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Stories for Children

This entry won first place in the category " Stories for Children"

sc5: Bertha the Hippo

by Michele Wynberger

Bertha was born in Hippo Pool, in the Kruger National Park (KNP). This pool is in the Crocodile River in the southernmost part of the park and forms a natural boundary between the park and the outside world.

Bertha was still a young hippo when she left the place of her birth to embark on a journey of over 400 km that would eventually end in the Pafuri area in 2006. No one knows why she made this journey. Her reason remains a mystery to people to this day. Only Bertha knew the reason and it was her secret.

Bertha was a hippo with a distinguishing feature. She had a 60 cm scar along her left side, which resembled a shining white crescent moon. A dominant bull hippo had caused this many months ago when she was still a calf. This made her instantly recognisable to visitors to the KNP, and this is why her journey was recorded – many people saw her and they knew it was her and not another hippo.

The first human beings to encounter Bertha were farm workers in the sugar cane fields across the Crocodile River. She had wandered across the river one cloudy afternoon to have some sugar cane for lunch. When the farm workers saw her lumbering towards them through the sugar cane, they ran away, terrified. Bertha ignored them and started to eat her meal. After a while, they came back to stare at her while she was eating the sweet and juicy sugar cane. The scar on her side especially intrigued them. All their staring made her angry and upset. She chased the onlookers away and then took refuge from their stares in the river.

One day, soon after the above incident, she left Hippo Pool and started heading north. As she started her journey, she passed some rocks nearby Hippo Pool. This is a well-known lookout point and many visitors come here to see Bushman paintings on the rocks, made by San Bushmen a long long time ago. Unfortunately, they were too high up for her to see.

On her way up towards Lower Sabie, she stayed in the pool at Nthandanyathi Bird Hide. Many people recorded seeing her there and were fascinated by her distinguishing mark. People started talking about her and soon she was the topic of much discussion in the Kruger Park Times newspaper and in the Forum on the Sanparks website. She had a mischievous look in her eyes, everyone said. Someone had managed to take a photo of her there, and had sent it in to the newspaper. After that, Bertha hated having her photograph taken. As soon as she saw a shiny item resembling a camera, she dived deep down into the water and would only show her nostrils on the surface. Perhaps it was the offending bright light of the flash the hurt her sensitive eyes. She spent some weeks there enjoying the sweet grasses and leaves. She loved hiding in the alcove just across from the hide.

Then, she was gone. Everyone wondered where she was. One night, a funny incident happened. All was quiet in Skukuza staff village. The night drive had returned, and most people were sleeping. All of a sudden, there was a huge commotion. Dr David Mabunda, CE of Kruger National Park, was visiting Skukuza for the presentation of the annual Kudu Awards. He had trouble sleeping and was taking a late night stroll when he came across Bertha walking down the street. He got such a fright, he ran away, shouting. This is completely understandable as Bertha was not small. Imagine running into to her on a dark night! Bertha ignored him and continued towards her destination – the veggie garden. She had smelled the mielies growing there. She proceeded to enjoy her dinner of fresh sweet young mielies. When she saw people coming with torches to investigate, she hid away. She returned later that night to finish her dinner of mielies. She ate the mielies she had not trampled on. She caused a lot of damage. She did not stay around Skukuza for very long – it was too noisy and busy. Bertha preferred quiet waters.

She must have travelled along the Sabie River heading north, because the next time she was seen was on the banks of Orpen Dam. She liked it there; it was nice and peaceful and there was a lot of delicious food to eat. She stayed there for about four months. After that, she started heading north again. We will never know what drove her on, but Bertha carried on walking. Perhaps she got bored or was thinking about another veggie garden.

It was about 6 pm on a Thursday evening when the manager of the curio shop at Tshokwane Picnic Spot had locked up the store for the day. As she was unlocking her car, she saw Bertha ambling along the road. Bertha winked at her and then disappeared.

A few days later, Bertha was spotted by a Dutch tourist in the N’wanetsi Dam area and a few days after that by a ranger on patrol around Sweni Hide. Everyone was fascinated by Bertha and her antics. She made herself known to different people at different times of the day and night during her wanderings. One particularly eventful wandering occurred one night at the Sweni Trails Base Camp. The trailists had retired to their huts for the night. Suddenly and without warning, the side of one of the flimsily built A-frame huts bulged inwards with horrible creaks and groans. The tourists were petrified, their imaginations running wild. After a while the noise and movement stopped. There are no fences around the base camps. It was not safe to venture outside and investigate, especially without a guide. The next morning they saw in the moist sand, huge hippo tracks, clearly visible: four equal length toes on each foot, about 25 cm long. Bertha had stopped for a while to rest and had leaned her great bulk of 1,200 kilograms against the hut. She had also taken a large bite out of the dining area wall that happened to have some bamboo in it. What a tasty snack for a travel weary hippo. The field guide insisted it was Bertha, as he had seen her in the area the previous week.

