MAFIA ISLAND LODGE

News from the lodge with a marine garden.

Incredible Mafia experience!
One of the exceptional experiences with wildlife that one can have coming to Tanzania involves a fish: not a common fish, but the biggest fish in the world! Whale Shark!
We outsource all our whale shark tours to a company called Kitu Kiblu (the Blue Thing) who offers responsible marine encounters with these gentle giants: the meeting with Kitu Kiblu’s passionate and informative staff and the swim with the whale sharks fully refund from the early morning wake up!

Our guests had great whale sharks sightings this month (on Christmas day too!), where groups of up to 6 individuals were seen in feeding behavior. Most commonly whale sharks feed while swimming horizontally to the surface (which means that guests may experience a 8 meter open-mouth-fish swimming towards them who turns at the last moment!), but in rare occasion they can be seen swimming vertically with their mouth open at the surface, behavior called vertical feeding. Watch video I – Watch video II
It is wordless being in the water with them; there is a sensation of a return to a primitive world, a one of enormous creatures, but in this case docile and harmless.
Watch video

Whale sharks aggregate in the waters of the channel between Mafia Island and mainland and they are easily seen between October to March: despite the fact they are all young, they reach the incredible length of 8 meters. The reason of the aggregation and where they go after they grow older is still unknown. Without teeth, they feed on plankton, small shrimps and tiny fish: the food gets stuck first within their gills and then is pushed forward in front of the mouth to be swollen.

Visit Tanzania any time between even in the rainy season, its stunning nature is just re-energized by the first rain, re-colored by flowers and migratory birds, its wildlife is in its best shape and another incredible event is happening: whale sharks feeding in the shallow waters of Mafia Island!

Kitu Kiblu is also the founder of the Mafia Island Whale Shark Conservation Society, who supports whale shark research and conservation. Visit their web site.

Iris, Giuliano and all Mafia Island Lodge Team

FANJOVE PRIVATE ISLAND

News from a natural wonder.

Season’s Greetings and Happy New Year!

Set against the spectacular backdrop of the crystal clear water of the Indian Ocean, Fanjove Island is the perfect location to celebrate your special day. With a max capacity of 12 guests, you will have a private and intimate experience on one of the most pristine Islands in the world.

This December, our guests celebrated the New Year Island Style. We had a great mixture of 9 different nationalities sitting around a beach fire at sunset with sangrias, snacks and to top it all, delicious grilled seafood for dinner; a joyous mix of fun and laughter.

On the fauna side, bird-nesting season is in full swing this season with egret’s chicks hatching around the thick bushes.

Migratory birds are still visiting the island solely to nest and raise their young. We currently have about 500 crab plovers and we are so fortunate that they have chosen Fanjove Island to spend the summer.

Both the diving and snorkeling have offered water enthusiasts stunning visibility and a chance to spot some rare ocean critters.

On the social side, Fanjove Island is in the process of building public toilets on Songo Songo Island, part of the involvement to improve facilities for the community.

The slow and long war on dynamite fishing in the area has reached an end and everyone is celebrating this victory by benefiting from the short and long-term effects.

We are very thankful for all of our wonderful guests and your continuing support.

On behalf of Hassan, Hakim, Sal and the Fanjove Private Island team, we would like to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year!

LAKE MANZE CAMP

News from Selous Game Reserve

Jungle calls,, Jungle calls,, animals all the way. Hippo grunts and elephant trunks. Manze an awesome place to stay.

Now that the Christmas cheer is upon us we will wish all our guests a fantastic Christmas and a wonderful and prosperous 2017. Let 2017 bring you back to the bush to enjoy the hospitality here in camp.

Our guests have been in the fortunate position to experience a Lion hunt where the Lioness catches a small warthog for the two young Lions of the Manze pride to play and learn the art.Our guide Kalisti Paul captured this amazing video for all to enjoy. Turn down the volume if you do not want to hear the piglets. Watch the video

We received a sequence of pictures from our guest Malcolm Latarche where the pack of wild dogs in the area stalk and hunt an Impala mother and her baby. A series of fantastic shots that show the cooperation within the pack. Well done to our guest and thank you for sharing your pictures with us. Viewer discretion advised.

Laygos our trusted Elephant friend has been hanging around camp shaking the Doum palms and taking his naps in and around camp. He is a treat that all guests enjoy to the fullest.. As the saying goes – Wherever you lay your hat is your home – Manze is the home of Laygos.

Safe travels,

By Shaun, Milinda and all Manze Team.

MDONYA OLD RIVER CAMP

News from the wild side

Merry Christmas and Happy New Year to all our friends, may your 2017 be filled with safari and wildlife encounters!

The Mdonya woodlands have seen a big transformation this month with the start of the rains, the grass is a saturated green, wild flowers have sprung and the leaves and foliage are growing thick and dense. The Woodland Kingfishers have returned and their trill can frequently be heard in camp.

The rain has been enough to fill up some of the water holes but showers have been irregular and the sand rivers have not yet started to flow. This has been a fantastic month for cloudscapes as dark and moody clouds have approached only to be swept in a different direction by the winds.

The big buffalo herd has dissipated into smaller herds and moved away from the Mwagusi river, elephant herds in large numbers are still seen gathering in the riverbeds digging for fresh water, tiny baby elephants of only a few days/weeks old have been spotted among the breeding herds, lion sightings have been plentiful with sightings of a mating pair and of cubs, and leopards have posed beautifully for our cameras.

In camp we were treated to a sighting of a big male leopard walking along the path in front of the office. Many elephant bulls in camp everyday with parades of over 10 of them walking between the office and the dinning tent and the return of our trickster bull Sikio Mbovu.

A big thank you to Jo-Anne Newell for sharing her fabulous pictures with us from her safari.

Safe Travel,

By Rebecca, Andrea and all Mdonya Team.