14th March – Buffalo Paradise!

On This Day

The late Mangadjane male leopard - 14th March 2008



Morning Drive

(Herald)

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Peru, Voel Dam

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Jaydee, Nkombi Pan

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Vielmetter, Elephant Dam

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Vielmetter, Entrance Dam

1 x buffalo bull – Jaydee, Argyle Rd

1 x buffalo bull – Argyle, Argyle Dam

Afternoon Drive

(Herald)

1 x leopard (Kuhanya Female) – Motswari, Reception

1 x leopard (Shongile’s Brother) – Argyle, Argyle Dam

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Scholtz, Hidden Away Dam

1 x breeding herd of buffalo – Scholtz, Big Dam

2 x buffalo bulls – Scholtz, River Road

Daily Synopsis

Seems like “buffalo season” has come early!  Herald saw no fewer than six different breeding herds of buffalo on the property yesterday, as well as several lone buffalo bulls!  Winter is normally a great time to view buffalo, as they move into the reserve for the large amount of water that is stored in the dams during the dry season, and their summer drinking spots have dried up.  Hopefully the large number of buffalos in the area at the moment does some good in drawing a few prides of lions into the area; the Mahlathini males are notorious for their prowess of killing these massive ungulates.

While it is not yet winter, the fact that the rains have been absent since early January means that the bush is drying up very quickly.  Some respite came yesterday evening with 6mm of rain falling to help cool a very hot and humid day.  Whether or not there is going to be more rain before the onset of winter remains to be seen, but we could really do with one or two more good down pours to top up the waterholes.

Besides the blissful abundance of buffalos, Herald also found two leopard sightings in the afternoon.  The first took him all of 1 minute to find when Kuhanya was located next to reception at the start of the drive.  On his way back in the evening, he found Shongile’s Brother sleeping on Argyle Dam wall, but he didn’t hang around long before moving off.

Tabie and Mangadjane at Francolin Pan

Mangadjane on Francolin Pan wall - 14th March 2008

Nhlangula male white rhino 14th March 2009 - note how much greener it is then than now in 2011!



Kuhanya female leopard walking downa green Timbavati-Umbabat Cutline 14th March 2010 - also much greener than now!



One of the White Lions eating a giraffe that they killed the previous evening - 14th March 2010