some cheetahs /Tanzania Jan 08
Feb 4th, 2008, 09:53 AM
#41
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Thanks a lot for the info David, I know exactly where this marsh is 
The guide we use is at Ndutu often so hopefully he'll know where to find these cheetahs.
We are staying on the NCA side but are taking enough cash to spend several days on the Serengeti side if necessary (we usually go at least one time to Gol kopjes anyway) so this will work out well.
We saw similar numbers of cheetahs at Ndutu last year, I think 17 in 7 days counting the 3 we saw at Gol (plus 3 others at Manyara and Crater) but none of the moms had more than 3 kits so it will be really interesting to see this one with 6 ... you had a lot of good photos, thanks for posting and thanks again for the info.
Bill
The guide we use is at Ndutu often so hopefully he'll know where to find these cheetahs.We are staying on the NCA side but are taking enough cash to spend several days on the Serengeti side if necessary (we usually go at least one time to Gol kopjes anyway) so this will work out well.
We saw similar numbers of cheetahs at Ndutu last year, I think 17 in 7 days counting the 3 we saw at Gol (plus 3 others at Manyara and Crater) but none of the moms had more than 3 kits so it will be really interesting to see this one with 6 ... you had a lot of good photos, thanks for posting and thanks again for the info.
Bill
Feb 4th, 2008, 11:53 AM
#44
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George,
We were really close to the cheetah with 3 cubs, and a Cannon dslr with a 300 tele lens, but we were never zoomed all the way. We also used a point and shoot Panasonic with a 12x optical zoom. We werent quite as close to the mom with 6 cubs and used full zoom on both of the cameras.
davgai
We were really close to the cheetah with 3 cubs, and a Cannon dslr with a 300 tele lens, but we were never zoomed all the way. We also used a point and shoot Panasonic with a 12x optical zoom. We werent quite as close to the mom with 6 cubs and used full zoom on both of the cameras.
davgai
Feb 4th, 2008, 12:28 PM
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Thanks Davgai! I was hoping you would say that as my group will have Gilliard plus one other guide. Also Olakira camp, where we will be based is currently located just on the Serengeti side in the Ndutu area so hopefully we will find the cheetah mom with 6 cubs -- at least I know we have the guide who found her to start with plus based in the right vicinity. Hopefully we will be lucky!
Feb 4th, 2008, 06:17 PM
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PredatorBiologist,
Gilliard should be able to take you directlly to where he found the cheetah mom with the 3 sub-adult cubs. However when we returned from Rwanda we had a different guide... non-kiliwarrior. I'm hoping for you.. that Gilliard will find the mom-w6 for you too.
davgai
Gilliard should be able to take you directlly to where he found the cheetah mom with the 3 sub-adult cubs. However when we returned from Rwanda we had a different guide... non-kiliwarrior. I'm hoping for you.. that Gilliard will find the mom-w6 for you too.
davgai
Feb 4th, 2008, 08:37 PM
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PB, Gilliard is without a doubt a wildlife guide....and driver "as top notch as they come", he is highiy trained,and well edjucated, plus he has a number of years under hi belt as a private guide,last but no least he is a gentleman,and last but mot least he' actually quuite a scholar,
Feb 15th, 2008, 02:51 AM
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Wow, what great pictures! Love the cheetahs. How old do you think those three youg ones are? Could they be about 12 months old? If so I was wondering if they could be the same cubs we saw in July. I think they would have been in the right area. I have posted a link to my photos, so anyone with a keen eye maybe able to compare them if the size/ age of the two sets of cubs tie up. It would be great to know that three of the five we saw are still doing well.
http://www.photobox.co.uk/album/7630397
http://www.photobox.co.uk/album/7630397
Mar 8th, 2008, 08:43 AM
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Just got back from Tz and the Ndutu area and wanted to revive David's thread to report that the cheetah moms are still there.
We were able to photograph the same mom David did with the six cubs, now estimated at almost 4 months of age. All six are still healthy but unfortunately they are at times being harassed by too many vehicles, some cutting them off when mom tried to hunt.
Also saw the mom with four large cubs almost her size (over a year old), a mom with three adorable tiny tiny cubs just out of the natal lair (these were likely 8-9 weeks old and still covered in spiky dark fur with the silver manes ... the cutest cubs I've seen because they are so young). Finally found a mom with three 8 month old cubs far south.
In all we saw 27 cheetahs around Ndutu and spent a lot of time with them. Also 74 lions total, a drop from last year's 170 sightings and 100 unique lions but we didn't spend time looking for lions with so many cheetahs to follow.
