Fighting for a breath

By Jackson Shirima - Guide, Chada Katavi

If anyone wants to see hippos in different lifestyles, maybe one should try Katavi. The lifestyle ranges from hippos living in super-clean water to hippos lying in a cesspool of hippo dung and water. One of the most intriguing part of hippo life is their fighting style. While other animals use horns, claws and even hooves for fighting, hippos, especially males, make good use of their formidable tusks and incisors.

Fighting differs seasonally from territorial spats when there's food and and water abundance, to individuals desperately fighting for space when only a few pools are left and there are too many hippos for the few pools.

We were heading to fly-camping one evening and decided to look at the Katuma River, which was by now drying up with only a few pools left. A young male hippo was resting in a small pool of water,  when a bigger (probably older) bull came in and provoked the youngster into battle. Battle ensued and the young hippo fought bravely, he pushed the older bull out of the pool and chase him on land grabbing his hindquarters and "wheelbarrowed' him before he retreated.

There were thirteen lions resting nearby and they were forced to give way as the young bull kept up the fight and forced the older one further away. We had to proceed to our fly-camping area, but left the older bull sitting on his hindquarters submissively whilst the younger bull kept biting him. We went to the spot the next day and found both hippos still alive, but the older one had terrible gashes on his flanks but was lucky to have escaped with his dear life.

Picture by Jackson Shirima

Warthogs in Katavi

By Maripet Koipal - Guide, Chada Katavai

Warthogs are one of the most spectacular animals, and very interesting because of the very large tusks they use for fighting with other animals. Warthogs use their tail in display when threatened and they raise it up by indication to follow the sign.

Warthogs weigh about 60kg - 100kg but in most cases the males are larger than the females. Their gestation period is 5 months, and they produce 1 - 8 litters. Their man food is roots, fruits and grass and they always kneel down when feeding.

They can be found in matriarchal groups of 4 - 10, they are non-territorial and like to inhabit open grasslands and woodlands.

Meeting up buffalo

By Jackson Shirima, Guide - Chada Katavi

As it gets drier, big buffalo herds move to the vicinity of water and this is the best time to do those breathtaking walks up to the herds. Staying a safe distance of course, you can enjoying them without them having the slightest knowledge of your presence. Obviously big herds will be less naive as compared to animals of the same species wandering alone.

As the buffalo herds move from place to place in search of water and pasture, old bulls often can't keep up the pace and are forced to stay back, either alone or in small bachelor groups. In normal circumstances, meeting a lone buffalo bull could mean you are meeting one of the meanest things in the bush.

I have had several instances where these bulls run after the vehicle, and in one instance nearly hit its target. We were having a leisurely evening game drive when we saw a lone bull ahead of us. He was grazing on the river bank and seeing us, he ran into some thicket. We kept driving and when we came to ten metres from the bush, he burst out without any warning. My instinct made me press the accelerator harder and we went straight past him. He did not stop but kept running, then stopped. Everyone in the vehicle had that sigh of relief that he wasn't coming again.

It doesn't happen often, being shaken by these majestic bulls, but as we humans have moods they sometimes have a very bad mood.

Picture by Jackson Shirima

Odd coloured Impala in Katavi

By Emmanuel Moshi - Guide, Chada Katavi

Impala's stand as the antelope of their own kind, in that they are not closely related to any other animal. Lots of efforts have  been made to classify them, including DNA testing, but they still clearly belong to a separate tribe. As the people are still being puzzled where to classify them, a new coloured impala was seen in Katavi. It had a black coat, rather than the normal fawn colour, and was quite unique. Thinking that the coat might be attacked by parasites such as mange, we took a closer look, and confirmed that this did not seem to be the case. We saw the impala about four times feeding in the same mixed herd. We saw her under the shade of the acacias, where the group of impalas were feeding on pods in the late morning. We can not tell what is the source of the colour, but it might be the extra pigment of melanin that produces the black colour or dark brown.

Picture by Mary Guy, October 2009

Side striped Jackals in Katavi

By Maripet Koipa, Guide - Chada Katavi

Last night we heard the vocals of the side striped jackals which were communicating near Chada camp in the Chada plain. It seems that there were two jackals due to the different directions of the calls.

The most common call they make is an explosive ‘bwaa’ usually uttered by a single animal at night while standing. This will then be replied to by accompanying members or family unit members. Normally side-striped jackals are monogamous and territorial. They sometimes occur in family units of up to six. They are active at night and they forage individually, moving at a walk or slow trot. Most of the day time they hide in their dens or aardvark holes.

