Mark Needham visited Arathusa in August this year. While there he witnessed Safari – our old leopard with the one blind eye – catch an impala and drag it up a tree. Fortunately for us he managed to capture the entire event of camera. He also has some other really cool footage on You-Tube. Go and check it out.
Wildlife diary: 1 – 15 October 2010
The month of November kicked off with a bang, treating us to sightings of four male cheetahs and a pack of seven wild dogs on the same day!
We found the cheetahs early in the morning in a large open area. The visuals were great, and even though they were fast asleep it was fantastic to see four of the few cheetahs that still roam the Greater Kruger Region. At last count there were only 190 cheetahs left in the region, so seeing four at once was pretty good going.
The afternoon was for the wild dogs!
We found a pack of seven just around the corner from the lodge. Wild dogs are well-known for their speed and stamina, and true to their reputation they quickly covered a vast distance in a very short amount of time.
Wild dogs are the most endangered carnivore in Africa, which makes even the briefest sighting of them a special occasion. But because they traverse such large areas, finding them is never easy.
As always, we were treated to many leopard sightings in the past two weeks. Although there was one in particular that stood out for us. Shadow – one of our female leopards – finally made a couple of appearances with her two little cubs. Viewing of the youngsters is still somewhat restricted, as we follow a very specific protocol when it comes to cubs.
Being mindful while cubs are still young is exactly the reason we enjoy such magnificent leopard viewing at Arathusa.
Over the next couple of weeks, as the cubs grow older and become more accustomed to vehicles, we will slowly increase viewing of these adorable little guys.
The 7th of November saw the beginning of the impala lambing season. Watching hoards of baby impalas frolicking about never fails to put a smile on the faces of guests and rangers alike. Impalas generally give birth at around the same time every year. Doing so ensures the survival of most of the lambs, as the predators take full advantage of this time of year.
The lion prides in our area all took turns at putting in an appearance, which meant we saw most of them at least once during the past two weeks.
Some unfortunate news came in the beginning of the month, when the four dominant males managed to catch and kill a young male from another pride that frequents our area. Although it is sad, it’s also a necessary way for the lions to keep their numbers from growing too big. If they didn’t do this they would soon be left with an empty pantry.
The elephants proved more difficult to find than usual. This was due to the fact that they’d moved south to the Sand River, where water and food is abundant at the moment. Hopefully in the coming weeks – with more rain and the bush flourishing – they will return to drink and feast in our area.
Rhino viewing has been exceptionally good lately, with sightings on an almost daily basis of these formidable beasts. They’ve been quite relaxed with one another lately, with no known fights between the territorial males. They all seem happy and content to just fill up on the fresh green grass that sprouted up after the first rains.
Our only wish now is that the rains continue on a more frequent basis, in order to fill up all the waterholes in the area. In a matter of weeks we watched the landscape transform itself from dull and arid, into a flourishing ecosystem with lush green plants and full water holes.
Greetings from the bush.
Andre & Chris , Ryan & Debeer , Phil & Rifos , John & Roy 
One of the Machigilhane male lions
Wildlife diary: 16 – 31 October 2010
This is the first time in many years that we’ve had no rain in October, and as a result the smaller drinking holes are bone dry. The waterhole in front of the lodge is also slowly drying up, and we are seeing the catfish struggle in the shallow water on a daily basis.
There have been a couple of threatening thunderstorms over the past couple of weeks, but so far it’s been ‘all talk, and no action’ from the heavens.
Considering the dry state of the bush, the game viewing during the past few weeks has been remarkably good.
As we mentioned in the last update, Shadow (one of our female leopards) recently gave birth to two cubs. We’ve closed her den area off to all vehicle activity until the cubs are about three months old. This is for the safety of the cubs, as well as to ensure their best possible reaction towards vehicles in the future. Unfortunately this does mean you’ll have to wait a while longer for us to post some photos of the little guys.
We’ve enjoyed some great lion sightings recently, especially of the Macinghilanes (the 4 young male lions). They have been moving in and out of the area with both the Styx and Tsalala females.
On one occasion the Macinghilanes even came to blows over a Styx lioness that was in oestrous. The fight was short-lived however, and ended with nothing more serious than an injured paw and a bloody mouth. The four then quickly reverted back to their usual friendly ways with one another.
Buffalo have also been seen all over the place, and are frequenting the waterholes more regularly as it has been really hot out here. On one morning drive in particular, we saw an exceptionally large herd of buffalo move past the lodge’s waterhole.
We parked on the dam wall and watched as this herd of between 700-900 buffalo made its way past the waterhole, with a number of them stopping en route for a welcome drink.
Although we have seen some elephant and rhino, the numbers haven’t been nearly as high as usual. This is probably due to the lack of water in the area.
Some of the migratory birds have already returned home, and now we’re looking forward to the rest of them returning as well. Another highlight we’re all anticipating are the impala lambs, which are due to be born very soon. These new additions to the impala population are great for fledgling predators, as well as for the older guys that can’t run that fast anymore.
We are all looking forward to the seasonal changes that come with the onset of summer, when animals are born, and the bush turns a lush green. We would love to share these, and more more, wonderful experiences with you while on safari.
And as the year draws to a close – and the festive season ever closer – we hope to be seeing some of you in the not too distant future.
Greetings from the bush.
Andre & Chris , Ryan & Debeer , Phil & Rifos , John & Roy
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