RAPTORS: A NEED FOR CONSERVATION

The population of large raptors like the Martial Eagle, the Bateleur, the Whitebacked Vulture and the Lappetfaced Vulture are declining rapidly. This is primarily due to habitat loss, as more areas adopt agro-pastoral farming and housing developments. Civil wars and armed conflict in Africa, lead to birds being chased from their breeding territory, and being trapped to be eaten by humans. In some parts of Africa, it is believed that there are medicinal benefits in consuming these birds, and the body parts are used in cultural practices. Nests are also raided for the eggs. The nesting sites are also subjected to disturbance by human activity by recreational use of wilderness areas, like the use of off-road vehicles and mountain biking.

Immature Bateleur

The Bateleur ( Terathopius ecaudatus ) is easily disturbed while nesting, and therefore, these nests should never be approached, as the adult birds are not likely to return. The Bateleur seldom flaps its wings when in flight, and glides with a side-to-side rocking motion as if balancing on a tightrope, hence the French name, "bateleur", meaning "acrobat". The Bateleur takes seven years to reach sexual maturity, and to have tawny wings, and the red markings on the face and red legs. Currently, the Bateleur is listed on the IUCN Red Data list as "near threatened".                                                                                                    

A sexually mature adult Bateleur

The Martial Eagle ( Polemaetus bellicosus ), is only found in the more southern regions of Africa. Like the Bateleur, it is also listed on the IUCN Red Data list as "near threatened", but could be re-classified as "vulnerable". This is the largest eagle found in Africa, and grows up to 83 centimetres in length, and has a wingspan of nearly three metres.

Martial Eagle

The White-backed Vulture ( Gyps africanus ) is listed as "endangered", as the global population is estimated at 270 000 individuals. Vultures are often poisoned when farmers put out poisoned carcasses, in an effort to destroy predators like jackal and caracal. The vultures feed on the carrion, and subsequently die from the poison. There is also the deliberate poisoning of vultures by poachers, due to the belief that circling and arriving vultures will disclose the location of poached animals.

A Tawny Eagle with two White-backed Vultures

Lappet-faced Vulture

The Lappet-faced Vulture ( Targos traceliotus ) is rare, and is considered to be endangered as the global population is estimated at only 5 700 mature individuals. Like the other raptors, their breeding grounds have been degraded by human civilisation, and they are subjected to poisonings and trade in body parts. The Lappet-faced Vulture takes six years to reach maturity, and only one egg is laid each breeding season. Most raptors are slow to reproduce, and together with factors liking drowning in sheer-walled water tanks, and electrocution on pylons, their numbers are in decline.
                                                                                   


Active conservation measures are needed if the raptors are to survive. For more information: www.birdlife.org

LITTLE BIRDS

Water, any source of water, like a dripping tap at a campsite, and the little birds will gather to drink. In Nossob, our camp tap was visited by Cape Sparrows, House Sparrows, Familiar Chats, Pririt Batises, Scalyfeathered Finches, and my favourite: Violet-Eared Waxbills. They were quite used to human activity, and one could pull up a camping chair in the late afternoon, sit about four metres away, and enjoy an avian display.  Whenever Dave heard a "toy toy" sound near our campsite, out would come Dave's Sigma 150-500 mm f5-63 lens, and he would stalk the vividly coloured Crimson-breasted Shrike ( Laniarius atrococcineus ). This bird is also known as the Crimson-breasted Gonalek, or Crimson-breasted Boubou. The shrike would hop around, and play a "hide and seek" game with him, much to my amusement. Dave had many attempts at photographing the elusive bird, but one afternoon at Mata Mata, the shrike caught a small grub, and Dave was quick enough to capture the action.

Crimson-breasted Shrike 

Photo: David Mullin

 Of the 264 species which have been recorded in the Park, only 78 are resident, 16 are seasonal migrants, 18 are nomads, and 152 species are irregulat visitors, and are therefore classed as vagrants. The Crimson Breasted Shrike is a resident.

 Swallowtailed Bee-eater

Photo: Noel Hammond

 The Swallowtailed Bee-eater ( Merops hirundineus ), catches its prey in mid-air, unlike the Crimson- breasted Shrike which forages on the ground. It feeds on bees, flies, wasps and other winged insects. The Swallow-tailed Bee-eater breeds in pairs or in small colonies. The long, tunneled nests are made in sandy banks. They may be seen on a cold morning, huddled in a row. Noel used a Sigma 300-800 F5.6 lens to capture the above image.

The adult has caught a bee, which it will feed to the chick on the right.

Photo: David Mullin

BIG BIRDS

The ungulates like the wildebeest and the springbok seek shade in the heat of the day, but there is still activity in the riverbeds, as birds strut around. We often see the Ostrich ( Struthio camelus ) walking around. Unlike with the hyena, I can tell the difference between the sexes. The male ostrich has black plumage, while the female has rather drab, brown plumage. Ostriches are able to keep cool in the heat by fluffing out their feathers and spreading their wings. The male bird can weigh up to 150 kilograms, and their diet will often consist of tsammas and gemsbok cucumbers, and even insects and small reptiles. They are able to obtain moisture from their food, and therefore, do not need to drink often.

