Aug 12, 2021 | Hunting Stories, News
African Black Wildebeest
The Black wildebeest (Connochaetes gnou) is sometimes referenced to as the white-tailed gnu. Its average weight runs between 250-425 pounds, and shoulder height is four feet. The overall length 65 inches to 90 inches. The black wildebeest has a dark brown to black coat with a rather incongruous white tail. Males are darker than females. Both sexes have forward-curving horns up to 30 inches long with the female’s being shorter but similar in shape to the that of the male.
It is a herbivore, existing almost exclusively on grass. It needs to drink daily, but can survive if water is scarce. They are active during the early morning hours and after the heat has gone out of the day. They are capable of speeds up to fifty miles per hour. Life expectancy is 20 to 22 years in the wild. They are prey to lion, hyena, Cape hunting dog, leopard, cheetah, and crocodile, the latter especially during the wildebeest migration when the animal is forced to cross rivers. Crocodiles wait for a sick, old, or young black wildebeest to cross, then rise out of the water and drag the unfortunate animal under. Lions hunt the mature black wildebeest, while calves are hunted by hyenas.
Black wildebeest belong to one of three distinct groups. The male herds consist of young males, or those past the breeding age. The female herd consists of adult females with their calves. Then there are the mature males who establish their own territory and maintain it throughout the year. Males become sexually mature at three years of age, females at one or two years. They breed yearly.
A dominant male will control a number of females and not allow other males to breed with them. Gestation lasts eight and one half months on the average, with births taking place from mid-November to the first week of January. The calves weigh about 25 pounds at birth. They are able to stand and run shortly after birth – necessary for survival.
Wildebeest hunting at first glance looks fairly simple. The animal, sometimes nicknamed “the poor man’s Cape buffalo”, lives on the open plains in vast herds. Easy to locate, he is anything but easy to stalk. As the hunter tries to close with the black wildebeest, the animal will turn and run in the opposite direction. Sometimes it will run but a short distance, then stop and look back. Sometimes the black wildebeest will run, jump, gyrate, spin, and leap into the air seemingly all at once. Sometimes it will do all this for no discernible reason whatsoever.
Expect shots to be long, up to 250-300 yards, unless the lie of the land allows stalking closer. Look for a fold in the land, or some trees that will give some cover. Some success has been seen by approaching the black wildebeest at an angle, not looking directly at the animal, and seeming to walk parallel while actually closing.
Determining sex when hunting the black wildebeest will require good optics as the female and male are very similar. Males have heavier horns than the females. Rely on your Professional Hunter for advice. Using shooting sticks helps when shooting black wildebeest at distances.
Choice of caliber is very important for two reasons, distance, and toughness of the animal. They can be dangerous when wounded. Minimum caliber should be a .270-7mm with a premium 150-grain bullet. A better choice would be any of the .300 Magnum – .338 Magnum family of cartridges, with a bullet weight between 180 grains and 225 grains.
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Seven Black Wildebeest Facts
- Scientific name: Connochaetes gnou
- Male weight: 250-425 pounds
- Shoulder height: four feet
- Gestation period: 81/2 months
- Mating season: March-May
- Horns: both sexes
- Birth: one calf
African Blue Wildebeest
The blue wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus), also known as the white-bearded wildebeest, common wildebeest, or brindled gnu, is one of the two species of wildebeest. It is a herbivore primarily consuming short grasses, and is widely spread over Angola, Kenya, Mozambique, South Africa, Botswana, and Tanzania. It was extinct in Namibia but is being reintroduced with success. Also, private game farms and conservancies are breeding the blue wildebeest.
The blue wildebeest is an extremely wary animal, prone to leaping about and running around when even slightly disturbed. Males are considerably larger than females and can weigh up to 600 pounds and stand five feet tall. Females seldom weigh over 500 pounds, but occasionally can go as high as 550 pounds. They breed at the end of the rainy season and give birth eight and one half months later. When the calf is about eight months old, it will leave its mother and join a juvenile herd.
Mature blue wildebeest have a brown, or silver-gray coat with black manes. Both sexes have horns, the male’s being larger and heavier than that of the female. Herds average 25-50 animals, sometimes more in open grasslands. They are tough animals and seen in company with zebras, impala, and hartebeest. They need to water twice a day, so tend to stay near a good supply. Average life span in the wild is 19-20 years.
They are most active in the early morning and after the heat of the day has dropped in the late afternoon. Blue wildebeest will gather at night in groups ranging from 10-20 up to thousands. Their major predators are crocodiles, lions, and hyenas. Also, packs of wild dogs can, and do take down the calves or infirm animals.
