twice in the space of a week which is good news. She seems to be actively traversing the area around Inyathi and Exeter camps so hopefully this will become part of her core territory and we will continue to see her often. She was seen coming from an area where Hlangisa had a kill the night before and when we followed up on Hlangisa we found her up a tree and with no kill suggesting that Xikavi must have got the upper hand and stolen the kill from the younger trespassing leopard.

Cheetah

Makamisa returned as aniticipated at the beginning of the week and managed to catch an impala at McKenzie Windmill. The catch was however made between drives so nobody witnessed it but when we found him in the afternoon he was very full and soaking up the afternoon sunshine. He moved further south after the wild dogs appeared in the area of the carcass, but they did not see him as he had moved a fair distance away from it and so got away without being harassed. Tracks in the morning however suggested that lions had come across him during the evening and undoubtedly chased him as he was nowhere to be found for the rest of the week.

Wild Dog

The pack has been spending a lot of time at the den during game drive times so we have had relatively few sightings of them. When we have seen them though they have been actively hunting with only five individuals which suggests the second pregnant female has now also given birth. A kill was witnessed on one occasion with the dogs taking down an adult male impala which was quickly devoured, after which the pack returned to the den to probably regurgitate meat for the two mothers tending the pups. We are not sure yet whether both mothers are using the same den or if the second litter had been born at a separate den close by, but hopefully we should get to see some pups soon.

Wild Dog

Yes it is official! The wild dogs are denning in the western sector near McKenzie Camp. They returned at the beginning of the week and headed straight for the large termite mounds they had been investigating a few weeks before. Only 6 individuals were visible suggesting that one of the pregnant females had entered the den. Later that day a female was seen carrying something which looked like a newborn pup so the area was zoned and we will now not be approaching the den for a while to minimise the impact on this extremely sensitive situation. When the rest of the pack leaves the den to go hunting we can however follow them and, as usual, it is chaotic. We have twice been with them when they have made kills, firstly a young kudu, and then a young duiker. Although the kills were not actually witnessed we were able to catch up with them to view the feeding activity. The other pregnant female is looking heavily pregnant so it must just be a matter of days before she also gives birth. On the occasion that they caught the young duiker she proceeded to run around with the head as a prize and would not drop it, reacting aggressively to any other member that approached her. Exciting times lie ahead at Savanna as we should get to see the pack regularly now and have the privilege of seeing the pups grow up over the next few months.
 
 

Mapogo Male Coalition

The brothers have been quite active this week having traversed their whole territory and providing spectacular roaring displays at dusk. They joined up with some of the Ximungwe lionesses on occasion but were otherwise actively patrolling together. Makhulu appears to be sporting a black eye which suggests there must have been an altercation at some stage, perhaps over food. They did also provide another amazing sighting when they sniffed out an old impala carcass which Hlangisa had treed. Two of the brothers climbed the tree in spectacular fashion and fought over the carcass before it fell to the ground and the third brother claimed it for himself. The tree afterwards bared the scars of the heavy cats having hauled themselves up it, but they did manage to get back down and the carcass was finished in seconds. They moved northwards after the meal and slept it off before again putting on a great roaring display as the sun was setting.

Ximungwe pride

Although still fragmented, all of the lionesses and cubs were seen at some stage in the last week. As always the highlights were of the cubs playing. The older cubs are looking well and are being kept in the southern parts of the concession. They are still quite playful and showed much interest in the vehicles with their quizzical faces.





The younger cubs are being kept in the central parts of the property and the great news is that these cubs are becoming very relaxed now. They provided great humour during their playful antics and would spend most of their time either tackling each other or pestering their mother for some milk!

Shinzele Male Leopard and Hippo Dam Female Leopard

On the way back from the airstrip at midday a vehicle came across a male leopard dragging an impala across the road. We went to follow up in the afternoon and found Shinzele happily feeding on an impala ram. With plenty of food he remained in the area until the next day but when we went back we discovered that he had been joined by the Hippo Dam Female. She was trying her best to court him but he would have none of it and reacted aggressively towards her, perhaps because he had the kill or she simply was not in full oestrous.

Ndlevane Male Leopard

This angry old male was found twice in the last week. The first sighting of him was brief as he was moving through the bush but as soon as the guide realised who it was they let him be. The second sighting was of him also on an impala ram kill. Again he was not happy with the presence of vehicles and we preferred not to push him, so he was left to finish it in peace.

Bushlodge Male Leopard

A new young male has arrived from the east and has been spending most of his time on Alicecot. He is relaxed and is perhaps looking to establish himself in the south. He is however going to find it difficult as Kashane is already established in this area and is a far larger leopard.

Hlangisa Female Leopard

Hlangisa has been extremely adventurous this week. She was found far north of her territory and spent the most part of the week tentatively moving through the territories of other females. Perhaps she really is just exploring or perhaps it is due to the intensive activity of the wild dogs denning in her territory, or even the arrival of the Bushlodge Male. One evening she came across an old impala ram kill which seems to have been killed by another leopard. She fed on it during the night but the Mapogo sniffed out the carcass and stole it from her the next morning. Hlangisa moved off and climbed a nearby tree, watching the lions devour her meal and perhaps hoping there might be some scraps once they moved off. It was not to be though as the lions finished every morsel and she moved even further north and west towards the Ulusaba airstrip.

Hlabankunzi Female Leopard

Some very sad news is that Hlabankunzi has lost her remaining cub. The cub was killed in a similar manner to the first, by the claws of Shinzele. Hlabankunzi had killed an impala and she and the cub were feeding when Shinzele found them. He did not immediately kill the cub but was more interested in the free meal. The cub made the mistake of trying to approach again to feed and Shinzele dispatched it in a fury of growling and spitting. We did not actually see him kill the cub but it could be heard from a distance and the remains of the cub were found at the site the next morning. A few days later Hlabankunzi made another impala ram kill and was found wondering around looking for the cub. It was very sad to see and it seemed she had not yet accepted that the cub was gone. She eventually returned to the carcass and fed intermittently. Hopefully she will be able to have some more cubs soon and that they will be female again as both Metsi’s cubs are male.

Metsi Female Leopard and Cubs

Metsi also managed to kill an adult impala ram. It seems as the rutting season approaches the rams are all preoccupied and so making them easier prey with four other leopards also having made impala ram kills in the last week. There was some great viewing of her and the cubs feeding and lazing about but the one cub still remains nervous. She never hoisted the carcass but nevertheless they managed to finish the whole meal in just two days, not giving other predators a chance to steal it. 

Xikavi Female Leopard

Xikavi made two appearances this last week, both of which were fairly brief. The one occasion though was fantastic as we were viewing giraffe and she unexpectedly popped up next to us. She walked straight past the vehicle which is unlike her but encouraging to see as it suggests she is becoming more accepting of the vehicles. She then spotted some impalas and moved off into thick bush to conceal herself. Unfortunately we were not able to stay with her and she disappeared before our eyes.

Cheetah

Only the male with the drooping bottom lip made a brief appearance at the beginning of the week. He was around the McKenzie airstrip, one of his favourite hunting grounds, but then moved east and off our concession. He doesn’t usually stay away for long though so we are looking forward to the adrenaline rush of seeing his familiar figure stalking the clearings again soon.