Renewal, transformation & life at Umlani - Umlani Bushcamp

Renewal, transformation & life at Umlani - November 2024 Blog by Micaela, Camp Manager Umlani

2024-11-24T00:00:00+02:00

Photo by Irina Bossi – Lion drinking from Umlani Waterhole (Feb 2023)

The past three years have been a whirlwind: we made it through the challenges of Covid,
business is booming again—perhaps even better than before—and our owners, Marco and
Marie Schiess, have returned to the bush, making a full-circle journey back to the roots of
what started as their early adult life, and when Umlani was born - it’s wonderful to see them
return to the heart of it all. And this time around, to make fabulous enhancements to our
already authentic and special bushcamp.

Staff

Some things at Umlani, however, remain beautifully and reliably the same, without change...
The sun still rises in the east and sets in the west, the stars continue to shine as spectacularly
as they did before; and our wonderful staO are back with us, full-time, after a gruelling survival
challenge when the Covid 19 pandemic travel restrictions almost broke the industry.
Susan and Matimba continue to oOer their friendly service in the dining room, now joined by
Bongi, who has transitioned from housekeeping to join the team in the dining area. Thembi
and Joana still warmly welcome guests, and the legendary Elvis remains with us, still bringing
his unique touch to his informative and exceptional drives. Ephraim, our skilled former
tracker, is now a full-time guide alongside Elvis.

Photo by Manya Schiess - Team Building 2024

Photo by Irina Bossi – Giraffe sunset

Photo by Irina Bossi – Martial Egale (April 2024)

Helen Boonzaier (regular guest & Amos -2023)

Amos

Sadly, we said goodbye to Amos (Big A), who passed away unexpectedly a few months ago. His presence is greatly missed—his towering, gentle spirit left a void not just in our team, but in the hearts of all who knew
him. In his place, we’re happy to announcethat Lucky will be joining the Umlani Guiding team as a full-time guide soon. In the meantime, we’re fortunate to have the help of old friend JD, our current freelance guide and
old time “veteran” of bush, and lodge life,who has graciously stepped in.

Photo Irina Bossi – Amos, Ephraim, Oupa & Lucky (July 2024 –(shortly before Amos’ death later that month)

Thank you
A heartfelt thank you to all of you who contributed to Amos’ family’s support. Cynthia, his
widow, is still working in housekeeping and will be raising their five children mostly on her own
(with the “village” help of community and family support).
We were able to raise a significant amount for their future, which Cynthia intends to put
towards the children’s education. Your generosity has made this possible, and we are truly
grateful for your kindness and contributions towards a future for the Nyathi family

Thank you

Cynthia (widow of Amos) strong and hopeful (July 2024)

Amos & Cynthia’s 5 children and a cousin, at his funeral in July 2022

More Staff News
Irina continues to work her magic on our Instagram page @umlanibushcamp, keeping our
guests updated with all the latest news and behind-the-scenes glimpses of life at Umlani. She
also provides invaluable assistance to the management team, helping ensure that everything
runs smoothly behind the scenes

Reason to celebrate
We have good reason to celebrate! Change is the only constant in life, and we’re making some
exciting upgrades at Umlani. By the end of the year, most of our huts will be transformed into
eco-huts, designed for better thermal storage. This means our rooms will stay cooler in
summer and warmer in winter, the huts will maintain the same heart and ethos that Umlani is
known for. As a Fair Trade Certified lodge, we aim to blend eco-consciousness with comfort, creating unique, sustainable spaces for our guests.

Wild Dog Room 6 2023

Wild Dog Room 6 2024

Animal sightings

On the animal front, things have been nothing short of extraordinary! We’ve witnessed leopard
eating his deceased leopard brother (so sad and hard to watch), lions strolling through camp,
clearly trying to “crash” our dinner under the stars, and even a leopard feasting on a Nyala
right next to my cottage! Hyena peeking into the boma, checking in on guests, while honey
badgers have been causing a stir, around the ankles of dining guests in search of dropped
snacks. Our monkeys have also been very entertaining with their tiny babies, clutching onto
their mothers with tiny fingers, toes, and tails. The bushveld is alive with activity, and there’s
never a dull moment at Umlani!

Ian Harrison – Jackal puppies Nov ‘24

"BushBabies" 2024- Irina Bossi

Marco’s dam has been especially dry this year, oOering just enough water for the animals. But
with the first rains of the season (a welcome 75mm thus far), the dam is once again starting to
look like its former self—no longer a mere mud puddle. The herds are celebrating, from
elephants to buOalo to zebra, all basking in the joy of the fresh rains. As the landscape
transforms from dry, brown bush to lush greenery, we are seeing a resurgence of life—new
babies, vibrant flowers, and forests of mopane trees.

Photo by Irina Bossi – Staddle-billed Stork – Marco’s Dam September 2024

Photo by Irina Bossi - Breeding herd of Cape Buffalo – Umlani Waterhole – October 2024

We’ve also been treated to sightings of wild dog packs, including some adorable pups, baby
hyenas, and a very pregnant hyena taking a break from the heat wallowing in our waterhole.
Phenomenal sights from the comfort of our lunch deck, as the wild dogs, hyenas, zebra, and
impala have all been cooling off together in harmony. But perhaps the most exciting and rare
sightings recently were of an aardvark—spotted multiple times over a two-week period during
August 2024! This rare sighting has been a real treat for our guests.

Photo: Warwick Cormack -Wild dog & Hyena – Umlani waterhole 3 Nov 2024

Photo By Ian Harris – Guest of Umlani – Blood Lily (Tumble weed Wild flower Bulb) which appears over night after a dry season when rain arrives – October 2024

3 November 2024 Photo credits: David Botzofin from Travel and Things

Love Is in the Air
We’ve also had the joy of witnessing so many happy couples get engaged here at Umlani
recently—there’s no denying it, love is definitely in the air! It’s always such a special moment
when guests choose our slice of paradise as the backdrop for such an important occasion.

Photos by Irina Bossi – Happy guests getting engaged at Umlani (2024)

It’s a wrap

All in all, it’s been a successful and fulfilling year, full of growth, change, and incredible
memories. To wrap up this rather news-filled blog, we’d like to wish you all a fabulous festive
season! We can’t wait for your next visit to Umlani, especially to see what you think of our new
eco-huts—we’re 100% certain that you’ll love them.
Don’t wait too long to make your next booking! Contact Jess at info@umlani.com for
availability, as we’re already receiving bookings for 2026, and 2025 is filling up fast!

Photo by Irina Bossi – Lion cub relaxing at dusk (June 2024)

Until next time,
The Umlani Team

2023 Umlani Again - by guest Kirsten Gustafson

2024-01-11T00:00:00+02:00

By Guest Kirsten Gustafson

2021 in a Nutshell

2021-12-23T00:00:00+02:00

HERE AT UMLANI, A LOT HAS HAPPENED SINCE OUR LAST BLOG - Human wise, there has been much movement -

GREG has left us after 6 years of service, to pursue his own future plans; we wish him all the best for the future. Thank you Greg, for your time and talented work, it’s been real.

Andrea, our “Keep smiling” hard working volunteer and friend, has also moved on, in the hopes to find paid work within the tourism industry as things hopefully begin to pick up economically. Reach for the stars girl, you know you have it in you and deserve it! (Photo credits to: Anthony Weston, guest)

We have a pair of new arrivals, Lina (short for Karolina) and Kobus, whom are here primarily to help out with guiding work, to gain some personal experience and clock up hours to complete their qualifications and final assessments. We welcome you, Lina, and Kobus, and hope that you will be happy on our team, working in this very special place we call home. Lina is a lovely German lady, professional photographer, paramedic and safari guide, she has been doing a fantastic job on Umlani’s social media, and we are so grateful to have her on the team. Kobus, a strapping young man, South African born and bred, passionate about the bush, birdlife and guiding. Both are assets to our dynamic team.

In the bush, the seasonal rains arrived a little late, but when they came, they came in a big way. Having had a total of 149 mm of rain since 7 November to date, the bush has transformed from dry, brown bushveld into a lush, thick green haven, full of bird life, tiny and cute babies of every single species, and puddles of water everywhere. It really is the time of plenty now, and the animals are basking in the joy of abundance. The baby elephants, impalas, nyala, monkeys, zebra and wildebeest are such a joy to see, uplifting our moods and reminding us that life is so precious, and that all our human worries, are but a drop in the ocean in the fullness of time and space here in the African bushveld.

Big game wise, more recently, it’s been hard work on some days for the guides to find their sightings, with loads of rain and thick bush, there have been some quiet days, but luckily, that’s when the bird life, smaller creatures of the bush and walks become the highlight, and normally within a day of a quiet drive, the bush rewards us quickly with an outstanding surprise, ranging from leopards, lions or the ever present, abundant sightings of breeding herds of elephants.

Speaking of elephants, the little pink ellie (I call him Dumbo); I am sure those of you who saw him, will remember him, has grown from a boisterous “mommy-vas” youngster into a lovely docile young bull who seems, sadly, to be very poorly sighted. He is coping well, still welcome within his herd, but we do sometimes have to alert him that he is about to walk right into the vehicle, by gently making sounds to make him aware to change direction. He is very much at peace with life, so I guess we need not worry too much about this boy.

The lion prides, in 2021, have had a time of turmoil and territorial fighting, which has changed the dynamic hugely. Things are starting to settle down now, but for weeks, we were very sad to have seen the River Pride move far up North, after their coalition (the Nharhu males) was disrupted by the death of two of the three brothers. A deeply tragic and heart wrenching experience to watch these magnificent brothers fall from glory. One to illness in the first quarter of 2021. The other brother, just a week before his death seemed to have been in his prime, sightings were outstanding, as he showed himself in all his regal glory, and showed off his powerful roar most nights. A week later, we had to watch this poor vulnerable badly injured male lion, get weaker and weaker, until he chose his spot for dying, under (what I call) The Tree of Life, a majestic and massive Sycamore Fig tree on one of the neighbouring properties. The circle of life was complete for this previously mighty King, now quietly leaving his damaged body behind, offering it back to nature as the Hyenas he’d chased off before, devoured his remains ☹

(Photo credits to Greg McCall-Peat)

More recently, the River Pride and their cubs seems to be slowly, moving back in the area, at least for visits, and the only remaining brother of the Nharhu males, is still limping around with them, surviving his challenger’s advances on claiming his family. Quite an unusual and interesting dynamic to behold, because neither the River Pride females, nor the skorro male (because of his limp) is calling at night. Quiet as can be, he skilfully evades his brother’s fates; and when he goes on walk- about without his ladies, they call, ever so softly, for his return. And so far, he always returns! I am also very relieved to report, that the three male cubs and one female cub from this year’s litter, are still alive, as well the only surviving cub from last year’s litter (female), who is now a sub-adult. Although it’s still very unsure exactly who is King of this part of the bush is at the moment, the Mayambula Pride’s two males (and the females) seem to be the only lions calling territorially in the area at night. It’s thought amongst the trackers and guides that perhaps, should the remaining Nharhu male die or leave, that the MayambulaPride may possibly join together with the River Pride females and become one. After all, for a full week while the two males of the Mayambula pride were on a territorial security prowl, our Nharhu limping “skorro” male cheekily capitalized, by scoring with the ladies on a sympathy vote no doubt, and spent the whole week mating with many of the females of that pride.

