Kenya and Tanzania - RATS???
Sep 12th, 2007, 04:59 PM
#21
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Hi sammyl
i've spent on safari several hundred days (well, i started before 1984...)
and my sightings of rats are:
1. In a mountain hut in Malawi, i was offered a share of a stewed Rat by the hut keeper
2. during the nights in cities' streets, i wouldn't recommend you to walk during the day
3. In Lamu island (Kenya north coast) in a non-fodorite standard of accommodation
to sum it up - virtually no chances for rats on your safari
no rats chasing you in picnic sites - Sandi may be right that Hyraxes were mistaken for rats...
in Serena Mt. Lodge, up on the slopes of Mount Kenya, there's a good chance of watching (big) Cane-Rats in the swamp. unfortunately, (my subjective view) they don't get closer for a photograph, so can watch them from the safety of your high window/verandah
about Ngorongoro Kites, i must say i've had some of the greatest loughs in my life: i was following the Kites with my binoculars, and happened to "zoom" on peoples faces right after their chicken was snatched right from their hand... more than amazing to see the kites' tactics & aerobatics !!!
i was told those kites have been shot & on my last visits (2005. 2006) i couldn't watch this behaviour
enjoy your rat-free Safari
aby
i've spent on safari several hundred days (well, i started before 1984...)
and my sightings of rats are:
1. In a mountain hut in Malawi, i was offered a share of a stewed Rat by the hut keeper
2. during the nights in cities' streets, i wouldn't recommend you to walk during the day
3. In Lamu island (Kenya north coast) in a non-fodorite standard of accommodation
to sum it up - virtually no chances for rats on your safari
no rats chasing you in picnic sites - Sandi may be right that Hyraxes were mistaken for rats...
in Serena Mt. Lodge, up on the slopes of Mount Kenya, there's a good chance of watching (big) Cane-Rats in the swamp. unfortunately, (my subjective view) they don't get closer for a photograph, so can watch them from the safety of your high window/verandah
about Ngorongoro Kites, i must say i've had some of the greatest loughs in my life: i was following the Kites with my binoculars, and happened to "zoom" on peoples faces right after their chicken was snatched right from their hand... more than amazing to see the kites' tactics & aerobatics !!!
i was told those kites have been shot & on my last visits (2005. 2006) i couldn't watch this behaviour
enjoy your rat-free Safari
aby
Sep 12th, 2007, 10:18 PM
#23
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I swear I saw rats, or mice, or something like that at the picnic site at the Ndutu gate at the Serengeti. I could be wrong though, I'm not sure!
Wayne, that is hilarious about Jinx and Pixie and Dixie - they were my favorite when I was a kid. One of the few things I saved from my childhood was a plastic bubble bath container of Jinx clutching Pixie & Dixie. It's still up in my bathroom cupboard, perhaps I should dig it out and send it to you!!
Wayne, that is hilarious about Jinx and Pixie and Dixie - they were my favorite when I was a kid. One of the few things I saved from my childhood was a plastic bubble bath container of Jinx clutching Pixie & Dixie. It's still up in my bathroom cupboard, perhaps I should dig it out and send it to you!!
Sep 13th, 2007, 10:15 AM
#24
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Squirrel = rat with a bushy tail.
Truer words were never said! I hate squirrels to pieces!
I have been threatened before for saying this, it is heresy to some, but ...
I hate rabbits too! However, I wouldn't freak out if I saw them. I even housesat for a friend who had a a pet rabit and I fed it regularly and cleaned up the droppings... without taking him out of course
Truer words were never said! I hate squirrels to pieces!
I have been threatened before for saying this, it is heresy to some, but ...
I hate rabbits too! However, I wouldn't freak out if I saw them. I even housesat for a friend who had a a pet rabit and I fed it regularly and cleaned up the droppings... without taking him out of course
Sep 13th, 2007, 11:19 AM
#25
hi sammy,
you probably don't want to know this, but there are generally 5 rats for every 1 person. they live in towns, cities and the countryside. they live eveywhere- you just don't see them, because they have learnt to stay away from US, their greatest enemies.
the rats described may have been emboldened in some way, or very hungry.
we occasionaly see them here on our [very small] farm, attracted by our chicken feed - so as not to alarm our holiday guests, we have taught our kids to call them "cornish gerbils".
so you see they are really nothing to wory about - if you don't see them at home, you won't see them abroad.
regards, ann
you probably don't want to know this, but there are generally 5 rats for every 1 person. they live in towns, cities and the countryside. they live eveywhere- you just don't see them, because they have learnt to stay away from US, their greatest enemies.
