And a Hi right back everybody!
Richprins wrote:
Are you sure it's a tawny eagle being harassed? Maybe?
We just assumed it was a Tawny. Didn't look like any other? What do you have in mind?
But some more photos.
Safari in the Park with Cees Bakker, first time in many years that I didn't have to drive or worry about times and distances myself.
The day would take us up the H14 to Mopani, Tropic of Capricorn, down the H1-6 and Letaba back to Phalaborwa.
First up Mr Elephant:
A clan of hyenas:
With this cutie pie:
I have extraordinary luck with Wild Dogs. Seen them 4 times, 3 times on 3 consecutive trips. I am far more likely to see them than leopard.
We were stopped by some very excited people standing next to the road. Two Wild Dogs, one a lactating female according to them, had just gone off the road under some bushes. We found them but what a mission to get some kind of photograph.
These ladies were NOT co-operating. Cees made some enquiries: "One of them is the pregnant Alpha female of a new pack what separated from the Phalaborwa pack not so long ago. According to Grant (of EWT) She is a bit early with her pregnancy. "Normally" (but what is normal after a separation ) this will happen during Winter or early Winter."
Luckily we were in a high vehicle or we wouldn't have seen them at all.
Some feathered friends:
Double-banded Sandgrouse
European Roller
This one was quite extraordinary.
I've never seen so many Golden Orb spiders in the Park, some of them very large. The same guest that was terrified of elephants is probably even a little more terrified of spiders. She spotted this and first thought it was a butterfly or moth...not quite. She was terribly upset, mostly because we were all laughing with tears rolling down our cheeks at her reaction. Luckily the bird managed to free itself before she got out of the vehicle to free it!
She couldn't stop talking about it and got rather grumpy at us because we told her "Be happy it didn't decide to have a nibble at the bird...!"
Wire-tailed Swallow
Not sure what this is but another birdie...
Southern Carmine Bee-eater
One of a few Kori Bustards we were lucky to find: