On one of my South African trips, I was lucky enough to see this white rhino cow and calf having an afternoon rest. Mama was providing a shady spot away from the afternoon heat for her baby, but they were very quickly startled by our presence and moved off just a moment after I pressed the shutter down.
A white rhino cow and calf resting in the afternoon heat, with a trio of oxpeckers accompanying them. 1/800sec, f5.6, ISO800
Heading back to the volunteer house one morning, we came across a pair of giraffes reclining in the grass – within about 100m of the house. Even sitting down, the giraffes tower over the nearby impala.
My first trip to Africa, I was lucky enough to see a pack of wild dogs, and we spent a short amount of time with them while they lazed away a hot afternoon under the trees. This trip, I spent a great deal of time with the pack, as we tried to monitor them twice a day; first thing in the morning as they were settling in for their days rest, and then in the late afternoon as they set out on the move. This much time in close proximity of the dogs gave me ample opportunity to witness a variety of pack dynamics and behaviours. Watching them play was definitely one of my favourite moments with them.
One of the dogs rolled in the dirt for ages, kicking up quite the dust storm. 1/1250 sec, f7.1, ISO 1600Time for a headlock! 1/1250sec, f7.1, ISO 1600A pair of dogs wrestle on the road, while another member tries to catch up on sleep. 1/500sec, f5.6, ISO 1600
While we were out looking for the cheetah on our afternoon drive, Graeme came across a leopard tortoise that was dangerously close to getting stuck in the electric fencing at the property perimeter. Thankfully he managed to free it without giving himself a shock, and I managed to snap a couple photos as the tortoise headed off on its way.
Here is a selection from some of the hundreds of photos I have taken over the past couple days at Zimanga Game Reserve with Wildlife ACT. I’ve seen quite a bit of Kalahari, the beautiful cheetah over the last couple days. He will definitely need a few posts dedicated just to him! But right now, I must dash as time to head out and find the wild dogs!
My first afternoon spent with the cheetah called Kalahari. He’s such a beautiful creature, and so photogenic!A yellow billed hornbill calling.A mountain reedbuck coming in to land just outside the fence at the volunteer house at Zimanga.I took a morning boat trip on the Jozini Dam and was lucky enough to see a breeding herd of elephants 🙂 Happy happy Jen!!!The yard at the volunteer house at Zimanga Game Reserve is filled with birds 🙂 This yellow fronted canary was in the tall grasses outside the kitchen window.
Since Monday I have been at Zimanga Private Game Reserve as a photographic volunteer with Wildlife ACT. The primary focus on this reserve is monitoring and tracking wild dog and cheetah. While the cheetah has remained elusive thus far, I have had the opportunity to spend some time with the pack of six wild dogs. I’m having a brilliant time. As it is very soon time for the afternoon monitoring session, this post will be brief; I wanted the chance though to share a few photos from the past days, as a hint of what is to come.
A bull elephant heading straight towards us on the road, while we drove in reverse! He was completely cool with our presence, but was also on a mission along that road, so we had to get out of his way. 1/320sec, f8.0, ISO 200A juvenile brown snake eagle. 1/1000sec, f6.3, ISO 200A member of the wild dog pack eyes us; we woke them from their afternoon nap. 1/160sec, f9.0, ISO 200A pair of waterbuck, moments before they bolted for safety away from our gaze. 1/500sec, f8.0, ISO 1000A giraffe in front of a jacaranda tree. 1/640sec, f10, ISO 400