Ruaha Roller-coaster…

Woooooaaaaaaahhhhh!!!!!

That is an exclamation usually associated with a roller-coaster ride...well, this past 2 weeks have been just that here in Ruaha!

This roller-coaster ride however has been one of emotion, covering the gamut from deep sorrow all the way through to unadulterated exuberance!

I am currently sitting under my favourite Sausage tree at The Glade along the Mwagusi River as it is always inspirational to sit in an “outside office” while doing admin...

As per usual we get going really early morning. It’s the most beautiful time of day with pastel colours in different shades every dawn. It is like opening a lucky-packet, not knowing what is inside until it graces the skies. Seems like I would have to postpone writing as the rain is approaching from the western escarpment...talk later...

Ok the shower has past and I can continue.

Where was I? Oh yes, we went out early one morn to find an ele cow and 2 of her offspring, but the youngest laying with collapsed front legs! Gauging by the position the calf was laying in, we could surmise that it was terminal although it was still breathing. The whites of the eyes were clearly visible...panic flowing from them...a devastating experience! 

Mom and elder brother were helpless and despite prods, prompts and even an attempt at raising it up...they could do nothing but stand and await the inevitable. We departed in order to allow for privacy during these times and when we returned a few hours later, the calf was dead. We do not know what the cause of the death was but assume it to be very fast acting as the calf was in good shape not showing any signs of emaciation or injury.

Now, in my younger years I would have been emotionally impervious to this event as there is always a clinical and cold scientific explanation for most things and anthropomorphism (ascribing human emotion to animals) was frowned upon. All I can say is that age has “softened” me and I challenge anyone to witness such an event and the concomitant behaviour displayed by the other members of the family and NOT recognise similarities with our own.

By the afternoon we found the mom and brother still in close proximity to the dead calf. They were periodically approaching the carcass and sniffing and prodding it only after not getting any reaction, returning to feeding on a nearby bush. They were joined just before sunset by 3 teenage bulls who also did their level best at rousing the calf, using their trunks to sniff, prod, fiddle with the ears, use their feet very gently nudging it and even gingerly placing it on top of the tusk to roll the head. We wondered how long it would take for the lions and or hyaena to discover the carcass and during the night could hear the lions roaring from there, just below camp.

Early the next morning there was still mourning. They had not left his side and the presence of the resident pride made for some very interesting moments indeed. The outraged cow and brother would race at the lions sneaking closer to utilise the bounty. They in turn would growl and disappointingly retreat as size clearly matters. The cubs had not eaten in a few days and they were visibly distressed by the impediment to their mealtime. Patience would however pay off eventually...

For more than 24hrs the mom and her older son stayed with the carcass keeping the scavengers at bay! Only then did they seem to accept that it was over and moved away enough for the starving cubs to gain access to the much needed sustenance.

Once we accepted the departure of the ele calf (having gone through the whole process with mom), it was macabrely acceptable to see the lions tuck in and we witnessed the nutrient-cycle in action.

Interestingly 48hrs after the death of the calf, the same group of 3 bulls accompanied the mom and her last remaining offspring as they appeared over the ridge and made their way towards where the lions are now devouring the last scraps of the carcass. We sat in anticipation while they determinedly ambled straight to the exact spot where the calf died and paid no attention to the place where the male lion had dragged the remains... They milled around a bit and rumbled, went quiet and then turned as one, walking off fading into the shrub not to look back again...

Speaking of cycles, we have been privileged to bear witness to the climatic cycle in it’s orbit. The past few weeks have become increasingly hot and humidity has been building making for very uncomfortable days and nights. Promise in the mornings with building clouds and midday windy gusts brought nothing but disappointment when it clears into another dusty sunset. The usual bush-fires have been raging above the escarpment for a week or so before it eventually died out just short of the Mwagusi River. Our psyches almost seesawing with the ebb and flow of the clouds, felt rather worn when 3 days ago excitement was added to the spectrum of emotions as we saw rain pouring from clouds to the East, the direction we often get rain from. By late afternoon the clouds had progressed all the way to the Park and we could smell the rain on the wind! I was at The Glade when the first drops fell! With elation I stopped the vehicle, got out and just stood there with our faces turned to the storm! What an incredible feeling!

At first the drops came slowly but with increasing rhythmic percussive blows displacing dust puffs into the air until eventually there was no more dust...just mud! Drenched to the bone now I walked in the rain to the nearest puddle of mud and buried my bare feet as deep as I could! (The photo was taken the next day when there was no threat of drowning the camera). What a polar opposite to 5 min before, an involuntary smile came from within and erupted into exuberant laughter at the amazing experience.

With the advent of the rainy season it brought with it the accompanying bounty.

Scorpions were out en force that night with at least 15 inside my tent and a few hundred just outside, and those that have been here in the emerald season will know that is no exaggeration. 

Then yesterday and today has already seen the appearance of a green flush of new grass vigorously pushing their way up through the barren soil casting an amazing carpet and promise. The impala as if one, have started lambing and newborns are bounding alongside moms everywhere.

Overnight the buffalo herd however has disappeared from sight and we assume they have already made their way up and over the escarpment to exploit the Miombo section of the Park where they spend most of the green season only to return at the start of the dry next year July/Aug. It was brilliant having had the privilege to see them on a daily basis the past 2 months and I shall miss them...

Experiencing such a spectrum of powerful feelings in a short period is rather overwhelming and almost exhausting. However, after having had some time to ruminate and digest it a little, I have come to the conclusion that this is exactly what life is about, well at least for me. Imagine waking everyday knowing that today there will be no peaks nor troughs, just one even matrix. There was a time where that was preferable but now I prefer to give myself over to the “sharper teeth of existence” if I may quote a friend of mine. There would be nothing worse, than being gummed to death by life....

May you experience the sharper edges and revel in being alive...

Yours in Nature