Vumbura Plains Camp – January 2014
I need to begin by wishing this beautiful country Botswana a happy Independence Day, as on the 30th of September we celebrated the country’s 47th birthday!
Plains game is not all that we have had the honour of experiencing throughout the month. Lion sightings have been regular with guests having seen at least one pride almost every day. We currently have two prides in the area: the Kubu Pride, consisting of four sub-adult males, two sub-adult females and two adult females, who are proving very efficient hunters and have been often seen resting on full stomachs around a buffalo kill. Our other pride, the Eastern Pride which consist of four sub-adults, two adult males and two adult females. We also have a coalition of three large male lions who are cashing in on the lush green plains near the camp as there was a fire in the area a few weeks ago, which attracted an array of different species to graze on the new green shoots of grass.
Let us not forget about the leopards in the area. Needless to say they have also all been fully on display – these supposedly elusive cats, have not been so elusive this past month. One resident female known as Selonyana has been seen on many occasions with her young cub that is growing fast. The pair loves to play together and the cub is often seen practising its hunting skills, stalking and pouncing on its mother.
Birding in the area as always has been fantastic and the return of the southern-carmine bee-eaters to the area is always a highlight. The isolated pools of water have also created incredible birding arenas as waterbirds flock to these pools to feed on the isolated fish.
