Panorama April 1966
“Listen to the streams as they gurgle from their cradles
and you will hear the story of the mountains. You will hear fascinating tales
if only you listen! Lie next to a stream and listen to the song of the
mountains. The smiling faces of the flowers, dancing in the wind. Venture into
the remote valleys or stand on a peak at sunrise or sunset, after snow has
fallen, and you will hear a song that you will never forget - the Song of the
High Mountain".
DRAKENSBERG WILDERNESS PHOTOS ©
WILLEM PELSER
“WE SHOULD ALL START TO
LIVE BEFORE WE GET TOO OLD. FEAR IS STUPID, SO ARE REGRETS”
UNKNOWN
THE BABOONS
LITTLE PEOPLE OF THE DRAKENSBERG
‘With a long yawn, showing his big canine
teeth, Bru stretches his muscles, his handsome face framing a pair of golden
eyes. Slowly he scratches between his legs; an irritating itch has been bugging
him since late last night.
Slowly Bru looks around the cave. Some
of the other baboons in the troop are also slowly waking up now; soon they will
leave the cave and go searching for food. Bru gets up and walks over to the
waterfall in the corner of the cave. A baby stares coyly at him from the safety
and comfort of his mother’s arms with huge big eyes. Bru is not in a good mood
today. His face is showing many scars, being the leader of a troop as large as
his does comes at a price. There are the constant challenges from the younger
males, and today feels like it could be another day of fighting for the
leadership. Em, the alpha female approaches and grooms his golden hair. Oh, it
feels so good when she does that, his muscles relaxing, enjoying the moment.
Taking a sip of water from the
waterfall, Bru bares his teeth and let out a sharp bark, which echoes through
the cave like thunder. It is time to move out for the day. Everybody is up now,
and Bru struts out of the cave on all fours, his huge size an amazing sight.
Standing outside the cave Bru surveys the world around him, seeing no danger.
With a final bark, he starts climbing down the cliff in front of him and moves
down into the valley. Far below him the river glistens in the early morning
sun’.
I have
met up with my baboon friends many times over the years, and on my multi day
hikes I would meet up with them on a daily basis. I would walk through the
territory of quite a few troops on a daily basis. They are amazing animals to watch, and the
first indication of their presence is when the baboon on guard duty barks out a
warning announcing your presence. Sometimes they would be far away and high up
a mountain or cliff, at other times much closer. It is particularly funny when
one of the youngsters is the first to notice you. Perching on a boulder they
would emulate the big males and warn the rest of the troop in this tiny barking
voice. It would normally be backed up immediately by one of the big males. The
troop, depending on how close you are to them, will always move away, sometimes
at a great speed. The mother will pick up their tiny baby babies or little ones
and move off. It is quite clear that they have a great distrust in human
beings, and it is no wonder. Humans have always been the greatest enemy of the
baboons, making a concerted effort to kill them on sight; a practice which
continues to this day. At least now in the Drakensberg Wilderness they are
protected. However, when the Giant’s Castle Reserve was first formed, the then
rangers would shoot them on sight. Imagine, you are doing your own thing to
survive, and then you are being shot for now reason, and then also by the then so-called
protectors of the wilderness!
Baboons will
not approach a human being at all, and will always keep a big distance away
from any human. It is fortunate for us, as the baboons are very big, strong,
and very intelligent. Human beings will not survive an encounter with one of
them. The big males in the troops are a fearsome, though beautiful sight. I
therefore have a healthy respect for them, and I do not approach them at all.
It is also a matter of respect; it is their world in which I am trespassing. If
my route comes close to them, I would change it so that I go around them and
leave them in peace, especially if they have a lot of young with them. The
troop as a whole will protect their babies to the third degree and will not
back off. If you keep your distance, some troops will stay where they are,
keeping a watchful eye on you with constant warning barks emanating from a few
of them.
The baboons
of the Drakensberg area the Chacma baboon, golden beige in color with long
hair. The males are very big and muscular, and the muscularity is also due to
the mountainous terrain they live in and move through every day. Closer to the camps, for reasons I do not
know, the baboons are black in color and sometimes smaller in size. Those deeper into the wilderness are always
golden beige in color.
They can
move at astonishing speed and can scale up and down cliffs and mountain sides
as if that obstacle does not exist. The males have huge canine teeth with which
they can rip flesh into pieces in no time at all. They are normally very docile
animals, and very keenly aware of their environment. There will always be a
guard in attendance and his sole function would be to warn the rest of the
troop of danger.
