As guides at MalaMala, we often feel as though we are personalities in an ongoing wildlife documentary. Following the journeys of the animals as they move through their daily lives is a tremendous privilege and an experience that will not be easily forgotten. The script of the documentary cannot be predicted. Every excursion into the bush reveals dramatic discoveries, and one is constantly engaged in a roller-coaster of emotions. During my time as a guide, I have been lucky to witness some incredible sights. I have always said in the blogs that to see any of these animals is amazing, but the...

It gives us great pleasure to announce the winner of the MalaMala Video of the Year for 2012. This clip was all about being in the right place at the right time, and Martha van Rensburg raced to the front of the pack for her incredible clip of a leopard catching an impala in an acrobatic move. The video was taken at MalaMala on Saturday the 29th of September 2012 at ± 7:50am on a GoPro Hero. Said Martha, “I was on a photographic safari arranged by Greg du Toit, with Marius van Tonder and Ian Weatherburn. Our game ranger was Roan Ravenhill. We were on a game drive when we spotted a female leopard...

At the break of dawn on a misty morning last week, we headed out in search of the Styx lion pride, which had killed a bushbuck in front of the MalaMala Main camp swimming pool the previous evening. After hearing the sound of what must have been these same lions calling from around Bicycle Crossing Hippo Pools (diagonally opposite the camp) we wasted no time in heading to the scene. No more than five minutes away from camp, we found the lions lying on the sand bank at the Hippo Pools. Their heads were up, and their movements indicated a sense of anxiety. We could only count six lions before one of our...

Here are the sightings for the week ending 13 April 2013: Number of lion sightings: 12 Number of leopard sightings: 12 Number of elephant sightings: 40 Number of buffalo sightings: 21 Number of wild dog sightings: 3 Number of cheetah sightings: 0 *Rhino sightings currently unavailable. Gary Ranger – MalaMala Game...

Here are the sightings for the week ending 16 March 2013: Number of lion sightings: 10 Number of leopard sightings: 12 Number of elephant sightings: 20 Number of buffalo sightings: 17 Number of wild dog sightings: 3 Number of cheetah sightings: 1 *Rhino sightings currently unavailable. Gary Ranger – MalaMala Game...

Here are the sightings for the week ending 9 March 2013: Number of lion sightings: 6 Number of leopard sightings: 17 Number of elephant sightings: 18 Number of buffalo sightings: 16 Number of wild dog sightings: 1 Number of cheetah sightings: 1 *Rhino sightings currently unavailable. Gary Ranger – MalaMala Game...

The 16th of April will be remembered as a sad day for the Eyrefield pride of lions. The day marks the passing of the oldest lioness of that pride. She died at 14 years and 6 months old. When the lioness was first seen on the 27th of March after a period of absence, she had a noticeably large belly and it was predicted that she would give birth to a new litter of cubs. She was so large that we thought she might deliver in the days that followed. Fast forward to the 12th of April. The lioness was still just as large. Her condition had severely deteriorated. Despite her huge belly, she was very thin and...

With close on 500 images submitted, selecting just one winner was no easy task. But the judges have chosen their favourite picture, as well as the 9 runners up. The judging panel included: Shem Compion [Professional Photographer and owner of C4 Images & Safaris] Shane Doyle [Professional Photographer and owner of Shane Doyle Photography] Alison Morphet [Sales & Marketing Director, MalaMala Game Reserve] MalaMala’s Rangers: Grant Roodt, Ross Forbes, Gary Hill and Noldy Nolden Images were randomly numbered, and submitted to members of the judging panel in a folder with no reference to...

Earlier this week, in our blog update about the 17 Cape hunting dogs, Brandon gave us a bit of a challenge to find the lioness in the picture. Did anyone succeed? For those of you who would like to see where the cat was hiding, we have included the image with the answer. Happy weekend everyone! The MalaMala Ranger Team

The change of season brings much excitement to MalaMala Game Reserve. After another wet summer, the dry season is now well and truly on the way. The change of season means that waterholes, mud pans and small dams will be no more as winter takes hold. This is when the Sand River comes alive, allowing all creatures to quench thirst from its perennial waters. The onset of the dry season also means that it is time for the Eyrefield pride to spend more time on MalaMala. The four lionesses and seven cubs will leave the expansive plains to our west and return to the Sand River around Flockfield. These...

Last month was the first time that a pack of seventeen Cape hunting dogs was seen at MalaMala Game Reserve. Game records show that this is the largest pack seen running through the property in almost fifty years.  The pace at which they move make them hard to follow, and once they are out of sight it is very difficult to relocate the hunting machines. The pack has been seen twice so far in April. Both sightings produced spectacular interactions with other animals. On the afternoon of the 6th of March, before the dogs set out for their evening hunt, the pack surrounded and harassed five rhinoceros. The...

Last week surprised us with two pairs of mating leopards. The Airstrip male was found mating with the Kikilezi female in the rocky areas of Campbell Koppies. The Airstrip male’s father, the Bicycle crossing male, was located in the Tamboti Thickets, mating with the ever elusive Flockfield Female. This was the third recorded sighting of the Kikilezi female and Airstrip male mating over the last 4 weeks.  During the previous two courtships, the Airstrip male showed little interest as he ignored the Kikilezi female’s attempts to mate after only one or two days. In true style of a dominant male...

A recent guest of ours at Rattray’s on MalaMala wrote the most wonderful blog on her experience at MalaMala. We so enjoyed reading it, that we simply had to share it with you! “Yesterday, Mom and I boarded a plane in Cape Town bound for Nelspruit, a small town just outside of Kruger National Park. This is what South Africa looks like from the air: Actually, that looks like the middle of South Africa, where there are big savannahs and more deserty conditions. We landed in a gorgeously green landscape with large rolling hills, mango trees, avocado trees and lots of grassy grasses...

Caitlin Roman, a New Yorker who is currently living in Addis Ababa for a year, visited MalaMala last month with her grandparents. She shared her adventure with us: “I can’t say enough good things about our time at MalaMala – it was a truly once-in-a-lifetime experience. The animal encounters were SO up close and personal that it was hard to remember you were in a jeep – for example, watching a baby water buffalo born five minutes prior to our arrival take its first halting steps, or looking up into a tree to see a leopard tearing apart an impala it had just killed, while a hyena waited...