Written by Isaiah Banda
Winter is in full swing here on Mabula Private Game Reserve, and the fresh cold mornings and spectacular sunrises are something I cherish during this season. The vegetation has somewhat thinned out, and the brown hues of the bush lead to some spectacular sightings. The dusty roads and game paths have also provided some really great tracking opportunities.
Although most migratory birds have left, the gold hues of winter provide some amazing shades for photographing birds, and my personal favourite this time of the year is the lilac-breasted roller which stays on the reserve all year round.
The cooler mornings also allow us to see hippos out of the water as they begin to head to their territorial dam later and later in the day, we have been very lucky to see hippos in the middle of TPA plain. Hippos wide lip allows them to graze the grass at night. Just after sunrise this hippo remained at the waters edge as she awaited for the warmth of the day to set in.
There are several words describing a group of hippos – pod, herd, raft, and the most amusing one, a bloat. Hippopotamuses tend to live in a group, or bloat, of 10 to 30 animals led by one dominant male hippo. Bloat means “to become swollen with fluid or gas,” and hippopotamuses have barrel-shaped bodies that look, well, bloated. Because of their very sensitive skin, hippos spend much of the day submerged in water with only their eyes, nostrils and ears sticking out.
They are however, often found sunbathing on sandbanks for a few hours at a time, and spend most of the night out of the water, walking as far as 8 kilometres to find the short grasses which are their favourite food. Their territorial areas in and around water extend only a few hundred meters, but there is no territoriality in their vast grazing areas.
Hippos do not adopt a social approach for nocturnal feeding forays, and most prefer a night of solitary snacking, where they may consume over 50kgs of grass in an evening. Interestingly, the territoriality of the bulls does not seem to extend to their land-based life. Male territoriality revolves around mating rights, so the region he defends in the water and along the dam may vary and does not extend to foraging beyond the dams.
When space is at a premium such as during the dry season when available water is limited, hippos may pack together in big numbers, lucky we have not experience that on the reserve, we go through the whole of winter with most of our dams still have good amount of water, Mvubu dam and Ngulubi dam never go dry during winter. Still, they do so with seemingly great reluctance, and fights are a regular occurrence.
Naturally, visual communication between individuals is inevitably reasonably limited in the murky underwater environment. As a result, much hippo communication is vocal, with a laugh-like grunt being perhaps the most well-known of their vocal repertoire. However, few people realise that aside from the above surface grunts, roars, bellows and shrieks, hippos also communicate underwater. I think if we were able to view hippos while they underwater environment we were going to be in for a big treat. Hippos sightings on the reserve are excellent you are guaranteed to see hippos on every safari that you participate.
Visually, their famously wide yawn is perhaps the hippo’s most notorious body language cue. The joint of the jaw is situated far back in the skull, and the orbicularis oris is folded in such a way in the hippo that, at full stretch, it can open its mouth almost 180 degrees. This serves to reveal an intimidating set of tusks, particularly in adult males, and should usually be interpreted as a threat display. The lower canine tusks curve upwards and can grow over 50cm in length, while the lower incisors present a forward-facing barrier of spears. The tusks are used as offensive weapons, predominantly when two bulls fight.
That said, hippos do earn their dangerous reputation. They can be aggressive and are massive, well-armed animals capable of doing significant harm. Hippos feel safest in the water and are unlikely to bother people when fully submerged. It is when people come between them and their place of safety or a calf)or, like bull, during the dry season when space is at a premium, that they are most likely to attack.
Staying out of their way is the best course of action. However, unfortunately, this is simply not possible for many people dependent on the river systems and living without running water. When watched from a safe and comfortable distance, hippos are fascinating and delightful animals.
They are also powerful, speedy and deserving of absolute respect. From the charming little calves and placid cows to playful adolescents and awe-inspiring bulls, there is something profoundly intriguing about the knowledge that we still have so much to learn
The afternoon safaris are ends with incredible sunsets and the golden hour is something that cannot be quite explained.
Until next time…
From Isaiah Banda & Mabula family.
Safari Greetings.
