David Dampier

On the Road Again – An Accountant’s Blog

by David Dampier April 25, 2012
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On the 13th April, after injuries, sickness and misfortune plagued the rest of the ranging team, our Head Guide turned to the accounting department for help and experience…and so with great excitement I closed my laptop, dusted off my camera and birdbook and headed back into the field accompanied by repeat guest, Kendra Clarke and [...]

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Three Years at Londolozi Part 3 (2011)

by David Dampier February 23, 2012
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Well the final week has come and it is with some sadness that I relinquish my regular spot on the blog! It has been an amazing three years guiding and I want to thank all the rangers, trackers (Simon Mathebula and Lucky Shabangu in particular!) Londolozi Staff and guests for making the hours out in [...]

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Three Years at Londolozi-Part 2 (2010)

by David Dampier February 16, 2012
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During your first year as a guide, everything is exciting and new. As you get more experienced though, you begin to understand a lot more, particularly when it comes to behaviour and the interactions between the different species. This added understanding makes it exciting again in a whole new way. 2010 was a fascinating year, [...]

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Three Years at Londolozi-Part 1 (2009)

by David Dampier February 9, 2012
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Generally speaking there are two different types of guides-those that are in it for the long haul and will make a career of it, and those that are here for a few years of bush experience. I came to Londolozi on 15 January 2009, fresh out three years of articles and board exams with KPMG [...]

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 18

by David Dampier January 11, 2012
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Love was in the air this week as the Camp Pan Male and Tamboti Female spent over five days together-hopefully creating a new set of cubs for a few months time. The Vomba Young Female was also prominent this week, spending a number of days feeding on a wildebeest calf that she managed to bring [...]

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Leopards Of Londolozi #17

by David Dampier January 4, 2012
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The past seven days have produced some amazing sightings of leopard and I was fortunate enough to witness quite a number of them. From a photographic point of view, they were extremely co-operative, going about their business in some beautiful light and surroundings. Hopefully some of the photos below do some justice to another fabulous [...]

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Leopards of Londolozi #16

by David Dampier December 28, 2011
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This week saw a number of interesting happenings on the leopard front. The Tutlwa Female was seen hunting and killing an impala lamb and the Vomba Female keeps returning to the same inaccessible area in the Sand River, reinforcing our suspicions that she may have cubs. The sighting of the week, however had to go [...]

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 15

by David Dampier December 21, 2011
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The summer heat is building as we fast approach Christmas, but that hasn’t stopped the leopards from putting another great showing-this despite the lions doing their best to overshadow their feline counterparts for the second week in a row. Once again, enjoy this next installment on the Leopards of Londolozi…

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 14

by David Dampier December 14, 2011
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After being on leave it has been some time since the last leopard post. This week the leopards, for a change, played second fiddle to some of the other happenings on Londolozi, despite having some great sightings of them. The news of the “back-from-the-dead” Tsalala cub was an especially big one. However, the leopards, particularly [...]

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 13

by David Dampier November 16, 2011
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As promised last week, this week is purely black and white shots. Many people are of the opinion that a leopard should never be displayed in black and white, as their coat is simply too beautiful for that. For the most part, this is probably correct. However in certain situations a photo that is quite [...]

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 12

by David Dampier November 9, 2011
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This week included yet more amazing leopard interactions, including kills, cubs and, as always, Camp Pan Male! Having spent a number of extra long days out in the field, I was lucky enough to witness and photograph quite a number of these. Enjoy this week’s installment!

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Two Incredible Snake Encounters

by David Dampier November 8, 2011
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Londolozi is famous for many things, but not, as far as I am aware, snakes. In fact, many guests specifically request NOT to see snakes, and I have yet to hear a herpetologist speak of the fabled “Snakes of Londolozi”. Yes, there are plenty of them here, but despite their undeserved reputation, they tend to stick to themselves and are seldom seen. But after two sightings in two days recently, that may all be about to change…

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 11

by David Dampier November 2, 2011
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As mentioned last week, the rains have well and truly arrived and the bush is quickly transforming itself. This can make tracking a little more difficult at times, and keeping your camera equipment dry while trying to get some good shots can also be a challenge! However there was still plenty to see in the [...]

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 10

by David Dampier October 26, 2011
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Although last week was always going to be tough to beat, there was still plenty of activity amongst the leopards these past few days, including an interesting interaction between the Camp Pan Male and his son, the Maxabene 3:2 Young Male. In addition, you will also notice the colours of the photos beginning to change, [...]

