Wild Dog
The pack has not returned to the western sector since their departure in the third week of June. Reports from the east however have indicated that they are moving eastwards towards the Kruger National Park, using temporary den sites along the way. These reports have also indicated that two of the eight pups have died. One pup died mysteriously when it went to sleep with the rest of its litter mates under a tree during the heat of the day but never woke up when the rest of the pack got moving. It is possible that it may have been a victim of a snake bite. Nobody knows what happened to the second casualty but it is not unusual for wild dogs to lose pups at this age as they are still young and not as mobile which makes them vulnerable if the pack bumps in to other predators while on the move. It is hoped however that not too many more pups will perish, but unfortunately we may never know as the pack continues east into the KNP where we will be unable to monitor their progress.
Mapogo and Ximungwe Pride
The big news of the week is the unveiling of the two new additions to the pride, two 10 week old cubs! The mothers of the middle and youngest cubs are spending all their time together while the oldest female still chooses to keep the oldest cubs apart from the pride. The pride enjoyed a lot of success with numerous kills including a buffalo cow, a waterbuck and an impala. As usual the Mapogo claimed the lions share and looked like bloated ticks as they tried to find the most comfortable position to rest.
Ottawa Pride
The Ottawa pride has undergone some recent changes with the two young males spending more time away from the pride and one of the cubs being killed. The three remaining females and one youngster are looking good however and also enjoyed some success by bringing down a huge male kudu near the Sand River. Their benefit was only short lived though as the nearby Mapogo moved in and stole the kill during the evening even though they were satiated with buffalo. The Ottawa pride moved east off our concession thereafter and will probably look to avoid their fathers for the foreseeable future.
Kashane Male Leopard and Hlangisa Female Leopard
The 'sighting of the last few weeks' belonged to this pair of leopards who were involved in an action packed morning which also starred no less than ten hyenas. Hlangisa had killed a large male impala during the night right in the middle of Brass Monkey Donga clearings and managed to drag it to an island of Gwarri bushes on a termite mound. With limited cover it was not long before a hyena sniffed her out and stole the kill. The hyena ran off into the bushes with Hlangisa in tow who tried desperately to salvage some of the kill. The commotion attracted Kashane who happened to be in the area. He stepped in and sent the hyena packing with a series of powerful blows, then claimed the kill for himself and treed it. The commotion had however also attracted another nine hyenas which arrived in a frenzy of whooping and hysterical cackling, hell bent on mobbing the leopards and stealing the kill back. Eventually the hyenas realised the kill was out of their reach and moved off which allowed Kashane to come down and wonder off to find a drink of water. Hlangisa saw this as an opportunity to try salvaging some of the kill again and climbed the tree. To her dismay Kashane returned and chased her to the top of the tree. She whimpered her apologies and shifted uncomfortably in the thin branches but Kashane was having none of it and growled and spat his annoyance. The domestics continued well into the night and we eventually left after eight hours of National Geographic quality viewing. The next morning the kill was finished and both leopards were gone, but Hlangisa had no doubt learnt another valuable lesson.
On another occasion we found Hlangisa close to the southern boundary fence where she flushed a scrub hare which wasted no time in scampering straight through the mesh and beyond the fence to safety. Hlangisa was visibly puzzled and sat by the fence for over an hour staring at it in awe, no doubt trying to understand how her meal got away and why she could not follow it. She did test the fence and got a shock for her troubles which, although quite funny to witness, must have given her a big fright. Fortunately the large herd of buffalo emerged in the recently burnt fire break nearby which distracted her and she headed off in their direction to test her stalking skills.
Hlabankunzi Female Leopard
Hlabankunzi spent the majority of the last few weeks in the company of Kashane as she continued to try and seduce him. This she finally did and enticed the big male to mate with her. We all have our fingers crossed that this courtship has been successful and that Hlabankunzi will provide us with yet more fantastic cubs!
Shinzele Male Leopard and Xikavi Female Leopard
Sad news is that Xikavi appears to have lost her first litter of cubs. Although not unusual for female leopards to lose their first litter, it was unfortunate that nobody actually got to see them, especially after she has been trying so desperately over the last two years to fall pregnant. Following this loss she has been courting Shinzele again who was suspected of siring her first litter. Hopefully it will not take Xikavi another two years to conceive again! The pair was actually seen on a bushbuck kill together, although Shinzele would not allow Xikavi to feed. In the end he did not get much of the kill either as the oldest Ximungwe lioness sniffed them out and claimed the kill for her two growing cubs.
Mashiyambanje Male Leopard
Mashiyambanje has been fairly busy patrolling his southern boundary against any invasion by Shinzele. He came across Shinzele and Xikavi while they were on the bushbuck kill in the Sand River, which is the boundary between the two male’s territories, but he kept his distance and eventually moved off showing he still has a healthy respect for his main rival.
Bushlodge Male Leopard
After suspecting that this young male was heading back east again after coming up against stiff competition in the west, he popped up around McKenzie Camp and has been in the area for the last couple of weeks. On one occasion he found himself amongst the large herd of buffalo and could not resist stalking a few of them. With the sheer numbers of buffalo around it was not long before they detected him and he had to scamper on a number of occasions to avoid their sharp horns. It will be great if he can establish himself in the west as he is a relaxed leopard that makes for quality viewing.
Metsi Female Leopard and Cub
Further sad news is that one of Metsi’s cubs is gone. We are not sure if it has died or if it has simply decided that it is time to become independent. Metsi still seems to be providing for the remaining cub though and they have been spending most of their time in the central parts of the concession.
