Pictures from Predator Biologist
 

Tried to rush these out before Friday Sundowners occur.

I did not get them in perfect order -- all lodging is at the end of the gallery but there should be a little something for everyone. Trip included Madikwe Game Reserve (Madikwe Hills & Buffalo Ridge), Deception Valley Lodge on the edge of the Central Kalahari Game Reserve, Kwando Kwara and Lebala. Report will be along sometime.

http://www.kodakgallery.com/Slidesho...852bo&Ux=1

PredatorBiologist,

Great photos. I definitely, in your photos, see the benefits of shooting from an open vehicle rather than a closed vehicle standing up. It does not help if the side windows are busted as they were in the vehicle that was supplied by MKSC / ATR, as was the case with my vehicle.

I loved your wild dog photos and lion photos the most. I was a bit surprised, however, that Madikwe would import buffalo from Eastern Europe. What are your thoughts on this?

Pred

Loved the photos. Nice to see someone take a picture of a red backed shrike.
How did you enjoy Madikwe?

Predatorbiologist,

Beautiful pictures. I especially liked the following ones: last sundown, spur-winged goose, blue cheeked bee-eaters and some of your lion shots.

It seemed like you had a great trip despite the rains.

By the way, who were your guides at Kwara/Lebala? And how long did you stay there?

Greetings,

Johan

Wow. Wow. Wow. Wonderful shots, looks like you saw some fabulous action and loads of species. The camps look wonderful, too. Thanks for getting these posted!

Sharon

aaaaah

What I wouldn't give to be sitting at a tented lodge right now overlooking the savannah.

I can't believe it has only been 6 months.

Thanks all - glad you are enjoying the pics.

Rocco: buffalo come from Czechoslovakia because it is supposedly the only certified disease free herd in the world and at $2,500 per buffalo they need them healthy. Along with that comes lions from Etosha because they are not a culture of buffalo hunters like most southern africa lions. It is all a very interesting process -- I will write more about my thoughts in my trip report.

Matt: I did enjoy Madikwe quite a bit due to my interest in topics as above and in seeing my only wild dogs and rhinos of the trip. The luxury was wonderful as well. Again I will write much more in the trip report but I think Madikwe is a good complimentary location, I would not want to forego true wilderness for it though.

Johan: you are right I had a tremendous trip despite the rain. It was a little bit feast or famine though. We had a couple of drives at Lebala that were virtually no mammal sightings as we were rained on quite a bit, my birding really improved as a result. We also got drenched on our Kwara boat ride which had to take place in a small boat as a hippo sunk the double decker a few weeks ago (no injuries luckily). As the sun came out for our last 2 drives at Lebala I predicted to my wife and clients/friends that after all that downtime from rain was going to lead to some predator excitement -- luckily I was proven correct as we found the new lion kill that afternoon and my first ever cheetah the next morning (already eaten).

I am sure I will spell these incorrectly but at Kwara we had Mdumo as a guide and Deunda as a tracker and at Lebala we had Thabo (formerly of Kwara)as our guide and Mowetti as our tracker.

While I'm at it our guide at Deception Valley (Adriaan) was exceptional, possibly the best guide I have ever had.

Johan: forgot - 2 nights at Kwara and 3 nights at Lebala. I had tried for Lagoon too but things were filled up there.

Outstanding. Loved the wild dogs and lions and... well, all of them.

Wow! Great shots!
What are the Little 5? Can not say that I recall hearing about the Little 5 during three trips to East Africa. Have seen the dung bettle, safari ant, etc but was wondering. In any case, that for excellent pictures. We quizzed ourselves on birds and mammals and did pretty well for ones we have seen. Nice way to begin the weekend.

Thanks again for the new replies.

The little 5 is actually:
elephant shrew
rhinocerous beetle
buffalo weaver
ant lion
leopard tortoise

Dung beetle isn't actually on the list but it should be! There is also an ugly 5 and gorgeous 5 list that I have seen.

Ugly 5:
Wildebeest
Baboon
Warthog
Vulture
Hyena

Gorgeous 5:
Giraffe (longest eyelashes)
Zebra (trendy strips)
Cheetah (so elegant)
Serval (markings)
Impala (dainty)

PredatorBiologist,

Enjoyed viewing your photo album. You got some great close up shots of the lions feeding and other wildlife. All the camps looked very comfortable. All in all looked like a great trip.

Predator biologist,

Awesome pics!!! First of all, i enjoyed your pics of the savute bros, although they are just two these days, i'm glad they are doing well......

The lions with the wildebeest carcass, did you say was at Lebala? The leopard on the tree? Enjoyed all your pics, lots of memories from your camp shots at Lebala. Thanks. Cant wait to return in August. Were Harry and Monique there? Unfortunately, i havent met any of the guides/trackers you had mentioned.

Hari

great pictures, especially liked the birds (and that Final Sundown is just super!) thanks for sharing. How close were you to the lions on their kill? It didn't look like there was that much zoom to the picture, but I'm no expert on that.

Sharon

Your wonderful photos are amazingly diverse, which tells me you had more feast than famine.

That first lion close up really grabbed my attention and it just went on from there. So many good lions shots. Loved the drinking cheetahs, the elephants, rhino, and the nice impala closeups. Something for everyone indeed!

You caught the spring hare on camera. Though there are millions of them at night, getting their picture is not easy.

Your itinerary looks fabulous.

Hi PB,

Enjoyed browsing through your photos - thanks for posting.

Being a bit of a herp guy, I was keenly interested in your snake images. I'm not 100% sure, but I'm nearly certain that it's actually a Western Stripe-bellied Sand Snake (Psammophis subtaeniatus). It's easily confused with the Olive Grass (P. mossambicus)

This is likely southern Africa's fastest snake (not sure if you saw it moving before it climbed that combretum bush). Anyway, cool to see this guy.

James

Predatorbiologist,

Many thanks for the info and looking forward to your trip report.

Curious what May is gonna bring when I am at Lebala/Kwara Island.

Greetings and have a nice weekend,

Johan

PredatorBiologist
Wonderful photos! I especially like the blurry leopard-that's what I call a real "artsy fartsy" image!
What type of camera and lens did you use for those superb close ups?

Lily

Wow, these are fantastic. I am so envious that you saw a chameleon and a puff adder. I love the shot of the lions roaring. Thank you for putting in a few showing what Kwara and Lebala look like -- we will be there next January and can't wait. Just wondering if you got a look at the new "Little Kwara"/Kwara Island camp at all?

What stunning photos. Your orynx (sp.) were superb as was everything else.

Was Madikwe the only place you saw dogs?

I am keeping my eye out for your very much anticipated report.
Thanks;
Sherry