Another enjoyable week has come and gone with an incredibly regal sighting of one of the Northern Avoca Males surveying a stunning section of the Sand River from a large granite boulder. Many rangers and trackers wish to see a predator atop these boulders and so a dream come true for those that got there to see it.
Unsure of the cause, we found a large male giraffe that had sadly lost its life, and the clean-up crew did not take long to get to work. A clan of at least thirty hyenas and a committee of vultures descended upon this carcass to all get their share. Once the vultures are on the ground feeding on the carcass, the collective noun becomes a ‘wake’ of vultures.
Hyenas share a strict hierarchical system within a clan, this was fascinating to watch as they all fed on the giraffe.
Lastly, knowing the Xinzele Female potentially has cubs we make our mission for the morning to try and track her down hoping to find her den.
Enjoy this Week in Video…
A small female often found in NW Marthly. Similar spot pattern to her mother the Ingrid Dam Female.
Fantastic videos; great find of the den.
Another Sean teaser ending!
Lions are indeed regal creatures. Great video and photos of that male!
The behavior of the hyenas is really interesting, the way they are chasing each other away from the carcass though there is so much meat there. And thanks for the warning! It is a bit gruesome to watch though it is, of course, the way of nature. And thanks to those hyenas and vultures the bush is always nice and clean.
And how wonderful that another leopardess has got cubs! So the amazing story of the Londolozi leopards can continue.
Sean, thanks for the video! The lion sighting is a classic! The feeding frenzy with the hyenas was brutal to watch, but even more disturbing was their screams! We’ve been on a couple of kills with hyenas and the noise is not soon forgotten! Then you teased us with the Zinzele leopard sighting – we got a glimpse of her cub and then… nothing! Hoping we will see more next time!
Hi Sean, those sounds the hyenas make while feeding and chasing lower ranked females off the kill are incredibly loud and quiet disturbing. I’m sure being so close makes it even more louder, but at the same time something we can learn but just watching them feed. Gosh in no time the meat must of been finished because the vultures also arrived to have their pickings. Beautiful footage of the Avoca male lion, he is stunning. What a surprise in the end the Xinzele female and a tiny little cub. To gorgeous for words. How many cubs are there?
Hyenas are amazing animals and that noise is so loud. It was a great sighting of them feeding and the Avoca Male on the boulders was also great. We will reveal all this weekend.
What a fantastic ride-along this morning Sean – from the male Avoca sunning on the boulder to the sighting of the Xinzele female near the rocky outcrop, hopefully her den site. But the best was the front row seat at the hyena/vulture feeding frenzy, taking advantage of the dead giraffe. The sounds were unbelievable, the chase scenes fascinating, just like a David Attenborough documentary! What a discovery for all of you and in turn, us. Thank you!
Thank you, Denise. It has been an amazing time on the reserve with so much going on.
Just a reminder request to post these videos in YouTube so I can see closed captions/subtitles. It’s so frustrating and disappointing when I can’t watch these and enjoy them so much!
Hi Robyn, apologies and thanks for letting us know. We will begin putting them on Youtube again.
Hi Robyn, yes we will make sure we post them to YouTube as well.
A really nice drive Sean. Enough food to go around (sadly for the giraffe), but it is interesting to see the pecking order. No lions or leopards around for the feast?? Thanks for sharing with us – enjoyed it.
No lions or leopards that we know of. We thought maybe the Nkuhuma Pride or Avoca Males might arrive on the scene given the noise that the hyenas were making but sadly not.
The Avoca male is Lion King! I love giraffe they are among my favourite animals. Hyenas are like cartoons characters they are very noisy. Interestly my cats pay attention to their sounds; they are the only predator they respond to along with small cats. The high pitched sounds are likely to stimulate a response but they seem more bothered than worried. They now it’s not real. The Xinzele female is a lovely surprise, i wish her good luck in raising her cubs!
Another great video! I have come to love hyenas since I started learning about the African bush animals only a few months ago! I have to say at the end of the video my mouth dropped open with the end of video when you didn’t show more of cub but I am hoping you have more in store for us! Thanks for sharing and congrats on your expected upcoming birth of your 1st child!
Hi Debra, hyenas are amazing animals and there is so much to learn about them. Thank you for ht wishes, he arrived safely on Saturday and we are overjoyed.
Yes we have some plans in the pipeline.
Great video Sean. Do you keep track of the different hyena clans? Because somewhere in it we see this hyena who is missing half of the right hindleg. But she seems really full of food and into the middle of it. Which makes me want to know about the clan. I wonder how useful she can be for the clan now, and f the clan would oust her if she cannot help out enough. I really don’t know a lot about hyena clans………….
Thank you so much, Irene, We try to keep some sort of track but it is so difficult to know which hyenas are where. I noticed that female hyena with half a leg, I think she comes from a clan in the north.
What an ending to this week’s video highlights…you left us hanging with that brief glimpse of the xinzele cub !! Fabulous footage of the Crazed hyenas and the Avaco lion making such a regal statement in that perfect setting. Many thanks and wishing you and your spouse the very best for the imminent arrival of your own little cub 🙏❤️
Yes, it was a great week, the Avoca Male was such a regal sighting. Can’t wait to share the Xinzele sighting with you all.
Hi Sean, Was the giraffe in the northern section? A while ago we saw an old giraffe there with old wounds on it’s legs and it was obviously in it’s last days.
Lovely video of the male on the rocks. That and leopards lolling on a tree are great instances of the wild.
Thank you for the great pictures and videos when we can’t be there.
Yes, Chris, it was in the northern section. I couldn’t see any wounds on its legs so we are not sure what could have happened.
we look forward to having you back at Londolozi too.
Fascinating video of reprocessing of nutrients from the giraffe to other components of the ecosystem. Reminds me of the sci-fi book Dune.