(Photo credits: Greg McCall-Peat)

As for the Leopards. Nyaleti, her son Xigodo, Nweti, Thumbela & her glassy eye’d cub continue to keep our guests happy, celebrities in their own right, roaming the area and keeping the impala population down, giving many a dinner time sighting for photograph moments and loads of excitement. I am pleased to say that despite our worries earlier this year, that Thumbela’s son had lost his eye, it healed beautifully, and he seems none the worse off for it now, and we can barely see that he almost lost it. Nyaleti, frequently eats with her son, Xigodo, and the two of them offer amazing footage and material for leopard crazy guests. Xigodo is fast becoming the biggest celebrity leopard since Marula days. He loves the camera and is a stunning boy! We are so proud of him, because much like Thumbela’s son, he too had a bit of a close shave with non-survival. We were all watching with bated breath; our little Xigodo, had been “sent out into the world” to fend for himself by his mother, and for almost three weeks, he seems to have been paralysed with fear, or was a little clueless; he got weaker and weaker. Being the good mother that she is, Nyaleti’s maternal instincts sent her back to him, and she decided he needed some TLC and called him into a kill that she had made, their first shared meal after all that time. Thank goodness he gained more and more strength from then on, and is coping much better on his own in world now, although they still meet up frequently. He has begun to move around quite a bit, no doubt searching for a new territory to claim as his own.

In terms of other game, I would say we have had more journeys of Giraffe than I have ever seen in this area since childhood. Up to 16 to 20 giraffes within one family group, eating and hanging around together, it’s been magical to see. Breeding herds of Buffalo up to 300 or 400 pass through from time to time, as do the Wild dog packs, and elusive cheetahs too. I can’t say too much more on that except to conclude this blog by saying that the bush is looking fantastic, and the animal sightings have been outstanding in general for most of the year. We even had a pangolin sighting fairly recently. The Raptors have been beyond gorgeous, especially after the rain, sitting drying themselves out with their wings puffed out and sitting for long periods of time, allowing for spectacular viewing for us.

We would like to extend a hearty and very sincere thanks to all who have supported us during 2021. Survival is getting tougher as Covid drags on into it’s third year, and we know and trust that if we have made it this far, we will make it through this all! SA, and our regular return guests have kept us going, and the international guests who were brave enough, and persevered with their travel plans, found their spirit of adventure in Africa, and they gave us great hope for what seemed to be an uncertain future - thank you all!
We wish you all a blessed holiday season and hope that you will be back with us at Umlani in the not too distant future to experience more of our Place of Rest! Whetther with our wonderful rich animal life and bush experiences, be it sitting around the crackling fire at night, sharing life stories, and common sentiments, or, witnessing the African sun sets while sipping on G & T’s, while the hyena, francolin or even elephants pass by, we’re waiting to welcome you back - May the year 2022 be the one!!!

WRITTEN BY MICAELA, CAMP MANAGER

"Kids Go Barefoot"

2021-07-14T00:00:00+02:00

Kids Go Barefoot.

Umlani Bush Camp - Timbavati July 2021

Peering over the deck of the sleep-out treehouse three young faces were wide eyed with excitement. “The Hyena’s kept us awake all night!” They tumble down the leopard-proof ladder in pink PJ’s grabbing for hot chocolate and crumpets, excited for a game drive in to the dawn cold with “Game Ranger Greg”: They talk excitedly about a night of stars to remember forever. Umlani’s star beds are not to be missed!

Umlani means “Place of rest”, but it is really a Place of Magic. The magic happens when people become loose and free and the pink mornings with Leadwood smoke and coffee are how the safari days’ unravel. Families sport barefoot basics and welcome slow time and very few restrictions. Parents don’t chastise or worry and kids roam along the paths in packs to swing in the hammock or leap in to the pool. Big tables set for casual meals mix strangers with friends, toddlers with teenagers, staff with guests.

There is little need for a kids program or anything formal at Umlani. Kids just love that their parents are relaxed, nobody is guiding the rhythm of their day and everyone is their new friend. The family rondavel is perfect for a family of 4 – kids sleep in cosy built- in beds and an outdoor bathroom means watching the monkeys from your shower offers great entertainment.

Game drives are almost entirely on your own – few vehicles traverse this area, and sightings are relaxed without jostling for best position or limiting viewing time. Kids love sundowners where learning about spoor, Implala poop spitting competitions accompany biltong and soft drinks, and home-after-dark songs are sometimes heard from the kids huddled in beanies and blankets against the winter chill.

So pack very little, leave the iPad, grab the kids, and a few kokis, and head to Umlani where simple means happiness. Expect the simple things to delight and surprise you, and know that connections happen in the warmth of this camp – sometimes even friends are made for life.

Written by: Jenni Saunders (www.villasandafrica.com)

Photographs by David Rogers ( www.davidrogers.co.za)

Umlani Blog- Returns Guests And Leopard Glory

2021-06-05T00:00:00+02:00

After the crazy times we have been experiencing it seemed to make their visits just that much better. Now with these return guests comes a knowledge of the different animals that inhabit our traversing area, and with this comes requests. but these guests are my kinda guests as their requests were to see as many leopards as possible.

So grab a cup of coffee, or a glass of wine and take a look at some of the incredible sightings we had.

Now I am always up for a good leopard challenge, so we set off on our first afternoon safari. It was a warm afternoon after we had had a few cold days before. The bush felt fresh and clean and I couldn't help but feel we were going to find leopard. I asked my tracker Lucky which leopard he thought we should try for and without hesitation he said Marula jr, I was skeptical as she is generally a very shy, hard to find leopard. But I went with his choice and we headed off down our entrance road towards the usual haunts of the elusive Marula jr. On our way we came across a large elephant herd (and a very relaxed Spotted Thick-knee). We sat with them for a short while before continuing our leopard search.

Shortly after leaving the elephant herd we came across very fresh tracks of a young female leopard...it was Marula jrs tracks and they were on top of all the vehicle tracks from that day. As we were looking at the tracks we heard the elephants begin trumpeting, our immediate thought was that maybe they they came across the leopard so we turned around and headed back towards the elephants. We rounded a bend in the road and all of us on the vehicle seemed to see it at the same time....rosettes in the grass...a leopard! But not Marula jr. It was the big Tamboti male. A male who I hadn't seen for months and the last time I had seen him he was in very poor condition.

The previous time that I saw the Tamboti male a few months ago. Note the sunken temples and exposed hip bones. Very obvious that he was in poor condition.

Now however his condition had improved and he was looking as good as ever. He seemed to be on the scent of something and was moving around back and forth almost in circles with his nose to the ground, every now and then he would stop and sniff the air, we thought perhaps Marula jr was in the area and he was looking for her. At one point the large male leopard walked right into the middle of the elephant herd, he sat meters away from a few of young elephants who would repeatedly rush at him, it was only when one of the larger cows had had enough of his presence that he moved off.

We decided to leave him be after spending a good long time with this incredible big cat and the kind of start to a leopard challenge that couldn't have been scripted better.

The next morning we decided to head to the far eastern reaches of our traverse, in search of Thumbela female and her cub. The guests had seen Thumbela as a young leopard many years ago and were keen to see her with her current cub. The first part of our drive yielded very little results as we couldn't even find a track for her or the cub. We were just about to give up hope when the radio came to life. One of the other guides had found Thumbela, being relatively close to where she was found we responded and made our way in the direction of the leopard. As we neared the area the guide in the sighting informed us that the cub had now joined the sighting and as we approached we could see the 2 leopards playing with each other. Unfortunately the thick riverine bush didn't allow for many photographic opportunities but the sight itself was incredible to witness. Eventually the leopards made their way out of the thickets and into the open heading towards one of the waterholes. So we skipped ahead of them and waited at the waters edge in the hope that the leopards would come have a drink. Our prediction was half right when Thumbela came and quenched her thirst right at the spot that we had been waiting for her, her cub decided laying in the long grass was a better option.

We got to see how the eye of the cub that seemed so badly injured has almost healed up 100%, apart from being slightly smaller and a bit discolored the eye still seems to be fine. Once Thumbela finished drinking her and the cub set off and we decided after spending such quality time with the leopards that we would leave them to go about their business.

The previous two sightings were only some of our leopard highlights. We saw 5 different individual leopards and had 6 actual leopard sightings, it felt like some sort of a record and the guests were overflowing with happiness after being so lucky. Here are a few more images of some of the other leopards we saw as well as from a few of the other sightings that we had.

Just when we thought our leopard viewing couldn't get any better, our next set of return guests arrived, and looking to beat the previous weeks leopard record. Thanks to social media they were all too aware of the leopard sightings we had and were chomping at the bit to rival it.

Our first few drives were rather quiet on the leopard front, one particular afternoon we were merely driving around well within the territory of Marula jr when I spotted the silhouetted outline of a leopard on a nearby termite mound. It was her, but true to her nature she did not stick around very long and after snapping a few pictures of her she disappeared into a raisin-bush thicket and we could not find her again.

As we were leaving the Marula jr sighting, we received word that Nweti female had been found with an impala kill that she had hoisted into a tree. So due to Marula jr not giving us the greatest sighting we decided to head off to see if Nweti would put on a better show for us. She did not disappoint. When we arrived in the sighting she was up in the tree feeding on the impala carcass and once she was done proceeded to descend the tree and disappear into the darkness.

The following day the female leopard known as Cleo was found. At first the sighting wasn't very good as she was lying in some long grass in a small drainage line. Fortunately we got to spend some good time with her as as the sun dipped beneath the horizon Cleo woke from her slumber and made a half hearted attempt at stalking a scrub hare, which gave her the slip but it allowed us to get some nice photos of this seldom seen leopard. Up until now Cleo is rarely viewed by us here at Umlani, as the majority of her territory is in the Klaserie Game Reserve but as she gets on in age she will begin to lead a more nomadic lifestyle and venture further away from her usual territory which could mean more sightings of her in the coming months.

Nweti graced us with her presence again one day, although she did make it difficult for us to get good visuals of her we decided to be patient and wait for photographic opportunities to present themselves. She had killed a steenbok and put it up into a nearby Marula tree so we were confident that patience would pay off for us eventually and we waited...and waited....in the morning we even had our coffee in the sighting...in the evening we had our sundowners in the sighting, and the waiting and patience carried on for literal hours.

