Amakhosi Private Game reserve is located on the banks of the Mkuze river about 25 kilometres south east of Pongola in Zululand, which is in KwaZulu Natal in South Africa. Helen and I first visited Amakhosi Safari Lodge in the reserve in 2008. We were so impressed with the experience that we returned in 2009 to find some significant changes. There had been a land claim and 10 000 hectares of the original 22 000 hectare reserve had been awarded to the claimants leaving 12 000 hectares of the original private game reserve. We had a wonderful time in 2009 despite the reduced size of the private reserve because of the quality of the safari lodge and the staff. The reserve has the Mkuze river coursing through it and has lush valley bushland, rolling savannahs, majestic mountains and thriving river wetlands which support a wonderful diversity of wildlife.

“If I have ever seen magic, it has been in Africa” ~ John Hemingway

In September 2023, Helen and I decided to return to Amakhosi to see how things had developed. To our very pleasant surprise it was excellent, as good as before. The safari lodge and staff had maintained the high level of standards regarding cuisine and service. Even more impressive was how well maintained the roads were in the reserve. It is a “big five” reserve and we were privileged to have had many good sightings of mammals and the birdlife, which in that part of the world is prolific.

The reserve introduced two new male lions in early 2023. These two aggressive male lions are the dominant coalition and any young males do their best to hide from them. The male lion at the back is collared so they can keep track of them. Interestingly, the blonder male is the more dominant and more aggressive.

Initially, when the two males were introduced to Amakhosi, one of the males regularly mock charged which must have increased the pulse rate of the guests on the game vehicle. We had no mock charges and the males seemed to be settling down in their new environment.

The two dominant males were very active and one many occasions we found them patrolling their territory. This was not because it had been raining and they had to remark their territory, but probably because it was still so new to them.

In the southern mountainous section along the Mkuze river, we found a three year old male hiding from the coalition. Remarkably, a day later, the coalition which was out patrolling their territory they came to the exactly same spot where we saw the young male hiding. This reminded us of how developed and sensitive their olfactory senses must have been.

“Vulnerability is the biggest attraction to all predators. But your survival instincts are also at the highest when in danger. Use them, don’t let fear shut them down.” ~ Mitta Xinindlu

The Amakhosi private game reserve has a male and a female cheetah. We were fortunate enough to see the male and female on separate occasions. The female had five cubs. Our first sighting of the cheetah family was early in the morning when it was light but before sunrise. There was still some frost on the dry grass and the cubs were curled up in the embrace of their mother. She was lying in an open section of grassland probably for protection so she could see and sense any danger coming.

Cheetah females become sexually active after two years and can give birth to as many as six cubs, with the average around three. Unlike the males which usually form coalitions, the female remains solitary and does not maintain a territory.

Cheetah cubs are blind at birth and their eyes open after 10 days or so. The cubs are born with a mantle of white fur running from the back of the neck down to the rump. This mantle is thought to provide camouflage in the grass.

The cubs’ mane of white hair disappears after three months and they are usually weaned around four months of age. At this point their mother no longer hides her cubs and they begin to follow her.

Paradoxically, cheetahs are the most productive cat yet they are endangered with a global population of only around 7 000 wild individuals. The main reasons for their decline are human-wildlife conflicts, prey decline, and habitat loss and fragmentation. In a private game reserve these factors are managed. The vulnerability of the cubs arises when their mother leaves them alone to go hunting. When small cubs they are easy prey for lions, leopards and hyaenas and, at times when they are very small, even jackals. Even when their mother is close she is often unable to protect the cubs from lions, leopards and hyaenas. Her best survival strategy is to keep the cubs far away from these predators.

We found this lioness around mid-afternoon lying close to a waterhole. We could not be sure, but judging from her behaviour she may have had cubs hidden in the shrubs among the rocks overlooking the waterhole. This was the only lioness we saw.

At dusk one afternoon, we had been watching a large herd of elephants drinking from the Mkuze river in the mountainous southern section of the park. After watching the herd in the water for a while it was getting dark. So we began making our way back to the lodge. On route our tracker, Zakele, caught a glimpse of a leopard in the thick bush next to the road as he was sweeping his spotlight from left to right looking for any interesting nocturnal wildlife. We stopped, reversed a short distance and our ranger, Jacques, turned the vehicle so we were side on to the road. To everyone’s amazement this leopardess walked out onto the road in the spotlight with year old male cub.

“Give your all to every experience, feel it breathe it appreciate it, nothing lasts forever, when it’s gone you’ll remember the feeling it once gave you and sometimes that’s enough.” ~ Nikki Rowe

The male cub was very affectionate to his mother. He looked to have be around a year old. Male leopards have usually leave their mothers by two years’ old and can start breeding from three years.

This male was too young, but the method of aging leopards older than three years, is usually done by looking at their dewlap size, the condition of their ears and the degree of facial scarring and sometimes the colour of the nose.

We were privileged to see this leopardess and her male cub walking around in the spotlight for what must have been around 15 minutes. The two were inquisitive and even walked close to the vehicle. For such secretive predators this was a remarkable sighting which left all of us on the vehicle quite breathless with excitement.

On the western boundary of the reserve there was a fence and on the other side of the fence was a huge open area. Early one morning, we found the two males walking along the fence line watching a lioness who was just the other side of the fence. The male lions on the other side of the fence had been roaring and these two male replied.

There were no “flat cats” on this particular morning. These two males were very interested in the female close to the fence but on the other side.

These were unusually confident male lions judging from their disregard for our vehicle and interest in what was the other side of the fence. Both males were large and were in good condition. Dr Jennie Miller in her Panthera Field Notes for Panthera’s Lion Program noted that lion biologists have long used unique natural markings (like whisker spots, ear notches and scars) to identify individuals but these factors do not help determine the age of the male. Research found six traits which notably changed with age – nose darkness, facial scarring, teeth colour and wear, and jowl slackness. These males looked to be around five year old.

“It starts with a series of grunts. Then the roaring starts. If you are close, it will send primordial shivers down your spine. The sound is deafening and awe inspiring at the same time. The game vehicle vibrates and you can feel the roaring in your chest.” ~ Mike Haworth

“He was a killer, a thing that preyed, living on the things that lived, unaided, alone, by virtue of his own strength and prowess, surviving triumphantly in a hostile environment where only the strong survive.” ~ Jack London

Amakhosi’s predators looked to thriving in the reserve. We had exceptional sightings of all the cats. On one occasion early in the morning, we had a fleeting glimpse of a Brown hyaena. According to the ranger, Jacques, there are many Brown hyaena in the reserve but they are nocturnal and very skittish in the daylight.

“There is something about safari life that makes you forget all your sorrows and feel as if you had drunk half a bottle of champagne — bubbling over with heartfelt gratitude for being alive.” ~ Karen Blixen

Being a “big five” reserve we also had excellent sightings of elephant, rhino and the birdlife was prolific.

Explore seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike