On our second day we were keen to go back to Rigueik pan which one of the best known and biodiverse seasonal wetlands in Zakouma National Park. Most of the park consists of flat, low-lying ground comprising approximately 500 square kilometres of grassy floodplains in the southern eastern section. The main river meandering through the floodplain is the Bahr Salamat. As water levels drop on the flood plain, the terrain retains vital perennial water points, river pools, marshes, and pans such as Rigueik. In March, which is the end of the dry season, huge congregations of wildlife concentrate on the remaining pools and pans.
“To wish was to hope, and to hope was to expect” ~ Jane Austen
We were based in Tinga camp which is close to the main road through Zakouma from Ibir in the south west edge to Goz Djert in the north-east edge of Zakouma. Riguiek pan is in the floodplain section on the north eastern side of Zakouma National Park.
We left Tinga camp at 5h30 while it was still cool. That is a relative term as it was around 28 degrees centigrade but the temperatures climb up to 45 to 50 degrees centigrade in the middle of the day. On a direct trip with no stops it may take around 45 minutes to drive to Rigueik pan. As you might well know there is no such thing as a direct non stop drive in a park like Zakouma.
“Every morning is a reminder to let go the past and embrace the present.” ~ Tonmoy Acharjee
One of our first sighting was this Pied lapwing which posed for us and seemed unperturbed by our presence in the vehicle.
An unusual feature of the lions in Zakouma is that they do not seem to rigidly work within a pride structure. We often found a lone female lying in the shade. Each female looked well fed indicating that there was plenty of food for them and they did not necessarily need to tackle large prey like buffalo or giraffe.
One of the fascinating aspects of Zakouma is the different sub species. We find the genus Hartebeest in southern Africa but not the subspecies the Lelwel Hartebeest, also known as the Jackson’s Hartebeest. This subspecies is listed as critically endangered on the IUCN red list. A combination of poaching, hunting, habitat loss and fragmentation has led to a massive decline in the population from over 285 000 in the 1980s to under 70 000 found across in Central and East Africa currently, with only around 1 000 in Zakouma. An accurate estimate is difficult as their numbers fluctuate with some animals moving north outside the safety of the park during the wet season.
There are two types of coucal found in Zakouma, the Senegal and Black species. Unfortunately, I have never seen a Black coucal. We watched this Senegal coucal sulking around a fallen dead tree trunk looking for insects and lizards.
At this point we had arrived at the floodplain area in which Rigueik pan was located. We found a Forest buffalo carcass. The buffalo appeared to have died of natural causes. The carcass attracted vultures, crows, Marabous, kites and Tawny eagles.
“There were two ways to be happy: improve your reality, or lower your expectations” ~ Jodi Picoult
Tawny eagles are good hunters. I have seen a Tawny efficiently hunt guineafowl at a waterhole in Etosha. This eagle species is a habitual scavenger and will happily scavenge and even steal food alongside vultures, Marabou storks and jackals.
Tawny’s are bold and aggressive enough to steal choice scraps of meat or entire kills away from smaller raptors, hornbills, and even other birds larger than themselves. Because they rely heavily on dead animals, tawny eagles face significant dangers when carcasses are tainted.
The Forest buffalo looked to have died naturally so was intact when we arrived on the scene. The smaller vultures, kites and Marabous needed the Lappet-faced vultures to open up the carcass. Lappet-faced vultures have powerful, sharp beaks that can tear through the thick hide, and tough tendons and ligaments of a buffalo. This species uses its massive size and strength to dominate the feeding site when lions and hyaenas are not around.
Once a few Lappet-faced vultures climbed onto the carcass surrounded by Pied crows and Tawny eagles, the high flying vultures began falling out of the sky in numbers. The White-backed vultures typically soar at heights between 800 metres and 1600 metres. The Ruppell’s Griffon vultures are known to fly as high as 11 000 metres above the ground. The vultures climb to these heights using thermals and constantly watch each other. As soon as one or two individuals descend rapidly because they have seen potential food on the ground others quickly follow.
Once the news of the feast was out everyone started arriving. As the Marabou storks descend they do so with their undercarriage down which probably helps them to spill air speed.
The scene as we arrived. The early visitors were Lappet-faced vultures which were the initial butchers. Once the carcass was opened the Pied crows and Tawny’s quickly joined in the feast before the mob of vultures and Marabous arrived.
“A wonderful gift may not be wrapped as you expect.” ― Jonathan Lockwood Huie
Marabou storks have a massive, powerful bill, but it is relatively straight and unadapted for tearing through thick, uncut animal hides. As a result this scavenger stands on the periphery of a carcass, letting hyenas crush the bones and vultures rip open the tough skin. Marabous use their height (standing up to 1.5 meters tall) and massive reach to aggressively bully smaller birds, lunging into the fray to snatch up loose, flying scraps of flesh and bone before retreating. Having stolen a large scrap of meat the next task is to keep it as Marabous will also try to steal from each other.
