Spring is sprung and the first rains have quenched the thirst of our dry paradise. The last of the golden backdrops are giving way to the greens as the grass revitalises and the deciduous members of the floral community send forth their first leaves.
The Senegal Bush Male continues to defend his rule over central Londolozi, at one point coming to blows with the much more lithe but surprisingly formidable Eyrefield Male, a scary sight to have beheld! The pack of 8 Wild dogs have made their chaotic way through and as always have had us in gales of laughter at their playful antics and white-knuckled hysteria as we try and keep up with them on a hunt. The Nkoveni Female seems to be pushing her cubs into independence and they seem to be resisting the change in their so-far-quite-comfortable-lifestyle.
On the lion front, the Tsalala Lioness is still faring well. She has been seen sneaking in to steal a bite of a buffalo kill from the Birmingham and Nkuhuma Duo as well as taking down a full-grown male kudu (unfortunately, she did not get to have much of this before the hyenas stole it) and a young zebra (where she was much more fortunate in being left alone for the duration of the feed).
Let us know your favourite image in the comments section below.
Enjoy this Week in Pictures…
These three elephants staggered themselves perfectly as they grazed into the setting sun.
A warning snarl as one of the Nkoveni Female’s youngsters tries to steal the last of her mother’s kill.
Also young and playful but rather with a spot pattern of 3:2. She is slightly bigger than her sister.
A gorgeous female who is found to the east of camp. Easily recognised by her 2:2 spot pattern she is often to be found in Marula trees.
A hazy morning in the grasslands of the southwest.
The Tsalala Female peers down at the Birmingham and Nkuhuma Males as they feed on a buffalo kill. She would continue to haunt these two for the next few days, nipping in and out to steal a bite before being chased off.
The Nkuhuma Male returns back to his buffalo kill after frantically chasing the Tsalala Female off of the scene.
A family of Yellow-billed Oxpeckers worry at a wound in a Buffalo cow’s back. Ouch!
The pack, as always, amused us with their playful antics. All this before hurtling off into the thickets to find their quarry for the evening.
A young warthog boar grazes contentedly as the sun rises behind it.
The sun sets over a fantastic evening watching several members of the Ntsevu breakaways hunt a herd of wildebeest.
A family of Southern Ground Hornbills patrols the airstrip. These birds are always a wonder to watch as they form up into their phalanx to march all in a line and flush any would-be prey ahead of them.
The Eyrefield Male, not often seen on Londolozi, rests atop a termite mound as the sun rises ahead. Little did he know that the Senegal Bush male was hot on his tail just a few hundred metres away. This morning was about to get very interesting…
The Senegal Bush Male stares after the Eyrefield Male as he pads through the clearing ahead. At this point, the Senegal Bush Male was still assessing his competitor while the Eyrefield Male seemed completely oblivious to the danger lurking behind him…
Initially seen as a young male in 2016, this leopard only properly established territory on Londolozi in mid-2019
After giving the two the space they needed to sense one another, we finally saw the Senegal Bush Male pounce! We rushed to the scene only to see the two bodies locked in a twisting tornado of feline rage! Initially pinned down, this photo captures the moment as the Eyrefield Male twisted free of his attacker’s grasp. Look at that bloody snarl!
One last swat from the Eyrefield Male before a pair of hyenas barrelled into the fray and gave the pair a chance to separate. The Senegal Bush Male leapt a tree and the Eyrefield Male darted off into the thickets ahead, not to be seen again.
A much calmer moment as a mother giraffe checks in on her resting calf.
A huge buffalo bull stares down our vehicle. I love the Oxpecker perched right in the middle of it’s boss.
The Ximungwe Female has been trying to push her cub into independence. It has been a toil. Here, she hisses at the youngster as he follows her from a kill (that he has no doubt dominated) to have a drink at a nearby watering hole.
Having been viewed by vehicles from an early age, this leopard is supremely relaxed around Land Rovers.
