WILDLIFE REPORT SINGITA PAMUSHANA, ZIMBABWE For the month of November, Two Thousand and Fifteen

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1 WILDLIFE REPORT SINGITA PAMUSHANA, ZIMBABWE For the month of November, Two Thousand and Fifteen Temperature Rainfall Recorded Sunrise & Sunset Average minimum: 21,4 C (70,5 F) For the month: 64 mm Sunrise: 05:03 Minimum recorded: 15,5 C (59,9 F) For the year to date: 260 mm Sunset: 18:22 Average maximum: 34,2 C (93,5 F) Maximum recorded: 45,1 C (113,1 F) There are days by which we mark time, and two of these occurred this month. On 21 October the first impala lamb of the season was seen on its wobbly legs, and on the 24th the calm was pierced with the "trrp- trrrrrrrrr" of the woodland kingfishers' chorus. Let the bush festivities begin! Speaking of festivities, here's a message from our General Manager of Tourism, Jason Turner, "We're hoping that all our American friends and family have enjoyed celebrating their Thanksgiving so far! Whilst it's not a national holiday here in Zimbabwe it does remind us all how fortunate we are, and grateful to have what we have and do what we do!" It's been boiling hot, and while that does deter some guests at this time; it certainly does not deter the wildlife from showing itself. Here's an overview of November's wildlife news:

2 Rhinos: A delightful new arrival is this little white rhino calf, looking a lot like Shrek. The parents were seen taking a drink while keeping a close eye and protective stance over the baby, who will suckle milk exclusively now, and then supplement its suckling with grazing and water over the next 18 months until it is fully weaned. We've had excellent rhino sightings as always. One group of guests wanted to try and spot a black rhino on their way to the Kambako Bushcraft Museum, and did so on two occasions. Another drive to Nduna Dam produced five white rhinos along the way. Wild dogs: Photo by Mark Saunders We're so pleased that the pack of wild dogs is still on the property, for now. Twenty of the patchwork beauties were seen resting near the water's edge of Nduna Dam, along with plenty of plains game that soon scattered when the dogs began their pre- hunting ritual. Lions: Lion sightings continue to be excellent, thanks to our specialist tracking team. A highlight for guests was watching a lion hunting a warthog near Nduna Dam. (Yes, Nduna Dam has seen a lot of action!) Cheetahs: The cheetah highlight for the month was seeing four of the world's fastest sprinters together. Elephants: There've been beautiful breeding herds of elephants with their funny youngsters getting up to mischief, and some stately old bulls who keep to themselves. Buffalo & plains game: Thanks to the dry weather and draw of the waterpoints we've had good viewing of eland, wildebeest, impalas, kudus, zebras, giraffes and large herds of buffalo.

3 Birds: A highlight one morning was seeing a beautiful Natal robin, south of Chikwete Cliffs. Photo hide: The photo hide never disappoints. Here three wildebeest, animals that are numerous yet hard to get close to in a vehicle, drink undisturbed and unperturbed by us hidden in the hide. Walks & water safaris: It's a lovely time of year to walk and see the smaller things, but as any parent would say, "Watch where you walk!" Honestly, the lions are exactly the same colour as the grass. Or, I should say, the grass is exactly the same colour as the lions at the moment. Stepping on a sleeping lion is known to be hazardous to one's health. Far more relaxing is a sundowner cruise with the pods of laugh- a- lot hippopotami.

4 No rest for royalty!

5 Exhausted from ruling their realm these two male lions settled down in the shade of a tree, near a waterhole, to take a well- earned afternoon nap. They had just relaxed and nodded off when they were awoken by an annoying irritation. A zebra seemed intent on teasing them, in the manner of a court jester, by parading up and down in front of their noses, with his harlequin hide and swishing tail. The foolhardy equine drank his fill, and then left the lions in peace. Their resumed slumber was not for long because, quiet as a mouse, a huge bull elephant snuck up on them. They only saw the enormous beast at the last moment and scampered off in disgust. The elephant took his time bathing and drinking and the lions had to make do with another spot nearby. They attempted a third- time- lucky siesta but were visibly put out and annoyed when a bull rhino came striding into the scene, making a bee- line for them. Again they scuttered off, this time deep into the thickets where they could hopefully get some peace and quiet! Where buffalo have right of way Leaving the lion sighting in the late afternoon we headed into the dusk to see what it had in store. We marvelled at this old buffalo bull crossing the road, in his own time, and I wondered what would have happened if he'd crossed the path of those two lions. Buffalo are a preferred prey species for lions, but tough and dangerous to hunt. As a herd buffalo often mob lions that attack one of their members, and can hold their own against a pride, sending the predators scattering. Buffaloes will stampede at a speed that the whole herd can maintain, but an individual buffalo can reach a speed of 60 kilometres (37 miles) per hour.

6 Two's company, three's a crowd, four's a crash... This scene was not quite as idyllic as it seemed. The female rhino was in oestrus and receptive for mating, and the bull with the particularly long sharp horn was doing his best to guard her and keep other young suitors away. Another set of guests and their guide actually saw this bull toss one of the younger suitors in the air, clean off his feet, by ramming him and using his horn as a lever!

