Jonathan & Angela Scott's Blog

Zawadi (aka ‘Shadow’ - Half-Tail’s daughter) is still alive – but really showing her age as is only to be expected at the grand old age of 16. She was heavily pregnant when we last saw her in Leopard Gorge (Double Gorge) in October while on safari from Rekero Camp. She was seen most recently on the 12 Dec looking “very tired” according to friends in Mara North Conservancy. Whether or not Zawadi gave birth and then lost her cubs we are yet to find out as she has proved elusive these past few weeks with so few vehicles on safari in her area.

The Marsh Pride finally underwent the transition we had all been expecting. After a remarkable 4 years with the pride the two ageing pride males Clawed (14 years old??) and Romeo (12 years old??) were driven out of the territory by four young nomads who had been causing havoc to the east of Musiara Marsh and Bila Shaka. We named them the 4 Muskateers when they moved down to Bila Shaka in early October, and enjoyed some amazing game drives during this period while on safari with our annual Celebration of Wildlife with Prestige Promotions out of Little Governor’s Camp. The males are now firmly in control of the Marsh Pride territory and in the process of mating with various females from the pride including Bibi (13 years old) and some of the young adult females. White Eye has made their acquaintance too – she is the old Mama now at 13 years old and along with Bibi a survivor of the cubs of 1998 – remember the buffalo vs lion epic from that years Big Cat Diary? Well Bibi and White Eye survived that scene!

Joy (one of the Three Graces) and her four cubs that we watched around Lake Nakuru (the Mara version!) in May when they were 2 to 3 months old, were joined by a fifth cub – a little male – belonging to her sister (?) Sienna. The male cub was the only surviving cub of Sienna’s litter. Sienna then proceeded to abandon the little cub into Joy’s care. Callous it may be – but it allows Sienna to become sexually active again and raise a new litter without waiting a year-and-a-half for her male cub to grow up. Joy + 5 are now part of their own splinter group eking out an existence to the east of the Marsh Pride’s territory towards the Gardenia Lugga and Double Crossing in an attempt to keep one step ahead of the 4 Muskateers. But in doing so have they are constantly at risk from conflict with Masai herdsmen as this area is on the boundary of the Reserve.

One of Honey’s Boys – the three cheetah brothers born in early 2006– was killed by a male lion around the Kissinger area (between Sekennani gate and Keekorok Lodge). The two remaining brothers are almost 6 years old. This is a major change for all of us – cheetahs and humans! The sight of the 3 Boys was one of the highlights of any safari to the northern Mara – and to see them hunting wildebeest calves high drama.
Currently cheetahs are the toughest of the big cats to find and photograph in the northern Mara. This is partly due to there being so few females with cubs right now. And that is partly a consequence of the drought conditions that prevailed for much of the year that reduced the cover options available for mother cheetahs to hide their cubs from the ever present danger posed by lions and hyenas – and leopards at times. Shingo (aka the cheetah “Supermum”) who we watched in late 2010 with her six young cubs managed the remarkable feat of raising all of them – 2 sisters and 4 brothers. But there was a report that one of the females broke her leg and had to be operated on. Any news for us if this was the case and her fate??

Paul Kirui, one of Kenya’s top safari guides who used to run Mara Explorer Camp, told us of a mother cheetah who gave birth to 7 cubs near to camp – but lost all of them at an early age to lions. And prior to that a mother cheetah who was being seen with 5 cubs in the Naiboisho Conservancy was killed by lions. As far as we know her cubs were old enough to survive on their own.

Olive the leopard (Bella’s daughter) and her year-old daughter Bahati (a year-and-a-quarter old) are doing well. Paja and Kiyuni (Bhati’s older brothers) are still seen at times in Olive’s territory. And Olive, Bahati and Kiyuni were all seen together in November. We think that Olive is already pregnant with her next litter of cubs. Of all the leopard females we have had the good fortune to follow, Olive is the record breaker when it comes to raising cubs, with six surviving offspring to date. We first saw Olive (with her mother Bella) in 2000, so she is 11 years old.