| BEHO BEHO BUSHMAIL OCTOBER 2011 October – known throughout Southern and Eastern Africa as ‘suicide month’ is an intense month. It is a time when heat and her friend humidity sneak in and get comfortable – making themselves at home on your skin and hanging between the furniture like unwanted ghosts. Saying this, it is a fantastic month for game viewing – when animals are usually forced to drying water sources and desperate for the coming rain. Things have been slightly different this year with the early September rains we have experienced – which has bright green shoots of grass popping up everywhere and has filled up some small pools around the camp. Game viewing has not always been easy this month, with new grass coming up in the North of the reserve first attracting a lot of plains game to this inaccessible area. Yet, we have still managed to see our share of interesting and spectacular things! And of course the Beho Beho breeze continues to blow no matter the temperature – a wonderful relief during these months before the big rains.
October can be summarised as a month of change – with new grass coming up and then the bushes coming into bright green leaf followed by impala’s lambing – producing hundreds of young beautiful babies. It is during this stage that the burping calls of the ewe’s can be heard. The only time, besides giving alarm calls that the ewes are vocal, this call being used to communicate and remain in contact with the lambs. Some guests were even treated to finding an impala female who had just given birth. They watched in awe as it struggled out of the placenta and found its way on spindly legs to its mother. Ian has also had his share of finding rare antelope in the Beho Beho forest. This area with its dense forest cover is the perfect place for walking and searching for Suni. Being one of the smallest antelopes, they are difficult to find and spotting them involves a lot of crouching down and peering through thick foliage. But it’s a real treat to find one! They are monogamous and highly territorial little creatures who browse on forest leaves and fruit.
Heribert was chuffed to see some very spectacular sightings and a few rare ones as well! A morning game drive started with a rare sighting of a red duiker – which turned out to be a very short glimpse! Thereafter one of his guests saw some strange spots and they stopped the vehicle to reverse and get a better look. Just then a spotted cat-looking creature raised its head for a second from the long grass and then darted away. Mary-Beth (one of our guests) who was with Heribert managed to get some fantastic shots with her camera. Photographic evidence that they had in fact seen a Serval! Here in the Selous! A serval is the tallest of Africa’s small cats with very long legs, a spotted coat and large prominent ears. It is usually found in long grass where it hunts rodents and birds using it’s excellent sense of hearing. Once it has located its prey it leaps high in the air, out of the grass and pounces on its prey. Heribert and his guests were mighty pleased to have seen such an exceptional sighting here in the Selous. Heribert also spotted a beautiful puff adder on his way back to camp late one evening – adding a second very interesting sighting to his collection for October.
Around the same time Onesmo was up to his normal tricks and was the one who spotted a very relaxed leopard hanging out in a tree one afternoon. He had time to call the other guides and everyone got a good look at this gorgeous spotted cat with limbs hanging casually over either side of the branch. Some decided to wait and once it was almost dark the leopard came down from the tree and disappeared into the thickets. It was Onesmo too – who was even able to have a once-in-a-lifetime experience with one of our guests Angela. It was only Onesmo and Angela out on this particular drive when they turned a corner and there suddenly were two Rhinos coming towards them. Onesmo immediately switched off the engine and with the wind favouring them and blowing in the right direction – they were able to climb to the top of a nearby hill without the rhino’s smelling them. From there they watched them bathe and roll in some muddy pools – Fantastic!Walter bumped into an unlikely visitor on a walk one morning with some of our guests. It was a special lady – but not one anyone would like to meet unexpectedly! A female crocodile was waiting for him along the path down to the rivine overlooking the riverbed below. A 3.5metre croc lay to the side of the path ahead of them. She seemed to look almost dead apart from her deathly stare. After a little prodding with a very long stick she did open her jaws and let out a long hissing sound – showing she was very much alive! Walter skirted around his new acquaintance – leaving them to get to know each other better perhaps another time! Crocodiles will often travel long distances across land to find water and it is possible to meet them in the oddest of places! Even on a walk in the Beho Beho hills!
