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The "Hairy", the Buffalo & the Hippo - Tanzania
This story has been translated from French to English by Google translate. The original French version can be found below.
Tanzania (Selous), male elephant at sunset near the river Mbaragandu (hunting area Mkuyu).
Christopher is on the box Luhaniandu amodiée the company for which he works, Tanganyika Wildlife Safari. This is an area located in southern Selous. His hunter is a Russian who wants primarily a lion.
Obviously, the man seeks above all as the say in their jargon hunting guides: "a large hairy" which is incidentally the opposite of what is called in the same jargon, "an Iroquois" It will be served!
Christopher, who that very evening of the arrival of his client, he has focused his rifle 300 Weatherby, he proposes to attack the next day "in the drive.
It was indeed knowledge, 3 hours drive from the camp near the Luwugu place or hang around big yellow cats.
It does not take more to motivate the hunter, the next day, immediately after breakfast, is one of the first to climb into the 4x4.
At daybreak, the team hunting finds herself on the spot.
It is a magnificent site, slightly hilly with a beautiful lake and of course the presence of the river Luwugu.
"There," as Christopher said, "any wildlife on the water: hundreds of hippos, crocs but to also to increasing waterbuck, bushbuck ..."
"After the wonder, of course, we look for traces of cats" he said.
Very soon, the hunting team discovers a trace of a male of 10 inches wide but it is not of prime freshness ...
Now that the guide reinforces the fact that lions are still in place.
The travels continue ... "A little later, we came across a kill of a young hippo (a kill is a carcass, a result of predation, editor's note) which was a lioness" notes Christopher.
"We approached the lion was furious and grumbled terribly but we could see or perceive the male.
Once the lion part cons heart, the team searched more deeply around the corpse and found a fresh trail of a "big daddy" ...
"I knew when it was there! Remained to be stronger than him ... against predators predator!" said the guide Tawisa.
With experience, Christopher decided to move the carcass dragging over one kilometer before tying a acacia.
"It seemed the wiser," he says: "where the lions would follow and therefore this is the lion, knowing that it was absolutely necessary to complete the remains of the hippo meat fresh."
The guide then take his hunter one of the favorite foods of lions and well represented in the area, namely a growing waterbuck.
It goes perfectly in addition to the remains of the hippo.
Christopher also takes care to build his men in a tree, 75 meters, a lookout for the next day.
The next day, everyone is back in place before the day comes up.
The meat has been eaten but there is still no trace of male.
By mutual agreement with his hunter, Christopher decides to spend not only the day but at night there. They have it for water and food needed.
The waiting begins.
Around 18 hours, 2 lionesses come then they are hyenas and all the nocturnal predators.
"It growls, it's squabbling, it makes a lot of noise but at daybreak, it is clear that the lion did not come" summarizes the guide.
This is far from being discouraged, the team decides: 1 to deliver fresh meat, 2 to go on the site an extra night. This will avoid once more the 6 hours of tracks.
Then the team took the road back.
Initially, the hunter and the guide decided to feed the bait to draw a hippo.
Branch Lake or so hundreds of these animals frolic.
At 10 hours, the mass grave is re-fed with the carcass of a horse River (hippopotamus), male, adult, whose "baby teeth" measuring 67 centimeters or 26.4 inches!
In a second step, the team decides to take a short rest before going back up to 16 hours...
But as they seek a quiet, shady and sufficiently distant from their carriage to "pose" a little guide, hunter and trackers fall into a canyon on a herd of buffalo.
They watch and sees 3 males detach. There were some very good representative of the species.
The bait is far enough, Christopher decides to make the draw.
The band of buffalo is 114.3 cm or 45 inches! At 16 hours, is taken up on the lookout.
At 18 hours, three lionesses arise. But still no lion.
"Ca va, ca just until 1 am when we heard a huge roar," said the guide.
"I look in the binoculars in the moonlight, I distinguished. IT is there, he wears a beautiful mane ... But we must expect the dawn."
All times are strung slower than days but I am confident. On the hippos, the "large" remain.
Finally the first rays appear. We see at last. It is beautiful. A "big hair" as we are few in the wild!"
"My hunter does more. He has, in front of him a lion-standard, one of his dreams, his lion!"
But he must wait while the fawn is this good for the stroke is fatal immediately.
