Mklulumadzi, a stunning and secluded safari lodge by Robin Pope Safaris located deep inside Malawi’s Majete Wildlife Reserve, have shared this fantastic blog about the local wildlife dramas and mischievous behaviour of warthogs that have delighted guests and the team in the recent months.
During the green season the bush is rather thick and so sometimes we came across animals rather suddenly, but we always did our absolute best to keep a respectful and safe distance. Despite the thick bush we had some fabulous photographic and viewing opportunities of all sorts, however it goes without saying that sightings of lions with cubs is always a highlight.
One of the prides was found with some rather small cubs which was such a treat. They were old enough to have their eyes open and they were looking around very curiously and naughtily that’s for sure! The gestation period of a lion is usually around 3.5 months and the lions are born with their eyes closed and usually separated from the rest of the pride as they are so vulnerable. This gives mum a chance to easily hide them when she goes out hunting but once they start to become more mobile, they move back to the pride as they can become quite a handful and its handy to have some aunts on hand to help out!
© Allen / Robin Pope Safaris
Slightly older cubs of another pride were also seen by another group of guests, as they played close to the Shire River bank. They were a lot bigger but still had the spots that characterize young lions. We had planned a bush breakfast nearby that morning, but by the time breakfast was prepared under the watchful eye of an African Parks ranger, these lions had already disappeared.
Another morning one of the guides stopped to show the guests some eland who were to the left of the car. One of the guests just glanced off to the right and there was a leopard hungrily eyeing up the eland. Given the size of the leopard versus the size of the eland and the fact that leopards are predominantly solitary creatures, this would have been a rather over ambitious attempt had it played out.
The warthogs, not wanting to be kept out of the limelight were the source of great entertainment, providing us with some fantastic photo ops and plenty laughs!
The elephants showed up regularly and always spoiled us with sightings whether it is a large lone bull or a herd with little ones. There are several Marula trees dotted around camp which are a huge draw to these wonderful giants of the bush, and they were regularly found gorging themselves on these delicious and versatile fruits.”
© Barbara Razenberg / Robin Pope Safaris
To find out more about Mkulumadzi, head over to their dedicated page here.
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