Since the start of the season the sightings of wild dogs have been so frequent that we are tempted to call this the Year of the Wild Dog! There are several packs in the direct vicinity of Kafunta River Lodge, a pack of 4, a pack of 9 and also a pack of 14! And more wild dogs down south towards Island Bush Camp. 

We're entering denning season now, and some of the packs do certainly count on their Alpha female for a new litter. Dens haven't been located yet, it would be lovely to have one of those packs den nearby, which would guarantee us sightings for the months to come. 

Photos by Ian Loney, Sabine Dirichs, René Krayss and Izzy

The weeks after our last newsletter were filled with exciting wildlife action, keeping our guides and guests busy on every game drive, and filling dinner time with memorable stories. 

Amongst our guests were return visitors René and Jrma Krayss who stayed at Kafunta River Lodge for 3 weeks. You will see a lot of pictures from René in this newsletter as a proof of the amazing sightings they have had throughout their stay!  

This picture of a lioness was actually taken after a leopard (the "blind-eyed" one) killed an impala and dragged it up to safety in a tree. Obviously not high enough as a female and male lion came chasing, and the lioness climbed up the tree to grab the kill. She tried for a long time to bring it down to share with the male, too wary of climbing up, but failed and the poor male (and leopard!) stayed on the sideline watching! 

A few days after that, it was a group of several male lions found on a hippo kill. Some other encroaching lions tried to come and share the meal to be quickly chased off by the dominant males. 

The very next day was even more memorable! Our guests came across a pile of crocodiles, who had stolen a kill made by wild dogs. But looking at the scene more closely, they saw that one of the crocodiles was in fact... a leopard! 

The popular "blind-eyed" leopard, renown in the area for his force and courage, was amongst the ferocious crocs, trying to get bits of the meal. It was absolutely incredible and the footage from René is sensational! 

The party was later joined by a big hippo whose intention was unclear, as hippos are often seen harassing predators coming to the river, but in this situation, there was no rescuing to be done. 

Then came a hyena, always on the lookout for easy meals... and that was enough to get our leopard to his senses, and he left the scene shortly after. 

A few days after that, a group of lions were seen lazily chasing zebras, but their lack of motivation was clear and the hunt didn't last long. 

However it was soon to be followed by a more significant and brutal try at an adolescent elephant who did manage to get away, with only a few scratches. 

These pictures were taken by Stephan Schmidt and Sabine Dirichs. 

South Luangwa National Park is a prime destination for those wanting to see, observe and photograph leopards. We have a healthy population of leopards, and we hope to keep it that way despite the lift of the hunting ban on felines in Zambia. 

Here are a few pictures taken by recent guests, of young and older leopards, including our now well known "Blind-eyed" one. 

Some of you may recall the movie Running Wild featuring two young leopards, filmed in the Londolozi private game reserve in 1994. Those young leopards were left in the care of Graham Cooke who knew from the beginning that his goal was to return them to the wild upon completion of the movie. Graham chose Zambia's South Luangwa to release the then 2-year old leopards, Boycat and Poepface, and more particularly the island from which our Bush Camp got its name. 

Author Fransje van Riel and Graham Cooke met in 2010 and in 2012 the story of Graham, Boycat and Poep was published in a book "My Life With Leopards, Graham Cooke's Story". The title went into three editions and is currently being re-published in the UK by Thistle.

Kafunta Safaris is delighted to introduce a 6-night safari where you can join Fransje and Graham on the steps of Boycat and Poep, in the southern remoteness of South Luangwa. The first safari is scheduled for June 01-07, 2016 and is limited to 6 participants. Email us now to receive the full description. 

My Life With Leopards - Boycat

In this newsletter we kept a large place for  René Krayss' photographs. Jrma and René have been Kafunta guests for several years, and their 3-weeks visit in May was another reminder of how privileged we are  to have so many long standing guests who are invaluable ambassadors to our camps.

After René's, we want to introduce you to Jrma's own art. Jrma is an acknowledged acrylic painter living in Nänikon, Switzerland and in her luggage, instead of cameras and lenses, one will find canvas and painting materials.

Jrma sets up her studio on the upper deck of one of our suites. She finds her inspiration through her African travels, and complements her work with natural materials such as tree-bark, feathers and sand from different areas.

You can read more on Jrma's website, and if you find yourself in Switzerland, more particularly in Greifensee, the last week of October, you may want to visit her exhibition!

Those of you who have been following us for some years know about our Mfuwe Junior Football League. Born from a passion for football and a desire to help the kids of Mfuwe, Ron, Anke and Luke Cowan have created the league several years ago in hope to motivate young boys to play sport and be better in school. From one team... the league has grown to 20 teams (split by age between Under 12 and Under 15) with more than 400 boys involved! 

Kids grew up, so did the need for an Under 18 team and the "All Stars" team came into play, focusing on the most talented players, but also on those who perform well at school. 

Supported by Project Luangwa, the "Bring-a-Ball" and "School Kit" campaigns have been very successful. Guests are encouraged to bring soccer & netball balls (or other sport supplies) if they have spare room in their luggage, or to provide a small donation to go towards a school kit, per pupil selected in the All Stars. The success of bringing sport into the community and the classrooms has spread to girls as well, and now the league includes 10 teams of netballing girls. 

And the project keeps on growing. With your help, and the help of safari lodges and other local sponsors, a piece of land is being converted into a full Sport Complex. So far, the football pitch, two netball courts and one volleyball court have been finished. We are now looking at further help to build the changing rooms, and the clubhouse. 

Email Wilson for more information or read Project Luangwa's page on the Junior League to see how you can help. We thank you in advance for your support!

There so much more we wanted to share in this newsletter, but we don't want to abuse of your time! So we'll keep more photographs and stories for our next newsletter. Stay tuned!

The Kafunta Safaris Team