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 9

by David Dampier October 19, 2011
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This week was truly a bumper week for leopard sightings, and in particular, leopard on kills. It seems perhaps that with the onset of the first summer thunderstorms, the extra cover provided by the dark, cloudy skies, strong wind and thunder, has enabled slightly easier hunting conditions. As such, there were numerous sightings of various different leopard feeding on kills including impala,duiker, nyala and bushbuck. As always, enjoy…

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The Leopards of Londolozi #8

by David Dampier October 12, 2011
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After a few weeks leave it was good to get back and catch up with some of Londolozi’s most famous residents. Despite a few quiet days during the middle of the week, it was another busy seven days on the leopard front. Camp Pan Male in particular was making his presence felt and was seen almost daily, patrolling all his favorite spots. Hope you enjoy the selection…

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Tsalala Cubs Make First Kill

by David Dampier September 19, 2011
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Growing up as a lion cub is a constant learning process. Unlike us these days, learning quickly for them is ultimately a case of life or death. Their constant play is all about learning the skills that enable them to survive once mom is long gone. The other morning we were fortunate enough to witness [...]

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 7

by David Dampier September 14, 2011
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This week was yet another good week of leopard sightings. Included were kills, mating, cubs and many “regular” sightings of Londolozi’s most well known inhabitants. I also included some more camera settings which I will try and make a weekly addition for those who are interested. As always, enjoy…

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 6

by David Dampier September 7, 2011
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In light of some of the comments from last week regarding photo settings and techniques, I have taken a slightly different approach to normal. This week have chosen photos, some recent and some older, which illustrate different situations encountered in the field and how to handle them using the setting available on most, if not all, digital SLR cameras. Most of what I have learnt has been either through fellow rangers with more experience, or through my own trial and error. I hope the information helps!

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The Leopards of Londolozi #5

by David Dampier August 31, 2011
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Although sightings of any of the big, territorial males were scarce, the females and sub-adults certainly were not. Many of the regulars were seen, and there was a truly exceptional sighting of all three of the Nyalethi youngsters together, reminding us once again how fortunate we are as guides to be working on such an [...]

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The Leopards of Londolozi #4

by David Dampier August 24, 2011
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For a day there was not a leopard to be seen. In spite of the hard hours tracking and eyes desperately searching the winter bush, these beautiful creatures remained elusive. And then, seemingly all at once, the flood gates opened and individuals appeared sauntering down a dirt track, appearing from behind a bush and even mating with each other. After a day of silence they were back, as magnificent as ever. This week we saw, amongst others, the Vomba 3:2 Female, The Maxabene 3:2 Young Male, the Short Tail 5:4 Male and the infrequently seen Maxabene 3:3 Male (b.2006). Enjoy…

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 3

by David Dampier August 17, 2011
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Leopard viewing in the last few weeks seems to have justified many peoples view that August is prime bush time. At least fifteen different individuals allowed us to spend some time with them over tha past two weeks. These are just some of the shots enjoyed during this time. We hope you enjoy this next installment…

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Rare Black Rhino Spotted!

by David Dampier July 28, 2011
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One of the other rangers had seen tracks and dung of a black rhino a few days before so it had been on my mind that this was a possibility. As I saw it I immediately, even from the little I could see, thought it just looked different. Not wanting to shout out “Black Rhino” and then loook silly when a young white rhino wandered out, I held my tounge and reversed a few meters for a better view. Then, in a typical display of Black Rhino behaviour, it ran out of the thicket towards us to investigate, a bunch of leaves dangling from its mouth…

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 2

by David Dampier July 27, 2011
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The Leopards of Londolozi continue to allow us into their intricate and elusive lives as displayed by this weeks selection of images. Camp Pan is still holding onto his territory and is demonstrating just how much of a fight he is prepared to put up in order to keep it – there is definitely a lot left in the tank of this leopard. The Nyaleti Young Female was also sighted a few times and provided for some spectacular photographic opportunities just prior to her hunt of an impala. And, of course, what would today’s Leopard blog be without a mention of the spectacular sighting of last week’s mating epic between the Dudley 5:5 Male, the Mxabene Female and the Tamboti Female. Enjoy…

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The Leopards of Londolozi # 1

by David Dampier July 13, 2011
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This week marks the start of a new weekly blog post about the Leopards of Londolozi. We will be showcasing the leopards who have been taking center stage for the past week, with photo’s of their exploits and some information regarding who has been doing what. Hope you enjoy catching up on these magnificent cats that we are so fortunate to share time with!

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