the rats described may have been emboldened in some way, or very hungry.
we occasionaly see them here on our [very small] farm, attracted by our chicken feed - so as not to alarm our holiday guests, we have taught our kids to call them "cornish gerbils".
so you see they are really nothing to wory about - if you don't see them at home, you won't see them abroad.
regards, ann
Sep 13th, 2007, 12:48 PM
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annhig - oh my gosh--cornish gerbils, that's brilliant (and hilarious)--maybe that will work at our place, too --we live in rural Virginia, and our dogs simlpy love to sniff out "Cornish gerbils"
Sep 13th, 2007, 12:56 PM
#28
hi, schlegal,
our jack russell loves catching them too and then showing off by running round with the corpse. the ones he's buried then exhumed are the worst.
fortunately he's not presented any of the guests with one yet, though the postman did get a nasty shock from what he'd done to a rabbit.
regards, ann
our jack russell loves catching them too and then showing off by running round with the corpse. the ones he's buried then exhumed are the worst.
fortunately he's not presented any of the guests with one yet, though the postman did get a nasty shock from what he'd done to a rabbit.
regards, ann
Sep 13th, 2007, 01:30 PM
#29
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I had the same experience as sevendown but in my case only suffered a small scratch and tiny puncture. By really squeezing it I was able to generate a small drop of blood allowing me to make my story about the incident to become more dramatic. Glad the kite didn't try to take the food out of my mouth.
Sep 13th, 2007, 03:12 PM
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Wayne,
I'm shocked that you hate bunnies - the things we learn here.
Thought I saw a rat recently and was ready to pack up til someone told me it was a possum - who knew.
It makes me wonder though if they tell us that stuff to avoid hysteria.
I'm shocked that you hate bunnies - the things we learn here.
Thought I saw a rat recently and was ready to pack up til someone told me it was a possum - who knew.
It makes me wonder though if they tell us that stuff to avoid hysteria.
Sep 13th, 2007, 05:55 PM
#32
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I didn't think anyone hated bunnies!
Leely, we are again on the same wave length. I just finished a comment on another thread about children's books.
Here's something yucky, since that is the turn this thread has taken. At one very lovely place I stayed the vervets had learned to climb the trees over the outdoor dining room and then pee on the guests. This would send them running from the table. The vervets would then swoop in and steal the food from the unprotected table and make a quick getaway.
I'd prefer an skittish rat underfoot to that, frankly.
Leely, we are again on the same wave length. I just finished a comment on another thread about children's books.
Here's something yucky, since that is the turn this thread has taken. At one very lovely place I stayed the vervets had learned to climb the trees over the outdoor dining room and then pee on the guests. This would send them running from the table. The vervets would then swoop in and steal the food from the unprotected table and make a quick getaway.
I'd prefer an skittish rat underfoot to that, frankly.
Sep 14th, 2007, 10:48 AM
#35
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Getting peed on hasn't happened to me, but similar to my kite experience I did have a monkey experience that probably many people have had.
At a lodge in Samburu a monkey came down from a tree and stole a finished cocktail off someone's table after they had left, ran up the tree with the glass and dug out the fruit in the glass. When he got what he wanted out of the glass he simply threw it back to the ground, smashing it into a thousand pieces on the stone floor. Very dangerous!
But worse than that was the baboon pillaging I saw in Botswana. Apparently a camping party had gone out for game drives one morning and did not leave anyone behind to guard their tents and camp. When we drove by their camp we saw a troop of baboons had totally and completely destroyed everything in the camp looking for food. It looked like a tornado or hurricane had hit. We walked through the camp and saw clothes, passports, wallets (and credit cards and money), electronics and defintely all the food containers thrown everywhere. Everything was broken or shredded. They had even gotten into many of the canned goods. The baboons were still there and we couldn't scare them off so we left.
But sammyl, we didn't see any rats.
At a lodge in Samburu a monkey came down from a tree and stole a finished cocktail off someone's table after they had left, ran up the tree with the glass and dug out the fruit in the glass. When he got what he wanted out of the glass he simply threw it back to the ground, smashing it into a thousand pieces on the stone floor. Very dangerous!
But worse than that was the baboon pillaging I saw in Botswana. Apparently a camping party had gone out for game drives one morning and did not leave anyone behind to guard their tents and camp. When we drove by their camp we saw a troop of baboons had totally and completely destroyed everything in the camp looking for food. It looked like a tornado or hurricane had hit. We walked through the camp and saw clothes, passports, wallets (and credit cards and money), electronics and defintely all the food containers thrown everywhere. Everything was broken or shredded. They had even gotten into many of the canned goods. The baboons were still there and we couldn't scare them off so we left.