As darkness fell, our long wait paid off as Nweti decided to make a move and went up the tree, as luck would have it though whilst trying to get into position to see her ascend the tree we missed it completely. Luckily all Nweti did was reposition the kill then came down the tree again and lay out in the open allowing us to get incredible photos of her.

On top of the list of leopards that these guests wanted to see was Nyeleti and Xigodo. Nyeleti had been pregnant with Xigodo the last time they were here and were therefore very keen to see them on this trip. One night that wish became a reality when Xigodo had been found, as we entered the sighting Nyeleti joined Xigodo. She had made a kill up north and had come back to fetch her son. We followed the two leopards as they headed back up in the direction that Nyeleti had just come from. Xigodo seemed to be in a very playful mood and was constantly stalking and rushing up to his mom. On one of these energetic bursts Xigodo flushed out a scrub hare which he managed to catch...and not quite kill. In his inexperience as a youngster the poor scrub hare was left alive while the young leopard toyed with it before starting to feed on it. Although it was hard to watch and hear it is all part of his learning curve as a youngster approaching independence.

By the end of their stay the guests had also seen 5 different leopards and had 9 leopards sightings. But it wasn't all about the leopards. We also had a multitude of sightings from tree squirrels to elephants as well as an incredible lion sighting, on their very last morning drive.

That is all for this blog, hopefully we see you soon here at camp to create your own safari memories. Until next time, we look forward to seeing what the bush has in store for us as we head into winter...the dry season.

Photographed & Written By: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Sightings Blog- Keeping Up With Our Leopards

2021-03-04T00:00:00+02:00

Thumbela & cub

We have been extremely fortunate to spend some quality time with this mother and cub duo. The cub is growing by the day and has started to relax around the vehicles which should mean that we will have some incredible sightings to come as the cub continues to grow and Thumbela navigates through raising her cub to independence. Sadly though in our most recent sighting of the two leopards, we noticed that the cub seems to have lost one of its eyes, the cause would is unknown and could be a number of things. The injury itself shouldn't affect the cub at all and it is actually very common to see leopards with the same injury live long lives.

Nyeleti & Xigodo

Nyeleti's cub has now been named, he is known as Xigodo (meaning Leadwood) he is named after where he was first found when Nyeleti had stashed him as a small cub in a Leadwood tree stump. He is becoming a beautiful young male and at a year of age is fast approaching being the same size as his mom. We recently had a sighting of Nyeleti while she was looking for Xigodo after a hunting foray. Xigodo being a bigger and older cub now rarely stays exactly where mom had left him, and on this morning we watched as Nyeleti almost frantically looked for her youngster. Extremely special to be allowed a window in which to view the secret lives of leopards. When we left Nyeleti she had still not located Xigodo however he had been seen the previous day so we knew he was alive and well and we weren't too stressed by her frantic situation.

The following morning we found Nyeleti and Xigodo with an impala kill and we spent some time with the leopards as Xigodo tried repositioning the carcass up in a tree before he moved out of the tree and joined his mom for a nap in the long grass below.

The previous night we found a young skittish male leopard with this impala kill so we are unsure as to who made the kill whether it was Nyeleti and in her absence while looking for Xigodo this young male found the kill or Nyeleti and Xigodo managed to pirate his kill from him. But nonetheless it was amazing to see three different leopards visit the same kill. The identity of the young male is still unclear, he was extremely skittish and preferred not to hang around too long.

That is it for this post, we look forward to reporting the on goings of our leopards as their lives unfold in this beautiful paradise that they call home. Interesting times lie ahead as one cub slowly reaches independence and the other deals with a life changing injury and two mothers who endeavor to raise their cubs in a wild place.

Written & Photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Poetry by Rebecca Campbell

2020-12-04T00:00:00+02:00

UMLANI ELEPHANTS
Rebecca Campbell

The elephants did not want me to leave.
At least, that’s how it seemed to me.
Why else should they have blocked the track
and delayed my departure?
In my urban compact,
ideal for the city,
I sat,
engine idling,
on top of a little rise,
watching the elephants ahead.
I did not want to leave,
even though the sky was grey
and the temperature cool.
The elephants seemed to know this.
They were in no hurry.
And you don’t argue with an elephant.
But I had responsibilities to meet,
duties to fulfil.
Yet they all seemed so trivial
against the sweep of the sky,
the endless bush
and the quiet contentment of the elephants,
feeding on shrubs and trees,
newly green from the recent rains.
And I wished I could turn back,
back to Umlani.
But I could not.
And the elephants seemed to know that, too,
and slowly,
as if reluctantly,
they cleared my path.
And I resumed my journey
back to the distant city.

MORNING STORM
Rebecca Campbell

Grey clouds
dampen the light of dawn.
Thunder rumbles,
yet the birds still sing.
There had already been rain,
in the night,
too gentle to disturb my sleep.
Lightning flashes,
the rain comes,
heavier now.
Dry winter is finally over.
The lowveld bush,
yesterday withered,
has revived overnight.
The rain pours now,
the birds are silent,
no animal is seen.
But vegetation,
so recently grey,
now blazes green
in a transformation so sudden
that no outsider would believe it.
The thunder fades,
but persists.
The rain is constant now.
The birds resume their singing.
A paradox of nature,
life-giving storm,
joyful not fearful,
refreshing the world
and reviving me.

UMLANI
Rebecca Campbell

Nyala are in the camp,
quietly grazing close to me,
their confidence
is an honor
of which I am profoundly aware.
Their calmness is healing.
The place of rest,
Umlani,
is working its magic.
Years of pain,
years of stress,
fade slowly away.
My heart’s terrible break
is finally healed.
I will never forget her,
my beloved,
who made me whole,
but now,
I can recall with joy,
and not just pain.
Tears can still flow,
but so also can laughter.
Lowveld bush spreads all around me.
Birds sing,
monkeys chatter.
The sky is grey,
the wind blows,
the air is cool.
But in my heart,
I am warm.
My process of re-birth
is almost complete.
Refreshed,
renewed,
I can go forth confidently,
I can face the world.
The place of rest,
the place of love,
has worked its magic.

AT THE DAM
Rebecca Campbell

At the dam we stand,
as we sip our drinks,
alongside the Land Rover,
battered but bushworthy,
and talking of the ones we love.
The sun is setting.
Heavy cloud turns
what should be glorious
into merely pretty.
We are not sisters,
and yet we are,
sipping our drinks,
sharing confidences
and talking of the ones we love.
The birds swoop down over the dam.
Swallows have arrived from Europe.
Summer is here.
But it remains cool,
yet sisterhood keeps us warm,
as we sip our drinks
and talk of the ones we love.
Not lovers,
for we,
for different reasons,
are both alone,
but neither of us is lonely.
As for the future,
who knows?
My sister is still beautiful,
and I am not too bad,
and,
although I had my perfect partner,
and need no other,
a lover might be fun.
We’ll see.
We’ll both see.
My sharp-eyed sister,
bush woman,
in her element,
catches movement in the bush,
hundreds of meters away.
This is a wild place,
a conservation place.
Here the animals rule.
Her eyes do not mistake her.
It is a Zebra.
No threat.
We need not move.
So we sip our drinks,
eat our snacks
and talk about the ones we love.
The dam is a dark mirror,
the wind insufficient to ripple the water.
Silence reigns.
The sky is grey.
Yet this is still a special place
and a special time.
The setting Sun now burns through the cloud,
clear golden disk,
stripped of its corona,
amazing,
not blinding.
Dusk is coming,
as we sip our drinks,
share confidences
and talk about the ones we love.

Umlani Blog- An Update On Our Leopards

2020-08-28T00:00:00+02:00

We had a very intersting sighting involving Nyeleti, her cub and Xisiwana last week, the trio were found with a steenbok kill, on arriving at the sighting, Xisiwana had taken over the kill for himself and had Nyeletis cub right up in the top branches of the same tree, every move the cub made was greeted with snarls and hisses from the young male. Interestingly Nyeleti was on the ground close to the base of the tree sleeping and not showing any concern for her cornered cub. Later that afternoon the cub managed to escape from his tree top escape and bother mother and cub left the thieving Xisiwana to the remains of the kill.

A few days ago we left camp for an afternoon game drive and as we headed down into the riverbed crossing close to camp, we stopped to view a tree squirrel who was not happy and chirping its alarm call from high up in a nearby tree, as I was informing the guests how squirrels can be used to locate predators an unknown female leopard emerged from the opposite bank of the riverbed and proceeded to cross over right in front of us. SHe looks to be an older female, but seemed completely relaxed with our presence so hopefully we get to see more of her.

Whilst out one morning, an impala kill was found, but there was no sign of any leopard, just the carcass hoisted up in a tree, due to the area that the kill was in we assumed it was Nyeleti and perhaps she had gone to fetch her cub, so we decided to head there in the afternoon. On arrival there was still no sign of the leopard but the kill had been fed on so we decided to go for our sun-downer drinks and return after dark. Our plan worked and under the cover of darkness the leopard had in fact returned however it was not Nyeleti, but a large unknown male leopard. According to the other guides he is relatively nervous but at night he seemed to not mind our presence at all, while we were sitting with him, we heard some grass rustling off to our left hand side which got the male leopards attention very quickly who began growling and hissing and looking down in the direction of the sound, suddenly the soft chuffing contact call of a leopard began from the thicket next to us, Nyeleti had joined the sighting and the male wasn't prepared to share the kill.

The real star of the show has been Thumbela female, we have found her most days in and around the Hlaralumi riverbed that runs through Umlani property. She seems to have shifted her territory due to pressure from other females, most likely Nweti female and another big female in the South East. Thumbela being an older female will more than likely relinquish territory especially if she is getting pressured by more than one female.She has been marking territory and making kills in her new range which is a good sign that she is establishing the area as her own, since Marula's passing the area has been more or less vacant of females so it was only a matter of time before someone moved in, and we are glad that its her.

That is all for this blog, hopefully you enjoyed the update, although some of it was sad news there is plenty of good news and we look forward to catching up some more with these cats and be witness to how their lives unfold.

Written & Photographed By: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Captured In Photos- Weekly update #3

2020-07-29T00:00:00+02:00

Being mid winter, morning and evening temperatures are very low leading to some crisp game drives, but that didn't put a dampener on the animals. The lions seemed very active as we found out whilst trying to track them. We spent about two and a half days following tracks both on foot and in the vehicle over many kilometres for what seemed to be in vain until one morning whilst on foot the alarm calls of a Crested Francolin along one of the densely vegetated riverbeds led us to two of the Nharu males. We spent a short while with them but they were in amongst the riverine foliage so we decided to leave them and return in the afternoon when they would perhaps be out in the open or even a bit more active. On arriving at the site that afternoon we found all 3 Nharu males together with the oldest lioness of the River pride who we must have walked right passed in the morning whilst tracking the lions. They were out in the riverbed and we stayed with them until it was dark and got to experience all four lions roaring into the night, a truly unforgettable experience.

