WEEK IN PICTURES #39
It was another spectacular week to be out on the Balule Game Reserve with every day being one to remember.
The Kudyela pride has been hiding 8 of their cubs at the exact same place for nearly a week now. The females have been moving around quite a lot trying to find a big enough meal for them and the cubs. The Machaton males have been all around as they are aggressively marking their territory at this moment. One of the males were hanging around the cubs, surely hoping for a meal.
The breeding herds of elephant all have very young calves, some of them only a few weeks old. During the dry season the permanent water holes are very busy and attract them from a far. There are some bulls that are in musth and are responsible for a lot of stress among some herds.
A herd of buffalo have been moving in a east-west pattern this week and so far has managed to stay undetected by any lions. They frequently stop by the water hole at the Tree Hide.
A total of 6 individual leopards were seen during the week but could only get a few pictures of our regulars. Faka Nchovela stayed on a herd of impala for a few hours but later abandoned the hunt. Chavaluthu was found sleeping one morning but after a few minutes continued marking his territory. Thuli moved south towards a water hole were she was left.
A crash of young white rhino bulls were enjoying an afternoon in the mud.
It was a busy week at the hyena den with the 2 youngest cubs, we had a surprise one night when we found there are now 2 even younger cubs. The adults have been all over with their tracks covering almost all the roads in the mornings.
