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December 2001

There were three sightings of a pack of 8 Wild Dogs during December.
These represented the remnants of the pack of 5 adults and 10 or 11 pups which arrived on the reserve in August. Although all adults are still alive, only three pups have so far survived. Hopefully now that they are highly mobile and food is so plentiful, they will have an easier time. And its not that food is difficult to come by; with the abundance of baby impala around, hunting could not be easier. In the three sightings this month, this pack was seen to account for 5 baby impala! The problem for the Wild Dogs is their lack of defence against their many enemies, particularly lions and leopards which not only seek to steal their food, but also to kill them, this not for food but to simply remove them from the collection of competitors. Not only do the Wild Dogs lack stealth when they hunt in an area, but the abundance of cover enables enemies to creep amongst them and catch them unawares. So the pack must keep moving. Killing and moving. Two of the sightings in December were in the north of the reserve and the last, three weeks after the first two, was to the west of the Sand River and in the south-central areas of Mala Mala.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 8

November 2001

October 2001

The six sightings of the pack of 10 Wild Dogs - 5 adults and 5 pups - occurred on various parts of the reserve and delivered good viewing. Now that the youngsters are growing fast, they are far more mobile than was the case perhaps even as recently as last month. With this restriction declining, the pack can move with speed, permitting them to hunt in new areas on a regular basis. This constant movement then allows them to make more frequent contact with relaxed prey animals and of course also minimises the attentions directed at them by their numerous enemies.

During October this pack of hunting dogs was seen making two kills and these on successive days, the first an adult female impala, the next an adult male impala. The last sighting of the month was of the pack close to an area which was that day being burned in one of the controlled vegetation management burns which Mala Mala conducts. Contrary to what might be expected, the Wild Dogs were fascinated by the fire and at one time were actually chased from the burning area by the field staff. The Wild Dogs retreated with reluctance and then only for a hundred or so metres until they found a spot where they could lie down. That evening when it was expected that they would head off hunting, the pack gathered and went back to the smouldering vegetation, examining the area with great curiosity. They finally walked into the burned area and lay down on a sandy patch.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 10

September 2001

The pack of Wild Dogs which provided such good viewing last month continued with some of it over September. However, as expected, the family ranged far and wide as the pups have grown bigger and more capable of moving greater distances. Unfortunately the pups have continued to suffer from their many enemies such as lions and leopards and when the pack was last seen towards the end of this game-report period only 5 of the original 10 which were seen entering Mala Mala nearly two months before this remained. But that of course is how life is with these intense creatures; deadly killers but not much good at defence against some of the bigger killers which also want to eat the same food.

Although the pack was seen only 6 times, they ranged over nearly the entire length and breadth of Mala Mala. At one sighting outside the entrance to the Mala Mala Main Camp they were found early in the morning on what may have been the remains of an impala kill. A male leopard had been attracted to the scene, no doubt wanting to harass his enemies and steal any meat. At the end of the interaction the Wild Dogs had treed the leopard before moving on, crossing east over the Sand River where they killed some small antelope, either a duiker or a steenbok.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 12

August 2001

August proved a fine month for Wild Dog viewing after the pack of five adults (four females and a male) which gave birth inside the Kruger National Park east of the southern parts of Mala Mala in May moved onto the reserve with their 10 pups.
They were found towards the central parts of the reserve and close to the Sand River with a bushbuck kill. Later that day they killed another bushbuck, this time a baby and then, the following morning killed yet another! And this was how the early parts of August went; the pack of Wild Dogs hunting and killing, mostly along the banks of the Sand River and mostly towards the south of the reserve. But, as is the life of these canines, all did not remain rosy. As could be expected, other predators moved in to take advantage of their presence. Hyaenas were often seen around them whenever they killed, one of the sightings being of five of these spotted beasts vying for a piece of an impala. From their side the dogs handled them well, probably losing little. But of course their worst enemy would perhaps be lions but here only one encounter was seen when the lone Charleston Pride lioness was seen stealing the scraps of a steenbok kill from them .
The relative absence of lion encounters was almost certainly simply due to a relative absence of lions in the area in which the Wild Dogs were working and this is perhaps too why the pack chose this particular part of the reserve.
But the stealing of food is but a minor thing and something which the wild dogs are quite capable of handling. The worst to happen to a pack of Wild Dogs is physical attack from one of the larger predators, the intention being to kill them. Although lions are perhaps their most feared enemy, this month saw the pack suffer horribly from leopards and specifically perhaps only one male leopard which may well have accounted for three of the pups over the course of a week. The first pup was killed in early August and the leopard was found in a tree eating the last of the youngster whilst a couple of hyaenas were scuffling around the base. That morning all 10 pups were still alive and it is quite likely that the leopard snuck in and took one whilst the adults were dozing and the pups were wandering around exploring their surrounds. Part of the problem with a small pack of only five adults Wild Dogs is that sentry duty has to be long for the individual members and inevitably lapses will occur. Compounding this problem would be the growing pups and their increasingly adventurous nature. In fact, on the morning before the pup was killed, the adults of the pack were seen sleeping whilst the pups wandered quite some distance from them, often quite lost in the tall grass. It would not have taken a particularly skilled leopard to stalk up and snatch up one of them. Anyway, the Wild Dogs seemed to take this in their stride until a week later when they lost another two pups. Only one body was found and footprints and drag-marks again pointed to an adult male leopard being responsible. This time the pack moved out of the area and was soon several kilometres away near the central-north of the reserve. But they did not stay long here, perhaps detecting a greater than wanted level of activity from other predators or perhaps a lower than required density of prey, so they went south again, but not back to the areas where the pups had been lost.
Sightings became less frequent and the last was towards the end of the month when footprints indicated that they had moved west close to the southern border of Mala Mala and the Kruger National Park.
In spite of the deaths, the pack appears healthy and if they continue as they have then hopefully most of the remaining youngsters will make it to maturity and then next year contribute to a larger and probably more effective unit.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 15