Males are very territorial, especially during the breeding season. Blue wildebeest males become aggressive and excited as they compete for mating rights. They make testosterone-driven displays towards other males, bellowing, snorting and locking horns with other competitors. A male blue wildebeest neither eats, nor rests when a female is present in his territory.
African blue wildebeest hunting can be quite exciting. The total number of blue wildebeest in Africa is near 1.55 million. The first time a hunter sees an enormous herd spread over the plains, he’ll think all 1.55 million are standing in front of him. Sorting out a 600-pound male blue wildebeest from these herds can be quite difficult. The professional hunter will be a great help in this endeavor. Older males will be a darker color, and their stripes will be wider.
One of the most common methods of hunting the blue wildebeest on African plains is by walking and stalking. Check the wind and start from downwind. There will be many pairs of eyes watching for danger, including sharp-eyed zebras that have melded with the blue wildebeest. Trying to move when eyes aren’t watching is very challenging. A method that usually works well is to never approach the blue wildebeest straight on. Walk at an oblique angle never looking directly at the animals, but watching them out of the corner of your eye. Move slowly and quietly. Plan on taking a long shot. Out to 200 yards, a good, flat-shooting .30 Magnum with premium 180-grain bullets works well. However, blue wildebeest are tough animals, and should the shot not anchor the animal, longer range shooting will be necessary. For that, a heavier bullet, .338 to .375 caliber isn’t overkill. A wounded blue wildebeest can open distance in very short order.
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Aim point on a broadside shot is along the back side of the front shoulder and one-third up from the bottom of the blue wildebeest’s body. For head-on shots, place the bullet in the center of the body, a handspan up on the chest. Don’t quit shooting until the animal is down. A wounded blue wildebeest can be very dangerous. Always approach the animal from the back and be ready to give it a finisher. They can, and will, get up and charge.
Seven Blue Wildebeest Facts
- Scientific name: Connochaetes taurinus
- Male weight: 600 pounds
- Male height: four-five feet
- Top speed: 50 mph
- Life expectancy: 19-20 year
- Mating season: March-April
- Horn length male: 30-33 inches
Aug 12, 2021 | Hunting Stories, News
I met Sydney in Kentucky in 2020, just before Covid, and we immediately started talking about a family trip with her, her father and her boyfriend coming to Africa. It was planned for the end of 2020, but obviously Covid ruined our plans.
One evening in early 2021 she and her dad said that they needed to get out of America and get away from the madness. They called me, and it happened that I would be hosting them the very same day our first flights reopened into South Africa.
We immediately started planning the trip and it was scheduled for May of 2021.
One of her wish-list animals was a bushbuck – she was keen to have the horns. I knew there was one very big bushbuck that I’d seen in my orange grove. He was extremely clever, coming out just before dark and always staying deep in the grove.
Apart from other hunts, late every afternoon we would go to the orange grove and walk the big dongas and try to find him just before he disappeared into the grove. Once he was in the grove it would be very difficult for us to get near him because he could see underneath the trees, and we were walking from row to row trying to spot him. We nearly got lucky one afternoon when we passed one donga and I could just see the back half of him. He was obviously feeding behind a bush. It was only 25 yards, but after putting the shooting sticks down, and with Sydney looking too far trying to see where he was, the the bushbuck heard her and jumped off.
We were persistent in trying every afternoon, hoping luck would eventually be on our side, and as I was walking through the orange grove just before dark, going from one row to the next, I spotted the the bushbuck. As luck would have it, he was feeding with his back away from us and it gave me time to put the shooting sticks up and give Sydney a chance to get the rifle in. Meanwhile, the bushbuck turned and started feeding towards us. She didn’t want to shoot it while it was walking and subsequently it grazed all the way towards us from about 60 yards to about 30 yards, and she was able to give a clean shot to the chest. It jumped and ran three yards past us and fell 30 yards away.
It was satisfying to see the end of a very good hunt, and for anybody wanting to get one of these magnificent animals, truly the right way to hunt them is to spot and stalk, take your time, and do everything slowly.
Aug 11, 2021 | News
Readers will have noticed a recent massive surge in alarming international news about the climate. This is an organised, contrived campaign to draw attention to the forthcoming United Nations climate conference to be held in Glasgow, Scotland in November. The UN Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change has carefully chosen this time to release part of its Sixth Assessment Report, and the so-called ‘Summary for Policy Makers’. Media all around the world are giving maximum coverage to the report, which has been dubbed as ‘Code Red for Humanity’.
Evidence for a ‘contrived, organised campaign’ is that more than 460 news and media partners claiming to represent 57 countries and a ‘reach’ of two billion people have signed up to “ten tips of best practice to get the climate story right”. The ‘partners’ include various universities, newspapers, and non-governmental organisations, but also Agence France-Presse, Bloomberg and Reuters. Other signatories are Al Jazeera, Rolling Stone, Teen Vogue, Scientific American, the Mail and Guardian in South Africa, and Huffington Post.