This is the case a few moments. The opportunity to enjoy a little of this splendid creature.
And then suddenly the lion is in perfect position, and rare magic moment of "shoot" an animal that has been sought and for which we have done everything.
The ultimate moment or two predators confront...
The Russian fighter looks at me, gun propped in the crook of his shoulder...
A simple nod will suffice. The 300 tonne, the lion collapsed. It is all over".
Clarification: If the mane of the lion is beautiful, the animal was not very long body (2.70 meters or 106.3 inches) and had no skull except (SCI total score 23).
It weighed, however (on balance) 197 kilograms or 434.3 pounds!
He had also beaten as recently evidenced by his scar near his eye.
Note that Christopher believes that the age of the animal was between 6 and 8 years.
This story has been translated from French to English by Google translate. The original French version can be found below.
Tanzania (Selous), male elephant at sunset near the river Mbaragandu (hunting area Mkuyu).
Christopher is on the box Luhaniandu amodiée the company for which he works, Tanganyika Wildlife Safari. This is an area located in southern Selous. His hunter is a Russian who wants primarily a lion.
Obviously, the man seeks above all as the say in their jargon hunting guides: "a large hairy" which is incidentally the opposite of what is called in the same jargon, "an Iroquois" It will be served!
Christopher, who that very evening of the arrival of his client, he has focused his rifle 300 Weatherby, he proposes to attack the next day "in the drive.
It was indeed knowledge, 3 hours drive from the camp near the Luwugu place or hang around big yellow cats.
It does not take more to motivate the hunter, the next day, immediately after breakfast, is one of the first to climb into the 4x4.
At daybreak, the team hunting finds herself on the spot.
It is a magnificent site, slightly hilly with a beautiful lake and of course the presence of the river Luwugu.
"There," as Christopher said, "any wildlife on the water: hundreds of hippos, crocs but to also to increasing waterbuck, bushbuck ..."
"After the wonder, of course, we look for traces of cats" he said.
Very soon, the hunting team discovers a trace of a male of 10 inches wide but it is not of prime freshness ...
Now that the guide reinforces the fact that lions are still in place.
The travels continue ... "A little later, we came across a kill of a young hippo (a kill is a carcass, a result of predation, editor's note) which was a lioness" notes Christopher.
"We approached the lion was furious and grumbled terribly but we could see or perceive the male.
Once the lion part cons heart, the team searched more deeply around the corpse and found a fresh trail of a "big daddy" ...
"I knew when it was there! Remained to be stronger than him ... against predators predator!" said the guide Tawisa.
With experience, Christopher decided to move the carcass dragging over one kilometer before tying a acacia.
"It seemed the wiser," he says: "where the lions would follow and therefore this is the lion, knowing that it was absolutely necessary to complete the remains of the hippo meat fresh."
The guide then take his hunter one of the favorite foods of lions and well represented in the area, namely a growing waterbuck.
It goes perfectly in addition to the remains of the hippo.
Christopher also takes care to build his men in a tree, 75 meters, a lookout for the next day.
The next day, everyone is back in place before the day comes up.
The meat has been eaten but there is still no trace of male.
By mutual agreement with his hunter, Christopher decides to spend not only the day but at night there. They have it for water and food needed.
The waiting begins.
Around 18 hours, 2 lionesses come then they are hyenas and all the nocturnal predators.
"It growls, it's squabbling, it makes a lot of noise but at daybreak, it is clear that the lion did not come" summarizes the guide.
This is far from being discouraged, the team decides: 1 to deliver fresh meat, 2 to go on the site an extra night. This will avoid once more the 6 hours of tracks.
Then the team took the road back.
Initially, the hunter and the guide decided to feed the bait to draw a hippo.
Branch Lake or so hundreds of these animals frolic.
At 10 hours, the mass grave is re-fed with the carcass of a horse River (hippopotamus), male, adult, whose "baby teeth" measuring 67 centimeters or 26.4 inches!
In a second step, the team decides to take a short rest before going back up to 16 hours...
But as they seek a quiet, shady and sufficiently distant from their carriage to "pose" a little guide, hunter and trackers fall into a canyon on a herd of buffalo.
They watch and sees 3 males detach. There were some very good representative of the species.
The bait is far enough, Christopher decides to make the draw.
