Tiban having fun with the monkeys

Our little Tiban was being so naughty yesterday, he had been rolling around in the mud and then jumping up on the pool loungers; dirtying them. Basically just being a “pig”… He was having so much fun teasing the monkeys and running up and down like a crazy pig…

Ubizane's tame, rescued warthog - Tiban learnt to sit

It's time to fight!!!

An Impala is a very social antelope which lives in breeding herds consisting of a dominant male and females with their young, or bachelor herds consisting of males.  Breeding herds, dependant on available territory size and grazing conditions, can consist of up to a hundred individuals that belong to a single dominant male.  These dominant males will fiercely protect their females from other males entering their territories, and are commonly seen herding females that wonder out of their territories back by a loud display of snorting sounds while chasing the female.

All other males are kicked out of the breeding herd once they have reached sexual maturity, normally around one year old, and join bachelor herds.  Within a bachelor herd there is an independent hierarchy for which they fight against each other for by means of horning.  The most dominant male within the bachelor herd automatically earns the right to challenge the dominant male of a breeding herd for the rights to his territory and females. 

The time of year that these battles occur in our area is normally around April and is called rutting season.  During this period of time, females are coming into estrus and the only thing an impala male can think of is mating.  These males are so focused on their battles to gain this right during their fights that little can actually distract them; even vehicles full of guest don’t seem to bother them.

These two male impala where fighting right outside one of our Lodges, it’s a very exciting thing to watch as this isn’t something everyone gets to see

During these fights, there is a lot of snorting and grunting, and males engage each other by means of horn sparing.  The battles can carry on for hours, even through the night.  Horn length is not necessarily an advantage, but rather physical condition and endurance as the aim of the battle is to force the opponent into submission.  The loser will then be chased out of the breeding herd’s territory.  These fights seem vicious and injuries during these battles do occur, but it is rare for these battles to result in death, however, accidents do happen.Once a victor is established, it becomes his right to mate with any female within his herd when she comes into estrus. This is nature’s way of ensuring that the strongest genes continue into the next generation, and 6 to 7 months later a new generation is born.  Most births will occur at the start of the rainy season, although impalas can drop their young right through the year. 

Butter milk rusks

I popped into the kitchen yesterday to see what our ‘Ubizane master chefs’ were up to and they were busy preparing to bake yummy buttermilk rusks.

Thandi was busy rolling the dough, and once that was done; Lance put them in the oven for a couple of hours and voila…….. 

Delicious rusks for everyone to enjoy

They were so good; I thought it would be a treat to share the recipe so you can all try them.

Ingredients

Prepares approximately  3 dozen rusks

375g butter 

500g sugar 

2 extra large eggs 

1,5kg self-raising flour 

30ml (2 tablespoons) baking powder 

500ml (2 cups) buttermilk or plain drinking yogurt

Instructions on how to prepare it

Preheat oven to 180°C.

Cream the butter and sugar together very well. Add the eggs, one at a time. Sift the flour and baking powder together, and add this to the creamed mixture, using a fork to mix. Add the buttermilk or yogurt, using a little milk to rinse out the carton. Mix well with a fork and then knead lightly. Pack lightly rolled, golf ball sized buns of the dough into the greased bread pans close together, and bake for 45-55 minutes. Place the pans in the middle of the oven, with a sheet of brown paper on the top shelf to protect the buns from becoming browned too quickly. 

Remove the paper after the buns are well risen and cooked through, to brown the tops. Reduce the heat to the lowest possible setting. Turn out the buns on to cake racks, cool them and separate them, using 2 forks. Pack them on wire racks or on cooled oven racks – air must circulate. Place them in the cool oven, leaving the door ajar, for 4-5 hours, or overnight, to dry out. 

If no buttermilk or yogurt is available, use fresh milk curdled with lemon juice or white vinegar. 

Jade the new social media administrator

So I have been interviewing the 2 new members who have joined our team recently and since I’m also new I’m going to introduce myself.

I’m Jade -the new Social Media Administrator at Ubizane, I am super excited to be here.

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003153226525 

http://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100003153226525

Where are you from?

A small town called Braemar, which is 30kms inland from Scottburgh

Who inspires you?

My parents and my boyfriend because no matter how tough times get, they haven’t given up, and they help me through times when I’m down.

What do you love about your job?

I love the atmosphere, walking to work and seeing the animal’s right next to you and the people I work with.

What made you decide to become social media administrator?

I like finding new ways to get a company out there and bring in more traffic to their business and I like the challenges involved with trying to get them up and running with the World Wide Web.

What is your biggest social media rule?

Keep everyone up to date with what’s going on and what’s new.