Ostriches do not mind the heat

Ostriches are able to breed throughout the year, but they usually lay eggs just before the rainy season. Several females lay up to thirteen eggs each in a hollow scrape in the ground. Only the dominant hen and her mate incubate the eggs in the collective nest. Only about twenty eggs are incubated, and surplus eggs are pushed aside, where they decay. The hen is able to recognise her own eggs, and these are retained. The male bird takes over incubation  during the night, and sits on the eggs.

 If danger threatens, an ostrich will feign a broken wing, in order to distract the predator, while the chicks are escorted to safety. An ostrich pair with a brood of chicks, may abduct chicks from another pair. Raising chicks does not take much effort as the chicks are able to feed themselves. One often sees chicks of different ages with one pair of adults, when chicks have been abducted. As ostriches are able to run up to sixty kilometres an hour for long distances, they are seldom preyed upon. The cheetah, which can run faster, is possibly their main enemy.

The ostrich is able to filter out salt from the water through glands near its beak.

Another big bird that is found striding in the riverbeds is the Secretary bird ( Sagittarius serpentarius ). A fully grown Secretary bird is often over a metre tall. Secretary birds often gather at midday at the water-holes which have sweet drinking water. It is one of the few birds that is able to carry water and food in its crop, back to the chicks on the nest. The Secretary birds pace up and down the riverbeds in search of insects, reptiles, rodents and eggs and chicks of smaller birds.The Secretary bird will also prey on snakes. The bird will dance around and dodge a snake until it is able to kill the snake by striking it repeatedly with its  claws and beak. They are usually in pairs, but large numbers, up to fifty birds, have been recorded at Rooiputs, Leeudril and Kij Kij.

The Secretary Bird

The ostrich is the biggest bird found on earth, and the Kori Bustard ( Ardeotis kori ) is the heaviest flying bird. The Kori Bustard can weigh up to nineteen kilograms. Kori Bustards do not often fly, and are more likely to be seen walking in the riverbeds. They are omnivores, and eat seeds, insects, and small rodents and reptiles. They are very fond of the gum produced by Acacia trees. Their alarm call is a barking sound. As the Kori Bustard is slow to take-off and fly, they are often the prey of caracals, jackals and leopards.

The Kori Bustard is listed as "vulnerable" on the Red Data list of birds.

"TSAMMA SEASON"

There is a saying in Africa, that only mad dogs and Englishmen go out in the midday sun. I am like the Englishmen today, as I also wish to venture out in the midday sun. The sun bakes down, burning my fair skin, sweat runs down my body in rivulets, and the sand scorches the soles of my feet through my shoes. "It is bloody hot," says Noel, "are you sure you want to do this ?" I think this a stupid question, and I make him stop the car. "I don't think I want to do this," grumbles Noel, but he engages first gear, and drives up a steep incline. Perched on the ridge of the high riverbank stands a small, solitary building. It overlooks the Auob riverbed.

The Auchterlonie Museum overlooking the Auob River

"What is so important about this building ?" asks Noel wiping the sweat from his face.

                                                                                                                                          "I read the book," I reply.

                         Noel rolls his eyes, because he knows that I spend a lot of time reading, and I have a curiosity that is never satiated. I know he is thinking that my mind has become heat-addled, but yes, I have read a book that was inspired by this lone building. The book is called "Tsamma Season" and it is written by Rosemund J. Handler.

In an appendix to the novel, the author writes: " Tsamma Season is a work of fiction and the characters are imaginary. Like many works of fiction, the story is inspired by actual events. A family lived and farmed above the Auob, as did the Johannsens, but well after 1914, when the government of the Union of South Africa drilled a series of boreholes along the Auob River to provide their troops with water in the event of a South African invasion of what was then German West Africa. I first visited the site of the ruins in the late 1990s. I gazed about me at the immense desolation and the heat-glazed riverbed, and felt the magic that captured the imagination of Alf Johannsen. Some years later, these ruins became the little Auchterlonie Museum, built by the people of Upington to depict the life of the family who farmed there.The stark unassailable beauty of the Kalahari Desert continued to captivate and intrigue me. On each succeeding visit to what is now the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, the story grew ..."

I experience first-hand the "washed-out sky" and "heat-glazed" riverbed, as described by Handler. I also experience the intense heat, as I stand looking at the re-built farmstead. Thankfully, it is summer, and I do not experience the biting cold of a Kalahari winter. The Kalahari winter would be the "Tsamma season", as this is when the Tsamma melon ( Citrullus lanatus ) matures in the cold, dry winter, when there is no rainfall. The Tsammas become an important source of nourishment and moisture for birds, rodents, ungulates and even carnivores. ( See the blog post entitled "The Pride of Nossob" for information about the symbiotic relationship between the Tsamma and the Brown Hyena. ) The human settlers would also have had to rely on the Tsamma as a food source. It is difficult to farm with livestock, and grow vegetables in the desert. The settlers would shoot game for biltong ( preserved, dried strips of meat ) and would tan and dry the hides. The hides were exchanged for goods like tea, coffee, sugar and ammunition. The closest town is Upington, a journey of two weeks by ox-wagon.  

