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Tau Pan Camp, April 2024

Driving through Tau Pan is like moving through a painting, with autumn colours of yellow, brown, green, and red.

While some areas are dry, others, particularly towards Litiahau and Lekhubu Campsite, remain green. Recent rains rejuvenated the grass despite the approaching winter season, offering a stunning contrast against the green trees and newly sprouted shoots in previously burnt areas.

Birdwatching was fantastic, highlighted by a fork-tailed drongo spotting an African rock python in a tree. The snake remained in the same spot for three weeks, providing a fascinating long-term observation.

Kalahari lions

We encountered the Tau Pan pride right outside the dining room one day, curiously observing us before moving to the waterhole. It was an unforgettable moment as we watched them interact with their surroundings. We went on a thrilling tracking adventure, following the pride’s tracks from the waterhole to the west towards the firebreak. Despite the hard ground obscuring the tracks, our skilled guides relied on their expertise to locate the pride, which we found feeding on a gemsbok they had hunted early that morning.

We located two cheetahs in the Letiahau Valley, seemingly separated and calling for each other. One of them found himself amidst a large herd of gemsbok, which stood their ground and chased him away. The following day, we found the brother along San Pan exhibiting hunting behaviour, though no prey was visible. It’s always fascinating to observe these speedy predators in action.

Wildlife at the busy waterhole 

A brown hyena drank from the waterhole. These timid creatures have typically been seen once a month, making this encounter particularly special.

An elephant bull displayed typical musth behaviour, creating an intense and exhilarating experience for our guests as it fed near the camp. A bushbuck was also seen, adding to the diversity of sightings.

Tau Pan’s diverse landscape provided fantastic general game sightings, especially with the light rains bringing life to the area. Yellow mongooses, slender mongooses, and two caracals were logged. Springbok, red hartebeest, bushbuck, kudus, giraffes, gemsbok, wildebeest, bat-eared foxes, black-backed jackals, and ground squirrels were abundant. Southern pale chanting goshawks were observed stealing food from honey badgers. Other notable sightings included tawny eagles, violet-eared waxbills, weavers, thick-knees, and various shrikes.

Bushman Walk Tau Pan

Our knowledgeable Kalahari guides provided enriching bush walks, sharing cultural insights about traditional living, finding food, bushcraft, and medicinal uses of plants. Guests learned about tracking and survival skills, enhancing their understanding and appreciation of the natural world.

Ants were seen dragging a dead grasshopper to their hole, and a leopard tortoise was found on the move. A puff adder near the road prompted various species to give warning calls. Ball biter ants, ground beetles, and dung beetles were also observed around elephant dung.

The night sky at Tau Pan was a celestial wonder, with clear views of Orion’s Belt, Canis Major, Canis Minor, Taurus, Corvus, the Milky Way, and the Seven Sisters. Stargazing here is a magical experience, with the lack of light pollution offering a pristine view of the cosmos.

(Please note: For the safety of the animals, we do not disclose the precise location of either rhino or pangolin sightings. Accompanying pictures are from our Kwando Photo Library which consists of all your great photo submissions over the years, it may not be the most up to date, but we felt it was worthy of a feature alongside this month’s Sightings Report!)