WILDLIFE BLOG

While out in the bush with my parents recently, we came across a situation of 4 leopards in one place. I had only my 500mm lens so didn't manage to get a photo of all 4, but my father did. The strange thing was that the mother with her two cubs was joined by her 3 year old male cub from her last litter. The male is very well grown and a formidable cat, as I [...]

I was at Lion Camp with Kirstie, Sukey and my family after our wedding, and enjoyed some fantastic time with lions on a shelf by the river. There were 4 females, 9 cubs and two large males, so there was wonderful interaction, some play and some dominance. Here's a selection of the behaviour on display... Early morning, the big male was calling to assert his authority. One of the cubs was giving his best 'tough-guy' impression. [...]

It's been a while since I wrote anything on here! Sukey has been keeping us busy but we're enjoying being parents! From our house, we have a stunning view over a drying lagoon. A few days ago, one of the females in a family which regularly pass through came into oestrus. Males from all around showed up and began pursuing her around the place. Boys being boys, there was a fair amount of pushing and shoving [...]

My apologies for my long silence. Any of you who follow my FB page will know that 6 weeks ago, my daughter Sukey was born, so I've been a little busy! Here's a recent photo of Sukey with Kirstie while we were on holiday in Cornwall, and one of me with her on the beach. But onto other things. I have managed to find some time to get out and about with my camera while there's [...]

The Gymnogene (or Harrier Hawk) is odd among the raptors because it doesn't conform to the normal stereotype for a bird of prey. Slightly scrawny, with a small bill, and long gangly legs, it doesn't look much of a threat to anyone. But it's learned to capitalise on a under-used food source - baby birds in inaccessible nests, and insects and other invertebrates hidden in crevices in trees. I watched an adult bird feeding at a [...]

Surely the most elegant of all birds, I spent a long time enjoying watching a pair of Southern Crowned Cranes. After a while, they moved around so that the light was behind them and I was able to take some photos of them foraging in the grass.

It's been cloudy almost every afternoon that I've been in the park this week. It makes me realise that I do miss the guaranteed afternoon golden light of the dry season. But there are some situations which work well in overcast conditions, provided you can get enough light into the camera to ensure a sharp image. This stumpy-tailed Zebra is well-known to us and lives on a grassy corner just inside the gate. And this big [...]

I was going through some folders of old images the other day, and came across this sequence of a lion pride feeding on a hippo carcass! Not sure why I hadn't posted them before, but here they are, in all their gory detail...