KALAHARI CAPTURES - Sept./Oct. 2019

[Flutterby]

Wow, wow, wow!! What an amazing sighting and simply stunning photos!!

[ExFmem]

Thank you RP for the exuberance - my feelings exactly while watching this wonderful sighting.

Sis, yes, it seemed to take awhile to get all the feathers out of the way in order to get a few bites of meat - probably why it needed so many to get full. Agree w/ you about Slender Mongooses - they never sit long enough for a pic, but this one was sunning itself and seemed quite calm. We also saw this one later in the trip at the same spot with another one. Don't know if it was parent/child or mates, but maybe they feel safer and calmer in numbers.

Mel - not sure if is the same Caracal, but I tend to think so. Very relaxed around many, many cars.

Thank you Michele, Pumbaa, Dindingwe (we need to see more of you around here!), PRWIN, and Flutts - your comments are much appreciated.

[ExFmem]

I didn't want to start out my TT on a down note, but will take the time now to give an overview of this year's trip.

This trip was VERY different from our last trip in 2018, (same time of year). Spring was in full force, as there had been adequate rains that summer. There was constant activity, newborns, lots of snakes, and multiple sightings of misc. mammals, etc etc.

This trip we saw
* NO Cape foxes/pups or AWCs
* only one snake
* only one sighting of Bat-eared Foxes
* no Springbok lambs at all
* no cheetah or lion cubs
* the Meerkats didn't have the teeny youngsters seen last year
* very few rodents were seen
* no baby Ostriches, or Plover babies
* Insects were few and far between due to the dryness and lack of flowers
* Bee-eaters bringing insects to their nests were absent, and we only found one pair looking for a suitable site for their offspring

On the upside, as others have said, Eland, Kudu, and Lions seemed more plentiful than usual, and we had more Honey Badger sightings than previously. Of course, the Caracal more than made up for all those "missing in action". We saw the Caracal both at KijKij and Rooiputs (same one?), as well as between the two waterholes on a number of occasions.

Some sightings from our excursions out of KK along the Dune Road:























Next stop was 3 nights at Twee Rivieren

[ExFmem]

House-hunting time

[Alf]

Great variety of animals

[Richprins]

Predators don't have a breeding season in general, Ex? So luck is luck?

And some herbivores delay births in drought, in my opinion.

Classy pics again...didn't know there were bee-eaters there!

[Lisbeth]

A pity that so many of the "usual suspects" were absent and only one couple of swallow-tailed bee-eaters is really strange At least there was one pair

Great pics I especially like the hyena and his Majesty with the black mane and also the bee-eater

Looking at the windy pic, I can almost feel the sand between my teeth

[Klipspringer]

I love the lion on the dune crest and the mousebird

[Pumbaa]

Fantastic shots, ExFmem

love especially the birds and here the bee eaters and caracal again and a cute gemsbok youngster

[Flutterby]

Stunning pics as usual!

Love the dusty pic! And what handsome lions!!