In terms of our resident Wild Dogs – October has been a very quiet month for us and we have struggled for most of October to find them. In the last week of October, the local pack with pups re-appeared and for a number of days provided excellent sightings. All the guides and guests were treated to an incredible spectacle when out driving one day. After spotting the dogs on a plain and watching them for some time, the vehicle continued on to find a lone baby impala lying hidden in some long grass. A zebra happened to pass nearby and the poor little impala decided to get up and get a better look at the zebra (some thought – the little impala thought the zebra was his mum returning). Unfortunately he gave away his hiding place and the dogs immediately spotted him and began careering towards the little fellow. He froze and stared at his quickly oncoming fate and then sprinted in the opposite direction. He gave up a good fight darting away on spindly little legs – but unfortunately was no match for a pack of hungry dogs. They killed the little impala in some thick brush and by the time everyone got there – the little impala had almost disappeared! It was sad then to see the mother impala returning to all the commotion – unfortunately to find her young missing.
‘Bon voyage Paka….’ We have all said a sad goodbye to a very special member of the Beho Beho family in October…a little courageous ginger tabby cat who arrived here to Beho Beho about five years ago. We are not sure how he arrived here but we think it must have been on an incoming supply truck from Dar es Salaam. As a fully grown kitten, he must have been very surprised to find himself suddenly in the middle of the Selous with lions and elephants as his new friends! He was named ‘Paka’ which is ‘Cat’ in Swahili and has spent the last 5 years or so living around the camp – sleeping in the day underneath and between storage containers and in the night prowling along the paths. One of our night gaurds once saw Paka be chased by lions and he has grown into a brave little fighting cat determined to survive against the toughest elements! He is still very much wild and does not allow anyone to touch him, but if you are lucky you could catch a glimpse of him on a pathway before sunrise. He has a muscular build and a stunning ginger and cream coat with huge green eyes.But correct wildlife management legislation stipulates that we may not keep any pets in the Selous Game Reserve (and rightly so!) and even though he came by accident it was decided that Paka must find a new home. And so ‘Operation relocation of paka’ commenced! A special cat capturing cage came from Dar es Salaam and it was baited with some yummy fried chicken. We managed to catch him on the first night that we put the cage out and then kept him covered until we could arrange a flight for him to Dar es Salaam. In the meantime, Kimberley contacted some friends Geoff and Vicky Fox who own and run Fox Farm in Mufindi. As a working farm (see image) surrounded by beautiful tea plantations this was thought to be the perfect place for Paka- somewhere he could roam free and get fat on tasty mice and rats! It turned out that Geoff Fox had a female farm cat and they were in fact looking for a male mate for her. Perfect match! After flying in the tiny plane to Dar es Salaam with his personal escort (Sean) he was taken to the local vet where he was checked out and inoculated. The vet was very impressed by his healthy size, strength and gleaming coat. In our opinion, clear indicators that a life in the bush is good for your body and soul! (If you can survive!) Furthermore the vet confirmed our hope and suspicions that Paka was indeed a male! Shortly thereafter Paka was flown on the next available flight to Mufindi where he has now settled into his new home very well. We wish Paka well…and hope he grows a thicker coat quick – as it is much colder up in the Mufindi area compared to the dry hot Selous! ‘Good Luck Paka!’
The end of the month saw a special fun celebration in camp with Halloween on the 31st October. The day was packed with yummy mouth-watering surprises -almost entirely the treat kind (rather than the trick kind)! Guests departing in the morning were sent away with a treat box filled with beautifully crafted orange spider web cupcakes. Those who stayed on had the usual delicious lunch but Karin and her team had added a scary face to the pie pastry top and we all could see it was going to be a fun-filled day! Tea time arrived and we were all in awe of the delicately crafted spider web cupcakes – some with marzipan pumpkins on their tops and the web-like dark and white chocolate cookies made by the cooks! As soon as it was dark, it was time for the creepy-crawlies to come out and we ate under the stars on the parade ground. The dinner table was filled with glow-in-the-dark snakes, mice and spiders and orange pumpkin buckets with candles lighted the pathway to dinner. One of our ‘more enthusiastic’ waiters appeared from the darkness dressed in a full skeleton costume – and danced a little jig as he mingled with the guests – providing much amusement and the odd fright as he took away your plate from behind you in the darkness! Dinner was a scrumptious meal especially pudding which was a creative coffin style chocolate mousse even with its own white chocolate RIP sign!
