We enjoyed many fantastic sightings this past week - but in my opinion – the cats stole the limelight this week! I hope you enjoy this week’s recap of highlights...

A sighting that stood out for me, was the first sighting of Little Bush’s cub!

Kevan and his guests were treated to the first sighting of mom and cub as they were active, possibly moving to a new den site which will ultimately assist in ensuring the most safety for the youngster. We are guessing that the little one is around 9 weeks old now and is the only surviving cub of three. Quite a few weeks back one of our rangers caught a glimpse of the cubs but because they were still so tiny, the area was called a negative loc and the area was avoided to ensure no pressure was put on mom and cubs.

The Kigelia female has shown her beautiful face on a number of occasions this week. She was seen enjoying an afternoon nap after successfully capturing a Common Duiker and hoisting the carcass up a large Marula tree not too far away.

The young Msuthlu female was also successful in taking down a Common Duiker before hoisting it up into a large Jackalberry Tree.

The following day we managed to relocate her and found that she had also taken down a kudu calf, not too far from her duiker kill.

This proved to be a matter of “calm before the storm” for the young leopardess...

Later that evening, Maxabeni joined the fray, taking an opportunity to feast on her duiker kill. Once Maxabeni saw Msuthlu on her duiker kill, he chased her away and also claimed that one as his own. The female took the opportunity to return to her kudu kill, only to be chased off by the male leopard once again. To add to her woes, she was then treed by 5 Spotted Hyenas! A tough day for this leopard but an incredible sighting for our guests!

Nursing a very full belly, Maxabeni finished off a “successful” week by marking his territory!

Finishing off with the leopard sightings for the week, the Tatowa female was seen enjoying a nap when a hyena came running in, caught her off guard and chased her off into some thick bush!

There comes a time when you witness something very special! Terry, Conrad and their guests watched in awe as the Mhangeni Pride of lions challenged a herd of buffalo and after being chased off a few times, they pulled down a young calf and were forced to retreat back into the water. After defending their prize, they turned on each other ferociously feeding and eventually some members running away with the spoils of war.

The following day the pride of 9 was seen again – some nursing minor wounds from the buffalo and one another!

We have enjoyed some more rain this past week, with over 60mm falling across the reserve! This is just what the bush needed heading into the dry winter season...

Until next time...