EmotionsofAfrica

The video shows the rarely seen and heartwarming moments between an adult female leopard and her daughter filmed in the African wild. Seeing a leopard in the African wild is always a great privilege. To see two leopards together is rare and priceless. It was during a safari in the Kruger National Park in South Africa that we were lucky to learn about a sighting of a mother leopard and her younger daughter. We decided to make our way to the sighting immediately as something like that is rarely seen. On our arrival, we could not see the leopards. The amazing camouflage created by the beautiful patterns on their skins made it hard for us to find and spot them initially. Eventually, we managed to spot the two leopards where they were lying upright together in the long grass. What followed was heartwarming to see. The two leopards had so much affection for one another. The mother and daughter were licking, grooming, and rubbing against each other. It was incredible to see how much tender, love, and care there was between the leopard mother and her daughter. The young leopard was estimated at about eighteen months and was almost the same size as the mother. Leopard cubs leave their mothers between the ages of eighteen and twenty months. Leopards live solitary as adults and are mostly seen alone. Seeing these two leopards together, interacting in such a manner, is not something you see often, making this a rare and remarkable sight in the African wild.

The video shows an intense and rarely seen altercation between a very angry elephant and a mother rhino with her baby. When going on safari in Africa, the big five animals are always the most wanted to see animals on the list. The big five includes lion, leopard, buffalo, elephant, and rhino. Majority of the time these animals do not interact with each other unless it is predator versus prey. Due to their size, elephants tend to be aggressive and dominant towards most animals coming in their way, whether it is predators or other herbivores, it doesn’t matter. There are times on safari that you will come across something that is hardly ever seen. Like an altercation between an angry elephant and a mother rhino with her calf. The mother rhino and her baby were near a watering hole when the elephant approached for a drink. Elephants do not like sharing a water source with any other animals. When the elephant discovered the mother rhino with her calf near the water, it became very angry and started becoming very intimidating. The rhino didn’t hold back and went for the elephant with her horn, connecting with the elephant’s tusk. The rhino’s retaliation infuriated the attacking elephant, making it more aggressive and angrier. That’s when the interaction exploded into a cloud of dust, accompanied by scary and intimidating noises. For some reason the people on the vehicle witnessing the spectacle decided it was a good idea to bang on the side of the vehicle to chase off the attacking elephant. Emotions most likely got hold of everyone as rhino’s are extremely endangered and an elephant can easily kill a rhino. All the loud noises and banging eventually got the elephant to run away, leaving the mother rhino and her calf in peace.

The video shows the hilarious moments of a playful baby rhino, having the time of its life, trying to intimidate a tourist vehicle with its cute little charges up and down. The rhinoceros is one of Arica’s most endangered animal species. Rhinos are also part of the well known big five animal group in Africa. To see such a special creature out in its natural environment is always a great and wonderful experience. Finding a mother rhino with her most adorable looking baby is just incredible and rarely seen. Like with elephants, baby rhinos are very playful and always full of energy. While learning new skills in life, these baby animals love exploring and experiencing new things, like this little rhino in the video. The baby rhino wandered away from its mother to have a closer look at the vehicle. Suddenly it turned around, ran away down the road, turned around again, and came charging straight towards the vehicle. The baby rhino would stop right in front of the vehicle in a puff of dust, only to turn around again and come charging back again. This adorable baby rhino was having the time of its life and couldn’t get enough of it while everyone inside the vehicle found this whole experience hilarious.

The video shows a big rhino bull, suddenly charging towards a safari vehicle, forcing the vehicle to move off with great haste and narrowly escaping a potentially dangerous situation. Going on safari in any National Park in Africa will ask you to take great care when coming near large and dangerous animals. Usually, elephants are the most intimidating and dangerous animals to meet right in the road while travelling along through the bush. This video shows that not only elephants have the tendency to charge towards vehicles. Rhinos clearly have the same tendency, even though it is way less common. White rhinos specifically are normally very chilled animals and seeing them becoming angry and agitated with vehicles is not the norm. But like with anything in the African bush, expect the unexpected and be prepared. The rhinos in the video initially seemed calm with all the vehicles in its surroundings. The behaviour of the large male rhino suddenly changed when one safari vehicle transporting tourists through the park decided to move on slowly past the rhinos. Bad idea. The rhino bull suddenly stormed towards the safari vehicle in a puff of dust. The vehicle immediately sped off in another puff of dust. The rhinos all became bewildered but quickly clamed down when the dust settled. Luckily the driver of the safari vehicle reacted in good time to avoid a nasty incident.

