Kiri Camp Wildlife Stories January 2025
Thousands of migratory birds from Europe, Asia and northern Africa have been flocking to Kiri Camp and the Okavango Delta to take advantage of the abundant waters brought by the new year's seasonal rain showers. There's been lots of wildlife activity and herbivores have been enjoying the lush, leafy vegetation while carnivores have been eagerly hunting plump, healthy, prey.
January had spectacular cloud coverage, making for great photographs and wildlife sightings. The refreshing rains had cooled down the hot summer temperatures, allowing us to enjoy more comfortable safari adventures.
Excitable Wild Dog Pups
African wild dogs are some of the most energetic animals. One day in the middle of January, a pack of nine wild dogs ran through camp. They even darted between our guests' tents.
Seeing the pack play, run and regroup throughout the day was an incredible experience for us.
As the sun set, we followed the pack to the airstrip where the more curious younger dogs practiced their hunting skills on the portable stairs used for the small aircraft. They tumbled and played, honing their skills and making us all giggle over their clumsiness.
Don’t Judge a Book By It’s Cover
The African buffalo is one of the most powerful terrestrial animals in Africa. An adult’s size alone already intimidates most predators. They can weigh up to 870kg and run as fast as 56 km/h with their distinctive curved bone horns ready at the forefront.
So imagine our complete awe when we saw around 200 of these behemoths quietly grazing outside of camp!
Spotted Escort
The piercing yellow eyes of a leopard are unmistakable. So when we saw a flash of golden irises on a late-night drive back to camp, we had to stop. We turned the safari vehicle off and waited for the leopard to walk past. We quickly recognised her as our resident female, Kiri Blue Eyes.
She approached the driver’s side door and prowled around the car's bonnet. After some time, she walked away and allowed us to follow her slowly back to camp.
Twin Lionesses
For the past year, the area around Kiri Camp has become the territory of two adult lionesses and their seven cubs. As we prepared for our early morning game drive, we spotted the two lionesses in camp.
They spent the day under a tree in front of our dining room, occasionally lifting their heads from the tall grass that concealed them.
January was another great month for wildlife spotting at Kiri Camp. We can’t wait to see what the untamed plains have in store for us next.
Until next time,
Stef Ellett
Kiri Camp
