Predatory Creepy Crawly’s
When mentioning predators to people on safari, big cats, hyenas, wild dogs, eagles and crocodiles are usually what pop straight into mind. Yes, it is understandable, as they are spectacular and what everyone wants to see. A cheetah sprinting across the open grassland or male lion roaring next to the vehicle is something everyone hopes […]
Cape Town Family Trip
Anika’s and my wedding anniversary is at the end of February, and for the last few years we have always tried to spend it at a lodge. This year, with our little guy only being nine months old at the time, we knew this would not be possible. We had to come up with another […]
The Final Plant Consumers
Getting rid of dead or decaying things in the bush is very important to keeping an ecosystem clean and healthy. Usually when people think about this, they think about carcasses lying around, being fed on by hyenas and vultures. These two are very important in breaking down the ‘meats’, but there are also two things […]
Springbok – Not just a Rugby Champion
Unless you’re a South African person, when you hear the name ‘Springbok’, people immediately think of the rugby team. Although they are the world champions, they are not the only springbok found in South Africa. The original, is actually an antelope species and is also the national animal of South Africa. This is where the […]
Common Safari Questions – Part 2
In Part 1 of this series, we have mentioned that we will be answering some commonly asked questions that we, as guides, are used to getting on safari. Some of the previous questions answered, were about impala and their young, hippos swimming and white lions. In this Part 2, we will be having a look at some more of these questions and giving you the real facts and stories for these, squashing any myths or legends around them.
Teaching the cubs
When we have a look at mammals across the globe, one of the things that all mothers do is look after their young. In some species, the father is also involved, and in others, it takes a whole group to raise the young. One thing all young animals need, though, is parental guidance for the first few steps of their new lives.
Eastern Cape Escape
As the endless clouds continued to empty their buckets of rain over the lowveld and our English counterparts had to remain in Johannesburg, an intelligent decision was made to contact Ryan (Wandering Thru), and with the help of Ale, we escaped the deluge via Helicopter.
Kingfishers – A deceiving family name
The name kingfisher often throws people off into believing that all members of this bird family feed on fish. This is most certainly not the case, as yes, some of them do, but a lot of them feed on other foods. They all feed on proteins and will hunt animals smaller than themselves. They are […]
Arm, nose or lip?
For decades, an elephants trunk puzzled us and was massively misunderstood. With a lot of time and research we have managed to understand this incredible appendage much better, and what an incredible appendage it is. From drinking, to breathing and feeding themselves, elephants are able to do more with their trunks than we are able […]
Bird Besties
When we talk about relationships between mammals and birds, the first one that pops into mind is the oxpecker. These little birds are found on all of our large mammals and help rid them of external parasites. This relationship is known as mutualism, as both the buffalo and red-billed oxpecker gain something. The buffalo gets […]
