These are the stories from a chap named Derek Solomon. They are published here
by kind permission of Karin Bailey at Worringham
who organise "Wildlife in Action" safaris. (The
pictures are from Afrikeye archives)
April and May were spent conducting a series of advanced guide
training courses for senior staff at the various lodges in an around Zambia's
South Luangwa National Park, with wonderful wildlife viewing opportunities at
the same time. April and May are busy months in the park, from a wildlife
perspective. This is the height of the impala rut, and the males had established
their territories early in April, well before I arrived in the area. By
mid-April, they were vigorously defending these territories with wonderful
photographic opportunities whenever a rival male challenged the existing
territory holder. We saw a male impala adorning his horns with grass to make him
look even more impressive to potential challengers. The amazing roaring display
of these males was another feature of the Luangwa bush during April. By mid-May
the breeding activity was slowing down with only the
occasional interaction between males.
Another mammal that was breeding at this time was the warthog,
with several males making their amusing chugging noise, just like a two-stroke
engine, as they followed females in oestrus. Fighting
between rival males is generally a ritualised affair, with much pushing and
shoving with the head and tusks, somehow seldom slashing each other. However we
observed one serious fight where the winner of the combat managed to rip open
the shoulder of his opponent with his large tusks and he fled, bleeding copiously from the wound. The winner then went
into his "chug-chug-chug" routine, trying to convince the nearby
oestrus female that "now is the time".
There was much discussion about the noticeably smaller size of
the Luangwa elephants (compared to those that occur in the Lower Zambezi
National Park or in Zimbabwe or South Africa). It was interesting to observe
many females with long, thin tusks, similar to those of the forest elephant, and
one wonders if this isolated Luangwa population has had some relationship with
the forest elephant population in the Congo some time in the past. Another
interesting observation was the continuous secretion from the temporal gland in many of the animals, ranging
from fairly young ones to adults. This condition is normally related to stress
or excitement, or to musth in adult bulls. None of these conditions were
observed in the Luangwa elephants during my visit. I have seen a similar
situation in the elephant population in Mashatu Game Reserve in Botswana, where
many animals, from cows to young calves, show a continuous secretion from this
gland on the side of the forehead. Mashatu's resident elephant researcher, Jeanette Selier, has
been unable to explain this unusual phenomenon to me. Any comments from readers
will be gratefully received.
South Luangwa National Park can well be described as "the
home of the puku". This antelope, related to the Kob of West and East
Africa, has a limited distribution in the region, and is regarded as endangered
in Botswana (where a few still occur in Chobe National Park), Tanzania and
Malawi. It is, however, still common in Zambia, with the main population
occurring in South Luangwa National Park. What is most interesting about this
antelope is its behaviour during the heat of the day. Unlike all of the other
antelope in the park, which move into the shade around midday, the puku make no
attempt at all to seek shade. In addition they show no other apparent attempt to
regulate their body temperature such as positioning their bodies in relation to the sun
as can be seen in wildebeest and gemsbok or oryx. Despite several attempts in
the past few weeks to obtain information on temperature regulation in puku, I
have been unsuccessful to date. This is probably due to the fact that, other
than studies on feeding behaviour and requirements, very little research has
been done on these unusual antelope. Once again reader comments are very
welcome.
Luangwa is home to other interesting mammals, one of which is
the delightful little four-toed elephant shrew (Petrodromus tetradactylus). This
is a particularly large and visible member of the family, and can often be seen early in the morning or late in the afternoon, and
is a regular sighting on night drives in the park. Its main source of food is
ants and termites, and it apparently advertises it territory in the undergrowth by drumming on the ground with its hind legs.
There are three subspecies of large mammals that occur in the
Valley, i.e. Thornicroft's Giraffe which shows a lot of white around the head
and does not have any spotting or blotching below the knees; Cookson's
Wildebeest (slightly larger than the common wildebeest found in southern
Africa); and Crawshay's zebra, a stunning looking animal that does not have any
shadow stripes. All of these make a visit to Luangwa a worthwhile experience.
