Here at Mkulumadzi, we are beginning to get excited about the arrival of winter, which in these parts mean that the marula fruits are starting to ripen!
As the marulas ripen, large herds of elephants move into our part of the reserve and they will be with us for some time. They can be found in abundance stuffing themselves on these delicious fruits in the shade of the beautiful trees. Now, legend has it that elephants get drunk after eating the marula fruits, which have fermented in their stomachs. This makes for a really good story – however, scientists have debunked this as a myth. The conditions in an elephant’s stomach are simply not right for such a process to take place so we are quite unlikely to see any drunken ellies leaning against the marula trees. Instead, you are probably far more likely to come upon some humans grasping trees for support after having enjoyed the famous liqueur Amarula which is made from the marula fruits!
On the mammalian side of things, we have been very fortunate to have some good leopard sightings recently. Our resident lady leopardess is still hanging around the lodge hunting bushbuck and impala and we often find her tracks along the Shire River. Some guests were lucky to spot another individual in broad daylight and got some good photos for proof.
Contact Mkulumadzi
Web. www.robinpopesafaris.net
Email. info@robinpopesafaris.net
Tel. +265 (0) 999 970 002/3
