News November 2009

With the good summer rains in November, there has been an explosion of insects in the bush. Our guests on bush walks are now a little more cautious in terms of where they walk. Sometimes a client decides to walk ‘out of line’ and walks into a spider strand or web. The reaction is predictable : the client jumps around and makes every attempt to ensure that the spider is off the body. Perhaps most people have a mild dose of arachnophobia or maybe we are made edgy by the thought that a spider is crawling around our body somewhere and may give us a nip in a most inappropriate place!
 
Perhaps the most striking of all our Bushveld spiders is the Golden Orb Web spider
( Argiope Australis ). When one encounters a web of the Golden Orb spider, the likelihood is that the female will be noticed first. She is very large compared to the male and is likely to be found at the centre of the web. She is indeed a very striking beauty – with lobed abdomen striped in yellow and silver ; the cephalothorax ( fused chest and head parts ) a light silver and lovely long legs in black and yellow bands. What a catch!

GAMEVIEWING NEWS

In true gentlemanly Christmas spirit, we start with the report from our lady guide,
LOREY:

“This month was a fantastic month for me. I have seen some of the most rare & less often seen animals of the bush.
 
On the 2nd of November I took the Talamati road back to Orpen gate. Our first encounter was with a group of 17 Sable Antelope. The habitat of the Sable Antelope is dry, open woodland with medium to tall grass. A cow (female) will lead the herd. The best chance to see Sable is early morning & late afternoon. After viewing these amazing animals we continued our journey. A few minutes later one of my clients said: “Stop honey badger”! I said to her she must be joking. We waited for a minute. Then all of a sudden this little animal appeared from behind a bush. This animal is mainly nocturnal. From the ground to his shoulder his height is 30 cm. The honey badger is tough & aggressive. Truly what a wonderful day!!!

Left: Sable Cow & Calves. Right: Sable Bull

On the 4th of November on the main road back to Orpen gate we saw another very seldom seen animal – the Serval. This is a slender, long – legged, spotted cat with a short tail & large, rounded ears. The habitat of the Serval is environments with water, tall grassland or reed – beds. This animal is mainly nocturnal, but sometimes active in early mornings & late afternoon. They hunt small mammal species such as hares, birds, reptiles & insects. The one that we saw was busy hunting for its meal. This is another once in a life time sighting for me. “
 
ANDRIES reports seeing a huge number of vultures on the 20th . He was expecting to find a very large kill – instead he was shocked to find a number of dead impala and wildebeest. The stench was almost unbearable. He enquired from the rangers at Satara and was told that the veterinarians believe that the deaths were caused by an unseasonally cold snap. The animals were already in poor condition because of the lack of food so their resistance levels were low and hence the deaths. Andries and guests saw a number of black-backed jackals with newborn pups feeding on the carcasses.
 
On his next trip into Kruger on 26 November Andries noted a major difference in the veld – gone was the dry drab brown and, almost miraculously, a vivid green carpet enveloped the bush.

RHULANI reports a brilliant day of game viewing as follows : “ On 3rd November we had a sighting of an amazing leopard kill at Ngotso Spring. We saw a young male leopard on a tree as we arrived. After 3 minutes, it came down from the tree and disappeared into the thick undergrowth. We kept looking and I advised my guests to keep looking at the herd of impala about 75 metres away. While we were waiting for something to happen, a herd of 3 big bull elephants appeared. I drove up to them so that the clients could get a good photo. We then returned to where the impala were and, all of a sudden, there was a cloud of dust and impala running everywhere. When the dust settled, we had an amazing sighting: the leopard had a still-kicking impala by the throat. We thought he would suffocate it quickly, but 5 minutes down the line, the impala was still alive. Surprisingly, the leopard then abandoned the dying impala, whose spinal chord was probably broken. We waited to see what would happen. After 45 minutes, we heard another leopard calling in the distance. The calling got louder and louder as it approached. The first leopard then also vocalised and soon both leopards were together and they then proceeded to start eating. I think it was son calling mother and son waited for mother to arrive before feeding – great manners!
 
