Last week was my first week back in the bush and I was lucky enough to have taken 2 groups to Pilanesberg National Park.
The first trip was a gentleman from Egypt and the second was a group of ladies from Brazil.
Of course most of the animals now have new babies and I was going to write something about all these new members following most of the herds.
But then I just realised while going through my photos that the Elephants gave me the best WELCOME BACK greeting of all.
I must have seen the ellies more that 10 times in two days!
I will show the ones I remember best.

First it was these two bulls at Kubu Dam who mocked the resident Hippos before having a drink.

Then, while viewing the hippos in the water hole on Nkakane drive, I spotted a herd coming down from the hill behind us.

Coming down on Thlware drive towards Mankwe Dam, we spotted this big bull.

Hippo Loop also had some excitement with this breeding herd drinking and the calfs playing around the water.

On our way to the lodge where we went for lunch we also got another herd grazing in the tall grass.

And then just before the exit at Manyane Gate I got 3 Bulls close to the road.

This week I had the honour of taking two British ladies on a Tented Safari to Pilanesberg National Park. The one lady is a Tourist Guide and the other organises triathlons for a living.
My guests’ number one request throughout the safari was to see hippos. And hippos we saw!
On day one we stopped at Ratlhogo Hide, which was almost completely dry a couple of weeks ago. Now it is ruled by a hippo.

We spent close to an hour at the hide, just watching the terrapins climbing up the hippo’s back and then sliding off again when he decided to turn.

He even yawned at us, showing off his huge tusks and massive gape.

An early morning drive on day two enabled us to spot this hippo at Malatse Dam when he returned from his evening graze.
Pilanesberg National Park also dished up a few good elephant sightings which included a big bull and a breading herd on two occasions.
It was a 3 Day Tented Pilanesberg Safari packed with game viewing and excitement.

Last week I had the pleasure of taking two gentlemen who work as solicitors in London on a One Day Safari to Pilanesberg National Park.
We found these Kudu females in a grassland area on Sthepe drive close to the Kwalata turn-off.

Kudus are browsers and therefore live in bushy areas where there are enough trees with leaves for them to feed on. These cows were however spotted on their way to a stream where they were planning on drinking.

We also saw some of Pilanesberg National Park’s Elephants and got this nice photograph of a Lilac-breasted Roller.

As always, Pilanesberg gave a lot of wildlife sightings and our guests went home satisfied.

The week before last I spent most of my time photographing the Southern Masked Weavers building their nests in Bakgatla Camp and at Mankwe Dam in Pilanesberg National Park.


The males at Mankwe Dam even got aggressive with each other at times.

I had a great time in Pilanesberg National Park last week with a family from Doha.
They had the pleasure of seeing Pilanesberg’s only pack of wild dogs feeding on an impala. I still don’t think they know how lucky they were, so I am going to tell them again.
Jeff, Michelle, Rodger, Benjamin and Erin you were very lucky! Most of the visitors to Pilanesberg National park don’t see the dogs at all. You saw them feeding! And to top it all you got to also see lions on the same day.
While walking along the stream in Bakgatla camp I came across something which was totally different to Lions or Wild dogs but surely one of the highlights for me.
This is a perfect example of the nest of a foam nest frog.

While laying her eggs with a male on her back to fertilise them, the female foam nest frog kicks with her hind legs to create this foam in which the eggs get stuck.

The foam attaches to the log or branch on which the frog lays her eggs. The outer part hardens and protects the eggs from the elements and predators. As the eggs hatch and the tadpoles grow, they get too heavy for the nest and it breaks, leaving the tadpoles falling into the water body over which the nest was built.

Other than all of this we also saw a lot of Giraffe, Zebra, Blue Wildebeest, Impala, Springbok, Steenbok, Elephants and many more that I am not going to mention.
The birds of Pilanesberg National Park also played their part and I think they have created a new birder! Rodger was determined to tick off all the birds listed in the map of Pilanesberg and I think he got very close. Well done Rodger.
I am now focussed on photographing the Masked Weavers in camp and at Mankwe dam and I will make sure to post a few later this week.

On my last 3 day tented safari to Pilanesberg National Park we were very lucky with lion sightings!
My guests were ecstatic when they saw a lone male lion during their night drive with one of the guides of Pilanesberg National Park on day 1.
Then on day 2, I got to get up close to this pair of lions mating!

We were spoiled by them letting us view the entire process. My guests heard the lions roaring at each other and even saw the female hitting the male with her front paw.

It was great and we got to spend about 30 minutes with these two lovers before we had to leave them.

The safari was ended with another lion sighting on our last day when we spotted a female walking not far from the road. We managed to follow her for about 300meters before she disappeared into the thickets.
I am looking forward to the next trip!

I spent last week Wednesday and Thursday on a 2 Day Tented Pilanesberg Safari in Pilanesberg National Park with a guest from Canada.

The 2 days were filled with sightings of Black-backed Jackal. It was really like they were waiting for us around every corner and as if every other animal in Pilanesberg had a Jackal following it.

We saw a Jackal feeding on a Guineafowl, a Jackal chased by a Springbok and Jackal doing just about everything a Jackal does.

Our evening in Pilanesberg National Park was completed with a true South African open fire braai and the sound of a Black-backed Jackal howling in the distance.

Thanks Pilanesberg! Once again you helped me to make my guest’s visit one to remember.

The highlight of my week was definitely a two day safari earlier this week to Pilanesberg National Park with some guests from Canada! Our game drives delivered some brilliant sightings and fantastic photographs of most of the big5. Unfortunately the leopards of Pilanesberg eluded us but my guests were very lucky in spotting some Buffalo which I don’t often see in this park.
We were treated with this sighting of a Klipspringer not long after arriving at the park.
The shiny, black patch in front of its eye is the pre-orbital gland used to deposit secretions onto twigs.

The rest of the morning we saw many Blue Wildebeest, Impala, Zebra and Elephant, and at around lunch time my guests were welcomed to Africa by the call of this pair of African Fish Eagle who will return to the same nest to breed every year - unless of course an elephant uproots the tree.

On a sunset / night drive we saw the Buffalo and a large White Rhino bull just before dark.
Tuesday morning we left camp early to enable us to get a few nice African Sunrise pictures but our plans were changed the moment we spotted lions not more than five kilometres from the gate. Without realising it, we spent almost an hour with these two females.

Lion cubs get introduced to the pride once they are around 2 months old and there is a possibility that they can be suckled by any lactating female on occasions. This is called allo-suckling.
The males were not seen which suggest they were busy patrolling the territory.

Although the Black Rhino numbers are way less than the White Rhino, we can still encounter both in their natural habitat.
Next time you spot a Rhino while on an African safari, whether it is in Kruger National Park, Pilanesberg National Park or any of the other magnificent parks in South Africa, there are a few differences to look for to determine if it is a Black Rhino or a White Rhino.
For the security of the animals in the following pictures, I will not disclose where they were photographed.
White Rhino

Black Rhino

More readily identifiable differences are as follows: