WILDLIFE REPORT SINGITA PAMUSHANA, ZIMBABWE For the month of June, Two Thousand and Eighteen Temperature Rainfall Recorded Sunrise & Sunset Average minimum: 11,7 C (59,7 F) For the month: 0,4 mm Sunrise: 06:31 Minimum recorded: 08,6 C (55,2 F) For the year to date: 396,6 mm Sunset: 17:34 Average maximum: 25,5 C (81,5 F) Maximum recorded: 33,7 C (89,7 F) At last autumn has arrived here and the landscape is finally turning tan. The vegetation is thinning and the temporary pans are drying up, drawing the wildlife to the more permanent water sources on the reserve. Let s cut straight to the chase here s our wildlife overview for June: Lions We ve had the most sightings of the River Pride this month, up to 12 members at a time. They swam/dashed across the Chiredzi River, albeit apprehensively, and have been hunting along the banks. We watched them
feeding on a buffalo carcass, and, on another occasion, found them lolling around with full bellies and the wisp of a zebra s tail lying nearby. Leopards Leopard sightings have been elusive. On one lucky occasion when driving back to the lodge we found a leopard sitting on the boundary of the Banyini open area as we proceeded towards the airstrip. He didn t stay to pose but we watched in awe as he walked down the road and then off into the bush. Rhinos The rhino sightings have increased significantly. We ve seen white rhinos grazing, wallowing in mud, suckling their newborn calves and displaying to each other to compete for territory. This mother and calf were standing in a classic defensive position with their rears touching, looking out for any possible danger. There ve been good sightings of black rhinos too sometimes these end in mock charges which certainly leaves one fuelled by adrenalin! One group of guests were eager to see a black rhino on foot, and their dreams were realised when a three-hour tracking exercise resulted in an excellent sighting of a bull black rhino that we refer to as Chilonga. Cheetahs We were fortunate to have an excellent sighting of two territorial cheetah males, out in a clearing late one afternoon. Hyenas Every morning we see hyena tracks and often catch them returning from their nightly forays. They cover vast distances at night as they go in search of prey animals to hunt, or leftovers to scavenge from other predators.
Elephants There have been many delightful elephant sightings this month. A highlight with the bachelor bulls was watching seven of them taking a mud bath together. As far as the breeding herds of cows and calves go a real spectacle was when we were sitting on the banks of the Chiredzi River with 50 elephants below us, and while sitting there we were twice approached by small cow herds and had to make a hasty retreat to the vehicle as they were walking right up to where we were sitting. Buffalo There are literally tons of buffalo all over the reserve. One evening about 700 of them converged at the main pan on Banyini, churning the ground into clouds of bellowing dust.
Wild dogs This is possibly the strangest wild dog photo you will ever see, and indeed it is not of wild dogs. It is of a drowned impala being fed upon by terrapins. But the only reason the impala would have drowned is because the pack of wild dogs that is somewhere in the northern sector of the reserve had chased the impala into the dam. The dogs would have been too nervous to swim after it or fish it out because of crocodiles. As it happened there weren t any crocodiles in this dam, and the terrapins were feasting on the carrion. Two days later I saw the same sight at another nearby dam in the north, but this time the drowned impala was being fed on by a large crocodile. The only other evidence the dogs left of their failed hunts was of their muddy paw prints at the water s edge. Plains game The plains game are in abundance with all the grazing at the moment, and there ve been some very interesting sightings with them. We ve seen two male impalas do battle with each other, watched impala mating which is very rare to see, and had a large male wildebeest saunter past us and drink from a pan where we were having sundowners, not more than 20m from where we were all standing!
There was a nyala bull displaying signs of dominance by hoofing the ground and horning all the bushes around him, and another two were having a lateral display standoff. One afternoon it seemed as though a lofty meeting of giraffes had been called, as 25 of them gathered in one spot. Unusual sightings The unusual sighting highlight of the month goes to Guide Dharmesh Daya, who twice spotted an African/Cape clawless otter (Aonyx capensis) swimming about in the Malilangwe Dam. Fishing and boat cruises Despite the cold weather the fishing has still been quite good on one fishing expedition six medium-sized bream were landed. The boat cruises have been awesome one afternoon cruise had a fleeting glimpse of a leopard plus a mother and baby black rhino. Road block By Tyme Mutema We had an action-packed afternoon with a breeding herd of about 30 elephants, north of Sosiji. A little calf had wandered off from his mom, and found himself on the wrong side of the road as we came along. Full of cheek and bravado he stood in the middle of the track, flapped his ears and swooshed his trunk at us. His mother and aunts materialised seemingly out of nowhere, and quickly closed ranks around him. Things became quite intense then as they gathered force and slowly advanced on where I d stopped the vehicle and switched off the engine. After much smelling of our scent and assessing if we were a threat or not they eventually moved off the road, walked past us and carried on feeding. Being surrounded by a breeding herd of elephants is no time to get too big for your boots you just need to be quiet and calm and appreciate the awe-inspiring moments.