I
have met up with many old, lone male baboons which are not part of a troop. Due
to their age and losing a leadership fight they get kicked out of their troop
and then have to find their own way. It is quite a sad sight to see as baboons
are very social animals and they look such a lonely sight surviving on their
own.
When the
male teenagers reach a certain age, they also get kicked out of their troop and
this is to prevent inbreeding as well as leadership challenges. They will then
move off and find their own troops to join or fight to become the new leaders
of the troops. At the age they get kicked out, they are in their prime and also
very aggressive.
I
have only once had a bad experience with baboons. On a 7 day hike through the
Kamberg Valleys, as I made my way through a valley next to the river, I heard a
baboon bark on the left hand side of the river. The left bank of the river
consisted of a very high cliff area, with a solid drop off from the top. I
looked up and saw the one baboon on top of the cliff and 20 meters away from
him was a second one. They were in their prime. I looked around to see where
the rest of the troop was, but all I could see was the 2 males. The one who did
the barking was very agitated and started running up and down the top of the
cliff, furiously barking. It was obvious that his anger was directed at me. The
next moment the baboon flew down the cliff face, and he kept on calling to the
second baboon, which eventually followed him. They made their way down to the
river, behind my back and jumped across the river. From there they disappeared
into the grasslands, only to surface on a ridge on my right hand side, barely
30 meters away. There they sat still for a while observing me.
By now
I knew that I had a big problem and it was clear that I was being ambushed. The
one baboon was the leader and the other one did not seem so keen on all the
action, but he was being spurred on by his mate. All of a sudden the first
baboon started screaming again, ran down the back of the ridge, made his way
down the to the river and started running right at me baring his teeth,
followed by the second baboon. At this stage he was barely 20 meters away from
me. I knew I had to do something and do it fast. If not, I will not be alive to
tell the tale.
I
felt this incredible rush of adrenaline streaming through every ounce of my
body, it was a surreal feeling, my hair actually started rising. I stood my
ground, made myself as tall as possible, waved my walking stick in front of me,
and started screaming as loudly and aggressively as I could. I have not ever
screamed as loudly before, but my life depended on it. I was on the menu for
the day and the baboon charge was not an intimidation issue.
Barely 10
meters in front of me, the first baboon all of a sudden came to a halt. I kept
on screaming at him, waving the walking stick at him, and taking a few steps
towards him as I did so. All of a sudden he turned towards the river and with
an almighty jump he cleared the river. The baboon climbed the cliff on the
opposite bank in no time at all and within seconds he was back at where he
started from. The second baboon stopped when I first screamed and was sitting
in the grass. I started approaching him, still screaming. Slowly he turned
around and started walking away. This baboon stayed on my side of the river and
eventually disappeared in the grasslands in front of me.
My body
was now shaking with the adrenalin rush and with what has just happened. I knew
that the danger was not over yet, and I had to get out of this area as quickly
as possible. I moved further down the valley at great speed in order to put as
much distance between myself and the baboons as possible. It was barely five
minutes later that I saw the second baboon in front of me to my right sitting
on a little rise in the grasslands, facing me. I started screaming at him
again, aggressively so, and then all of a sudden I burst out laughing. The
baboon was sitting there, looking at me with the utmost of astonishment on his
face, and the look I got was as if he wanted to say: ‘what was all that for,
what the hell did I do to you?’ It was really funny. He turned around and just
slowly ambled off into the grass. I was still very concerned about the
aggressive leader at my back on the other side of the river.
It was
the quickest 5 kilometer distance I have ever walked. I had to constantly look
around and make sure that I was not going to be ambushed again. The terrain
consisted of large boulder, riverine bush, and tall grass. I would not be able
to notice the baboons again until it was going to be virtually too late. On my
rush down the valley I passed some really pretty waterfall areas, but I could
not linger. Eventually I thought I might be out of danger and I started to
relax, but I was still very weary. What a lucky escape I had!
The
baboons are omnivores, but in the Drakensberg their diet consist mainly of
plants and flowers. They also turn over a large number of rocks looking for
insects. They will hunt and eat meat if the opportunity presents itself.
Life in
the Drakensberg is very harsh for these animals and to fill up their stomachs
every day is hard work. Sometimes some of the forests will be kind to them and
there will be fruit in some of the trees. It is sometimes possible to follow
the baboons for a great distance simply by following the upturned rocks where
they have looked for insects.
