This is the last post showing images and telling stories from my fascinating trip to Zakouma National Park with DougMac Safaris in March this year. One of the wonderful aspects about our game drives with Doug MacDonald was the afternoon game drives did not end with a drive back to the Tinga camp after sundowners. Each evening Doug, and our driver Torgi, would show us the “nightlife” in Zakouma.

“To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter… to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird’s nest or a wildflower in spring – these are some of the rewards of the simple life.” ~ John Burroughs

Each evening we would drive around the eastern section of the park which was mainly the floodplain ecosystem. The days were hot and sunny and the sun set around 18h30. After a sundowner we would jump back on the game vehicle and spend another, at least, two hours looking for nocturnal birds and animals.

One of our sundowner spots was in the southern section of the park. We visited one large pan to watch millions of queleas flying in to drink and roost for the night. Wave after wave of huge flocks of queleas flew to the pan. They created murmurations as they flew down to drink water from the pan. Queleas spend a second or so to drink and then fly off. The sheer number of queleas flying in and out to drink created these murmurations which meandered around the pan. We watched this spectacle for around an hour before it got too dark to see the birds but sound of hundreds of thousands of queleas was quite deafening.

We managed to see African civets on most evening game drives. Interestingly, the nocturnal mammals like civets were not unduly scared by the vehicle or the spotlight, probably because we were not to close to them. Civets have striking markings with bushy coats with black and white spots and stripes. According to Africa Geographic, Civets are creatures of habit at night, moving along regular pathways at a slow, tentative walk with heads held low and relying on an acute sense of smell to guide them to their next meal. They have a broad and indiscriminate palate that extends to small mammals, birds and their eggs, invertebrates, fruit and even carrion.

Individual civets are recognised by the details of their dark face masks, which resemble those of a raccoon, and also white neck stripes but the two species are unrelated. It has a long mane of fur on its back which it erects when threatened to display an aggressive posture. This species has large strong hindquarters and is a good swimmer and good tree climber.

The African civet is the sole surviving member of the Civettictis genus, the largest member of the Viverridae family in Africa. It is a fierce and agile predator, and when cornered, has a defensive growl which is surprisingly deep and unnerving.

“Walking through darkness with thoughts full of colours”.” ~ Prajakta Mhadnak

Civets have middens called civettries. Key signposts such as trees adjacent to these civettries and along well used paths are marked with a pungent pale-yellow pheromone from perineal glands near the anus known as civetone. When concentrated civetone is putrid smelling but when diluted has a pleasant musky smell. Civetone has been used in perfumery as a fixative, enhancing the longevity of other fragrances and adding a musky animalic note. It is one of the oldest known perfume ingredients. According to Pairfum London, traditionally, civet was obtained by scraping the civet paste from the anal glands of wild civets, a process that raised concerns about the animals’ welfare. Today, the perfume industry has largely moved towards using synthetic civet such as ambretone. This synthetic version not only addresses ethical concerns but also offers greater consistency and control over the final product.

The African wild cat remained elusive. This species is also called the Near Eastern wildcat in Chad. The African wildcat is part of the park’s diverse feline population, which also includes lions, leopards, cheetahs, servals, and caracals. We never saw a cheetah or a caracal, much to Sabrina’s (one of the guests in our group) disappointment. This species of cat is characterised by its sandy grey fur, pale vertical stripes on their sides and around their faces, and is small to medium in size. This diminutive cat species is a solitary hunter, crepuscular (active during dusk and dawn) and territorial. It preys mainly on rodents, birds, reptiles and insects.

Two types of duikers can be seen in Zakouma but we only saw the Common duiker clearly and a fleeting sighting of the Red-flanked duiker in the shadows of the spotlight. This species is primarily nocturnal but most active at dusk and dawn. It is shy and elusive. The duiker is omnivorous and browses on bushes, small trees as well as roots, bark, flowers, seed and fruits. It is also known to eat caterpillars, frogs, lizards and even nestling birds.

According to SANBI (South African National Biodiversity Institute), duikers are named for their diving behaviour. The word “duiker” is derived from the Afrikaans word “duik,” which means “to dive,” and the Dutch word “duiken,” meaning “to dive”. This name is appropriate because duikers, when startled, often dive into thick undergrowth to hide from predators.

“Dwell on the beauty of life. Watch the stars, and see yourself running with them.” ~ Marcus Aurelius

Zakouma National Park is home to two species of nightjars, the Long-tailed and Standard-winged Nightjar. The Long tailed nightjar is regularly seen on night drives. The easiest way to photograph it is when it is on the ground. It plumage is cryptic and camouflages well with its surroundings during the day. Nightjars hunt insects mostly at dusk and dawn, but also during the night. Nightjars have a wide gape with bristles around their mouth which help them to capture insects in the dark. Nightjars have high aspect ratio (long and thin) wings which are ideal for their nocturnal hunting which requires high-speed aerial manoeuvres and efficient gliding.

Two species of eagle-owl are found in Zakouma the Verreaux’s and Greyish eagle-owl. The latter is also known as the Vermiculated eagle-owl which is only found in the northern part of sub-Saharan Africa in a variety of woodland and savanna habitats. This is a large owl with a body length of around 43cm and is recognised by its ear tufts. It differs from the Spotted eagle-owl in having dark brown (not yellow) eyes and a brownish facial disk marked with a heavy brown circle around each eye.

