This morning we were up at 6 a.m. in search of the elusive cheetah. Before leaving camp, I finally managed to photograph some Blue monkeys (also known as Vervet monkeys). Satara camp has quite a few of them—and interestingly, no baboons.
About five miles from camp, down a dirt road, we came across what at first looked like a “broken” tree blocking the way. In reality, it was the result of elephant damage. Kruger is struggling with an overpopulation of elephants, and many trees are being pushed over or snapped a foot or two above the ground as the elephants reach for the leaves at the top. The government’s studies suggest the park should sustain about 7,000 elephants, yet the current census shows more than 50,000. A heated debate is underway: the government favors culling to bring numbers down, while environmentalists propose sterilizing females—a costly option without funding. For now, no solution is in sight.
We detoured past the dam where we had seen a dead hippo yesterday. Surprisingly, there were still no hyenas or vultures on the carcass. Even more shocking, we found a second dead hippo—again untouched. It seems likely the hippos were somehow toxic.
A bit further along, a swirl of vultures circling ahead led us to an incredible sight: two African wild dogs feeding on a freshly killed impala. One ate while the other stood guard, keeping dozens of vultures at bay. Douw and his parents (who had slept in that morning) had never seen wild dogs feeding before—an exceptionally rare experience!
The day’s excitement didn’t end there. About an hour later, we came across a male and female lion resting in the shade of a tree. We watched them for nearly an hour and, to our amazement, saw them mate. Debbie laughed that the whole affair took about five seconds! Douw (or his parents) had never witnessed lions mating in the wild, making it yet another special sighting.
Below are some of the other highlights from today:
Juvenile Wart Hogs. I didn’t know they go down on their knees to feed.
African Fish EagleCrested BarbetSouthern Ground HornbillSouthern Yellow-Billed HornbillHadada IbisAlong the way, we also spotted plenty of zebras, elephants, giraffes, blue wildebeest, and waterbucks.
Back at camp, Douw prepared another delicious braai dinner. We were all exhausted and turned in early, knowing that tomorrow we move on to Lower Sabie camp for our final night in Kruger.