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“No Anne , not often due to the thick bushveld / woodland terrain and the presence of our bigger predators namely the lion and vast leopard population. Cheetahs are usually solitary and are built for the chase and thus very slight and light physically. These cats need vast open areas for their secret weapon of speed during an attack on prey animals,. The last sighting we had was a coalition of 3 male brothers about three months ago, I explain.  I see the disappointment etched on her face as she softly confides- “hmm ,a pity they are my favourite cats”.

Isaac my tracker points and turns in a quick fluid motion, his posture shows he’s spotted an animal, I scan and drive south  in the direction he’s looking in.

“Lion ” shouts a guest excitedly from behind me. “Where” shouts her partner.

Isaac looks at me with a broad smile as we both simultaneously realize what we are seeing. I let out a soft whistle under my breath and quickly question my expert tracker in Shangaan, Isaac’s native tongue , using the local word to confirm what we’ve both seen – so as not to set up our guests for an incorrect ID on an animal.

“Hey Boet (brother) Xikankanka?” I ask as quickly as I’m already processing a hundred thoughts – of where to position our vehicle, whats the light doing for photographs, whats the mood and general behavior of the animals, stress levels and are they relaxed, how will our presence affect the sighting – while I ease our 4×4 onto the open plain.

“Yebo, famba boet” (yes and go or drive fast) replies Isaac . His excitement tangible from his tracker seat position, his expression one I will hold in my memory.

Our guests struggle to  grasp the visual canvas unfolding in front of their eye’s, and I know so did Isaac and I. In the vast and pristine wilderness of the the Timbavati Reserve,  we are often suprised by how nature showcases her magnificent creatures both great and small. However the show that day could not have been scripted better even if you had to pay for it.

The coalition of 3 male cheetahs’  were here once again,  in their territory the vast expanse of Cheetah plains. Two of the brothers were chasing a small antelope of to our right at full tilt – a blur of dust and feet. I slowly position our  vehicle at right angles to the sun. As I switch off the engine we watch in silence as the third member of the cheetah coalition, turns to gaze at us from 30m away. Isaac and I are ecstatic. I look at Anne, who has a glow about her as she watches from the viewfinder of her camera, thrilled!

As I explain and interpret the scene unfolding in front of us, I have to radio in the sighting to the various vehicles on drive. The responses are all absolute elation as we as rangers and tracker teams are thrilled that the cheetahs have returned for how long we don’t know. The protocol of two vehicles in a sighting is put into place as the closest vehicles respond and those further afield ask for location details as to plot where to take their “standby” positions.

We experience an incredibly rare sighting with the coalition extremely relaxed with our presence even after a failed hunting attempt. Our guests euphoric and still chatting excitedly amongst one another as we slowly leave the sighting making way for another vehicle to enter the sighting. Scotch and Civilized two fellow rangers and close friends from Tanda Tula private camp wave to us from a distance, giving us the thumbs up signal of well done guys. Collectively a sighting like today will be spoken about tonight around the many dinner tables of the vast Timbavati Game Reserve, with much delight, animation and awe.

I ask the guests how powerfully precious that sighting was,  as we slowly drive to our home at Rockfig private camp with the spotlight sweeping the rutted jeep-tracks ahead,  Isaac illuminating all the bushveld silhouettes.

I fall asleep to the sounds of a distant hyena calling only to be awakened by the shrill of my alarm clock. Its 04H45 and time to prep the coffee and tea before our early morning drive.

“Avuxeni boet” Isaac greets from the warmth of the kitchen, the embers still a glow in the fire-pit outside. I smile and greet Isaac as we drink a cup of coffee before waking our sleepy charges.

The mood of yesterday’s excitement still evident as they sit around the dining table watching as the morning unfolds in crisp hues of pinks and pastel orange. The African sunrise – a moment suspended in time, surrounded with the strong aroma of freshly brewed coffee, the banter of friends and the dawn-chorus as the incredible bird-life begins to salute the day.