A week later, Bertha was seen visiting the waterhole outside Satara Camp, where the Web cam is situated. As she was grazing, bright shafts of light shone on her. These were the beams from the spotlights and headlamps of the late night game drive vehicle returning to Satara camp. Hating these evil eyes shining out of the darkness of the night at her, she charged at the vehicle before making her escape! One Forumite had seen her charging and saved the picture as a highlight, intruiged why Bertha had charged in that fashion.

Bertha continued heading north. She took up residence in the Letaba River, near Engelhard Dam, where she kept tourists excited in the hope that they would spot her from the Matambeni Hide. Tourists competed with each other to see who could spot her and get the best photo. One night, Bertha left the river and ventured west in search of better grazing. As she was ambling down a path, she heard strange sounds coming from up ahead. It was an ensemble of musicians playing classical music out in the African bush. This Sunset Serenade occurs at Letaba camp where lovers of classical music can enjoy a recital out of camp in the bush. Perhaps Bertha would have taken another route in order to avoid them, but she heard something that made her stop dead in her tracks. It was the blast of a trumpet! She must have decided this was a call from another hippo, so she replied with a blast of her own, as she was feeling a little lonely having travelled so far on her own. At the sound of this, the audience got up and ran towards the safety of the game viewing vehicles. Only one woman remained behind. She was petrified and had remained glued to her seat. As Bertha approached, she blew on the trumpet again, hoping to scare Bertha away. When this did not work, she threw the trumpet at Bertha. Bertha left the scene in disgust dragging the trumpet with her and damaging it beyond repair with her teeth.

The Kruger Park Times held a competition for the best photo of Bertha. People sent in pictures of her spoor (the Sweni Hide incident), of her relaxing on a riverbank, with her distinguishing mark plainly showing (at Orpen Dam) and a thirteen-year-old tourist had photographed her running along the road near Grootvlei Dam. This was not the first time she had been spotted running along a road. It had become one of her characteristic behaviour patterns. Indeed, she spent two months in that vicinity. She enjoyed the marshland area, eating the delicious new green grasses that occur there. Here are two of the photos that were submitted:

The Sweni Trails Base Camp Incident Bertha at Orpen Dam

The winner was this shot of her carrying a passenger across Pioneer Dam, just outside Mopani Camp.

Still she kept heading north. She kept east, to the side of the Lebombo Mountains. Next, she was seen in the Shingwedzi River. Tourists saw her from time to time at various places along the river. She kept heading north. When she got to Kanniedood Dam, she stayed there for a while as the river was full and it was quiet. Lucky tourists who were waiting patiently in the Kanniedood Hide would see her leave the water and start foraging on the banks right below them, usually just before the closing time of Shingwedzi Camp. One unfortunate tourist was late getting back to camp one evening, all because of Bertha. She had started nibbling some young shoots right next to where he had parked his car. As he climbed down the ladder of the hide, he got the fright of his life when he saw her there. He could not get into his car as she was blocking his way so he had to wait for her to finish her snack and move away. It is common knowledge that hippos are the number one killers of humans in Africa. Even more so than crocs! So therefore, it is not wise to get too close, as this visitor realised. It is not worth taking a chance, even trying to shoo her away. Bertha became increasingly famous due to her entertaining behaviour and her uncanny lack of fear of humans. She did not take lightly to being disturbed during her meals. She refused to move and humans had to wait until she was done!

She continued north along the Mpongolo River, and eventually she was spotted at Sirheni Dam. The Sirheni Bushveld Camp residents felt very privileged to have her to themselves. It is a private dam, along the private road for residents of the camp only. Bertha got up to some interesting antics while resident there. One evening, while foraging, she came across the resident Sirheni Dam leopard. Once again, annoyed at being disturbed while eating, she gave chase and the leopard ran away, spitting. All this was clearly visible to a visitor enjoying a sundowner on the stoep of hut number eight.

