Great views of the lunar eclipse

The lunar eclipse of 15^th June was a worldwide event but here in Balule Reserve we were blessed with both a total eclipse and perfect, absolutely cloudless viewing conditions.  We were therefore able to see the whole phenomenon, notably the change from brilliant white full moon, through the earth’s shadow moving across, to totality and the orange-red colour of the moon as it was lit by light refracted through the earth’s atmosphere.  It was interesting to note how the stars and the Milky Way became increasingly visible as the eclipse proceeded.  The sahdow first cut into the moon's disc at 20.23 pm locak time and the disc was fully covered at around 21.27 pm.  We managed to obtain a reasonable series of photographs, some of which are given below.  For those interested in photographic specifications the pictures were taken with a 100-500 mm zoom lens on full zoom;  ISO settings ranged from 200 before the eclipse to 12000 at totality; shutter speeds ranged from 1/4000 before the eclipse to 1/30 at totality.  This enabled detail to be seen beforehand  and in the early stages and the later orange-red colour, which is very distinct with the naked eye approaching and after totality, to be realised in the photos. 

19.56 hrs: before the eclipse

20.30 hrs: soon after shadow started to cross the moon's disc

20.46 hrs: about one third across

21.05 hrs: almosy two thirds across

21.26 hrs:  almost total

21.30 hrs: totality

One-horned impala still going strong

September 2009 - the earliest photo we have

June 2010 (top left)

When we first arrived at Leopard’s View in September 2008 we were immediately aware of the presence of a male impala with one horn only.  He appeared to be in charge of a small harem of females and so we reckoned that he was doing alright in spite of this handicap to seeing off other males.  He has not been in charge of a harem since that first year, however.  How he lost the missing horn we do not know but impala do sometimes lose horns during fighting or perhaps even falling while being chased.  We have seen “one-horn” on and off ever since, always within the general vicinity of the Lodge, although the first photograph we have of him is from September 2009, a year after we first encountered him.  Further photos are on our files from early June 2010 and then 13^th March of this year, 2011.  We were pleased, therefore, when a one-horned impala and a couple of other two-horned males spent some time browsing outside our house late on the afternoon of 12^th June.  We assume that it is the same animal:  while it could be another male altogether, the likelihood of two one-horned impala in the same area is small.  It is good to know that he is still surviving.

March 2011 at the waterhole (top centre)

12th June 2011 - still going strong

Cheetahs rescued

On 6^th June we were both amazed and delighted to come across two cheetahs lying on a track adjacent to the western boundary fence of Balule Nature Reserve.  Cheetahs are an extremely rare sighting within the Greater Kruger Park and the core Kruger Park:  there are only some 250-300 in an area of about 2.4 million hectares.  They were very relaxed and appeared not to be disturbed either by us or by the traffic passing on the main road past the reserve gate.   Apparently their mother had left these two youngsters (they are only about 9 months old) on several occasions in recent weeks, exiting the reserve to the west.  The rangers had caught her and brought her back several times but each time she got out again and now appeared to have gone for good.  Meanwhile the youngsters’ condition was deteriorating rapidly and, despite attempts by rangers to feed them, they were starving and so on 7^th June it was decided to capture them and take them to Hoedspruit Endangered Species Centre, which specialises in looking after cheetahs.  They were duly darted, checked by the vet, tube-fed and rehydrated, before being taken to HESC.  When they are fully recovered they will be returned to Balule reserve.  It is always difficult to know whether to intervene in situations like this or whether to let nature take its course:  in this instance there were two important factors to consider.  First,  the problem was due, at least in part, to the presence of man-made fences; and second, cheetah are so rare and sufficiently endangered that preservation must take precedence over the course-of-nature argument.  We look forward to the return of these beautiful creatures once they have regained their health and are old enough to fend for themselves.

Bush baby update

A recent vigil of the viewing tower at dusk showed us that there are now 5 bush babies calling it home. Poking their heads out of the thatch before hopping away in separate directions to begin a night's foraging, it's always a treat to see these tiny primates at such close quarters.

Starry starry night

The night sky has long held a fascination for people and is often one of the things that leave a lasting impression to bush visitors. Away from the light pollution of bright city lights, stars and even galaxies are fully visible if you care to look up. The night sky is also more impressive in the Southern Hemisphere simply because it contains a greater number of stars than the Northern Hemisphere, and a higher density of the brightest ones.  

The night sky changes with the seasons, each having specific constellations which can be identified. The end of May heralds the disappearance of the constellation Orion (the hunter) from our skies as he makes way for Scorpio (the scorpion). Scorpio is made up of 17 stars, and as constellations go is one of the less abstract shapes! It includes the super red giant ‘Antares’, seen clearly with a reddish hue in the photograph of last night’s sky below.

Sunset over the escarpment

Last night’s sunset was truly stunning sending rays of pink in all directions. No photograph could do it justice but this one, taken from the viewing tower, shows the last of light disappearing behind the escarpment

 

 

Who needs Kruger?

We took advantage of some time off last week & decided to take a day trip into Kruger. Whilst being treated to some great sightings of elephants wallowing & many herbivores, we had no luck with the elusive carnivores. Until we returned to Balule that is... where just 5 minutes into the reserve we came across a lone lioness lying across the road. With dusk coming on fast she moved a little way into the bush and began calling softly to pride mates out of sight before eventually heading off into thicker vegetation and dissapearing from view.