January 2026

January has come and gone in the blink of an eye. Our sunrise is currently at 5:45 and sunset at 19:05. This month has been very warm with the temperatures averaging at highs around 32’C (90’F) and lows around 18’C (64’F), but reaching as high as 39’C (102F) on numerous days. We had hopes of rain, but it turned out to be a fairly dry month, with only 6mm of rain. We are hoping that there is still rain on the way before the dry season creeps in.

It has been another good month in terms of game viewing. Madikwe is bursting with life, despite the dryer weather. You will see an abundance of general game around every corner, so many different species in large concentrations. We have noticed that the herds seemed to have grown in numbers, the general game, and even the elephants are moving in larger groups. We have heard some say that it looks like a scene from the film “Out of Africa”. It is quite a site and makes for beautiful photography.

In terms of predators, there has been no disappointment. It seems as though the Addo and Matata Lion Coalition have made the East their home, it has been a while now that they have not gone back to their own territory, and rumour has it that some other lions have started exploring their old grounds. The Kwena pride has been laying low, but the Kietumetsi pride have been very active and on a feeding spree. We have stumbled upon a few of their meals during their feeding and also finding just the remains that the Brown Hyenas and Jackals have been stealing away.

The wild dogs are still in the area and it looks as though they are in no hurry to venture to the west yet. With all the prey species in such abundance, there’s a meal available at every turn and still enough water around for them to not have to go too far.

Another illusive species has been making more and more appearances. The leopard sightings have been really good this month. We had a particularly exciting sighting of a young leopard with a meal in one of the dead leadwood trees, not too far from the airstrip. We decided to wait for the afternoon rush to make their way to and from the sighting before we visited again. We were not disappointed, the leopard was feeding and the Spotted hyenas were lingering around the base of the tree, waiting for any scraps to fall down. Out of nowhere, a lion makes a beeline straight for the hyenas to chase them off, he didn’t seem to take notice of what was going on above but more interested in what might have been on the ground and keeping the scavengers away. The lion did not hang around for too long, thankfully, because the leopard was visibly uncomfortable with the commotion that took place. It took some time for the leopard to relax and lower itself back down to the branch where its meal was waiting. That sighting had us on the edge of our seats for a short while. We had a few other leopards here and there, crossing the road on our way back for dinner, another disappearing into the drainage line by the dam. So, it really has been a fairly good month for viewing these Illusive spotted cats!

Another spotted cat that has become scarcer for us in the Eastern part of the reserve is the cheetah. They have been favouring areas of the reserve that are not areas we head out to too often, but on one afternoon we were glad to have gone out of our way to see the 5 cheetah brothers. After their mother died last year, we were not sure about what would happen to these 5. But they are doing very well for themselves now and it is such a beautiful sight to see them all together.

The bird life this month has been incredible, we are definitely seeing some bird species that do not often get found in Madikwe. Most of the migratory birds are around and will still be here for another month or two. It is always a treat to add a new bird species to the list, or even just see a bird that is not common for the area.

With the month ending off on a dry note, we are really hoping that February brings us a few good days of rain to keep the bush green for a little while longer.

Until Next Time!

The Mateya Team