We will be closing for most of November and the beginning of December. This quiet time with no visitors enables us to do some important maintenance and also to complete some of our new projects. As a safari camp – we always strive to evolve and improve the product we provide to our guests. New exciting developments include an extension on the pool area making more space to relax and sunbathe; the demolition of an unused pilot’s room (banda 1) and a refurbishment of the interiors of the kitchen (which Karin is chuffed about!). All of this is keeping our camp manager Ian very busy as he regularly runs around all day with his tape measure in hand! We also have an exciting new look and feel for the camp with some bright new furniture and fittings – but we won’t spoil all the surprises – hopefully more on this next time!We hope this Bush Mail finds you well and you are looking forward to an enjoyable festive period ahead! Christmas plans are already under way here at Beho Beho and we are all brimming with excitement for the glorious food, fun and entertainment of Christmas that we have in-store for the lucky guests who will be here during this period! And if anyone is stuck with nothing exciting planned- then why not escape the cold and come spend Christmas with us in the Selous – we still have space and it’s going to be a bumper one! A very special and memorable Safari Christmas! Oh yes, and did we mention the weather looks to be blue skies and sunshine and HOT HOT HOT!
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November 16, 2011
Beho Beho
November 8, 2011
Singita Explore Mobile Tented Camp
Just back from Singita Explore Mobile Tented Camp, Mark Witney, Chief Operating Officer at Singita, shares his musings about a night under canvas and the vast African sky.
If you have never spent a night in the African bush with nothing between you and the vast African night sky but a canvas tent, you have to put it on your ‘bucket list’!
Anthropologists are pretty certain that man originated in Africa and I have to believe that this accounts for the spiritual experience often described by first-time visitors to this continent. Africa is etched deeply in the DNA of all of mankind. The best way to experience this is to immerse yourself in the sights, smells, sounds and feel of the night, and what better way to do this than to lie in a comfy bed in a beautiful tent with a gentle breeze blowing.
An evening at Singita Explore starts with a gathering around the fire. Cocktails and campfire talk as you watch the fire throw sparks up into the dark sky, and above you a view of the Milky Way as you have never seen it before. Because there is no surrounding light pollution, each star in this huge galaxy is clearly visible. Satellites drift across the evening sky, distant reminders of the technological world that seems so irrelevant when you contemplate the universe. Nearly 14 billion years old and expanding at hundreds of kilometres per second, around a billion galaxies in the universe and approximately a billion stars per galaxy – the numbers are beyond comprehension. Our sun is just one of those billion x billion stars and our earth is just a tiny speck revolving around that tiny sun. How irrelevant we are and how full we are of our own self-importance!
Nearby a fiery necked nightjar calls its plaintive prayer ‘good Lord – deliver us’. Far away a hyena whoops to announce that her night patrol has begun.
“Dinner’s ready” shakes you out of your reverie and to the table set just beyond the campfire. Hurricane lamps create a warm glow as you sit down to a simple but beautifully prepared meal. Potato and leek soup with bread freshly baked on the fire, grilled venison with locally grown, organic vegetables and a good old fashioned malva pudding with cream for dessert.
Coffee is served around the fire and as the embers fade so too does the conversation.
Back to your tent and, in the silence of the camp as you snuggle between the sheets, you become aware of the fact that many of the nocturnal creatures are just beginning their ‘day’. A spotted eagle owl hoots while the nightjars continue their repetitive call to the Lord. A lone hyena, closer now, whoops gently and sadly and in the distance you can just make out the roar of a territorial male lion announcing his dominance.
As you drift off to sleep you briefly contemplate how strangely familiar it all feels and yet how far away you are from the life you lead. You are hooked – and you’ll be back!
October 13, 2011
Beho Beho Bushmail
September draws to a close and we all are astonished at how fast the time flies! Especially out here in the bush, where the sun rises and sets rhythmically to a simple tempo. Mornings are cloudy with the noon sunshine burning them away, skies are blue and the breeze still blows here in the Beho Beho Hills. The heat radiates at mid-day and all creatures great and small go quiet as they rest. The sun turns dusty orange, then crimson red and the crickets start to chirrup – and not long before it is night. The nocturnal brave start to move and get ready for their night-time adventures. Days come and days go – and in the simple world of the bush life – they pass calmly and quickly and each day we say fond farewells and warm welcomes to very special people. The long pod cassia are flowering all around the camp. Bright buttercup-yellow flowers brighten moods and are a refreshing splash of colour in the muted tones of the dry grass and barren trees. The dry season edges forward slowly, but this month we have seen some strange weather patterns. A couple of light rain showers as well as one heavy 30 minute shower falling during tea time – has got everyone talking of early rains. We should usually expect the short rains in early November but we have seen storms brewing over the Uluguru Mountains and predict some early rainfall.
