Anyway, in spite of the moon being very bright, the lions set off hunting, skirting through herds of elephants and ignoring impala, dedicatedly, it seemed, following some scent. As it turned out, they soon encountered a family of zebra, these in thick bush, ideal terrain for killing under the bright moonlight conditions. Within minutes the lions ran in and caught a sub-adult zebra. It is hoped that at least some of the lionesses of the Styx Pride will soon give birth, some of them certainly appear pregnant. One of these groups, perhaps 300 animals, has been wandering around the burned areas of the reserve.
Elephants seem to be eating quite a bit of bark from the various acacia trees.
Although the impala have started to lamb, they still have some way to go and the 'nursery herds' of youngsters have only just started to form. Tragically for these youngsters of course is that this is a fine time for the killers - leopards, cheetah and wild dogs in particular. All other small carnivores will also pile in - jackals, martial eagles, etc. So far there has been only one cheetah seen over the last few days, this a large male which appears to be relaxing down in the presence of vehicles, although it is initially nervous when approached. It is highly likely that this is the same male which has been seen on and off the reserve over the last few months.