Hendri Reports from Elephant Plains at Sabi Sand Game Reserve …
(Unlabeled Images from Back of Brendon’s Camera)
Because we were so keen to return to either or both of the leopards that we saw yesterday, we were on our vehicles and ready to set out before the first rays of the day pierced the morning sky. About half an hour before sunrise.
We found three adult hyenas with a small pup at a waterhole and spent some time photographing them in the predawn stillness. The reflections in the mirror-like water and the interactions between the little pup and one of the adults gave us plenty of scope for some stunning shots.
Then we received a call that Salayexe was around and we immediately hurried straight to her. She was stalking impala, and we followed her. But each serious attempt was foiled when the impala caught a whiff and bolted. Again and again.
We remained with Salayexe for a while, but then decided to try our luck and see if we could find that lovely young leopard – Nsele’s daughter – again. Luck was running our way and we found her quite easily resting on a termite mound with a shady, dark background. The composition and play of light and dark was perfect for excellent photographic outcomes.
That was it for the morning, and after food, photography tutorials and a rest back at the Lodge, we were ready to set out again this afternoon.
We returned to the dam where we found the young leopard lying on the dam wall. We waited for a while and our patience was rewarded when she came down to the water to drink. Once again the reflections in the water were just lovely.
When Nsele’s daughter left the dam we followed her. She strolled along and suddenly noticed something. It was a Banded Mongoose, and she was after it in a flash. No luck! She continued her journey to a riverbed where she climbed a tree. She was after some squirrels in the tree, but again she failed. But the photography was great, especially as she came down from the tree. Then a hyena arrived, and she quickly slunk away into some tall grass.
We had been told that lions with a kill had been spotted a few days ago, not far from where we now found ourselves and we decided to go and check them out. There were four adult lionesses and eight one-year old cubs and they were very close to the dam.
As it was after sunset we started with flash photography. One of the cubs posed really nicely for us on a termite mound. As the inky darkness surrounded us we started to use our spotlights, giving us front-,
side-,
and back-lit shots …
… which turned out really well.
On the way back to the Lodge one of our vehicles spotted a Scops Owl and a Chameleon in a tree. A perfect way to end a perfect day!
In the morning we would like to see if either of the leopards from today continues their hunting attempts …