We have seen similar curious changes with the movements of our local wild dog packs. Our beloved ‘Blackie’ and his pack with the heavily pregnant female from June have not been seen for a while. Instead we have seen a different pack now in the Beho Beho area. We first spotted them in early September on a walk with Ian – when they jumped out from behind a doum palm where they had been snoozing in the late afternoon heat. The adults stood and barked and then three little pups went scrambling up the hill first towards the airstrip. The radio call came that dogs had been sighted plus new pups and everyone diverted their drives and plans to go and see them. Everyone, especially the guides were thrilled to see the new pups of the season with hairy, healthy coats, short legs and fat tummies! Thereafter they have been seen a number of times by the game drive vehicles and the entire pack are relaxed enough to snooze around the vehicles with the puppies. Now that the denning season is finished, the dogs will move great distances again with their 3 new additions in tow – searching for food. We do wonder however what has happened to ‘Blackie’ and where his new pups are and how many they may be. They must be somewhere and we hope they return to the area soon giving us not one but two wonderful packs of dogs both with pups.
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The ‘three musketeers’ (the three male lions frequenting the Beho Beho area) have been seen regularly and getting up to all sorts of mischief. Often we stand in the lounge area or for a better view from the pool and see them lounging around on the plains near the giant baobab. On walks we find fresh tracks around the camp and in the night we hear their presence. At the beginning of September they killed a large adult buffalo right on the plains in front of the main area. Each of the three brothers took turns to protect their prized kill from the encroaching vultures who waited patiently for a couple of days. By the end of the second day – the lions eventually gave their kill up with bulging bellies. Then for the next few days they hung around in the area digesting their enormous meal. Luckily for us, we had the perfect elevated view point from camp and during all the excitement were able to glance out on to the plains and see a theatrical vulture chase by one of the lions or them simply lounging with their legs in the air. Thereafter they disappeared for a few days, and we all wondered where our boys had gone? It was thought that these young boys needed some company – especially some lady company. That did make sense indeed! Not long afterwards we found our boys with at least two or three different females in various areas not far from the camp. It was not long before they were all mating – some of the boys with more than one female – naughty! But in all honesty, these are good signs – indications that we may have a Beho Beho pride soon – a coalition of the brothers, pregnant females and some cubs hopefully soon!
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Lots of our guests have been lucky enough to catch the three musketeers in action and see them mating and some guests even got a closer encounter than was expected. On an afternoon drive with Ian, he drove to a nice-looking spot for a sundowner. Guests jumped out and Ian began to unpack the coolerbox – taking out drinks and snacks, when one of the guests – Beth said calmly, ‘Lion….lion.’ And she was right, not far off in the brown grass two ears and wide head watched them curiously. Everyone got back into the vehicle quickly and calmly and Ian put the coolerbox back – and off they went in the vehicle to find one of the young males with one of the new females. After taking some pictures, it was agreed to drive a little further to find a new sundowner spot – one preferably without lions nearby! The three boys also joined us at Bush Dinner one night – they were spotted hanging out around the Beho Beho International Departure Hut (which they love to do) and walked right past dinner whilst everyone ate. One of them also strolled past the main dining area just before tea time one day, at around 3pm when one of our guests was lying on the couch reading his book. I’m sure he could not believe his eyes! The lion just continued on past all the rooms and gave everyone in the rooms a very special veranda safari!
