We came across a journey of giraffe during a mid-afternoon photo drive on Zimanga Game Reserve. Several of the males had gathered together away from the rest and were busily beating on each other using head, neck and horns. It only seemed to be play fighting, rather than any real push to establish dominance as they seemed to far too young for that.
From Wikipedia:
“Adult giraffes do not have strong social bonds, though they do gather in loose aggregations if they happen to be moving in the same general direction. Males establish social hierarchies through “necking”, which are combat bouts where the neck is used as a weapon. Dominant males gain mating access to females, which bear the sole responsibility for raising the young.”
While at Zimanga Game Reserve with Wildlife Act, our group was fortunate enough to have two sessions in their fantastic bird hides. The first was an afternoon session in the Bhejane birdbath hide, and the second, where these photos were taken, were from a morning session at the Mkhombe birdbath hide. The morning session provided over 900 photos, and not just of birds; warthogs and the vervet monkeys came from a drink as well.
While the vervet monkeys can be incredibly cheeky around a lodge or camp, snatching food and wrecking havoc should they decide to go inside, I find them fascinating to watch and love seeing their antics. Around the birdbath, they were more concerned with each member getting a drink than getting into any mischief (although there was one snacking on the scattered birdseed). I especially loved to see the moms with the tiny babies clinging to their stomachs, and I believe there were either two or three babies in the troop.
Mom inspects the water while the baby peeks out between her arms. 1/1600sec, f7.1, ISO1600The little one on the right was close to falling into his drink! 1/1600sec, f9.0, ISO1600Careful Mom! The baby’s head is dangerously close to the rocks as she leans in to drink. 1/1600sec, f9.0, ISO1600Everyone likes to make silly faces at babies! 1/1600sec, f9.0, ISO1600A vervet monkey leans in for a drink at the Mkhombe birdbath hide. 1/1600sec, f7.1, ISO1250It’s always nice to have a drink with a friend. 1/1600sec, f7.1, ISO1250
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.
