January 2025

Singita Sabi Sand

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Singita Sabi Sand: January 2025

The month of January is associated with a fresh start and a reset of the calendar year, and this was mirrored by Mother Nature this month as we notice changes throughout the reserve. Fresh wild blossoms cover open stretches of the veld as far as the eye can see. Recent rains have encouraged life in many forms like southern foam nest frogs and village weavers as they dedicate this time to nesting. We have also welcomed the sight of new lions that have got the heart racing when watching them coordinate hunts on herds of buffalo. Temperatures have been mild to warm as the southern winds bring relief and cotton-candy clouds decorate our skies. We watch in awe as the changes unfold daily, and to be a part of this process is a privilege.
Here are this month's sightings highlights:
Elephants
  • The marulas’ fruiting period has slowly kicked off after a low yield to start. Once the first significant rains had fallen there was an increase in marula fruits on the female trees. With that elephants of all sizes have made their way to the marula tree woodlands scattered throughout the crests of the hills on Singita Sabi Sand. The fruits have been a great addition to their grassy diet.
Buffaloes
  • The lush grasslands of the south have attracted large herds of buffalo numbering around 400. Once can notice the excellent muscle tone on many of the herd members as they regain condition after the long dry season. With water abundant on the reserve their movement has been localised.
Lions
  • Lion sightings have been a regular on the daily sightings report captured by guides on the reserve. The first highlight was the arrival of four young male lions, the Monwana coalition that came from north-eastern Sabi Sand. Aged between three and four years they have proved themselves as excellent hunters of buffalo and even giraffe. Over the month their story has taken a strange twist, as one male has been with the Mhangeni Pride, another two moving together, and the fourth has not been seen for the past week. They find themselves among not only the Plains Camp males, but the Talamati and Nkuhuma males who have chased them off at least one of their buffalo kills.
  • There has been mating between the Plains Camp males and one of the Othawa lionesses. This is exciting news for the pride as they look to grow in numbers.
  • The Ximungwe Pride have been seen more often now around the Makalashi lookout, a scenic point overlooking the Sand River.
  • The Mhangeni Pride has yet again had another male lion trailing them to secure a meal. This time the one young Monwana male joined them after losing his coalition after a giraffe hunt.
  • Other infrequent sightings of lions include the Tsalala lioness and the young Nkuhuma breakaway brother and sister.
Leopards
  • We have noticed the Thamba male’s presence more east than we have seen him in years. He now patrols as far east as the Mobeni River close to Castleton Camp, putting pressure on the younger Ntomi male.
  • The Ntomi male has been viewed more than any other leopard on Singita. One of many sightings that is worth mentioning is him feeding on a hoisted buffalo calf carcass in a marula tree. It is unclear if he killed it or scavenged it, but still an impressive sighting.
  • It seems the Nkuwa female has pushed the Ntoma female further south. Nkuwa now patrols right in the centre of Singita and we hope that she will be looking to den with her new litter in this area.
  • Another female that has cubs is the Xinzele female who was seen by Johan, Isaac and their guests at Tavangumi lookout. She is denning in a rocky riverbed on the northern side of the Sand River.
  • The Tiyisela female provided guests with an amazing sight of hunting a warthog piglet out in the open on a sunny afternoon, close to Ebony Lodge.
Cheetah
  • After a few weeks on the eastern Sabi Sand the Makatini female and her three cubs have made a return to the southern grasslands of Singita. She continues to secure frequent prey species for her cubs and navigate the numerous lions that are occupying this same area of the reserve. The dense vegetation is now in their favour as it provides ample cover for them.
  • The male cheetah of the south has also been seen on a few occasions this January, and not just in the south but as far north as Castleton Camp.
African wild dogs
  • The Othawa Pack has been seen mostly in central and western Singita, and as the woodlands now become heavily vegetated these canines focus their hunting activity among the combretum trees. Their pack number still stands at 14.
Unusual sightings
  • During the midday break between safaris a big squabble was heard in the Ebony gardens. On closer inspection a troop of Vervet monkeys had surrounded four thick-tailed galagos in the trees. A unique scene followed between the daytime primates, and the generally nocturnal primates.
  • There was a sighting of what is one of the largest Southern African pythons recorded in recent times. The serpent was seen on the rocky outcrops.
Bird List
  • The first month of the year has all the twitchers on the team starting their list from zero, so the race is on to find as many ‘new’ species as possible. January is considered to have the biggest variety of birds than any other month due to it being right in the middle of the rainy season. Highlights for this month are cuckoo finch, Eurasian hobby, African pygmy kingfisher, Eurasian golden oriole and marsh sandpiper. Our list is at 241 species.