This week in pictures highlights the magnificent diversity that Londolozi offers daily. From butterflies to birds, and the spectacular lions and leopards that creep around the wooded savannah. Summertime is regarded as the best for bird-watching and ticking off the rarer migratory species that make their way to the southern tip of Africa.
There have been some exceptional sightings of the African wild dogs, who have made a few appearances on the reserve as of late. They’re by far the most exciting animals to search for on game drive. Watching them hunting is a thrilling experience and seeing them make several exciting chases after impala herds has brought much pleasure to my guests and me.
The Senegal Bush Male, Mashaba Female, Xinkhova Female, and Ximungwe Female were the highlights on the leopard-viewing front. We have also had great viewing of the Ntsevu Breakaway Pride and a Black Dam Male.
“Golden Hour” is beginning to create amazing lighting for photography as the days are getting shorter towards the end of Summer. You will appreciate this warm light in the pictures below.
A male cheetah, mud-bathing elephants, giant giraffe’s necking as well as a troop of baboons make it into this week’s selection of photographs.
Let me know your favourites in the comments section below.
Enjoy This Week In Pictures…
The beautiful Xinkhova Female took a rest in a shaded riverbed allowing this perfectly unobstructed view for us.
A stunning young female with a very similar spot pattern to her mother, the Nkoveni Female. Litter still completely intact March 2022.
She then started grooming herself and yawning on three different occasions signalling some intent to get moving. A few minutes passed and she did just that, slinking into the bushwillow thickets and disappearing.
A striking Woodland Kingfisher searching for its next victim. These kingfishers do not feed on fish as you’d expect but rather prefer to go after insects, frogs and lizards.
The contrast of colours in this moment was incredible. The combination of golden light coming through the grass versus the black and white stripes of the zebras as well as the moody sky created a wonderful scene. Not to mention the silhouetted trees on the horizon.
Seeing a large elephant march through the open area surrounding the Londolozi airstrip is just incredible.
It is always so exhilarating to find a cheetah on Londolozi as they are quite difficult predators to find in the open savannah regions of the reserve. This day was no different as we happened upon a male cheetah scanning his surroundings from a fallen marula tree.
We followed him towards a pan where he nervously drank for a few minutes, pausing occasionally and giving me a chance to take this picture.
We have been seeing a pack of three wild dogs consisting of two males and one female recently. The female, pictured here, has been mating with the alpha male meaning she could be pregnant and expecting a new litter in autumn. This will be very promising for this pack which is thin on numbers.
A dazzle of Zebra during “Golden Hour”
One member of a troop of baboons climbed a small stump to keep an eye on us as the rest scampered into the thickets.
An African Monarch Butterfly
Another member of the pack of three exposes its carnivorous set of teeth as it yawns after a busy morning of hunting.
A classic scene of a leopard draped over a thick branch of a marula tree. The Ximungwe Female had recently killed and hoisted a common duiker in the tree and we found her resting in this exact position.
Having been viewed by vehicles from an early age, this leopard is supremely relaxed around Land Rovers.
The largest eagle in the area, a Martial Eagle, takes flight before our eyes. With three powerful flaps of its wings, it effortlessly took to the sky.
The regal and dominant Senegal Bush Male. We are noticing his territory shift further west of camp and into Marthly, north of the Sand River.
Initially seen as a young male in 2016, this leopard only properly established territory on Londolozi in mid-2019
Spending time with this elephant bull was a pleasure. He was very relaxed and was happy to feed on the grass and small wildflowers all around our vehicle.
A spectacular White-fronted Bee-eater comes to perch after attempting to catch an insect buzzing around nearby.
A Martial Eagle perches momentarily while hunting a scrub hare beneath the long grass.
The impressive Ntsevu Males are the breakaways of the Ntsevu Pride. These males are growing into enormous lions and are looking in fine condition.
A peaceful snapshot of an intense standoff between two male giraffes who were fighting for dominance. This is known as ‘necking’.
We spent some quality time with the Ximungwe Female one afternoon as she drank from a mud wallow and then lay down in the shade of a tamboti thicket. She is currently denning two cubs in the heart of Londolozi which has brought much excitement.
There was also a special sighting of the Mashaba Female laying and then stretching on a marula trunk. Previously known to be the most viewed leopard on Londolozi, at 16 years old, she has become a lot more scarce due to her shifting her territory much further south.
Londolozi's oldest territorial female. Distinguished by her nose spot, this Sunsetbend matriarch's legacy lives on through her daughters.
A large elephant bull throws mud on his back in the heat of the day.
The Black Dam Males have shifted territory further North of Londolozi recently. Apart from hearing their roars from time to time, we haven’t seen them too much.
The beautiful hues of Gold, Orange and Yellow with the setting sun never disappoint a photographer. This dazzle of zebra was enjoying the day’s final moments grazing on the open crests in Central Londolozi.-
Wonderful pictures as always so difficult to pick up one. The African Monarch Butterfly is my favourite, as you don’t see it often and it is exquisitely perfect in its beauty. The Mashaba female is a great return, finally . Elated to see her still in good condition. All big cats, elephants, zebras birds are really superb. I don’t understand what’s so exciting in watching animals dying tore apart by predators. Life is life and death is death, that’s all. We were preys as well, as all larger predators would make a feast on us too, perhaps this is the shiver we look in that. Luckily among most sought-after animals, including 3 out of the big 5, are not predators, this means that life is fascinating in all its aspects
Hi Francesca, thank you for the comment and I’m thrilled you enjoyed the African Monarch butterfly image.
I understand for some people it is hard to watch the circle of life layout before their eyes especially when a pack of wild dogs are on the hunt. I prefer the thrill of pursuing the Wild dogs on a hunt as an exciting adventure trying to keep up with their incredibly swift and energetic hunting tactics.
