Kiri Camp Wildlife Sightings August 2024
Kiri Camp was an amazing place to witness wildlife in August. Spring has arrived, and the temperatures have been steadily warming up, with average daily temperatures ranging between 27 and 35 degrees Celcius in the late mornings and afternoons. Early mornings and evenings are still brisk, requiring guests to take something warm while searching for the plains' early risers and nocturnal denizens.
Lessons Of The Trade
We are fortunate to see lionesses and their cubs on almost every safari drive we take our guests on. On this particular occasion, we saw two lionesses with their eight cubs perched atop a termite mound.
They were stalking herds of nearby buffalo and impalas for a possible hunt later in the evening. For the cubs, these hunts serve as valuable learning experiences when they have to start hunting for themselves. We observed the happy family for a while before moving on to other sightings and returning to camp. By the time evening arrived, there were no reports of a kill in that area. Maybe next time, cubs.
Eager Not-So-Beavers
Lion sightings are frequent and exciting moments here at Kiri Camp, but actually seeing them hunt, tackle and kill their prey is rare and exponentially more exhilarating. We saw this first-hand on a game drive we took our guests on. Nine sub-adult lions whose mothers abandoned them struck out on their own.
They decided to start a pride of their own, and with little to no hunting experience, they managed to bring down a buffalo. Their tactics were reminiscent of African wild dogs. They surrounded their prey and brought it down, starting at its rear. It seemed like they were also quite hungry, as they did not even wait for it to fully succumb before feasting on it.
Out Of Sight Like A Pregnant Leopard
Leopards are already a rare sight, but seeing a pregnant one multiple times on the same day is incredible. Towards the end of the month, we saw a leopard named Kiri Blue in camp near our pilots’ tents. She had killed an impala, but five hyenas unfortunately stole it.
Later that evening, a couple we were hosting also saw it during their romantic dinner at the Kiri Camp Pool. After their amazing dinnertime show, Kiri Blue vanished again. We can’t wait to see her again, this time with her young ones in tow.
Like a Big Cat To A River
On one of our final game drives, we managed to spot a cheetah at the Makwala River about 400m downstream. Later, we saw that same thirst-quenched cat on top of a termite mound, basking in the sun's warmth and surveying the area. Later, we went back to the Makwala River, only to see a leopard, another rare big cat, across the river. A wonderful day of sightings indeed!
Until next time,
Meshack
Kiri Camp