Tamarind Trees and Elephants

By Philip Pendaeli - Guide, Chada Katavi

We were enjoying an afternoon game drive along the Katuma river. After seeing a lot of hippos, crocs, old buffalo bulls and so on,  we saw an elephant bull in the distance under a tamarind tree. We decided to get closer for the better view and found elephant collecting tamarind fruits on the ground,  as well as vervet monkeys in the tree.

We stayed there for about 10 minutes and the elephant was finished the fruits on the ground so he decided to look for more.  To get them down from the tree, he started shaking the it.  It was great to see him shaking the tree, but more amazing was watching the very surprised monkeys that were in the tree. They held on tight, trying to save themselves from falling to the ground. Luckily, all made it safely!

Hippos moving out of the Katuma River

By Frank Japhet - Guide, Chada Katavi

Hippos spend most of their day submerged in water in order to avoid sunburn, and generally come out at night to graze. In Katavi, you can often see them out during the day time, grazing along the river where it is quiet and secure for them. Hippos have a mucous gland, with a secretion which helps prevent their skin from sunburn or infections.

Also in Katavi some of the hippos leave the Katuma river and establish huge hippo pools in the spring water near Ikuu ranger post. They use the mud to keep their skin constantly moist and to protect their wounds from red-billed and yellow-billed oxpeckers. The mud also reduces the itching from ecto-parasites.

A few years ago from September to December, the Katuma river dried up completely. The hippos recognised this problem and at the beginning of each July they start to shift from the Katuma river to the Ikuu spring waters. That hippo pool is the union of different small family groups, which are know as ‘schools of hippos’. There are currently between 300-400 hippos at Ikuu hippo pool.

Picture by Philip Pendaeli - Sept 09

Katavi's Plain of Amazement

By Emmanuel Moshi, Guide - Chada Katavi

This is Katisunga Plain which is 425 sq km. This extra-ordinary plain looks like the endless plains of the Serengeti. The difference is that the Serengeti plain occurred as a  result of the volcanic eruptions which cooled and created a hard pan which does not allow tree roots to attach. But in Katisunga the area is surrounded by the black cotton soils that hold a lot of water in the wet season, which causes the roots of the trees to rot and not grow. However, the edges of the plain are surrounded by a long chain of borrassus palms.

The area has been a key point for finding different game. The area serves many animals such as topis, which depend on the termite mounds to advertise their territory and scanning.

It also has massive herds of buffaloes that can range from 100-4000 in the same area, always being accompanied by the Katisunga North pride of 12 lions with 6 cubs. Again, it’s a good place to see hippos mudding themselves with their tails in a water hole. Zebras and giraffes supplement their diet by grazing on short grass in the plain for some of the season. 

Picture of Katisunga Plain by Peter Brack

United we stand

 

By Jackson Shirima, Guide - Chada Katavi

One morning we were on the temporarily water-filled Chada Lake and there were eight lions stretching and getting ready for the day. In a distance there was this big buffalo herd of six hundred or more individuals. A few metres from the main herd there was a small group of old bulls and among them a young calf of four months or so.

The lions moved closer, laid ambush as the herd moved on. Three lions closed in on the small group and managed to get the calf. The bulls came to the rescue of the young calf and managed to chase away the lions but then more lions came in and chased the buffalo herd into confusion. In the stampede the lions managed to get the same calf again.

This time the bulls accompanied by a number of females chased away the lions and managed to save the calf. The lions re-grouped and after a short while five of the lions, two young males and three females went for the same calf for yet another time. They managed to get the calf which was getting weak by this time. They held it down for about two minutes before the whole herd of buffaloes closed in on them. A number of females surrounded the calf as if to guard it while some bulls kept a hot pursuit on the lions for about 50 metres and left them.

After about thirty minutes the buffaloes were ready to move on. The lions came to collect their kill but it wasn’t anywhere to be found…the calf had survived!! It is surprising to see how animals can be organized and cooperate to ensure the survival of each other in the given species.

 

Hyenas in Katavi

by Maripet Koipa, Guide - Chada Katavi

Hyenas are well known as scavengers because they depend on what they happen upon in the bush for food. However, they can sometimes find their own food by hunting in packs or even on their own.

Last week we had a walking safari from our camp across the Chada Plain. As we were walking, we saw four hyenas and good number of vultures. When we got close to them we found the hyenas trying to chase the vultures from the hippo carcass which was very close to the river. Then, as we were about 200m from them, we noticed that these hyenas had eaten the food to their fill and they decided to rest and wait for digestion to take place in the same area. So then we spent a little time there watching them before continuing with our walk.  We realised that hyenas never pay back the reward they gain: they normally use the vultures to pin point the kill or carcass, but at the end they become so unkind by chasing the vultures off the meat and make them starve.