The museum was constructed using the ruins of an old farmhouse. The walls were built using the calcrete stones that are found on the banks of the river. Rafters and beams would be fashioned from the wood of the Camelthorn tree. Riempies ( thin strips of dried animal gut ) were used to secure and lash beams together. The roof is thatched using dried grass and reeds. The flooring is a mixture of sand and animal dung. There are only two rooms in this cottage: one room is a bedroom, with a big double bed, and the other room is a living and cooking area, with a fireplace. There is also an outside cooking area, a big round pit, where a fire would be made. There would also be a hollow in the ground like an animal burrow. A few\hot coals would be placed in the hollow, together with a pan of bread dough, which would then bake. There is a tanning pit for the animal hides, the precious bore-hole, and a few low stone walls forming kraals ( enclosures ) for the livestock. 

I start to feel like I am baking in the hot sun. I just cannot imagine the suffering and the hardships of the people who once lived there. It is so remote, so isolated from others, the climate varies from extreme heat to extreme cold. They must have been very tenacious, more tenacious than me, as I seek to get out of the hot sun.  We return to our car, and begin the thirty-five kilometre drive to Twee Rivieren.

HANDLER, R.J. Tsamma Season. 2009. Penguin Books: South Africa.

www. penguinbooks.co.za

A HOT MIDDAY AND A COOL BATH

 It's midday. The heat is uncomfortable. The temperature peaks at 38C. Our campsite at Mata Mata has been packed up, the tent folded up and placed on the car roof rack. Stretchers, chairs and tables have been folded up and stored on top of the roof rack, too. Now, we are in the car, travelling down the Auob to Twee Rivieren. We do not hope to see much, as the animals gather under the shade of the few trees in the riverbed. The soft, early morning light has been replaced by a harsh glare. To do photography in this light is not ideal, as the photos tend to look over-exposed.

The water-hole.

We slow down at the water-holes and scan for any animals. The hot sand shimmers in the heat, but we do not see anything coming to drink. Then, Noel stops suddenly, "look," he says, "there's something in the water !" I look, and then I see the head. Submerged in the depths of the water trough, with just its head protruding, is a Spotted Hyena, taking a bath.

After a good wallow, the hyena starts to climb out.

Feeling refreshed, the hyena ambles off.

 The Spotted Hyena stands nearly a metre high at the shoulder, and can weigh up to eighty kilograms.  The genitals of the male and female hyena look similar, and therefore it is difficult to tell the sex of a hyena. "That does not matter, all that matters is that they know the difference," says Noel with a chuckle. What I like about the Spotted Hyena, is that they live in clans, with a matriarch in charge. All the female members are dominant to the males. Communication with the clan members is done by  whoops, cackles, growls and grunts, with these eerie vocal noises being heard in the night. The Brown Hyena leads a more solitary and silent existence, and does not hunt big prey like the Spotted Hyena. Both the Brown Hyena and the Spotted are territorial, and use scent marking to establish their territories.
  

A Brown Hyena scent marking.

It is often thought that the Spotted Hyena is a cowardly scavenger, but they are also tenacious hunters. In the Kalahari, the Spotted Hyena will often prey on Gemsbok ( Oryx ) calves, by running into the herd and separating a young one from the adults. They are also fearless, and will chase lions away from a kill. They are able to eat one-third of their weight in one sitting. Generally, the only time one will see hyenas during the middle of the day, is when they are bathing.

For more information about hyenas: www.hyaenidae.org

FAREWELL, PIET HEYMANS

Piet Heymans loved the Kalahari. He was a business-owner from Bloemfontein, but he would travel up to the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park at least twice a year. He got to know the secrets of the Kalahari, and he could read animal behaviour. Piet, or Oom Piet ( Uncle Piet ), as he liked to be called, could tell from the number of moths around the campfire, if rain was to be expected in the next few days. The skies would be cloudless, and Oom Piet would watch the agamas. If the agamas were sitting high up and looking North, a shower of rain could be expected.

Oom Piet had visited the Kalahari during all the seasons. He saw the changing weather patterns and the different climates which accompanied each season. He knew the harsh, dry winters and the scorching, merciless summers. He would drive a Toyota Landcruiser from Bloemfontein, which had been converted for camping purposes, to the Kalahari. This vehicle was nicknamed "Skilpad", which means "tortoise". Oom Piet and Skilpad would be a familiar sight as he drove along the Park roads. He would often stop and chat to the tourists and discuss sightings.