“Martin, what do you have in store for us today?” asks JP as we climb into the landy. Before I can answer Isaac announces that today we will look for leopard, until we find them and then with a straight face says “or we can find tigers?”.
Laughing at his own joke so loudly through his glistening white smile – that we all join in, knowing today is going to be another adventure out here in the wonderful African bush.

There are days and game drives that will stand out as beacons in my mind as ‘unbelievable” and are never repeated. This was the case with the Big Cats and coalitions experience, suffice to say we were privileged to have sightings of lion, leopard caracal and cheetah’s. and perhaps the biggest was the rare sighting of the famed white lions of the Timbavati. To date still no tigers here in the timbavati -  but hey Isaac has a wicked sense of humour – inkomo Isaac.

The following is a small gallery of Big Cats and Coalitions as I have photographed these felines on drives while doing freelance ranger work for Tanda Tula and Rockfig private safari camps located in the Timbavati Private Game Reserve -
for your viewing pleasure.

See you on safari -  Martin

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All five of the world’s diverse species of rhinoceros have been brought to the edge of extinction because of human appetite for their distinctive horns. The horns have been prized for tens of centuries for their beautiful translucent color when carved, and their supposed healing properties.

Overall there isn’t much evidence to support the plethora of claims about the healing properties of the horns. In 1990, researchers at Chinese University in Hong Kong found that large doses of rhino horn extract could slightly lower fever in rats (as could extracts from Saiga antelope and water buffalo horn), but the concentration of horn given by a traditional Chinese medicine specialist are many many times lower than used in those experiments. In short, says Amin, you’d do just as well chewing on your fingernails.

Read more below an Article by Chris Du Plessis via Times Live
As the world celebrates International Rhino Day today, all eyes will probably be focused on South Africa – the frontline in the battle with brutal and sophisticated poaching syndicates. Sources close to investigations into rhino poaching say that several syndicates operate in South Africa, the most ruthless of these striking anywhere, and trading rhino horn and abalone for drugs.

But recent media reports have shown that South African game farmers, professional hunters, veterinarians and government officials are also involved in the lucrative market.
South Africa has the largest population of white rhino in the world, and SA National Parks is the custodian of most of them, estimated at between 9460 and 12243.
SANParks is also one of the main suppliers of white rhinos to private game farm owners. It sold 568 white rhino for about R119-million between January 2007 and October 2010. In July, The Times reported that, though SANParks claims to do background checks on buyers, at least 50 rhino were “delivered” to individuals other than the original buyer. Once the rhino are in the hands of private owners, it becomes possible for them to be legally hunted in terms of the Convention on the International Trade in Endangered Species.
Though there is a total ban on trading in rhino horn, or any other part of the animal, there is a loophole that permits it. Trading is supposed to be strictly regulated by local authorities. Recent media reports have shown that the issuing of hunting permits and the subsequent hunts – meant to be monitored by provincial departments of the environment – have been grossly abused and that the bureaucracy is riddled with corruption.

The rhino-horn “trophy” is mounted – usually on a wooden plaque – and shipped to southeast Asia.
According to investigators, these trophies are often intercepted by corrupt airline officials and do not end up at the destination in terms of which the permit was issued. Once the trophy reaches its destination, the horn is removed and ground into powder. According to the Endangered Wildlife Trust – a wildlife conservation organisation – the belief that rhino horn is used as a sexual stimulant, or as a cure for many ailments, is wrong.

The organisation said scientific studies have shown that rhino horn, which is similar in its composition to a horse’s hoof, has no known medicinal attributes.

Rhino horn is believed to retail on the black market for around R27000 per 100g . Experts believe that the spike in trade that South Africa is experiencing is due to the integration of formerly marginal economies, such as those of Vietnam and Thailand, into the global economy.

It has also been attributed to a rising middle class in China, which can afford the status symbol of owning rhino horn.

The white lion cub seems to be part of a litter of only two cubs, and its sibling is a normal tawny coloured cub. The cub is most likely between 2 and 3 months old at present, and therefore remains very vulnerable.