The band of buffalo is 114.3 cm or 45 inches! At 16 hours, is taken up on the lookout.
At 18 hours, three lionesses arise. But still no lion.
"Ca va, ca just until 1 am when we heard a huge roar," said the guide.
"I look in the binoculars in the moonlight, I distinguished. IT is there, he wears a beautiful mane ... But we must expect the dawn."
All times are strung slower than days but I am confident. On the hippos, the "large" remain.
Finally the first rays appear. We see at last. It is beautiful. A "big hair" as we are few in the wild!"
"My hunter does more. He has, in front of him a lion-standard, one of his dreams, his lion!"
But he must wait while the fawn is this good for the stroke is fatal immediately.
This is the case a few moments. The opportunity to enjoy a little of this splendid creature.
And then suddenly the lion is in perfect position, and rare magic moment of "shoot" an animal that has been sought and for which we have done everything.
The ultimate moment or two predators confront...
The Russian fighter looks at me, gun propped in the crook of his shoulder...
A simple nod will suffice. The 300 tonne, the lion collapsed. It is all over".
Clarification: If the mane of the lion is beautiful, the animal was not very long body (2.70 meters or 106.3 inches) and had no skull except (SCI total score 23).
It weighed, however (on balance) 197 kilograms or 434.3 pounds!
He had also beaten as recently evidenced by his scar near his eye.
Note that Christopher believes that the age of the animal was between 6 and 8 years.
Original French Version.
Le "Chevelu", le Buffle et l’Hippo - Tanzanie
Tanzanie (Selous), éléphant mâle au coucher du soleil aux abords de la rivière Mbaragandu (zone de chasse de Mkuyu).
Christophe est sur la zone de Luhaniandu amodiée à la compagnie pour laquelle il travaille, Tanganyika Wildlife Safari. C’est une zone qui se situe dans le sud Selous. Son chasseur est un russe qui veut prioritairement un lion.
Bien évidemment, l’homme recherche avant tout comme le disent dans leur jargon les guides de chasse: "un grand chevelu" qui est, soit dit en passant le contraire, de ce qu’on nomme dans ce même jargon, "un Iroquois" Il va être servi!
Christophe, qui dès le soir même de l’arrivée de son client, lui a fait cibler sa carabine 300 Weatherby, lui propose d’attaquer dès le lendemain "dans le dur".
Il a en effet, connaissance, à 3 heures de voiture du campement, au bord de la Luwugu d’un lieu ou "traînent" de grands chats jaunes.
Il n’en faut pas plus pour motiver le chasseur qui, le lendemain, dès la fin du petit déjeuner, est l’un des premiers à monter dans le 4x4.
A la pointe du jour, l’équipe de chasse se retrouve donc sur place.
Il s’agit d’un site somptueux, légèrement montagneux avec un superbe lac et bien évidemment la présence de la rivière Luwugu.
"Il y a là", comme le précise Christophe, "toute la faune du bord de l’eau: des centaines d’hippos, de crocos mais aussi des cobes à croissant, des guibs..."
"Après l’émerveillement, bien évidemment, nous recherchons des traces de présence des félins" poursuit-il.
Très rapidement, l’équipe de chasse découvre un trace d’un mâle de 10 cm de large mais elle n’est pas de toute première fraîcheur...
Maintenant cela conforte le guide dans le fait que les lions fréquentent toujours l’endroit.
Les pérégrinations se poursuivent... "Un peu plus loin, nous sommes tombés sur un kill d’un jeune hippo (un kill est une carcasse, résultat d’une prédation, ndlr) sur lequel se trouvait une lionne" note Christophe.
"Nous avons approché, la lionne était furieuse et grognait terriblement mais nous n’avons pu voir ou apercevoir le mâle".
Une fois la lionne partie à contre cœur, l’équipe fouille plus profondément les abords de la charogne et découvre une trace fraîche d’un "gros papa"...
"J’ai su dès lors qu’il était là ! Restait à être plus fort que lui... prédateurs contre prédateur!" indique le guide de Tawisa.
Fort de son expérience, Christophe décide alors de déplacer la carcasse en la traînant sur un kilomètre avant de l’attacher à un acacia.
