Lukimbi News Articles

June Newsletter

Mon, 12 Jul 2010 13:33:00 +0000

Soccer comes to the bush!!

June has been a crazy month with guests visiting us from all four corners of the world; everybody has been on a soccer high, guests and staff. Guests have been responding to the roaring of lions by chanting their country’s war cries and most of the chats on the vehicle have been about last night's game and not the animals we have seen or were watching. All the drives and dinners have been orientated around the evening games and many a desert has been eaten in front of the television.

It has also been great to hear the positive feedback from all our guests about the World Cup, how well South Africa has done in hosting the event and how hospitable the county has been with every aspect and having exceeded all the expectations of the many different nationalities that came to watch their team and taste a bit of Africa.

The animals have also been in high spirits and have been popping up all over the show. With the lodge being so busy and having 4-5 vehicles out every drive, it has helped tremendously with the sightings as the guys all work as a team to track and find the animals. There have been some new additions to the lion pride, a female gave birth to 4 cubs at the beginning of the month and she has finally brought them out for all of us to see. The pride now consists of the 5 dominant males, 5 females and 6 cubs,2 were born about 3-4 months ago. Amongst the new elephant and white rhino calves, there is also a new cub in the hyena clan. The cub is still black in colour and will only start getting its characteristic orange and black spots after a month or so. We have also spotted a Black rhino calf and it’s great to know these highly endangered animals are breeding, especially at Lukimbi.

The other highlight of the month was an incredible sighting of a male cheetah. He was relaxed with the vehicles and allowed us all to watch him walking across the plains.He even jumped up on a fallen Marula tree to scent mark which allowed for some amazing photography. Cheetah tend to move great distances as they are not territorial so we are very grateful and excited when one appears on the concession. We have had a quite a few great leopard sightings and some of the rangers spent the afternoon watching a female leopard stalking a heard of impala but unfortunately there was an important soccer game and we had to leave her before she could make a kill.

With winter finally here the bush has started to thin out and some of the natural pans have started to dry up. This is great news from a sightings point of view as it is easier to spot the animals in less dense bush and we are looking forward to the next few months to see which new animals appear and to spend more time with the ones we know that have made their home at Lukimbi.

Paul Davies,
Head Ranger.

April Newsletter

Mon, 24 May 2010 09:43:21 +0000

April started off as a real wet one, with 130ml in the first five days of the month which is pretty bizarre having heavy rains this late in the season. The month ended off with 192ml which is more than February and March's rainfall combined!
This definitely put the Ranging Team on the back foot as the Concession was put to rest for a few weeks so as not to damage the roads more than what the rain had already done. In return, however, this will definitely give the bush a boost before heading into the dry winter season.
Nevertheless, the Ranging Team and our enthusiastic guests have had a great amount of quality sightings of both big and small. Wild Dogs creeping up behind us on an afternoon drive, gentle African Wild Cats making their way past the road while on full alert for anything to snatch for dinner. Dylan and Tracker Gideon managed to track down a lioness with two cubs aged 8 weeks old which we are eagerly going to monitor so we can be part of their bright future.
We have been fortunate to have seen the big and dark creatures frequently with about 97 White Rhino sightings and 140 Elephant sightings, both Bulls and Breeding Herds. It is really great to see the influx of Elephant moving on to the Lukimbi Concession for the tough winter season ahead. As for our elusive Leopards, we've spent some quality time with our resident female, Nulu, either taking her afternoon nap in the Marula Trees or following her while she's on a territory marking roll. Nkanyamba, our male resident leopard, has also made his presence well known by territorial marking on the thatch of room W9! On the northern side of the Concession we were lucky enough to come across two male Leopard cubs, and witnessed a fascinating yet unsuccessful attempt to catch a Scrub Hare by one cub..
The Lukimbi Team is definitely ready and geared up for the month ahead, seeing that our Walking Trail Safaris are starting on the 2nd of May! As for the 2010 Soccer World Cup lurking around the corner, things are going to be exciting!
To end things off, here is an interesting quote that I came across:
“Wildlife is not ours to dispose of as we will. We have it in trust and must account for it to those who come after” - King George VI.
Kind Regards,
Danie Vermeulen
Field Guide

January Newsletter

Tue, 09 Feb 2010 12:39:07 +0000

On the 31st of December 2009 around 9pm in the evening the guests at Lukimbi all dining in the Boma, witnessed a partial eclipse of the moon. It was also the second full moon of the month which means it was a blue moon. New Years Eve was truly special and a great prelude to the New Year!

Last year was full of drama and the big cats were without doubt in the spot light. The original pride of 22 lions had since split into two groups, one of 13 and one of 7, the two adult lions, one of which we named Toya dominated both prides with little threat of a take over.

Close to the end of last year Toya died from what we think was a snake bite but we will never know. This turned out to be a terrible blow for the lone male trying so desperately to hang on to his territory. Five younger males have moved on to the concession and it seems as they are here to stay. We see them on a regular basis and their strength and confidence grows day by day! It’s only a matter of time before something gives. Already the males have killed all the young cubs but the lone male has still managed to fight them back from his territory which is getting smaller and smaller.

Leopards are always magical to see and grace the bush with what seems to be supreme royalty. Seldom seen, these great cats are a prized find. Last year we witnessed two of these cats, a male and a female staking a claim within the concession, both fighting for territories and then holding them - evading ever present hyenas looking for their next macabre free meal. Lions that would not think twice to put an end to their royal blood lines. It’s not easy being a leopard but a cloak of invisibility and cold calculation are these cats’ greatest attributes. We hope to continue watching these two leopards as they carve out a piece for themselves in the bush.

The New Year has started off with a bang and sightings have been excellent. Wild dogs have been moving threw the area and it appears to be a new pack that we have not seen yet which is very exciting. Buffalo, Elephant, White Rhino are still seen regularly and Giraffe in big herds streaming on to the concession are a spectacular sight.

The year has a lot of potential and all at Lukimbi are looking forward to what is in store, never knowing what is around the next corner. Africa is a beautiful place with creatures great and small all equally interesting. Join us in discovery; find your sense of Africa.

Kind regards

Lukimbi Team.

The New Year has started off with a bang and sightings have been excellent. Wild dogs have been moving threw the area and it appears to be a new pack that we have not seen yet which is very exciting. Buffalo, Elephant, White Rhino are still seen regularly and Giraffe in big herds streaming on to the concession are a spectacular sight.

The year has a lot of potential and all at Lukimbi are looking forward to what is in store, never knowing what is around the next corner. Africa is a beautiful place with creatures great and small all equally interesting. Join us in discovery; find your sense of Africa.

Kind regards

Lukimbi Team.