Southafricanspring

Speaking of animals that often wish us ill, this has been the very last thing quite a few people ever saw.

There’s a non-zero chance that this is the same Cape Buffalo that I photographed chasing off that leopard at this same waterhole the other day. Impervious to leopards though they be, the boldest African lions can lay them low. As I understand it, the usually-complacent male lions are the ones that hunt buffalo - since it requires all of their massive strength to kill one of these aggressive bovine behemoths. ...

I don’t think this works great as an Insta pic, but it’s the kind of photo I’ll enjoy having hanging somewhere to remind me of this place when I’m not here. And bushbuck. Because I love bushbuck.

Not every leopard just walks right up to your car.

The delicate little Steenbok that lives a very nervous life all by itself in the Southern African bushveld.

Bird dump: Little Bee-Eater, African Darter, Greenback Heron, White Helmetshrike, Blue Waxbill.

This flock of murder birds approached the car window. Maybe people have been feeding them? Some of them were too close for the lens to focus.

This old guy’s almost ready for Valhalla. Scarred. Wounded. Moving slowly. I reckon his days as a silent bushveld assassin will be over soon.

The Bushbuck is a solid little beast. He won’t mind you but they have a nasty reputation for responding violently to harassment.

@sophdex, you’ll feel for me when I tell you the leopard was far away and got chased off by a buffalo, and the first lot of lions were unconscious and motionless, so you’ll agree we recovered something from the day by running into the second lot who walked all around the car and posed nicely for their closeups.