Category Archives: Limpopo Province

Our experiences in the reserves of Limpopo, South Africa

Limpopo Ramble 2022: Eastern Rock Sengi

During our recent visit to Marakele National Park, while enjoying the magnificent view from the Lenong Viewpoint, we spied a little Eastern Rock Sengi basking in the early morning sun – a habit they are particularly fond of – behind a fence surrounding one of the communication towers also built atop the mountain. While the fence is a rather irritating obtrusion in these photo’s of ours, it is probably because of it that the Sengi felt comfortable enough to be out and about, safe in the knowledge that neither us humans nor any other predator could reach it!

Eastern Rock Elephant Shrew at Lenong Viewpoint in Marakele National Park

Eastern Rock Sengi, or Elephant Shrew, at Lenong Viewpoint in Marakele National Park

Eastern Rock Elephant Shrew at Lenong Viewpoint in Marakele National Park

Eastern Rock Elephant Shrew at Lenong Viewpoint in Marakele National Park (photo by Joubert)

Elephantulus myurus

The Sengis, or Elephant Shrews, (order Macroscelidea) are a family of 20 small, insectivorous mammal species occurring only in Africa. While they’re superficially very shrew-like they are in fact not related to shrews at all (and they are in fact more closely related to elephants, even if their “trunks” aren’t nearly as long and prehensile), which is why the scientific community is trying to move away from the old moniker in favour of Sengi, a name based in indigenous African languages.

The Eastern Rock Elephant Shrew, or Sengi then, occurs widely in South Africa’s northern and eastern provinces and throughout Zimbabwe, extending into portions of Lesotho, Eswatini, Botswana and Mozambique south of the Zambezi. The IUCN considers it to be of least concern.

As suggested by its name, the Eastern Rock Sengi is always found in close association with rocky areas where they hide in cracks and tiny caves among the boulders. Here they subsist on a diet that consist of insects (mainly ants and termites) and other invertebrates, though they will also eat seeds. They are diurnal, very rarely venturing out in the dark. They are also very alert and nervous, usually dashing for cover at the slightest disturbance.

Eastern Rock Sengi’s are mainly solitary and seen in pairs only while they breed during spring and summer. Females usually give birth to twins after a two-month long gestation. The young are very well developed and can move around with their mother soon after birth. Fully grown, Eastern Rock Sengi’s measure about 26cm long (of which the tail is more than half) and weigh approximately 60g. They have a very short lifespan and may live to only around 18 months of age in the wild.

Limpopo Ramble 2022: Royal Welcome at Marakele

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Scarcely half-an-hour after arriving at Marakele National Park on the 29th of June, while making our way between reception and our allocated tent at Tlopi Tented Camp, we were met by this beautiful male lion, out patrolling and marking his territory. It really is nice to have your arrival acknowledged by the local royalty, don’t you think?

Beautiful Lion in Marakele National Park (photo by Joubert)

Beautiful Lion in Marakele National Park

Beautiful Lion in Marakele National Park (photo by Joubert)

Limpopo Ramble 2022: Taking our Elephant for a walk

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Late one evening as we were slowly heading back to Marakele National Park’s Tlopi Camp with a few minutes left before gate closing time, we found our way blocked by a big herd of elephants, and I parked our vehicle a good distance away so that we could enjoy the sighting. While the herd were peacefully going about their business up ahead, suddenly a young elephant cow came charging at full tilt out of the bush right next to us!

I immediately turned the car around and drove off. After a few hundred metres I slowed down so that we could resume our more leisurely game-viewing pace, only to have the raging cow appear in the rear-view mirror again. This being repeated several times, it was startling to realise that she would not relent and in the end she chased us for over a kilometre – with Joubert snapping away these photographs – before she turned around.

Elephant cow that made sure we were well and truly out of reach of her family (photo by Joubert)

Limpopo Ramble 2022: Tlopi Buffalo Pub

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One afternoon during our recent visit to Marakele National Park, while relaxing on the deck of our safari tent and enjoying the serenity of Tlopi Camp, this sizable herd of buffaloes visited their local waterhole for a drink. Joubert is responsible for all these pictures.

Buffalo herd visiting Tlopi Tented Camp (photo by Joubert)

Buffaloes visiting Tlopi (photo by Joubert)

Limpopo Ramble 2022: Marakele Birding

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Following our time at Mapungubwe National Park we headed southwest for a further four nights at Marakele National Park. Here we had another productive period as far as bird watching is concerned, ticking 101 species of the 360+ that has been recorded in the Park to date.