Here, the Ximungwe Young Male perches on a rock far from where his mother was seen for the last few days. Independence is upon him and the youngster will have a few hard years ahead before he can establish a territory of his own.
A single cub of the Ximungwe Female's second litter. Initially rather skittish but is very relaxed now. Birth mark in his left eye.
A trio of Yellow-billed Storks rest next to a watering hole in the deep South of the reserve. The detail in the front right bird’s pale eye is gorgeous.
A warning shot from a young Hippo bull.
September TWIP Photographer Winner…
Thank you to all of you who voted for your favourite images throughout the month of September on our blog and as well as Instagram – we have a winner… Our TWIP Photography competition happens over the course of every month and relies on your votes – our blog and social media followers. The winner of every month gets to draw a prize/voucher out of a hat for all the energy, patience, skill and passion they needed in order to get “the shot”. We are thrilled to keep sharing some amazing photographic content with you every week. Make sure to vote every week for your favourite picture.
Now onto the winner for August – Congratulations to Kate Arthur for this stunning image…
where is the friend the tsalala lioness had for a bit . I do hope there still together
Going to ask same
I wondered the same after the video over last weekend…
Mhangemi the lioness is said to have returned to her pride and was even said to be pregnant.
Hi All, sorry for the late reply but yes, Iren is correct. She seems to have returned to her main pride in the West. I am unsure about the pregnancy but that is very exciting!
2 favorties: the 3 elephants and the mother and young giraffe
Thanks so much for that, Sandra! I do love the elephant one too.
This week I loved the Tsalala female and the mother giraffe with her calf.
Thanks, Chelsea. The colours in the Tsalala female picture are beautiful.
Love the giraffes & the hippo, and of course the leopards. But my fav was the vehicle looking over the lions at sunset. I have always wanted to show friends what a safari can be and this does it! This was a real Kyle Gordon retrospective!!!
Thanks, Bob! It is always fun to get shots like that with a game viewer or person that give the viewer some perspective on what it’s like out there.
Lots of great photos, but I will have to say the Nkoveni leopard and her soon to be independent daughter in the tree was our favorite! Loved the snarling Senegal Bush male interaction with the Eyrefield make also. Thanks for sharing these, Kyle Gordon!
Thanks Darlene, the background is very busy in that photo but I just loved the interaction between the two!
Wow! The conflict between the Eyrefield and Senegal Bush males. I always hope that leopards are smarter than people, but guess not.
Hi Michael, I think they just want to perpetuate their lineage as much as possible and keeping other males at bay is the only way of doing that.
Admittedly, my comment was somewhat tongue in cheek. We alleged “homo sapiens” do the same thing. We want to perpetuate OUR group over “the other.” Over 200 years ago, Benjamin Franklin said, “Gentlemen, either we all hang together, or we will surely all hang separately.” With climate catastrophe upon us, we simply cannot afford this rank tribalism.
Oh wow I loved all of those pictures! The Leoaprds, the Giraffes, the Warthog and the Wild Dogs all so beautiful 🤩 you were spoilt for choice this week !
Thanks, Kara. We were very lucky with sightings last week!
The Ximungwe Young Male is certainly growing into a magnificent specimen.
Loved the Giraffe calf in the rarely captured image lying down.
Thanks Vin! It was a special moment between mother and calf.
There are powerful images here this week Kyle and choosing one is impossible so here’s my two: the giraffe duo and then the Nkoveni snarling at her cub in the tree. The former image illustrating a peaceful moment in the bush followed by an irritated leopardess mom. Terrific hub of editing this week Kyle.
Thanks so much, Denise! It was a fun week and one in which we were spoilt a little bit!
All great as always and leopards always at a top level, but this week my favourite is the giraffe mother with her adorable calf! Hope it grows up adulthood with so many predators around.
Thanks, Fransesca! It really was such a beautiful, tranquil moment.
