Home > Destinations > Africa > Botswana > Regional
News > Jacana Camp, July 2008
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Jacana Camp, July 2008
Jacana Camp Team
It was a great start to a typical winter's month in the Delta at Jacana Camp. The early morning wake-up calls make it difficult to crawl out of your cozy bed and out into the crisp morning air, but the beautiful sunrises in front of the camp make it all worthwhile. Winter is also an idyllic time for photographers with beautiful clear blue skies and the sun reflecting off the clear water in the floodplains. The night skies are incredible, and with no cloud cover or light pollution, it is truly unforgettable.
The flood is not as high as it was last year and the water seems to be receding earlier. We should be seeing all the red lechwe in front of the camp soon.
In and around camp, our resident elephant bull, Jack, has been a regular visitor to the island. The big attraction is all the palm trees with their ripe fruit. The elephants have learnt how to shake the palm trees to dislodge the ripe fruit. Jack is very experienced at shaking the palms and he has often been seen accompanied by two younger males who seem to follow him around as if they are picking up tips on how to shake the palm trees in order to get as many palm nuts as they can. They all have their own method of shaking the palm trees, and whereas some inexperienced males tend to head-butt the tree, Jack curls his trunk around the trunk of the palm and then slowly starts to build momentum and then ends up vigorously shaking the palm tree. He then steps back to avoid the heavy rain of hard palm nuts. The great noise it makes also makes us aware of the location of the elephants on the island.
Another frequent visitor to our island, particularly at night, is a young male hippo. Guests have been amazed that whilst sitting at the fire having pre-dinner drinks, to have a hippo casually walk past the front of them and then into the thicket past the kitchen to his favourite grazing spot. It is rare for guests to see hippo out of water and it's usually on a boat or vehicle that they are seen - not whilst having a chat and a drink in camp. It's always exciting when he comes to visit but we mustn't forget that hippo are considered one of the most dangerous animals in Africa.
Despite it being winter, the birdlife is still incredible! The African Fish Eagles are a daily sight, and breeding pairs have even been seen having aerial combat with other pairs in defence of their territories, right in front of camp. The uncommon Western Banded Snake Eagle has also been seen, and other rare birds such as the Wattled Crane are often seen on the game drives or boating activities. The elusive Pel's Fishing Owl has been spotted a number of times on the mekoro activities. A particularly memorable sight was watching four Meyer's Parrots feeding on the fruit of a sausage tree, right in camp. They were seen feeding on the same fruit for about four days, and it was amazing to watch the adults feeding the now almost fully grown chicks. 
Despite the longer nights and shorter days of winter, there never seems to be a shortage of wonderful sights and experiences in the Okavango Delta both on safari and in camp! *Jack and African fish eagle, photos courtesy of Mike Meyers and Michael Poliza