African Stonechat female (photo by Joubert)

Cardinal Woodpecker

Black-faced Waxbill (photo by Joubert)

Black-crowned Tchagra (Photo by Joubert)

Buff-streaked Chat

Burnt-necked Eremomela

Cape Bunting

Cape Rock Thrush (photo by Joubert)

Chinspot Batis female (photo by Joubert)

Cinnamon-breasted Bunting

Common Waxbill (photo of Joubert)

Crimson-breasted Shrike

Familiar Chat (photo by Joubert)

Fish Eagle (photo by Joubert)

Golden-breasted Bunting

Green-backed Heron (photo by Joubert)

Green-winged Pytilia (photo by Joubert)

Grey-backed Camaroptera

African Grey Hornbill in flight (photo by Joubert)

African Grey Hornbill

Hamerkop (photo by Joubert)

Helmeted Guineafowl (photo by Joubert)

Magpie Shrike

Marico Flycatcher

Neddicky

Nicholson’s Pipit (photo by Joubert)

Southern Pied Babbler (photo by Joubert)

Pied Kingfisher (Photo by Joubert)

Purple Roller

Rattling Cisticola

Red-billed Firefinch

Red-faced Mousebirds taking flight

Southern Boubou

Spotted Dikkops, or Thick-knees (photo by Joubert)

Swallow-tailed Bee-eater

Violet-backed Starlings

Violet-eared Waxbill (photo by Joubert)

White-crowned Shrike (photo by Joubert)

White-fronted Bee-eater

White-crested Helmetshrike (photo by Joubert)

White-throated Robin-Chat (photo by Joubert)

Yellow-billed Hornbill

Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird (photo by Joubert)

Limpopo Ramble 2022: Mapungubwe Birding

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Including the Pel’s Fishing Owl and the Verreaux’s Eagles at their nest, we managed to identify exactly 100 bird species during our 4 night visit to the Mapungubwe National Park in June 2022. With over 460 species recorded in the Park, many of which are summer visitors, we’ll just have to return again to build on our list. These are some that played along for a photo or two during our latest visit to Mapungubwe.

African Hawk Eagle

Ashy Flycatcher

Bearded Woodpecker

Black-faced Waxbill

Black Crake

Dark-capped Bulbul

Black-winged Stilt (photo by Joubert)

Brown-hooded Kingfisher

Red-billed Buffalo Weaver (photo by Joubert)

Cape Vulture (photo by Joubert)

Crested Barbet (photo by Joubert)

Crowned Lapwing (photo by Joubert)

Egyptian Goose gosling (photo by Joubert)

Familiar Chat

Golden-breasted Bunting

Grey Go-away-bird

Grey Heron

Helmeted Guineafowl (photo by Joubert)

Hamerkop (photo by Joubert)

African Harrier Hawk (photo by Joubert)

White-browed Robin-Chat

Kori Bustard

Lappet-faced Vulture (photo by Joubert)

Lilac-breasted Roller (photo by Joubert)

Little Egret

Little Grebe

Little Sparrowhawk (photo by Joubert)

Marabou

Meves’s Starling

Mocking Cliff Chat

Pale Chanting Goshawk (photo by Joubert)

Purple Roller

Green-winged Pytilia

Red-billed Firefinch

Red-billed Quelea

Red-billed Teal family

Sabota Lark

Red-eyed Dove (photo by Joubert)

Scaly-feathered Finch

Spectacled Weaver

Swainson’s Spurfowl

Three-banded Plover

White-backed Vulture (photo by Joubert)

White-browed Sparrow-Weaver

White-fronted Bee-eater (photo by Joubert)

Yellow-fronted Canary

Limpopo Ramble 2022: Verreaux’s Eagle Nest in Mapungubwe

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On a sheer rock face in the Mapungubwe National Park, we found a pair of Verreaux’s Eagles attending to their chick at their nest. So large was the nest that we seldom got even a glimpse of the fluffy white chick, but it was wonderful nevertheless to see the majestic adults coming and going.

This cliff in the Mapungubwe National Park is home to a family of Verreaux’s Eagles

Adult Verreaux’s Eagle keeping an eye on its nest and chick from a distance

Verreaux’s Eagles at their nest against a cliff in Mapungubwe National Park

Adult Verreaux’s Eagle departing from the nest

Verreaux’s EaAdult Verreaux’s Eagle departing from the nestgle

Limpopo Ramble 2022: Mapungubwe’s Treetop Walk

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One of the real treats of a visit to Mapungubwe National Park is the Treetop Walk through the riverine forest on the South African bank of the Limpopo River (Botswana is on the opposite side). Sadly the length of the elevated boardwalk was trimmed significantly by recent floods, but it still offers a wonderful glimpse into life in the tree canopy and an amazing opportunity to watch elephants from above if you are lucky to be on the treetop walk when a herd moves through on their way to the water.