Anyway we felt a little sad once the leopards had opened the dead impala’s stomach as an almost full-grown foetus was evident. The rest of the day was excellent : buffalo on the S 127, Rhino and Lions at Ngotso Dam. So we had seen the Big Five in the space of 8 km. Wow ! New record for Viva, I think ! ”

On the 15th November, Rhulani and Bongani had a harrowing experience. This follows on Bongani’s scary experience he reported in last month’s newsletter.
 
Rhulani reports : “ I was driving near Rabelais and stopped to look at a herd of elephants. After my guests had taken the photos, I drove 100 m further to where 2 giraffe bulls were having a serious territorial dispute. I noticed that the elephants had now moved closer to the road, so I reversed to give my clients a better photo opportunity. Next thing I see Bongani and his clients come flying past me - being chased by an elephant !
I don’t know what deodorant Bongani wears, but it annoys elephants !
I quickly moved from reverse to first and chased after Bongani while the elephant was closing the gap to us. The clients were hysterical – in fact both groups, mine and Bongani’s were screaming loudly. Thankfully the elephant, which we could now identify as a female, slowed down and all the clients started laughing out of relief. We then noticed a new-born elephant running towards our ‘chaser ‘ and it all made sense – not Bongani’s shocking deodorant after all, but maternal love had caused the elephant to charge us ! ”
 
TOLLIE sent the following report :
“November is always a month of renewal - as soon as the first rain comes the dry patches will have new fresh green grass. Everything changes - the bush gets thicker and there is lots more water all over the park and it is time for the newly born babies. The whole Kruger National Park is filled with the cutest little Impala babies (if you see them, you would just like to take them home, not even Bambi can compete with the attraction of these baby Impala). A single lamb is born, after 196 days gestation and weighs in at approximately 5kg. The first few steps are stumbling around and falling over their feet but in the first hour or two they can run as if they have done it for years. The running, jumping, grooming and playing can give our Viva Safaris clients hours of pleasure. The Impala is not the only one that has newly born, the Elephants, Giraffes, Nyalas and many more. November and December is probably the months that will get a ten out of ten on the cuddliness scale.

Newly born Impala

On the tenth of November we saw this newly born baby Giraffe and you can clearly still see the umbilical cord. Giraffe calves weigh up to 100 kg and after a gestation period of about 450 days the newly born calf can stand and walk within an hour.

Newly born Giraffe.

BONGANI has emailed the following :

Kruger and Balule
Balule drive and walks
 
“During our walks we saw many animals and birds. We had two ground hornbills and one big bull elephant very close to us. On one drive we saw two caracals eating a francolin on the road - it was a very nice sighting.

The impalas are having their young at this time of the year. We see lots of them.

It did not rain for six months; it was very dry and easy to see animals. But from now on it will be very difficult. We had our first rains on 20 Oct. Very close to Tremisana lodge we have a big dam – Tremisana Dam. It was filled in 10 hours with the first rains and we now have lots of animals coming to drink. Because of dramatic weather changing – sudden drop in temperatures - we had very big problem with the animals. Many animals died, especially near Satara and Timbavati. Most of the animals that died were Zebra, Impala, Kudu and Blue Wildbeest. South of Satara there were no dead animals.

During the rainy season it easy for predators to make a kill, sometimes even on roads.

On 15th November we had great luck with kills : first one at Nsemane Dam where eight lions killed full grown giraffe and second along the Nwanedzi tar road four male lions killed two buffalos at the same place. Our third kill was on the S100 where two big male lions were eating a buffalo. We had 10 different sightings of lions in one day !!!!
 
