Animals abound

This week we have been treated to some wonderful sights on the open plain in front of the viewing decks and our guests have enjoyed being able to sit and watch as zebra, impala, waterbuck, and kudu appeared in profusion.  

Three-legs take a drink at the bird pool

The spectacle began one morning with our friend ‘Three-legs’ coming up to the small bird pool for a morning drink.  He is still very much in evidence around the lodge and house, usually with ‘One-horn’ or in a small group of three or four males.

Male waterbuck

A beautiful male waterbuck then joined him at the birdbath whilst further down the slope there was a large herd of zebras, and at the waterhole two magnificent male kudu took a drink.

Two male kudu at the waterhole

 Another male waterbuck with a splendid set of horns came to the birdbath, and I was able to get some great photos in the mid-morning sunshine. 

Zebras at the waterhole

The following day we were treated to another great show when the same large herd of zebras came to the waterhole with seven giraffes all taking a drink together.   

It was a marvellous sight and we were very pleased to be able to share it with our guests.  

Five of the seven giraffes

Giraffes drinking

More and more the dry weather is encouraging the game to come to water as winter deepens.  We have had no rain for several months and the chances of any in the near future are slight so the animals are coming to permanent water with much more regularity. 

A magnificent waterbuck male

A Tale of Two Impalas



'One-Horn'

Followers of our blog site or newsletter will know about the one-horned impala we have seen around Leopard’s View at regular intervals over the last three years.  Lately it seems that ‘One-Horn’ has teamed up with another impala male with a serious injury and the pair are now seen together often.  This other impala, whom we have named ‘Three-legs’, was first seen in January with a very bad leg injury, which has since quite miraculously healed to a great extent, although as you can see in the photograph the knee joint is very enlarged and the lower leg very thin.  He limps around but is able to run reasonably effectively even with such a damaged leg. 



Injured back leg of 'Three-Legs' 

These two impalas spend a lot of time around about our lodge and house sticking close to the buildings especially at night when the injured male is obviously in danger of being easy prey.  We are always delighted to see them and will keep you posted on their progress. 


'Three-Legs'

Rutting reaches its peak in May

If you’ve visited Leopard’s View recently you’ll have become familiar with the variety of loud snorts and grunts emanating from the surrounding bush at all hours of the day and well into the night. Indeed, you’d be forgiven for thinking that the area is under siege by a large group of aggressive carnivores, hungry for their next meal! 

The culprit, however, is one far less glamorous and often overshadowed by the “big and hairies” of the bush – the impala.

For the majority of the year impala are found in two types of herd, bachelor groups comprising males of all ages, and breeding herds of adult females and youngsters. 

 

Come the end of January, however, bachelor herds break up as competition for territories gets under way. Rams attempt to hold those territories which females will find most attractive, such as those with good food and available water. Once a breeding herd enters a male’s territory he will try to keep them on his patch, whilst advertising his status to would-be challengers through patrolling, roaring and scent-marking vegetation. 

Males roar to advertise their status. Their skulls are modified to give greater resonance and so increase the volume of their roars.

May is the peak season of the rut, and with the females finally coming into oestrus the competition for territories is now at its fiercest. For the testosterone-fuelled males their days are divided into herding and mating with females and fighting other males – there is no time for feeding. Territory holding is such exhausting work that at this stage in the game, the average tenure is just 8 days! 

 

These two males treated us to a brilliant display of ‘horn-to-horn’ combat, so engrossed in their task that they remained completely oblivious to our presence!

Within a few weeks, however, the tournament will be over, all the females will have been mated and the bush will return to a state of relative peace and quiet.