WILDLIFE REPORT SINGITA LAMAI, TANZANIA For the month of June and July, Two Thousand and Sixteen

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1 WILDLIFE REPORT SINGITA LAMAI, TANZANIA For the month of June and July, Two Thousand and Sixteen The Lamai Triangle experiences a dramatic transformation between the months of June and July, both aesthetically and in terms of wildlife, particularly when the migratory animals show up as early as they did this season. During the month of June there was still a fair amount of precipitation, more so than Grumeti had which is just 80 kilometres (50 miles) to the south west of Lamai. The game in the immediate area of the camp was superb during this time. Great sightings of large groups of giraffe, as well as eland, topi and gazelles, and on occasions even good elephant sightings were to be had close to the camp and even within the camp itself. July started drying off nicely and this made for perfect game viewing conditions once the large herds of wildebeest arrived. Collectively, they eat the equivalent of around tons of grass per day, and that s not taking into account the amount of grass that is just trampled underfoot as they move around. The shorter the grass gets, the better the game viewing becomes. Lion, leopard and cheetah sightings start climbing dramatically as the environment opens up.

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3 Migration update: The fact that Lamai gets more rain ensures that the grass stays green and long right up until the wildebeest herds arrive in earnest. In late June they did just that. The guides based at the camp witnessed the first wildebeest crossing on the last day of June even if it was only 200 animals it still counts as a crossing. Within the first week of July there were full-blown crossings. Some of which ended up lasting for the entire day! The Mara River becomes the central focal point of the northern Serengeti at this time. Getting to watch a crossing this early on is when all the action happens. The monster crocodiles have just about forgotten what wildebeest or

4 anything other than fish tastes like. This is now the boon time for them! But be warned, it gets messy and it can get pretty smelly too! The crocodiles go into a killing frenzy, drowning far more than they could ever wish to consume, and as the carcasses get washed downstream and then get caught up on the rocks, they end up providing for thousands of scavenging birds.

5 Once the crocs have settled down and start to feed, the activity of crocodile take-downs start to quieten too. This is when they spend a lot of their time basking in the sun to assist with the digestion process and this is a great time to see just how big these reptiles can get. The wildebeest crossings become a daily occurrence as the search for perfect grazing conditions continues. They don t only cross in one direction either, on occasions one can see two different herds crossing in opposite directions not terribly far from one another.

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7 Wildlife update: Leopards In July we ended the month with twelve sightings, in June we only managed to accumulate three sightings. The leopards in the Lamai Triangle are mostly relaxed, which is a nice windfall for us because as long as they are resting in a tree we will get to see them. The drainage line that runs to the east of the camp all the way to the border is the best place to view these special cats.

8 Lions In June we massed a total of 15 lion sightings for the month. This is a very good figure considering we had 13 days with no guests in camp. July on the other hand provided almost daily viewing of lions. And the grand total for lion sightings by the end of July was 37. Baring in mind that the migration and crossings are the big draw card, getting this many sightings is terrific. Cheetahs There was a 100% increase in sightings of cheetahs between the two months from six in June to twelve recorded in July. The majority of the sightings were made up of two males that frequent the border area between the Maasai Mara and the northern Serengeti.

9 Elephants Elephant were regularly seen throughout both months. From time to time they would come into camp and spend some quality time just feeding while guests would watch them as they sipped on an expertly made cocktail! I couldn t think of a better way to end a long safari day! General: There were also some unusual sightings, in July in particular. One of the guides got to see a female East African black rhino and her calf. There was also a good sighting of wait for it snake lovers a black-necked spitting cobra. Fortunately this was seen well away from camp and it was just going about its business and not bothering anyone. Large gatherings of hyenas also seemed to be a common sight over the last twomonth period. On one occasion a group of 24 hyenas were seen fe eding on a freshly killed topi on Kampi Kampi plains. We are unsure of what August holds in store, but undoubtedly there will be some wildebeest involved and, have no fear, because we will report on it at the end of next month. By Ryan Schmitt Singita Lamai Serengeti Tanzania Thirty-first of July 2016