At Nsemane Dam it was interesting to spend more time because it was not lions only. We had different kinds of animals. There was a tug-of-war with a dead giraffe : The half of the giraffe was in the water and we had crocodile eating together with lions. While we were watching this spectacle, a big herd of elephant came down to drink water and kept all the lions away from the meat, After the elephant left, the lions come back very slowly to protect their food. It was a good chance for vultures to come down to feed. ”
 
BERTUS submitted the following :

Balule

“This month was not too eventful, except for regular elephant sightings. One notable sighting was on the 15th when we had a drive and had brief glimpse of a large elephant bull. We decided to approach him on foot seeing that he was in a riverbed. After a short walk into the bush along the riverbed we found him coming out of the river and he then walked past us about 15m away. As he passed us he smelled us, tuned around and walked to within 10m from us. My clients kept their cool and had a maximal adrenalin surge ! After a good look, the elephant turned around and went on his way ignoring us completely. This was one of my most memorable ever elephant experiences.

We were also blessed with good rains the last 2 to 3 weeks. Some areas in the reserve measured up to 180mm. This changed the bush into a beautiful green colour and all of sudden there are babies everywhere. The migrant birds are back with the first woodland kingfisher spotted on the 8th.

Bertus on a game walk

Kruger

Kruger was for me another great cat month. On most of the trips I saw the three big cats on each trip and on one trip I even saw a serval as well as an African wildcat - both in bright daylight.

Another interesting although sad sighting we had been on the weekend of the 22nd. We had a sudden cold spell with a lot of rain. This proved a bit much for a lot of animals specifically impala around the Satara area. They died of exposure due to being in poor condition because of the drought beforehand.

The highlight of the month for me was on the 29th when we spotted a leopard at Ngotso area. (Probably the leopard I am the luckiest with as far as sightings go.) He was sleeping in a tree until a few impala appeared. He started to take an interest in them and started stalking them. He was at one stage about 10m from the closest ram but just lay down and waited. After about a half an hour the impala moved away and we thought that is it. Then 3 Southern Ground Hornbills appeared and walked straight past him. At this stage I could already imagine him catching one of them and had a lot of ill thoughts towards him for it. As they moved past him, they spooked a baby impala that came towards him and that was the end of baby impala. It all happened so fast that not one person in all of the vehicles could catch the action on film. We first thought that he had missed but another quick glimpse told us he was successful. He then carried his kill down into the riverbank and shrubs. Just shows you that you cannot think that because the area is full of Impala there are no predators around.

NEWS AT TREMISANA GAME LODGE

The rains have made a big difference. Everything is lovely and green and the animals are looking happy. Tremisana Dam overflowed on 13 November and there have been daily visits by elephant and buffalo. We have appointed LENA DETMER to the staff at Tremisana. LENA has outstanding credentials and is fluent in German, Dutch and French. She is German-born and studied Dutch at school. Before joining Viva, Lena worked for a company that deals exclusively with the French market, so she has a better than average working knowledge of French, especially animal and bird names. We are sure that she will be very useful – especially now that Germany, Holland and France ( luckily ) have qualified for the finals.

NEWS AT MARC’S CAMP

We are working feverishly to complete the upgrade of Marc’s Adventure Camp by 1 January. We have redone all the chalets. These are very spacious and we have made provision for 2 doubles, 2 quads and 4 twins. Compared to similarly priced budget safari operations that house their clients in small 2-man dome tents, this camp gives Viva a huge advantage in marketing to the budget tourist.
Each chalet is en suite and is equipped with beds and linen, tiled floors, overhead fan and towels and soap. There is a swimming pool, a central boma and a very big covered entertainment area which includes TV room, lounge and dining room.

Thirsty buffalo at Marc's Adventure Camp

NEWS AT CHEETAH INN

We have had a number of requests for accommodation during the World Cup period. Our tariffs for 2010 are extremely competitive and we are sure that every bed will be filled in June and July !

