Baboon nurturing lion cub a rare sighting
NO TWO safaris are the same. Sometimes you encounter the Big Five on one game drive, other times the animals hide from the prying eyes of the public.
But rare safari encounters happen often, as Kurt Schultz from Kurt Safari recently witnessed when he encountered a baboon steal a lion cub.
Schultz was on his way back from a meeting in the Kruger National Park when he witnessed the unusual sighting. He told Kruger Sightings he had a meeting in Skukuza and decided to go into the park to get some photos.
On the S21, one of the roads near Skukuza, he saw a troop of baboons.
They were restless. Schultz watched on.
He watched as the other baboons focused their attention on a baboon carrying something close to him.
It turned out to be a lion cub. “Knowing the area, I know there are cubs present in the area. Being early in the morning, and close to a granite rock face, I suppose the baboon troop rested during the evening on the rocks.”
Schultz initially thought it was a female baboon, but later realised it was a young male baboon. “The young baboon crossed the road and climbed up a marula tree. I waited for about 30 minutes before it came into view. He was moving from tree to tree. The rest of the troop then moved away and the baboon was grooming and caring for the lion cub, as if this was a young baboon.
“It is normal for a troop of baboons to kill young leopard and even lion, however, after 20 years of guiding, this is the first time I have seen a baboon nurturing and caring for a young predator cub,” he said.
FORMER Miss SA and Miss Universe Demi-leigh Nel-peters (now Demileigh Tebow) and American football player Tim Tebow, who wed at the La Paris Estate in Franschoek last month, are soaking up the sun in the Maldives.
The former beauty queen took to Instagram to share the couple’s holiday pictures.
The couple chose Soneva Jani Maldives, a five-star hotel known for its luxury water villas, as their honeymoon destination.
Demi and Tim are spending 11 days there and will have plenty of time to sunbathe, take in the ocean vistas and watch the stars from the comfort of their bedroom.
The villa features a study, walk-in mini bar, bathroom, dressing room, outdoor shower and living area – and a water slide from the first floor to the ocean.
Demi-leigh posted a clip of the villa on her Instagram page, which boasts more than 1.5 million followers. “I’m about to bombard you with 11 days of UNREAL natural beauty,” she posted.
Miss SA creative director and one of Demi-leigh’s close friends, werner_wessels, commented: “Yes people, there’s a slide…in their house!!!”
Former Miss SA Melinda Bam added “Ah @demileighnp dit lyk unbelievable!”
Demi-leigh also shared an image of them kissing with the ocean behind them. The pair also posted a selfie on a boat with the caption: “Here’s to endless sunsets with you.”
In another image of a sunset, she posted: “No filter, just realness.”
The couple also spent time enjoying the beach with a lunch set out on the pristine, white sand.
We cannot wait to see what else the couple has in store for their honeymoon.