Jump to content

Portraits from Mashatu


pedro maia

Recommended Posts

A little less than one year since me and my wife went to Mashatu we returned there with our kids for another (too) short but delightful family trip, here are some of the characters we met in this very laid-back and uncrowded piece of wilderness:

 

IMG_8926.JPG.c78424e29a29efbe2958060ea42bea45.JPG

 

IMG_9084.JPG.5db5b5bbd0848ab8b875355654cda73f.JPG

 

IMG_9148.JPG.4661ea3062f06d4a7f3f010936b6e2f5.JPG

 

IMG_9289.JPG.aa2639a85883cc48a6f2b8df36ae9bde.JPG

 

IMG_9716.JPG.39a9418d29faee45cf9fac2459130628.JPG

 

IMG_9914.JPG.dd6419edf8062128c60f83b143cf5ef6.JPG

 

IMG_0354.JPG.9e5ec3fb156182c2111c085f406a5312.JPG

 

IMG_1290.JPG.d58e73a395d9d1e46124ee31a584080f.JPG

 

IMG_1835.JPG.c0a966188999d7d95f21b887f6786f1d.JPG

 

IMG_1398.JPG.b11d2560c26324e5c2cd9465fbe4a72e.JPG

 

IMG_1720.JPG.82036ef36de00ec82dfe19f8849b1f1d.JPG

Edited by pedro maia
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great pictures Pedro! Wow, Cheetah, Lion and Leopard, Mashatu really delivered. I especially like the picture of Oxpecker, Weaver and Starling, very nice shot!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Great photos, and an excellent way to show a wide selection of wildlife.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

 

More please @pedro maia - wonderful photo of the 3 birds having a drink.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Excellent.  I'm hoping there might be some more coming?

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This time we stayed for 3 nights at the tented camp, tents are very nice, there are only 6 of them for 12 guests, with a maximum of 6 guests per vehicule.

 

There´s a hide a little outside the camp overlooking a waterhole, nice to see birds and game, the waterhole is floodlit but isn´t accessible after dark, it would be dangerous, but it´s visible from the boma where meals were served and we saw 1 leopard the first night and hyena the other 2 nights, I´ll post some pictures taken from the camp hide later.

 

A nice African sunrise:

 

IMG_1597.jpg.6cf72b07e9e5c2a6358ee3c4c3f91d08.jpg

 

IMG_1606.jpg.c7aad14a517afa692284b7d25d2d1602.jpg

 

And I start with the lions, we saw exactely the same lions me and my wife had seen in September 2018, the male was again under a bush, the only diference was that he was awake:

 

IMG_9022.JPG.5b6b9dee45eed8f4b144051dd2d0688f.JPG

 

IMG_9025.JPG.ceb486d4b895ca0196dac41d47344d2d.JPG

 

Also the same 2 lionesses:

 

IMG_9262.JPG.c51181c9088c326e878e3a235dadda95.JPG

 

IMG_9268.JPG.115ee834328bf8570be29aabdeaba780.JPG

 

In September 2018, the other members of the pride were 5 absolutely cute cubs, 3 and 5 months old by that time, this time, in August, the cubs were all alive, 14 and 16 months old, but they are no longer with the parents, they live together, all in great shape and it was great to see them again:

 

IMG_1383.JPG.002e5ad75e5dca3ba0ed1c300adbbf90.JPG

 

Even if they weren´t very active

 

IMG_1385.JPG.b4fdbf1d240c09120eac39f161ad6f04.JPG

 

IMG_1422.JPG.8216e3eada4e8322648af620c6ac9075.JPG

 

IMG_1449.JPG.f99d18071cc3008de2f68e68c88a64e8.JPG

 

It´s clear that they were quite happy together

 

IMG_1461.JPG.d09f0728e1c5b4003b08b194d463bb8d.JPG

 

IMG_1463.JPG.4522fb8c64dde813a15a73bc3568dedc.JPG

 

IMG_1469.JPG.7d0d44a2f1a43b5d6b1e7718adcfe502.JPG

 

The oldest male is growing a nice mane

 

IMG_1472.JPG.f66e38d086b253ba73708aef51a2db82.JPG

 

And they went back to what they were doing

 

IMG_1483.JPG.bf4051bbf7046b05339a02974e69a347.JPG

 

IMG_1495.JPG.26e14bd89232da431877d0042e2943fb.JPG

 

IMG_1509.JPG.c22a55573929eb8f107d8bd0cc601135.JPG

 

IMG_1510.JPG.386acdde43cfcb94c1f9d467ce4f1ab4.JPG

 