It may have been that the picture of the mother giraffe with her calf came after the violent clash of the leopards, but it was my favourite of the group this week, just for the serenity imbued by the moment captured. Loved it.
Thanks Kylea, it was a very special moment. I think quite a few people enjoyed that one too.
Kyle, I am sure the pictures of the two male leopards fighting will have a lot of interest from everyone including myself, but the shot I like best is the one of the Senegal Bush Male staring after the Eyrefield Male. It just has a great intensity about it.
Thanks, William. It was definitely a very intense situation!
Where did the mhangeni lioness go that was hanging out with the Tsalala female?
Hi Chris, the Mangheni lioness seems to have returned to her pride in the West.
Congrats Kate your foto is stunning. Kyle all these foto’s are so beautiful, it is very hard to choose just one. But I must say the mother giraffe and her baby is so precious. The new leopard on Londolozi is beautiful, I don’t know that leopard. I did not receive an email yesterday, was there a problem with the system.
Thanks so much, Valmai. I’m not sure what happened with the system but if you just tap on the blog button at the top of the page it will direct you to the rest and you can catch up! But thanks for the comment and I think you seem to be with the majority in enjoying the giraffe mother and calf!
wow! great shots! so curious about the Senegal Bush male and what happened after that tussle??? did he get bit/hurt? not sure if it’s just the shot but the Eyrefield male’s teeth sure look sharper than normal…is he young? handsome guy!
Thanks, Anito! All ended well and I have written a blog on the full story so you can see exactly what happened when that comes out! The Eyrefield male is about 3 years younger so you could definitely be right there! He’s a beautiful leopard and I hope we get to see more of him!
Thank you for another fantastic ‘This Week In Pictures” My favorite photos ore of the Senegal Bush male & the Eyrefield Male.. Close second was the entertaining Ximhungwe young male
Thanks, MJ! It was a very exciting moment!!
The leopards keep things exciting as usual! And Tsalala stealing food from her (potential) father and 1/2 brother too! Whew!
Hi Lisa, I’m glad you enjoyed! it was a very exciting week!
So many wonderful photos Kyle! Favorite for me is the elephant pic. Thanks. 🤩👍❤️
Thanks, Marcia. I love the composition of that photo.
Thanks for this week‘s great pictures.
Nice that once in a while a warthog features as a star in one.
The fight between these two male leopards seems to have been quite dramatic and serious.
I like the one of the young Ximungwe male best. I hope for him that he will manage to find a good territory one day. He is such a beauty.
Thanks, Christa. The Ximungwe young male is a gorgeous specimen. I hope he doesn’t wander too far!
Kyle, What an exciting set of images! It is rare to see two leopards challenging each other and the scene must have had your adrenaline going! We loved the image of the vehicle watching over the lions hunting – our favorite this week!
Hi Michael and Terri, it definitely had the adrenaline spiking for sure! Thanks for that, I enjoy the context of the vehicle in the shot. Shows what it can be like out there!
Do you have more information about the Eyrefield male?
Hi Al. To be honest, we don’t have a lot of info on him as he is so rarely seen. It was my first time seeing him. But this is our profile on him: https://leopards.londolozi.com/leopard/eyrefield-32-male
Great selection Kyle! Love the shots of the Ximungwe Female and the elephants to start as well! Has the Mhangeni lioness left the Tsalala lioness? It seems she’s been reported without her in recent weeks. Also where do we go to vote on our favorite picture?
Hi Michael, thank you for that! The Mangheni lioness has returned to her pride, unfortunately for the Tsalala female. We are watching that story with great interest. In order to vote, you just vote on here. But then you can vote at the end of the month on Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/londolozi/?hl=en for the winner of the each month.
Wow, brilliant pics this week but my favourite by far is the 3 staggered elephants, followed VERY closely by the mother giraffe and her beautiful baby. Amazing!!! 👏🏻👏🏻
Thanks, Carly! I think you are with the majority on the giraffe mother and calf as well as with the elephants!