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| Sara Waldheim - 5 June 2008 |
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| Written by MICHELLE CINAPRI |
| Tuesday, 17 June 2008 11:11 |
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The early check is the most unique, in my opionion, because we also
track where the lions have been the night before. Even if we have a
visual sighting of them, we want to see where they have been in the
reserve. Let me take you now on today's early check. It is just 6AM and the sky is brightening with the soon to be risen sun. It is cold. We can see our breath on the crisp morning air. It is the beginning of winter now here in the southern hemisphere. Usually two of us go out to do the check, but this morning there are three, Nellius, Sidwell and myself. We are in the open safari vehicle fondly called the Green MAmba. I can understand the green part because it is green, but the mamba part confuses me. It doesn't in anyway resemble a deadly snake! Off we go as the sky gets brighter and the bush begins to awaken. Nellius and Sidwell are in the front and I am perched on the second seat which is higher than the front to allow for clear view. Nellius has been on this "farm" for over 50 years. He is in his seventies now, but is as spry as a 30 year old with eyes like a hawk. He is the expert tracker and he is along to educate Sidwell who is the apprentice. I will learn as well. As we travel up the dusty road towards the first gate we encounter a family of giraffe. They are standing by the road, but as they see us they turn and run off into the bush. As they run their long legs make them rise up and down much like an animal on a merry-go-round. Dashing across the road are the ever present herd of Impala. It is a miracle that they don't get hit. They just bound out in front of the vehicle with the faith that we will be able to avoid them. We get to the interior gate, open it, check the interior fence drive few feet to the exterior gate, open it check the exterior fence, shut everything up and drive up and across the road to the next destination and set of fences. Our next destination is lion country. The outer fence is checked, the gate opened and then shut and locked. We ease the vehicle up to the interior gate which is draped with shade-cloth. The lions often lay by this fence in the morning, as part of their territorial patrol, so caution is taken before opening this gate. In fact, they were within 5 feet of this gate just the day before. Today is clear, so the gate is opened, closed and locked. Then the fence checked and the fun begins. We begin to look for the spoor (tracks) of the lion. If the spoor is sighted we will know which way to drive. If not, it is a guess and the drive usually starts on the road most commonly traveled by the lions. No spoor today, but Nellius has a feeling about which way to go so we head off in the direction he recommends. By now the sun is rising and casting warmth and brightness on the land. Sidwell and Nellius both keep an eye on the road beside the truck hoping to see a lion spoor. As they watch for the spoor, I am watching for the lion or any other game I can spy. The first spotting is Warthogs bursting out of their burrow like a cork from a wine bottle. They just pop out one right after the other like the devil himself is after them. There are all ages and sizes about 7 or 8 in all. They are so ugly they are cute. They are short and solid with curved tusks and have a little skinny tail with a tuft on the end. When they run on their short little legs their tail sticks straight up in the air with the little tuft waving in the breeze. I never tire of watching them run. We traverse many roads for about half an hour before we spot one spoor of one foot. It is found in an open spot where three roads come together. Sidwell turns off the engine and he and Nellius go on foot to see if they can find anymore spoor. The lions must travel the soft dirt roads in order for us to see their spoor. However, they like to travel through the bush and over the hard ground which makes tracking much more difficult. But we have Nellius with us and he can tell just by that one spoor of one foot and some other mysterious (to me anyway) signs which way we should go. While they are looking on the ground I am listening to the sounds of the bush. The calls of all the many species of birds form an early morning symphony of nature that only she can create. Trills, chirps, whistles, coos, caws, high notes, low notes somehow it all works together to impart a sense of peace and joy. All of a sudden I hear what sounds like a bird with a really big voice, but not really a bird at all. "What kind of a bird is that? Nellius laughs. "It's a Jackal"! So much for my listening skills. Jackal can mean lion and a kill, but not today because the lion have killed and eaten a Wildebeest just a few days ago. The jackal and the hyena both follow lions when they kill so they can clean up what the lions do not finish. Nature is wonderful in her wisdom of how the ecosytem works. It's all a pecking order. After the jackal the hyena is next and when they are done the vultures get their turn. Then the ants and other insects and so it goes until the bones are totaly stripped of all matter and lay bleaching in the sun. Without all of the above mentioned players doing their part there would be a rotting stinking mess instead of harmless bleaching bones. This is why even something as small as one type of bug going extinct can cause a dangerous eco-system domino effect. As we travel on we encounter a herd of wildebeest, the lions favorite food. They are in the process of slowly crossing the road when we come upon them. They stop, get confused; half go one way and the other half the other. Immediately the stampede begins until the herd is all across the road and together again. We sit and watch. No way do we want to get in the way of stampeding wildebeest. Still no more lion spoor. They are being very illusive today. We check all of the watering holes and favorite known spots. But we do come across a very tall succulent plant with stalks on the top that are covered with little bright yellow bell shaped flowers |
| Last Updated ( Thursday, 19 June 2008 08:42 ) |
