Mana River Camp Wildlife Stories October 2024
Temperatures at Mana Pools Camp have risen significantly this October. A welcome result is that more animals have started to relax during the afternoon and become more active in the early morning and evenings. This results in spotting majestic animals in much cooler temperatures with the golden African sun behind them.
Boswell The Pioneer
Boswell the elephant is one of our favourite creatures here at Mana Pools Camp. He is the first elephant in the area to stand on his hind legs to pick fruit and leaves from the top of trees. Upon hearing this, a group of photographers were extremely keen on meeting him.
We went on an afternoon game drive and found Boswell close to camp. As we suspected, he put on a brilliant show for the photographers who got some great shots of him picking from the top of an acacia tree.
Early Dog Catches Its Prey
Our days start early in the cooler mornings when the animals are most active. Venturing on an early morning game drive, we took advantage of the increased wildlife activity.
We headed towards the Long Pool near camp, expecting to see animals drinking water. We found a pack of African wild dogs getting ready to go on their last hunt for the day. These animals are not especially rare to see at Mana pools. However, seeing them preparing for a hunt during the day at this time of year is.
Lions Need A Siesta Too
Lions are primarily nocturnal hunters, so it's no wonder that when we found a pride of them in the peak of the afternoon heat, they were taking a well-deserved rest from being the kings of the jungle. Our mission was to look for animals along the river road near the Zambezi River.
Little did we know that there was a pride of three females and a male resting in the shade of a sausage tree. They looked so peaceful that we exited the vehicle and approached them carefully on foot. Everyone was fascinated at how relaxed these famed hunters could be and took many photos of these cool cats.
Sounding The Alarm
Animals have had to adapt to an environment full of predators. Alarm calls signal danger across species for those who might not be aware of an oncoming threat due to proximity or visibility.
One evening, an impala’s alarm call sounded in camp, and we jumped up to check what could have been causing it. When we arrived at the scene, we saw a big male leopard coming towards camp for a drink of water at the pan. The impala dispersed to avoid becoming the leopard's dinner.
Until next time,
Shepherd, Alfred and Tinashe
Mana Pools Camp