Making an early call By Mark Friend As we left the lodge at dawn we heard lions calling, so dashed off in that direction. We found them near the airstrip in a mopane thicket, finishing off an impala carcass that we suspect they d stolen from a leopard. As they left the thicket and walked into pools of light we enjoyed amazing viewing and photo shoots of all 12 lions, including two large males, females and juvenile cubs. Seeing them bathed in early morning sunlight diffused by morning mist was spectacular!
All in a morning s work By Tengwe Siabwanda The morning drives are often the most rewarding. A recent one that springs to mind was when we saw four of the Big Five in two hours. The many sightings included a pride of nine lions watching a herd of about one hundred Cape buffalo, two elephant bulls feeding near the airstrip and a mother and calf white rhino grazing south of Whata Pan.
A lucky find By Dharmesh Daya My tracker and I picked up guests from Gonarezhou National Park and then stopped for a delicious picnic lunch out in the bush. After that we proceeded on a game drive with our sights set on finding a rhino. As luck would have it we found two male cheetahs instead. The elusive and highly endangered cats were relaxing in a clearing near a pan. At sunset a jackal crept into the scene and sniffed around to see if the cheetahs had made a kill and left any scraps but alas it was not his lucky day.
A day trip to Gonarezhou National Park By Japhet Diza One of the activities we offer is a full day trip to our southern neighbour the Gonarezhou National Park. It is a massive area covering in excess of 5 000 square kilometres. Gonarezhou means place of many elephants and some of the largest-tusked elephants in Africa may be found here. We invariably stop at Chilojo Cliffs for lunch, where a 13 kilometre sandstone rampart, of different coloured rock strata, rises 200 metres above the floodplain of the Runde River. On our day trip we viewed lots of kudu, nyala, elephants and zebras. The cliffs were spectacular and the weather was perfect for the trip. On our way back we spotted a pride of five lions at the Singita Pamushana turnoff. A large bull elephant shows off his thick ivory. A zebra in an open grassland wilderness. A female nyala preferring the denser cover of bush and thickets.
All a twitter This African harrier-hawk (Polyboroides typus) was calmly perched in a tree. Their unfeathered faces blush to a deep red when startled or during mating displays. Cruising around the Malilangwe Dam is a most relaxing way to whittle away an afternoon, but if you are a keen birder it can become a frenzy! There are so many different birds to see and the opportunities to photograph them from the boat, especially the kingfishers, are unparalleled. You can drift right up to the tiny avian fishermen and digitally capture the dazzling colours of their plumage. At times you get too close for your camera to focus! Below is a pied kingfisher (Ceryle rudis). It s a female as indicated by the two black stripes on her chest. (Males have the two black stripes and a black band below them.) The malachite kingfishers (Corythornis cristatus) are my favourite to photograph. You can sneak up so close to them while they intently study the water and ignore you. They are tiny, around 13 cm (5.1 in) in length. You can t help but want to reach out and hold this perfect treasure in your palm but of course they should only ever be held in memory.
The aloes are flowering this month, and that draws a medley of sunbirds into the area. The amethyst sunbirds (Chalcomitra amethystina) are quite bossy and chase the others away, savouring the nectar feast for themselves. Some photos just beg a cartoon bubble caption and this is one of them. What do you think was being said? I don t think it was particularly polite The pearl-spotted owlet (Glaucidium perlatum) had been minding its own business before being spotted by a loud-mouthed fork-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis) that was intent on driving it away from the area and telling all and sundry about it while doing so.
June moments It s amazing how much wildlife, especially predators, you see on the roads. They use the roads just as we do they are the shortest route from one area to another, they are clear of thorns and bruising rocks, they are devoid of ticks and other parasites that cling to grasses, and they expose any potential dangers that may be on the route.
This impala ewe was on full alert in the early morning light. Impala ewes don t have horns, but otherwise look the same as rams. Further down the track we came across this macabre sight a pair of impala horns chewed off from the skull of the animal. Indications were that hyenas were the culprits, but more than that we don t know the carcass was not nearby, nor were the predators.
Aren t these the most endearing little backlit faces? Hyena cubs really have perfected the curious puppy-dog look. They are such intelligent and opportunistic creatures! Pink-orange sunset light wraps around these zebras there are actually four zebras in the photo but the foals have such long legs that they are well hidden behind the adults.
Bright side light casts a scribble of shadows across this white rhino s hide. A young calf suckles contentedly from its first-time mother, as a tickle of sunlight plays on its cheek and tummy. Written and photographed by Jenny Hishin, unless otherwise indicated Singita Pamushana Malilangwe Wildlife Reserve Zimbabwe Thirtieth of June 2018