"Cela me paraissait le plus judicieux" dit il: "là où les lionnes allaient la suivre et donc de ce fait le lion tout en sachant qu’il fallait absolument compléter les restes de cet hippo de viande fraîche".
Le guide fait donc tirer à son chasseur l’un des mets préférés des lions et bien représentés dans les parages, à savoir un cobe à croissant.
Il va ainsi parfaitement s’ajouter aux restes de l’hippo.
Christophe prend également soin de faire construire à ses hommes, dans un arbre, à 75 mètres, un affût, pour le jour suivant.
Le lendemain, tout le monde est de nouveau sur place avant que le jour ne se lève.
La viande a bien été mangée mais il n’y a toujours pas de traces de mâle.
D’un commun accord avec son chasseur, Christophe décide de passer non seulement la journée mais aussi la nuit sur place. Ils ont pour cela l’eau et la nourriture nécessaire.
L’attente commence.
Vers 18 heures, 2 lionnes se présentent puis ce sont des hyènes et tous les prédateurs nocturnes.
"Ca grogne, ça se chamaille, ça fait énormément de bruit mais au petit jour, force est de constater que le lion n’est pas venu" résume le guide.
Ceci étant, loin de se décourager, l’équipe décide: 1 de remettre de la viande fraîche, 2 de passer sur le site une nuit supplémentaire. Ce qui va éviter, une fois de plus les 6 heures de pistes.
Puis, l’équipe prend la route du retour.
Dans un premier temps, le chasseur et le guide décident pour alimenter l’appât de tirer un hippo.
Direction donc le lac ou des centaines de ces animaux s’ébattent.
A 10 heures, le charnier est ré-alimenter avec la carcasse d’un cheval du fleuve (hippopotamus), mâle, adulte, dont les "quenottes" mesurent 67 centimètres or 26.4 inches!
Dans un deuxième temps, l’équipe prend la décision de s’accorder un peu de repos avant de se mettre de nouveau en place vers 16 heures...
Mais alors qu’ils cherchent un endroit calme, ombragé et suffisamment éloigné de leur affût pour se "pose" un peu, guide, chasseur et pisteurs tombent dans un canyon sur un troupeau de buffles.
Ils l’observent et voit 3 mâles se détacher. Il y a parmi eu un très beau représentant de l’espèce.
L’appât étant assez loin, Christophe décide alors de le faire tirer.
Le bandeau du buffle est de 114.3 centimètres or 45 inches! A 16 heures, place est reprise sur l’affût.
A 18 heures, trois lionnes se présentent. Mais toujours pas de lion.
"Ca va, ca vient jusqu’à 1 heure du matin lorsque nous entendons un énorme rugissement" indique le guide.
"Je regarde dans les jumelles et dans la clarté de la lune, je le distingue. IL est là, il porte une superbe crinière… Mais il faut que nous attendions la pointe du jour".
Les heures s’égrènent plus lentement que des jours mais je suis confiant. Sur les hippos, les "gros" restent.
Enfin les premières lueurs, apparaissent. Nous le voyons enfin. Il est magnifique. Un "grand chevelu" comme on en observe peu à l’état sauvage!"
"Mon chasseur ne tient plus. Il a la, en face de lui un lion hors normes, celui de ses rêves, Son lion!"
Mais il lui faut attendre cependant que le fauve se présente bien pour que le coup soit mortel, immédiatement.
Ce n’est l’affaire que de quelques instants. L’occasion de profiter encore un peu de cette bête splendide.
Et puis subitement, le lion est en parfaite position, l’instant magique et rare du "shoot" d’un animal que l’on a recherché ; pour lequel on a tout fait.
L’ultime moment ou deux prédateurs se confrontent...
Le chasseur russe me regarde, l’arme bien calée au creux de l’épaule...
Un simple signe de tête suffira. La 300 tonne, le lion s’effondre. C’en est fini".
Précision: si la crinière de ce lion est magnifique, l’animal n’était pas très long de corps (2.70 mètres or 106.3 inches) et n’avait pas un crâne d’exception (score total SCI 23).
Il pesait toutefois (sur la balance) 197 kilos or 434.3 lbs!
Il s’était, en outre battu très récemment comme l’atteste sa cicatrice à proximité de l’œil.
A noter que Christophe estime que l’âge de l’animal était compris entre 6 et 8 ans.
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