Reflection and Resolutions: Busy lodge, Animal updates, and more
The Festive Season is a busy time for Umzolozolo! Christmas decorations adorn the main lodge, setting the scene for guests who are spending the holidays with loved ones on safari! The craziness of December is not exclusive to the indoors, our wild creatures continue to keep us entertained and enthralled with curious behaviour and summer shenanigans. This month has been a bit of a rollercoaster ride with many ups and downs along the way, but it has also highlighted the adventurous spirit of 2024.
While we continue to celebrate the births of many new animals like blue wildebeest, buffalo and giraffe, we are also reminded of the savage nature of the wild. The lambs, piglets and calves have got to avoid the many predators looking to hunt the easy targets. Our cheetahs are experts at stalking and chasing impala lambs and warthog piglets and there have been a few occasions where we got to share this experience with guests. It is brutal but also captivating! I recall two separate sightings that involved cheetah females and impalas. The first was a successful hunt that took place below our lodge at Hoopoe Dam right in front of our eyes. The female showed cunning, planning and raw speed to take down an impala lamb. The second sighting was a failed hunt in the afternoon. We spent time following a young female cheetah that eventually locked on to a herd of impala. She identified a target and pursued it, the hunt took place around our safari vehicle. It was on another level. While she didn’t get dinner that day, we did find her a few mornings later with a fresh impala kill for breakfast.
It would be impossible to write a December report without mentioning our two cheetah cubs! The oldest of our two new cheetah females brought the cub bundles out just after Christmas and blessed many of us with awesome sightings. They are only a couple of months old but they are very cute. Cheetah cubs are born resembling honey badgers which helps to keep them safe. Honey badgers are notoriously feisty and aggressive towards other predators. This mimicry helps keep the cubs safer for the first few months of their lives. It is genius!
Our lions have been keeping us entertained as well. The northern pride have ventured into the central and southern regions of the reserve a bit more. They were feasting on a buffalo recently and also took down a warthog which was a busy sighting. One of the southern lionesses stalked a couple of square-lipped rhinos a few weeks back which was both comical to watch and optimistic by nature.
From the birding side of the reserve, December has been amazing! We recorded a new raptor species this month when a female Montagu’s Harrier was reported. She spent a few days hunting on the western plains and I was delighted to snap a few photos of her before she left the area. We welcomed migrant species to the reserve in much greater numbers this month. Amur Falcon, Lesser Kestrel, European Honey Buzzard, European Roller, Common Buzzard, White Stork and Barn Swallow have been spotted, logged and enjoyed. More than two dozen Blue Cranes have been seen in the grassland areas and they were accompanied by a couple of Grey-crowned Cranes for a few days as well. Three members of our Umzolozolo team participated in this year’s Big Birding Day on 7 December. We logged a total of 139 birds in 24 hours and placed 17th out of about 100 teams nationwide.
The year ended on the best note we could have asked for. A sighting of a leopard on 30 December! The illusive leopard was reported and I responded. It disappeared. I opted to stick around. It reappeared on the top of a hill! It was twilight but we eked out as much time with it as we could. Eventually we left it there in the thicket and headed back for dinner. It was awesome!!!
As we look back on the year, we recognise how fortunate we are to call Nambiti Game Reserve our home and how privileged we are to share this place and all of its characters with our guests. We can only hope that 2025 will be even better!
Happy New Year and stay wild!
Head Guide Noleen Turner