Other sightings included two leopards (one Ndutu, one Manyara), both on the ground close to the jeep, five African wildcats, two servals, even an aardvark and a zorilla (yes, we got 'em A to Z this trip). And a few wildebeests and zebras as the migration moved back and forth.
Two very dramatic photo opportunities, one with secretary birds dismembering a large puff adder, the other with a honey badger fighting a ... well, I'll wait and surprise you with the photos of this highly unlikely fight. Should post something soon.
Anyone else returning from Ndutu the next few weeks please post updates on the fate of the cubs, especially the group of six. The mom with six cubs is simply amazing, given all the lions and hyenas in that area. Extensive research indicates a cub has a 1-in-20 chance of making it to separation at 15-18 months and raising six cubs there is unbelievable.
Bill & Carolyn
We were able to photograph the same mom David did with the six cubs, now estimated at almost 4 months of age. All six are still healthy but unfortunately they are at times being harassed by too many vehicles, some cutting them off when mom tried to hunt.
Also saw the mom with four large cubs almost her size (over a year old), a mom with three adorable tiny tiny cubs just out of the natal lair (these were likely 8-9 weeks old and still covered in spiky dark fur with the silver manes ... the cutest cubs I've seen because they are so young). Finally found a mom with three 8 month old cubs far south.
In all we saw 27 cheetahs around Ndutu and spent a lot of time with them. Also 74 lions total, a drop from last year's 170 sightings and 100 unique lions but we didn't spend time looking for lions with so many cheetahs to follow.
Other sightings included two leopards (one Ndutu, one Manyara), both on the ground close to the jeep, five African wildcats, two servals, even an aardvark and a zorilla (yes, we got 'em A to Z this trip). And a few wildebeests and zebras as the migration moved back and forth.
Two very dramatic photo opportunities, one with secretary birds dismembering a large puff adder, the other with a honey badger fighting a ... well, I'll wait and surprise you with the photos of this highly unlikely fight. Should post something soon.
Anyone else returning from Ndutu the next few weeks please post updates on the fate of the cubs, especially the group of six. The mom with six cubs is simply amazing, given all the lions and hyenas in that area. Extensive research indicates a cub has a 1-in-20 chance of making it to separation at 15-18 months and raising six cubs there is unbelievable.
Bill & Carolyn
Mar 8th, 2008, 04:12 PM
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Bill and Carolyn,
Excellent news!
I can't wait to see the pictures of....well.... everything.
I am so glad to hear about your great visit; because I know... very soon I will be re-living the experience through your pictures.
David
Excellent news!
I can't wait to see the pictures of....well.... everything.
I am so glad to hear about your great visit; because I know... very soon I will be re-living the experience through your pictures.
David
Mar 9th, 2008, 10:56 AM
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Bill and Carolyn
welcome back home! I got back home around the first week of February, so I have had time to finally look through some of my images. We had some enjoyable moments with the mother cheetah and her 6 cubs. Fantastic viewing experience. I was saddened when other vehicles would come near us and wouldn't show much respect regarding where they positioned their vehicles when the mother was hunting. We spent 4 days with her, and we were able to watch some amazing chases. None were successful from a photographic point of view, primarily because of the distance between us. I suspect we were at least 400 to 500 feet away. I would rather not inhibit their hunting.
here are just a few photos from our time together:
http://www.andybiggs.com/cheetah6cubs/
Not the best material, but hopefully they illustrate what we saw. I am amazed that all 6 cubs have survived this long.
welcome back home! I got back home around the first week of February, so I have had time to finally look through some of my images. We had some enjoyable moments with the mother cheetah and her 6 cubs. Fantastic viewing experience. I was saddened when other vehicles would come near us and wouldn't show much respect regarding where they positioned their vehicles when the mother was hunting. We spent 4 days with her, and we were able to watch some amazing chases. None were successful from a photographic point of view, primarily because of the distance between us. I suspect we were at least 400 to 500 feet away. I would rather not inhibit their hunting.
here are just a few photos from our time together:
http://www.andybiggs.com/cheetah6cubs/
Not the best material, but hopefully they illustrate what we saw. I am amazed that all 6 cubs have survived this long.
Mar 10th, 2008, 08:53 AM
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I was in the area about the same time as Bill and Carolyn, the last week of February I saw the mother with 6 cubs as well as the mother with the 4 large cubs -- both phenomenal mothers to have their number of cubs for the ages they are. I do think timing is good right now for the 6 as the hyena and lion in the area are so full they barely want to move, hopefully they grow fast before times get a little more lean.