At this age, cubs can easily be lost to predation by hyenas, or even accidentally killed by members of their own pride. It is the role of their mother to protect them from these dangers, and this mother certainly seems to be keeping a close eye on her two little cubs.

The cub has been born into the Ross Pride that operates inside the Klaserie and Timbavati Private Nature Reserves, on the western portion of the reserves. We will be watching very closely and will continue to give feedback on this incredible new addition to the lion population of the Timbavati.

This cub, with parents who are both tawny, has occurred completely naturally with no human interference. This now brings the number of completely naturally occurring white lions in the Timbavati to four.

To continue reading the full post on the Tanda Tula Blog click here:

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The often quoted saying ‘ Birds of a feather, stick together ‘ couldn’t be more true, when out on safari in the breathtaking wilderness of the Okavango Delta. This time of year is particularly incredible as the mysterious Savuti channel flows strongly after an absence of 28 years!

I think it’s often a case for first timers out in the bush to neglect the beauty of the avian world, with their complex mating, nest building and migratory patterns – but here in lies the mystique.

Take for instance the inter-species relationship between the Buffalo and the redbilled Oxpecker.

The oxpecker’s behavior fascinated early European scientists, who were mostly trained to think of the natural world as a constant competition between species, Here were two animals apparently cooperating in a very intimate way.
Indeed, the partnership has major benefits for both animals. The birds get a ready supply of food, feeding on the ticks, flies and maggots from the buffalo’s hide.

The buffalo, in return, get some relief from pests and a free “early warning” system, since the birds hiss when lions and other predators approach, alerting their hosts to possible danger.

Biologists call such close-knit cooperation “symbiosis.” In symbiotic relationships, two organisms of different species work together. While the buffalo-oxpecker relationship is one of the most famous symbiotic relationships.

If you’re remotely interested in wildlife, conservation and all things natural then you’ll know the reward of sighting silently for a brief glimpse of one of the many species of prolific bird life Southern Africa has to offer whilst on safari.
My suggestions here for birders (twitchers) would be Botswana, Madagascar, the Kgalagadi Transfronteir park, Namibia and the Timbavati region. Let us guide you, for birding safari of a lifetime!

Until my next post, I leave you with a wonderful ‘bumper sticker’ I saw on safari recently:
‘Twitchers on-board – prone to stopping suddenly – follow with caution’.

Martin

These images represent only a small selection of some of my favourite times and memories spent with these special ‘little’ people.

Let us celebrate their lives today, with these wise words from East African Schoolmaster To Alassane Ndaw:

“With their parents & grandparents children learn morals and traditions. In return they cover their elders with respect and care. It is with children their own age that they learn the concepts of equality and helping each other. Listening respectfully lets them find their own place, so learning their rights and obligations towards the rest of the world.”

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When the sun arose today, did you dream of Africa?  For millions of us today is a day of ‘togetherness’ if only in mind, or via social media platforms, we are celebrating the togetherness of being an African, for today is Africa Day.
I know it might not seem that advertised as you sit and read this  - wherever you are. It’s something tangible, even google.co.za has changed its banner today in celebration!

As I’ve journeyed across this vast continent I have experienced many wondrous moments while guiding clients on safari’s, yet there have been times of extreme sadness as poverty seems to tighten her grip across many of the vast territories and tracts of African landscape. The frustration of corruption, scams and the apathy to fight the HIV/Aids scourge often brings much criticism from those who sit in the ‘ivory towers’.

The major difference I think between the people of Africa compared to the rest is our spirit. I’ve seldom seen people smiling, laughing, sharing a meal and telling a story without the warmth and generosity, like I have in Africa.

Don’t forget we still have many mountains to climb, many challenges that need resolutions and many injustices that need a solution. It is on a day like Africa day that we can reflect see where we have come from and firmly set our sights on where we are going in the future. As the African saying so wisely highlights

It is often said, “We are;” do not say, “I am”

I am excited at seeing the changes happening on our continent, the steady rising of our tourism industry, the revolutionary conservation efforts being inspired by ordinary African people – achieving extraordinary results! The wealth of knowledge that is kick starting enterprises from entrepreneurs to business corporations, the support from rock stars, scientists and world leaders.