The ‘best practice’ list is the handiwork of Covering Climate Now (CCN), founded in 2019 by the Columbia Journalism Review and The Nation, with The Guardian as the main partner. The Guardian has abandoned the term ‘climate change’ for ‘climate emergency’. CCN seeks to collaborate with journalists in forging “an all-newsroom approach to climate reporting”. Read more about this co-ordinated propaganda campaign at https://dailyfriend.co.za/2021/05/17/a-climate-change-propaganda-handbook/
Is there anything new or really terrifying in the latest UN/ IPCC propaganda? Absolutely not. The ‘global warming’ scare story has been around for 33 years since 1988, and there is really very little to be worried about in the observed features of the climate during this period, or indeed over the past 100 years. The IPCC bases much of its dire warnings on computer models about the future, which are highly unreliable, to say the least.
Because of the CCN propaganda participants, you will not hear any counter-views from the many scientists who do not agree with the predictions of the IPCC. But to give readers an idea of what is out there if you look properly, here is the World Climate Declaration (2021) signed by a number of international scientists and professionals from many countries.
There is no climate emergency
A global network of 900 scientists and professionals has prepared this urgent message. Climate science should be less political, while climate policies should be more scientific. Scientists should openly address uncertainties and exaggerations in their predictions of global warming, while politicians should dispassionately count the real costs as well as the imagined benefits of their policy measures.
Natural as well as anthropogenic factors cause warming
The geological archive reveals that Earth’s climate has varied as long as the planet has existed, with natural cold and warm phases. The Little Ice Age ended as recently as 1850. Therefore, it is no surprise that we now are experiencing a period of warming.
Warming is far slower than predicted
The world has warmed significantly less than predicted by IPCC on the basis of modelled anthropogenic forcing. The gap between the real world and the modelled world tells us that we are far from understanding climate change.
Climate policy relies on inadequate models
Climate models have many shortcomings and are not remotely plausible as global policy tools. They blow up the effect of greenhouse gases such as CO2. In addition, they ignore the fact that enriching the atmosphere with CO2 is beneficial.
CO2 is plant food, the basis of all life on Earth
CO2 is not a pollutant. It is essential to all life on Earth. Photosynthesis is a blessing. More CO2 is beneficial for nature, greening the Earth: additional CO2 in the air has promoted growth in global plant biomass. It is also good for agriculture, increasing the yields of crops worldwide.
Global warming has not increased natural disasters
There is no statistical evidence that global warming is intensifying hurricanes, floods, droughts and suchlike natural disasters, or making them more frequent. However, there is ample evidence that CO2-mitigation measures are as damaging as they are costly.
Climate policy must respect scientific and economic realities
There is no climate emergency. Therefore, there is no cause for panic and alarm. We strongly oppose the harmful and unrealistic net-zero CO2 policy proposed for 2050. If better approaches emerge, and they certainly will, we have ample time to reflect and re-adapt. The aim of global policy should be ‘prosperity for all’ by providing reliable and affordable energy at all times. In a prosperous society men and women are well educated, birth-rates are low and people care about their environment.
The World Climate Declaration (WCD) has brought a large variety of competent scientists together from all over the world (and it is not the number of experts but the quality of arguments that counts). The considerable knowledge and experience of this group is indispensable in reaching a balanced, dispassionate and competent view of climate change.
This group now functions as the ‘Global Climate Intelligence Group’. The CLINTEL Group will give solicited and unsolicited advice on climate change and energy transition to governments and companies worldwide.
You can read more about CLINTEL and the full list of signatories at https://clintel.org
Dr John Ledger is a past Director of the Endangered Wildlife Trust, now a consultant, writer and teacher on the environment, energy and wildlife; he is a columnist for the African Hunting Gazette. He lives in Johannesburg, South Africa. John.Ledger@wol.co.za
Aug 11, 2021 | Hunting Stories, News
While most folks spend a lifetime dreaming of hunting Cape buffalo, I was lucky enough to make that dream a reality.
Cape Buffalo, known as The Black Death for their aggressive and angry nature, are one of the most dangerous big game animals not only in Africa, but in the world.
Early on, we had identified the old warrior of a bull that I wanted to hunt, instantly recognizable for his scarred face, worn horns, hard bosses, and wide spread – all the character a hunter could want in a Cape buffalo.
Stalking bachelor herds of bulls was exhilarating, to say the very least. The buffs were incredibly wary, even as we climbed the rocky kopjes and snuck through the thorns. We were busted over and over again.
