May sightings update

Winter is starting to set in with cooler mornings, although the days remain very pleasant. The bush is still quite dense but is slowly starting to dry out. Sightings have been very good again this month with a variety of interesting animals not often encountered such as African Civet, Honey Badger, Sidestriped Jackal, African Rock Python. It’s because of the diversity of wildlife which makes Kruger such a special place, and you can at any time see something really unexpected. I’m still waiting for the Pangolin (Scaly Anteater) to make its appearance… one day.

 

Total tours: 4                          Total days: 14

		Elephant	Rhino	Buffalo	Lion	Leopard	Cheetah	Wilddog	Hyena	Jackal
	Tour	4	4	4	4	3	3	0	3	3
	Day	11	11	10	9	4	3	0	4	5
	Sights	Y	32	Y	12	5	3	0	4	5
	Nr	Y	60	Y	30	5	6	0	13	7

 

 

Simon Vegter

Wild Wings Safaris

www.wild-wings.co.za

 

April Sightings Update

Due to nature (some big ash cloud) some safaris were cancelled and left me with only two trips to the Kruger this month. They were nevertheless great safaris. We had exceptional amounts of rain lately, leaving the park very lush and green. This makes spotting lions in particular very difficult. However, one of the highlights for the month was one of those lion sightings. At Mlondozi dam we spotted three of them showing particular interest in a lone impala. From the view we could clearly see the strategy they employed for stalking this impala. One lioness took a wide loop to circle the impala on the one side, while the other did the same on the other side. When sufficiently circled, the one lioness started chasing the impala straight towards the other one. By some fluke of luck and great dodging skills, the impala manage to escape all three lionesses. That was one lucky impala who survived to live another day. It was nevertheless exciting to see the incredible skills lions use in stalking their prey. With a success rate of 30%, lions often do more chasing than catching.

 

Total tours: 2                          Total days: 8

		Elephant	Rhino	Buffalo	Lion	Leopard	Cheetah	Wilddog	Hyena	Jackal
	Tour	2	2	2	2	1	2	2	1	2
	Day	8	4	7	3	2	2	2	1	3
	Sights	Y	16	Y	3	2	2	2	1	4
	Nr	Y	29	Y	14	2	2	12	1	5

 

 

Simon Vegter

Wild Wings Safaris

www.wild-wings.co.za