If you haven’t visited Africa yet, it is difficult to grasp this feeling of hope and strength of our community. However if you have explored this vast and precious Motherland, you will understand exactly the ‘pulse’ I am describing. The images are a showcase of my most inspiring visual memories spent on safari in Africa.

As you continue with your day, I want to wish you a happy Africa day! and leave you with these words of noble laureate Ernest Hemingway -

‘”All I wanted to do now was get back to Africa.  We had not left it yet, but when I would wake in the night, I would lie, listening, homesick for it already.”

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With the recent ivory haul in Kenya and the ongoing rhino poaching in South Africa, it’s footage like this from a recent safari, that makes me believe we can make a difference and usher in a ‘collective consciousness’ or even a critical mass in conservation efforts.

So much is already being achieved that today I want to salute two organizations that work daily to bring about change and awareness to this global plight that if not stemmed will have dire consequences for Africa and her peoples.

To Save the Elephants and Rights for Rhinos we salute you and your important ongoing work.

For more info and to support these great initiatives please visit their websites www.savetheelephants.org and www.rightsforrhinos.co.za

Image Location: To sensitive to mention

It’s hailed by photographers worldwide as the ‘Golden Hour’ that beautiful golden-light of the sunrise and sunset hours. It’s the best time to capture the mesmerizing landscapes and as the animals and moreover the birds break into song or the ‘dawn-chorus’ as we call it.

However for me it’s more than just capturing that perfect moment or silhouette, it’s the tangible feeling that a new day dawns, bringing with it an expectation of epic adventures and tales that will be re-told around the glow of the campfire embers tonight.
It is a time to learn from the rhythm which nature brings and the inexplicable wisdom that she exudes each new day.

As the wise Sobonfu Some reminds us -
” Nature helps us to be our true self, to go through major changes and life-threatening situations.”

It’s a question I’m often asked on safari by clients -
‘Don’t you become jaded or grow tired of visiting the same places time after time’

I have pondered this on many occasions,  the simple answer and professional response would be to say ‘heck no’ who wouldn’t want to be on safari in Africa?. However the long hours and constantly having to interact, answer questions and check accommodation and meal plans is gruelling to say the least. This is where I have the visual escape route by using the opportunity to photograph these wonderful interactions while spending time in mother-nature’s realm.
Being behind the lens allows you to slow down ‘the moment’ and capture or record the event unfolding before you. I find that many of us are distracted so easily by what should happen next that we often miss the simple pleasure of ‘enjoying the now’…

On a recent safari through South Africa, i set myself a task of looking off camera and enjoying the present, erasing the past and not trying to look ahead into the future. I confess it took a little practice to concentrate solely on the present moment.

The result has been an amazing re-discovery of the beauty and ‘timeless’ wilderness in which we journey too. These images are but a sample of  the reflections and reactions I witnessed by looking first and then ‘pressing the button’.

It’s often quoted ‘Location, Location, Location! ‘ I have to disagree, while the location is important maybe it’s time we

Look, Feel and Appreciate.

Martin

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The Timbavati is a worthy destination on any safari ‘bucketlist’ and each time I return with clients, there is always a tangible expectancy that today we might witness a sighting or be part of a truly remarkable wildlife encounter while out on foot or game drive.

The lush thick bushveld bears a silent witness to the abundant seasonal rains. This vast area adjacent to the Kruger, showcases an immense canvas from which we can photograph Africa’s splendour.

The light and mood of the late afternoon has us all enthralled, as we chat excitedly about settings, lenses and apertures.

An old African proverb slowly becomes a reality as I watch the elusive leopard patiently teaching her cub, the white lions resting under the acacia’s and the monitor lizard surveying the area west of sunset plain….
As we slowly leave the stresses and strains behind of our global villages, the natural rhythms and lessons from each day’s sighting and experience begins to teach us again to rely on all our senses.

‘The journey is the reward’.

Location | Tanda Tula Private Camp

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