It is impossible not to be seduced each morning by the blushing false dawn behind Mt Kenya and its faunal spoils below, particularly as it is a mere eight minutes from Kicheche Laikipia’s front door, that is if you can drag yourself away from the haunting mist over the dam in front of your tent and its arpeggios and crescendos of avian alarm calls merging into the pastel dawn.
However, young maestro Zach was keen to get me away from there once the colours had faded. He insisted that for the first time, a posse of jackals was targeting an adult antelope. I had never heard of this and was doubtful, but this young buck took no notice.
On the plains South of camp (about 8 minutes the other side), sure enough, five black-backed jackals were targeting a fully adult Thomson’s gazelle.
They harvest the fawns with impunity, but taking on local Thomson (make that Thomson locals …) seniors was remarkable. With precision and no little tactics, they finally surrounded their quarry and immediately incapacitated it by biting its haunch till the hamstring popped (a classic coursing ploy).
They traditionally punch way above their weight, but this was remarkable and a huge meal.
Even more remarkable was that the spoils were then reluctantly shared with four warthogs who came to make pigs of themselves.
For anyone on safari with us up North, the coterie of experienced guides is exemplary: PK, Albert, Simon and William, but there’s a new sheriff in town, be happy if you get the Zach!