Oom Piet favoured the region north of Nossob. He often sat at the water-holes of Cubitje-Quap; Kwang; Bedinkt; Langklaas and Kousant. In later years, the Botswana authorities established a campsite at Polentswa. This became Oom Piet's favourite campsite, as here he found tranquility and the freedom of an unfenced camp. Oom Piet would spend hours watching the animals coming to drink at the Polentswa water-hole. It was here, that he felt close to nature and his beloved Kalahari. By then, Skilpad had been replaced by a smart off-road caravan, and I wonder how many times Oom Piet took shelter in that caravan when lions and marauding hyenas came to visit  him at Polentswa.

It was a privilege to be invited to camp with Oom Piet. Noel Hammond; Anton and Elanie de Villiers; Jan and Elsie Hamman and Gavin Stapleton were some of the privileged fellow-campers. This was a group of friends and photographers that shared camaraderie around Oom Piet's campfire. Sadly, Jan passed away in 2004, and Gavin in 2008. Yesterday, the 16th of January 2013, Oom Piet slipped away in his sleep, after a long battle with cancer.

Oom Piet, you will always be remembered, as the Kalahari will never forget you. You have left behind a legacy of solar-powered water pumps at the water-holes. The water produced by these solar-powered pumps sustain the wildlife, and brings enjoyment to the animals which like to bathe. You worked tirelessly to establish "The Friends of the Kalahari", and to raise funds to replace the worn-out and malfunctioning windmills, giving your time and  generous sponsorship to this project. Oom Piet, your legacy lives on ...

 Sunset at Mata Mata

Please see the blog posting, "Where are the barking geckos ?" for photos, and information about Piet Heyman's book, "Ousus".

A TAWNY EAGLE AND A TRAFFIC JAM

The air seems cooler this morning. I stand outside the tent and greet the dawn. I look at the sky, but all the dark clouds have vanished. The wind has died down. I was disappointed it had not rained during the night, but I was not disappointed for long. We drive thirty kilometres down the Auob river, and then we suddenly see small puddles of water. "Rain," I shout excitedly, " it rained here during the night !"  Noel brings the Land Rover to a halt, and lifts up his camera, with the 300 - 800 F5.6 Sigma lens attached, and grins as he snaps away. He photographs a Tawny Eagle in a rain puddle in the road.

A Tawny Eagle bathes in a rain puddle

For about twenty minutes, the Tawny Eagle bathes, splashes around and drinks the water. A line of cars back up behind us. The eagle derives much pleasure from the puddle, and Noel derives much pleasure from his photography. The cars cannot pass, and become impatient. There is an exchange of words between Noel and the driver behind us. I get embarrassed, and sink lower in my seat. This altercation causes the eagle to look up. The eagle ruffles its feathers, and they are not the only the only feathers being ruffled at the moment. Suddenly, the eagle takes off. The car behind us pulls alongside, the driver is looking angry and glares at us. Noel politely smiles and thanks the driver for his patience, as they pull off.

The Tawny Eagle takes to the air.

Tawny Eagles are common in the Kalahari. They range in colour from light blonde to dark chocolate brown. The younger birds are usually light in colour and darken as they get older. The eagles feed on on small mammals, like squirrels and mongooses, reptiles, other birds and insects. They will also feed on carrion, and as a result of this, they are often killed when poisoned carcasses are placed in the open. They build large stick nests, and they favour the stout trees which grow in the riverbeds. 

After photographing the Tawny Eagle, we head back to Mata Mata. We have to break up camp and then travel down to Twee Rivieren.

TWO DUTCH TOURISTS HAVE A GOOD EVENING

On our drive back to Mata Mata, we see dark clouds gathering in the sunset sky. There are lightning flashes and a real threat of a thunderstorm. Noel and Dave stop to do some landscape photography.

Photo: David Mullin

Rain clouds are a welcome sight, as they hold the promise of life-sustaining rain falling in the desert. I am actually hoping that it will rain much later in the evening. Noel has invited Marilyn and Leonie to join us for supper. They offer to contribute their hot soup. "Soup," the South Africans exclaim, "we do not eat hot soup in Summer." We decline the offer of hot soup, and we all club together and supply meat and things like tinned corn  and bean salad for a  braai.  Noel had made two jellies earlier on. He shares the jelly amongst all of us. adding a good dash of custard. We enjoy our dessert. I have a feeling it is our last braai in the Kalahari, and sadly, it is.

Photo: Noel Hammond

There are eight of us sitting under the blanket of a dark Kalahari night sky. There are no stars this evening, and the wind whips up. A few big drops of rain fall, but in ten minutes it is all over. I enjoy the camaraderie and the company of my fellow-campers. Leonie complains bitterly that the shop would not sell her a bottle of wine, because it is Sunday. She asks for an explanation. It is the second time this trip, that I am unable to explain the laws of my country to Dutch tourists. I supply some white wine, and Geoff readily shares his bottle of red. We raise our glasses, and drink a toast. It is the last night at Mata Mata for all of us, and we will part ways tomorrow morning.

Marilyn and Leonie tell Geoff and Lynette about their bad day.