This was the best highlight of the walk because to see hyenas is difficult since they are very nocturnal compared to other animal. 

Picture by Philip Pendael

Hippo Jam

By Philip Pandael, Guide - Chada Katavi

It is normal here at Katavi National Park to see animals in huge numbers during the different seasons. In the wet season, there are large numbers of hippos, although they form subgroups in the rivers and pools. Also, because there is plenty of good food and they are in good health, the bulls are always fighting over territory. Hippos need enough water to cool off the body temperature, as they lack sweat glands.

But it’s a different case when these seasonal water dries: the hippos suffer from a shortage of water and food in the dry season, especially. In September to November, just before the short rains, hippos congregate in natural springs. Because of their large number, this water is not enough for them, so the hippos stay in the mud of the pools they make from these springs. Like this one in the picture, we found near one pool at Ikuu Ranger post. There thousands fight for space in the mud in order to try and save their lifes. It is no longer territorial fighting. It is difficult to see these muddy hippos suffer, but that is nature.

Picture by Philip Pendael

Lions mating in Katavi

by Frank Japhet - Guide, Chada Katavi

On the 13^th and 14^th August, a male and a female from the Chada Pride of lions were mating in front of one of the guest tents in Chada Camp. Before the mating, they engaged in a lot of displaying: the lioness rubbed up against the male, then writhed on the ground at his feet. When the lioness invited the male to copulate, the male grips her neck before mounting. It is thought that this may make the female more passive. After mating, the female lion snarls and twists, trying to hit out at the male. The male moves out of the way quickly, growling. The female then rolls over and grooms herself.

When a lioness is in oestrus, together with the male they choose a good place for mating to avoid disturbance and competition from rivals. Shade is also important, to avoid the fierce sun, as well as staying close to water. Whilst we were watching them, they moved from place to place, but continued mating every 15 to 20 minutes. Lions continue to mate this often for about three days. This is to increase the chance of pregnancy during the period that the female is in oestrus, and to prevent any other male lion from being the father of the cubs.

Picture of Katavi lions by Peter Brack

Tree climbing lions in Katavi

By Emmanuel Moshi, Guide - Chada Katavi

The lions in Lake Manyara National Park are world-famous for climbing trees, but this experience has also been noted with Katavi lions. Katavi National Park has many less visitors than Lake Manyara, so this is perhaps why few have witnessed this.

I was on an afternoon game drive with two guests, Robin and Patricia, and we were concentrating on the usual flora and fauna. Then, when we crossed the river to the other side of the woodland, we saw tails and legs hanging from some trees closeby. With the aid of binoculars, we noticed that there were six lioness in total, each flat-top acacia having three lioness relaxing in them. Then we went close to a few metres distance and they were well settled and not bothered at all by our presence. The lionesses kept scanning in different directions to see whether there is the possibility of catching prey, while enjoying the cool breeze off the Katuma river. Sometimes, the lions also climb trees to get escape the flies, which can become unbearable when they bother the animals in large numbers, biting all the time. After watching the lionesses for a while, it started to get dark, so it was time to head back to the camp. As we left, the lionesses began climbing down the tree, into the cooler night.

Picture by Robin Cook-Hurle, July 2009

Mighty dwarves

By Jackson Shirima, Guide - Chada Katavi

Anyone, whether resident or visitor is impressed by the variety of sizes, shapes and by the number of termite mounds on the African savannah. Some of these mounds are extremely substantial and well planed. On the northern edge of Katisunga flood plain there is this intriguing colony of termites who decided to build their mound in a life tree. It is amazing how these creative engineers managed to put up their collective feat of skilful work into the tree and still both co-exist in perfect harmony.

Katisunga gets flooded in the wet season but no water reaches the level of the mound and no Aardvark, Aarkwolf or Pangolin have the balance to climb the tree, break the mound and hold on at the same time. Termites modify the soil to create the their homes that range from fist size mounds to ingeniously air conditioned giant mounds, reaching up to six meters in height. Termite mounds are of use to mammals, birds and reptiles as resting sites, lookout points, scratching posts and refuge from predators. Trees will also take root in abandoned mounds but sometimes we have reversed roles as in this case.

Wild dogs in Katavi

By Maripet Koipa, Guide - Chada Katavi

Wild dogs are animals that hunt by day and sometimes by moonlight. They migrate a lot during times when food is hard to find. Their home range is anything from 200-700 square kilometres, but may be less depending on the density of the prey. The pack has from 3-10 adults with several pups.

