December 2009

Herds of buffalo have been the order of the month; there has been a herd on the property the entire month. While the individual herds do come and go we have seen at least four different large herds this month. With the pans being full and all the dam bursting at the seems the buffalo have not come to the river but instead have kept to the middle of the property but haven’t need to move very far to get water which is good for game viewing.

Total sightings: 160

November 2009

The buffalo herd this month have split, in the last few months there have been three big herds operating around Mala Mala but this month has seen those big herd fragment into 5 or 6 smaller herds. The reason for this might be explained by the abundance of food and water but usually in the wintertime the herds fragment due to lack of these commodities. These smaller herds have been entertaining in that there has been buffalo around every corner but its always spectacular to see a mass of black moving across the open veld. There has been a lack of Dugga boys this month with most of them joining the herds looking to mate.

Total sightings: 159

October 2009

Large herds were the order of the month this month, every day during the report period at least one of the herds was found and often all three were moving through Mala Mala. The largest of these herds was about 500 in number and it moved from West Street to calabash crossing. With the large herds sweeping through the lands Dugga boys were hard to come by as they got caught up in the herds but the reverse side to this was that towards the end of the month large groups of bulls were separating, tired of the herd politics they sought calm and tranquillity along the banks of the sand river.

Total sightings: 105

September 2009

At the beginning of the month there were two reports of the very large herd together before breaking up into the smaller groupings that are more regularly encountered on Mala Mala. The first report was from the Sabi Sands helicopter doing the 2009 Game Census; the report was of 986 Buffalo in the central parts of Mala Mala. The second report was from one of the private owners on the western bank of the Sand River of over 1000 buffalo. Since then the large herd has split due to the dry conditions and the added pressure that would be placed on a herd this size with less availability of water and sufficient green grass, due to this it is far more contusive for smaller herds to move around in these conditions and once the rains and summer and more favourable conditions prevail, then they can join up again.
However this splitting up of the herd has allowed for several herds to be seen on Mala Mala on a specific day and allows for more regular large herds to be seen. The are spending a lot of time near to the river coming down to drink twice a day and then foraging for food away from the river before returning. It was a good month for Buffalo with buffalo seen every day of the month.

Total sightings: 91

August 2009

There were three large herds of buffalo moving through the property this month, one herd came into the northern parts of the reserve the second moved along the sand river and the third operated around Toulon. During the middle of the month the game census helicopter was doing its annual game count and on one outing it found the large herd of buffalo on central Charleston, landing for fuel the pilot phoned Mala Mala and reported that the herd was 987 strong. This must have been a combination of two herds, which shortly broke up again, but getting to see over 900 buffalo in one go is an amazing sight. Of course you can’t forget the buffalo bulls that roam the reed beds all along the river. Again this month like last month there were many buffalo carcass found being fed on by lions and although we never got to see any being killed its still a very impressive feat.

July 2009

Buffalo herds were seen on most days during the month mainly moving along the sand river. The very large herd of buffalo made very brief appearances around Charleston north, the herds commonly seen ranged between 100 and 300. Buffalo bulls were again in plentiful supply with them often being found in or close to the sand river.

June 2009

The big herd of buffalo returned to Mala Mala during June, in excess of 500 animals it moved in from the east and meandered up and down the river in the northern half of the property. Two smaller herds were also seen during the month as they to moved along the sand river. Grazing is still plentiful and the river still flows strongly and many of the dams still have water in them which all bodes well for the buffalo herds as they are very reliant on both these two commodities. The bachelor groups are still plentiful are seen on a daily basis along the river and around the Mlowathi river.

May 2009

The old dagga boys that are seen in the Sand River still provide many guests with their first buffalo sightings. The herds are around but not yet as prevalent as last year. There is a herd that often comes down to drink at the Sand River around Elephant rock lookout, then moves southwards along the River for a day or so, quenching their thirst and grazing on the still lush reeds, after that they move back eastwards from whence they came. The cycle seems to take about a week too two weeks. On a few occasions that we know of, some buffalo have being taken down by lions, in the next couple months we can expect to see more being taken down as the herds weaken with the lack of water and good grazing.

March 2008

The herds returned to Mala Mala this month with them being recorded on many of the days in the report period. One day had four different herds operating on Mala Mala, the large herds seen in the past look to have split up as most of the herds these days don’t number more than 200 animals but the herds are the same as some of the old distinguishable buffalo are still seen, like the white spotted female and the hornless old cow. Two dugga boys took up residence outside Rattrays camp this month as the river starts to dry they will be spending more and more time closer to the remaining water. All in all a good month for buffalo viewing.

February 2008

Herds of buffalo were short supply this month as they moved off during the middle of the month. In all three different herds were seen throughout the month moving right through Mala Mala. Dugga boy sightings were the main stay this month as they were viewed everyday.

January 2009

Buffalo have been around in vast numbers over the past report period. The large herd of around 900 animals was not seen this month however, there have been four herds, each numbering over 250 that have been seen regularly on Marthly, Eyrefield and Mala Mala as well as a herd of approximately 100 animals on Flockfield. The herds appear to be moving in circular patterns, as one would expect from large buffalo herds trying to avoid lion prides. They have, however, not been harassed very much at all by the lions, and hence they have remained on Mala Mala for the duration of the month.