We all retire and bid each other  a good night. Tomorrow, Marilyn and Leonie will travel to the Augrabies National Park;  Geoff and Lynette will leave for a further trip in Namibia; and the Hammonds and Mullins will take a slow drive to Twee Rivieren. It may have been a bad day for our Dutch friends, but it certainly was a good evening !

TWO DUTCH TOURISTS HAVE A BAD AFTERNOON

It is a very hot afternoon in Mata Mata,, If I was still in Nossob, I would have taken a book to the laundry room in the camp site. Many a surprised camper found me sitting on a work top, with a book in hand. It was much cooler than the tent. Mata Mata does not afford the luxury of a cool laundry room. This afternoon finds me lying in our tent, eyes half-closed and wearing a T-shirt which has soaked right through with sweat, and an open book lying face-down on my chest. Noel suddenly appears, and asks if I do not want to visit Namibia. "Great idea," I say, "is it cooler in Namibia ?"

T

 Namibia is a neighbouring country. How are we going to Namibia ?  We did not bring passports with us. We do not have the necessary vehicle registration papers. Well, it is Africa, so how do we cross the border ? Okay, like many others before us, we just stroll across. "What !?!? "  I hear all of you saying,  "you just walk across ?" Yup, like just like thousands of illegal immigrants cross into South Africa, we are going to visit Namibia. We greet the South African policewoman, policeman, policeperson ...oh, whatever, and the Namibian Immigration Officer, and we walk past all the booms, no man's land or no person's land ( you know what I mean ! ) and we traipse 600 metres along a gravel road to a farm gate. We enter, and walk up to a bright yellow building, with big black lettering saying "Sitzas Farm Stall".  Did Noel and I do this in the heat ? Affirmative. The Mullins were still sweating back at camp, they were absolutely convinced we had lost our minds.

We bought a Springbok fillet, which Noel proclaimed would be a treat for supper. I wished I could have bought a loaf of freshly baked bread, or a packet of homemade rusks. There was no dried wors ( sausage ) or biltong. I stared at rows of jams and pickles, but it did not appeal. There were some handicrafts for sale: quilted patchwork bags and little scented pillows, which I thought were rather quaint for this remote farmstall. I was expecting African curios and beadwork. We rushed back to camp, quickly freshened up, and then it was time to go for an afternoon game drive.

We did not see very much on this game drive, and so we decided to go back to camp early, and start the braai fire for an early supper. The camp gates only close at 7.00 p.m. so we were often dining after 8.00 p.m. most evenings. I was admiring the landscape, a few dark clouds had gathered, and I was wondering if it was going to rain later, when we rounded a bend... A little blue Kia sedan was stuck in the soft sand. Inside the car were the two Dutch ladies looking desperate. Could we help ?
Noel leapt out the Land Rover, grabbed his tow rope, and attached it to the two vehicles. "Will he get our car out ?" asked Leonie. Leonie had climbed into our Land Rover, as she was too nervous to stand outside. "Oh yes, Noel will get your car out of the sand. He has done this many times before in the Kalahari, " I replied. Yes, he did rescues the Dutch ladies, who were most grateful. "We had a bad morning, and now we have had a bad afternoon, " said Marilyn. "Two times in one day, " said Leonie looking extremely forlorn.

The tow rope is attached, but Marilyn and Leonie are looking worried.

TWO DUTCH TOURISTS HAVE A BAD MORNING

Marcel and Jacq Smidt had a good day when they photographed the mating lions, but two of their countrymen, or should I say "countrywomen" or even more politically correct: "countrypersons"; had a very bad day. Marilyn and Leonie had arrived from The Netherlands, and were driving around the Park in a rented Kia. They  arrived at Mata Mata the afternoon before. They had brought two very small one-man tents with them, or should I say, "one-person" tents. They were trying to erect their tents, but with not much success. An Afrikaans chap noticed that they were having some difficulty, and in no time at all, the tents were up, and their kind helper was hammering in the tent pegs.


Early the next morning, we were parked at the Craig Lockhart water-hole. A male lion and a lioness were lying right next to the road. I am sure that this was the same pair that Marcel had photographed. Noel parked under the shade of a tree, and we waited to see if any other animals would come to the water-hole. The cheeky jackals would sneak a quick drink, keeping a watchful eye on the lions, then they would scurry off. A small herd of Springbok were grazing a little distance away, and there were some giraffe in the vicinity as well. With all this animal activity going on, what was Noel photographing ? He was photographing a little bird in a tree. We had seen a Pearlspotted Owl (Glaucidium perlatum ) fledgling, clinging on to the bark of the tree branch next to us. It was a lucky sighting.

Pearlspotted Owl

The Pearlspotted Owl is the smallest owl found in southern Africa. When fully grown, it reaches a length of eighteen centimetres. "Oooh look, " says Noel, "there is another one peering at us from that hole in the branch." 