I have been hesitant to go to East Africa due to the reputation of the number of vehicles and behavior of some drivers (I can't really call them guides) and I'm sorry to say I found it to be a very real and disgusting problem although my trip was still tremendous. It got to the point where a cheetah researcher had to stake out the mom with the 6 cubs and drive to each arriving vehicle to inform them that all the attention had prevented the mother (Elizabeth I think they call her?) from making a kill for a couple of days and things were becoming dire and thus they were requesting that people give them some distance. We found her and the cubs a day and 1/2 later eating thank goodness. It wasn't long before 12 vehicles were present but mostly well behaved until they finished and then it was time to head for shade and get the cubs away from the eating area that could attract danger. Of course the cubs went for quick shade, heading right to the line of vehicles where they went under trucks and climbed up on the tires, etc. The poor mom would chirp and chirp to collect them and then one or two would run under again. She finally gets them past the vehicles and has a long walk ahead to get to shade and cover at which point 3 vehicles fire up and follow them at close distance, people mind you who have already been treated to at least 20 minutes of feeding and 10 minutes of cubs playing around the vehicles. Amazingly two of these vehicles had left during the feeding and then come back but now wanted to follow them for naps.
More frustrating to me personally was when we did the work and found a lone male cheetah and followed at a distance across a large open plain as he was obviously intent on hunting. Of course others eventually spied us and joined the watch including two Kibo vehicles, who must have radioed a third, because he came barreling in late from the other side of all the other vehicles who were positioned to observe and leave space to the herd he was approaching. This guy zooms all the way to about 30 feet from the cheetah covering him in a cloud of dust as they come to a stop and consequently so does the cheetah, who sits down. Soon as he sits the other two Kibo vehicles fire up and zoom in from the other side for their close up photos. I was livid! Fortunately, about 10 minutes later he started to hunt again and did make a kill and amazingly some of these vehicles left soon after the kill was made not waiting to watch him feed or see what kind of interactions would follow as if they were going to find something better at 10 a.m.?
A standard of conduct needs to be developed and enforced. Look forward to more recent updates and hope all the cubs in this unique situation can make it.
Also, can’t wait the read and see the photos of the honey badger fight by Bill & Carolyn, I am very curious to learn the other party!
I have been hesitant to go to East Africa due to the reputation of the number of vehicles and behavior of some drivers (I can't really call them guides) and I'm sorry to say I found it to be a very real and disgusting problem although my trip was still tremendous. It got to the point where a cheetah researcher had to stake out the mom with the 6 cubs and drive to each arriving vehicle to inform them that all the attention had prevented the mother (Elizabeth I think they call her?) from making a kill for a couple of days and things were becoming dire and thus they were requesting that people give them some distance. We found her and the cubs a day and 1/2 later eating thank goodness. It wasn't long before 12 vehicles were present but mostly well behaved until they finished and then it was time to head for shade and get the cubs away from the eating area that could attract danger. Of course the cubs went for quick shade, heading right to the line of vehicles where they went under trucks and climbed up on the tires, etc. The poor mom would chirp and chirp to collect them and then one or two would run under again. She finally gets them past the vehicles and has a long walk ahead to get to shade and cover at which point 3 vehicles fire up and follow them at close distance, people mind you who have already been treated to at least 20 minutes of feeding and 10 minutes of cubs playing around the vehicles. Amazingly two of these vehicles had left during the feeding and then come back but now wanted to follow them for naps.
More frustrating to me personally was when we did the work and found a lone male cheetah and followed at a distance across a large open plain as he was obviously intent on hunting. Of course others eventually spied us and joined the watch including two Kibo vehicles, who must have radioed a third, because he came barreling in late from the other side of all the other vehicles who were positioned to observe and leave space to the herd he was approaching. This guy zooms all the way to about 30 feet from the cheetah covering him in a cloud of dust as they come to a stop and consequently so does the cheetah, who sits down. Soon as he sits the other two Kibo vehicles fire up and zoom in from the other side for their close up photos. I was livid! Fortunately, about 10 minutes later he started to hunt again and did make a kill and amazingly some of these vehicles left soon after the kill was made not waiting to watch him feed or see what kind of interactions would follow as if they were going to find something better at 10 a.m.?
A standard of conduct needs to be developed and enforced. Look forward to more recent updates and hope all the cubs in this unique situation can make it.
Also, can’t wait the read and see the photos of the honey badger fight by Bill & Carolyn, I am very curious to learn the other party!
Mar 10th, 2008, 09:13 AM
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That is atrociously annoying, and I hear your call for more professionalism. I wish guides would elevate their professionalism, and realize that their customers' needs do not override the needs of the wildlife. Watching cheetahs hunt from a distance is much more rewarding than being up close to watch them lie down and look nervous.
