Joannel one of our female guides recently returned from a Cape to Vic tour and has the following to share with us. When we go in to the Delta we spend 2 nights and 3 days on walks and Makoro rides, the nature there is beautiful you are in the African bush. On the last morning we were busy packing up all the equipment to leave heading back to Maun and further onto Nata.

Whilst we were busy the head polar came to us and told us that there was a Honey Badger just behind the camp were we stayed, so we all went to watch the honey badger dinging in the soil for bugs and insects, we were about 50 m from the amazing animal.We stood there for about a half an hour watching this amazing creature, he then got a fright and run off a little bit further away from us and carried on with his search for a morning snack.Honey badgers are the largest terrestrial mustelids in Africa. Adult’s Male measure 23 to 28 cm in shoulder height and 55 – 77 cm in body length weight 9 to 16 kg. Females are smaller than males they weight about 5 to 10kg.

Their gestation period is about 6 months where there is 2 cubs born, and when they are born they are blind until about 3 weeks old then their eyes go open. Honey badger live alone in self-dug holes, they really are skilled diggers and are able to dig tunnels into hard ground with there very long hard front claws. The burrows usually have one passage and a vesting chamber where the cubs life.
They are strong, fierce and tough, they have even been known to attack lions when defending their cubs. Their skin is really loose and thick, so when it comes to being stung by bees they do not feel the sting and carry on feeding on the honey and comb.

We also had a surprise in camp where we were staying in the Delta, we had a couple with us on the tour and the gentleman asked his girlfriend to marry him on the last night in the Delta, she never expected the proposal and said "Yes". Now that is how you do it in Africa, under the night skies with moonlight and Hyena calling in the middle of the largest inland delta in the world!