We had seen the two Dutch women drive to the water-hole. "Why have they got their car headlights on ?" asks Noel. We are so busy admiring the owlets that we do not take much notice of what other people are doing. The lions were sleeping, so it was not good photography . If this was the mating pair, I am sure they were exhausted . The Dutch ladies stopped right next to the lions. Research has shown that lions sleep for twenty out of twenty-four hours. I was sure that the lions were going to sleep there the whole day, but I was later proved wrong about that. The sun was getting too high, and the lions were not even stirring, or taking note of the other animals, so we headed back to camp for brunch.

Later, the Dutch women returned to camp, but not in their car. They had been enjoying the lion sighting so much, they forgot to switch off the car headlights. When they got very hot sitting there, they tried to start their car, and the engine would not turn over. The car battery had gone flat. Feeling the rise of panic, they shouted to the other tourists for help. A car pulled alongside, the back door was opened, and the Dutch women had to climb out of their car and into the other, while they were still in the presence of lions.

The rangers were informed of the situation, and they went to chase the lions away, so that they could push-start the car. I was wrong about the lions sleeping there the whole day, they ambled off when they chased away. I could sense the fear the two women experienced when they recounted how they were rescued. It had been a bad morning for them.

THE STORY OF A SIGMA LENS

The afternoon is still hot, when we set off for a game drive. "I wonder if I am going to be lucky like Marcel," muses Noel. Noel had brought some Sigma demonstration lenses with him. He makes me wrap the lenses in a towel, and then pass them through the car window at sightings. People are then able to try out the lenses with their camera bodies. I tell the Mullins this is how we met Anton de Villiers in the Kalahari. It was about 1994, when Noel, myself, our young son, and Jan Hamman were travelling in the Park. It was then known as the Kalahari Gemsbok Park. It had started to rain, and it was dismal and overcast. We had stopped at a lion sighting, when a bakkie ( light delivery vehicle ) pulled up next to us. "Oh shame," said Jan " " look at this poor guy trying to photograph the lion in the rain, with his short lens. Let's help him." I wrapped Noel's 500 F4 lens in a shirt that was in lying in the car, so that the elements would not get wet in the rain. Jan then passed the lens through the car window to Anton. Anton was very surprised that strangers would lend him a lens. Later, back at camp, we introduced ourselves. Anton and Noel and Jan became firm friends. They travelled together on many photographic trips in the Kalahari, the Drakensberg  and even to Etosha.

Yesterday afternoon, we were exhausted from driving from Nossob, and then having to set up camp in the heat. Noel decided not to go for a game drive, but work instead. He dusted off the Sigma lenses, and put them out on our camping table. He invited fellow-campers to try out the lenses. Marcel had travelled all the way from the Netherlands to visit the Park. His eyes lit up when Noel said that he could use the Sigma 300 -800 mm F5.6 lens.

It was much later that Marcel and his wife pulled up at our campsite. "Noel," he said with a dismal look on his face,"this lens is no good. It is very bad."
                                                                               "Why ?," asked Noel looking alarmed. Noel had taken many photos with that lens, and was extremely happy with the results.
                                                                                                           "Look here, look at these terrible photographs," said Marcel sounding very agitated. Hearing the commotion, we all clustered around Marcel's camera. "Terrible, terrible ! Look the photos are even pornographic," said the wide-eyed Marcel. We all looked, and then we laughed. Marcel had been joking with us. He had once-in-a-lifetime pics of mating lions. Well done, Marcel !

Photos: Marcel Smidt











I scanned the Auob riverbed with its fifty shades of grey sand, but I did not see any "pornography". We were just a touch envious of Marcel's pics, but we do know that he would not have got these shots if he wasn't using a Sigma lens !

Anton came to visit us at Mata Mata, with his wife, Elanie, and cute daughter, Antonelle. He was staying at Twee Rivieren, and was then going to camp at Nossob. "These roads are really awful, I wonder when they were last graded," complained Anton.
                                                    "Ja," agreed Noel, "look at my Land Rover's dashboard. It is going to fall off."
        "Noel, you can't repair your dashboard with insulation tape," said Anton, handing Noel a roll of duct tape. "Here, use this."

The roads were in a dreadful condition. The garage at Mata Mata did not have a puncture repair kit, and Dave had to use Geoff's repair kit to plug his tyre. The ablutions were only serviced once week, so they were often in a sad state. The tyre pressure gauge at Twee Rivieren did not work. The garages did not stock all the grades of engine oil. Standards are definitely slipping, SANParks !

EARLY MORNING ALONG THE AUOB

Today, we are the first to drive out of the gate. I am sleeping a lot better at Mata Mata. There are no sounds of marauding jackals stealing from the campers. No campers swearing and chasing jackals in the middle of the night, but no roaring lions, either. It is a very peaceful campsite. Mata Mata is a border post with Namibia. There have been complaints in the past that the Namibian immigration officials throw raucous  parties, and run their noisy generator all night, but it is has been very quiet.

