Madikwe's Creche - by Grant Marcus

This is a guest post by Grant Marcus. You can view the original post as well as photos by Grant Marcus on his website, www.grantmarcus.com 

MEMBERS OF MADIKWE’S CRÈCHE

One of the things people want to see when they come to the bush is some sort of baby animal. The cute factor is just to irresistible.  The images I am going to share with you now are not from the last few days.  I thought it would be good to bring in the cute factor instead of writing on the big scary animals again. These little jackal were found in one of the open mineral hotspots in the park and their den site was in the open underneath a flat rock ledge. It is amazing that the parents knew it was fairly safe to give birth there.

In the evenings the parents will leave the den in search for food. Sometimes one of the adults will stay with the pups. Jackal is one of the few mammals that pair for life. They are monogamous

At this young age they are so vulnerable to predation especially from hyena.  Lions won’t think twice by killing the young and even the adults. They won’t kill them for food, but purely out of frustration and because they can. One of the big cats that will not pass up on a light snack is the leopard. Leopard are known for hunting and killing other predators.

You will see the adult jackal has a collar around the neck. The collar is purely for monitoring purposes. And Rob Harrison White is doing research for his predator biodiversity project. I know the collar looks terrible in the image, but it is there for the bigger picture. Jackal are scavengers, but they do hunt as well.  By the look on their little bellies they are well looked after.

With the relief of the rain there will also be anxiety mixed with happiness amongst the antelope like impala and wilde beest. We are going into the time of year where predators will be in abundance because of the flooding with baby impala and wildebeest after the first big rains. This was an extremely dry year for us. Hopefully I will have some images of new born impala to share with you soon. Baby elephants are around the whole year and with the rainy season on our doorstep we will have hours of entertainment from the babies at muddy waterholes as they try and mimic the adults.

Read more about Madikwe Game Reserve on The Game Lodge Index