Do you like living in the bush?

Yes, I grew up on a farm in the bush; so it’s like home to me.

What creepy crawly animal scares you the most?

Spiders. Eeeek!

What animal would you be and why?

A Giraffe, because they are such beautiful animals and they are the tallest; so they overlook everything.

What’s your biggest fear in the bush?

Ticks, very happy I haven’t seen any.

If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do?

Scare people by moving stuff around, etc, making scary noises and spy on people.

If you could choose between a keyboard and a UPS; which would you choose to protect yourself from a monkey?

The UPS because they are heavy, so I can knock him with one throw.

Tell me a little bit about your story.

I’m a born and raised farm girl, living on a farm my whole life. I went to school in Scottburgh; which was a 60km drive each day; 30 minutes there and 30 minutes back. I studied a professional administration course in 2011 and now this year I’m working here.

https://twitter.com/#!/UbizaneReserve

Kristy our new housekeeping manager

We are so happy to have Kristy join our team at Ubizane, and hope that she will enjoy the beautiful life that Ubizane has to offer.

Getting to know Kristy– a little fun questionnaire I made up for her.

Where are you from?

Hillcrest

Who inspires you?

My family, they are all really driven and know what they want in life.

What do you love about your job?

The beautiful surroundings and the amazing people I work with.

What made you decide to become a housekeeping manager?

I wanted new challenges for my life and the surroundings definitely influenced my decision.

What is your biggest housekeeping rule?

Everything you do, you have to be proud of; if not then you’re not delivering a very good standard of work.

Do you like living in the bush?

Yes I do, it is a gorgeous setting to wake up to in the morning. Instead of being stuck behind traffic, you bump into a giraffe.

What creepy crawly animal scares you the most?

Snakes

What animal would you be and why?

A wild dog because I’d get to walk around looking pretty all day.

What’s your biggest fear in the bush?

Being bitten by a snake and not being able to get to hospital in time.

If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do?

I would listen in on what people are saying about me behind my back.

If you could choose between a hairdryer and broom, which would, you use to protect yourself from a hippo?

I would use a broom to beat him up and then once he’s unconscious I would use the broom to clean his teeth.

Tell me a little bit about yourself?

I grew up in Hillcrest, studied travel and tourism and worked at travel agencies. I have travelled to London for a holiday and now I’m working here.

Lance our new chef

We are so excited to have him here; he is a young, talented and enthusiastic chef. We are sure he will make us proud.

Getting to know Lance – a little fun questionnaire I made up for him.

Where are you from?

Durban North

Who inspires you?

My grandmother – she has looked after me my whole life and has never stopped working or teaching me.

What made you decide to become a chef?

I love food; it’s the one thing that brings people together.

Do you like living in the bush?

Yes, it allows you to find inspiration in nature and just be quiet with yourself.

What is your favourite dish to cook and why?

Bread, it is my most favourite thing to cook in the entire world; there is no better smell than freshly baked bread.

What is your favourite desert?

My grandmother’s banana bread.

What creepy crawly animal scares you the most?

Cockroaches

What animal would you be and why?

An Elephant because they are so chilled with life.

What’s your biggest fear?

Dying alone.

If you could be invisible for a day, what would you do?

Follow Ferran Adria around and just watch him be creative.

What is your biggest kitchen rule?

Season and taste everything.

If you only have a frying pan and a big knife and a lion attacks you, which would you use to protect yourself?

I would use the pan to protect myself and the knife to skin and portion the lion afterwards.

Tell me a little bit about your story.

I grew up and went to school in Durban, studied to be a chef. Travelled a bit of the world and now I’m back home and working here.

Frightened Nyala

Shame this poor Nyala bull got such fright when I walked around the corner at Safari Lodge, not sure who actually got more of fright me or him? I was quite stunned when I turned the corner and almost walked into him.

Ubizane - Zululand Tree Lodge and Safari Lodge

Since I've been blogging about Ubizane, telling you about all the happenings here. I thought it would be nice for our visitors to hear about what our Lodges offer and see images of what we offer here. 

Zululand Tree Lodge

The heart of this Lodge has a magnificent guest area, a restaurant and pool with magical views of our fever trees. With paved pathways leading to 24 luxuriously appointed thatched cabins high up on stilts overlooking our fever trees. With each room having its own secluded balcony; guests can view the beautiful elements of our wildlife and nature. These rooms have an en-suite bathroom with a shower also tea and coffee making facilities, as well as a mini bar fridge. Tree Lodge is a perfect romantic getaway for couples who want to get away for a weekend, newlyweds and anyone who desires a relaxing and peaceful getaway.

