5 Porini camps. October 2 to October 16

[CDL111]

Day 10

Porini Cheetah morning game drive.

The couple that we were sharing the vehicle with wanted an early start.

 

 

So not having a infra red camera took a pic to see what the result would be.

 

Waited to long and missed the sunrise.

 

Tawny eagle

 

Impala

 

Lappet-faced vulture

 

This is another of the 3 males

 

Nelson was of the opinion that this lion had just been slapped down by the dominant male

 

5 minutes later we come across the couple

 

Spotted thick-knee?

 

Vultures, then joined by a black backed jackel

 

Hertebeest

 

Thompsons gazelle

 

Pygmy Falcon

 

Leopard tortoise

 

Dwarf mongoose

 

Lilac-breasted roller

 

This masai giraffe looks like it was painted white first

 

African grey hornbill

[michael-ibk]

Great sighting of Dwarf Mongoose, they are such fun to watch. And what a splendid picture of a Pygmy Falcon, very cool.

[CDL111]

Thanks @michael-ibk, what was surprising is the size of the access to their burrow. Which regards to the Pygmy Falcon l was pleased that we were able to get so close, and it didn’t fly away.

[CDL111]

Day 10

Porini Cheetah afternoon drive

Saw the mating couple which looked as though it was coming to an end. Then just as we were making our way back to camp one of the other guides sent Nelson a text saying that they were with a pride, so we went to see them.

 

African grey hornbill 

 

Banded mongoose

 

The lioness goes and sits down

 

He just walks on past

 

Is that it then

 

He just kept on walking and she didn't follow.

 

Ele with a collar

 

There had been a kill by the pride but they had given it up to hyenas and moved on, Nelson thought they had given up the kill because there were sub adults in the pride who would probably come off second best against hyenas.

[AmyT]

What a sweet baby elephant!  Glad they showed up for you. 

[CDL111]

Hi @AmyT, the largest quantity of eles that we had seen up to then was eleven and they were some distance off and not close to each other for a decent photo, so it was pleasing to find ourselves close to this one.

[CDL111]

Day 11

Porini Cheetah morning drive.

This is our last day here and after breakfast and on our way to Porini Lion, at last a decent sized herd of eles.

 

Lilac-breasted roller

 

Not wanting to be photographed today

 

Masai giraffe

 

Banded mongoose

 

Thompsons gazelle

 

Yellow-necked spurfowl

 

Bare-faced go-away-bird

 

African grey hornbill

 

Lion footprint (wife says I am sad!)

 

Black backed jackal

 

Helmeted terrapin

 

Crowned plover

 

Vultures at the old kill

 

Hyrax

 

Eland

 

 

Larry (who was our guide today) thought there was about 30+ in the herd and he didn't want to go any closer because he said that they would probably go back into the bush.

 

There is an ele near the front were you can just make out that it has been tagged.

 

Last photos at Cheetah of hippo

[CDL111]

Day 11

Porini Lion afternoon drive

 

Here we are at our in the Olare Motorogi Conservancy and its our last camp. Our day out in the NP was to provide us with a sight that neither we or the couple who were with us had seen before and we were both in agreement highly unlikely to ever see again. Between us we have been on fifteen safaris, and the spectacular involved the five cheetah brothers and another animal on our sighting in the afternoon. Fig and her cub were also prominent in sightings as were lion. Jackson was our guide and John was tracker.

 

Start off with what must be one of the impressive scenic views on safari not involving wildlife. 

 

Hyena

 

Our first sighting of lion

 

Woolly necked stork

 

Jackson said that Fig and her cub had been spotted but the were outside of the private sector, but he would drive there and see what the viewing was like. When we got near it looked like a supermarket car park, Jackson said that he was not prepared to stop and the hopefully she would move into the conservancy where there would be far less vehicles. So he drove down the length of the parked vehicles, came back and the we reached the river crossing and stopped for us to take some photos.

While we were there, other vehicles that had trying to see Fig started to follow us and then used a different crossing.

