The Cape Buffalo - or African Buffalo. It has a far more violent reputation than most of its Asian cousins - especially the Water Buffalo which has been widely domesticated and provides mozzarella for your pizza. This buffalo has never been domesticated. It’s simply too strong and fierce. Of course they start off pretty cute.
Looking at some of my ‘B’ selections from our recent Kruger Park trip. This was more experimentation with my ultra cheap ttartisan 50mm f1.2 on my Fujifilm XE1 - shooting wide open to get a mid 20th C bushveld look. You can see the vintage lens design in this brand new lens in the slightly odd character of the out-of-focus parts of the image.
I found a few pics on cards from our 2019/2020 trip to Kruger. That was summer and the impalas were giving birth to huge numbers of lambs - most of which are destined to be dinner rather than grown up impalas. But they are delightful little creatures.
A first for me: the eerie Bathawk (if I’m not mistaken). I WAS MISTAKEN. It’s apparently a brown morph Honey Buzzard. Well there you go… Who knows what circumstances in its youth led to an ordinary hawk leading a double life fighting crime in this frightening guise? We’re home after the usual exhausting trip across the country - notwithstanding a wonderful time in Jozi with @sophdex, @ezlemoen, some lovely parents, and many cats and dogs. It took all of one minute in Observatory during which we were both inside for some rando to try steal the lens which this picture was taken with out of the car. He was most offended that I was suggesting that his reaching into the car, opening a bag, and trying to secret the lens under his arm implied that he might have been attempting to steal it. The nerve of me to suggest such a thing! I think he actually believed himself too. ...
Impala Lilies are blooming in The Kruger National Park in spring.
I decided I preferred this Blue Eared Starling pic.
Another very common bird in The Kruger National Park: The Yellow-Billed Hornbill. And again, although they’re everywhere, they’re always fun. So full of arch, suspicious character and long glides just at windscreen level.
Would you believe that this creature is one of the most common birds in the Kruger National Park? They’re even common in Johannesburg gardens. They’re still stunning birds, no matter how ubiquitous - and cheeky - they are.
We primates distrust each other for very good reason.
Speaking of animals that often wish us ill, this has been the very last thing quite a few people ever saw.