Spotted Hyena

We are overtaken by a young guy in a small car. The car rattles so much, it sounds like it may fall apart. These roads are also very corrugated. The young guy tells us later, that he is on a quest to photograph a leopard. I am also hoping to see the leopard. We have heard from others that there is a cheetah mom and two cubs that often hunt near the camp. I scan the riverbed. The Auob is wide and flat. It is good territory for a cheetah to gather speed and chase down its prey. New camps have been built along the Auob, and new roads have been built. For a long section from Mata Mata we travel through the  dunes.                                        

 We feel deprived of the riverbed scenery. Now, we are only able to travel to  four water-holes in a morning: Craig Lockhart; Dalkeith; Fourteenth Borehole and Thirteenth Borehole. Guess what, the Thirteenth Borehole is not working, so the animals are not coming to drink there. Noel mutters about being limited to three water-holes. He mutters that the Park has gone to the dogs, but soon cheers up when he gets his first photographic opportunity, and there is just enough early morning light. He photographs the Spotted Hyena running in the riverbed. It is our first sighting of  Spotted Hyena this trip.

 Near Dalkeith, we have a lucky sighting. It is African Wild Cat, and it is out in the open. African Wild Cats   ( Felis lybica ) are largely nocturnal, and will often sleep in a tree during the day. According to research, the African Wild Cat was tamed by the Egyptians some 3 000 years B.C. It features prominently in Ancient Egyptian sculptures, and was considered to be sacred. It has a distinctive sitting position because of its long legs. It is the forebear of the domestic cat. Inter-breeding with the domestic cat is able to take place, and therefore, populations of pure-bred African Wild Cat are rare today. Pure-bred specimens are only found in remote areas of Southern Africa. They feed on rodents, birds, reptiles and large insects.

African Wild Cat

"Teresa will love this photo," says Noel, referring to my friend who lives in Missouri, USA, and who absolutely adores cats. I send her this photo and her comment is "WOW !!!". 

This is not our last sighting of a nocturnal species this morning. They are far away, and lying in the shade, but Noel manages a few photographs, just for the record. We see Bat-eared fox ( Otycyon megalotis ), or as we call them " fat-eared boxes". The Bat-eared fox mates for life, and takes good care of its young. It is often seen at dawn and dusk, listening for underground insects, by ambling along with its big ears close to the ground. If a Bat-eared fox hears the rustle of a burrowing insect, it will use its fore-paws to dig furiously in an effort to find the little creature. Its prey consists mainly of termites, but they will also eat other insects and scorpions, small mice and berries.

The pair of Bat-eared foxes.

"You see," says Noel, when we get back to camp, "why you must get up early, and be first out of the gate." I just groan as I have had to get up just after 4.00 a.m. every morning.

THE RADIO HAMS

We are sharing the best campsite in Mata Mata with a great couple: Geoff and Lynette Tinker. Geoff took one look at the Land Rover with its aerial and radio mast, and asked  Noel, "Are you a Radio Ham ?" What a question to ask Noel, he is obsessed with radio communication, and spends hours making contact with other Radio Hams all over the world.  Geoff, callsign ZS1LM , it was great to meet you and Lynette.

Geoff and Lynette point out a bench opposite their tent, overlooking the river. I go to read the inscription on the bench.

The bench, with our campsite in the background.

 The inscription reads:

                        "  Ter herinnering aan

                              Calie Pistorius

                              1932  -  2005

" The place where I worship is the wide open spaces."

Calie Pistorius was born in Pretoria and grew up in Reivelo,

Wolmaranstad, Pietermaritzburg and George.

He matriculated at Outeniqua High School and qualified as

a C.A. at the University of Pretoria. At the age of 29 he 

became professor and Head of the Department of Accounting,

then Director of the Postgraduate School of Business,

finally Vice-Principal: Management Services at the 

University of Pretoria.

Calie was an enthusiastic amateur rally driver, navigator

and organiser, a yachtsman, a "world" traveller and

radio amateur ( call sign ZS1CWP ).

He made radio contact with amateurs internationally

from Union's End, which gave him enormous pleasure.

He celebrated his 68th birthday at Mata Mata under 

his beloved Southern stars.

When Calie retired he moved to Knysna from where he 

undertook many 4X4 safaris to the remote places of

Southern Africa. "

Geoff ( ZS1LM ) and Noel ( ZR6DX ) could not wait to set up the ZS6BKW HF antenna attached to the  fibreglass mast, which is permanently  mounted  to the side of the Land Rover. When the mast is extended, it reaches a height of eight metres.  Noel had set up this system in Nossob, to chat to his friends at the West Rand Amateur Radio NoelClub. Nick Dreyer, ZS6NCK was a regular contact. I brought Noel and Geoff some refreshment in the form of beers, the two of them sounded like two little excited boys as they made contacts, around the country. They were transmitting on the 40 metre band. Noel even managed to listen to the club bulletin from Pretoria, and his club bulletin on the Sunday.

