Often on safari I pass waterholes – even in the dry season – and find no animals drinking. This surprises guests, as many are used to seeing photos of an abundance of wildlife gathered around waterholes. These pictures are usually taken in the arid areas of Namibia where surface water is very scarce, and the animals thus are forced to congregate around a limited resource. The truth is, up until a day during lock down, this same thought used to cross my mind whenever I arrived at an empty waterhole, even in the middle of the dry season – where are all the animals?
So, what changed my mind during lockdown? Well, I had always wanted to spend from sunrise to sunset sitting at a waterhole, and the lack of guests during that time gave me as good an excuse as any to go and do it. My initial plan had been to do so for five days in a row…I lasted two! It was a little lonely out there, but it was still an incredible experience, and one that I recently recalled had actually kept notes of!
The one thing that struck me was the timing of the wildlife’s visits to the waterhole – almost no game came during the early morning and late afternoon, but between those two periods was an almost constant steam of activity – these are the very periods we are chilling at Tanda Tula and enjoying the happenings at our own waterhole. Even at this time of year, if one passes a waterhole on the way back to bush breakfast in the late morning, there is usually a host of game starting to gather.
So just how much game does come along when we are not watching? Below are the entries I made on my phone during the course of the day, recording the animals’ activities, as well as some of my own…sometimes my own thoughts intrigue even myself!
2nd June, 2020. Machaton Dam. Timbavati Private Nature Reserve.
07:00 – Arrived at the dam and set up my chair, cooler box and books; no animals in sight, but lots of bird calls; Hornbills, Spurfowls, Verreaux Eagle Owls, rutting impalas (not a bird), Grey Go Away birds, Egyptian Geese, Woodpecker hammering…aside from that, silence.
07:20 – Billy the wildebeest arrived and called to mark his presence
08:33 – 16 wildebeest came from the east and around 10 zebras came towards the dam; only the wildebeest drank, zebras moved off
08:39 – family of Pied Kingfishers arrived
08:51 – Billy went screaming off after the other wildebeest that dared call in his territory…almost ran into me!
09:17 – 4 young male impalas came to drink
09:30 – about 20 zebras came for a quick drink from the north
09:42 – 28 wildebeest and 7 zebras came to drink; also, from the north
09:53 – Billy the wildebeest returned
10:05 – it’s getting warm out here, needed to move into the little shade my Land Cruiser was providing
10:40 – herd of impalas came to drink; approximately 50. Joined by 1 x warthog and 1 x rhino bull who arrived but stood in the shade; 1 x female kudu also walked past
11:01 – large male giraffe arrived from the north-west; had a three-minute wee and then a five-minute drink…1 x wildebeest and 5 x zebras also came from that direction; Billy made a reappearance on the other side of the dam and the other wildebeest bull left. Rhino still standing dead still
11:12 – rhino eventually came to drink; giraffe walked off. Rhino changed his mind. Giraffe hooves click when they walk; I knew eland did that but not giraffes…they should probably see someone about that. Giraffe wandered off in the direction from where he came
11:14 – rhino back in his shady spot. Looks like I’m a trend setter as it heats up.
11:16 – birds have really quietened down; can hear some Waxbills, Turtle Doves, and not much else….possibly because I am rubbish with bird calls. Kingfishers are gone and only the odd dove comes to bathe. Occasionally hear a screech from the owls.
11:17 – I should probably read…it was kind of the point of today
11:29 – stopped reading because rhino did eventually come and drink. Another six zebras arrived but they are hesitant to drink
11:36 – rhino walked off East. No wallowing today
11:50 – a few male impalas (could see four) drank by dam wall
12:00 – Mince Mate on a bread roll for an early lunch and another male giraffe came to see what it was about. He’s still staring at me. He isn’t getting my food.
12:16 – impalas moved to shade on south-western corner; some also drank…shade seems like a splendid idea as the day heats up.
12:25 – a few more impalas (around 50) streamed in to drink, some warthogs (5) come running in to but moved off when impalas got a fright
12:38 – as I climbed in the vehicle to reposition; looked up and saw 10 kudus (females and calves), 2 zebras and some impalas coming to drink; all from the south-west
12:43 – a male giraffe approached from the south, but walked straight past
12:45 – first audio of a herd of elephants to the south
13:10 – four warthogs came to same inlet for a drink as previous warthogs; don’t think they’re the same as not covered in mud
13:13 – now they’ covered in mud; two female giraffes have entered the scene. Bull still watching me whilst oxpeckers bath
13:16 – I cheated and ate lunch early. Already regretting it. Just have fruit now for the next 5 hours. Oops.
13:20 – a group of 3 Southern Ground Hornbills arrived and set off the Lapwings; turns out there are many giraffes – 3 females and a young male that come to drink; big bull displaced young male
13:23 – 3 more warthogs come to drink with the giraffes, as well as 6 male impalas
13:48 – giraffes slowly wandering off to the north-east; young male didn’t drink.
13:53 – for the first time since the wildebeest arrived five hours ago I can’t see any animals at the dam
13:58 – that didn’t last long; the wildebeest have come back onto the clearing…much to Billy’s delight as he calls to mark his territory
14:00 – 5 impalas are approaching the dam to drink
14:10 to 14:30 – Billy chasing the herd of wildebeest around, but then they settled down
14:49 – 5 impalas drinking; sounds like kudu alarm calls to the south
15:05 – elephant bull emerged from the East to come drink; sparked off an approach from the wildebeest
15:12 – both elephant and wildebeest moved off…and nature is calling for me
15:25 – noticed the moon has risen; possibly get a full moon rising on Thursday?
15:33 – a male warthog came to drink
15:50 – 3 giraffe came charging out the woodlands east of the dam
15:56 – giraffes stood staring but then bolted off north
16:08 – Two fat-bellies Nharhu male lions arrived from the east to drink….guess we know why the giraffe were running
16:31 – Left the dam to follow the lions but quickly lost them. Idiot. Should have just kept reading.
After such a wonderful day, I couldn’t wait to do it all over again the next day! But, the bush being the bush, it was a different kind of day. No massive excitement with lions or leopards, but lots and lots of zebras that followed the same pattern as this day. Maybe I will have to try do this again one day, as even if it wasn’t good for my reading, it was good for my soul!
Until next time, cheers!
Chad
