WILDLIFE BLOG

Not often seen in this area, although a fairly common rains migrant from Russia, I found this Steppe Buzzard in the miombo woodland on the hills above the valley floor. Happy New Year.

For a long time, the taxonomic status of hyaenas has been under discussion. Should they be classified with dogs (Family: Canidae) or with the cats (Family: Felidae)? In the end, they are sufficiently different from both to gain their own family, Hyaenidae. Here are two hyaenas making the most of the cooling waters of the Mushilashi, while idly chewing on an old buffalo skin.

I stood in roughly this same spot about two weeks ago and watched 400 hippos jostling for space in the shallow water. In the space of a few days, they've all moved out. Add 20 cms to the river depth, which is what the rain in surrounding areas has done, and it becomes uncomfortably deep for a resting hippos. The small amount of rain locally will also have re-filled some of the nearby lagoons, which the [...]

Early morning and late afternoon are the busiest times for primates. Grooming, feeding, cementing relationships, caring for young and resolving disputes are common activities at this time. This morning, I sat and watched this young female grooming an older female. Possibly a member of her immediate family, but also possibly one of her ''friends'' within the troop, offering to groom a more senior member of the troop is all part of the system of reciprocity that [...]

Of all the Eagles, the Long Crested Eagle must be one of the most unusual. Part Snake Eagle (orange eyes) and part true Eagle (feathered legs). This is the male of a pair which are mating near Mfuwe airport. The male's white legs differentiate him from the female.

I was watching Warthogs on a big, open plain today. This female was foraging with her piglets and last year's offspring. Suddenly, they got spooked (a turn in the wind carried my scent towards them) and they all turned and fled. Only the female turned to check that I wasn't following before dashing for the thickets.

A few months ago, the local pride male was regualarly seen mating with his females. Sure enough, 3.5 months on, there are lion cubs around. But this isn't always the case and we are lucky that so many of the cubs seem to be doing well. Lions certainly sit at the top of the food chain. And apart from hunting accidents (buffalo don't like to go without a fight) adults aren't at risk from predation. However, [...]

Back from their holiday, Grey-headed Kingfishers are making the most of the huge numbers of insects and bugs avaiable.

I was photographing the Carmine Bee-eaters today, and one just kept coming closer and closer!

Yesterday, I decided to explore a little bit of the interior of the park, the 40km wide strip away from the river. As you leave the valley floor, the temperature changes noticeably, and the surrounding vegetation changes even more. At this stage, you are beginning to enter the vast central African plain, which is mostly covered in Miombo woodland. This miombo habitat is made up mostly of Brachystegia, Julbernadia and Isoberlina tree species, and supports a [...]