This video shows the bizarre looking sight of a hyena walking on two legs. We spotted this hyena for the first time nearly a year ago, as seen in this previous video https://rumble.com/v1h0owx-safari-tourist-films-bizarre-looking-sight-of-a-hyena-walking-on-two-legs.html While hyenas have a reputation of being scary looking and dangerous animals, they are for sure some of the toughest animals out in the African bush. Hyenas are the main scavengers of the African bush and the number one enemy of lions. It was during a recent safari that we came across this bizarre looking hyena, walking around on two legs. What made this sighting even more special was that we spotted the same hyena almost a year ago. I was really amazed and happy to know that the hyena was still alive, still surviving on its own and doing fine, despite of its disability. Surviving in a hostile environment such as the African bush is remarkable for an animal that can’t even use all four its legs to hunt or run away from danger. This hyena very well knows what danger is. The hyena lost the function of its two back legs after it got attacked by a lion, leaving its hips and two back legs in a paralyzed state. The hyena had no other choice but to adapt and so it learned how to walk in such a strange looking manner. This is not something you see often out in the African wild. We can only hope that this hyena will keep going and survive out in the wild on its own.

The video shows a beautiful silhouette moment with giraffes, just after sunset, in the African bush. Together with zebras, giraffes are the most photographed animals in Africa. Every safari tourist rates these animals incredibly high, and they are a must-see on every safari. The giraffe is unique, like no other animal on this planet. They are fascinating and graceful creatures, making them one of Africa’s most iconic animals. With their tall necks and legs, giraffes elegantly roam the African savanna, and during sunset, these animals can make for some of the most beautiful scenes in nature. I recently had the opportunity to find a small number of giraffes right at sunset. With their tall figures against the beautiful colors of the sky at dusk, giraffes make for some of the most beautiful silhouette moments. Not every day do you find giraffes at the right time and place to get such footage. I didn’t hesitate and grabbed my camera to capture the moment. It was a peaceful early evening, with the sounds of the bushveld adding to a stunning moment in nature.

The video shows a leopardess, very keen to get the attention of her lazy and grumpy male, who does not seem to be interested at all. The leopard is most likely the hardest animal to find when going on a safari. The leopard is part of Africa’s big five animals and very much one animal everybody would love to see when out on safari. These elusive big hunting cats do manage to evade many safari goers and seeing a leopard in the wild is an incredible experience. All you need is time in the bush spent and a bit of luck on your side. Leopards are solitary big cats and deadly hunters, using their beautifully camouflaged coat to disappear in the blink of an eye. Seeing two leopards together, like in this video, is a very rare and special occasion. Not many people get to see more than one leopard in a sighting, if they do see a leopard at all. On this day we had incredible luck on our side. We managed to find a pair of mating leopards. The female leopard, who is a lot smaller, started with her attempts to get the attention of her lazy male. This was hilarious to watch and see how this leopardess went about getting her male’s attention. The female leopard decided that repeatedly jumping on top of her male was going to do the trick. The female had to jump on the male numerous times, and we could see the lazy male was just getting more and more grumpy, with no interest shown at all. The female leopard stuck to her guns and finally got the attention she wanted, accompanied with loud snarling and growling noises coming from the male’s side. The female looked satisfied, and she was even looking for a quick cuddly afterwards. The male was having none of that and slowly moved away from the female. The grumpy male leopard went to lay down a good distance away, enjoying his peace and quiet. The female still looked like she remained in a trance, chilling on her back with her feet up in the air. A rare leopard interaction moment I will never forget in my life. We left the two leopards and moved on with our safari, feeling totally overwhelmed with satisfaction.

The video shows the incredible close moments I was able to capture of a male leopard that decided that the deck of our room in a safari camp was the best place to get comfortable during the day. During a recent long weekend, I decided to treat myself and my wife to some time away in a luxury safari camp in the Great Kruger National Park. We got a whole lot more than just treating ourselves to a relaxing weekend. It was mid-morning when we arrived back at the safari camp from our three-hour safari out in the bush. We decided to grab a late breakfast before heading back to our room for a midday rest during the heat of the day. We were about to finish our breakfast when an employee of the safari camp notified us that a male leopard was just spotted moving around close by our room. We have been searching for big cats the whole morning. We couldn’t find any. The news brought excitement but confusion and a little worry all at the same time. It’s great that there is a chance that we can see a leopard but not so great that it is roaming around the camp and near our room. After breakfast we were escorted slowly and carefully back to our room, everybody scanning their surroundings. I was filming the whole way to the room, just in case we catch a glimpse of the big cat. I was behind the camp employee when we entered our room and within a few meters of entering he suddenly stopped and said, “there he is”. And there he was indeed. A big male leopard casually lying on the deck of our room. Outside the closed glass door luckily. I decided to keep filming and realised that the leopard didn’t see us yet. The reflection in the window from outside most likely stopped the male leopard from seeing into the room. My heart was beating fast with such an incredible beast a mere few meters away from me with just a glass plate separating us. I started feeling like the caged-in animal on the inside when the leopard did suddenly notice some movement through the window. The leopard’s whole behaviour changed from totally chilled to alert and focussed. That made my heart race even faster as I could see this big cat knows we are in there and he looked curious. After sitting still for a short while longer the leopard decided it was better to move on. I followed and opened the door to see where he went. The leopard stopped at the plunge pool, turned around, gave me one last stare, and disappeared over the rocks onto the next room which was luckily empty. Never in my life could I imagine getting so close to a wild leopard in Africa, and that right at my room in a safari camp.

