An oryx seamlessly blending in to the surrounding vegetation. If he hadn’t lifted his head, we would have driven past without ever noticing him (which would be a shame, because they truly are a stunning animal that I love watching and photographing).
A oryx spotted on a game drive along the Boteti River in Botswana, while staying at the wonderful Leroo La Tau Camp. May, 2017.
And another week begins! I don’t know about all of you, but the weekend flew by in a flash for me (which is the exact opposite of how this leopard sighting turned out). We came across this gorgeous male leopard early into our afternoon game drive, and tracked him for a short while along with another vehicle. He went into a thicket and the other vehicle gave up, but our guide Albert predicted where he would come out of the bush, and we reconnected with him and then got to spend time with him when he climbed this tree and the sun set. That other vehicle certainly missed out on a great sighting!
A few old boys at a water hole near Nxai Pan in Botswana. The one spraying mud was the first one there, and when seeing him we thought he was an absolutely enormous bull. But then these other individuals came along and he was forced to make way for them, deferring to their larger size.
Seeing a leopard in a tree was a dream safari experience for me; I hoped that one day it would happen, but knowing the bush, I knew there was never a guarantee. I saw my first leopard in a tree in the Okavango Delta in 2015. And that trip, I actually had 3 different leopard in a tree sightings. This past trip, I had just as many. It doesn’t get old though! Every leopard sighting is special, and seeing them up in a tree, in command of their environment, is always a magical experience.
On watch. A leopard surveys his domain in the Okavango Delta. April 2017.
The photo challenge theme for this week is waiting… showing the moments before the action. Many of the wild animals that I love to watch so much are incredibly masterful at waiting. Lions lounge around most of the day conserving energy, and then only truly pursue a hunt when the prey is in the correct range. Leopards and cheetah are much the same. Spending time on safari, you must learn to be comfortable with waiting as well. More often than not, you’ll be spending time with animals while they are in their waiting periods; it’s certainly not all action with cheetahs taking down gazelle at full speed like you see on the wildlife documentaries. But even so, there’s no other place I’d rather be
I hope you enjoy my take on waiting.
One of the wild dog pack members, watching the road and awaiting further instructions from the pack leader. Botswana, April 2017.A leopard pauses on his afternoon rounds, listening perhaps for the sounds of other leopards nearby, or prey is the distance. He was very deliberate in his patrol, often pausing to listen, then make a slight correction to the direction he was heading. Botswana, April 2017.A lioness looks off into the distance, towards a herd of impala and zebra. She’s wasn’t making a move at this time, as the herd had spotted her, and pursuit would have been futile. Much better to watch, and wait. South Africa, May 2017.