| Species | Group Size | Group Structure | Distance |
|---|---|---|---|
| White Rhinoceros | 2 | Bulls | 20m |
| White Rhinoceros | 2 | Mother and Calf | 5m |
| Lion | 2 | Male and Female | 45m |
For this walk I was the Back-up Guide, and the walk lasted three and half hours.
From the vehicle we spotted a pair of bull Rhinos by a dam. We pulled out of the area and left the vehicle to attempt to approach by foot and get the wind in our favour. Unfortunately, this time the dam wall didn’t provide us adequate cover, so we tried to use the tree cover. As we approached the water a pair of Blacksmith’s Lapwings spotted us and let out an alarm call which startled the Rhinos. Once they had settled again we approached further, then 2 Egyptian Geese also alarmed so we stopped there. The Rhinos became aware of us after that and moved off. We slowly left the sighting, ignoring them which again relaxed them and they approached slightly before we left completely.
Later we spotted a further two Rhinos from the viewer, a mother and calf, near another dam. Again we moved off to relax the Rhinos , and to get an approach with favourable wind. This time the dam wall was in a very advantages spot so we utilised it for cover. As we approached the end of the wall we noticed the Rhinos wallowing, so we moved forward into a better position to view. As we sat there and viewed them, the calf became aware of us and began to slowly approach us… followed closely by the mother. They started to get much too close, for our comfort and safety, so our mentor had to shout to warn them off. They moved back into the dam, we took this as our signal to leave in order not to startle them further.
We heard the male Lion we had been tracking in the morning might be nearby. We picked up on the signs, and luckily they were fresh. We were tracking the Lion for a while, again he didn’t appear to be walking towards anywhere with a purpose and circled himself every so often. Eventually the signs lead to an area of densely vegetated bush, we decided to circle the area to look for entrance or exit tracks or a clearer, safer area of approach. We spotted a tail moving in a bush and then disappear. The area was slightly less dense. We followed the departing tail and picked up speed, he was moving quickly. He passed through a spruit, which we decided to bypass. We found him lying next to a Lioness, I suppose we discovered he was moving with a purpose. They were aware of our presence so we didn’t attempt to hide – attempting to hide or acting like prey in front of a predator who can see you is probably not a good idea! The male appeared to want to mate so after a few minutes we slowly backed out of the sighting and gave them some private time.
On the drive back to camp we encountered a small breeding herd of Elephants on the road. We decided not to disturbed them and we let them move off before we passed by.