Shamwari safari (3) Birds and Beasts

Posted on by

1

When: March 2024 Weather 12-30C

Leica Q3, Leica M11 35mm Summilux, NIkon P900, Sony A7II 70-400mmG

The last couple of days of our Shamwari safari had two extra activities different from the usual jeep safaris…one was a bush walk in the wild amongst whatever beasts were roaming and the other a visit to the WIldlife Rehabilitation Centre where injured or sick animals were treated and rehabilitated.

Mr Lion taking a stroll
the mother lioness with her cubs appeared
such a good sighting
cubs frolicking
and then we were led on a bush walk by two guides each toting a rife ….in an area where the male lion had been seen earlier…quite exciting as we were without the protection of the jeep!
our lead guide then asked us to be quiet as he had spotted the male lion in the open about 30m away in a little depression where the bushes were ….try as we might we could barely see the top of its head….
to get a better vantage point I stood on top of a termite mound….just at that moment, the lion raised his head…..as I was about to take a picture, our guide whispered “Get down..Get down!!’ The lion can cover 20m in a second….so I just desperately snapped a shot and came down thinking I hadn’t got the picture…
thankfully my hurried shot did get the lion, blurred though it was….we were then led away quickly and quietly ….so although the sighting was not as clear as the others, this in a way was the most exciting as there was nothing between us and the huge lion!

black cuckoo shrike poor photo in the rain and dull light
the stunningly beautiful southern red bishops were active
fork tailed drongo
then we came across the cheetah brothers again….here both looking in unison
close up
yawn…
then they went for a stroll on our road
karoo prinia
one of the outings was to the Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre where endangered or injured animals are treated and returned to the wild…here are the cape vultures
this little fella was being nursed back to health
star of the show was undoubtedly this very personable meerkat
Denham’s Bustard
kudu
cardinal woodpecker
african finfoot
red necked francolin
the beautiful white fronted bee eaters…totally different from what we see in Asia
the white fronted bee eaters nest in the cliff face in background
so we bade shamwari private game reserve a fond farewell

4 nights and many safaris in an unbelievably luxurious lodge made for a super experience. Highly recommended.

One thought on “Shamwari safari (3) Birds and Beasts”

Leave a comment