A little further on and closer to Rigueik pan we found this Lanner falcon which was watching the smaller birds such as queleas and starlings with keen interest.
This flock of Great white pelicans flew overhead giving us a sign, I thought, that we were close to Rigueik pan.
“The earth has music for those who listen.” ~ William Shakespeare
This is one of the reasons why a trip to Rigueik pan from Tinga camp can take a whole morning, leaving camp at 5h30 and only getting back to camp around 12h30. It is impossible to drive past a beautiful Abyssinian roller without stopping to try a capture a flying shot.
At a glance both the Abyssinian roller and the racket-tailed roller are strikingly colourful birds with long outer tail streamers, though they differ in key features and geographic ranges. The Racket-tailed roller’s outer tail feathers explicitly end in distinct paddle-shaped or “spatulate” tips and while the Abyssinian roller also has long, slender streamers but the end of the streamers do not have that characteristic paddle shape.
A couple of hundred metres closer to the pan we found a family group of Abyssinian ground hornbills. Unlike the solid or enclosed casques seen in other hornbill species (such as the helmeted hornbill), the Abyssinian ground hornbill’s casque is short and open at the front. The hollow, keratin-based structure acts as an echo chamber that amplifies the bird’s deep, booming calls, allowing their call to travel farther across open savannas and attract mates.
The Abyssinian ground hornbill exhibits sexual dimorphism where the males feature blue and red bare facial and throat skin with an inflatable red throat patch; females have entirely blue facial skin. Family groups actively forage across the open wetland margins and grassy plains, hunting for large insects, small mammals, and ground invertebrates. It was amazing to see these ground hornbills digging out Large land snails. This species of snail survives the harsh Sudano-Sahelian dry season by digging deep into the ground and entering a state of dormancy known as aestivation. These ground hornbills were effectively digging out Large land snails, and extracting the snail from it’s shell.
“Randomness is not a great survival strategy, so it is rare in nature.” ~ Tristan Gooley
When we eventually reached Rigueik pan there was almost nothing at the pan because it had dried up. Ann and I were amazed to see how different one week could make. Last year we visited this pan one week earlier and it was teeming with mammals and especially huge flocks of birdlife from pelicans to Marabou, herons , ducks, geese and Black crowned cranes. Nothing this time, so we started to slowly make our way back to Tinga camp following the river courses where there were still large pools of water. One of the interesting baboon behaviours in Zakouma is that the Olive baboon will actively hunt and eat birds. Olive baboons are omnivorous. When thousands of birds crowd the the pans and rivers due to the dwindling remaining pools of water close to and along the Salamat River, baboons take advantage of the sheer volume of birds to ambush them.
The largest flocks of Queleas I have ever seen have been in Zakouma. This was an example of one of the smaller flocks of Red-billed queleas flying down to drink of a remaining pool of water along a drying river course.
Queleas need to watch out for Olive baboons, Yellow-billed and Black kites and Lanner Falcons.
Still travelling across the floodplain back to Tinga camp we came across a few Roan antelope. This is always a very special sighting because of unusual pelage colouration and because they grow to be one of Africa’s largest bovids after the eland and buffalo.
There is no specific, publicly published exact census number for the Roan antelope population in Zakouma National Park but they thrive in this park. I did not get to see and photograph the large herds of 30 to 40 individuals but it is always a privilege to see them. In South Africa the Roan antelope is locally listed as Endangered due to low numbers (fewer than a few hundred wild individuals).
This post shows the incredible variety of wildlife that we saw on one morning game drive. I was hoping to see Rigueik pan even more densely packed with wildlife than the year before but misjudged how quickly this park dries out in late March.
” Comparison and expectations are the thief of joy.” ~ Johnny Poitras
One of the things I have found through my travels in the bush while looking for wildlife is that ‘expectations are the thief of attention and awareness’. I tend to focus on what I expect to see rather than what is around me. Expectations can divert your attention from what is right around you. It is one thing to look for wildlife, it is another to pay attention to all the signs which may come from of a bird alarm call, or herbivore or baboon barking. Footprints and rub marks on trees all create a picture of what is going on in the area. You might be looking for a lion but calls from squirrels and starlings could divert your attention to reveal the position of a python.
“Safari guides act as interpreters of the natural world. Through their guided experiences, guides are able to observe animal behaviour and explain things to guests in an entertaining and insightful manner.” ~ Bushwise
Our guide, Doug Macdonald together with Zakouma driver Torgi (who has lived in the Zakouma area all his life) know the park intimately and were able to show us a wonderful variety of landscapes and wildlife. They knew where the remaining pans and pools of water were but they were also aware enough to let nature reveal itself. So we did not dash from one place to the next. Each game drive was different and there were so many different places to see but the aggregations of wildlife at these remaining pools had already started to disperse.
“Come forth into the light of things; let nature be your teacher.”~ William Wordsworth
Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.
Have fun, Mike