IMG_1511.JPG.7d1f2f4140a77e2ae10141fead54cd6c.JPG

 

IMG_1512.JPG.77bcc40a37da1edf97111dc17a166e5b.JPG

 

IMG_1513.JPG.3321eaddd0118a31675d88997fdfba1c.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

This year I was much more interested in birds then in previous safaris, all because of the Big Year bug:

 

Kori Bustard

1535292418_KoriBustard.jpg.f389d0e1df1c35d2e7aeefef17f50679.jpg

 

Saddle-billed Stork

1739018783_Saddle-billedStork.jpg.204dc81624713039d18fcec302be088e.jpg

 

Blacksmith Lapwing

1358749303_BlacksmithLapwing.jpg.6ee645c63b3f64574f476b4584bb38da.jpg

 

White-fronted Bee Eater

284889474_White-frontedBeeEater.jpg.7686fcb14e1a9894bf4b8e9b658c8c56.jpg

 

Lilac-breasted Roller

1135129388_Lilac-breastedRoller.jpg.248755dd5a86bc48309be89b77e901e8.jpg

 

1381289450_Lilac-breastedRoller2.jpg.9b257055a23bf868d65f1f6263d4ccde.jpg

 

Verreaux´s Eagle Owl

457602390_VerreauxsEagleOwl.jpg.7101b0208bcf01add8966c3ef68c9947.jpg

 

Brown Snake Eagle

206969198_BrownSnakeEagle.jpg.603d84fe1859a5b843a96149294025de.jpg

 

African Hawk Eagle

1589092526_AfricanHawk-eagle.jpg.62eb958089a3aeb29ab6af03ce162825.jpg

 

And Red-billed Quelea

IMG_0256.JPG.41248ee1fab37fe48a6091cd3b221755.JPG

 

IMG_0260.JPG.fb15467560613fdb69513fe712be26b1.JPG

 

IMG_0274.JPG.5a4a3f0578b9f6d4043d5a2af7ccbd7a.JPG

 

IMG_0276.JPG.21b3d134d9f585295f57797c98eb886a.JPG

 

IMG_0278.JPG.c2bd4ac3b521777547eac75af7f70350.JPG

 

IMG_0294.JPG.268c55bde225e99d186e8b25834808cf.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Peter Connan

Some really nice shots and sightings here Pedro!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Jackals are fun to watch for a while, even though they aren´t at the same league as other predators, not even close.

 

IMG_9078.JPG.5823b7d5e61623815fa7e83544195054.JPG

 

IMG_9081.JPG.3f73d998f89e88fa38ec1bb5d17b7c78.JPG

 

Cheetahs are a different thing, they are part of the big cat elite and are a real treat to see, even more in the morning sun which enhances their fur colours and their orange eyes.

 

IMG_9107.JPG.c354a55abbef82c20b6065997fe66bb3.JPG

 

IMG_9110.JPG.f61dba678985aff8cde9ee90999f2047.JPG

 

IMG_9112.JPG.7b6502c6534b3eef4ce53c65b7f8df8d.JPG

 

IMG_9116.JPG.aeb236a058acb626e112723743e7041b.JPG

 

IMG_9121.JPG.f614fe77ed01a9d3da8d72b01e9dd746.JPG

 

IMG_9125.JPG.68878a0c598a9bccb82195c4e770e5df.JPG

 

IMG_9127.JPG.7999b7d35d1fbf2252f9cb56fa8aca89.JPG

 

IMG_9137.JPG.61cb8c314a4a86a849df95f45f8abf77.JPG

 

IMG_9146.JPG.7f6032b0710f3e9ecf541c1556d8118a.JPG

 

This jackal was just passing by or it was waiting to see if the cheetahs make a kill to get some leftovers.

 

IMG_9156.JPG.d206a72c2535851f34eb30bc8c135e0d.JPG

 

Jackals don´t compete white big cats but they can be really annoying, and maybe these cheetahs were previously annoyed by jackals or they just don´t like them, and there was an obvious change of mood.

 

IMG_9165.JPG.78f39b7fd94fd7a346fa25aa9e9774a1.JPG

 

And they decided to go after the jackal.

