Island Safari August News!

SNIPPETS FROM ISLAND SAFARI

* The Selinda pack of wild dog has been very active this last month. They are back to using the CMU camp as their catch net for impala. One poor individual was chased into, & smashed, the office window before becoming breakfast. They also cornered the old wildebeest bull, who is practically a camp resident, in the car park. He was too wise for their tactics though & saw them off.

* The poor francolins at Zibalianja are at their wits end with a dwarf mongoose clan that has taken up residence in their camp. These little guys are prolific nest raiders & as fast as the hens lay, so the mongooses steal the eggs.

* The return of the buffalo herds has been particularly welcomed by the Selinda lions. They have been seen following the herds hoping for a straggler or a weak individual to be exposed. Beef is back on the menu, but you have to catch it first!

* We welcome a new couple to Zbalianja Camp! Stuart Bell & Tessa Campbell will be taking over from Sam & Sean who move over to our CMU camp. Stuart & Tessa join us from Islands Of Siankaba in Zambia where they have been for the last two years.

* Selinda also has an addition to the management team taking it to full strength. Zane Volker, who is no stranger to The Selinda, joins us on a permanent basis. We wish him a hearty official welcome to the Linex family.

* Once again lions have dominated the predator viewing over the month. The cubs are doing well; the males are sticking around (roaring in & around the camps frequently), & the lionesses are providing hunting action.

* The Trails team seems to be getting all the leopard action.Chris & his following band were stalking some distressed francolins in a bush, hoping to see a snake or genet, when they flushed a large male leopard. It is unsure who got the bigger fright.

* Morning coffee at Mokoba Camp was all action when a leopard cornered a troop of baboons in the tree above one of the tents. Eventually, the baboons decided to exit their retreat, en masse, in a shower of leaves, twigs & copious amounts of poo!