Wildlife: South Luangwa 20 – 26 May 2020 – Edward Selfe Photo Safaris

It is a huge relief to see great progress being made in many countries to curb the COVID-19 crisis. Many European nations are starting to re-open their economies and return to something that resembles the life that we enjoyed before COVID-19. Of course, we all hope that the new normal, which we have been given a unique chance to create, will include dramatic shifts in priorities; the natural world, and our planet generally, should be valued much more highly in the assessment of growth.

Zambia is in a tight spot; the government can see many economies starting to re-open, and has not seen anything like the disastrous death toll that developed nations have suffered, so is tempted to follow suit. Zambia’s famous tourism sites are being encourage to open up again, giving lodges and camps the option to re-open to accommodate visitors. But the questions facing us all are whether there will be enough visitors to make it worthwhile (after all, many people are very tight financially and are not planning to travel) and whether it is safe and responsible to encourage the movement of people. We are, once again, faced with the decision of whether to prioritise the economy and the welfare of the population as a whole, or to prioritise the health of the vulnerable in society. This is a more challenging decision in Zambia where the population is young and will largely be unaffected by the virus.

In the middle of this week, I made the 1500km round trip to Lusaka (by car, and taking all precautions) to collect my Residence Permit. This is a large milestone in my Zambia journey and I am very pleased to have it after 11 years here. But this trip took 2 days out of my time in the bush and means I spent less time on safari this week.

But the time that I spent in the bush was, as always, rewarding. The dry-up continues with more and more areas becoming accessible and muddy river crossings baking hard in the warm sun. Blue skies and cloudless days are accompanied by temperatures hovering around 30 at lunchtime. It’s cold in the mornings though, so we are always in fleeces to start the morning drives. Here goes the sightings update:

Waterbuck calves are evident in large numbers at the moment, suggesting a seasonal peak of births. We are seeing more of them in the riverine areas, indicating good grasslands after the floods.

The Manzi pack female is developing a lovely bulge, promising pups soon. The remaining 8 dogs in the pack are doing the bulk of the hunting while she follows behind!

There was some interesting urinating behaviour from the rest of the Manzi pack. Dogs urinate in different ways depending on status in the pack; subordinate dogs dip their hips, while dominant dogs over-urinate and lift their legs alternately while urinating.

Crowned hornbills have been nesting in a tree hole near the park gate for the last 11 years. The female is out of the nest now and the two adults are delivering food to the chicks inside.

The male perched in the sun in a nearby sausage tree giving me some lovely portraits.

While photographing hippos in the evening light…..

……puku alarm calls led me to young leopard in a sausage tree. A wet marshland all around the tree prevented me getting closer sadly!

On a morning drive with my daughter, we spent some time with a spotted hyaena who seemed to be returning to their den site….

…and with some yellow-billed storks in a small lagoon.

I went out alone with my camera one morning, but of course that was the day when the bush didn’t want to give out any sightings! I enjoyed some elephants, but that was about as far as it went!

However, another morning, just before leaving for Lusaka, it was all happening. Baboons were sunbathing….

…waterbuck were greeting….

…the elephants were moving through the mature forest like ghosts…..

…and antelopes pointed me to a leopard who had killed an impala ram and was dragging it to a nearby tree.

The long shrubs prevented great photos of the leopard completing his drag, but the display of strength always leaves me in awe of these relatively small cats.

Pausing to catch his breath, and to check for approaching scavengers, the leopard showed his face and revealed himself as the old “wafwa” male who I have spent some much time with over the years. He appeared to be limping, but under the strain of the drag, it was not possible to be sure. I’ll keep an eye on him and add a report in a future blog.

As always, thank you for following along, and please take care wherever you are. Good wishes from Zambia.