When all is quiet and the heat of the day has risen well away from the ground leaving us breathing steam as we admire the stars from around nDzuti’s crackling boma fire, a scuffling sound comes from the waterhole and breaks the dark silence. The night comes alive with nocturnal animal activity, and a whole new safari experience awaits! Just in front of the lodge is a waterhole frequented by elephants, antelope, and all sorts of other creatures during the day, and after the sun sets, a new variety of animals come out to play. Here, we watched as a side-striped jackal, a spotted hyena, and not one, but two African civets emerged to feed at night.
It was such a spectacular occasion to see all three species in one place clearly feeding on something they were mutually interested in (perhaps carrion). Bruce and Judy brought out the spotlight to illuminate the area and watch these animals peacefully go about their business. Civets, jackals and hyenas are often seen at the waterhole after nightfall, but this was a special gathering of some of our favourite nocturnal critters.
Civets are not usually seen in pairs, and most often live and forage alone. They have a broad, omnivorous diet and feed on many things from small rodents, reptiles, and birds, grass (even from the stomach of a dead antelope), and carrion. Probably most famously, civets eat poisonous millipedes and venomous snakes such as puff adders! They are part of the mongoose family and are not related to either the dog or cat family. Their teeth are designed to both tear and crush, making them quite unfussy eaters. Unsurprisingly (given that they can stomach the cyanide present in millipedes and the cytotoxic venom of puff adders), African civets give off pungent secretions from their anal glands, which is used both as a territorial marking and as a defence mechanism.
These two were the clear stars of the show at this nighttime sighting, but a fairly confident side-striped jackal also wanted in on the meal and hung around nosily as the civets fed. It is rare to have seen both civets together, as they usually pair up only during breeding, and they tend to be quite shy animals swiftly escaping once they have been spotted. After many a night spent silently observing the waterhole and making the visitors feel at home, the waterhole in front of the lodge has become quite the venue for nocturnal gatherings!
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