 

IMG_9166.JPG.8ddb7772177e60c95eeb768cd2c66473.JPG

 

IMG_9167.JPG.099b5407476ca1b15947dce55fc1800c.JPG

 

IMG_9168.JPG.3571bd3b851c812b0d51339422f6377b.JPG

 

IMG_9169.JPG.4ad4a40a505a8e7960faa525b9aeb426.JPG

 

IMG_9171.JPG.f50eb072bfcf28e1292744d1bcd2f257.JPG

 

IMG_9172.JPG.ae024b8e1e502d8e0cbdcbe36c83c9b7.JPG

 

IMG_9178.JPG.90d9e8dce3637c8e5b52cd0d26560318.JPG

 

IMG_9180.JPG.b586e00f747c5d71dd2b1c0e07092900.JPG

 

IMG_9182.JPG.527637f4b5333af2e20abaa4ece250e7.JPG

 

IMG_9186.JPG.db75c025c97f9d41144436fe34473ff9.JPG

 

IMG_9188.JPG.53d2e36379d5b51b2313ba51c19f2a0e.JPG

 

Jackals are pretty smart so the cheetahs didn´t catch it, maybe they just wanted to give him a scare, but it was great to see the fastest land animal providing us a speed show, without any other car in the sighting.

 

IMG_9201.JPG.4c263ea5c05cde719656e515b5ca5d42.JPG

 

IMG_9221.JPG.63373922ac8bc832f89614287fd3a6a4.JPG

 

IMG_9223.JPG.fdd8f5b85837be250db9d76e60e14433.JPG

 

They are gorgeous cats.

 

IMG_9224.JPG.acf682cdb9fc7e2639740a20c6eba025.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

A fantastic Cheetah sighting in gorgeous light!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Gorgeous cats indeed, and beautifully photographed.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Muito bem, senhor, adoráveis chitas :D

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Love the cheetah shots! such beautiful and svelte cats.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I already mentioned the camp waterhole, during the "dead" hours between breakfast and high tea I went there to try to get some new birds for my big year and I was also entertained by general game that came to have a drink.

 

On our second (and last) full day in Masahtu I was at the hide, there were some birds at the waterhole and by an lateral opening I could see a distant giraffe, feeding on top of a small ridge, maybe some 200/300 meters from the hide (wiht the distance I wasn´t able to focus on the giraffe):

 

IMG_1180.jpg.45f169e09f9d1213cfdb4fc8882dffcb.jpg

 

As it kept the distance I started to think that it might come down to drink, and since I had nothing better to do I stayed at the hide, mostly alone, watchiing impala, zebra and birds, from time to time I would check the giraffe, it kept feeding over the same ridge, an nearly one hour later it started coming down, slowly and carefully, until it reached the waterhole:

 

IMG_1229.jpg.59937da8b0fe82fee5363730ea07d9c3.jpg

 

It´s always nice to watch giraffes drinking, I´ve seen that before but never from such a short distance, so itwas time to prepare the camera and start shooting while enjoying the momment, I know it´s something normal but normal things can be extraordinay and it was one of those things, and it was even better because I was alone the whole time.

 

IMG_1230.jpg.cee263ad6bef10b82ac4feef267545d4.jpg

 

IMG_1234.jpg.448fac289e1a05b32f9eefdf3d4cc0e3.jpg

 

Another go

 

IMG_1238.jpg.11a234bdef9ec3bfc2dd087940b51505.jpg

 

IMG_1242.jpg.3da214deb04a70a9ffa738de809fefd6.jpg

 

IMG_1243.jpg.dbfe4fdb96ef843dde84e91a898f51a4.jpg

 

It was clear that the giraffe was fully aware of my presence since I was visible and also because of the camera shutter noise:

 

IMG_1249.jpg.c4ef52b8f3014336bc6840488f030322.jpg

 

But it was thirsty so it kept dinking:

 

IMG_1250.jpg.2ad44f9dd35eaa231f09f0726636a998.jpg

 

IMG_1252.jpg.9d4e53d49db96ca7feb7ba10e8b02d02.jpg

 

IMG_1254.jpg.f973b7a046fbeb1cce36d7a00ecb14b6.jpg

 

IMG_1255.jpg.8e229140a33d8f126ef67ed303d7941c.jpg

 

it left but another giraffe arrived:

 

IMG_1268.jpg.236b04bcdc25af9cd4105f64ae76db02.jpg

 

IMG_1269.jpg.ad0018ba813e2299a36cf4bc42f034d5.jpg

 

IMG_1272.jpg.2fb6ddf21c189c1239d008a2a33892c0.jpg

 

IMG_1273.jpg.331b38a57e2fc37f149ab69e250be095.jpg

 

IMG_1277.jpg.12d54005b5db04740df43e5687edbfd8.jpg

 

And it also left, but I definitely had a great momment (sorry for the giraffe overload).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

You've done a great service for Mashatu with your excellent photos.  Such variety.  I have always heard Mashatu was good for cheetah.

"Jackals are fun to watch for a while, even though they aren´t at the same league as other predators, not even close."  Just don't tell them.  The cheetah seem to agree with you as they chased the pesky jackal away.