This wasn't the last time we saw the Nharu males that week, after spending such good quality time with them we had decided to put in some effort to finding leopard, one morning we found extremely fresh tracks for a female leopard and after a morning of tracking on foot, we had pinpointed her location to a large block in our north eastern traversing area, again we decided to head to the area that afternoon to see if we could have more luck. We circled the block and there was no sign of her tracks leaving the area, however there were some lion tracks but we didn't pay any attention to those as we were on a leopard finding mission and didn't think anymore about them. We managed to relocate on the leopard tracks from the morning and set off into the block to find her...and walked straight into two of the Nharu males. Quite a surprise when you looking for leopard and bump into two male lions. So we abandoned the leopard search and spent the remainder of the afternoon with the lions.

Elephants have been out and about in abundance, and several large herds have been moving through the area, one particular afternoon we sat with a herd as they fed and dust-bathed around the vehicle, making for an incredible experience.

One morning we came across a group of elephants heading to one of the waterholes for a drink, to see them running to the water is quite a sight and being surrounded by these huge animals while they drinking and splashing about always makes for amazing photographs and memories.

As always winter has brought the buffalo bulls to Umlani bushcamp, these guys will make the camp their home for the dry season as our camp waterhole provides the water they need on a daily basis as well as good feeding in and around the lodge. One morning we found them resting right outside the entrance gate to the camp.

Leopards were a bit elusive, with us seeing many tracks for leopards we battled to find them, one morning we did manage to find Hlangana male leopard, however we only saw him briefly on foot as he moved along a riverbed, but we couldn't relocate on him with the vehicle due to the dense vegetation. Later that afternoon, our original plan was to head back to that area and see if we could find him again but that changed when Nyeleti and her cub were found with a kill so we headed straight there and spent some time with them, the male cub is already so relaxed with the vehicles and put on a great show four us.

The following morning we returned to the scene and found the youngster up in an Apple-leaf tree, no sign of the kill or Nyeleti, from what we saw the kill was something small perhaps a Steenbok or duiker, and either the two leopards finished it or the hyenas got to it. however we spent the entire morning with the cub as he lounged in the branches of the tree.

The week was not only filled with sightings of the big 5, we spent time just sitting under the night sky taking in the stars and the night sounds that accompanied them, took photographs of nightjars, watched the sun rise on a misty morning and sat with a skulking hyena. It truly was a week to remember.

Written by: Greg McCall-Peat

Photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat, Trevor McCall-Peat & Michael Laubscher

Umlani Captured In Photos- Weekly Update #2

2020-06-05T00:00:00+02:00

The lions were not as regular as they have been the last few weeks, but on one after noon we found the River pride lionesses and the three Nharu males all together out on the hunt, so get lions active in amazing afternoon light doesn't happen to often so this was a real treat. The lions made an attempt at catching a zebra however the hunt was a failure and the zebra escaped...this time, and we got magnificent photo opportunities while the pride watched their potential prey.

Coming around the corner to this sight just does not get old. This was how we found the River pride on this particular afternoon. I had just seen the zebra at Marco's dam that the lions were watching.

One of the Nharu males watching as the rest of the pride get moving towards the zebra herd, he did't quite grasp the idea of a hunt yet and let out a bit of a roar when he yawned, not the smartest move when wanting to be stealthy.

The pride came together again up on the bank of the dry river bed as they got a closer look at the nearby zebra. Before continuing to move closer to their target, offering incredible eye level photography opportunities.

After the failed hunting attempt, the pride regrouped and lay down to wait out the rest of the afternoon, we left them to it at this point and carried on the rest of the drive.

This week I had very good luck finding leopards but equally bad luck in getting photographs of them. One afternoon, I didn't even take my camera out and on that day saw Nthombi and her 2 cubs out in the open. A missed opportunity but good to know her cubs are alive and well. I did see Nthombi out and about one morning but she made photographing her a challenge as she moved in and out of long grass or thick bush in search of a meal.

After a full week of tracking Rothsay male leopard and him eluding me each time, the monkeys at camp gave up his hiding place and I got a brief and rare daylight glimpse of him as he lay on the edge of the river bed in front of camp.

I did manage to see him again the very next afternoon, and not far from his previous days position but this time I only saw him at the last minute as he broke cover to run away from me sadly. My hopes are that one day he will relax enough to be viewed during the day as is the case with most of our other leopards.

Cleo also made an appearance, be it at long distance one morning as she used a tree as a vantage point to watch some nearby impala.

This week also saw the return of the elephants, with a few large herds moving through our traversing area. I am always amazed at how we miss elephants when they disappear for a little bit, its always special to spend time with them when they make their return.

As mentioned earlier, I did spend some time with the rarest animal to be found out here, a Pangolin. Although I have been fortunate enough to see these critically endangered animals on a few occasions, this was the first time that I was able to get incredible photos. As the Pangolin lay curled up in its defensive pose, we sat quietly until eventually it slowly uncurled took a look at all of us and then moved off into a nearby thicket. An unforgettable moment.

General game sightings and birding have also remained consistently good and kept us well entertained in between the Big 5 sightings that we had this past week. A baby giraffe, a nocturnal Genet cat and a lazy hippo made up a few of the sightings.

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Captured In Photos- Weekly Update

2020-05-17T00:00:00+02:00

Lions and leopards ruled the week with us having almost daily lions sightings as the River pride still den on our traversing area, the cubs are still all doing really well and growing in size and confidence. The Nharu males have been ever present and have been still been seen mating with 2 of the River pride lionesses.

When it comes to the leopards, the week started out with a bang and we found both Xisiwana and Nyeleti in the same sighting. One of the leopards had killed an impala ram. Which one it was we don't know, but I had stopped to photograph a tawny eagle when I heard growling and then saw a flash of rosettes and a leopards tail fro the branches of a tree, a lucky find to say the least. Nyeleti didn't hang around long but for 2 days Xisiwana fed on what was left of the impala kill providing some excellent photographic opportunities.

Nweti female also put in an appearance, and also with the remains of an impala ram kill. I also found her in an interesting way. I was sitting watching a hyena who was resting in a small waterhole, when suddenly it jumped up staring intently in one direction then began running it the direction it had been staring in. I followed the running hyena who lead me straight to the tree holding Nweti and her kill. One thing is for sure it often pays off to pay attention to whats going on in nature.

This past week also saw the return of Xidulu male leopard, a male we have not seen in months since he had a run in with Madzinyo male back in February. Once again a luckless impala ram had fallen victim to a leopard and we saw Xidulu feeding on the kill while 3 hyena waited at the base for any free scraps to fall.

Slowly but surely the elephants are making a return to the area in their search for food and water, there have been a couple of nice sightings of some big elephant bulls moving through, as water begins to dry up we can expect more and more sightings of elephants in the weeks to come.

General game and birding has also been fantastic this week and I have to say it really makes the safaris that much more interesting when you stop and notice the other things that nature has to show. From Hippos to a bit of a francolin fest there was never a dull moment out on safari.

That is all for this last weeks highlights and sights that we got to see whilst out and about in the Timbavati here at Umlani Bushcamp. Until next time...

Written & Photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Captured In Photos- LOCKDOWN EDITION #1

2020-05-07T00:00:00+02:00

Being out on drive with no guests on the back of the vehicle has been such a different kind of experience, heading out with no plan just going out to see what I can see. Usually finding the Big 5 is on the top of the priority list, hearing the excitement from the guests as they experience Africa. Although it has been a huge change I find myself stopping more, taking in my surroundings, listening to the bush and have felt the shift within myself from always looking for leopards or lions to spending time with herds of zebra, photographing birds and a general feeling of enjoying anything and everything that I come across on my excursions out into the bush and it is through doing this that I can say I have had some absolutely incredible sightings over the last month or so and a way of doing safaris that I will definitely carry through doing once guests return to Umlani Bushcamp.

The lions have been extremely active in the central Timbavati lately with the River pride denning with cubs on our traversing area, this has meant not only do we get to often see the small cubs but their fathers the Nharu males have been ever present too. Most nights we hear the males roaring into the night securing a safe territory for their offspring and females. One evening though we did find the two Mbiri males well within Nharu territory, however at the sound of the 3 males roars the Mbiri males moved back south in the opposite direction and we have not seen them again.

The leopards of the Timbavati were relatively elusive the last few weeks, with us seeing the Rothsay male on a few occasions remarkably making him the most viewed leopard which I never thought would happen given his shy nature. The times we did see him at night he was extremely relaxed, during the day...not so much. One morning I found Marulas male cub Xisiwana up in a Knobthorn tree and while watching him he suddenly became very uneasy and started snarling and chuffing and before I knew what was going on Rothsay male was ascending the tree in pursuit of the young male, however it was a half-hearted effort at displacing his son and as quickly as he went up the tree he went down and disappeared in the long grass. A few days later we saw both Xisiwana and Nthombis previous male cub Hlangana in the same sighting with an adult impala ram kill, with leopards being solitary its always a treat to see more than one together. It has only been recently that the female leopards have started showing themselves with reports of Nthombi being seen in the north and us finding Thumbela female who was calling we presume for a mate one evening and yesterday afternoon we bumped into Nyeleti female as she was moving about on a territorial patrol.

We have been seeing a few small buffalo herds moving through our traversing area lately, as winter sets in and the last remaining water points become our waterholes we should be seeing more and more of them hanging around for their daily water intake.

Elephants have been uncharacteristically quite the last few weeks with us having only a handful of sightings whilst out on drives, for the most part there has been a herd that regularly visits the camp waterhole. A couple of afternoons ago there was a large bull that I spent time with at Marcos dam where he enjoyed a very thorough mud bath before moving off to feed. As with the buffalos, it is expected for the elephant numbers to increase in the area as the water begins to become more limited.

That wraps up this edition of our safari highlights, we will be changing the way we do this highlights blog by doing weekly highlights rather than monthly highlights as now I have the time to dedicate to more frequent blog posts. Until next time...keep dreaming of safari.

Written & Photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

HYENA: THE BANDITS OF THE BUSH?

2020-05-04T00:00:00+02:00

The Spotted Hyena has been subjected to some very bad press indeed. Be it the “Lion King” portraying them as the antagonistic, unintelligent, bad guys, or the well-known writer Ernest Hemingway saying that they are no more than “hermaphroditic self-eating devourer(s) of the dead”. I have found that the best way to correct a presupposition is through education, which is what I hope to achieve in this piece.

Misconception #1: Hyena are lazy scavengers that do not hunt.

This could not be further from the truth. Hyena are opportunistic and will eat carrion, when it is available, but are also accomplished hunters of a wide variety of prey. Whether scavenging or hunting one thing is certain, they will eat every last bit. Their digestive systems are well adapted to process bones, skin, hooves, and even the scat of other predators such as Lion and Wild Dog. It is for this reason that Hyena have sometimes been referred to as the “clean-up crew” of the bush, as without them there would be many rotting carcasses potentially spreading disease like anthrax, to which they are immune. A feature that is essential to their ability to eat bones and hooves is their truly incredible bite strength. A human can generate around 150-200 PSI of bite force whereas a Spotted Hyena's bite force has been measured at 1,100 PSI-enough to crack even the thick femur of a Buffalo.

