Well, the year is racing away from us and we find ourselves in November already and the beginning of the rainy season is in full swing. October was a busy month for us, both with guests getting in their safari holidays before the low season, and for all the spectacular wildlife sightings we have had in and around the lodge.
The wildebeest came and went, and then came back again! But in much larger numbers the second time. The plains around the lodge were once again swarming with black dots, and the unmistakable sound of ‘gnu’ became merely a background noise as we became so used to it.
In amongst the wildebeest you could pick out pockets of buffalo, impala and other less numerous ungulates such as Topi and hartebeest. And then there is the 70+ strong herd of elephants that has been lingering around (and occasionally passing through) the Lodge for the last couple of weeks. They alone provide hours of viewing pleasure, whether you are watching the tiny youngsters (some as young as a few months we estimate) running after the adults and hiding under the bellies of their mothers for protection from the heat of the day or playful bulls getting carried away with their sparring antics.
However, despite all the larger attractions, including the calls of hyena and lions on a nightly basis, it is our feathered friends who have really caught our interest recently. Charles and I always take a keen interest in the birdlife wherever we go, but we have been richly rewarded for the many hours spent looking and listening for flashes of colour or unrecognised calls from the bushes in the last month.
Every morning we are treated to a flurry of different birds playing in the bushes outside the reception, led by the ever vocal Bare-Faced Louries and Von der Deckens Hornbills. At first glance you might think there are only a few birds playing hide-and-seek, but a few minutes spent quietly sitting and watching reveals such delights as Blue Waxbills, Puff-Backed Shrikes, Speckled mousebirds, Paradise Flycatchers and Spot-Flanked Barbets.
Spend some time at the restaurant looking out across the valley and you’ll be treated to fantastic sightings of Bateleurs hunting, White-backed and Lappet-faced vultures circling overhead tracing the “scent” of the previous nights’ kill, and even giants such as Tawny Eagles. Look a bit closer to home and you’ll notice the trees alive with the appropriately named (and very noisy) Arrow-marked Babblers as well as Red-headed Weavers building nests.
To date, our best discovery has been the pair of Lilac-breasted rollers that have made themselves a home in the hollow of a tree at the back of the lodge and are raising some very vocal chicks. Rollers are surprisingly big birds, and they are fascinating to watch when you can catch them displaying in flight. However, for us now, it is the parents’ dedicated and persistent search and supply of moths, crickets, and grasshoppers for their young that has us fixated on a hole in a tree, trying desperately to get the perfect photo of them coming in to land or sneakily trying to exit without drawing too much attention to their nest. They are beautiful birds, and always worth stopping for if you see them in passing. The challenge though, is to count how many colours their feathers display…
The Serengeti is a fantastic place to view the bigger charismatic species, but don’t forget to take some time to enjoy the smaller side of wildlife, it’s worth the effort.
Charles, Kerri-Lyn and all the staff at Soroi Serengeti Lodge