When we finally caught up with the herd once again, the shot opportunity came fast. I was confident in the shot placement, just behind the shoulder as PH Stephen Bann from SB Safaris instructed. As the rest of the herd ran off, this buff immediately dropped, then rose again and disappeared into the thick bush. Stephen proved himself an expert on the tracks in the red sand.
Though moments seemed like hours as we pursued the wounded beast, it was to be a short track. A wounded Cape buffalo will charge in a flash, with pure intent to kill. Our group of four, each armed with a big bore rifle, were on highest alert. With a great crashing in the bush ahead of us, the bull gave his final death bellow, a guttural sound that pierces your very core. We froze momentarily and then were running in that direction.
It couldn’t have been scripted much better. We found the buff had dived headlong, nearly upside down, into some brush. Few Cape buffalo are harvested with one shot, and even I was surprised at the performance of my Henry lever action in .45-70 Gov’t. After a prayer of thanksgiving for this amazing hunt and harvest, our group celebrated the trophy – and memories – of a lifetime with hugs and more than a bit of emotion that is difficult to explain until one has experienced it all.
Aug 10, 2021 | News
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Our indigenous taxidermists specialize in African game and, coupled with their artistic talent and craftsmanship, this results in life-like recreations of game species. All manikins are custom made according to client’s specific requests at no additional charge and full mount prices include standard habitat bases.
Our highly skilled administrative team is up-to-date on all International Export/Import regulations and provides exceptional and responsive service from the arrival of trophies at our studio to the delivery of trophies at the client’s door.
Our dedication to walking that extra mile and striving towards consistent workmanship, ensures that our clients receive lasting memories of their African Safari as well as resulting in their valued return to us through the years.
We have a vast range of outfitters that are spread around South Africa and therefore send our vehicles on a regular basis to collect trophies countrywide, at no additional cost. If your preferred outfitter is not part of our route, we will gladly make the necessary arrangements to collect your prized trophies wherever they are.
We like to boast that Life-Form is a “One Stop Shop” to meet all your needs. Included in our operation, we have a Dip & Ship facility, as well as our own Tannery.
For a detailed view of the studio and other facilities, visit www.lifeformtaxidermy.com
Aug 10, 2021 | News, Uncategorized
Just a quick update to let you know what’s been happening with me in the field.
My first hunt of the year was a leopard hunt with Andy from North Dakota. We hunted on Malangani where I knew there was a huge leopard – we saw him in 2019 lying on a three-quarters-grown wildebeest that he had just killed. He was 50 yards off the road and we watched him for quite a few minutes before he slunk off. This guy was our obvious target but he proved very elusive. All we could find was 10-day-old tracks in one riverbed but nothing else.
We baited the whole area hoping he would show up but he never did. Andy ended up taking another cat right near the end of the hunt. Dropping our baits on the last day we found his tracks from the night before in the same riverbed where we had found his old tracks. He had followed our drag to our bait but then just walked away.
At the beginning of June, Patrick, a retired policeman from NY, arrived with his nephew, James, for a buffalo hunt out of Nengo camp, again in the BVC. After torrential rains the bush was thicker than I’ve ever seen it, and I’ve been in the area for over 28 years! We caught the tail end of two cyclones that struck Mozambique.
As there was so much water about everywhere it was only after a few days that we found buffalo tracks to follow. Starting at 9.15 a.m. we followed them for many miles, often getting pretty close to them, but were unable to get sight of their horns. We finally called it quits and broke for lunch at 4 p.m.
The next morning we again found their tracks and got after them. The wind wasn’t that good but we spotted two bulls and managed to flank them and get the wind more in our favor. Creeping in close, Isaac and I saw that one bull had a good head and he was feeding into a slightly more open area. Please understand that the bush was still very thick, but at least we could see him. Moving Pat forward he finally got a shot and the bull was swallowed by dense, thick bush.
An example of the incredibly dense bush in which the wounded bull was hiding – totally invisible!
Trying to skirt the very thick stuff, both trackers said they could hear his labored breathing and then announced that he had fallen over. We got around the large thicket and moved closer on the hind side to look for blood. A few feet in front of us the bush suddenly exploded and he launched himself towards us at full speed. There was little time to react even though I was ready. As he passed on my left side at a distance of no more than six feet, I snapped a shot at his head, knowing he was headed straight for Pat and James. I guess the blast in his face and the 500-grain .470 that penetrated the nerve in his horn, persuaded him to change course and he ran between me and my friends as I gave him the second barrel just below the base of his tail. Much to our relief and to cut a long story short, we finally put him down after 13 shots. The good Lord was undoubtedly standing with us that morning. I don’t believe I’ve ever hunted in bush this thick!
We hope that you will join us in our little slice of paradise real soon.
Blessings,
John