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Lake Manze has also been a hive of activity at the beginning of September. Hungry (and very lazy lions) hang out at Lake Manze in big numbers waiting for their meals to come down to the water to drink. Guests were often treated to feeding lions or lions digesting food lying around sleeping and some were even treated to the odd chase – although not always successful! We have also seen some changes with our Manze pride – as last month saw a couple of them wounded from a few fierce fights – probably amongst themselves and new rivals. It has now been confirmed by Heribert that we have two new Manze boys who have taken over the territory and females of the Lake Manze area. There seem to be just two of the adult females left of the previous Manze pride (nicknamed ‘The Greedy Pride’) and these two have been seen happily mating with the two new brothers suggesting acceptance to the new rule. The guides have no idea what has happened to the rest of the previous pride. There were some sub-adult males and a female with cubs but they seem to have dispersed. A smart move when new males enter the area! Run and take cover! Male lions often will kill previous offspring that is not theirs, when they take over a new pride. This brings the females back into oestrous so they can mate. They will also chase away any sub-adult males which helps to reduce any possible competition in the near future for dominant rights! These two new boys have already been named by the Lion Research Project – ‘Uhuru’ and ‘Umoja’ which means ‘Freedom’ and ‘Unity’. We will be needing some new names for the three young Beho Beho Boys – any ideas are welcome?
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Lake Tagalala is still an interesting and entertaining activity which we encourage all our guests to do! The lake is a bit shallower now as the dry season continues – and from time to time the boat skims over the tops of surprised hippo’s and crocodiles. Did you know? That Lake Tagalala is said to have the highest density of crocs per cubic volume of water in all of Africa. It is no surprise then – that lake trips always involve a gigantic count of crocodiles and some great photo opportunities. With the shallower water the jumping fish are also keeping busy – jumping into the boat regularly. One even jumped and knocked one of our poor honeymoon couples sunglasses off her head! Luckily they didn’t fall into the lake – as no one would be jumping in to retrieve them!
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Onesmo has found himself a new lady…and her name is Lady Luck! He discovered not one but two leopard not far from the vicinity of the camp on his way back from sundowners one evening! It appeared to be a mother and sub-adult cub and they had killed an impala and dragged it down under a bush. They had just started eating it, and Onesmo and guests got a pretty good view of them before they slinked off into the thick bush a little disturbed. He returned the following morning – saw signs of them having been around but missed them by a few minutes. Later on that afternoon as the day was drawing to a close, he passed by again and this time spotted both of them next to the kill – still feeding! Guests were overjoyed and Onesmo was beaming with pride!
September has also seen some very special visitors to the camp. An elephant who was very relaxed and calm right by the main area during teatime. He came right up to the edge of the dining room and posed beautifully for everyone having tea and cake. This same visitor came another day and dipped his feet in the duck pond. We are also thrilled to have had some of the Bailey family visit us. Nicky (Charlie’s wife) visited us for a few days and Mrs B. (Charlie’s mother) has been here for a few weeks. Mrs B. has been visiting Beho Beho since it was purchased by her husband, Christopher in 1977. Since then Beho Beho has been a very special place to her and the family and a wonderful holiday home – a sanctuary to find peace in the tranquillity of the bush and enjoy the pleasure of the wildlife! For guests who are lucky to be here when Mrs B. is around, she will amuse you with fascinating stories of a colourful life lived – about pet Lemur’s named Tiki, elephants that walked through the main area and ate the Christmas cake, and tales of travel to almost every exotic place you can think of in the world!
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And even around the camp, there are not only the big (lions and hippo’s passing by in the night) but also the little. Wahlberg’s Epilletted Fruit Bat’s hang out in the cover of the pathway roofs during the day and giant exotic looking insects are always around. There is also a special pair of slender mongooses who have a burrow under in the bush around the base of the long pod cassia in front of the office. Two heads often pop out from beneath the earth early each morning with bright brown eyes – and then they disperse to feed and forage for the day. We hope this September Newsletter finds you well, healthy and happy. And we hope unlike us that your home dwellings do not have too many creatures big and small!
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September draws to a close and we all are astonished at how fast the time flies! Especially out here in the bush, where the sun rises and sets rhythmically to a simple tempo. Mornings are cloudy with the noon sunshine burning them away, skies are blue and the breeze still blows here in the Beho Beho Hills. The heat radiates at mid-day and all creatures great and small go quiet as they rest. The sun turns dusty orange, then crimson red and the crickets start to chirrup – and not long before it is night. The nocturnal brave start to move and get ready for their night-time adventures. Days come and days go – and in the simple world of the bush life – they pass calmly and quickly and each day we say fond farewells and warm welcomes to very special people. The long pod cassia are flowering all around the camp. Bright buttercup-yellow flowers brighten moods and are a refreshing splash of colour in the muted tones of the dry grass and barren trees. The dry season edges forward slowly, but this month we have seen some strange weather patterns. A couple of light rain showers as well as one heavy 30 minute shower falling during tea time – has got everyone talking of early rains. We should usually expect the short rains in early November but we have seen storms brewing over the Uluguru Mountains and predict some early rainfall.