Hyena will hunt mostly by coursing, meaning that instead of using stealth like a Leopard, they prefer to run directly into a heard of herbivores causing mass panic and scattering the herd in all directions. Whilst this may seem a poor strategy as it takes away the element of surprise, it is valuable in that it allows the Hyena to identify any sick or injured animals. Once a target has been identified, it is pursued till exhaustion. Through a human point of view this seems cruel, however, it is vital to the health of the ecosystem as weaker/ill members are removed from the gene pool allowing only the fittest to spread their genes and stems the spread of illnesses to the rest of the herd.

Misconception #2: Hyena are unintelligent creatures

Researchers, using a range of tests and experiments too vast to go into detail in this blog, have shown that not only are Hyena intelligent, but are among the most intelligent animals in Africa with problem solving skills and numerical abilities rivaling those of some Primates. Anyone working at a lodge will attest to a Hyena's problem solving abilities as they manage to find their way into food stores that were “Hyena proof”. There appears to be a positive correlation between social complexity and cognitive ability, simply put: the more tiered your social structure, the smarted you need to become to survive. To say that Hyena have a complex social structure would be an understatement. For example, they are fiercely matriarchal and in the Hyena world even the lowest ranked adult female outranks, and is larger than, the highest-ranking adult male. The family group, called a clan, is led by one matriarch who would have either inherited her high status from her mother or would have achieved it through a hostile takeover. Hyena are extremely vocal creatures, often at night you may hear a “woooOOOuup” sound, this is the unmistakable call of a Spotted Hyena. That being said, they are probably better known for their “laughing” call which they make when excited or distressed. Among these calls are 12 other sounds, that we know of, all with different meanings based on the situation, a clear marker of intellect.

Misconception #3: Hyena are hermaphroditic

A question often asked at a hyena sighting: “is that one male or female” it is at this moment that the ranger will have a rather awkward discussion about the anatomical challenges to their gender identification. The bottom line is that Hyena are not hermaphroditic but instead, have anatomy that certainly makes them look as if they are. The females have what is known as a pseudo-penis which closely resembles the male genitalia and even have a fake scrotum made up of fatty tissue. Why they have this is one of natures great mysteries although there are many theories.

Misconception #4: Hyena are related to dogs

The final common misconception is an understandable one. Hyena certainly have dog-like features but are more closely related to cats. In fact, their closest relative, besides the other Hyena species, are members of the Viverridae family which includes mongooses and civets. It is for this reason that you may hear your Ranger refer to Hyena young as cubs and not pups.

I hope this has in some way shed some light on the most misunderstood carnivore in the Bushveld and that the next time you visit Umlani and your Ranger asks what you would like to see, I implore you to reply with “Hyena”. I can guarantee they will be shocked and pleasantly surprised.

Written & Photographed by: Jordan Wallace

Umlani Blog- A Moment To Think, A Moment To Hope

2020-04-14T00:00:00+02:00

Easter weekend is approaching, its 1990 – 30 years ago – and a very young Marco and Marie and some helpers are working furiously in the heat to finish the new huts, and new look, extended camp at Umlani, before the visitors arrive for Easter weekend.

Almost just as the guests arrive, the last floors of the new huts are still drying. Marco and Marie sigh a big sigh of relief as they welcome the guests, our very dear family friends, Gill and Tony Brink, Val and John Bond, Heather and Alphons Wolfs and their friends.

The rest is pretty much history; Umlani has grown from strength to strength, grown and learned a lot, changed some things and didn’t change other’s at all - rewarding experiences full of excitement, some challenges along the way, and growth for both staff and guests alike.

A lot can happen in 30 years – who would have thought that on our thirtieth birthday weekend, we’d be empty – void - of any guests, except for the troops of baboons or monkeys, wreaking havoc as they desperately try to score some food.

A virus – like on all the apocalypse movies – bringing us to the end of the world as we know it! What does the future hold? What happens next? Who knows, certainly not me; all I know is that for now, we are living with huge uncertainty constantly, and living in the moment, because that’s all we have.

In this moment, here in the bush, the stillness is astounding.

The morning sunrise, sounds of the bush, and later on, the exceptional masterpiece of God’s artworks in the sunsets, then, as a cherry on the top of gratitude dessert, looking up to the millions of stars in the dark night sky – it’s as if the angels are throwing them down on us like confetti, sprinkling little glitter lights for the soul into our orbit, and promising us that everything will be okay. Even when we have guests in camp, and it’s not quite AS quiet as RIGHT NOW, this is the ethos of Umlani – place of peace, place of rest – it’s a feeling; and it’s what we want to gift our guests – the heart expanding feeling of the African Bush, that awakens the soul, and fills the spirit, like nothing else on earth can do.

As I watch the little warthog family trim the grass in camp, doing us the favor of keeping it neat for when the guests return, I wonder to myself, “ … how long will it take? Will we get guests back again soon, or only much later? How soon, how long? …and our team, will they be able to work here again, in the same capacity? Or is it all a distant memory already?!” – I can’t believe what has happened, it’s surreal, its scary and it’s cathartic. Letting go of the things we take for granted, freedom of movement, bustling camp full of guests and our team, the people who make our guests happy and enrich our lives.

At Marco’s dam at the tree house, where so many guests have watched those same stars before they sleep, or lay awake, enjoying the night sounds; Henry the hippo (given this name by one of our guests), seems to have gone walk-about. Does he know something we don’t?

It’s a time where we need to be grateful. Grateful for our success of the past thirty years, grateful for our amazing team and their hard work and dedication, and our special and appreciative guests, without whom, we could never have had this story to tell.

It’s with gratitude that I wish you all good health, and well being, and hope, with all me heart, that we will see you again soon, at Umlani, to experience the bush and our camp, as it was before…

Written by: Micaela Cormack

Umlani Captured In Photos- March 2020

2020-03-30T00:00:00+02:00

With the change in seasons at full swing the vibrant greens of summer are starting to fade despite us having some very late rains. There is still an abundance of water and food around and the bush is looking the best it has in years moving into this years dry season. As usual the game viewing has been exceptional, and there has been no shortage of quality sightings.

Rothsay male leopard made a welcome return, it had actually been quite some time since we had last seen him and with the number of younger male leopards around we were starting to think that he may have been pushed out by a competitor, however this was not the case and we found him with an impala kill not too far from camp. He spent a good few days in the area while he fed off his kill, he still remains very elusive during the day, but at night he is as relaxed as some of our other habituated leopards allowing for some quality photographs of this large male leopard.

I also managed to find a young male leopard one afternoon resting in one of our dry riverbeds escaping the heat of a warm day, he wasn't very relaxed so I viewed him from a distance until a herd of elephants moved through and chased him off.

The Nharu male lions have been patrolling their territory quite a lot lately with small cubs to protect and the constant threat of rival males that are hanging around on their territorial boundaries, the 3 dominant males need to make sure that their land is secure. A few nights ago we had them roaring very close to the lodge so we went out to see them and they are becoming impressive individuals to say the least.

Other sightings we have enjoyed this month include a group of buffalo bulls that have made one of our waterholes their home, we have had days where the temperature reaches 40 degrees Celsius, meaning the buffalo spend most of their time in and around the water. Whilst sitting with the buffalo bulls one day I noticed a pair of Blacksmith Lapwings hanging around the water edge and soon saw that they were in fact sitting on a nest, these birds have incredible nesting habits, they lay their eggs on the ground and furiously defend the nest against any threat that may come their way, be it baboons or a herd of elephants that could unknowingly trample the nest. The eggs themselves are really well camouflaged and it takes a trained eye to spot them. We also found a Flap-necked Chameleon whilst out one evening resting on the outer branches of a small tree, as temperatures begin to cool, we will begin to see less and less of these reptiles as they tend to keep a much lower profile in the cold winter months and don't move around too much.

Now I have saved the absolute best highlight for last, last week I was fortunate enough to meet Nthombi female leopard's latest litter of cubs, although there have been reports of three cubs, I only got to see two of them, Nthombi didn't appear to be at the den and therefore I did not stick around for very long but fortunately for me I didn't need to be at the den longer than a few mins when the little cubs showed themselves. To be able to be let into the private world of these elusive big cats is something that I never get tired of, especially when this is the rewards of it.

And on that adorable note, we wrap up March's sightings highlights, as mentioned there will be many more sightings updates and blogs to come in the coming week/months, so stay tuned for those. Until next time...

Written & Photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

An Afternoon Of Leopard Luck

2020-03-04T00:00:00+02:00

I quickly met with the other guides at camp and asked them for an update on any leopard sightings from the morning, their response was not one I wanted to hear. there had been no leopard sightings for the last few days and to make it worse there were not even any signs of leopards around. Panic began to set in, but I put on a brave face and when game drive time arrived we set off in search of the elusive leopard. My plan was to head to our north eastern section of our traversing, an area that is known to have the highest concentration of leopards and would give us our best chance. as we snaked through the dense riverine sections associated with leopards alert for any sign of a leopard I couldn't help but feel we had to find one, but as we kept on driving there literally was nothing, we saw many other species of animals but it was as if all our leopards had disappeared. To make things worse the joking comments started to flow from the back of the vehicle and time was starting to tick by, I was feeling the pressure.

We had driven all the way up on to our Northern boundary road when there is was a sign that a leopard had been there in the form of its dung. I quickly hopped out of the vehicle to take a closer and it was very very fresh, the leopard had just been there. The sandy road was extremely hard and I could only make out one track from the leopard it looked like it had walked off the road and down towards a small drainage line about 30m off the road, I walked down to have a look for tracks in the soft sand but there were none. I walked back up onto the road and found a soft patch of sand and saw the tracks heading straight down the road, I quickly got back to the vehicle and started following the tracks from the vehicle as they headed down the road, the tracks were so clear I could still see the marks in the sand from the leopards hairs on its paws. My only hope now was that it either still be on the road and if not that it crossed to the southern side as being on the boundary if the leopard moved north there would be no hope for us.

Then, as we rounded a corner, in the last rays of afternoon light, there it was in the road ahead of us a beautiful female leopard, she quickly moved off the road to the north but sat down in the long grass and watched us approach, I immediately recognized her as N'weti female, the daughter of Nyeleti. She is a stunning leopard with blue eyes just like her mother and one of our very relaxed individuals. As I turned the vehicle off she got up and moved back out into the open, crossed the road and went up into a huge fallen Knobthorn tree where she lay down and began grooming herself and putting on a fantastic show for all of us. I looked back at the guests who had huge smiles on their faces, the joking had stopped and comments of " You delivered"and "You stuck to your promise" started up. Whilst relief washed over me, I too took in the incredible sight of the big cat lounging on the horizontal trunk of the tree, always in awe of these beautiful predators.

