Copyright © 2008 Africa Uncovered Ltd.
Mombo has perhaps the most wildlife activity of any of the Botswana Safari regions and with so much interest in Mombo Camp from our guests, the Africa Uncovered team have decided to bring the news from Mombo straight to our guests from the camp as soon as we have it. See below for comments from guests that have visited Mombo Camp.
05 October 2007
Mombo Newsletter – Sep 07
September 2007 has, as usual, been another fantastic month at Mombo! Summer is approaching at an increasingly fast pace and the changes are evident all over the island. Temperatures have been steadily rising and on most days the maximum temperature has been up around 35°C – not a problem under the shade on an outside sala mattress. Early mornings and nighttime temperatures have been consistently cool, one of the few relics of the winter months. However, the most exciting (yes, exciting) weather event of the month was the arrival of the first few drops of rain of the season that fell towards the end of the month. This early rain was barely enough to wet the ground but it is a sure sign of more to follow.
Owing to our location at the tip of Chief’s Island, the landscapes around Mombo camp are permanently in a state of flux, and September has provided no exception. The flood water is now well and truly on its way out, leaving behind moist and nutrient rich soils. These drying floodplains are attracting general game en masse, something which Mombo is renowned for. Large herds of zebra, impala, lechwe and wildebeest make their way down to these plains in the early mornings and evenings, making for truly stunning vistas for those out on game drive. Associated with the retreating flood water we are also starting to see the formation of ‘fish traps’. Fish traps are formed as the receding water leaves behind pools of water from which fish didn’t have time to move away. These pools provide a feast for any living beings with a taste for fish and a treat for birders. Water birds concentrate on these areas, providing spectacular scenes of squabbling herons, pelicans, egrets, storks and an array of other bird life. Hovering kingfishers drop in amongst the fray, grabbing what they can. In a matter of hours, the chaos is over and the birds move on, looking for the next easy meal.
A further noticeable indicator of the changing of the seasons has been the return of many of the migratory bird species that have returned from their winter-time jaunts to the north. Yellow-billed kites, stunning carmine bee-eaters, and woodland kingfishers are all back in the area, adding to already stunning birdlife that we experience at Mombo.
Anyone who has visited Mombo in recent years will know that at present our predator system is dominated by lion and spotted hyaena. These two carnivores also happen to be extremely intolerant of each other and the scraps over kills are a constant. On two occasions in the month the scavenging hyaenas pushed their luck a bit far and on both occasions the hyaena team came off one member short courtesy of the large male lions – extremely interesting interaction for those who witnessed these scenes!
The three prides in the area have been unchanged over the last month. The Moporota Pride has been the most frequently seen as they have been spending most of their time on the floodplains to the north west of the camp, taking advantage of the concentrations of game. This pride is composed of 2 adult males, 7 adult females and 13 sub-adults.
At the beginning of the month, the Mathata Pride had moved quite far to the south of Mombo and weren’t being seen very frequently. As the month has progressed the pride has moved back towards Mombo, probably also following the high concentrations of game species. The Mathata Pride is also composed of 2 adult males and 7 adult females. In this pride, however, there are 15 sub-adults. This has not been consistent though as the high number of young males means that small numbers have been breaking away. With the number of other lions in the area these breakaways have always been very short lived! A sad thing to see has been the quite dramatic decline in condition of the Mathata Female, the former matriarch of the pride and the lioness after which the pride takes its name. She sustained a bad injury to her stomach about four months ago, probably from an encounter with a buffalo. She has fought the injury since then and it is amazing that she has survived for this long at her age (estimated at about 9 or 10 years). Sadly, it now appears that she is on her last legs and may not survive much longer.
The third pride is the West Pride, composed of 2 adult males, 7 adult females and 4 sub-adults. This pride appears to have moved a bit further west into the wetter areas and thus they have not been observed very frequently this month.
As always, leopards have been ever present here at Mombo but are by nature harder to find and observe than lions. However, Legadima (well know to anyone who has been to Mombo) has frequently been putting on a show for those lucky enough to find her.
There have been two other males seen through the month but far less frequently than Legadima and both are a lot more skittish. An interesting variation in leopard hunting techniques has been very well demonstrated by our leopards here at Mombo this month. The Sausage Trees (Kigelia africana) in the area have been flowering through the month of September, providing an easy and nutritious meal for antelope that wait under the trees for the maroon blooms to fall. These unsuspecting and preoccupied antelope provide a perfect target for any leopard with the patience to lie in the shade of the canopy. When the moment is right the leopard drops out of the tree and into its prey below. This spectacular scene has been witnessed by a number of lucky guests at Mombo this month.
Some excitement at the end of last month was the return of wild dogs to Mombo. The pack of 7 dogs remained in the area for about 2 weeks and was seen at the beginning of September. Unfortunately they have not been seen since then and we suspect that the concentrations of lion and particularly hyaena have pushed them back toward the south east side of Mombo.
The cheetah that tragically lost his brother towards the end of last month has been observed on a number of occasions through the month. Even without his brother he is continuing to be very successful and has thus far remained in the area and in good condition.
The continued drying of the interior of Chief’s Island has been driving most animals to the island fringes and elephants have been no exception. We have been seeing higher numbers of elephants this month and in bigger herds. The abundance of food and water on the verge of the island means that the elephants are experiencing a very low level of environmental stress and so guests are frequently treated to very up close encounters with remarkably relaxed elephants.
As usual, the resident buffalo bulls have been ever-present in the camp and on the floodplain in front. Their habit of sleeping under the tents and board walks introduces the constant possibility of excitement in camp, as experienced on number of occasions when they have been hunted by lions in camp! Unfortunately, September was a relatively quiet month on the rhino front, with only a handful of sightings. However, monitoring has shown that they are indeed still in the eastern areas of the island and one helicopter monitoring flight produced 16 different individuals.
And so that has been the month at Mombo as can best, but never adequately, be described in such a short account.
Regards
Jeremy, Lizzy, One, Frank, Camilla, Nick & Leonard
“The vast amount of animals and their immediate availability – the guides are also great and all the staff and management. The food is top and the rooms are top. There is nothing missing!”
“Our surprise picnics with the hippos, New Year’s celebration, Linda, Thompson, Mavis, Jane who made it feel like we were part of the family.”
“Christmas Eve dinner with the singing and dancing, not to mention the lion and buffalo kill – the entire evening was one we will never forget.”
“Everything was spectacular and special! We will never forget seeing the lions mating, the swarms of termites after the rain, the hyaena family and so many more things on the drives. We made some great new friends and enjoyed the Sabbath service on Friday night. The staff was exceptional.”
Copyright © 2008 Africa Uncovered Ltd.