Wild dogs are endurance animals: they can run down their prey for up to 5km at a speed of over 40kph. When dogs catch small sized prey like impala or gazelle, wild dogs dismember the animal within minutes. Rarely, they will catch large sized animals like zebra, wildebeest. It may take time for these animals to die, so some people may think wild dogs are cruel hunters.

Big animals like zebra and wildebeest get held by one dog around the mouth, and the rest of the dogs attack from the rear end, killing the prey.

Wild dogs are very successful hunters but competition from other predators like lions, leopards, hyenas is very high. In Katavi, the density of lions and hyenas is fairly high, which may mean that wild dogs here need to have a larger area to hunt in.

We do see wild dogs from time to time in Katavi, where their favoured prey is impala. Although we haven’t seen them for a few weeks, it is denning season, meaning that they will not be moving around much as the newborn pups are too small. Hopefully, we will soon be seeing the pack again, with some youngsters.

Leopards in Katavi

By Philip Pendael, Guide - Chada Katavi

As elsewhere in the bush, Big 5 or Big Cats expectations is the most often asked question we meet when we pick up guests at Katavi airstrip. “Philip, do we have any chance to see a leopard here?” – Yes, there is, let’s cross our fingers. “Good!”

Last week, we went out for our afternoon game drive at 4.30pm and after thirty minutes, we found a young female leopard sitting on the road. The leopard jumped a few metres off the road and hid in the tall grasses. I started thinking how to catch this elusive animal, particularly as in Katavi they are very shy. So I followed gently, without confidence. But it was different: the leopard was waiting for us, quite relaxed and we started taking photos quickly. After a few minutes the leopard started walking on the ground, then climbing the trees, and it was the most wonderful sighting I have experienced. We stayed there for more than two hours and then headed back home.

Early the next morning, we went out again and about 2kms away found the same leopard hunting impalas. We waited to see if she could make a kill for almost two hours, but nothing happened, although there was very good cover and the leopard was less than 30m from the impala. I realised that lack of experience was the reason, because I would age the leopard at about 1.5 years old.

Leopards are more wide spread than any other African carnivore, and can exist in lowland forest, mountains, and even desert. They are very beautiful to watch, but difficult to spot due to their camouflage colour and mostly shy solitary behaviour. Here in Katavi they are not very habituated because of low tourism activities. However, they are easy to habituate from an early stage of life and this makes me refer back 9 months ago: around the same area we found a baby leopard up in the trees for three days. Although it was difficult to tell the sex, it was relaxed, and was never bothered by the presence of cars around. I would say it’s the same leopard.

“ I have seen many of the animals from Okavango Delta, Sabi Sand, Kruger National Parks and other areas in Africa, but this is remarkable” said one of the guests, after the morning sighting in the second day, having taken hundreds of photos in different poses.

Female Leopard (Panthera pardus), Picture taken by Phillip Pendael in Katavi National Park, July 'o9

Morning walk to Kavuu

By Frank Japhet, Guide - Chada Katavi

Last week we walked with clients from Chada Camp to Kavuu. On the way we saw two African Civet latrines, which are situated in shallow holes. The distance from one latrine to another is about 20 to 30 metres. The first latrine seemed to have been made by a female because alongside of this latrine there were small sized dung, which seem to have been dropped by kittens. The second latrine was dropped by an adult male because of the size. The African Civet deposits droppings at latrine sites known as “civetries”. These animals are omnivorous and solitary, except for female with offspring.

Both ‘civetries’ were mixed with the remains of millipedes, Northern dawberry seeds, insects and grasses. When you see tracks or faeces of animals, the animal they are from can be identified and determined by using the size, shape, colour of dung and the materials included in the dung.














Picture by Jackson Shirima

Vervet monkeys in Katavi

By Emmanuel Moshi, Guide - Chada Katavi

A light coloured monkey with a black face, the vervet monkey is a very common sight in the African savannah woodland. It adapts easily to many environments, being able to tolerate different types of habitats, including humid areas and even semi-desert.

The only difficulty seems to be in areas where there is no water for drinking and no trees for sleeping in at night. Since our camp Chada Katavi is surrounded by different kinds of trees including Tamarind, Bird plum, Rain tree, Borassus palm and many more, all these trees make the monkeys feel like they are in paradise.

