A new season has started with all the signs showing that this will be a year for great sightings!
The park is already yellow and the Ruaha River has more water than usual for this period, which is a great sign!
There are still some pools scattered here and there and the wildlife is not completely concentrated along the river as yet.
The nights are already getting cold and a good jacket is important for the early morning drives.
Leopards have been giving great sightings and the good news is that wild dogs are again resident in the core area of the park where most drives are carried out.
Lions are roaring and passing through the camp and this crescendo is waking the guests up during the night.
The Mdonya pride is now amongst the biggest in the park counting 18 strong which consists of only females and youngsters.
We are not sure yet if there are one or two adult males.
Such a big pride requires big pray to feed them all and some of our guests were lucky enough seeing them feeding on a big adult male giraffe they caught in the night.
Elephants are always present and abundant with many babies in each family group.
Our guests were lucky enough to have a beautiful sunset encounter with a big family.
Thanks to Godson Kigudanzi, Sostein Mwikalila and Malcolm Ryen for the pictures and videos.
We hope to see you soon.
Mdonya Old River Camp Team
The first month of the season has flashed by like an Impala being chased by a Leopard.
We have been fortunate enough to have seen this elusive cat on a couple of occasions this month but the cherry on the cake must be the two new young Leopards hanging around not too far from camp. Catching them prancing around up a tree, even better.
Looking out from the dining area and noticing a female Lion walking past- priceless. She has the audacity to walk onto tent 6’s veranda looking around to then walk past in front of all the tents on her way to the lake for a drink. This did not happen once but twice on the same route.
A mother Giraffe protection her dead baby from the Hyaena’s for a couple of days takes a twist as she loses the battle against these scavengers. The eerie sound as they call for their mates to join in the feast.
Elephant sightings have been amazing with the water crossings taking top spot. Nice to see so many new baby Ellies around learning their new environment as they follow the lead of the elders and the moms.
Do not forget about the wild dogs as they have been hunting in the area. Really cool to see that the alpha female is pregnant and hopefully in a couple of months we will see the new litter about.
Birdlife has been in abundance with all the greenery about. The smaller things are popping up everywhere to fill a day’s sightings.
It is still not to late to book your next safari adventure with Lake Manze as the animals wait in anticipation to fill your blood with sightings.
Thanks to our guides Zacharia Mligo, James Mgona and our guests Jarmila Vinterova and Charlotte Searle for their great pictures and videos.
Stay safe.
Shaun, Milli and the Lake Manze Camp team