The beauty of going out on safari with us is that you simply never know what you’re going to get (a bit like that chocolate box, I suppose).
Yesterday, after a steaming cup of coffee and a perhaps one too many of our lovely homemade rusks, our guests headed off into the bush with Jesse, Uyai and Mike for their morning safari adventure.
Whilst driving around they managed to pick up fresh Rhino tracks, following them for about 50 minutes. Just before dawn, they finally tracked down the 4 Rhinos. Amongst them, one big male with the female and their offspring. The mother was very protective of her calf and was rather aggressive. In the haste and excitement Uyai took a photo, but it is quite blurry, but you get the picture!
But that was just the beginning. Shortly thereafter, our guests were also treated to a Wild dog sighting. Wild dog sightings are extremely rare so this small pack of three had guests delighted. Wild dogs are deemed to be the rarest carnivores in Africa, with only 2000 species known to still live in the wild, so this is the cherry on the cake.
If this wasn’t good enough yet, a Fish Eagle was spotted along the dry riverbed. One of Africa’s most romanticized birds is the African Fish-Eagle. Its distinctive, echoing call is a common sound in the riverine forests where it nests. Although the African Fish-Eagle is a common sighting because it is found on all the major rivers, there are actually surprisingly few birds.
And then, to top it all, a Saddle-billed Stork was also spotted close to a small pond in the river. It is estimated that there are only between 25 and 30 breeding pairs of Saddle-billed Storks in the greater Kruger area (and the KNP area is bigger than Wales!!). These numbers make them far rarer and more threatened than animals such as cheetah and wild dog, not to mention the big 5. So all in all this bird is exceptionally rare in the area and any sighting is a real treat. If, on your safari, you get lucky enough to see a Saddle-billed Stork it is important to take a moment to reflect that even though they may not be as glamorous as the lion, leopard, elephant, rhino or buffalo, they are in fact under the hammer and in dire need of our time and effort! What a pleasure to see a pair doing so well on our reserve. That’s what real conservation is all about!
After having seen some of the world’s rarest and most beautiful animals, Mike and Uyai also spotted a newborn giraffe, in fact so recent born that her umbilical cord was still intact.
This concluded an incredible safari day, one of those truly exceptional days when everything just comes together. I wish I had been out on safari with the guests, lucky them!