Fortune certainly smiled on us that day and the return guests were able to now say that they had seen a leopard in the wild, and not only that but were part of the whole experience of firstly looking for her, then tracking her and then finally finding her and we left the sighting satisfied and happy, with only one thing left to do. Stop for sundowners to celebrate the afternoon of luck.

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Captured In Photos- 2019

2019-12-24T00:00:00+02:00

In the beginning of the year we had the Mayumbula pride of 4 females move into our traversing area and seemingly make it their home as they all gave birth to cubs around the same time, in this prides time in our area they provided us with countless incredible sightings here are a few highlights. Being able to witness the 10 cubs grow from first seeing them a few weeks old to becoming young lions was an absolute privilege, to this day the 4 adult lionesses have done an incredible job of raising their cubs and all 10 cubs are still alive and well, even though we don't get to see them that often anymore.

Watching the Mbiri males see-saw in and out of power has also been extremely interesting it seems like a bit of a fall from grace for them as they once dominated a huge portion of the central and southern Timbavati. The first part of the year saw them defending their territory viciously against any intruder that set foot in their kingdom, however it seems like the comfort of a stable pride was all that the two males were looking for and in the last part of the year we witnessed them all but move out of their former stomping grounds sticking with the Myambula pride who make regular kills therefore providing meals not only for their cubs but for the 2 males as well. These days the males will make the odd appearance but with 3 new males known as the Nharu males that have moved in they seem content to give up a large portion of their territory, perhaps one of the times that the Mbiri males returned and marked with the wounds of war the decision to relinquish territory to the 3 newcomers was made.

Leopard sightings were nothing short of incredible this passed year, from watching cubs reach independence to new leopards staking claims in the area, we were blessed to see leopard most on a fairly regular basis, sometimes even more than one leopard in a sighting. There was a lot that happened to our regular leopards here at Umlani Bushcamp, firstly the sad loss of Marula female who left behind her two 8 month old cubs who against all odd managed to survive and are doing extremely well, especially the young male who has completely relaxed around the vehicles. One of the biggest highlights of the year was watching Nthombi female who currently has a young male cub known as Hlangana who is now reaching independence, seemingly adopt Marula's boy for a short period of time and the unlikely trio of leopards were seen together on a number of occasions. There were also quite a few newcomers to the area especially young males, the Tamboti male together with Xidulu young male seem to have pushed Madzinyo out of his territory as Madzinyo wasn't seen this year at all apart from one occasion in the deep south passed our southern boundary. We also had the massive Rothsay male being more present than usual and he has really relaxed around the vehicles especially at night where we got to spend quality time with him and he still looks firmly in charge of his territory and relatively unrivaled, apart from one occasion where we found Ntsogwaan male in the heart of Rothsays territory however his stay was brief and he returned to his own territory in the south western section of our traversing area. Thumbela successfully raised two cubs to independence in the beginning of the year, she then gave birth to another litter but unfortunately those cubs did not survive and we saw her moving around her territory looking for a males to mate with on quite a few occasions.

If birding is your thing then this year produced some awesome opportunities to satisfy the twitchers urges, our annual rainfall has been a lot better then previous years and with that brought all the birds out, and with over 400 species of birds to be viewed out here there was definitely no shortage of opportunities to enjoy our a spot or two of birding between sightings of the bigger animals whilst out on safari.

We were lucky enough to have had plenty of Wild dog sightings this year, we even had them denning on our traversing area allowing us many sightings of these endangered carnivores. Watching the pups on a daily basis was incredible as they became accustomed to their surroundings and interacting with the different pack members.

Other highlights that we had this year included numerous cheetah sightings, these big cats are very rarely seen here due to the abundance of other predators so it truly was special being able to spend some time with these big cats, on two separate occasions we were even lucky enough to see cheetah making kills, the speed of a cheetah hunt is truly awe-inspiring as when you watch them on television they generally in slow motion and a real idea of the pace of a cheetah is something that can only be grasped seeing it in person. We also saw the return of the young pink elephant calf which we had last seen as a new born and it was fascinating to see how well he is doing under his circumstances and with the protection of the herd, whilst on the topic of elephants we have been blessed with huge herds of elephants constantly spending time on our traverse, to be among so many elephants is just such a humbling experience and its always entertaining watching elephants doing what they do, be it drinking, feeding or youngsters at play. As mentioned this year we had a lot more rain and after the dry years we have had the buffalo have started to make a comeback and we are starting to once again see the large herds moving through the reserve again.

2019 truly did provide us with some of the most amazing sights and we look forward to what 2020 has in store for us, if this past year is anything to go by then we have a lot to look forward to.

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Captured In Photos- November 2019

2019-11-27T00:00:00+02:00

LIONS

With the Myambula pride still absent from our concession this past month, we have seen the River pride moving in and taking advantage of the prime lion habitat. Making a few kills and generally claiming it as their own. However they were not the only ones taking advantage of the area, Novemeber saw 3 male lions move in from the adjacent Klaserie Game Reserve, these males have moved right into the heart of the Mbiri males territory and have been seen scent marking and roaring staking a claim to the area, a bold challenge that has remained unanswered by by the Mbiri males who have been spending most of their time in the deep south of the reserve with the Myambula pride, they did make one foray up north and we thought the challenge on the 3 new males was imminent, however the 2 older males on hearing the roars of the 3 new males uncharacteristically turned and moved off in the opposite direction. Interesting times ahead for the lions in the area.

LEOPARDS

Nthombis son Hlangana made up the bulk of our leopard sightings this month as he ventures more and more into independence, we had unbelievable sightings of this young male including a fight that he had over a kill with Marulas male cub which ended with Marula's boy falling out of the tree they were in. However later on that day, Nthombi arrived in the sighting and all three leopards were seen playing and grooming each other and in the days and weeks that followed the trio of leopards have been seen together on a number of occasions, a truly special sighting that is very rarely witnessed.

One morning we found Marula,s boy out on his own hunting squirrels, its incredible to see how adaptable these cats are and how this young orphaned leopard is able to get by on whatever meal he can get, it is no surprise as to why leopards are the most widespread and successful of the big cats.

Nyeleti has also been seen hanging around the area that she was brought up in and has been seen a number of times heavily pregnant and looking for a place to den. We are hoping she picks a spot on our concession and that we will soon have more leopard cubs to view.

ELEPHANTS

With all the new vegetation and water that is around the elephants are having an amazing time and have celebrated the time of plenty by being around in large numbers. There has also been a lot of big bulls around and its always nice to get close to these giants and be humbled by their presence.

GENERAL SIGHTINGS

All the migratory birds have returned for the summer and the bush is alive with the calls of some of these birds feathered travelers from the Woodlands kingfishers to the various cuckoos. The herbivores have also been out in full force as they enjoy the new shoots of vegetation that have sprouted and they all taking advantage of the fresh available food after the long dry season.

That wraps up our November highlights, as we move into the festive season we wish everyone, past and future guests a merry Christmas and and a happy new year.

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

SIGHTINGS BLOG- Leopards of Umlani

2019-11-05T00:00:00+02:00

Often when going to Marcos dam or the treehouse we would catch a quick glimpse of the unknown young male leopard, still semi skittish especially during the daylight hours as he ducks for cover when a vehicle approaches, however his shy demeanor has quickly changed and we are getting more and more relaxed sightings of him especially under the cover of darkness.

On one particular night, we arrived at Marcos dam, at first there was no signs of life, but then two hyenas arrived at the water to have a drink. we were sitting in silence and with the lights off listening to the sound of the hyenas as they drank, it is quite remarkable how sound travels at night in the bush, when all of a sudden all hell broke loose as the sounds of a fight broke out, we turned on the spotlight and saw a group of hyenas attacking on of the hyenas that had originally come to the water. Amidst the chaos I noticed eye shine from the far side of the dam, at first we thought it was another hyena, but knowing animal behavior surely if it was in fact another hyena, it would be rushing in to join the fight? So we moved a bit closer to investigate. as we approached we made out the distinct cat like shape of a leopard, it was the young skittish male leopard watching the fight from a distance, I thought due to the number of hyenas in the area he would be shy and move off but to my surprise he didn't, he remained relaxed and stayed put where he was perhaps not wanting to be noticed by the already agitated hyenas. We stayed with him for a while and managed to get a few good pictures of him before leaving him be and heading back to camp.

A few days later, when our game drives returned from safari in the morning our guides reported that Rothsay male leopard had made an impala kill not far from the camp, knowing he isn't relaxed during the day I decided to wait until nightfall to go and see if I could see this impressively large male leopard. It has been a good few weeks that there was no sign of him and with Nstogwaan male making an appearance at our waterhole in front of camp last month I was beginning to wonder if Rothsay male was in fact still around.

On arriving at the area where the male leopard had been seen I could see that the impala meal was all but finished with only a leg and a bit of skin draped in the fork of a Marula tree was all that remained. At first glance there was no sign of the leopard, but as I drove in on the two track leading to the tree the large muscular for of the huge male leopard appeared from behind a grassy thicket. As I have mentioned in previous blogs this male was never the most relaxed individual but with patience and long hours spent with him, I have slowly but surely witnessed him becoming more accustomed to the vehicles presence right up until this point where I could get to within a few meters of him without him so much as opening an eye to look at me while he slept off his big meal.

With him having a meal stashed in the tree there were a couple of hyena roaming about hoping for scraps and every now and then when one wandered to close to him he would sit up and give them an assertive look allowing for some great photos before he would put his head back down and carried on resting. It is always interesting to see the difference in behavior between the male and female leopards, the males seem to know they are bigger and more intimidating and tend to stand their ground rather than the females who snarl hiss and most often head up the nearest tree when confronted by hyenas, Rothsay male seems to know he is the boss and remains relatively cool calm and collected, I've even seen him challenging hyenas when he is out numbered by them in an attempt to rob them of their own kills.

As mentioned before Rothsay male is very easy to identify due to the fact that he is missing a large part of his upper lip giving him a very distinguishable look. I also noticed that it looks like he has snapped his upper right canine tooth off which is now hanging literally by a thread from his jaw, it must have been quite a fresh injury as it seemed to irritate him if he put any weight on it when he rested his head down to sleep. An injury like this is actually quite common with predators and he will more than likely carry on as usual without it being too much of a hindrance.

After spending about 2hrs with him I decided to leave him be, when habituating leopards I always find it beneficial to leave a sighting on good terms with the leopard so that there is no negative associations with the vehicles, this tactic seems to be working as every sighting of this leopard that I do have just seems to be better than the last as he grows in confidence around us.