7 Who's in charge? On a scouting drive I had spotted him coming down the river embankment for a drink. All was peaceful and I thought I would approach closer on foot, rather than make vehicle tracks on the sand. I kept the water between us but he was having none of it. The sight of me strolling across the sand sent him into a tizz and resulted in this headshake and posturing. I slunk back to the vehicle, where he felt I belonged, and then he settled down to eat the phragmites reeds. Where you wear your skeleton A calmer walk resulted in these two finds - a leopard tortoise and a primate skull. An exoskeleton is an external skeleton that supports and protects an animal's body, in contrast to an endoskeleton which is an internal skeleton. Exoskeletons, such as a tortoise's shell, are made up of chitin and calcium carbonate, while endoskeletons of vertebrates are comprised of bone and cartilage. Interestingly tortoises have both an endoskeleton and an exoskeleton - this makes for excellent structure and protection, but at the cost of a very heavy load to bear.

8 A pride in its prime We found this pride one morning near a water source, and they greeted us and the rising sun with a symphony of roaring. There is absolutely nothing on earth that can compete with a pride of lions a few metres from you roaring like this on a dewy morning in the wilds of Africa. They were on the northern border of their territory, and the roaring was probably to let other lions know that they were in the neighbourhood and no trouble would be tolerated or go unchallenged. This pride is one of the healthiest looking I have ever seen. The two adult lionesses are so strong and muscular (see them in the cover photo), their cubs are healthy and bearing a couple of scratches from rough tough play and proper pride discipline, and these two males are a formidable looking duo. It's interested to compare their condition to another pride that is fragmented and led by an aging often- injured lioness - that pride suffers from mange and is in poor condition. There were some wonderful photographic opportunities this morning in the 'golden hour' light: the male turning his head and casting his portrait across his flank, and the pride walking off single- file stretching a line of lions across the vista.

9 The tawny eagle (Aquila rapax) Hyenas were feeding noisily on a giraffe carcass when this tawny eagle flew in. I was surprised that it had beat the vultures to the scene, but then tawnies do have acute eyesight and their hearing is also an important sense for prey location. Sometimes you can see these yellow- brown eagles alongside vultures, ripping into a carcass. As opportunistic scavengers, tawnies will also steal prey from other raptors. Birds and animals that do this are known as kleptoparasites. (Humans that do this are known as robbers, burglars, thieves,... but, alas, I digress.) Tawny eagles are strong fliers and can fly at elevations of metres ( feet). Duck if you're a giraffe These three giraffe were ambling along one of our main routes that's lined with huge old Brachystegia glaucescens trees, and I wondered how they were going to cope with the overhanging branches. Well, they coped gracefully of course, by simply ducking under them, mid stride. The pros of giraffes' long necks and height are that they can reach into trees and browse leaves other animals can't reach. They can spot predators a long way off with their aerial advantage. The long necks of males are used in combat against other males when fighting for dominance and mating rights. Another advantage is 'neck rubbing,' a process used when a male and a female giraffe rub necks so the male can demonstrate his strength to attract the female. But there are a couple of cons to a long neck. Giraffes aren't able to access all terrain. Also, it's awkward for them to bend down to drink. A predator can attack when it is in this vulnerable front- leg- spread position, and it may be unable to escape in time.

10 The gall of it While hunting for wild dogs in a remote region we came across this dead tree with the most enormous gall I've ever seen. Here's an edited extract about galls from ecology/plant- galls/, where you can find the full text and credits: Galls are the bizarre lumps, bumps and growths that develop on different parts of plants after being invaded by some unique organisms. Galls have a range of causers, including viruses, fungi, bacteria, insects and mites, and they appear on more than half of all plant families. The study of plant galls is called cecidology, and yet while these weird structures have intrigued humans for millennia, there is still much that we don't know about them. There is a huge variety of galls, and the way they are induced and develop also varies. Usually the gall causer in some way attacks or penetrates the plant's growing tissues and causes the host to reorganise its cells and to develop an abnormal growth. The chemistry behind this is not fully understood, although it is thought to be due to complex interactions between hormones and other chemicals. Galls have such recognisable forms that the causer can often be easily identified from the growth alone. Galls may provide their inhabitants with any combination of food, shelter and protection from predators. It is a parasitic relationship, in that the invader benefits, while the host may be harmed, although in many cases, no obvious harm is apparent, and the plant continues to thrive.

11 The real gall specialists include gall midges, gall flies and gall wasps. The process begins when the female wasp lays her egg in some part of the tree. Either the eggs or the larvae themselves then exude special chemicals which begin to have strange effects on the tree, deforming and stimulating cell growth to create the perfect microhabitat for the wasp grub. A chamber (or multiple chambers) develops for the larva or larvae to grow in. Remarkably, the larva is able to stimulate the plant to direct more nutrients, such as proteins and sugars, to the cells immediately surrounding the moist chamber. The grub thus has a ready supply of food to speed it towards maturity. There is often a whole community - a mini ecosystem - that develops within and around the gall. Many galls will host lodgers, which zoologists refer to as 'inquilines'. Beneath the boughs of a giant On a far more peaceful non- invasive note I'll end this month's report with a photo of a baobab in the rain. Beneath its boughs two giraffe look on at a hyena as it strolls by. Now s our rainy season and we hope for our fair share of it since most of southern Africa is experiencing a drought. Written and photographed by Jenny Hishin, unless otherwise indicated Singita Pamushana Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve Zimbabwe Thirtieth of November 2015