We are having completed our third month of operations at Kalahari Plains. These past three months have been all about getting to know the area and its wildlife. February proved to be an extremely valuable month on this front.

We experienced good rains and the plain in front of camp has been perpetually carpeted with short, sweet and nutritious grazing grasses. This has had the desired effect and the plain has been constantly covered with herds of grazing animals. Oryx, springbok, red hartebeest and wildebeest were in attendance on most days. This is very rewarding for the guests as these herds tend to feed on the plain and close to the rooms, before moving further out as the day progresses.

The plain has also been a haven for small carnivores. Black-backed jackals are almost always around, and bat-eared foxes and honey badgers are in attendance on most early morning drives. The sundowner hour coincides with the jackal sign-on time and their shrill cries split the crimson-splashed air at about 6.30pm as if by clockwork. The cry is soon picked up and carried from pair to pair and results in a nightly cacophony by which to sip one's drink. At about the same time dozens of oryx, red hartebeest, springbok and wildebeest begin emerging from the woodlands and venturing out onto the open plain. This is an obvious tactic to avoid being caught in sneak attacks whereby the predators are able to use the fading light and cover of the woodlands to their best advantage.

After dark the alarm calls of the jackal indicate that the creatures of the night have slipped into the valley. 

February has been a great month for cats, and the dawn light has regularly revealed those denizens to be cheetah, lion and leopard. More and more cheetah are appearing on the plain. Initially, we were seeing a group of five, then we saw another three males, then later a female and sub-adult cub, and then, miraculously, a female and very small cub. Most guests have left having had at least one cheetah sighting - making this one of the most reliable areas for cheetah.

The lion have also been much in attendance, and the two dominant males are indeed a sight to behold. These giants are typical Kalahari lions, sporting huge black manes and being much larger than their counterparts elsewhere in Botswana.

This morning, a film crew here to shoot footage of cheetah reported seeing a very relaxed leopard in the mopane loop area.

So February has proved to be another exceptional game viewing month in the Kalahari. We will keep you posted on what follows.