We got sent a game update recently from the Selous Safari Camp in Selous National Park in Tanzania. In amongst an impressive list of sightings during October came this extract which caught our eye. You certainly don’t see this everyday!
“The holy grail of sightings was spotted this month by one of our guides Mwita on a morning game drive after spotting 2 lions playing football with something resembling an artichoke. On closer inspection he saw that it was a pangolin or “kakakuona” in Swahili which means the brother that watches. This extraordinary anteater is covered in an armoury of scales which along with their ability to roll themselves into a tight ball gives them successful protection in the wild, as it takes considerable force to unroll them. After hours of arduous trying the Lions failed to uncoil the creature and in the process of trying they cut their tongues slightly, giving an indication of how sharp the scales are and demonstrating another of its special defence mechanisms.
Lucky that the pangolin got away in the end and it would not have been a very large meal for the lion anyway!
All over Africa local tribes have their own local suspicions about pangolins, our local Ndengereko tribe see the creature as a fortune teller. They leave out a bowl of rice, a bowl of water and a spear, the object to where the pangolin approaches will determine the fate of the year ahead. If the pangolin approaches the rice there will be plenty of food, if he approaches the water there will be plenty of rain but if he approaches the spear then the year ahead may bring troubles.”