 

Topi

 

First sight of eles

 

Another pride

 

Young ground hornbill

 

The mother

 

Hitching a ride

 

We then went back across the river to discover that nearly all the vehicles that had been parked up looking for Fig had gone, unbeknown to us, Jackson had spotted were Fig had left her kill, so he headed straight for that location, and after a few minutes Fig's cub came out of the bush.

 

  So a very happy end to the day.

 

Grey-headed kingfisher                             

 

[JakeGC]

I'm enjoying your images of your game drives in Olare Motorogi Conservancy from Porini Lion Camp with Jackson Sayialel. Your description contrasts the privacy of being in a Conservancy compared with the Reserve! Just a quick comment on 2 of the birds: the first is a female Coqui Francolin (looks rather like a Yellow-neck) and the second is a Woodland Kingfisher.

Jake

[CDL111]

Thanks @JakeGC, I think l might post photos of the birds and you can name them as l keep getting them wrong, as Stephanie would say “could do better”. Jackson’s awareness really comes to the forefront in our trip to the NP.

 

[JakeGC]

On 11/12/2017 at 4:06 PM, CDL111 said:

Thanks @JakeGC, I think l might post photos of the birds and you can name them as l keep getting them wrong, as Stephanie would say “could do better”. Jackson’s awareness really comes to the forefront in our trip to the NP.

 

@CDL111: you're welcome to email me any bird pics if you'd like help with ID. If I know the answer I'll be happy to help! The hornbill is a female Von der Decken's hornbill (Tockus deckeni). Great pic of the baby elephant showing that it can still fit under the mother's tummy which is generally taken as a sign that it is under a year old.

[CDL111]

Day 12

Porini Lion full day in the Mara NP, but first a drive in the conservancy and catch up with Fig and her cub.

On our way to the NP Jackson told us that the five cheetah brothers had been sighted and that we would go and see them. We had never seen a coalition of five before, we did see four in January in Buffalo Springs.

I will just post the photos pre NP now as l don't want to mess it up on quantity of photos.

 

Sunrise

 

good sized troop of baboons

 

One of five balloons

 

Well fed

 

We then crossed the river at the same location that we did last night, and there was this lonely male.

 

Male grey-headed kingfisher

 

Kori bustard

 

Warthogs

 

Fig and her cub

 

 

[CDL111]

Continuation to the NP. We had to divert from the planned route as the Talek river was to risky to try and cross, so it was over the bridge and through the town of Talek.

Jackson took us to see the five brothers, and as they appeared to be resting Jackson said we will go and have a bush breakfast and then come back.

 

We are now in the NP

I

 

I was pleasantly surprised that there wasn't that many vehicles here

 

Topi and young

 

Having had breakfast we were back with the brothers and stopped in a different location away from the other vehicles. The real reason were had stopped here was that Jackson had seen something that nobody else had and just kept it to himself, which in just a few pictures time gave us an uninterrupted view of what happened.

 

Can l ?

 

I think so and off he goes

 

What happened next you are probably asking yourself, well the camera stopped working so l looked at the camera and there was a sign on the screen that said CHANGE BATTERY, what l said would be censured. Jackson who was watching the chase quite calmly said "oh the topi mother has fought off the cheetah and saved her foal", even missed that. The other brothers came and probably commiserated. Thanks has to go to Jackson because without his awareness l would not have been able to take these pics.

They do remind Stephanie of what happened because she didn't take any pics and watched the whole chase.

 

Then it was time to go back and rest.

 

So it was time to move on.

Black-headed heron

 

Not sure if this is an Oribi because of it's marking under the ear

 

Defassa Waterbuck

 

Sleepy leopard

 

A few banded mongoose

 

Agama lizard

 

We stopped here for a while to see if the wildebeest or zebra were going to make a crossing, but no movement to the river was made.

 

We now stopped for lunch.

[CDL111]

Lunch finished and back to the game drive.