The mobile station at Mata Mata

'

ROLLERCOASTER RIDE

Day 6 has dawned. I slept well. The noisy lions had left sometime during the night. There was no activity at the water-hole, and no one in the hide. The campers looked disappointed, there was no adrenalin rush and excitement. It was a calm and tranquil morning. We went on a last drive up to Kwang.

Noel was very excited to see the Brown Hyena again. We drove alongside it, following it until it had disappeared. We were sitting at Kwang watching some kudu that were on the far side of the riverbed. We saw them stiffen and they turned to watch behind us. It was Noel that spotted the solitary male lion walking down to the water.

The lion at Kwang

The lion had a drink at the water-hole, and then went to lie down on the side of the road. The Mullins had seen a Honey Badger on their way to Kwang, so they arrived later, but they had time to photograph the lion posing on the side of the road. "How do you get the lions to lie next to the road and pose for us, Noel ?" asked Dave, with a grin on his face. The Mullins certainly had a lot of lion photographs to show their grandchildren.

It was time to break down camp. We savoured a last cup of coffee at Nossob, packed the two vehicles, said goodbye to fellow campers, and set off for Mata Mata.

We took the Kamqua dune road to Mata Mata, a journey of three hours in the gruelling heat of a Kalahari midday. It was a "rollercoaster ride" in the dunes, drive up, crest the dune and down the other side and up the next dune. The road is seldom flat, as it winds its way through the burnt-orange coloured dune-field. Dave said that the dune road was a lot of fun, and made him feel like he was a kid again. The Mullins were stopping to take photos of the gemsbok ( oryx ) and the ostriches dust-bathing in the dunes.

Oryx in the dunes. Photo: D. Mullin

 We had planned a picnic of salad and cold-meat at the Kamqua picnic site. When we arrived there, there was very little shade and the sun had reached its zenith. It was hot, hot, hot ! We cancelled the picnic, and drove to Mata Mata where we checked in, and then we were so grateful to find that the biggest and shadiest tree in the campsite was available, We began to unpack, thankful that we had the shade of the old Camelthorn tree to set up camp.

The Mata Mata campsite

THE PRIDE OF NOSSOB

The lions had roared and bickered at the water-hole the whole night. Their vocal outbursts had punctured the silence of the night, making the noise reverberate throughout the camp. It is a chilling sound that is meant to provoke fear. I was even imagining that the flimsy tent poles were vibrating with each roar. It was pretty much a sleepless night, so I got up early and made my way to the hide. The hide was jam-packed with people sitting squashed up on narrow benches. A big black-maned lion had wandered down to the water-hole to quench his thirst. Shutters clicked, but the shutter speeds were too slow, as the light was still very low. People reported that there were three lionesses, and two males in the vicinity. Some people had even stayed up the whole night, shining their spotlights on the lions. The hide was too cramped for my liking. "Hey," said Noel, " Let's see what we can find on a drive." Dave and Joy were possibly thinking that the Hammonds had lost their minds, again. We were giving up potentially wonderful photographic opportunities of Kalahari lions, just to take a gamble on a drive. We rushed to the office to get our permit, grabbed the keys ( which had been safely stored, this time ) and drove to the camp gate. I opened the gate hurriedly, and with much trepidation knowing that there was a pride of lions lying less than a hundred metres away.

The gate at Nossob Camp

We drove to Kwang, the sun's rays were starting to stretch across the riverbed. There were a few other cars parked there. We waited, and then we were rewarded. A Brown Hyena walked across from the dunes.

Brown Hyena

The light was still low, but Noel managed to get this photograph of this nocturnal animal. The Brown Hyena is mainly a scavenger, but will also eat bird eggs, insects, and fruit like the Tsamma Melon. The Tsamma Melon ( Citrullus Lanatus ) is a valuable plant in the desert eco-system. It is an annual plant, which bears ripe fruit in mid-winter, and contains up to 95% water. During the dry winters, this fruit becomes the staple water source for many animals. The Brown Hyena eats the flesh and seeds of the Tsamma Melon, but does not digest the seeds. The hard outer covering of the seeds is broken down in the digestive tract of the Brown Hyena, and are passed out in the dung. The seeds are then protected by the dung, and are not eaten by rodents, and are able to germinate. These animals are usually solitary, and are not seen during the day.

The Mullins were proud of their photos, too. They had spent a wonderful morning in the Nossob Hide, photographing lion activity.

Photos: David Mullin

The lions spent the day at the hide. During the hot afternoon, they slept underneath the hide in the shade. I could just imagine the warm, fetid lion breath seeping through the gaps in the wooden planked floor of the hide. The hide remained packed with people, but at midday, one of the males came right up to the camp fence, where the campers were about a metre away from the animal. The lion was roaring, as campers rushed to see him. It had been a good day at Nossob. 

Early evening, there were more lion skirmishes, growling and roaring. Braai fires were abandoned as campers ran to the hide. I was tired, and as I settled down to sleep, my ears were filled with the sounds of fighting lions and marauding jackals. Tonight was our last night at Nossob. It was with a twinge of sadness, that I realised that the holiday was now half-way through.