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Captured In Photos - September 2019

2019-10-01T00:00:00+02:00

With the absence of Marula female being felt by the guides out on drive, some of our other resident leopards put on a show for us. Nthombi was seen on a few occasions, it seems her son has branched out on his own for the most part which just goes to show what an incredible mother Nthombi actually is that at the age of 14yrs old she still successfully raised another cub to independence.

One night we were very surprised to find Nstogwaan male at our camps waterhole, his territory is way down to the south west of our traversing, and he hasn't been seen this far north since he moved south about 3 and a half years ago. He looked to be in fantastic condition and had no signs of being in a fight that could have resulted in him losing territory, perhaps he was lured by the scent of a female in season looking for a mate.

Marula's cubs are doing well despite being forced into independence at such a young age with the disappearance of their mother. They seem to be surviving on small prey animals, and on the times that they have been seen they have been in excellent condition. The good news is that they also starting to relax more and more around the vehicles.

Nyeleti also made some excursions westward this month, it seems with the disappearance of Marula from some prime leopard territory that the females in the area are vying for piece of leopard turf. Nyeleti was brought up in the territory previously held by Marula and interesting times lie ahead as there are a number of females that could potentially stake a claim.

As mentioned the Myambula pride have been noticeably absent from their usual haunts around Umlani Bushcamp. As the prides cubs continue to grow a lot of pressure is placed on the lionesses to provide enough food to go around. We have seen the lions set up in an area usually around water for a few weeks then once that area becomes void of prey they move to another. For now though the pride is spending its time to the south east of our traversing area and we wait to see what their next move is, hopefully its back up towards us.

We have been very lucky to have the Wild dogs denning in our area the past few weeks and we have enjoyed almost daily sightings of the endangered carnivores with all their growing pups, its always entertaining spending time with at the den site as much like the adults the pups do not sit still and are almost constantly wrestling and chasing each other around, practicing for a life of being on the move and marathon hunts.

One morning, we caught up with 3 cheetah brothers who had made their way into the area, after following them moving through the reserve they began stalking some nearby impala, after a short chase and a bit of exciting driving, we relocated the cheetah with an luckless impala that they had just caught and killed. We watched as the cheetahs quickly devoured their meal before any other predator or scavenger could located on their hard earned meal.

Quality elephants sightings this month as these giants spend their time around the remaining waterholes, huge numbers of elephants continue to move in and around the Timbavati. With lots of babies the elephants are always entertaining to watch out on safari, some of our guests were even lucky enough to see an elephant calf being born!

Other interesting sightings we had ranged from hyenas to relaxed Steenbok and everything in between. Its not always about the big 5 and often our general game gets overlooked but its important to remember that without them there would be no big 5 so they play a vital role in the ecosystem and are also worthy of taking out the camera and snapping a few shots of them.

That is all for this Septembers safari highlights, lets wait and see what October has in store for us. Until then...book your safari experience with us here at Umlani Bushcamp and experience the game viewing for yourself.

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

SIGHTINGS BLOG- What has happened to Marula?

2019-08-30T00:00:00+02:00

My last blog post about the incredible sighting we had of her with her two cubs now seems very ironic as that was the last sighting we had of Marula, I had mentioned how quality sightings such as the one we had that day would become common place as the cubs grow and hone their hunting skills. Little did I know that as it stands that sighting would be a once off.

For the past month, there has not been a sign of our once ever present female leopard. While out on drive checking her previous haunts end as no shows from her. Her favored trees that she would often use as vantage points or resting spots no longer display her beauty and the roads that crisscross her territory no longer display her tracks for us to follow. Although in the past she has disappeared before, it has never been for this long especially given that there has been absolutely no sign of her.

I have been delaying the writing of this blog in the hopes that Marula would show herself, but as mentioned with each drive that comes and goes and she is not seen hope dwindles. In a way I hope this post turns out as a jinx and she shows up just to prove me wrong!

We can only be left to speculate the reasons for her disappearance, without finding a body there is no real answer to the question of what happened to her, but that is the way of nature. We will never have all the answers and it is a reminder that these animals we follow and know so well live in a harsh world, where anything can happen at anytime, and in the very back of our minds we can hold out that she will make a return, no matter how slim the odds are, but that can only be left up to time which as we know heals all.

But for now, we will celebrate some of the incredible sightings that this beautiful leopard has given us through the years and hold onto those memories. There are other leopards and there will be more leopards in the future, that is one thing that is certain and the void left by Marula will be filled. Nature gives and nature takes away...

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Captured In Photos- July/August 2019

2019-08-15T00:00:00+02:00

What a change it has been to previous years having the Myambula pride spending more and more time within our traversing area, if we think back to a couple of years ago when we hardly had any lions in the area to now it is an incredible transformation. The 10 cubs are still all doing very well, the 4 mothers are providing consistent meals for the growing youngsters and the pride seems to be going from strength to strength as they continue to grow their territory. We enjoyed many sightings of this pride during the past months however a couple of sightings really stood out.

We caught up with the pride as they made their way to one of the waterholes for a drink, to see such a big pride all together and on the move was extremely special, to have them all line up for a drink, priceless.

We had another opportunity to see the pride quenching their thirst after the lionesses had a failed hunting attempt late one morning, the lionesses met up with the cubs and lead them to a waterhole.

A few more images taken of the Myambula pride whilst out on safari in July and August:

The Mbiri males have been seen quite a bit lately, they seem to be doing an excellent job of keeping their territory clear of rivals and protecting their prides. Male lions have a certain presence about them that just exudes power and the Mbiri males are no exception. The bond between these two males is incredible and they definitely believe sticking together is the way to go about protecting their turf.

With all the leopard sightings that we had it was really hard to actually pick which ones were highlights as we had so many incredible moments with these beautiful cats.

One major highlight was spending a morning with Marula and her two cubs as they played in a riverbed after feeding on an impala.Check out the blog about this sighting if you haven't already by following the link-

THe-perfect-leopard-sighting

We managed to see Rothsay male leopard on a few occasions, he is becoming so relaxed around the vehicles at night and with his core territory being around Umlani itself he is becoming a common sight on our way back to camp in the evenings. On one night we found him up in a tree with an impala kill, however he wasn't alone. An unknown young male leopard had joined the sighting and was busy feeding off part of the kill that had dropped to the ground whilst the big male had been feeding.

Marula and her cubs treated us to quite a number of amazing sightings, she made a few kills giving us the opportunity to spend good time with the trio of leopards, this included one morning us finding the leopards on a kudu carcass, the antelope seemed to have died of natural causes and leopards being opportunistic, took full advantage of the free meal.

Sadly though for the past 3 weeks Marula has not been seen, her tracks have not been picked up by our trackers and her once regular sightings have dried up completely. Her 2 cubs have been found around the area where we last saw Marula and are still doing well despite being very young to be left alone and forced into independence. The hope for now is that Marula has come back into early estrus and she is off looking for males to mate with, but with each passing day and no sign of Marula our hope is slowly fading. Reasons for her disappearance can be a number of things, and without seeing a body it will be near impossible to know what actually happened to her. Hopefully we are wrong with our suspicions and she does make a return, keep an eye on our social media for any update whatever the case may be.

Nthombi female and her son made the odd appearances, for the most part they spent a lot of their time in the northern reaches of her territory but when they did make their way south they spoiled us with some special sightings.

Thumbela female also made a couple of forays west from her usual territory, unfortunately it looks like she has lost her latest litter of cubs and she seems to be seeking out males to mate with. While we followed her going about the task of scent marking she offered us some great photographic opportunities to capture her beauty.

Huge herds of elephants have been moving through our traversing area lately and hanging around close to the remaining waterholes, always provide entertaining sightings while out on safari. One of the most amazing experiences is spending time with these gentle giants as they go about their business.

Other highlights included spending time with a male cheetah one afternoon, we rarely see cheetah due to the presence of the larger predators in our area, so when a cheetah does make an appearance its always something special. The buffalo herds have also made a huge comeback as we reach the peak of the dry season and both water and good grazing become more scarce. Surprisingly with the number of lion sightings we have had we have had quite a few encounters with hyenas lately, we were even fortunate enough to see an adult hyena bringing a new born cub to a den on our traversing area.

That's a wrap for this double up of monthly highlights, as we head into spring and await the transformations that the bush undergoes we look forward to seeing what the month of September holds for us.

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Sightings Blog- The Perfect Leopard Sighting

2019-08-02T00:00:00+02:00

A couple of evenings ago, the radio crackled with the call that Marula female had been found with a very fresh kill that she had just made moments before being found. This is always exciting news as it generally means there will be some guaranteed leopard sightings for the next few days. What makes it even more exciting is that once she stashes the kill out of the reaches of the pesky hyena clan that are a constant presence these days, she will go and fetch her two cubs. So that is already amazing, three leopards in the same place...not an every day occurrence given that leopards are solitary cats.

I decided to respond to the sighting as my guests were big time leopard fans and well this opportunity was just too good to resist. But everyone had the same idea, light was fading and Marula had headed off to go and fetch the cubs, I could hear by the radio chatter that she was in and out of thick bush, always on the move and it was generally quite a task for the guys to keep up with her. But still we pushed on.

I then got a call from one of the other guides who's landowner was out on drive and had stumbled across another leopard who was up in a tree with a kill and some hyena keeping it there as they waited patiently for scraps to fall. I decided to rather leave the tough Marula sighting until the following morning when she would have the cubs at the kill and headed off for this other leopard sighting as it sounded very much worth it. On arrival at the scene, there was no sign of the leopard, I could see the impala kill in a small tree and the two hyenas skulking around in the vicinity, but no leopard...my plan seemed to not have been worth it. As my shoulders slumped and I started making my way back to the road there was a blur of rosettes just in front of us as the leopard bolted from its cover, a skittish young male. Happy with the brief glimpse that all was not lost we decided to go for drinks and return after dark to see if the leopard was a bit more relaxed in our presence.

To cut a long story short, when we returned the young male was back up in the tree feeding and we had a really nice sighting of him as he snarled, growl and hissed at the hyenas beneath him. It really ended up being an incredible sighting thanks to the interaction between the two species. The guests passed the comment " We don't know how you are going to top this tomorrow, this was unbelievable", in the back of my mind all I could think of was the potential glory that we could have in the morning when we see Marula and her cubs with their kill. I made no promises to the guests, I merely smiled...a hopeful smile as one thing I know, there are no guarantees when out on safari but it was a smile nonetheless.

When we set out on drive the following morning we headed straight in the direction of where Marula had hidden her kill, I was filled with hope but also was a bit nervous that the kill might have been stolen by hyenas during the night or while she was away fetching the cubs, I have seen this happen all too often in the past. So when the radio call from one of the other guides came through that he had relocated her in the same position with the cubs AND her kill I was over the moon and we made our way at a slightly quicker pace.