July 2001

There were three sightings of Wild Dogs in July, two of these of single animals, on successive days and many kilometres apart. It is likely that the one Wild Dog seen towards the centre of the reserve and close to the Kruger National Park boundary belonged to the pack of 5 adults which was last seen in April before they denned in the Kruger National Park east of southern Mala Mala. This pack - or at least part of it - was seen with 8 pups in this same area shortly afterwards. According the Kruger National Park, the pack of five adults - four females and a single male - left their den 10 days prior to this with 11 pups. When seen on Mala Mala, the bush was quite dense and evening was approaching, making accurate counting difficult. The rest of the pack may well have been in the area, but due to the prevailing conditions and not knowing how the animals were going to react to vehicles, viewing was restricted. Nevertheless, the presence of a pack of Wild Dogs with pups is exciting and, with a little luck, this year will be kind to them and future viewing will be good. The second sighting of a single Wild Dog was very fleeting and along the Manyelethi River. Others may have been in the area but the animal (s) were active and bush was dense.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered:14

June 2001

There were no sightings of the pack of wild dogs which have a den inside the Kruger National Park adjacent to the southeastern regions of the reserve. While tracks indicate that this pack could well hunt along the lower reaches of the Sand River on Mala Mala close to their den site, gamedrive vehicles have not as yet encountered them.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 0

May 2001

There were no sightings of any Wild Dogs this month. Evidence from the Kruger National Park suggests that the pack of five which were seen several times in the months prior to May have established a den approximately one kilometre to the east of the southern regions of Mala Mala. Hopefully they will have success in raising a litter this year. With the den sight being so close to the Sand River, there could well be sightings of the pack this dry season as they hunt in this area.

April 2001

There were 7 sightings of a pack of 5 Wild Dogs, one male and four females. This was the same pack seen last month. All sightings were towards the centre and the south of Mala Mala. When seen at the beginning of this game report period, the alpha-female was noticeably pregnant and information from researchers in the Kruger National Park confirmed that a perhaps earlier than usual mating had taken place in February. With a gestation period of approximately 10 weeks, it could be expected that birth would occur some time towards the beginning of May. With this in mind, viewing of the pack was restricted to at least some degree in order not to put unnecessary pressure on the animals. However, they have been most relaxed in the presence of vehicles and, at the last sighting of these hyperactive predators, they were seen killing a steenbok.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 5

March 2001

There were only two sightings of a pack of five wild dogs, these in the central and southern regions of the reserve. One of the males had a radio collar attached, this to assist researchers in the Kruger National Park in monitoring their movements for research purposes. In only a month or two's time this and other packs should start denning and try to raise a litter of pups. Let us hope that this year brings more luck than the last.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 5

February 2001

There were no sightings of Wild Dogs on Mala Mala over this February game report period. However, reports from transport drivers outside the reserve, just inside the Kruger National Park, suggest that the pack of seven Wild Dogs seen on Mala Mala last month and which split up when the one had been injured (this perhaps after an encounter with lions) have joined up again.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 0

January 2001

There were half a dozen of so sightings of the same pack of Wild Dogs this month. It is suspected that this is the same group which was seen during October and then numbered 8, including one youngster. In early December they still numbered 8, but when first seen this month there were only seven and, within a few days, the count had dropped to 6. But such is the sorry life of these otherwise highly disciplined and effective killers. Three days after they had first appeared this month on the reserve, this towards the central-southern areas, they were found some kilometres away to the west and south of the Sand River, close to Kirkmans Camp, and disaster had struck. One of the adults was found some kilometres away from the pack, limping badly and with lacerations to the rear left leg which could only have been the result of some physical interaction with another predator. Although the rest of the pack was only a kilometre or two away, they did not respond to this dogs calls. Between the pack and this lone dog were two male lions, the one with blood on one of its paws. Perhaps he had been responsible for injuring the Wild Dog. Anyway, the following day the 6 healthy Wild Dogs had crossed the Sand River again and were twenty or so kilometres north, hunting as they went. They stayed in the northern and central areas for four days, apparently hunting successfully. They were never seen looking hungry. On one occasion, they were found happily playing in some pans filled with muddy water, when they headed off, probably to look for some shade in which they would spend the rest of the day. Soon after leaving the water, they came across a young male leopard which was feeding off the carcass of an adult female impala, apparently quite recently killed. In spite of the Wild Dogs' bellies being full from whatever they had killed earlier in the morning, they drove the young male leopard off the kill and wolfed down as much as they could. Once they had moved off, the leopard claimed the scraps and hoisted them up into the safety of a tree. The following day the Wild Dogs started heading south again and their tracks were last seen many kilometres away close to the south-eastern boundary with the Kruger National Park. Interestingly, the wounded Wild Dog was not encountered again, but on the day when the others started heading south again, the tracks of a single wild dog were seen moving north in their direction. These animals have an amazing ability to recover from wounds and perhaps after a few days of rest, the injured dog had recovered sufficiently to seek out the rest of his pack.

Number of Wild Dogs encountered: 7

MalaMala Game Reserve, PO Box 55514, Northlands, 2116, South Africa.
Telephone: + 27 11 442 2267 or 0861 SAFARI.
Facsimile: + 27 11 442 2318
e-Mail: reservations@malamala.com

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