Bertha loved Sirheni Dam and played with the other animals resident there. She carried baby terrapins across the dam on her back, this way and that. She enjoyed the peace and tranquillity of the dam for a while, and then she started her trek north again. One day she was there, and the next day she was gone.

After Sirheni Dam, Bertha was not seen by anyone for about four weeks until she was spotted in the Levuvhu River. She must have made her way north enjoying waterholes and dams along the way that are not visible to the ordinary tourist, as there are no roads there. This is on the eastern side of KNP, to the right of H1-8, going north, which is what Bertha was wont to do. Hippos are dependant on water for the protection of their sensitive skin pigmentation against the sun and must have water of at least 1.5m deep into which they can submerge themselves. This means that Bertha would have had to find waterholes along her wanderings to ensure her survival. It is possible that she went to Langtoon Dam, which leads to the Nkulumbeni River. Thereafter she may have ventured to Klawerpan and further along the many tributaries of the Levuvhu River that are found there until she reached the Levuvhu River itself. Hippos usually stay in family herds of between five and thirty animals. That is why it was very unusual for a hippo to wander this far, alone.

Shortly after Bertha reached the Levuvhu River, another incident occurred. She had left the river and ventured a little north into the Makuleke Concession area, to partake of the luscious plant life growing there, for a pre dawn snack. She was minding her own business, chewing on some delicious African Gladiolus corms, when she was rudely interrupted. Out of nowhere appeared a large tusker, obviously in a bad mood. He trumpeted as he passed, obviously annoyed that she was in his path. As she looked up, she noticed a large hole in his forehead. She realised that this was Mafunyane, a famous Magnificent Seven tusker. He was known for his irritable behaviour and his long superb matching pair of tusks. She had heard about him before from the other animals, as he was famous. Frightened, Bertha ran to the river and submerged herself. As he disappeared in the dust Bertha stared after him. How was this possible? He had died in November 1983. If she were human, she would have pinched herself to see if she was dreaming. She realised that she had just seen his ghost!

Whenever Bertha got annoyed or frightened, she got the urge to eat something delicious. We already know that she loved sugar cane and mielies. We now learn that she has an appetite for something else as well. It was at Pafuri picnic spot where she found what she was looking for. Frank Mabasa who lives and works there with his wife, has a small vegetable garden growing behind his hut. Bertha’s excellent sense of smell lead her to this garden. Hippos like fruit and Bertha wanted some. After the incident with Mafunyane’s ghost, she needed something to calm her nerves. That night, Frank heard some strange noises and when he went to investigate, he saw it was Bertha. He recognised her for she was well known to everyone in KNP by her white shining crescent moon scar. There was nothing he could do, other than watch her devouring his paw paws. They were small trees and she lifted herself up onto her hind legs and leaned her front feet against the trunk while she ate.

She was obviously feeling invigorated after her nocturnal escapade, as the very next day she was seen swimming just off Crooks corner, in the Limpopo River. This is the place where South Africa, Mozambique and Zimbabwe meet. Bertha stayed there for many months much to the delight of tourists visiting Punda Maria Camp and Pafuri Private Lodge. Many times she would display a truculent attitude towards other creatures, by opening her mouth wide and displaying her large mouth and teeth.

People wondered where she would travel to next; would she travel back south again to Hippo Pool, or would she carry on going north, out of KNP? These thoughts were again expressed in Kruger Park Times and various newspapers around the world. Bertha had a huge following, and many Krugerites placed pictures of her on the Sanparks website Forum, with a short description of her antics. She had not been seen for three weeks and people were starting to get worried about her.

It was on a chilly morning during July 2006 that Leonard, a field guide working at Punda Maria Camp, was taking hungry visitors to Pafuri Picnic Spot for breakfast. They had just completed a walk to the Thulamela Archaeological Site, where they had seen the baobab forest and the elephant migration trail. Leonard spotted something on the banks of the Levuvhu River. It was Bertha! She had a calf with her! Everyone was so excited to see Bertha again, especially with a calf.

As far as we know, Bertha is still living there. If you look carefully, you might see her on the sandy banks of the Levuvhu River, when you next visit the KNP.

Author’s note:
This story was inspired by the true-life story of Huberta, a hippo who was born in KwaZulu Natal. In 1928, she embarked on a long journey from the place of her birth to the Keiskama River in the Eastern Cape. This journey covered 2000 km’s and lasted two and a half years. She became so famous that she was classified “Royal Game”. This meant that she was the preserve of the monarch, George V, and was protected from being harmed in any way.