Singita Grumeti: February 2021
Singita Grumeti: February 2021
Early February was a little dryer than the previous months and the long grasses upon the plains began to dry out during the middle of the month. Towards the end of February the rain began to intensify once again, the rivers came up and the grass grew.
We continue to see great herds of elephants moving through Singita Grumeti. As the grasslands dried out during the middle of the month we began seeing large herds of both zebra and topi moving back into the central and western regions. Beautiful herds of eland have been congregating close to Sabora and the buffalo herds, as always, have been impressive.
Cat sightings have been lovely this month with regular viewings of both the Butamtam and the Nyasirori prides. Leopard and cheetah sighting have also been great despite challenging conditions. Fantastic flocks of migratory birds have been flooding the plains including Abdim’s stork, Senegal lapwings and great white pelicans.
Here’s a sightings snapshot for February:
Lions
- The Butamtam pride have provided some powerful sightings this month as they have regrouped and 24 individuals were seen together.
- The Butamtam pride have hunted and killed buffalo a number of times this month as other prey species have been scarce. This has provided incredible viewing.
- The Nyasirori pride moved south of Sabora for two weeks before eventually moving back closer to the camp once again at the end of the month.
- There have been two mating pairs from the Nyasirori pride that were sighted close to camp this month.
Leopards
- We have observed the Grumeti North female and her daughter a number of times this month in the Grumeti North hill region. The animals are fit and strong. The daughter each day becoming more and more independent as we have watched her hunting alone.
- A new rather relaxed female has announced her presence on Pundamilia ridge in the central region of Singita Grumeti. We are currently still trying to identify her. There is a possibility she may be the Mkomure female’s daughter.
- There has also been great leopard viewing both on the Grumeti River and the Grumeti North drainage.
- I am pleased to report that we have had some great leopard action on Sasakwa hill too with a mother and youngsters sighted in the garden at cottage 9.
Cheetah
- This month we have observed good cheetah sightings on the Sasakwa plains and in the Sabora region.
- The Nyasirori high ground has also been very rewarding for cheetah hunting.
- We observed a female cheetah hunting a number of times close to Sabora camp which has provided dramatic viewing.
- A second female had been sighted hunting on the high ground south of Sabora camp.
Elephants
- Great herds continue to graze on Singita Grumeti with aggregations of 300 sometimes on the southern and western plains.
- We continue to see good numbers of bulls following the cow herds, making for impressive viewing.
- Elephant herds have been utilising Sasakwa hill and the surrounding drainage lines and no matter where you decide to explore the elephants never seem to be too far away.
Hyena
- We have experienced some great hyena interaction this month. A clan of 30+ were sighted hunting on the Nyati grasslands providing exceptional action!
Buffalo
- Buffalo herds have been fantastic over the month of February. Some really impressive herd sizes were observed.
- We have observed fantastic buffalo bull numbers in the Sand Road region.
Rhinos
- We have had some great sightings of both Ivan and Victory on the Grumeti River as they continue to utilise certain areas in the Ikorongo region.
- At the end of February, we embark on the next stage of refitting the transmitters on all rhinos. This is going to be a major step forward and will allow us, once again, to monitor their movements with further precision.
Read the full wildlife report here:
