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The Leopard's Tale - December 2011
Good Day to all our Leopards Tale Readers
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| What a month to remember! With the stunning veld turning brilliant green to the Electric lighting storm we are reminded everyday why living on Zululand Rhino Reserve is such an amazing opportunity and Gift! |
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A CHRISTMAS THOUGHT
With Christmas just around the corner, why not make a donation in a loved one's name as their Christmas gift! We have found 2 worth cause that need as much help as they can get:-
Toy Story 2011 - East Coast radio – bring some joy to a child! Click Here
Rhino Initiative - Help WESSA to curb illegal Rhino poaching! Click Here
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Kim Steinberg Photography: - Tip of the Month
Sunrise Photography Tips
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Going to the spot early on will let you look for ways to look your snapshots out of the ordinary. Look for spots or angles that can make the photograph look more appealing and interesting. Stay away from vantage points that make the sunrise look average. Even if it's the most beautiful sunrise that has ever existed, it counts to nothing if you don't know how to capture it well. With enough preparation, photographing sunrises can become an easy and rewarding task. If you fail to come up with a masterpiece, don't get discouraged. As with anything else, practice makes perfect. In due time, you'll realize your strengths in photography and learn how to use them to your advantage.
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OUR RESERVE
The Rangers Report, our Guide, Wesley, gives us some wonderful updates as to what everything is up to:-
Summer seems to be bringing about some great changes here at Leopard Mountain. The sun is shining, the grass is greening due to the much needed rain that we have been experiencing on the reserve and the animals are all in their elements after a very dry winter.
Here is what's been happening around the reserve. |
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LION:
The lion have not been as nomadic as the previous two months. The majority of their time has been spent on the Leopard Mountain concession and when not at Leopard Mountain, they are never far away. The three brothers have made a number of successful kills over the last month too, including warthog right near our waterhole lookout point.
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It is great that the lion have settled in so well, this has given us more than a few opportunities to follow them as they track herds of Buffalo and other herd animals such as Nyala and Impala.
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ELEPHANT:
The elephants also seem to have moved into the area around the lodge and don't seem to be planning on leaving anytime soon. The elephant cows and bulls still seem to be spending a lot of their time pushing trees over to get to the roots and fresh leaves that are just out of reach when the tree is still standing. This provides for a good learning ground for the calves and adolescents, not only to learn how to get to the nutrient filled roots but also to learn how to debark branches to obtain all the fatty acids in the bark layers.
The elephant cows are dishing out loads of discipline to the young calves when it is needed with either a firm push with the trunk or a good spanking to the bottom also with the trunk. One particular calf was clearly getting on the entire herds nerves, to deal with the ''annoying'' calf, one of the older cows broke a branch off of a nearby knob thorn acacia and gently put it down in front of the calf to keep it occupied. This seemed to work very well.
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LEOPARD:
The warmer evenings are also proving productive from a leopard viewing perspective. We have had some excellent sightings this month and the leopard have also been very obliging. One particular sighting was very special. A female leopard was discovered not far from a favourite waterhole for many different species of animals on the reserve. Only a few minutes after she was discovered, a large male leopard decided to peel out of the bushes not far behind the female.
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The pair of leopards seemed to socialize for a little while, before moving off into some thick cover and into a drainage line leading into the Msunduze riverbed. Another sighting was shared not far from the lodge. This particular female was also completely oblivious to the fact that there was the presence of vehicles viewing her. She merely carried on with her late afternoon snooze and before we knew it, she had got up again just after dusk and headed down into the Manyoni river creating stress amongst the Nyala herds that frantically alarm called and scattered in every direction.
In the evening, while watching a leopard female close to a watering hole, a herd of elephants appeared out of the darkness and started to drink. The elephants were a mere 50m from the game viewer and we were parked between them and the Leopard. |
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BIRDS:
Now that summer is here, the migratory birds are all flocking to South Africa in numbers. This has provided us with some great opportunities to view birds such as: Violet Backed Starlings, Black Cuckoo, Klass's Cuckoo, Jacobin Cuckoo and African and Red Chested cuckoo.
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| Cuckoos being parasitic brooders are also causing a fuss amongst the host species which provide a nest for the cuckoos to lay their eggs into. Before the host species knows it, the cuckoo has swiftly moved in, laid its egg into the nest and moved out undetected. The parent host species then happily rears the Cuckoo chick as its own. |
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| Narina trogons have also been playing their part with more than a handful of sightings being shared amongst the leopard mountain guides. This shy bird spends the entirety of its day, well hidden in the forests on the reserve. |
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| There seems to be a large amount of ostrich chicks hatching on the reserve already. Some females have actually laid their eggs into the same nest sight. Once hatched there is also a larger amount of protection from all of the adults. Usually the more dominant female out of the flock tends to push the subordinate females eggs to the outer area of the nest sight, which is a shallow hollow in some soft sand, she then proceeds to move her eggs towards the centre of the nest where there is more heat when the adult is sat down on them. |
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BIRTHS:
There is also a large variety of animals giving birth to their young around the reserve at the moment. A few groups of warthogs have been seen on regular occasions. Warthogs typically have between one and eight piglets once every year. The herds of Impala are also fawning at the moment and there has been a couple of sightings of impala ewes with very large stomachs, lying very low seeming almost hesitant to stand up and move away upon our arrival, showing that they are all close to fawning.
Till next month... follow us on our blog.
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BUSH CUISINE
Chocolate Brownies
Ingredients
| Butter |
250g |
| Dark Chocolate |
200g |
| Chopped nuts |
50g |
| Cocoa powder |
80g |
| Flour |
65g |
| Baking powder |
1tsp |
| Castor sugar |
360g |
| Eggs |
4 |
Method
- Pre heat oven to 180°
- Line the base of a 29x23cm baking tin with wax paper & grease well.
- Melt butter & chocolate over a double boiler.
- Mix cocoa, flour, baking powder & castor sugar in a separate bowl.
- When chocolate is melted mix in the nuts & then mix with the dry ingredients.
- Mix in the eggs until the mixture is smooth.
- Bake for 25 minutes.
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Leopard Mountain Wine of the Month
& GOING GREEN
In the world today we all need to make an effort to help our environment recover from the damage we have caused. Some of us look at this and head for the hills as we think that only a huge project will make an impact, this of course is not the case any effort, no matter how small is a start!
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THIS MONTHS TIP
Organic Wines
If you enjoy wine, why not buy organic. In South Africa the vineyards have had a bit of a slow uptake on the production of organic wines, and although it is still rare to find a local organic wine this is changing rapidly. If you are able to purchase an organic wine this will benefit the environment incredibly. All organic wine farms have to have to produce wine without using synthetic additives and the soils productivity and quality is maintained and enhanced over many years.
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With organic wines no chemical additives are used and only half the amount of sulphur which makes this the healthier choice. The wine farms use only natural compost and organic nutrients to produce these magnificent wines that are helping improve our environment.
The environmentally friendly pest-control methods include a small army of ducks that patrol the vineyards, removing small insects and snails from the vines. Drip irrigation is used to focus the water where it is needed and preserve our natural resources. Show your support to the environment and go organic and remember - a glass of wine a day keeps the doctor away. Suggested Vineyards for organic Wines:
Bon Cap
Avondale
Waverly Hills |
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Funny Bones
The Dog, the Leopard & the Monkey
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Due to his owner's negligence, a dog became lost in the deepest jungles of Africa. Wandering around, the poor dog notices a leopard heading rapidly in his direction with the intention of having lunch.
Just then, the dog noticed some bones laying on the ground close by. The dog immediately settles down to chew on the bones with his back to the approaching leopard. Just as the jungle cat is about to leap, the dog loudly says, "My, that was one delicious leopard! I wonder if there are any more around here?"
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Hearing this, the leopard slinks away. "That was too close," thought the leopard, "that dog nearly had me."
Meanwhile, a mischievous monkey had observed the entire scene, and decided to cause trouble for the dog, while getting on the good side of the leopard as well. The monkey dashed off after the leopard, to tell him what truly happened. |
The dog saw the monkey dash off, and suspiciously tailed him from behind. He overhears the monkey spilling the beans, and quickly decides on a course of action, racing back to the pile of bones.