 

Nice job on the drinking giraffe.  You got the flowing spittle arcing gracefully!

 

I'm sure your family had a wonderful time together.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

On 10/17/2019 at 4:41 PM, Atravelynn said:

You've done a great service for Mashatu with your excellent photos.  Such variety.  I have always heard Mashatu was good for cheetah.

"Jackals are fun to watch for a while, even though they aren´t at the same league as other predators, not even close."  Just don't tell them.  The cheetah seem to agree with you as they chased the pesky jackal away.

 

Nice job on the drinking giraffe.  You got the flowing spittle arcing gracefully!

 

I'm sure your family had a wonderful time together.

 

Thanks, I like jackals, when we went to KTP we had a great time watching them but cheetahs are more spectacular, IMO.

 

And yes, it was a great family trip.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I think I already said that I like hyenas, in our family we all like, we had never seen a brown one and they also occur in Mashatu so I was hoping to see one and we did although it vanished immediately into the thicket and I didn´t even have a chance to take a picture but what counts is that we saw one brown hyena!

 

One of the things I asked to our ranger was to go and see one hyena den and that took us nearly a whole game drive because the den was quite far from the camp, probably because they want to have it far from lions.

 

It was great to see their intimacy and also the landscape was totally different from other parts of Mashatu, more like a forest and with autumn colours:

 

IMG_9641.JPG.fe2f8fa5cc2f7dae12837363c62467f5.JPG  

IMG_9645.JPG.558775c44c303469646b1a8d1b7a6d7b.JPG

 

IMG_9656.JPG.f092fb871dfe0f315138b4f8fab2a60c.JPG

 

IMG_9659.JPG.deef09de3032b5809e94ea022030f46a.JPG

 

I really think that hyenas have a marketing problem because they are incredible and provide great familiar scenes.

 

IMG_9664.JPG.e9facc696bbb33f73784c58ec8a6e74b.JPG

 

And the cubs are really cute

 

IMG_9673.JPG.426c362b3ab1e55b036bd7cd24798831.JPG

 

IMG_9685.JPG.ed73d56f9c88d5dd9ce94f28509721d9.JPG

 

IMG_9690.JPG.b516b31863b07f19cf13ca30d093e9c5.JPG

 

IMG_9691.JPG.bd8d4e1d2f5d8c760b21b5fd39ae9cec.JPG

 

IMG_9697.JPG.8445447a3f62f2790f86e5f709cc030f.JPG

 

IMG_9701.JPG.72d51cea1517cb85d8ebc0c4e4debeef.JPG

 

IMG_9703.JPG.9269f31b78959cb61d4d825e2da77fb2.JPG

 

IMG_9705.JPG.7417aa19f2d5ba747b39ca1e5c5cb829.JPG

 

IMG_9707.JPG.f8865ea77d02fe06d2d88ca9d842f89e.JPG

 

IMG_9709.JPG.eca9403626e614dee1ea15a9016d903c.JPG

 

IMG_9710.JPG.d39dddcf8031a5f1572d2907b849ef7a.JPG

 

IMG_9713.JPG.723824247fc260fa1d4af2c1267e4123.JPGIMG_9715.JPG.7515d0c18de4ee7b62c1c7adebc9e2f7.JPG

 

This one was absolutely adorable, it´s a pity it didn´t come completely out of the den 

 

IMG_9716.JPG.3ced1c845bac84fcdb67fcf0f1ec8912.JPG

 

IMG_9718.JPG.db41cb55a06bb4aef9b71e93acfa9213.JPG

 

Seems to be thinking about life...

 

IMG_9720.JPG.8601338afa69bdd2f7178d55117c128d.JPG

 

IMG_9725.JPG.6a59e9796bb0e3954338d6ec138659e3.JPG

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Hyenas,  when puppies, are indeed very adorable animals. Very good photos,  you have captured some nice moments!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Lovely sighting!

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Wonderful report. Loved the Cheetah and Hyena shots in particular but all pictures are great. 

 

I had planned a trip to Mashatu a few years ago but did not make it in the end. Must have a rethink. 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

Safaritalk uses cookies to ensure you get the best experience on our website. By using Safaritalk you agree to our use of cookies. If you wish to refuse the setting of cookies you can change settings on your browser to clear and block cookies. However, by doing so, Safaritalk may not work properly and you may not be able to access all areas. If you are happy to accept cookies and haven't adjusted browser settings to refuse cookies, Safaritalk will issue cookies when you log on to our site. Please also take a moment to read the Terms and Conditions and Privacy Policy: Terms of Use l Privacy Policy