But sammyl, we didn't see any rats.
Sep 14th, 2007, 07:54 PM
#36
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Nobody has mentioned muskrats yet - not that I've seen one in Africa, but we do have one that lives in our ditch out front and he's all furry and kind of cute and lovable looking. Mind you, come to think of it, he wasn't so cute when he bit my cat in the butt and the vet bill came to 500.00 or so .....
Sep 15th, 2007, 05:37 AM
#37
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Oldest dear son and I, years ago, were at a local park, much used, next to a lake, having a picnic lunch. Squirrels came on the table and literally grabbed the french fries out of the little packages. One climbed on DS's back, trying to get his food. We had to fight them off to keep our food. We finally left - DS was a little frightened.
Squirrels don't normally get rabies so I wasn't worried but it was a pain. I don't believe they are technically rodents.
Rock hyraxes are very cute, and are related to elephants, as Lynn said. Geckos are super cute as well, although it can be disconcerting when they lose their tails to shed predators. You then have the tail wriggling around while the gecko escapes.
Squirrels don't normally get rabies so I wasn't worried but it was a pain. I don't believe they are technically rodents.
Rock hyraxes are very cute, and are related to elephants, as Lynn said. Geckos are super cute as well, although it can be disconcerting when they lose their tails to shed predators. You then have the tail wriggling around while the gecko escapes.
Sep 15th, 2007, 11:29 PM
#38
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I suspect the "rats" were actually hyrax. They are much bigger than rats and kind of cute. We saw them all over the picnic areas.
For a real rat you have to come to San Francisco. I took a photo of one on my birdfeeder the other day eating sunflower seeds. I didn't notice it until I was 2 feet away and he was so excited with the food bonanza that he stayed on the feeder for half an hour. Long enough for me to get my camera and take a bunch of photos. It was identified as a roof rat and was actually quite cute. Looked like a squirrel without the bushy tail.
For a real rat you have to come to San Francisco. I took a photo of one on my birdfeeder the other day eating sunflower seeds. I didn't notice it until I was 2 feet away and he was so excited with the food bonanza that he stayed on the feeder for half an hour. Long enough for me to get my camera and take a bunch of photos. It was identified as a roof rat and was actually quite cute. Looked like a squirrel without the bushy tail.
Sep 16th, 2007, 05:01 AM
#39
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dpowlan,
You truly must love all creatures.
Rats with big 'f'in long tails and beady little eyes are not cute, INHO. My life has never been the same since one walked across my foot when I was on the loo in Asia.
Nothing scares them away - they just stare and appraise - eeekkk.
You truly must love all creatures.
Rats with big 'f'in long tails and beady little eyes are not cute, INHO. My life has never been the same since one walked across my foot when I was on the loo in Asia.
Nothing scares them away - they just stare and appraise - eeekkk.
Sep 16th, 2007, 07:34 AM
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I've never seen a rat in Africa but people should realize that not all rats are even close to same any more than a lion is the same as a leopard.
When most people think of rats its the Norway rat which actually started in China and has spread around the world, these are also commonly known as sewer rats. These rats can live in large groups and become aggressive which is probably what has developed the phobias that some have. The Norway rat needs water sources and tends to congregate where there are lots of people providing disposable food and water.
Thus, to Sammyl's original post it is almost certain that you will not encouter the rats of 1984 lore on safari as you will be in remote areas that lack the human densities that support such rats. There will be native rat species that have completely different dispositions and demeanors that you will most likely not see unless it is in the capable jaws of a serval or talons of an owl.
Last week I was doing a live-traping survey of small mammals and I caught a few wood rats and they were gentle, interesting, and cute in a gerbil on steroids kind of manner -- nothing at all like what you see in the movies as the hero is running through the sewer.
When most people think of rats its the Norway rat which actually started in China and has spread around the world, these are also commonly known as sewer rats. These rats can live in large groups and become aggressive which is probably what has developed the phobias that some have. The Norway rat needs water sources and tends to congregate where there are lots of people providing disposable food and water.
Thus, to Sammyl's original post it is almost certain that you will not encouter the rats of 1984 lore on safari as you will be in remote areas that lack the human densities that support such rats. There will be native rat species that have completely different dispositions and demeanors that you will most likely not see unless it is in the capable jaws of a serval or talons of an owl.
Last week I was doing a live-traping survey of small mammals and I caught a few wood rats and they were gentle, interesting, and cute in a gerbil on steroids kind of manner -- nothing at all like what you see in the movies as the hero is running through the sewer.
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