Zululand Safari Lodge

Safari Lodge is scattered around the spacious rolling lawns dotted with aged Aloes, as well as scented thorn trees giving off beautiful scenery. The exquisite rondavel shaped rooms face the watering hole; where one can watch our giraffe, zebra and antelope species quench their thirst. Safari Lodge is the perfect getaway for the whole family, with different styled rooms ranging from double bedded two sleeper rooms to four sleeper rooms which have bunk beds for the children. Each room has a small kitchen and en-suite bathroom with a shower and/or luxurious bath. Safari Lodge has a playground with a jungle gym as well as huge lawn areas for your children to run around and play. The Lodge has a huge pool with a bar/snack and lounging areas for you to relax around and enjoy a few drinks.

Game drive through Imfolozi Park

5am wakeup call to meet at Safari Lodge Restaurant, to be ready to leave at 5:45 am. It was a beautiful morning with a slight chilly breeze in the air but at 5:45am we were ready and off we went; myself, Hamilton; our Ranger and our excited guests. We got to the gates at 6am sharp, just as they opened. We all waited anxiously as Hamilton went to get out Morning passes sorted. Finally the time came; we drove into the gates and started our game drive. The first thing we saw as we drove into the gates were a journey of giraffe; which is a group of giraffe, feeding on the trees, they are such beautiful animals. Hamilton explained that they sleep with their necks straight up with their body lying down.

We saw a few baby Giraffes with their mothers, they seemed a little stunned by the Land rover; probably because they are still young and aren’t used to seeing them like the older ones.

We drove past a dazzle of Zebra; which is what you call a group a of Zebra. We saw a pregnant female, Hamilton pointed that out; her stomach was bigger than the others and it hung lower. Zebra’s are pregnant for about 11 months.

As we drove further into the reserve we stopped and looked at rhino grazing in the distance. Hamilton told us the difference between white and black rhino. (Keep a look out for a blog post about the difference in the near future). Rhino are such magnificent animals, it truly is such a shame that they could be extinct in a few odd years time because of how cruel and selfish poachers are. I hope that poaching will stop; I’m sure we all do.

We drove down to the dam and spotted a couple hippos peeping out of the water. They seemed quite content in the water as they didn’t come out at all.

As we were nearing the end of drive we stopped over at a little picnic overlooking a beautiful scenery for some coffee and biscuits. We sat and chatted; just enjoying the view and each other’s company. It really was a great start to the day. After a group photo we packed up and headed back to Ubizane.

What a lovely game drive, we all learnt so much from Hamilton. 

Happy Easter

The Ubizane team wishes everyone a magical Easter weekend, may you all have a lovely and relaxing time; with lots of fun, games and Easter egg hunts for the kids.

Here’s a little African folk tale.

Why the Hare Has No Tail

Long, long ago the animals had no tails or very small ones. One day the Lion asked all the animals to come to him to get good fat tails. It was cold that day, and it was raining. The hare had only a short little tail, but he did not like to go out and said to the other animals, "Please, bring me a tail. I can't go anywhere when it rains."

"What tail do you want to have?" the animals asked him.

"Oh, any tail will be good for me. But it must not be too long or too short."

Sometime later the animals came back, and each animal had a beautiful tail. But nobody brought a tail for the hare.

I think that some of them forgot about the hare, some had no time, some could not find a good tail for the hare.

But I do know this: if you must do something, don't ask others to do it for you. Don't forget about the hare with his short little tail!"

Story taken from http://www.africawithin.com/tour/ghana/hare_tail.htm

A Beautiful Nyala Family

Wouldn't you just love to wake up one morning, walk out your house and see a beautiful Nyala family? We are so blessed to witness such greatness of nature and wildlife here at Ubizane most days of the week. Our guests absolutely love the feeling of being in the ‘wild’ with our animals roaming freely around the two Lodges.

Did you know the Nyala lambs are all born looking like the female and they transition into males as they grow into teenagers?

This lamb is making the transition into a male. You can tell by his face and back; his mane is starting to grow black on his back and his nose is much darker. His horns will also start to grow now.

The Nyala male has a dark grey coloured head and body with indistinct stripes along the torso. Their lower legs are tan in colour and they have a fringe of hair along the underside and a thin mane on their back. They have horns that measure up to 70cms in length and a white “V” between their eyes.

The Nyala female and lamb is brown/red in colour and they have distinctive, vertical white stripes along their body. They don’t have horns but they also have a white “V” between their eyes.

They spend most of the day, particularly the hottest part, under the shade and they tend to feed during the evening and early in the morning. They have an alarm call that is a “dog-like” bark.

Let us know what animal would you like to learn more about?