Wild dogs and elephants of Tuli

In June I spent a fantastic month in the Tuli Wilderness of Botswana. An isolated nature reserve in east of the country, it is one of the few places left in Africa where truly wild animals can be seen. Bordering on the Limpopo and Motloutse rivers, it offers amazing views, diverse wildlife and a spectacular experience.

Heading out for a morning drive, we stumbled on a set of unusual tracks in the sand by the road. Round-toed with claw marks, these were not the prints of cats, and too big for jackal, but a pair of African Wild Dogs!

Living and hunting in packs, the wild dog is an extremely efficient hunter, with 80% of pursuits ending in a kill (by comparison the fearsome lion succeeds a mere 30% of the time). Unfortunately with the spread of cattle farming in Africa, presenting easy, tempting targets for the dogs, they have been hunted to the point they are now an endangered species. Tuli was until recently home to a large pack which had been successfully introduced into the reserve, before coming into conflict with a neighbouring commercial farmer. Clashes with farmers are a major problem affecting wildlife in non-fenced reserves across Africa, as animals wander out of safe areas into farmland, and after a few dead cattle the farmers take revenge.

Understandably then, our guide Stuart was very excited to see the tracks of these two young males, running side by side. Wild dogs never walk, usually moving at a brisk trot, so they can cover vast distances in short times. The definition of the tracks indicated we were just a few hours behind, so we immediately set off in pursuit. Following the dogs along the main road through Tuli, we were able to track them for several kilometres, before they unfortunately turned into the neighbouring farmland, and we could go no further.

Hoping the dogs were just cutting through the farmer’s land and wouldn’t be spotted, we headed back to the first set of prints to make a cast. Using a sophisticated new technique apparently developed by the FBI, we made two crystal clear casts of the prints using dental stone. First the print is fixed with hairspray, then a dusting of talcum powder added to prevent the cast from sticking. With a greased metal frame around the print, dental stone is poured in to the print, then left to dry. In a few minutes the thick liquid has solidified into a hard stone, and you can lift out the completed cast, and later scrub it to reveal an exquisite level of detail.

Horatio Caine probably uses the same technique (image copyright CBS)

After lunch we headed down to the river to see some birds, passing a few water bucks on the way. The Limpopo, which marks the border with South Africa, was quite low that June, though earlier in the year it had flooded its banks, washing away all the cars at the border crossing, and even the cable car! On the river bank we relaxed, watching the bee-eaters winging in and out of their tunnels on the cliff face, accompanied by a few wheeling swifts and a lazy kingfisher.

The great grey-green greasy Limpopo river

Back at camp that evening, we had just settled down for a beer when the power cut out. From the waterhole below the terrace, not forty metres away, we heard rustling noises and low trumpeting. By the light of a torch we were just able to make out the vast shapes of elephants, drinking and bathing in the dark. In small groups they slowly ambled past our viewpoint, around 50 in total. Watching them in the half darkness was truly unforgettable, the most elephants I have ever seen in one place, ambling quietly through the clearing, aware of our presence but not disturbed.

All in all, not a bad way to celebrate my 25th birthday!