Wildlife Photography Blog

First Post! 11/16/2010

2010 – A year of wildlife with The Elephant Trails Safari Co.

2010 offered some truly amazing wildlife viewing in the Okavango Delta, Savuti/Chobe, Nxai Pan and the Makgadikgadi Pans. The first safari was operated in April and the last at the end of October. There were many spectacular sightings, too many to mention here, but we have compiled a brief overview and hope that you enjoy reading about them.

Leopards – The most outstanding sightings were of a pair mating in Xakanaxa (Moremi Game Reserve) in October. The older male and younger female made for quite an intense coupling and this was the first time Steve had seen this in Botswana. Other sightings of Leopard included one individual crossing water, another feeding on a Water Monitor on the Chobe River and a mother and cub feeding on an Impala in Moremi. Two safaris were treated to numerous encounters – one safari saw 5 on their trip and another trip saw 7!

Lions – All the trips saw Lions this year. A most interesting sighting happened in Xakanaxa when Wild Dogs hunting Impala happened to chase them into a pride of Lions. The Lions sprung to attention and started chasing the dogs, Impala running in between. One male Lion managed to snatch an Impala in the chaos! Other sightings included Lions eating an Elephant on both the Chobe River and the Savuti Marsh! The Savuti pride have produced 3 cubs which to date have survived and the sighting of 5 males in the area mean interactions and or aggressions to the resident pair could be on the cards! In August we came across a female with three cubs. As far as we know, only one survived to date. Watch this space!

Cheetah – Wonderful sighting this year in Xakanaxa, Savuti Marsh and Nxai Pan and word of increased sightings on the Chobe River. In Xakanaxa there were a group of 6 spotted together – it appeared that a female with 4 sub-adults had been joined by a male: A rare sighting in the Okavango. In Savuti, whilst watching a Cheetah asleep under a tree, we noticed a Leopard skirting around him. Amazing to see two of Africa’s big cats in one sighting.

African Wild Dogs – If anything, it was the year of the African Wild Dog for us! In May on our photography workshop, we went to an old Hyena den on the Khwai River and found a pack of Wild Dogs attempting to take the den site from the Hyena. For 3 days they scuffled and one dog died, but eventually the Dogs won and went on to produce 9 puppies which we saw with the adults again in September. The 8 adults and 9 puppies were becoming more mobile and, on the morning we came across them, had killed two Impala. Lots of mouths to feed, indeed! We also noted sightings in Moremi, Savuti Marsh and the Chobe River where Guy saw them take down two Impala.

Meerkats – These wonderful characters of the bush are usually seen on our trips to Makgadikgadi Pans. We visited a den and it was sensational to see them emerge in the early morning, ever watchful for predators. Alongside the adults were numerous pups and our group got some amazing images of them grooming in the sunshine.

Birds – There were many wonderful sightings of numerous species but a few stand out. On the Khwai River we watched a Gymnogene (African Harrier Hawk) hunting in its usual fashion – shoving its claw into holes in trees. Usually they are after the chicks of other birds but in this instance we watched in awe as small colony of bats took off to avoid predation. This was a first for many of us. Each year in September and October we visit a heronry in the Delta to see Yellow-billed Storks, Maribou Storks and Egrets nesting together on the small islands in the lagoon systems of the Delta. This is always an amazing spectacle as we close by boat and the photographic opportunities are amazing. Also notable was the water fowl moving into the Savuti area of Chobe National Park. The marsh has been dry for almost 3 decades and the flooding of it this year has attracted Fish Eagles, large flocks of Yellow-billed Storks, Saddle-billed storks, Red-billed Teals and even Pelicans. The place has been transformed and we feel quite privileged to witness this!

Elephants - Botswana’s healthy population meant that we saw too many to mention here but since it is the name sake of the company and we love being with them, here is a little story: We came across a breeding herd who were taking a break under a tree in the delta. Often, the youngsters go to sleep under their mothers and on this day, the herd moved off leaving a sleeping Elephant behind. It was only a matter of time till the youngster awoke and panicked. It raced around our vehicle trumpeting before catching the attention of mom who had wondered off quite far with the rest of the herd. The subsequent reunion was quite emotional.

People - Once again we have had a flurry of guests returning to Botswana with Elephant Trails, some coming for their 3rd, 5th and amazingly even 12th safari with us. Remarkably most of the returnees (who make up for a healthy percentage of our business) comment that their trip was the best yet. Most of these have already booked their seats for the 2011 season. We must be doing something right!

Guy, Edurne and Steve

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