January 2022 Wildlife Report

All images in this article were taken by Stefan Breuer, owner.

Lion:

We had an amazing lion sighting the one night out on drive. We were following our resident pride of lions and the one lioness gave us the indication that she had spotted a potential prey ahead. It was a large herd of impalas with babies. Immediately the rest of the pride noticed, and they started the hunting process. Two females split away from the pride to move around the impala herd and the rest remained right next to the vehicle down in a pouncing position, waiting for the right time. The two females that moved around kind of spooked the herd to run toward the lions waiting by the vehicle. And in a blink of an eye the whole herd of impalas came running straight toward the vehicle not noticing the other lions. Unfortunately, the 4 or 5 impala babies were the easiest prey and got caught by the lions. It was an absolute crazy experience for the guests to experience all the commotion right next to vehicle.

Leopard:

We have been extremely lucky to have had more frequent sightings of our beautiful female leopard, Manzi, and her cute cubs the last month. For her cubs to grow and develop she must hunt more often to keep them strong and healthy. That is why we have been able to see them more regularly as they are quite active. We had an amazing sighting where they had hoisted an impala in a tree and the cubs and a good feast. This is also a good learning period for the cubs.

Hyena:

The last month our active hyena den near Malembeni has provided us with great opportunities to spend some time with our resident hyena clan. It is truly amazing to watch the dynamic of the clan as they play around and interact with each other. We have noticed two new members of the clan, which is very exciting. There is also a new bunch of hyena cubs that if we are lucky enough, we can get a quick glimpse of them.

Elephant:

The bush is extremely luscious with flowing rivers and filled up mud wallows which the elephants really enjoy. Mud wallows are also very important for elephants. Firstly, it really helps cool down their bodies in the summer temperatures. It also helps get rid of external parasite and old dead skin. The elephants have also been stopping by the lodge a lot drinking from our swimming pool and feeding from our gardens. The guests always love these close encounters of when a big herd of elephants surrounds the camp.

Hippo:

We have one resident hippo moving back and forth from the Klaserie river and close dams around Makumu lodge. This has provided many great opportunities to spot the hippo out of water, walking around and feeding, which is really fascinating. The hippo tends to feed right in front of the camp as well, where all the guests can view it straight from the lodge decks.