 

Spur-winged plover

 

Grey crowned crane

 

This cheetah was trying to get some shade, but was under such a small bush it didn't give total shade. We didn't stay long as other vehicles had seen us stopped and were heading our way, so time to leave.

 

Banded mongoose again

 

Wildebeest

 

Buffalo with calf

 

Warthog

 

Hyena

 

African wattled plover

 

Small herd of eles

 

Cokes Hartebeest

 

Zebra with a damaged behind

 

Hartlaub's Bustard

 

Great egret

 

Hyena

 

We are now back with the brothers, once again we park up away from the other vehicles, Jackson had obviously seen the big cat, l hadn't, even though l managed to include the lion in the pic, too preoccupied with the cheetah.

 

He now decides to teach the cheetah who is king here. What happen next is something that we or the people we were with had ever seen or unlikely to see again. The brothers did not run away but enticed the lion towards them, they formed a ring around the lion then one of the brothers moved towards the lion and he then started to run after the cheetah. Then to everybody's amazement another cheetah ran across the front of the lion and distracted him. the lion stopped seeming to be confused as to who to chase. This kept happening time and time again, the lion was always confused and kept having to stop and rest. This lasted for forty minutes and we both feel very privileged to have seen this spectacle. On two occasions Jackson move the vehicle in anticipation of what was happening and we were always the first vehicle there, others then followed but not all had a good a view as us. I counted seventeen vehicles here, l cannot criticize as we were one of them. Sorry to say that the camera did not capture what had happened and l think we were so mesmerised that nobody thought to film it. 

 

 

 

 

It was time to leave and so we headed back to camp and photographed these baboons on the way

 

Todays pictures could not have been taken from the locations that they were without the awareness of Jackson as to what was going to happen and we can understand why the couple that we were with always ask if it is possible to have Jackson as their guide. We needed a Dowa, but Lion camp did not have vodka so settled for G&T.

[michael-ibk]

An extaordinary Lion-Cheetah sighting and you have some great pictures here - they almost look relaxed about each other in these.

[CDL111]

Thanks @michael-ibk, it was fascinating to watch the cheetahs working together. It was as though each cheetah new what to do and the lion was never going to catch one.

[amybatt]

I saw the same type of antelope in the Mara in February.  My notes said Reedbuck, which when I looked it up, matched the forward curving horns (that is what caught my eye).  I think Oribi have straight horns.  But I could be wrong, I'm certainly not an expert!

 

Excellent cheetah chase you caught and interesting lion-cheetah interaction there.  I'd have paid to see that!

[michael-ibk]

It´s Reedbuck, sorry for not mentioning that. I´m not sure Oribi even occur in the Mara, I have never seen them there.

[modleski]

Amazing photos of lion and cheetahs!

[CDL111]

Thank you @amybatt and @michael-ibk for correcting me on Oribi, and @modleski, it would have been interesting to stay and see who left first, my guess would be the cheetah as the lion seemed to be so drained of energy that he would just lay there. 

[modleski]

Well, it was a magical sighting. We are signed up to go to the Mara -- though not until June 2019, so I'm reading your report with special interest. You are making me wish the time was much shorter!

[CDL111]

@modleski, have you decided when in 2019 you are going and to which camps?

[modleski]

@CDL111 Yes! We have decided--downpayment already paid. We are going at the end of June. We'll start at Saruni in Samburu (4 nights), then Kichcheche Bush (3 nights), then Serian Nkorombo (2 nights) and Serian Mara North (3 nights). We'll stay near Nairobi NP at Ololo Lodge for 2 nights so we can visit park and also Sheldrick Elephant Orphanage. 

[CDL111]

@modleski, sounds good, we were at Samburu in January and whilst there we went into Buffalo NP which adjoins and is worth going into as not many vehicles were in there and there was plenty of wildlife.

[plambers]

loved seeing the leopard shots-fig is lovely. we did not see a leopard this summer so we are returning next june/july to try again.