WEEK IN PICTURES #28
“Some memories are unforgettable, remaining ever vivid and heartwarming!” – Joseph B. Wirthlin
A quote that describes the feelings best that our guests will experience once they depart from an unforgettable stay at Pondoro, leaving with only memories and memory cards filled with pictures. The week in pictures highlights these memories.
The Machaton males are currently split up, again, with each male accompanied by one of the Kudyela pride females. All three males are busy mating with some of the younger females. During the week some of the older females were seen separate from the rest indicating that they might have cubs hidden somewhere, but we have yet to confirm.
The two leopard cubs are fast approaching d-day, where they will be forced to leave their mother’s side. They are already starting to show independence and not frequently seen together anymore. The ability to hunt for themselves has been proven time and time again with both females enjoying successful kills.
The biggest highlight of the week must be the morning we saw the Ground Pangolin. There are around 30 mammal species that occur in this area and this particular mammal is one that is not often seen. It was found enjoying an early morning meal by sitting in the middle of an ant nest.
We had a few scorching days with very high temperatures during the week, which means the animal life then find the coolest spot they can. For the larger herbivores that means gathering under the biggest marula tree they can find, for other smaller animals it’s crawling under a rock or scraping away the hot sand in a dry riverbed to get to the cooler sand below. The hyena on other hand often spends the day at a waterhole, if one is near, lying inside the water keeping itself cool. The Tree Hide was not only built to spend the night but also used for the very popular option of a picnic, if available the picnic can be arranged in place of lunch at the lodge. Here a hyena can be seen in front of the hide just leaving the water.