What's been happening at Ndutu?
December 2000
The rains have arrived! The first drops of rain finally fell in the middle of November. We had a total of 89.5mm making it one of the best Novembers in terms of rainfall. The whole area is now rejuvenating. It is truly amazing how quickly the fresh, green shoots appear.
With
the arrival of the rain come the vast herds of wildebeest. Over the past week they have been arriving in their masses.
Just looking from your verandah, you can see thousands of wildebeest milling around the lakeshore. Just a couple of
days ago there was plenty of hustle and bustle as a large herd crossed the lake. The water in the lake has now been
replenished and the flamingos once again grace the shores. Our two waterholes at the lodge are almost full, so if
you do not feel like going out for a game drive you can sit back, relax and enjoy the wildlife as it comes wandering
through the lodge grounds.
The Wildebeest will be passing through this area until May or June, depending on the rainfall. Out on the southern Serengeti plains you can see them just dotted across the vast expanse of land- it's a magnificent sight. Thousands and thousands of zebra and gazelle accompany the migrating wildebeest. For our resident predators this means the lean time of the year is over.
The
resident lion prides are looking healthy and rather fat! Guests have been witnessing plenty of courtship behaviour
recently. There are a couple of rather heavily pregnant females who look like they have not too long to go now until
they give birth. Sitting around the camp-fire in the evenings, we hear the contact calls of the lions most nights.
Just a few nights ago we also heard the rasping sound of a leopard. Leopard, cheetah, serval, wildcat and of course
the lions are all being seen on a regular basis. We also have resident caracal but lately they have been proving rather
elusive.
For
the past couple of weeks we have had an American student here conducting a short study on our genet population. She
has been attempting to identify a few of the adult individuals and trying to work out where their favoured sleeping
places are during the day. It seems that our potato store is a popular choice! In the evening time if you look up
into the rafters in the lounge area you should hopefully see some. For the past 30 years or so they have made themselves
at home here. They are a delight to watch as they run up and down the rafters so nimbly.
The birdlife at Ndutu is always spectacular, but this time of year with the arrival of the migratory birds you can not help but get enthused by the sheer variety of them all. The Ndutu area hosts around 350 different species. The waders in particular are now here in their thousands and out on the plains huge flocks of abdims and European storks can be seen. For the past week at Lake Masek there have been hundreds of Marabou Storks congregating together. We are not sure exactly what they are feeding on, but it must be something in an abundant supply for them to be so many.
As always our evening campfire creates many unforgettable memories for our guests. After an exciting day in the bush it's a wonderful experience to relax by the fire and either exchange stories of the day or just sit back and listen to the sounds of the bush. With their replenished water supply the vast variety of frogs are now in great chorus. Looking up into the western sky early evening you will see Venus shining brightly and then later in the Eastern sky who will notice Jupiter and Saturn. Jupiter is the brighter of the two planets. If you use your binoculars you should be able to see four of Jupiter's moons. If you happen to have a good birding scope and tripod you might be lucky enough to see the rings of Saturn. The two brightest stars in the sky are also visible this time of year- Sirius the brightest of them all and Canopus. These can both be seen looking towards the Southeast. On the nights when it has been cloud covered we have then been treated to a magnificent lightening show. Often there is more than one storm out on the horizon so the evening sky is constantly being lit up by those distant and not so distant storms.
Our staff
continue to make sure your stay is an enjoyable one. We have an extremely low turn over of staff and there are a few
who have been working here for over 30 years. Many are now returning from their leave in preparation for the busy
months ahead. We have quite a few staff who are multi-skilled. Right now one of our chefs is re- thatching the lounge
area. There is another chef who is also a talented tailor; he is busy making new staff uniforms. He also possesses
good plumbing skills! Two of our rooms stewards are dab hands with the paint-brush so are now finishing off re-painting
the rooms.
Our busy time starts around the 15th December, by then all the staff will be back at base and in their rightful departments.
All of us, who live here, feel so privileged living right amongst one of the most spectacular wildlife sights in the world. For the next few months the Ndutu area will be teeming with wildlife and there will sure to be many life and death dramas unfolding out on the plains. It really is the best place to be!