SANParks.org Forums

Thank you Jsmithies, i can imagine how they must be tucking into the prickly pears.That is good news.

I'm really excited to hear about all these sightings in Matyholweni as I'm going to be there on Monday next week!

Thanks to everyone for posting news. Looking forward to being able to share some of my own when I get back.

Hi, if possible , please post some , especialy of the Ellies in the prickly pears. Thanks

Does anyone have pics of the Ellies in the recently opened (fence removed) southern section of Addo. "Matyholweni "
Pleeease post some

Hi there Karibaeve,

My first attempt at loading a picture on the forum as a new 'mite, was in Addo on Thursday 23 Sept, and this is a pic of a single Ellie on the South side of the park, on the first road to the west travelling South on the main road. I will say there was another to the east side as well, a bit further off and in the bush. The picture was taken at about 13.30.



Looking forward to seeing more on the South side.
Wox

WOX.... Thank you very much for the pic and your feed back. That is a very happy ellie.

Welcome to the Forums WOX , and thanks for posting a pic of this beautiful Ellie!

This past weekend I had the chance to visit Matyholweni on Friday pm and Sunday, in the hope of finding an elephant in the southern part of the park. There were plenty of signs like dung, muddy footprints on the tar sections, and pricly pears and aloes that had been messed up, mostly in the valley just below the original south gate. I did find some dung about 5 km fro Colchester gate on the first eastern loop, but it could have belonged to a black rhino -- had been trampled by a car, and was full of bark and small sticks....
NO luck on a warm afternoon, but saw lots of eland, zebra and hartebeeste, plus a few warthogs, which is much more than I saw around Hapoor!

Sunday was cold and windy with light rain, so we only got there by 8. Saw zebra, hartebeest, but no elephants. Missed 5 lions by no more than a minute or two at Marion Baree, and hardly saw an elephant the rest of the day!
On the way out my camera's battery gave up the ghost -- my wife had been zooming in and looking at pics too much -- I have to blame somebody!

And of course there was a bull elephant in the first valley of the new section, munching bushes. Sadly, no pic!
Down the lovely open section with beautiful views of Colchester, and around the corner, when another bull elephant appeared, followed by another, and another, and another, and another bull! They were like blinking naught schoolboys, tearing away at the trees, then muching grass, then wrestling three at a time, then chasing each other around the open field! I was desparate, so switchet on the camera, turn off the Autofocus, VR, and managed to take a pic of them in the open field!




I immediately switched off the camera in the hope of more action. They headed in our direction, and started charging straight towards us, pushing and shoving as they went. This was a bit scary, since I was in our teeny Terios, and to start it is quite a rigmarole with lock, unlock, and then start... I snapped this blurred shot to show their excitement, while I was free-wheeling backward down the hill!



I had to get out of their way very quickly, but managed to zoom out and get most of the excited group crossing the road, heading for a big patch of prickly pears. They went wild with excitement but my luck had dried up and the camera went dead.



I can only imagine the goings on when the breeding herds discover the new greener pastures!

Hope you enjoyed it half as much as we did....

God bless,

Friedrich von Hörsten

Thank you, Thank you so much, i just knew the Ellies would be Happy to get into that area. Wonderfull pics of excited Ellies.
I cant wait to get back there to see them.

Hi, does anyone have more pics or news of the Ellies that have moved into the southern section of Addo

Dear all,
my name is Sonja I'm from Germany and I helped already for 3 times as a Volunteer in Addo and it is so awsome to follow the Ellis activities here in the Forum and on the webcam.
I remember the time whre I helped to cleanup the Colcherster area and now there are Ellis!!! That so great.
Thank you to everybody how post updates about the Ellis and all the other things which are going on in Addo.
It makes my day to read what is going on.
Hope t visit Addo in future again!

Miss the PArk and all the people from SA so much.

Lots of love to all
Sonja

Warm welcome to the forums, Sonja H. .
Do hope that you will be able to visit Addo again

Hi, and welcome to the forum Sonja!

Hi, does anyone have any more pic,s or tr,s or news of the Ellies or Lion that have crossed over the road to the Southern section of Addo.
it's always nice to hear stories from Addo.
THANK YOU

There were a couple of ellies right down at the Southern entrance yesterday - fresh dung literally just by the gate. We saw the 2 that had been at the gate, and then another 2 or 3 much further up.