I spent last week Wednesday and Thursday on a 2 Day Tented Pilanesberg Safari in Pilanesberg National Park with a guest from Canada.

The 2 days were filled with sightings of Black-backed Jackal. It was really like they were waiting for us around every corner and as if every other animal in Pilanesberg had a Jackal following it.

We saw a Jackal feeding on a Guineafowl, a Jackal chased by a Springbok and Jackal doing just about everything a Jackal does.

Our evening in Pilanesberg National Park was completed with a true South African open fire braai and the sound of a Black-backed Jackal howling in the distance.

Thanks Pilanesberg! Once again you helped me to make my guest’s visit one to remember.

The highlight of my week was definitely a two day safari earlier this week to Pilanesberg National Park with some guests from Canada! Our game drives delivered some brilliant sightings and fantastic photographs of most of the big5. Unfortunately the leopards of Pilanesberg eluded us but my guests were very lucky in spotting some Buffalo which I don’t often see in this park.
We were treated with this sighting of a Klipspringer not long after arriving at the park.
The shiny, black patch in front of its eye is the pre-orbital gland used to deposit secretions onto twigs.

The rest of the morning we saw many Blue Wildebeest, Impala, Zebra and Elephant, and at around lunch time my guests were welcomed to Africa by the call of this pair of African Fish Eagle who will return to the same nest to breed every year - unless of course an elephant uproots the tree.

On a sunset / night drive we saw the Buffalo and a large White Rhino bull just before dark.
Tuesday morning we left camp early to enable us to get a few nice African Sunrise pictures but our plans were changed the moment we spotted lions not more than five kilometres from the gate. Without realising it, we spent almost an hour with these two females.

Lion cubs get introduced to the pride once they are around 2 months old and there is a possibility that they can be suckled by any lactating female on occasions. This is called allo-suckling.
The males were not seen which suggest they were busy patrolling the territory.

Although the Black Rhino numbers are way less than the White Rhino, we can still encounter both in their natural habitat.
Next time you spot a Rhino while on an African safari, whether it is in Kruger National Park, Pilanesberg National Park or any of the other magnificent parks in South Africa, there are a few differences to look for to determine if it is a Black Rhino or a White Rhino.
For the security of the animals in the following pictures, I will not disclose where they were photographed.
White Rhino

Black Rhino

More readily identifiable differences are as follows:

At first I thought it was an African Pygmy-Kingfisher, but on closer inspection the bird was identified as the Malachite Kingfisher.
It differs from the similar African Pygmy-Kingfisher in that it is aquatic and the turquoise cap touches the eye, lacking the orange eye brow and purple ear patch of the African Pygmy-Kingfisher.
Our safari group was treated to some very exciting Rhino sightings on our game drive from Kwa-Maritane gate to Bukubung Lodge where we were treated with an exquisite African Lunch.
After lunch we visited Mankwe dam where we spotted this Kingfisher and a water monitor.

The one day safari to Pilanesberg didn’t deliver any sightings of the big cats, but we did see an Elephant cow push a relatively large tree to the ground in order to get to the green foliage which was out of reach of her calf.
Thanks again to Ryan from Pilanesberg Safaris for allowing me to accompany your guests!

On Saturday morning I collected my guest from Sandton at about 07:00am and we made our way to Pilanesberg National Park for an overnight safari. We reached the park at about 09:00am and after a cup of coffee we went for our first game drive.
We didn’t drive very far before getting a herd of the Pilanesberg’s Elephant. They were very close to the road when we spotted them and after viewing them for a couple of minutes the entire herd approached the vehicle and they practically surrounded us as they crossed the road. This allowed for some very close-up photos which my guest and I loved.

During the next hour of our game drive we also saw a lot of Blue-wildebeest, Zebra and Impala. We also spotted some Hippo, Sprinbok and Waterbuck, and before we reached Mankwe dam we got another large breeding herd of Elephant. My guest was very impressed with the amount of game we already saw and especially the two herds of Elephant. He didn’t expect Pilanesberg to give him so much in just the first couple of hours of his African Safari.
My guest wanted a photograph of a Giraffe or two in silhouette and sure enough, during our afternoon drive we saw plenty Giraffe. At Mankwe dam we also saw yet another large herd of Elephant drinking and enjoying the cool of the mud.


A Black-backed Jackal was seen on the night drive and the guide also managed to spot a Brown Hyena.
Sunday morning was once again filled with sightings of Elephant, Rhino, Giraffe, Jackal and many more mammal and bird species.
We managed to squeeze in a visit to Pilanesberg Centre during our sunrise game drive and after brunch we had a last short drive before we headed back to Johannesburg.
Thank you to all the animals of Pilanesberg National Park for yet another safari filled with great sightings and photos!

