Why we love October in the Masai Mara
The first few weeks of October are dry and windy, which gives rise to very colourful sunrises and sunsets. The sun rises noticeably earlier, with first light at 6am. The day produces significant temperature variances, with the midday temperatures reaching around 30 Celsius. The grasses on the plains are short due to the constant grazing by the large herds of zebra and wildebeest.
Towards the end of the month, the rain arrives, giving the grasslands a new green flush. Sometimes, there are dramatic late afternoon thunderstorms, bringing wonderful photographic opportunities. This weather activity excites the herds, leading to big game movement and more river crossings. These quick, heavy storms stimulate the growth of fireball and pyjama lilies, which dot the plains, bringing unexpected splashes of colour to the grasslands.
The Mara River tends to be lower during the month of October, and it is not unusual to see the herds splashing easily through the river without having to swim, making themselves vulnerable to the massive Mara River crocodiles, who are happily basking on the river banks having feasted for a couple of months.
October has always been an excellent month for migration; the vast herds move around a little more, following the smell of rain and searching for new nutritious growth. From one day to the next, they move vast distances, travelling from the marsh area, over Rhino Ridge, to the Talek River and back again. As the month draws to a close, the majority of the herds file down in long lines from the plains, moving south towards the Serengeti, but some large groups remain in the area. There are daily River crossings; wildebeests occasionally cross the river one way, and zebras cross the other. These immense herds provide spectacular game viewing from the hot air balloon.
The big buffalo herd, with all its maturing young, spends most of its time in search of any remaining long grass that the zebra and wildebeest have left behind but are mainly seen on the West of the Bila Shaka lugga where there is courser grass. They return every few days to the marsh for water or drink from the pools left by the seasonal streams leading to the Mara River. An excellent survival tactic of theirs is to give birth to their young whilst the migration is in the area, as their main predators, lions and hyenas, are primarily busy preying on easier game.
Most plains game drop their calves in October in anticipation of the November rain. Thomson’s gazelles, impalas and warthogs tend to give birth at the start of the month, while topi and Coke’s hartebeests mostly calve towards the end of the month. The young have to be able to get up and go after 15 – 20 minutes of being born as part of their survival regime; there are some very anxious and protective mothers, bounding away from the slightest threat with their calves following in hot pursuit on their skinny, precarious legs. The resident black-backed jackals take many of these calves.
Thompson’s gazelles use the lower river levels as a time to cross, which leads to dramatic heart-wrenching action, with some of the herd crossing, some being taken by crocodiles, and then the remaining herd turning back and not crossing. It is not uncommon to see part of a herd of plains game at a crossing, looking longingly at the other part of their herd on the other side of the river, with the river and crocodiles in between.
Elephant family groups are back from the conservation areas to the marsh and woodland. The Warburgia ugandensis trees (Elephant Pepper ) are fruiting, which gets them into the riverine forest, where they love these hot berries. It is common to have family groups of elephants in our camps during October. These family herds have some very young calves, too, still so small they fit easily under their mother’s chest and with a thick protective coat of bristled hair. Young calves are a good sign for the elephant population in the Mara, as when stressed, they often miss their oestrus cycle.
Warthogs – the characters of the plains – usually have piglets that are just a few weeks to a few months old. Lions are starting to depend on them for meals as the grass is short, so they are easy to spot. Sadly, it is not uncommon for lions to eat the whole piglet family. Primates, including troops of baboons with 6-week-old young riding jockey style, are often seen foraging on the plains. The black-faced vervets are also more commonly seen in the month of October.
The Marsh Pride of lions spend their time at the Musiara Marsh adjacent to our camps. The pride hunts at night and can be found coming back to the marsh after following the wildebeests, who are on the move further afield. The prides follow the migration and move into other territories, which can potentially cause fights and upheavals. In addition, the nomadic males are also following the migration and looking for potential takeovers of females and territories from the current dominant male lions of the Mara. The October lion action is excellent, with many kills being witnessed, great entertainment from the playful young cubs and then drama evolving with nomadic males vying for taking over prides by fighting with the resident dominant males and possibly mating with the females.
October is a good month for cheetahs as they pray on the young topi, Thomson’s gazelle and impala calves. It is not unusual to see a variety of eight different cheetahs, some with cubs. We have followed the lineage of some of these cheetahs for over twenty years, and it is always exciting meeting up with the offspring of the characters of BBC fame. Leopards enjoy a time of plenty in October due to all the newborn calves found on the shorter grasslands.
Hyena dens are set up out on the plains around the migration. The young cubs vary from a few weeks to a few months old. During October, our guides report more hyenas being killed by lions than in any other month, with as many as 6 being killed in the month. An aardwolf with cubs, was seen during the month of October due to higher harvester termite activity from the abundance of dung from the great herds on the plains. The black-backed jackals oftem have pups as do the silverback jackals.
Bat-eared foxes and serval cats are being seen more often now, and it is not because they are not abundant; it is that the grass has to be grazed low, revealing these smaller grassland species.
Birds
We have had a few migratory birds passing through the Mara in October, such as European and white-fronted bee-eaters, Montague and pallid harriers, common kestrels, steppes eagles, African cuckoos and spoon-billed storks. Caspian plovers have been seen and they often give away their presence by their call. The saddle-billed stork is frequently seen in the Musiara marsh, often with chicks. Relatively large flocks of open-billed storks can be seen near watercourses.
Earlier in the month, large flocks of Eurasian bee-eaters are seen, and smaller flocks of blue-cheeked bee-eaters, migrate from the Middle East. The Madagascar squacco herons have been resident in the Musiara Marsh since June, and by the middle of October, they have all but gone. Long-toed lapwings and African jacanas sit on two nests while pairs of Wahlberg’s eagles might be seen nesting near Private Camp.
In the woodland, mocker swallowtails and green-banded swallowtails are about. The trees and lianas in the Mara River forest will flower and fruit; one in particular, the Turrea floribunda, has flowers and a beautiful scent, almost like jasmine. The Pristemera polyantha seeds have dropped off and fly away like mini helicopters. The bright red fruit of the Lepisanthes senagalensis is a big favourite of the baboons and gardenias are flowering.
