Tales and memories from the Kwando concession Sept 2015

[madaboutcheetah]

Hmmmmm - not sure why the uploading stopped..... Will try again later on. Just a final few from the series.

 

Thanks a lot @@optig and @@KaingU Lodge

[madaboutcheetah]

Continued.... (final few images from the series). wonder if there is a limit to the number of photos in a post? (GW, any reason? ... not sure why the uploading stopped) ..... anyways, here goes.....

[michael-ibk]

Just wow, Hari, what a sequence! Brilliant! Gory stuff ...

[CDL111]

As Michael said, what an excellent sequence of photos of the cheetah kill. Glad for the break in your uploading, gave me time to get my mext breath.

[Peter Connan]

The chase and catch are incredible Hari! Magnificent photography.

[madaboutcheetah]

Back to the pride of 7 - they hit another young buffalo overnight

 

The last two photos feature another random Nomadic male Lion (this one looked pretty ugly though like one of the Mohican ones from the late 2000s) - He took off when our vehicle approached the sighting and we tried a picture - that's the best I got and we left him to his own devices as he was pretty nervous and uncomfortable and we just stayed with the pride for a short while; This wasn't a particularly photogenic scene so I took a few quick portraits as you can see - and then requested Spencer to see if we could track that buffalo herd that had moved through the grounds overnight.

 

Very high on my list is a good solid Lion/Buffalo sighting (aardvark High) in daylight ....... I've seen brief interactions twice in the Mara - but, nothing solid.

[phil_b]

Now the cheetah Kill Deux ........ I had no hope or idea this was going to happen on that day. Judging them in the morning I was apprehensive at Spencer's suggestion that we keep a watch on them this particular day - so much so, we went back to brunch having seen them walk to that termite mound. He insisted that we take a chance and keep an eye on them (other vehicles came and went and possibly some of the others were on one of the final boat trips for the season) we hung in there (I was literally digging deep) and watched them "boys of lagoon" go from Flat to Fit!!! Later over drinks, Spencer mentioned that he had seen a lot of impala by the water earlier on and that this would be the direction they would head back in the evening and hence didn't want us to leave this particular opportunity. Even though, they didn't look exactly starving or hungry, if the opportunity presented itself they would take it ....... that's what happened here.

 

Note the guy behind is the one who was limping and keeping up with the brother who does all the hard work (funny how things pan out ..... the guy doing all the work now was the lazy one in days gone by - I have checked my old photos where he was just hanging back).

Awesome Cheetah sequence, just fantastic.

[Big Andy]

There are a lot of great images in this report but that Cheetah sequence is exceptional, you need the luck for it to happen when you're there but to capture it in the camera instead of going into panic mode is the clever bit. Well done Hari.

[madaboutcheetah]

Dogs ......

 

The dogs were digging a warthog out of there one evening - no luck for them; no luck for us either as this wasn't the most photogenic location.

[madaboutcheetah]

I don't know what to say, except you guys are much too kind ...... Thanks so much, @@michael-ibk , @@CDL111, @@Peter Conan , @@Big Andy , @@phil_b

Edited November 22, 2015 by madaboutcheetah

[madaboutcheetah]

Some varied images in this final post ...... Will look through unedited images later on when time permits to see if there's anything left over.

Edited November 22, 2015 by madaboutcheetah

[Big_Dog]

So many great sequences!
- Warm beeeater shots fantastic.
- The galloping Sable is wonderful.
- Black and white dog shaking, with dust and saliva flying off in great detail...awesome.
- Cheetah kill (the impala walked right into them!) was documentary level. Pretty sure you could make a flip-book from those pics!
- On lions vs buffalo, out of interest have you ever seen a lion kill?

[madaboutcheetah]

Thanks @@Big_Dog

 

Yes, twice - Warthog both times. One time, New Year's day (2008 I think?)

[Big_Dog]

@@madaboutcheetah - Very cool! At Kwando?

[madaboutcheetah]

@@madaboutcheetah - Very cool! At Kwando?

 

The warthog kills - 2008 Jan in Lebala and 2009 March in Kwara.

 

I've seen two near misses - Zebra hunt in the Mara.

[SafariChick]

@@madaboutcheetah WOW!!! Just through the cheetah kill sequence - stunning and riveting - I felt the tension of the struggle, and felt likeI was there!

[madaboutcheetah]

Thanks  @@SafariChick

[michael-ibk]

You´re on a roll, Hari. If someone asks you "Why Kwando again and again?", just give them the link to this report and say "That´s why." It will shut everybody up.

[optig]

Your photos of the dogs and sable are both fabulous. I did see a sable stallion at Lagoon this September and I've seen plenty of sable both in herds and individual stallions when I visited Lebala in 2011.

Edited November 23, 2015 by optig

[Zim Girl]

@@madaboutcheetah

 

Amazing cheetah kill sequence and loved all the dog pictures.

[Marks]

It's been said already, but that cheetah kill sequence is just superb! Amazing, amazing work.

 

I also thought the ele photos on the last page were nice.

[madaboutcheetah]

Thanks so much guys ..... @@michael-ibk @@optig @@Zim Girl and @@Marks

 

@@optig - these sable in Kwando are quite shy; those photos represent about 2-3 hours of trying to get them to relax by keeping calm - I read some posts of yours that you are going to Tswalu next year. I've seen photos of very relaxed ones there in some trip reports......

Edited November 25, 2015 by madaboutcheetah

[Kitsafari]

Love love the pictures of the sable. how fabulous they all look. that sable looks like it's smoking a cig - a big bone cig.

[Kitsafari]

oh wow that sequence of cheetah hunt was superb. such a fantastic call by spencer. It was hard to watch those shots of the impala still being alive while being eaten.

[madaboutcheetah]

@@Kitsafari - thanks a lot.

 

Yes, it was hard- but, in reality at their age; it's taking them a longer time to suffocate the impala. Yet, strangely - there was not a whimper of a noise from the impala. I found that odd....