Botswana Pics
 

Hi,

I posted some photos of my trip to Botswana for a friend so I thought I'd post them here for people to view.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/ShareLan...share&Ux=0

Cheers,
Gary.

Gary,

Thanks for sharing your lovely pictures.

Greetings,

Johan

Gary, great photos. Where did you visit in Botswana? Thanks

Gary,

Nice pics. Thank You. May i ask, where did you get to see the cheetahs and wild dogs? Thanks

Hari

Thanks Tanky for some fine images, you had some real close up experiences. Love the cheetahs, elephants and wild dogs - very lucky to be in such close proximity. Can you whip up a quick trip report detailing camps etc?

Thanks, Matt

Looks like you were able to see alot of great stuff and you have wonderful pictures! Where all did you go?

Thnaks for sharing. Really enjoyed the variety of reptiles and related citters you saw and photographed. Dick

Incredible, thanks for sharing.

momofmany

Cool pics! I noticed the dogs have collars. Is that for tracking? If so, can all the guides track them so everyone can see them, or is it for some scientific purpose?
Thanks for sharing your pics.
Dennis

Dennis,

I would assume it's more for the research team to keep track of the pack for their database etc etc.,

Hari

Hi Gary,

Nice pics of the snakes - they aren't easy to get, so good job.

Your cobra is definitely not the King Cobra... they are awesome snakes, but do not occur in Botswana (mostly in India, Vietnam, southern China).

I'm pretty sure it is a Mozambique Spitting Cobra although it's possibly a Mole Snake. If your guide said that it was a cobra, then it's almost certainly a Moz. Spitter (Naja mossambica).

Where did you see this guy?

James

Gary,

For ID purposes:

Your unidentified lizard is Cape Rough-scaled Lizard (Ichnotropis capensis).
The owl is Giant Eagle Owl (or Verreaux's Eagle Owl).

Hi Gary,

Some great photos, especially some of the more unusual photos, loved the snakes, frog, lizards and the smaller things. You mention Nxabega, did you stay there? I am there in July and would appreciate any comments you have regarding gameviewing.

Kind regards
Kaye

Outstanding! Your pairs were wonderful--the two cheetahs and the sparring impala. The lions, the dogs, the mongoose! Is your itinerary on another thread? Where were these taken?

Thanks for the comments. I'll try and drum up a quick trip report tomorrow evening...but it was a few months back. Until then here are some reponses to your questions:

The trip was a CCAfrica mobile trip at the end of last November. I went from Nxabega, Moremi (Khwai), Savute, Chobe and finally back via Victoria Falls.

It was my first visit to Africa so seeing the wild dogs first time was a massive bonus. Especially as we saw them hunting and a kill.

The Wild Dogs were in Moremi and the Cheetahs were at two brothers at Savute Marsh.

The dogs have collars but these aren't used by any guides but as Hari says are used by researchers. Similarly the lions in Chobe also had the collars - usually two lionesses per pride according to the guide.

James - thanks for the info on the snake,lizard and owl. I was wondering what the lizard was...I took the picture of him\her during a rest break on the road from Savute-Chobe (Chobe Forest).

The snake was described as a cobra. We saw it just after we had seen the Mamba and Cheetahs at Savute Marsh.

The people on the opposite side of the vehicle to me had a rather too close encounter with it! It was hidden in the grass on the left hand side of the road so the driver didn't see it...and it didn't see the vehicle.

As the vehicle drove slowly past it rose up - bear in mind it's an open sided vehicle - and inflated it's hood. It was now directly in the sight line of one of the ladies on that side of the vehicle. She screamed and dived across the vehicle!

The driver braked and for a couple of seconds it was standing up in the middle of the road with it's hood inflated. Unfortunately I couldn't get the camera into action fast enough and only caught it as it made it's way into the long grass.

The other picture was taken after the vehicle had backed up and just before it disappeared down a burrow in the ground. I would say it was a good 6 foot long and was surprisingly thick. The guide said it was a particularly large specimen.

Anyway, until tomorrow...

Awesome pictures! Thanks for sharing. I look forward to your report as I'm on the fence about the time of year to take my trip to Botswana. I also want to hear more about your wild dog sightings as they're high up on my very much want to see list.
Sherry

Gary,

So.....i guess i am going to assume that the cheetahs are my favourite Savute brothers......it's great to see as many pics of them......Predator biologist has some pics of them from his recent trip also. If you chk his slide show, you can see them again.

Thanks
Hari

I enjoyed your photos Gary,thank you. I would bet those are the same lions I saw at Chobe in Dec. Gorgeous!