Vervets change their daily activities according to the season. They travel a lot during the wet season because there is no need to defend territories, since the food is plentiful. Meanwhile, in the dry season, when the food is not easily available, most of their time is used for feeding, drinking and grooming.

Vervet monkeys in other areas are sometimes considered vermin, simply because they are good opportunistic feeders. They raid crops from farms, with farmers in some areas being allowed to shoot or poison them to reduce their numbers, but still their numbers in the Tanzanian parks are very high. My own view is that vervets are not pests, but are extraordinary animals that encourage people to be careful all the time, and avoid carelessly leaving food around. I regard them as comedians, that we can watch for free.

Chada Katavi provides a safe environment for the monkeys by allowing them to sleep in the trees where they cannot easily be preyed upon by predators. However, the negative side of it is that they force us to be careful with our food, particularly when we bring morning tea to the guest’s tents, as if the box lid is not closed properly you will find the cookies being enjoyed by the monkeys at the top of a tree.

I have also witnessed them patrolling around the mess tent to see if there is any food left. Sometimes they enter in to our lovely camp library, where people have afternoon tea before going on game drive. You will find the monkeys patrolling along the bookshelves: you might think they are looking for a nice book but, no, they are looking for left-overs.

I think that vervet monkeys deserve recognition for being good inspectors, very keen with their responsibility of finding food, and ensuring that we are all responsible and careful with controlling our waste!

Varied diet of Katavi lions

by Jackson Shirima, Guide - Chada Katavi
With 4471 square km the Katavi National Park boasts to harbor the highest density of mammals per km. They are mostly herbivores, thus providing predators with lots of juicy meals. The preferred prey species for the Katavi lions is Buffalo, but from time to time they vary their diet, as it happened when we were watching a school of hippos, with one very restless bull. He kept on yawning (dominant display of hippos) and decided to have a last mouth full of grass on the river bank. Busy as he was, he didn’t notice the 13 lions (Chada pride) who were lying in the shadow of a umbrella thorn acacia on that same river bank.

When the hippo bull was only a few paces away from the river, the lions closed in on him. But he managed to escape into the water with only a few scratches. We waited for another 30 minutes, but nothing happened, so we went off to have our picnic breakfast. On our way back to camp we passed those 13 lions again, but this time they were feeding on hippo just at that spot where we left them.

We didn’t see the actual kill, we knew that this was the very same hippo who had escaped death a few moments ago. This is the second time I have known that the Chada pride pulled down a hippo. An adult hippo bull can weigh up to 3000 kg, and it is a risky business attacking one for lions. They will not do so unless they are forced by circumstances.

Introduction to Katavi

By Jackson Shirima, Emmanuel Moshi, Frank Japhet and Maripet Koipa

Located in the western part of Tanzania, approximately 50km east of lake Tanganyika, in the Rukwa area, is Katavi National Park. At 4471sqkm, Katavi is the third largest National Park in Tanzania. Altitudes range from 820m to 1560m above sea level. The highest points are on the adjacent hills of the escarpments surrounding the park. Average rainfall is 932mm per year. The rainy season stretches from November to April. It was first recognised as an outstanding wildlife habitat by the Germans, and in 1927 set aside as a big game hunting reserve by the British. The indigenous people, the Pimbwe, were moved out of the area to “protect them from sleeping sickness”.

“Katavi” is a word derived from “katabi”, which is the name of a spirit who dwells in a Tamarind tree near the Katavi plains. Katabi is believed to have been a legendary hunter, who hunted and herded Hippopotamus on the Chada plains. There is another spirit, female, named “Wamweru” who dwells on the Wamweru hills near Katavi plains.











Tourist numbers in Katavi are still very low, thus making a safari a very “wild” experience and you can have a few surprises on a walk, or on drive. The nature is distinctly different in the wet and in the dry season, but equally beautifull. Fauna is a colourful mosaic ranging from closed to open woodlans, shrublands, grasslands, swamps, seasonal floodplains and riverine vegetation. A huge variety of flowers, trees and grass species can be found. The amount of butterflies, birds and other animals is known to surprise every visitor.

The Katuma river is the lifeline of Katavi, feeding lake Katavi, Katisunga floodplains and lake Chada. Katisunga floodplain with its 425sqkm boasts to harbour a vast number on mammals and Chada plain (lake Chada in the wet season) is a “Mecca” for animals, where you will see hippos in the river or grazing in the plain, crocodiles sunbathing on the sand banks and large herds of elephants and buffalos.

Katavi is a dramatic place and a living thing, where man becomes a detail. This is true wilderness, providing the few inteprid souls who make it here with a unforgettable thrilling taste of Africa.