Gomoti Plains Camp Wildlife Stories November 2024
To the delight of the wildlife at Gomoti Plains Camp, the rainy season has finally arrived.
The arid plains have started to sprout lush grass while the trees are growing vibrant green leaves. This means there will be a lot more food and water available for the animals. The weather is still hot, but the average temperatures are decreasing slightly.
One Male Mission
Male lions are the most imposing predators on the African floodplains. They exude a sense of pressure that every other animal has to respect. We saw this instinctual caution firsthand on one of our game drives.
We found a sub-adult male walking along a floodplain towards the Eastern Crossing. As it strolled across the landscape, impalas and red lechwes sent alarm calls to their herds and other animals within earshot. They scattered and gave the lion a wide berth.
A Mother’s Pride
Watching lions hunt and kill their prey is one of the most adrenaline-pumping wildlife encounters on the African continent. However, we truly connected with nature while watching a lion pride in one of their quieter moments.
We saw a pride of lions leisurely interacting with each other. The cubs playfully followed their mothers while other members of the pride quenched their thirst at a nearby waterhole, and the adult males kept a watchful eye on the plains.
Outsider
Lions are highly social animals and will actively try to join a pride for many known benefits like fostering social bonds, mating potential and protection. While we were having dinner, we witnessed a pride chasing away a young male!
After hearing loud noises coming from the darkness of the bush, we saw a sheepish lion running away from the aggravated pride. The young male's head was lowered, and its ears tilted down, all signs of submission that told us the pride had not accepted his attempt to join.
Battle For The Bone
Conflicts between predators happen over food all the time, but we barely ever get to see them.
This time, we were lucky! For 20 minutes, we watched a jackal and a hyena fight over a bone. Food is not easy to come by, so if an opportunistic hyena thinks it can take a meal from another animal, a fight is bound to break out. We were happy to see this one play out in front of us!
Say Hello To The Happy Couple
Leopards are some of the most striking animals on the plains here at Gomoti. Imagine our excitement when we realised the two we had stumbled upon were a mating pair.
We were exploring the Mapororo Lediba area when we saw two leopards mating. This was an incredible moment to see up close. This event also lets us know that the leopard population in the area is sustaining itself. Hopefully, we’ll see a cute little cub running after its mother in the next three to four months.
November was a great month for wildlife sightings and the burgeoning vegetation. We’re excited to see what December has in store for us!
Until next time,
Derick
Gomoti Plains Camp