Arriving at the sighting we saw Marulas young male cub lying on the bank of the a large dry river bed, about 30m away we could see his mom doing the same. We sat with the young male for some time as he watched us watching him. we managed to get a good few photos before Marula got up and headed over to him, the two leopards had a bit of a cuddle and then the young female cub appeared and joined the leopard pile on. Three leopards all together all in one photo. This however was just the beginning.

Marula headed up the tree that she had stashed her kill in and was quickly followed by her daughter who jumped into the branches with her mom to feed. The young male however stayed on the ground and moved out onto the river bed sand to soak in the first rays of golden morning sunlight almost posing for his photograph to be taken.

What happened next was just the cherry on top to complete an already incredible sighting. Marula descended the tree and started making her way towards her son out in the river, he immediately flattened himself ready to pounce on his mom as she approached. The scene was set open surroundings and stunning light with the anticipation of the action to come.

As Marula got a few paces from her son he sprung into action and tackled his mom, Marula saw it coming obviously and leaped into the air but her son was too quick for her and they connected in mid air, with experience on her side the mother leopard quickly turned the tables on her son and flipped him over and pinned him to the ground as they playfully wrestled in the soft sand.

Just when we thought it couldn't get any better, it did just that when the action was too much for the young female cub to resist and she then quickly made her way towards the other two leopards, Marula paused for a moment to watch the advances of her daughter and her son took the moment to free himself from her bear-hug and started stalking his sister, who was doing the exact same, as they two leopards got near enough to one another they both sprang into action tackling each other creating even more magic than the previous wrestling match that we had just witnessed.

Once all the adrenaline had worn off and the excitement had dwindled among the trio of leopards they all seemed to move off and find their own spot to rest and we took the chance to take a few more last photos of them before heading out for a well earned coffee to celebrate the literal perfect leopard sighting that we had just had.

As Marulas cubs grow sightings like this should become more regular as they practice their hunting skills on each other and their mother, but to be lucky enough to have these three incredible leopards on our safari doorstep is just special, and sightings like this one will always remain in our memory banks.

Written & Photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

Umlani Captured In Photos -June 2019

2019-07-02T00:00:00+02:00

The lions of the Timbavati have been absolute stars this month when it came to our game drives, the 4 Myambula lionesses and their 10 cubs have been very active especially around Umlani Bushcamp itself. One morning the pride was found on a full grown kudu bull carcass along with the 2 Mbiri males, that afternoon when we returned to the scene the pride had also just killed a zebra. 3 of the River pride males then foolishly approached the carcasses and were met aggressively by the 4 lionesses the commotion woke the sleeping Mbiri males who then chased the males off, we could hear the dominant males giving at least one of the younger males a good hiding before roaring out in victory. As the big males made their way back to the kill and their pride, one of the young males returned to the zebra kill and started feeding, it appeared that he did not fear the mighty Mbiri males who's roars were getting closer and closer. We sat in anticipation to see the outcome of this bold move by the younger male, however on sight of the larger males making their approach he lost his nerve and began to run for his life the big Mbiri male gave chase and again we could hear the sounds of lions fighting as the younger male got caught, beaten and chased out of the area. The smaller Mbiri male guarded the kill sporting a few fresh cuts and blood oozing from his mouth, but defiant over the young intruders, the pride and their cubs were safe for another day and our guests were left with a memory that would last a lifetime after a display of natural power second to none.

Another incredible sighting we had was when our dinner was interrupted by the Myambula pride bringing down a large buffalo bull right outside camp. You can read the blog about this sighting by clicking here: The lions and the buffalo

Having this pride of lions around and seeing them daily has been a real treat as all the cubs offer some truly special sightings, here are some of the pride highlights for the month.

As mentioned with all the lion activity it has meant that our leopard sightings haven't been as frequent. We did get to see Ntsogwaan male one afternoon however he made the sighting difficult as he moved through thethick riverine thickets of one of the many dense drainage lines that course through the Timbavati and we didn't manage to get any photos of him but the few brief glimpses we did get of this large male leopard were priceless.

We spent an evening with Nweti female who is Nyeleti's now almost independent daughter. She takes after her mom and her grand mother Rockfig jr in the looks department and is a stunningly beautiful cat. We sat with her as she lay on top of a termite mound in the night listening to nearby impala before drifting off to sleep.

Thumbela was also seen on a couple of occasions when she killed what looked like a bushbuck. She had the kill stolen by a hyena, however managed to steal it back and hoist it high up into a nearby tree. She no longer looks pregnant so must have given birth somewhere in our eastern traversing area and we look forward to the day when we get to see her latest cubs.

Marula was uncharacteristically elusive this month, however with the Myambula pride residing in the southern reaches of her territory and the Zebinine pride moving back into her core territory it is understandable that she has shifted out of her usual haunts to make sure her cubs are safe. Both her and the cubs are still alive and well though as tracks have been seen and one evening we got a very brief glimpse of the trio just before arriving back at camp and we hope that in the next month our regular Marula sightings with return.

After a relatively quiet start to the month with regards to elephants they big herds returned and we were treated to some truly special sightings with Africa's largest land mammal. One morning drive after searching high and low for elephants for about 4 days we checked one of the waterholes and were greeted with a sighting of a huge herd quenching their thirst, as we sat watching them a second herd joined them and we were completely surrounded making for a magical sighting.

That afternoon it was as if a switch had been flicked and some one said let there be elephants as we came across herd after herd getting up close with these giants as they fed around us and some of the youngsters playfully sparred with each other.

Like we touched on earlier in the blog the buffaloes have made a bit of a comeback this month, after the drought that we experienced a few years back the buffalo numbers took a huge knock and they have actually been rather difficult to find since, apart from the odd lone bull or small bachelor groups the large herds that we were used to seeing have all but disappeared. However as the dry season progresses we have seen a couple of large herds moving in and out of the central Timbavati providing us with our much needed buffalo fix that we have been longing for.

We were also very fortunate to have a sighting of wild dog, they have been denning north of our borders so sightings have been a lot less common than in past months however on this occasion they managed to kill and impala and while we were with them a clan of hyenas arrived and a bit of a scuffle ensued. Its an eternal battle between these two carnivores and we were very privileged to witness something like this in the flesh.

Overall the sightings in June were fantastic as can be expected for this time of the year and July can only get better. General game viewing was as good as always with plenty of different species around, filling the spaces between big five sightings nicely.

That wraps up this months highlights blog, we hope you enjoyed the feast of photos and incredible sights that we got to experience here. Until next time...

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat

SIGHTINGS BLOG- The lions and the buffalo

2019-06-24T00:00:00+02:00

Recently we have been fortunate enough to have the entire Myambula pride residing on Umlani's property, a couple of weeks ago a run in with 3 of the young River pride male lions forced the lions to move west away from the males in order to protect their 10 cubs sired by the mighty Mbiri males, this meant that with Marcos dam being one of the only sources of water around that the lions would settle in this area as they will not only have water but also an abundance of prey that are also drawn to the water source. We have enjoyed daily sightings of the pride which meant that the chance of witnessing a kill was greatly increased as the demand for the pride to feed increases with 10 hungry, growing cubs to feed.

It also just so happens that a small group of male buffalo have also made the area around camp their home due to us having the waterhole in front of camp where they can get their daily dose of water and wallowing in, so the stage was set we just needed luck on our side. One afternoon we thought the the moment had arrived as we watched the four lionesses stalk up to one of these buffalo bulls who was lying down blissfully unaware of the approaching lions as he ruminated peacefully in the late afternoon sun. We sat with baited breath our hearts in our throats as the lions inched closer and closer to their target. However it was not to be when a sudden gust of wind alerted the buffalo to the lions presence and he shot up and charged at the lions sending them scurrying off in all different directions before he too made a hasty retreat to safety.

the following afternoon we found all 10 cubs huddled together just next to the road not far from camp, none of their mothers were around this meant one thing...they were on the hunt. So we left the cubs as we do not view them when their mothers are not present at this young age and went in search of the lionesses. Our search was in vain though and we could not locate on the them, and the two Mbiri males had been found so we decided to go see them instead as we had not seen them in some time.

On returning to camp that evening I jokingly said to my guests that I will go and spend the rest of the night looking for the lionesses so that we can see them hunt, and that I will not sleep until I find them. About an hour into dinner service I was up at my house when the bellows of a buffalo in distress echoed through the crisp night air. I immediately knew what was happening and rushed down to the game drive vehicles, calling frantically on the radio for one of the trackers to bring the other vehicle. I ran into the dining room and announced that dinner can wait lions are killing a buffalo and we need to go. My guests at first thought I was joking and that it was in fact just me making the sounds of the buffalo, I assured them that it was not and we all piled into the car and rushed out to locate the action. We found the lions and the buffalo right opposite the camp at our waterhole, the sight of the lionesses on the back of the buffalo, the dust, the sounds from the buffalo were something straight out of a national geographic documentary and the adrenaline of what we were witnessing began coursing through our bodies as we watching in awe of the absolute rawness and power of the scene.

It was incredible to see the strength of the four lionesses as they took turns jumping onto the buffalo's back trying to topple the colossal beast, while the other lionesses bit and chew at the tendons on the hind legs, this was an effective tactic as after some time the hind legs gave in and the buffalo sat down at which point one of the lionesses again lunged onto the back of the buffalo bring him down, she then quickly latched onto the muzzle of the buffalo in order to suffocate him. As the buffalo went down one of the lionesses peeled off and began calling for the cubs and she headed in the direction of where we had seen the cubs earlier that afternoon, while the rest of the pride took turns in suffocating the bull. It took about 45mins before the buffalo eventually took his last breath. The lionesses were all catching their breath after the battle had been won when one of them quickly pricked up her head and stared off to one side and started snarling and growling, we pointed the spotlight in the direction where she was looking and saw the smaller of the Mbiri males making an approach, from their resting place some 6kms away the males must have heard the bellows of the buffalo and made their way for a free meal. The lionesses however did not greet him in the friendliest manner and quickly attacked him before running back to their kill, the smaller Mbiri male was left not really knowing what to do with himself, when the other larger male arrived, interestingly though he was greeted with head rubs and low soft contact calls from the females absolutely no aggression and he was welcomed to the kill. We watched as the lions began to feed when the cubs all arrived and it was then decided that we leave the pride in peace as we do not view the cubs yet with the spotlight due to them still being too young and we didn't want to attract any unwanted attention to the kill in the way of hyenas that could potentially pose a threat to the cubs.

What we had seen was truly remarkable and we headed back to the camp to finish off our own dinner.

In the days that followed we got to witness the progression of the carcass as the lions fed, it's very special to be able to see the whole process from start to finish of nature cleaning up after the kill from the lions bringing the buffalo down to the point where they leave and the hyenas and vultures finish off the rest. A truly once in a lifetime experience for our guests and for some of them an absolute dream come true.

Having a large pride of lions around will always make for interesting sightings, and in the short space of time that this pride has been around we have already racked up some unforgettable sightings and look forward to many more to come.

Written & photographed by: Greg McCall-Peat