As darkness
approaches, the baboons retire to the high cliff areas for the night and it is
also not uncommon for them to sleep in caves high up the cliffs. They will
never sleep in low lying areas.
Troops can
consist of any number of baboons. I have seen troops as small as 2 adults with
three youngsters, and troops as big as thirty. There will always be one alpha
male and in the bigger troops there will be quite a number of grown males, all
lower in status.
There is
a strict rank structure in any troop, and rules to be followed. It is quite
interesting and informative to sit for a while and watch the dynamics at play.
The grown males and teenagers will always present their pink backsides to the
alpha male when he passes through the troop as a sign of their submission to
his status. To not do so would immediately be seen as a challenge and there
will be a vicious fight within seconds. Males, females, and youngsters will
also approach the alpha male and start grooming him. The better they do it, the
more the protection and friendship they will receive. All females belong to the
alpha male, but, just as our teenagers do, and some adults, a quick secret romp
is at the order of the day, far away from the watchful eyes of the leader. I
have watched many a time how 2 baboons will sneak away from the troop for a
quick lovemaking session.
The female
babies of the alpha female are automatically born into royalty and status, and
even being very small, they carry authority. Baboons have many human traits,
and their children behave like ours would. The youngsters are naughty and
absolutely love pranks. It is amazing to see.
I have
witnessed many leadership challenges, and leaders being angry and in a bad mood,
with every baboon around them the target of his frustration. Where the female
baboons will collect their babies and the young ones and put as much distance
between themselves and the males. I have listened to baboon fights in the
middle of the night. Sometimes the leader will just be in a bad mood and he
will vent his anger on everybody within touching distance; that is when the
mothers take their young and discreetly disappear. The leader will chase his
subordinates all over the mountain and cliffs at a furious rate. Screams of
fury will echo down the mountain valleys and cries of despair and pain can be
heard.
The leadership
challenges are vicious battles and can sometimes be a fight to the death. If
the younger challenger wins, he will normally let the old leader live, the
leaders are however not always so kind. The fight can also carry on for quite a
while and over a great distance. Sometimes the loser might also be kicked out
of the troop. Young adult males also sometimes form coalitions in order to get
rid of the leader; obviously the members of the coalition gain status should
they succeed in kicking out the leader and one of the coalition becomes the new
leader.
Some baboon
troops living close to the various reserve camps have become thieves. At places
like Injasuthi they are a particular problem and you have to be quite weary of
them. They have no fear of humans and will enter a chalet and help themselves
to food without second fought. Leaving a window open and leaving is not a good
idea, as on your return your chalet will have been ransacked. Never confront
these baboons as they are much stronger and can become aggressive very quickly.
These troops have become a problem due to the fact that they are being fed by
visitors. It is the worst thing that you can do as they become problem animals
very soon and to such an extent that the only solution is to then shoot them.
The troops
involved in camp raiding are black in color and not the same gold and beige
color as their counterparts deeper in the wilderness. Their hair is also
shorter. These troops are always found closer to the camp reserves and human
settlements. Why this is, I don’t know.
That the
baboons are highly intelligent and share lots of our human traits is an
undeniable fact. There are lots of them in the Drakensberg Wilderness, living a
hard life and minding their own business. They are willing to share their
territory with us hikers. Deal with them with the required respect. After all,
we are the invaders in their world.
The baboons
are indeed the little people of the Drakensberg.
‘Bru
sits in the midday sun on his favorite boulder close to the river, his eyes
heavy with sleep. Around him the youngsters are fooling around, jumping in and
out of trees, and having mock fights. Where do they get their energy from Bru
wonders before nodding off again.
Some of the young adult males are
sitting close to each other, as if in a meeting. They have formed a coalition
and are now grooming each other. There is a tacit understanding between them;
wait till the sun goes down before we make a move. Bru is getting old and tired
now and it is time that one of them should take over. Why must we always listen
to the old man they thought.
Em eyes Bru warily, making sure that
he is sleeping. A big young male flexes his muscles and slowly walks off into
the forest, his golden hair shining in the sun, tail held high, acting as if on
a Sunday stroll. Em gets up slowly, following the young male, creating an
illusion of feeding herself as she walks slowly towards where the young male
disappeared into the forest. Now and then she looks over her shoulder at Bru,
making sure he is still sleeping.’
The End.
Safe Hiking.
References and Acknowledgements
From
the book – Drakensberg Wilderness – A Solo Journey Through Paradise –
W Pelser
Photos – Willem Pelser
Compiled by Willem Pelser
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