Ranger Report - June 2011

Update from Madikwe…

It is June again and I cannot help to think how quickly this year has progressed so far. We received our last rains in late April and since then autumn has slowly crept into winter. We had a massive rainy season here in Madikwe with over 1000mm of rain recorded. That is unheard off for a place with an annual rainfall average of only 450mm. I think that the rain will be gone for quite a while as we enter another long and hard dry season. Luckily all the dams are full and there are still masses of water pools standing all over the bush and this should easily take us through this dry season. Food is still plentiful from the growing season with grasses in some places standing nearly six feet tall still. As for now the animals have enough to eat and drink and they should be doing very well in the coming months. The tall grass, however, does pose a significant fire risk this year and everybody will be on full alert to try and contain any wild fires that break out.

It is also a very beautiful time of year, just like spring with all the different colours of flowers, only now flowers have been replaced by different colours of leaves as most of the trees are still wearing their autumn dress. Different colours are associated with different trees, brilliant yellow on the Red Bush willow trees to orange on the weeping wattles to a mixture of almost crimson red, yellow and orange on the tambotie trees. When you stand silently in the bush you can?t help but be hypnotized by the splendorous palette and the soft sound of the wind blowing through the dry leaves and the soft crackling noise they make as they fall and tumble towards the ground. It is a mesmerizing experience that sooths and calms the soul. It is almost like the bush is softly whispering in your ear in a most consoling and reassuring way telling you that everything is alright.

The young that were born around December have grown up well and are strong and well prepared to enter their first dry season. However, water will get scarcer and they will be forced to concentrate around bigger sources of water where predators will be waiting and it will be a very testing time for them indeed. Hopefully they have by now gained enough experience to at least give these hungry predators a run for their money. Nothing comes easy over here for both predator and prey. The Impala lambs did take a bit of a hammering this year from various different predators. I remember finding this young male leopard in the south of the reserve not too long ago. We were sitting next to him admiring him for what he is, the most perfectly camouflaged and superbly designed predator on this planet, when we saw how his whole demeanour changed. Not far from us an Impala lamb strolled out of the bush totally oblivious to the most complete danger watching him. The leopard went low to the ground and started to sneak closer. The tall grass hid his body and he melted into the surroundings like some sort of apparition thanks to his black spotted overcoat. We turned off our lights not to disturb predator or prey or to give one or the other the advantage. We sat there motionless and waited. The night was thick and the only thing you could hear was the crickets calling. We heard a rush of grass and then a loud thump in concurrence with a deathly gurgle. We switched the lights back on and there he was with the little lamb held tight in his jaws. He was already dead and the leopard took his prise into the thick undergrowth were we struggled to see him. We eventually let him be with his food and on our way back to the road we came across a patrol of lions. They obviously heard the last little distress call from the impala lamb and ever the opportunist they wasted no time to investigate. They didn?t find him though and luckily this leopard could enjoy his meal in peace.

Our lion population is ever growing. The cubs we have at the moment are still growing strong and are now about six months old now. Various females are pregnant on the reserve and we are expecting a bit of a baby boom soon. Ditaba and Sepedi are still the kings of this section of the reserve and even though they are now growing old they still command a great deal of respect. Three young males that are rogues at the moment decided to gather up a lot of bravado the other day and decided to challenge the masters of this place. They were roaring and scent marking all over the place and then decided to go towards were the others had a zebra kill and start some trouble. When they arrived at the kill site they defiantly roared at the two kings and started to approach them. Sepedi got up from the kill and stared at them quietly seething. His anger overcame him and he burst into a full breasted roar while slowly marching towards the younger males. It sounded like an earthquake with him being the epicentre and his voice sending out shockwaves towards the three insubordinate adolescents. All three of them froze immediately like they ran into a brick wall and stared in amazement. Their eyes grew wide and you could almost see the pure fear weighing down on their shoulders. At last they could not impede it any longer and all three broke ranks and fled in a most humiliating way. Sepedi chased after them and drove them back all the way to the west of the reserve. The old king returned and with this one act of dominance he showed us that even though he is growing older he still is a considerable force to be reckoned with and certainly not to be underestimated by some adolescent male lion, nor by us.

As can be seen in the above mentioned events the endless cycle of life and death still plays out on the African savannah. There are times of endless peace, beauty and serenity that in an instant can be turned into the most fearful, savage carnage imaginable. We are all bound to this endless cycle whether we like it or not, even if we are watching these events unfold from a game viewing vehicle.

Kind Regards

Jaco Becker (Head Ranger, Madikwe Hills) (BSc; BSc. Hons.)
And the rest of the Madikwe Hills team

Ranger Report – June 2011