December 2007 Wildlife Report

First I would like to apologize for this late report. Patrick Reynolds, the author of our Game report, is back in Nairobi on sick leave. I'm sure you will all join me in wishing him a speedy recovery.

The wildlife viewing throughout December was exceptional, especially for the time of the year. I personally have been regularly visiting the Masai Mara, first as a guest and later as a guide, since the early 70s and I can honestly say I have never seen such a wonderful variety of wildlife before.  There were even 2 crossings of Wildebeest and Zebra witnessed during the month.  A number of guests were lucky one morning and managed to see the Big Five (Black Rhino, Buffalo, Elephant, Lion and Leopard) before breakfast.

We received a number of rain showers throughout the month and the whole area is green and looking wonderful. The area near the camps that suffered from the bush fire back in July has completely recovered and is attracting large numbers of wildlife, which, in turn, has kept the Bila Shaka/Marsh pride very busy and near to camp. Of course the Ridge Pride was never too far away also. The sighting of "Notch" with a female was a very nice surprise. Notch, a magnificent black manned Lion lorded over the Bila Shaka pride for anumber of years before he was dethroned earlier this year. It was assumed that he had wondered away to live the last few months or years alone, scavenging on any food he could find. Interestingly he always had a "girl friend" who was not a member of his group. Perhaps it's this female that is hunting for him and prolonging his life. The large numbers of Gazelle here have attracted several Cheetahs. A coalition of 3 males and up to 3 individual females, one accompanied by 2 cubs, has been seen regularly by our guests. In fact, one group of guests saw 7 different Cheetah on an early morning drive. Leopard viewing has been good with 38 sighting during the month. Most of the sightings were of the female whose territory covers Governors' and Il Moran Camps. This female was witnessed soliciting a male on two occasions. She and her large cub can usually be found along the forest edge between the two camps or at nearby 'Lake Nakuru'.

 ‘Lake Nakuru', for anyone who does not know, is an area of open water bounded by trees on one side on the edge of the Musiara Swamp. It was given that name by our driver/guides because on one occasion a small flock of Lesser Flamingo were sighted there. Another cat that is worth a mention is the Serval. Several sightings of this beautiful, small, solitary cat were reported in the Bila Shaka area.

 The "crossings" mentioned earlier are not as unusual as it first appears.  The famous Wildebeest migration is basically a search for food, which is grass, and the amount of grass available depends on the amount of rainfall.  On this occasion the animals that crossed back into the Mara were attracted to our area that had been burnt in July. The Wildebeest were probably ones that mostly migrate in the Mara area and give birth (Feb-March) on the Itong Plains, north of our area. The two sightings of a male Black Rhino were exciting but there were also a number of very brief sightings of another Black Rhino on the forest edge in the Paradise Plains. At the moment, this Rhino is very shy and quickly disappears into the forest when any vehicle approaches. Hopefully in time she will become more accustomed to vehicles and allow a little closer approach. Yet one more Black Rhino was seen. One morning, just before guests arrived for breakfast at Governors' Camp, a male was seen by the staff on the opposite bank of the river. Our staff were all very excited by this view of an animal most had never seen in their lives before and other staff not on duty or in their offices were all summoned to see it. Before finishing this brief report I must not forget to mention the large numbers of Elephants and the large (200 +) herd of African Buffalo that are in our area.

Birds: The few rain showers brought in many migrants into our area. Steppe Eagles were particularly common and several large flocks of White Storks stopped off on their way farther south. In the Musiara Marsh a female European Marsh Harrier was resident for a time, while both Montague's and Pallid Harriers (both migrants from Europe) were common, flying low over the grasslands looking for their prey. Other migrants seen were flocks of European Bee-eaters, Yellow Wagtails and Red-throated Pipits. In the camps there were many Willow Warblers. It's always amazing to see these tiny birds and to think that they have flown here all the way from Eastern Europe and Asia. Two other birds of note were a Steppe Buzzard and a Lizard Buzzard, both seen near Il Moran Camp. The Steppe Buzzard is a migrant from Eastern Europe and Asia, while the Lizard Buzzard is an intra-African migrant, only rarely seen in this part of Africa.

Wishing you all a Happy and Healthy New Year and, hopefully, we may see you here again in the not too distant future. From all the staff of: Governors' Camp, Little Governors' Camp, Il Moran Camp and Governors' Private Camp.

Dave Richards
Manager Governors Camp