We have seen similar curious changes with the movements of our local wild dog packs. Our beloved ‘Blackie’ and his pack with the heavily pregnant female from June have not been seen for a while. Instead we have seen a different pack now in the Beho Beho area. We first spotted them in early September on a walk with Ian – when they jumped out from behind a doum palm where they had been snoozing in the late afternoon heat. The adults stood and barked and then three little pups went scrambling up the hill first towards the airstrip. The radio call came that dogs had been sighted plus new pups and everyone diverted their drives and plans to go and see them. Everyone, especially the guides were thrilled to see the new pups of the season with hairy, healthy coats, short legs and fat tummies! Thereafter they have been seen a number of times by the game drive vehicles and the entire pack are relaxed enough to snooze around the vehicles with the puppies. Now that the denning season is finished, the dogs will move great distances again with their 3 new additions in tow – searching for food. We do wonder however what has happened to ‘Blackie’ and where his new pups are and how many they may be. They must be somewhere and we hope they return to the area soon giving us not one but two wonderful packs of dogs both with pups.
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The ‘three musketeers’ (the three male lions frequenting the Beho Beho area) have been seen regularly and getting up to all sorts of mischief. Often we stand in the lounge area or for a better view from the pool and see them lounging around on the plains near the giant baobab. On walks we find fresh tracks around the camp and in the night we hear their presence. At the beginning of September they killed a large adult buffalo right on the plains in front of the main area. Each of the three brothers took turns to protect their prized kill from the encroaching vultures who waited patiently for a couple of days. By the end of the second day – the lions eventually gave their kill up with bulging bellies. Then for the next few days they hung around in the area digesting their enormous meal. Luckily for us, we had the perfect elevated view point from camp and during all the excitement were able to glance out on to the plains and see a theatrical vulture chase by one of the lions or them simply lounging with their legs in the air. Thereafter they disappeared for a few days, and we all wondered where our boys had gone? It was thought that these young boys needed some company – especially some lady company. That did make sense indeed! Not long afterwards we found our boys with at least two or three different females in various areas not far from the camp. It was not long before they were all mating – some of the boys with more than one female – naughty! But in all honesty, these are good signs – indications that we may have a Beho Beho pride soon – a coalition of the brothers, pregnant females and some cubs hopefully soon!
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Lots of our guests have been lucky enough to catch the three musketeers in action and see them mating and some guests even got a closer encounter than was expected. On an afternoon drive with Ian, he drove to a nice-looking spot for a sundowner. Guests jumped out and Ian began to unpack the coolerbox – taking out drinks and snacks, when one of the guests – Beth said calmly, ‘Lion….lion.’ And she was right, not far off in the brown grass two ears and wide head watched them curiously. Everyone got back into the vehicle quickly and calmly and Ian put the coolerbox back – and off they went in the vehicle to find one of the young males with one of the new females. After taking some pictures, it was agreed to drive a little further to find a new sundowner spot – one preferably without lions nearby! The three boys also joined us at Bush Dinner one night – they were spotted hanging out around the Beho Beho International Departure Hut (which they love to do) and walked right past dinner whilst everyone ate. One of them also strolled past the main dining area just before tea time one day, at around 3pm when one of our guests was lying on the couch reading his book. I’m sure he could not believe his eyes! The lion just continued on past all the rooms and gave everyone in the rooms a very special veranda safari!
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Lake Manze has also been a hive of activity at the beginning of September. Hungry (and very lazy lions) hang out at Lake Manze in big numbers waiting for their meals to come down to the water to drink. Guests were often treated to feeding lions or lions digesting food lying around sleeping and some were even treated to the odd chase – although not always successful! We have also seen some changes with our Manze pride – as last month saw a couple of them wounded from a few fierce fights – probably amongst themselves and new rivals. It has now been confirmed by Heribert that we have two new Manze boys who have taken over the territory and females of the Lake Manze area. There seem to be just two of the adult females left of the previous Manze pride (nicknamed ‘The Greedy Pride’) and these two have been seen happily mating with the two new brothers suggesting acceptance to the new rule. The guides have no idea what has happened to the rest of the previous pride. There were some sub-adult males and a female with cubs but they seem to have dispersed. A smart move when new males enter the area! Run and take cover! Male lions often will kill previous offspring that is not theirs, when they take over a new pride. This brings the females back into oestrous so they can mate. They will also chase away any sub-adult males which helps to reduce any possible competition in the near future for dominant rights! These two new boys have already been named by the Lion Research Project – ‘Uhuru’ and ‘Umoja’ which means ‘Freedom’ and ‘Unity’. We will be needing some new names for the three young Beho Beho Boys – any ideas are welcome?
