Rainfall and Temperatures

Temperatures

The average maximum temperature for this month was 25°C / 77°F and the average minimum temperature 5°C / 41°F.  The average maximum temperature for July 2009 is slightly lower than July 2008, but falls within the range of temperatures that have been experienced during the previous years which gives the indication that temperatures are not increasing.  The highest temperature recorded for June was 30°C / 86°F and the lowest was 0°C / 32°F.

Rainfall

As expected during the winter period, we did not receive much rainfall during the month with a total of 6 mm being recorded.  As a result the total rainfall received during this rainfall season adds up to 776.5 mm and the total for 2009 to 396 mm:

04/07/2009 5 mm
05/07/2009 1 mm

Field

Maintenance

Most of the maintenance work was undertaken at Warthog Wallow Bridge during July.  Here the Habitat Squad and I constructed a gabion as well as filled several gaps with rocks.  This would prevent undercutting from taking place during the rainy season and ensuring that the bridge would remain safe to use for several more years to come.

In addition, erosion work took place at 1933 Lodge towards the end of the month where the Habitat Squad and I constructed a new gabion.  This gabion was constructed in the drainage line along the walkway from the Lodge to the Water suite to help stabilize the ground and prevent the soil from being washed away during the rainy season.

Roads

Only a small amount of road maintenance was done during the month as both tractors were down for most of the month with small mechanical problems.  As we are now in our winter season, the lack of rainfall provides an excellent opportunity to undertake routine maintenance on several roads in the Reserve before the rains return. Routine maintenance was completed on Konkoni and Treehouse in the West.  Routine maintenance involves the opening of mitre drains and the repairing of their associated humps as well as the filling of potholes and the removal of obstructions such as rocks.  This is very important as is facilitates the removal of water from the roads surface.

Roads which will undergo maintenance during August include Lisbon Cutline, Puza Manzi, Inkwazi and Misi Loop.

Vegetation and Water

Many trees are still leafless and the grass still remains dry and nutrient poor and as a result many animal species are looking thin, especially the Impala.  This is however a natural process during the winter months and these should fatten up when spring arrives.  Several tree species such as the Long-tail Cassia are beginning to flower … perhaps the onset of spring.

The water levels in the main waterholes in the Reserve are high with all the pans full of water thus being able to support the wide variety of animals.  There are still odd pools of water in the main drainage lines but these are shrinking fairly fast.  Elephant have been digging for water in a few places but this is frequently associated more with sourcing minerals than simply locating water.

Animals

Birds

Bird sightings during the month have been absolutely amazing!  These sightings include common species such as Short-tailed Snake Eagles, Martial Eagles and Hammerkop as well as rarer sightings such as Ground Hornbills and Lappet-faced Vultures.

Reptiles

Reptile activity is suddenly on the increase in Lion Sands with more and more species becoming active after their winter hibernation.   As conditions warm up, more species should become active and hopefully our reptile sightings should increase.   Most reptiles can be located on rocks and in the sunny areas where they rely on the sun to increase their body temperatures allowing them to begin their day’s activities.  Reptile sightings during the month include:

Water Monitor (Varanus Niloticus)
Nile Crocodile (Crocodylus Niloticus)
Tree Agama (Acanthocerus Atricollis)
Mozambique Spitting Cobra (Naja Mossambica)
Serrated-hinged Terrapin (Pelusios Sinuatus)

Special Sighting

Southern Pride feasts on Giraffe

One early Tuesday morning the Southern Lion Pride took down an adult Giraffe cow, a few kilometres outside River Lodge.   The Southern Pride consists of sixteen members, two males, five females and nine cubs of varying ages.   Only the females and cubs were present at the kill, as the males were patrolling their territory, defending it from any rival males.   The Pride did not hesitate to feed and made short work of the Giraffe reducing it to skin and bones after just three days.   This was surprising as they spent much of their time sleeping, belly up, in the shade of the surrounding trees.

On the fourth day, we arrived at the kill only to find that our Lions had been chased of the carcass by a small clan of Hyena.  Hyenas are apex predators and bring down more prey than Lion but when their numbers are high and there is an opportunity, they will not hesitate to scavenge a kill. They must have located the kill during the night and successfully chased the Lions from the kill, allowing them to feed in peace on the little scraps that were left.

This kill gave us excellent Lion and Hyena sightings for four days, but there was one more surprise. Several Vultures and Short-tailed snake eagles had congregated in the surrounding trees, hoping to claim a small morsel. Amongst them was a White-headed Vulture, which is one of the rarer sightings in and around Lion Sands.

Mammals

Lion

Certain members of the Hilda’s Rock pride have been seen on several occasions throughout the month, – mostly in and around the vicinity of the Sabie River.  It appears as if only one of the three cubs reported on earlier is still alive.  What happened to the other two is still a mystery as they have spent a great deal of time in the neighbouring Kruger National Park.   The female and her cub have recently joined up with another lioness from the Hilda’s Rock Pride, who too has one cub and they can often be seen on the southern bank of the Sabie River but they have ventured as far as Kingsway in search of prey items as well as shelter from danger.

The Southern pride was seen occasionally during the month, with the pride fragmented over a large area instead of in one large group.  The pride now numbers 15 as in addition to the loss of one of the sub-adult males last month, one of the pride males hasn’t been seen for months now and it is presumed that he has either been killed by another male coalition or died from disease.  Predation was average and a number of impala and warthog kills being recorded during June.

Leopard

Leopards have once again been an illusive quarry during the past month, with only a few sightings of these magnificent cats. One the few occasions that we did locate leopard the sightings were incredible. On several occasions we located our dominant male, the Sandriver male and had a few glimpses of our previous dominant male, Tumbela. Warthog Wallow female was also located on several occasions and she treated us to several sightings of her on kills.

Predation by Leopards has been average during this month, with seven leopard kills being located. Prey items include one nyala, two bushbuck and four impala.

Other Interesting Sightings

Narina Trogon’s have been seen along the Sabie River and nearby dry riverbeds throughout the month.  Porcupine, Civet and White-tailed mongoose have been observed regularly after sunset.  Cape Clawless otters have also been seen along the river.

Black rhino were again observed on several occasions during the month and several leopard cubs have been seen on kills with there mothers which was very special to see.  We also have Ground Hornbills becoming a regular sighting on game drive.

Big Five Sightings

Table 2.0 Table indicating the percentage of Big 5 sightings in the month of July on game drives on Lion Sands Private Game Reserve.

 

	Lion	Leopard	Buffalo	Elephant	Rhino
Percentage	74 %	71 %	100 %	100 %	100 %

Edwin Pierce
Ecologist – Lion Sands Private Game Reserve

Photographs by:

Brandon Birch
(Lions on Giraffe kill)
FIELD Ranger – Lion Sands Private Game Reserve

D.J. Malan
(All other photographs)
FIELD Ranger – Lion Sands Private Game Reserve