Just to let you know that our March 09 trip to the Okavango Delta, Botswana was a wonderful experience with memories that will stay with us forever - and if not, my 3,000 photographs will take care of that! The main highlights for us were to see the lion kill at Duba Plains, the leopard kill (OK it was a dove, but still) and the wild dog kill at Chitabe Lediba.
We kicked off at the remote Duba Plains camp, and saw an abundance of wildlife with our private guide Reuben. On the second morning we observed the lions of the Tsaro Pride resting in the shade of the acacia bushes and closely monitoring a herd of buffalo. Within 10 minutes, five lionesses (including the infamous Silver Eye) had spotted an opportunity on hearing the plaintive cry of a sick calf left behind at the rear of the herd. They looked at each other and seemed to communicate their strategy. With their necks outstretched, mouths watering, their gaze in the distance, they raced off and we followed at great speed. Not knowing what to expect, it was quite a thrill, and we had to hold on tight as the Land Rover followed at the same pace. My heart was racing as I saw other lions joining the hunt. We crossed through a deep channel - not a problem for these strong swimming lions. One lioness hunted the calf and the others prepared to attack its mother who had returned to protect it. 
What an adrenaline rush to witness this sequence of events at such close range. These lions were hungry, and according to our guide, hadn't eaten for 18 days, so it didn't take them long to cripple the buffalo. Once the buffalo was down, the male lion appeared on the scene and settled in by the hindquarters for his long awaited breakfast. What followed was a veritable feeding frenzy by eight growling lions and the last remaining cub from this pride, interspersed with the occasional pause to drink from the nearby channel.
We left them to it but returned at sunset and saw them still at the scene of the crime, and clearly not leaving much for the vultures and hyenas. The game was poor at our second camp, Kwetsani, due to the higher than expected water levels and fortunately we were able to transfer to another camp. I was very keen to see wild dog and leopard and our guide suggested Chitabe Lediba. Nothing was a problem for our hosts and Wilderness Safaris helped us charter a flight. We were met at the airstrip by Newman Chuma who would be our private guide for the next 3 days. That afternoon we set off with Newman in search of leopard. Within 2 hours or so we found ourselves in a dry, low wooded area and our guide listened and watched for signs. He stopped the vehicle when he heard a flock of noisy and agitated francolins in a nearby tree, then drove off through the long grass and soon spotted a leopard sleeping under a tree. It was a female, about 6 years old, and so beautiful. An awesome sight. Our guide made a scratching noise which caused the leopard to sit bolt upright, slowly look around, and make eye contact with us. Poised and ready with my camera on continuous shoot mode, my shutter release sounded like grateful applause. The leopard then fixed its gaze on something a few metres away, and we were treated to a display of a stealthy stalk-and-pounce. Its prey was a collared dove feeding in the long grass. She played with it rather like a domestic cat with a mouse. We watched her strip the feathers, then eat it but not without a fight, lick her lips, clean the feathers from her whiskers and walk off through the woods. What a promising start!
After that we spotted wildebeest, giraffe, elephant and black back jackal, all very special, but my heart was still pounding from the leopard experience. With the sun sinking fast we headed off to find a safe spot for our sundowner. We parked up by some trees with an open area ahead of us and hopped out to stretch our legs. I swapped over to my macro lens to photograph some colourful wild flowers whilst Newman prepared our G&Ts. Newman heard something - it was an impala running at speed towards the trees on the far side, but what was it running from? An African wild dog no less.
We looked at each other in disbelief. Newman asked us what we wanted to do? No brainer, let's follow the wild dog. In a mad rush we abandoned the cool box, drinks and nibbles, and sped off after the wild dog. Bouncing around in the back I swapped my lenses over in record time. The dog was joined by another one and we raced after them. They stopped to drink at a pool of water, but didn't stop for long, they were very excited about something. We followed and saw them join up with 6 other dogs all running straight ahead of us. Newman made the call of a wild dog in distress which caused them to stop and look around at us - nice photo opportunity! They continued and we followed them into the woods where we found them all huddled around a freshly killed impala. The noises and the smell were remarkable. These eight dogs were hungrily gnawing away at the kill, barking, growling, moaning. I snapped away with my camera but with the combination of the adrenalin and the low light found it difficult to get good shots, however I can't complain. What beautiful animals they are with their yellowish brown, black and white coat, white tipped tail, black muzzle and huge oval black ears.
Within ten minutes there was nothing left but bones; two black back jackals were waiting for their chance, also the vultures, including white headed, white backed, hooded and leopard faced. All this in one afternoon - how amazinlgy lucky we were, and what a great guide we had in Newman. Am I glad we changed our plan and came to Chitabe Lediba! We would definitely recommend this lodge. The wildlife is prolific, the accommodation is adequate, and I believe is due for a refurbishment shortly and its sister camp, Chitabe, was undergoing a refurbishment while we were there. I hope it's not too long before my next African adventure.
Annmarie Meredith
http://www.annmariemeredithphotography.com/
Wildlife Safaris in Botswana and the Okavango Delta - Click here
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