Hi there everyone!
The first summer rains have arrived.
This means that the bush has taken in a breath of new energy
and is changing colours day by day. I can never decide what my favourite season
is in the bush but I must say… when we arrived at Nkombe Camp early September,
I was blown away!
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| The beautiful Narrow-leaved Morning Glory |
The earth had been craving water for so long and finally the
thirst has been quenched. My senses were more awake than ever… the smell of
fresh vegetation and wet soil – an earthy scent that cannot be bottled or
replicated. I absolutely love the sounds of buzzing insects calling incessantly
at dusk and the characteristic calls of many male frogs in the hopes of
attracting females.
The bush is alive and it’s just getting better!
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| Inspecting an old buffalo skull |
This blog is, however, not dedicated to the wonders of the
ever changing bushveld. It is dedicated to our first Correspondence Course
practical of 2015! Students from all corners of the earth came together for two
spectacular weeks with one thing in common – an everlasting passion for
nature!
The students arrived on the 19th
of September and we wasted no time in getting them into the swing of things.
The first thing they saw, before even arriving at the famous
Nkombe Camp, was the most beautiful female leopard. She was lying beneath a
tree with a couple of Spotted Hyaenas lurking nearby. This is because she had
made an impala kill which we saw dangling in the tree above. What a way to get
settled in ;)
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| Always amazing to see... |
The next thing on the agenda for the first day was
'welcoming sundowners'. We unfortunately didn’t see the sun go down as the
weather was not ideal and continued to drizzle for a day or so. That being
said, we were so impressed with the students, as they never once let the
weather get the best of them. We had an amazing sundowner stop under an
impressive Jackalberry tree and enjoyed Mandla’s homely chicken potjie around
the captivating fire whilst getting to know each other.
The first few days were spent learning about trees and
birds.
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| Just one of our spectacular sunsets |
Dave Strydom (our expert birds and trees lecturer) truly has
an impeccable way to give students the tools to gain the skills of successfully
identifying trees and birds. We enjoyed bush walks every morning, as one tends
to learn more whilst on foot. There is
more to see, smell and hear without the noise and distractions of a vehicle.
The one thing I was not so keen about was all the pepper ticks! I walked
through at least three nests and I sit here now itching and itching with over
thirty bites (yes, I counted)! It seems they have grown immune to Tabard.
Nevertheless, it was completely worth it!
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| A group of vultures patiently waiting... |
One day stood out in particular: the 25th of
September. We went for a long game drive to the south of the reserve and had
two absolutely stunning sightings. The first was of a pride of lions on a
buffalo kill. This was the Southern Pride – experts in eating
buffalo. We also enjoyed seeing a massive dead tree covered in various species
of vultures waiting for their turn to devour the leftovers. What an
unforgettable scene! This was also the first ever sighting of lions for one of our
students!
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| Joe and the bull elephant |
The other magnificent sighting was of a herd of elephant -
our favourite animals of all. It started as we saw a bull elephant on a
mission. He covered a lot of distance in a very short time. After following the
determined elephant, we came across a breeding herd. The bull was in hot
pursuit of the females, but they were showing no interest. I predict the bull
was too young and not in musth. After failing to impress the females, he
moved off. It was that perfect time of day just before the sun started to set.
We parked our vehicle some distance from the herd and let them approach us. It
was incredible. The females passed right by us, carrying on with their usual
activities. One relaxed female even fed on a tree less than five metres away
from Joe (a student from England). He claims this to be one of the best moments
of his life. A young calf was gently guided by her mother - stunning to watch.
My best sighting of the week!
This day also happened to be my birthday. I couldn’t have
been happier spending it in the bush with this amazing group of people. The
students even made me a special gift – they carved onto a piece of wood and all
wrote a special message on it. Thanks again guys!
Before we knew it, it was assessment time! We treated our
students to a surprise bush breakfast with an amazing view of a dry riverbed
and the open plains beyond it. This was also our way of saying 'good luck!' to
everyone for the upcoming days. We are so proud of each and every one, as they
all passed their assessments with flying colours as well as their FGASA 1
exams. Congratulations ANTs!
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| The herd of buffalo |
We haven’t even spoken about half of our fantastic
sightings…We were treated to a visit by wild dogs which spent the day less
than five hundred metres from camp! They are always fantastic to see and we loved the fact that
they were so close to us for so long.
The majority of the time spent at Nkombe
Camp was focused on the smaller aspects of nature which are no less important
than the famous Big Five. The rest came naturally, as we saw all of the Big Five on the last
day without even trying. We saw female lions on another buffalo kill, as well as
a gorgeous female leopard which recently had hunted a duiker. We were
privileged enough to see a massive herd of buffalo, after which we stopped at a
famous granite outcrop to have some refreshments overlooking the reserve. What a day it was!
After this course, we can all agree that we will never look
at the bush the same way and we have a much better insight into the
never-ending world of nature.