Mapungubwe’s Treetop Walk on the bank of the Limpopo River

Lazy Limpopo River in the early morning

Lazy Limpopo River in the afternoon

Elephants at the Treetop Walk (photo by Joubert)

Elephants at the Treetop Walk

Limpopo Ramble 2022: The Kingdom of Mapungubwe

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Mapungubwe Hill and the valleys around it, today part of the Mapungubwe National Park and World Heritage Site, was the seat of a powerful African Kingdom that ruled between 1,100 and 700 years ago. Mapungubwe Hill is by far South Africa’s most important iron age archeological site and can be visited on guided tours.

Mapungubwe Hill in its surrounding landscape

Mapungubwe Hill seen from the northwest

Side-on view of Mapungubwe Hill, seen from the south

The Interpretive Centre at Mapungubwe, itself an award-winning architectural marvel, provides a fascinating glimpse into the daily lives of the people who lived in the Kingdom of Mapungubwe. Royalty ruled from atop the hill, with their subjects living below. The Kingdom’s riches were based on gold and ivory, traded with cultures from as far afield as Persia and China through a trade route leading through the east coast of Africa. Mapungubwe means “Place where rock turns into liquid” in reference to the smelting of gold practiced by the country’s citizens.

Mapungubwe Interpretive Centre

Clay figurines unearthed at Mapungubwe

An ancient African board game

Mapungubwe’s interpretative centre has a model of the famous golden rhino

A golden scepter unearthed at Mapungubwe

Mapungubwe’s interpretative centre has a model of the famous golden rhino

Golden jewellery unearthed at Mapungubwe

The rich archeological treasures of Mapungubwe were re-discovered in 1933. Having been recognised formally as a National Monument in 1984, the Mapungubwe Cultural Landscape was inscribed as a Unesco World Heritage Site in 2003.

Limpopo Ramble 2022: The Land of the Giants

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In the Mapungubwe National Park, three aspects are truly iconic of this landscape: Elephants, baobabs, and rocky hills and cliffs. It’s as if the entire atmosphere of the Park hinges on these key natural attributes.

Mapungubwe, situated as it is at the place where the borders of South Africa, Botswana and Zimbabwe meet, has a high population of elephants and especially so when the dry season concentrate the behemoths along the banks of the Limpopo River. From families of cows and tiny calves to enormous bulls can all be expected along any of the roads traversing the Park, and sometimes waiting for these charismatic animals to clear the way can be a very entertaining delay. At other times, the dense mopane veld may lead to you inadvertently finding yourself in the personal space of one of the giants and they might react with more than a little agitation!

Angry elephant (photo by Joubert)

Elephant cow with her herd (photo by Joubert)

Elephant cow and calf crossing the road (photo by Joubert)

Elephant cow

Young elephant bulls testing their mettle

Adult elephant bull

Big elephant bull reaching for tasty leaves

Elephant youngster (photo by Joubert)

Fully grown elephant bull (photo by Joubert)

Most impressive elephant bull foraging along the Limpopo (photo by Joubert)

Young elephant bull scaling a rocky outcrop

Elephant cow

Fully grown elephant bull (photo by Joubert)

The Elephants even move through Mapungubwe’s unfenced main camp Leokwe, as we experienced one evening upon arriving at out cottage.

Elephants in Leokwe (photo by Joubert)

Baobabs are the undisputable rulers of Mapungubwe’s plant kingdom. With this part of the world now firmly in Winter’s grip, the trees are mostly leafless, lending more credence to the myth that the Creator tossed them to earth, planting them upside down. Elephants have a paticular liking for the pulpy wood of the baobab, and many of Mapungubwe’s trees show damage as a result, leading to the Park authorities protecting some prime specimens by using wire as wrapping around their trunks (those of the trees, not those of the elephants 😉 )

Baobab showing elephant damage

Baobabs dotting the Mapungubwe landscape

Beautiful Baobab

Look carefully to notice the wire wrapped around this Baobab’s trunk to prevent further elephant damage

Baobabs dotting the Mapungubwe landscape

Baobab atop one of Mapungubwe’s hills

An enormous Baobab towering above the plains

One of Mapungubwe’s roads hugging a Baobab

Young Baobab

Mapungubwe Baobabs

An enormous Baobab towering above the mopane

Mapungubwe Baobab

Mapungubwe Baobabs

An enormous Baobab towering above the plains

Baobabs dotting the Mapungubwe landscape

Baobabs on a hillside with dark clouds looming

A huge Baobab growing in the tiniest of spots among the rocks

A most impressive Baobab!

On the largest scale of all, it is the rocky, hilly landscapes that really forms the basis of Mapungubwe’s ancient atmosphere. The hills are composed mainly of dolerite – the remains of molten rock pushed up from deep inside the earth through sandstone that has long since weathered away to leave only the harder volcanic geology visible.