Hi Nick, my sister’s favourite image is the Senegal Bush male. He’s iconic indeed. I have nothing against hunting, it’s nature. But our excitement is likely due to the fact that other preys die instead of us. The same happens with car accidents. You say “wow, it’s not me!”. I prefer our fauna anyway, wolves to wild dogs although I do like all sorts of foxes and cats big or small. I find their hunts more interesting from a behavioural point of view they are more refined and very intelligent in my opinion. They are the top predators, like lions in Africa….
My favorite is the zebra in the orange/gold hew of the evening.
Thanks Sandra – The golden light is spectacular
Outstanding pictures this week Nick. We especially liked the one of Xinkhova and the White-fronted bee-eater.
Richard and Fiona
Hello Rich and Fiona! Thanks for the comment and I’m glad you enjoyed the pictures. The Bee-eater was a challenging shot to get!
Wow! What a collection! From the baboon on his perch to the Martial Eagle in flight, to the perching bee-eater to the dreamy Ximungwe Female, to the dazzle of zebras glowing in the light of the setting sun – and the African Monarch butterflies – are they endangered like the North American Monarchs are?
Thanks Michael. Yes. while they are an endangered butterfly species, we are fortunate enough to see them often during the summer months.
fantastic images Nick. Love the leopards and the kingfisher! I noticed you are often at quite high ISOs, are you using some noise reduction software to limit the grain? thanks!
Hi Neil, Thanks for the comment. I haven’t used any noise reduction software for these images as I am using a mirrorless camera which produces very sharp images even with an ISO that’s over 2000. I like to shoot in Manual to ensure I have a fast enough shutter speed and often compensate the High shutter speed with greater ISO. Hope this helps.
OK that’s pretty impressive. I recently switched to mirrorless as well (Sony A7 IV) and will experiment with this. Hoping to get back to the bush later this year. BTW met your parents at Pafuri a few years back!
Another great TWIP Nick, bravo!! So many wonderful images to choose from, and many saved. But the opening image of the astonishingly beautiful Xinkhova takes the cake for me this week, quickly followed by the gorgeous image of the African Monarch butterfly!
Thanks very much Paul. I’m fond of the Xinkhova Female image.
Ah Nick, superb images. Simply not possible to choose a favourite. Delighted however to see Mashaba looking so healthy, we’ve been blessed to see her so many times over the years. Thank you for another splendid TWIP.
Thanks for the comment Jane!
Hi Nick, oh forsure the beautiful Xinkhova female foto is my favorite for this week. What a stunning leopardess she is. Loved the foto of the Ximungwe female lying by the Tamboti tree, she looks so relaxed. Good to Mashaba female again. The Ntsevu male with his enormous head is just stunning.
Thanks Valmai!
Nick, wonderful shots of the cats and elephants this week however, my favorite is the picture of the African Monarch butterfly. It is well framed and focused just right . Thank you for sharing this week.
Thanks William. The African Monarch is a beautiful butterfly.
Fantastic photos, Nick! I think all of them are wonderful. Ma favorites are probably the one of the monarch butterfly and the white fronted bee-eater, and the dazzle of zebras in that golden light. So beautiful.
Great, that you also managed to get a photo of the Mashaba female, which shows that she is still alive and in fine shape.
Thanks Christa. It was particularly good to see the Mashaba Female again and she gave us a great sighting.
Love them all, Nick. If I can only choose one I’m voting for the white-fronted bee -eater landing in the tree – fabulous!
Thanks Suzanne.
You’ve given us many stand-out photos this week Nick, but a few were highlights for me. Firstly, the Martial Eagle in flight is a stunning capture of this fierce looking raptor; secondly, the portrait of the Ntsevu Breakaway male gives us a good look at one of the rising stars (and most likely sired by a Birmingham male, so strength and resilience in his genes); and lastly the look of wariness in the face of the Ximungwe female, resting after her drink. Thanks for sharing your images!
Thank you, Denise. Yes the Ntsevu Male is an offspring of the Birmingham Coalition.
Beautiful shots this week, in particular the martial eagle. @Kelsey Clark – where was this eagle back in late December 2023??!!
Thanks Simon!
The Xinkhova Female looking right at you with her primly crossed paws has got to the pic of the week but then the very regal Ntsevu Male in the sunlight is stunning! Love all the birds this week…in amazing flight no less! The bull ellie and the baboon very special too. Glad to see more wild dogs…the one animal we didn’t get to see on our safari. Fantastic week Nick! Thank you!
Thank you Anita. I’m thrilled you enjoyed the TWIP
Hey Nick! We miss you guys! So great to “see” you on the blog. Your images are beautiful and there is so much variety that it’s hard to pick one. Of course we are always excited to see our Mashaba! Our favorite shot is of the Martial Eagle – it is spectacular!
Thanks very much Michael and Terri! It was so good to see Mashaba again. She looks healthy and I thought of you guys in the sighting. Hopefully see you guys soon.
Wow – a truly fabulous collection – the lighting in so many is just spectacular.
I have to say I really was struck by the picture of the baboon – there was so much character caught in that photo, such serious contemplation on the face – the pose is absolutely perfect. The full facial photos of the two female leopards are absolutely beautiful. You captured the magnificence of the Martial Eagle – so powerful!
Stunning collection – thank you!
Thank you for the comment Kylea! Baboons are the most fascinating creatures to spend time with. Its like looking in a mirror sometimes as their characteristics are so similar to humans! They can be truly entertaining.
I’m glad you enjoyed the photos.
The Martial Eagle Photos my favourite among all the spectacular photos!
I hadn’t realized how gorgeous the Xinkhova Female was until your photo in this article. The best photo however is of the bee eater. Just stunning!