Coast of Purple Tip        Boysduval:s False Acraea        Smoky Orange Tip
Photos  taken at Leopard Walk Lodge by Janet Cuthbertson

What does a :  Zulu, playboy, highflyer, painted lady and policeman all have in common?  They are all butterfly groups!  and  visitors are amazed to see how many different species are easily seen at Leopard Walk Lodge.

Although habitat destruction is causing a serious decline of butterfly diversity throughout the world, there are still more than 110 species in and around our area and we are pleased that the habitat which we have restored and given back to nature at our reserve, provides a home for an amazing diversity of animals, birds, butterflies and insect life.
SOME INTERESTING FACTS:

Various butterfly species mimic and co-exist with ants!

• The female Trimens Blue, will lay her eggs on an ant trail.  The caterpillars release a pheromone that mimics the ants scent and sometime after hatching the tiny lava will roll themselves into a ball and allow the ants to carry them into their nest where they are milked for a sweet substance. During this time their scent allows them to bluff that they are the ant’s own lava. The twist to the story is that they like a meaty treat and they feed on the ant’s young without the ants realising this!   Eventually the caterpillars form a pupa and later emerge from the nest as a beautiful butterfly!

• Other species such as the Hutchinson’s High-flier exist by living together with ferocious “soldier” Cocktail ants who viciously protect the caterpillars. The caterpillars release a pheromone which mimics the ant’s own alarm signal. When the caterpillars leave the ant nest to feed on vegetation this causes an army of ants to follow them and attack any predator that tries to interfere with the caterpillars! In exchange for this service, the caterpillars provide the ants with a sweet substance that the ants “milk” from them once they are back in the nest again.

From  the smallest insect and butterfly to the Big Five leopard, elephant and rhino buffalo and lion, Eco-tourists will be enthralled to view the many diverse life forms in our area -The Elephant Coast – which is recorded as being one of the most bio diverse  regions in South Africa.

For those interested, more information is available from Steve Woodhall’s wonderful book “What’s that Butterfly?  www.struik.co.za

The tree squirrel are solitary or in pairs. They spend a large amount of time on the ground in search of food. When disturbed, they make great haste in retreating to the nearest tree.

Tree Squirrel

Tree Squirrels live in holes in trees, lining the nests with grass. They have a peculiar call which is often mistaken for a being the sound of a bird. They are preyed upon by black mamba, hawks, genets, wild cats, pythons and mongooses. Their distribution extends from northern zululand, mocambique, eastern transvaal, rustenburg and waterberg districts, through to south-eastern Botswana and Zimbabawe.

Water mongoose are solitary, adept at digging and are good swimmers. They have well-developed cheek teeth for crushing crabs and beetles. Water mongoose emit a strong scent from an anal gland when disturbed. Additionally this gland is used to mark territories.

These mongoose have a short tapering tail with a robust, dark brown body. Their diet consists of crabs, fish, reptiles, rodents, birds and wild fruit. They may also prey on the eggs of the crocodile.  They are often seen in groups in the sand forest near to water at Leopard Walk Lodge.

Blue Wildebeest

Blue wildebeest are fond of rubbing the boss and horns on the trees within their territories. Their scent forms an important part of communication. Although they are swift runners, they nevertheless provide much of the diet of lions.

Their voice is an abrupt, loud snort and they communicate with a loud nasal sound. They often associate with zebra although their sight is not as good as zebra’s. They have pretty keep hearing and a good sense of smell.

Impala have acute hearing and often frighten elephants by uttering loud snorts when alarmed by the approach of humans. Impala will often fight a great deal during the rutting season, emitting long drawn-out snorts. This preoccupation affects their vigilance and you can often pass by close without them being aware of your presence.

Impala

Impala tend to remain persistently in overgrazed areas. They are excellent jumpers and can often be seen in the company of baboons. Impala are preyed upon by lion, cheetah and leopard. Impala will lie down in overcast, windy weather. Impala can be seen aplenty at Leopard Walk Lodge. The black tufts above the hooves on the hind legs conceal scent glands.

These small creatures, as their Afrikaans name implies, have a  shrill, plaintive call that sounds like a baby crying.  They are nocturnal, occurring in pairs or singly and are widespread in distribution throughout the northern region above South Africa.

Bushbaby

They are excellent jumpers. Their eyes shine brightly when a torch or light source is shone in their direction. Arboreal, they seldom come onto the ground.  They make nests of grass and leaves in the hollows or holes of trees.

Bushbabies diet consists of mainly insects which are readily found in the sand forest at Leopard Walk Lodge where they can often be heard and seen at night. Flowers are included in their diet together with  fruits and Acacia gum.

The Honey badger are widespread in Africa. Honey badgers are fearless, display considerable aggression and have a powerful bite. Their loose skin enables them to turn easily upon any threat that attempts to take hold of them. Additionally they will turn and attack humans and vehicles – they are best left alone.

Honey Badger

Honey badgers are very good at digging and, like the mongoose, are fond of digging out the hardened dung beetles balls in search of larvae. They live in holes where, usually, they lie up during the day being mainly nocturnal. They have an acute sense of smell.

A honey badgers diet consists of a wide variety of food. This active animal will feed on reptiles, insects, larvae of dung beetles, eggs, ground birds, wild fruit, grubs, the honey of bees and even scorpions. They have an interesting relationship with the honey guide whom they follow in search of a bee hive.

The porcupine is the largest African rodent, which has successfully adapted and has a wide habitat tolerance. It is disturbed throughout South Africa. The porcupine is armed with lethal quills which it rattles when confronted or alarmed. If this attempt fails it will attack in an odd sideways and backwards action, in attempt to impale their attacker. It should be noted that a porcupine does not shoot it’s quills. It’s principal enemies are the lion and the leopard, although they attack at their own peril.

Porcupine

The porcupine makes use of disused antbear holes, holes which it has dug itself, caves and rocky crevices; here it raises it’s young or lies up. They are most commonly found alone in pairs or in small groups. The porcupine is a nocturnal animal and a vegetarian. They are capable of doing great damage to crops. Porcupine are fond of bark from trees. They gnaw bones and ivory which accounts for the absence of these when finding a dead elephant in a remote area.  During walks on leopard Walk Lodge, porcupine quils are often found in and around a porcupine’s territory.