Hyenas

27/10

In the morning our guests packed their bags and made their way back to Lilongwe. Even though the snared hyena was never found, we managed to sight many healthy individuals during the calling and baiting. May the record state that I am now officially and utterly in love with the spotted hyena as a species. I feel incredibly honored to have been involved in the project over the past three days and would like to thank the amazing people who made it possible. Altogether there were sightings of 8 different hyenas, all potentially from the same clan. Frankie however was nowhere to be seen. Perhaps he was enjoying a fresh kill of his own somewhere, feeling no need to fight over some overly rotten goat that’s hanging way too high from the tree anyway.

I will be leaving Nyika in 3 days, as I have been offered an opportunity to visit Kasungu National Park for a week and get involved in their projects. The terrain and wildlife distribution is rather different there and I’m super excited! Kasungu’s climate is much hotter, so I can hopefully hang up my long sleeved clothing for good, however it’s worth mentioning that it’s been rather hot here lately. Or maybe it’s the fatigue talking given that we’ve worked crazy hours. Gosh, why do the hyenas have to be nocturnal? I need my beauty sleep, bad.

Other than that, everything’s the same. LMT, scat analysis, den walks. I have been skipping yoga and my green powder has not made it in my drinks for ages. I simply have no time. Besides, I have to start packing again. Today in two weeks I will be home!

And another positive news! Thanks to my very special and lovable SO, who contacted my employer for me, I will have 2 weeks off over Christmas. It’s a massive win! I haven’t had a Christmas off (which I have spent in Melbourne) in years. So much to look forward to! All the cooking and decorating I can do… And yes I know, it’s not even November yet and all I can think about is holiday food… I can’t help it. Meals are us, right??

Love you. Xx