NEWS FOR OUR TRAVEL PARTNERS

Our website has been upgraded with the 2010 products and tariffs. Please take a look at www.vivasafaris.com to see the new products. New 2010 brochures have been developed and will be available from the middle of December.
 
As is customary at the end of each year, it is useful to review the year that has passed. For 2009, we were expecting a decrease in numbers of tourists and a corresponding decrease in bed-nights at our lodges. Thankfully, this did not materialise. In fact, Viva Safaris experienced a positive growth in both bookings and bed-nights.
 
As in previous years, we have ploughed most of our profits back into the company. Apart from routine maintenance to vehicles and buildings, the following new additions were effected :
 
In 2009 we added the following vehicles to our fleet : a new Toyota Quantum, 2 new Landcruisers and 2 new Toyota Gameviewers. These have been put to good service. The one 10 seater Landcruiser will be used to take Tremisana Guests to Tshukudu Big Five Game Lodge where we are offering a 3h game drive as of 1 Jan – a new product.

New Landcruiser for Tshukudu Game Lodge

The following building additions were made to our camps:

At Tremisana, we have built 3 new chalets and are busy upgrading the outside serving area in the Boma. A new additional waterhole in front of the Lapa was built to supply more water to the buffalo and elephant herds especially in the winter.
At Marc’s we have added 4 new en suite chalets for the Guides; we have added a new ablution block for our staff and have added 2 new carports for the new open Gameviewers.
At Cheetah Inn, we repainted the entire place, added new reed ceilings throughout the passageways and lounge and front desk areas; we have retiled the lounge and have restocked the aviary with 14 different species of South African finches.

It is probably our commitment to supplying exceptional value for money products that has contributed to our continued growth in adverse conditions. Today’s tourist is very conscious of affordability. Sensitivity to price is coupled with safety and security considerations and in both of these issues, Viva comes tops. I doubt there is a better value-for-money safari product to Kruger and our commitment to collecting clients from their homes/hotels/hostels/airport dates back to Viva’s very first safari I personally took in 1991!!!

Of course, Viva relies on its team – we are very fortunate to have long-serving members of staff. From Trevor and Anthony in Head Office to our camp managers, Delina, Ronald and Margaret as well as relative newcomers such as our hostesses Pearl, Florence and Alice, our full-time mechanic, Sidney, and our front-line staff - our outstanding Tourist Guides : Bongani, Bertus, Rhulani, Andries, Tollie and Leray as well as all the gardeners, drivers, maintenance men, builders, chefs and cleaners, some of whom have been with us for over 12 years.

To each of these wonderful people I say a genuine and heartfelt “ Thank You ” - Viva is where it is today in large part as a result of your commitment and hard work.
 
We have this month received the following emails :
 
From: Dolores Ellman
Sent: 24 November 2009

We stayed at Tremisana early Sept and had a wonderful time. Pearl was the perfect hostess. We thoroughly enjoy reading the newsletters and look forward receiving them.

We only wish we were back and enjoying the trips and seeing all the wonderful wildlife. We have passed on the details of Vivas to a number of friends who are considering trips to SA.

Keep up the good work.
Dolores and Andy Ellman
Dublin, Ireland
 
 
From: Rod Woodger
Sent: 15 November 2009

Pierro, together with Graham and Sue Suttle we wish to thank you and your staff for the fantastic time we had staying at Tremisana and at Marc's during October. The food, hospitality and game drives surpassed our expectations.

Best wishes
Rod + Lyn Woodger
 
 
From: Paolo
Sent: November 16, 2009

I spent 5 wonderful days in Tremisana from 29th September to 3rd October. Lots of animals spotted(2 leopards!black rhino!) thanks to the great job  done by our guides.
 
The accommodation and people at the Lodge was perfect and all went fine.
 
Thanks again for the great time I had.
Paolo

From everyone at Viva Safaris we take this opportunity of wishing you all a Holy Christmas and a fulfilling and happy 2010.

With kind regards,
 
Piero
General Manager
Viva Safaris