“The owl,” he was saying, “is one of the most curious creatures. A bird that stays awake when the rest of the world sleeps. They can see in the dark. I find that so interesting, to be mired in reality when the rest of the world is dreaming. What does he see and what does he know that the rest of the world is missing?” ~ M.J. Rose

The Greyish eagle-owl has mottled dark brown, buff, and white upper parts and finely barred (vermiculated) underparts giving a greyish-brown appearance. This species is lighter than the Spotted eagle-owl and has shorter tarsi.

We saw many Servals, sometimes three or four on a single night drive. They were regularly seen hunting along the pans. This is a medium sized cat with long leg and a long neck. Their pelage is tawny with black spots. They have large ears which gives them acute hearing.

“Life isn’t just about darkness or light, rather it’s about finding light within the darkness.” ~ Landon Parham

We were never really got close to the Servals we saw. This meant they were not spooked by the vehicle or the spotlight. Servals have long strong back legs and are known for their jumping ability. The can leap vertically two to three metres and horizontally up to four metres. This incredible jumping prowess allows them to catch prey like birds in mid-flight or pounce on rodents in tall grass.

Servals have an acute hearing. Their large, almost “radar dish” ears help them pinpoint the faintest sounds, even those of prey moving underground. This makes them very effective hunters in dense vegetation where vision is limited. Their acute hearing together with their pouncing ability enables them to hunt birds and rodents in long grass even when they can not see their prey.

A lone Side-striped jackal caught under the spotlight while it was resting. This is a nocturnal jackal which is bigger than the Black-backed jackal.

The Side-striped jackal is omnivorous. Its diet changes according to the environmental conditions. Diet includes small mammals, carrion, fruits, maize, reptiles, eggs and birds. The Side-striped Jackal is less predatory than the Black-backed Jackal.

We were told that seeing a leopard in Zakouma was unusual. There is abundant prey for leopard in this park but their numbers are relatively low compared to other wildlife parks. One of the reasons suggested could be the abundance of troops of Olive baboons. Some estimations are that there are less than 75 individual leopards in Zakouma National park.

This adolescent male leopard seemed unfazed by us. Again thanks to Doug’s expertise we were outside the fight-flight distance. This male quietly went down to the water’s edge and drank in his own time.

After sating his thirst he wandered back towards the tree line around the pan. He was alert and attentive to every sound and movement around him. The recovery in the numbers of prey in Zakouma over the past decade and a half bode well for the expansion of the leopard population.

A White Tailed mongoose foraging at the edge of a pan. This species is the largest of the mongoose family and is nocturnal. Its coat is dark-grey in colour, and the tails are distinctive with long, white hairs. Legs are black and front limbs appear short. It feeds mainly on insects, termites, beetles, grasshoppers and crickets and will go for amphibians, rodents and snakes, when available.

According to Doug, a White-tailed mongoose with a black tail can be seen in Zakouma. A melanistic morph of the tail colour only.

We also saw many genets on our nightly game drives. We saw both the Large and Small-spotted genet on different occasions. Genets belong to the Viverridae family, with civets as their closest relatives. They are more closely related to hyaenas than cats. Genets have long feline-looking body with short legs and a long tail. Their facial shape is sharp and mongoose-like. They all have a black dorsal stripe, spotted coats, banded tails and high-set oval ears. The large-spotted genet has a smaller dorsal crest than its small-spotted relative and is the most widely distributed of the two species. All species have retractable claws adapted to climbing and catching prey.

The two key distinguishing features between the Large and Small spotted genet is firstly the large species is noticeably bigger than the small species. Secondly, the Large species has a black tip to its long tail while the Small spotted genet has a white tip to its long tail.

On our last sundowner next to the pan where we saw the young male leopard, we saw flocks of Black-crowned night herons fly to the pan. We found a juvenile Black-crowned night-heron which had caught a large catfish (for its size). We watched it continually beat this catfish against the ground to subdue it. We had no idea whether it could swallow this fish. It appeared unlikely.

Dusk brought welcome relief from the high afternoon temperatures in Zakouma. In mid-March there were few mosquitos and few biting insects which made our sundowner time so much more comfortable. The evening game drives were balmy and very productive. We could not photograph every bird and mammal that we saw under spotlight in the dark. The reflection of the eyes was crucial to finding wildlife as well as listening for calls. When we drove past water filled pans we could see many crocodile eyes.

Once we got back to Tinga camp we often heard lions roaring and hyaenas whooping in the distance and Scops owl ‘”prrrup” calls. Zakouma is wild and you are always aware of this.

“Remember to look up at the stars and not down at your feet. Try to make sense of what you see and wonder about what makes the universe exist. Be curious. And however difficult life may seem, there is always something you can do and succeed at. It matters that you don’t just give up.” ~ Stephen Hawking

A huge thank you to our guide Doug MacDonald for a fascinating six days showing us around Zakouma, with intriguing information and wonderful stories told with great humour. The staff at Tinga camp were very hospitable despite the fact many of us could not speak french. It was remarkable that they could provide tasty meals and serve cold beers and wine so far from civilisation. A testament to great management working with very long supply lines. A special thank you to African Parks for making such a positive difference to the park’s outcomes.

“Ever felt like the universe is whispering secrets of wisdom and courage directly to you? These inspirational star quotes are like cosmic pep talks, lighting up your inner sky with motivation and a dash of celestial magic. They remind us that the vastness above mirrors the potential within, urging us to dream big and shine bright.” ~ Unknown

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

Have fun, Mike