Hippo behaviour was equally interesting during my visit, with a resident group
in front of Kapani Safari Lodge feeding each day (often at midday) on the
aquatic vegetation in the lagoon. There have been a few reports from other parts
of Africa of such behaviour in the past, but generally this is related to the
dry season when the grasses they normally consume are very limited. Copies of
the video showing this feeding behaviour have been sent to IUCN hippo
specialist, Glenn Feldhake, for comment. Another group of hippos demonstrated even stranger
behaviour after an adult member of the group (fondly called a "hazard" by Glenn Feldhake
- a most appropriate term) died in the night. Early the following morning about
12 very large crocodiles were feeding off the carcass, then retiring to the
riverbank an hour later to digest their meal. At this stage several hippos
approached the carcass and started to lick it. This went on for about 15
minutes, with different hippos approaching the carcass to take their turn to
lick it. Once again video footage is on its way to Glenn for further comment.
Birdwatchers too, will not be disappointed. South Luangwa is
certainly the best place I know to see Western Banded Snake Eagle, and I saw at
least one on every drive I took into the park in my 5-week stay. Lilian's
Lovebird is another 'special', and can often be seen in large flocks looking like a multi-coloured carpet whilst feeding on the ground.
The magnificent Crowned Cranes were starting to gather in groups after the
summer breeding season. Whilst I was up in the Nsefu sector of the Park I was
able to see several flocks of up to 50 birds, some of them giving their amazing
dance display. One wonders what the purpose of this display is at this time of
the year seeing that the need for courtship is long past. These birds normally
breed during the rains, and by April the chicks are well grown. Pel's Fishing Owl was another
good sighting during my visit, seen at the Mfuwe lagoon where a pair is
apparently resident. The first African Skimmer returned to the Valley at the end
of April, and was seen skimming along the Luangwa River. Collared Palm Thrushes
are common residents in the park, and one was building a nest close to the Luangwa Bridge at the entrance to the park, and most mornings entertained us
with a display on the bridge railings, once whilst holding a beakfull of nest
material. A bird I was rather surprised to see was Moustached Warbler, a species that I normally associate with montane
grasslands. Like the Palm Thrush, this bird is surprisingly common in Luangwa
and has a beautiful song that could almost compete with that of the Palm Thrush.
The widowfinches (or indigobirds as they are known in Zambia)
were particularly visible, with males displaying very actively at the top of
many of the dead trees in the park. It was most pleasing to see
Green Widowfinch on several occasions, identified by its white bill and
orange-red legs, and all-black primaries. This species parasitizes the
Red-throated Twinspot, and this bird was seen on two occasions, once in the
thickets at Tafika Camp, and once in the Camp itself at Nkwali Camp.
One of the most exciting sightings was a breeding colony of
Yellow-billed Storks, estimated at about 1000 adult birds. This stork is an
uncommon summer visitor to South Africa and is not common in Zimbabwe. There are only a few records of breeding in the Okavango Delta where
groups of up to 20 breeding birds have been recorded, and a few small colonies
in Zimbabwe. This colony was in the Nsefu sector of the park, and about 12
Marabou Storks were in attendance beneath the colony, feeding on chicks that had
fallen out of the nests together with a large crocodile that waddled off to a
nearby stream when we approached.
Raptors are prevalent in South Luangwa, but the numbers of
Bateleurs were particularly noticeable. Many of them were juveniles or subadults,
but there were a large number of fully adult birds as well.
A single Ayre's Hawk Eagle was another very good sighting seen outside the park
in the woodland between Kapani Lodge and Wildlife Camp. In fact the game viewing
and birding was just as good outside the park as it was inside it.
A new record for the park was several Plain-backed Pipits seen
on various occasions on the old airstrip. Not surprising that they were
overlooked at they can well be described as the ultimate LBJ (little brown job).
In addition they were only present for about a week and must have been moving
through the area, from or to where no-one knows.