At the same time, the leopard has decided to take care of the dog once and for all. The monkey hops on the leopard's back, to watch the demise of the doomed dog. As the leopard approaches, he can hear the dog talking to himself: "Where's that lazy monkey? I sent him off half an hour ago for another leopard, and he's still not back!" |
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THIS MONTH'S COMPETITION
You could be the lucky person to win yourself and a partner a free night including dinner, bed & breakfast and game drives at the lodge. You may email us your answer to
This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it
(competition closes 31st December 2011 terms & conditions apply):
Solve this Riddle:
3 friends checked into a motel and were charged R30 so each paid R 10. The clerk realized that he made a mistake and overcharged them by R 5 so he asked the bellhop to return the R 5. He gave each friend R 1 and kept the remaining R 2. Each of the 3 friends got R 1 back therefore each paid R 9 which is a total of R 27. We know the bellhop kept R 2 which adds up to R 29 and not R 30. Where did the other Rand go?
Last Months Winner Was:
Thank you to everyone who responded to our competition! The winner of our LEOPARD MOUNTAIN competition for last month is Esme Mcdonald. Congratulations - you have won yourself and a partner a free night .
Last Month's Riddle was:
My age today is three times what it will be three years from now minus three times what my age was three years ago.
How Old Am I
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BEST GUEST COMMENTS
Nicholas Ealey & Chantal Gibbs-Jones
Bristol, Great Britain
A highly relaxing time In a dream like setting. We thoroughly enjoyed the Big Game. However the whole experience was made so much better by the Fantastic guides.
Richard & Jan Lauzon
Kanata on Canada
Stunning & Enchanting beyond words!
Annemarie & Paul Heiser
Luxenbourg Arens
The most Beautiful place on Earth seen so far!
Clinton Stroebel - Singapore
Mandy Woolfoord - PMB
What an amazing experience. My Brother promised to Wow me & Wow he did. Atmosphere, Service , Scenery – AMAZING!-
Date: 13/11/11
Diane Swarts, Awesome place, fit for a king, staff excellent thank you so much.
Date: 3/11/11
Mr & Mrs Bird, a wonderful, peaceful & Exciting holiday. Thanks to everyone
Date: 3/11/11
Martina & Ulli Schlueter, Thanks for unforgettable days at a wonderful place! You all did a great job! We will never forget the 'face to face' with the elephants Ivor!!!!! We hope to come back someday.
Date: 5/11/11
Thomas & Eugene Younger, Amazing trip! Well looked after, fantastic service & the Big 5. Recommend to all!
Date: 6/11/11
Eddie & Almut Rabe , Wow, what a fantastic experience, the service, food , personal touch, the knowledge of the rangers, really 100% all the best for the future.
Date: 6/11/11
Michelle, John & Lee Ann Walker, Superb, fantastic, excellence in service. Personal touch insightful game driver Ivor. All the very best always.
6/11/11
Jade & Sivi Moodley, absolute fab time, insightful and inspiring. Game drive excellent.
Date: 10/11/11
Jeremy, Penny, Gary, Tracey , Awesome , lovely would like to stay forever.
Date: 13/11/11
Bill & Avril Van Den Bosch, 'Wow' factor what a treasure proudly SA. Thanks to all the staff, felt so special. Spoilt 100%. Bye bye til next time.
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THOUGHT FOR THE MONTH
- Christmas Greetings -
Another year is coming to an end with the Festive season upon us. We wish you all Safe and Happy Journey to your Festive destinations. We hope you have enjoyed reading as much as we have enjoyed sharing our News from our Favorite place; and we will be sending more Updates in 2012. Look out for our New look newsletter in 2012.
May the miracle of Christmas fill your heart with warmth & Love. Christmas is the time of giving & sharing. It is the time of loving & forgiving.
- MERRY CHRISTMAS TO EVERYONE! -
From the Leopard Mountain Family
'After climbing a great hill, one only finds that there are many more hills to climb' – Nelson Mandela
Wishing you all a Festive Season and a Merry Christmas …till we chat again next month...
Editor
Melissa van Rooyen
Pictures courtesy of Ivor van Rooyen, Wesley Cragg, Tavis Dalton, Ryan and Jocelyn Vivier
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