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Lake Tagalala is still an interesting and entertaining activity which we encourage all our guests to do! The lake is a bit shallower now as the dry season continues – and from time to time the boat skims over the tops of surprised hippo’s and crocodiles. Did you know? That Lake Tagalala is said to have the highest density of crocs per cubic volume of water in all of Africa. It is no surprise then – that lake trips always involve a gigantic count of crocodiles and some great photo opportunities. With the shallower water the jumping fish are also keeping busy – jumping into the boat regularly. One even jumped and knocked one of our poor honeymoon couples sunglasses off her head! Luckily they didn’t fall into the lake – as no one would be jumping in to retrieve them!
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Onesmo has found himself a new lady…and her name is Lady Luck! He discovered not one but two leopard not far from the vicinity of the camp on his way back from sundowners one evening! It appeared to be a mother and sub-adult cub and they had killed an impala and dragged it down under a bush. They had just started eating it, and Onesmo and guests got a pretty good view of them before they slinked off into the thick bush a little disturbed. He returned the following morning – saw signs of them having been around but missed them by a few minutes. Later on that afternoon as the day was drawing to a close, he passed by again and this time spotted both of them next to the kill – still feeding! Guests were overjoyed and Onesmo was beaming with pride!
September has also seen some very special visitors to the camp. An elephant who was very relaxed and calm right by the main area during teatime. He came right up to the edge of the dining room and posed beautifully for everyone having tea and cake. This same visitor came another day and dipped his feet in the duck pond. We are also thrilled to have had some of the Bailey family visit us. Nicky (Charlie’s wife) visited us for a few days and Mrs B. (Charlie’s mother) has been here for a few weeks. Mrs B. has been visiting Beho Beho since it was purchased by her husband, Christopher in 1977. Since then Beho Beho has been a very special place to her and the family and a wonderful holiday home – a sanctuary to find peace in the tranquillity of the bush and enjoy the pleasure of the wildlife! For guests who are lucky to be here when Mrs B. is around, she will amuse you with fascinating stories of a colourful life lived – about pet Lemur’s named Tiki, elephants that walked through the main area and ate the Christmas cake, and tales of travel to almost every exotic place you can think of in the world!
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And even around the camp, there are not only the big (lions and hippo’s passing by in the night) but also the little. Wahlberg’s Epilletted Fruit Bat’s hang out in the cover of the pathway roofs during the day and giant exotic looking insects are always around. There is also a special pair of slender mongooses who have a burrow under in the bush around the base of the long pod cassia in front of the office. Two heads often pop out from beneath the earth early each morning with bright brown eyes – and then they disperse to feed and forage for the day. We hope this September Newsletter finds you well, healthy and happy. And we hope unlike us that your home dwellings do not have too many creatures big and small!
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November 29, 2010
The Grumeti Reserves, Singita
On my most recent trip to Tanzania I was lucky enough to spend the first few days in a private game reserve in the Western Corridor of the Serengeti Eco-System- Singita’s Grumeti Reserve.
This is home to 3 of the most luxurious lodges in Tanzania in a beautiful private setting where you can enjoy the excellent resident game as well as experiencing the Wildebeest migration from June through to August. The 3 lodges are Sabora which based on a 1920’s tented safari camp, Faru Faru which is the more intimate permanent lodge with canvas roofs overlooking the river and Sasakwa the most luxurious lodge in the North of Tanzania with incredible views across the plains.
The view from Sasakwa onto the Grumeti Plains
I was blown away by the quality of this product including the awesome food,exceptional guiding and the private game viewing but at $1,725 per person per night, what do you expect!
For detailed information about Tanzania and Zanzibar please look at our site – www.tanzaniaodyssey.com, and click here for information about a Tanzania safari.
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