We were on our way to Mankwe dam after entering the park at Kwa-Maritane Gate and we only drove about 10km before we spotted this dark maned lion male lying in the road.
The guests wanted to know why lions have manes and my answer was the following.
There is serious competition between males over territory and female prides. As with any predator, it will rather intimidate a rival than risk injury and starvation as a result of not being able to hunt. The mane’s function is then probably to make the male look larger and stronger.
Vicious encounters can’t always be avoided and when they do fight they suffer massive blows to the head, neck and shoulder area and it is speculated that the mane then also acts as a shock absorber.
There are probably several more functions for the male loin’s large mane but these are the most obvious.
Some also say that the females in certain areas prefer males with black manes over males with lighter coloured manes.
One thing which is not a speculation is that we all enjoyed the game drive. Any lion sighting makes a South African safari worth while and the king of the African bush surely made our hearts skip a few beats when he stared at us.

Not far from the Bakubung gate there is a small dam on the left where we saw a nice Reed Cormorant.


We then took a few gravel roads to Mankwe dam and on our way there we saw this Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill. It sat on the branch staring at us for quite some time before it took off. As if it got bored with us.


At Mankwe dam a Pied Kingfisher gave the birders with the big cameras and long lenses some good action photos of it hunting.


I was very chuffed to get a few pics of this African Spoonbill. A bird I haven’t had the chance of shooting with my camera before.


Pilanesberg National Park proves to me on every safari that it is not only a Big5 park but also an excellent reserve for birding safaris.

It was a great one day trip and the Pilanesberg National Park really delivered great sightings. I counted 14 species of mammals which included Lion, White Rhino and Elephant. We also saw Crocodile and Ostrich and a multitude of other interesting and colourful birds.

The day started early with the first group of guests being collected from their hotel in Sandton at around 06h00. We reached the park at about 08h30 and before even entering we saw a woodpecker tapping the branch of a large tree growing next to the reception area.

We haven’t gone far before one of the tourists spotted a Swainson’s Spurfowl and our game drive officially started. Not far from there we spotted our first harem of Zebra accompanied by a lone Blue Wildebeest. We saw many of these mammals throughout the day.

At about 09h30 we spotted a lone male Lion with a huge black mane. We came to the conclusion that he was either the leader of a pride busy marking the boundary of his territory or a nomad lying low between the territories of dominant males.

No more than 500 meters from the lion, we spotted a pair of Klipspinger who were clearly very alert due to the lion being so close.

While viewing a small herd of Blue Wildebeest, we spotted a Black-backed Jackal crossing the road not far from where we were so we slowly approached him in the hopes of getting some nice photographs. We only drove about five meters when the Jackal spun around and stared into the bush.

Two large White Rhinos then strolled across the gravel road and the Jackal had to give way. We all sat very still and got some very impressive photos of the two giants strolling along.

Before lunch we also saw a few Giraffes, some Hippos and a large Elephant bull.

Our guests were very fascinated with how close the Groundscraper Thrush and Fork tailed Drongos came to us whilst we were having lunch at Bakubung Lodge which is situated in the park.

After lunch we headed towards Mankwe dam with hopes of seeing more Elephant and we were indeed treated with a spectacular sighting. An Elephant was busy drinking on the opposite bank and before he left he suck up some water and sprayed it over his back to cool off.

Our time to leave the park and head back to Johannesburg was approaching so we made our way back to the gate, but not without getting a proper goodbye greeting. On our way to the gate we got to see another Elephant, but this time within ten meters from the road and a Giraffe so close that we could almost touch it.

We left the park very satisfied with the day's safari and I was once again touched by the magnificence of the African bush!

Thank you to Ryan from Pilanesberg Safaris and Tours for affording me the opportunity to lead your group on a one day safari to Pilanesberg National Park!!!

I received this photo of a big Nile Crocodile in an e-mail.

Apparently it was taken by one of the rangers in the Kruger National Park near the Phalaborwa gate.

Nile Crocodiles are considered one of the dangerous game species in the African bush and it is the only species of terrestrial predator that considers man to be part of its normal diet.

Crocodiles mainly hunt by ambush. They swim as close to the side of a body of water as possible from where they make an explosive rush and grab their victim when any form of prey wanders close enough.

The Nile Crocodile is the only crocodile species found in Africa. Nile Crocodiles are recorded to grow to a maximum length of 5.5 meters in Southern Africa and can weigh in excess of 1 ton. It is reported that Nile Crocodiles in East Africa get even bigger, reaching lengths of up to 7 meters.

Eggs incubated at temperatures between 31°C and 34°C develop into male crocodiles and eggs incubated below this temperature develop into females which means the eggs in the top part of the nest is more likely to be male and the ones in the bottom will more likely be female.  This is just the opposite in tortoises.

Stones of different sizes have been found in the stomachs of Nile crocodiles and the suspected reason is that it increases the crocodile’s specific gravity which allows it to breathe in more air before diving, allowing the crocodile to stay submerged for longer.

Remember these interesting facts next time you are on safari in the African Bush. It will certainly make you enjoy a crocodile sighting a bit more when you can tell your family and friend something about crocodiles. And make sure not to wander too close to the water on your next guided walk.