Fighting
It was interesting to observe
many females with long, thin tusks, similar to those of the forest elephant, and
one wonders if this isolated Luangwa population has had some relationship with
the forest elephant population in the Congo some time in the past. Another
interesting observation was the continuous secretion from the temporal gland in many of the animals, ranging
from fairly young ones to adults. This condition is normally related to stress
or excitement, or to musth in adult bulls. None of these conditions were
observed in the Luangwa elephants during my visit. I have seen a similar
situation in the elephant population in Mashatu Game Reserve in Botswana, where
many animals, from cows to young calves, show a continuous secretion from this
gland on the side of the forehead. Mashatu's resident elephant researcher, Jeanette Selier, has
been unable to explain this unusual phenomenon to me. Any comments from readers
will be gratefully received.
It is, however, still common in Zambia, with the main population
occurring in South Luangwa National Park. What is most interesting about this
antelope is its behaviour during the heat of the day. Unlike all of the other
antelope in the park, which move into the shade around midday, the puku make no
attempt at all to seek shade. In addition they show no other apparent attempt to
regulate their body temperature such as positioning their bodies in relation to the sun
as can be seen in wildebeest and gemsbok or oryx. Despite several attempts in
the past few weeks to obtain information on temperature regulation in puku, I
have been unsuccessful to date. This is probably due to the fact that, other
than studies on feeding behaviour and requirements, very little research has
been done on these unusual antelope. Once again reader comments are very
welcome.
Luangwa is home to other interesting mammals, one of which is
the delightful little four-toed elephant shrew (Petrodromus tetradactylus). This
is a particularly large and visible member of the family, and can often be seen early in the morning or late in the afternoon, and
is a regular sighting on night drives in the park. Its main source of food is
ants and termites, and it apparently advertises it territory in the undergrowth by drumming on the ground with its hind legs.
There have been a few reports from other parts
of Africa of such behaviour in the past, but generally this is related to the
dry season when the grasses they normally consume are very limited.
Copies of
the video showing this feeding behaviour have been sent to IUCN hippo
specialist, Glenn Feldhake, for comment. Another group of hippos demonstrated even stranger
behaviour after an adult member of the group (fondly called a "hazard" by Glenn Feldhake
- a most appropriate term) died in the night. Early the following morning about
12 very large crocodiles were feeding off the carcass, then retiring to the
riverbank an hour later to digest their meal. At this stage several hippos
approached the carcass and started to lick it. This went on for about 15
minutes, with different hippos approaching the carcass to take their turn to
lick it. Once again video footage is on its way to Glenn for further comment.
South Luangwa is
certainly the best place I know to see Western Banded Snake Eagle, and I saw at
least one on every drive I took into the park in my 5-week stay. Lilian's
Lovebird is another 'special', and can often be seen in large flocks looking like a multi-coloured carpet whilst feeding on the ground.
The magnificent Crowned Cranes were starting to gather in groups after the
summer breeding season. Whilst I was up in the Nsefu sector of the Park I was
able to see several flocks of up to 50 birds, some of them giving their amazing
dance display. One wonders what the purpose of this display is at this time of
the year seeing that the need for courtship is long past. These birds normally
breed during the rains, and by April the chicks are well grown. Pel's Fishing Owl was another
good sighting during my visit, seen at the Mfuwe lagoon where a pair is
apparently resident. The first African Skimmer returned to the Valley at the end
of April, and was seen skimming along the Luangwa River. Collared Palm Thrushes
are common residents in the park, and one was building a nest close to the Luangwa Bridge at the entrance to the park, and most mornings entertained us
with a display on the bridge railings, once whilst holding a beakfull of nest
material. A bird I was rather surprised to see was Moustached Warbler, a species that I normally associate with montane
grasslands. Like the Palm Thrush, this bird is surprisingly common in Luangwa
and has a beautiful song that could almost compete with that of the Palm Thrush.
Yellow-billed Storks, estimated at about 1000 adult birds. This stork is an
uncommon summer visitor to South Africa and is not common in Zimbabwe. There are only a few records of breeding in the Okavango Delta where
groups of up to 20 breeding birds have been recorded, and a few small colonies
in Zimbabwe. This colony was in the Nsefu sector of the park, and about 12
Marabou Storks were in attendance beneath the colony, feeding on chicks that had
fallen out of the nests together with a large crocodile that waddled off to a
nearby stream when we approached.