The video shows a bird picking at the ear of a rhinoceros before disappearing with its whole body inside the rhino’s ear. The African wild hosts an incredible variety of wild animals. While each animal in the wild is unique on its own, it is incredible to see how different types of animals interact and associate with each other. One example of such an interesting relationship is that of the oxpecker bird who lives in association with medium to large mammalian herbivores in the African wild. The hosts that oxpecker birds use range from impala, warthog, zebra, giraffe, buffalo, rhino, and hippo. These birds spend their daylight hours picking and consuming ticks and parasites out of the pelage of their hosts in a win-win relationship known as mutualistic symbiosis. Both species involved benefit from the relationship. The birds get a daily guaranteed meal, while their hosts receive a grooming, keeping their skin and hair free from itchy ticks and parasites that can cause disease. Watching these birds in action is always a fascinating experience while on safari. During a safari in the Kruger National Park, we came across a herd of rhino. Almost every rhino had a bird or two on it. I started filming one oxpecker bird on a rhino’s head. It was bouncing around on the rhino’s forehead before targeting one of the rhino’s ears. The bird was hanging onto the rhino’s ear like it would onto a branch in a tree. The bird started picking at the ticks and parasites that end up in the rhino’s ear while it is grazing head-down through the long grass. The bird had its head inside the ear of the rhino, looking for some juicy pickings. The next moment the bird decided it was going to have a look a little deeper down the rhino’s ear. To our amazement, the bird went into the rhino’s ear with its whole body and disappeared. It looked so bizarre to see this bird just disappearing into the rhino’s ear. The best of it all was that the rhino tolerated the bird inside its ear and never got agitated. Even more incredible was that the bird remained in there for almost a minute in which time my camera battery ran out, just missing the bird exiting the rhino’s ear again. Staying inside the rhino’s ear for that long must have been worth the while. The rhino looked happy with its clean ears and the bird surely got a fat meal out of the deal. Incredible Mother Nature at her best.

The video shows a roaring male lion that was so full bellied and lazy, that he eventually rolled over onto his side to complete his roaring performance, lying down flat on the ground. The roar of a lion is one of Africa’s most iconic sounds. Few sounds in the animal kingdom are as powerful and awe inspiring as the sound of a roaring lion. The roar of a lion can be heard from as far as seven kilometres away through the African bush at night. Lions roar to signal territoriality and to locate distant members of the pride. Both male and female lions demonstrate ownership of territories via roaring. Hearing the roar of a lion at night is one of the great highlights while on an African safari trip. Getting to see these beasts perform their powerful roar is priceless and not something you get to see a lot. We were lucky enough to have found a big lone male lion while out on a night safari. It was late at night and this lion was still very lazy and sleepy and didn’t look like he was going anywhere anytime soon. I could see his belly was full and he has eaten well. After gorging themselves, lions literally become very lazy and pretty useless. All they want to do is sleep, whether it’s night or day. While sitting quietly watching this male lion lazing away, we could hear lions roaring in the far distance. The distant roars also got this male’s attention. The male lion went from lying down flat on his side, to crouching down on all fours, attentively listening in the direction of the other roars. The next moment the male lion in front of us let loose his almighty deep roar. The deep sound was trembling through my body, causing an adrenaline rush. Then something happened I have never seen before. Normally lions remain in a fierce and focused position while performing their powerful roar. This lion on the other hand had such a full belly, was so lazy and tired, that he couldn’t even remain sitting up properly anymore to complete his roaring. The male lion’s stomach was clearly in the way and uncomfortable, so he decided to casually roll over onto his side and finished the last verses of his roaring compilation while lying down, looking way more comfortable. It was so funny but understandable to see the lion behaving like this. The usual image of a lion standing fiercely, performing his powerful roar over the African plains was replaced by this old boy just lying down, chilling, while completing his roaring performance.

Many people might wonder how a five-ton elephant sleeps. While lying down is not an option, this video shows the awkward way in which a bull elephant actually managed to fall asleep while standing upright and resting his head against a tree trunk. The African elephant is the largest land mammal roaming this planet, with mature bull elephants reaching weights of over five tons. Being such a big animal, the elephant needs to feed on a constant basis, right through the day and night. It is estimated that elephants feed for about twenty hours per day and if elephants are not feeding, they are near and around water drinking and cooling down during warm days. This begs the question of when do these massive animals actually rest or sleep? Incredibly enough, elephants do not enjoy a six to eight hour sleep every night like most humans do. Due to their constant need to feed, elephants take short rest pauses as they need it. Baby elephants and sub adults do lie down for a short while to sleep while the adults stand around on guard. Lying down and going into a long deep sleep is not an option and also too dangerous for most animals, unless you are a lion or a leopard. Larger elephants sometimes lean against a tree or embankment and take their short naps in an upright position. When you a lone bull elephant weighing over five tons, like the big boy in this video, your options for getting comfortable for a quick power nap are limited. I found this lone bull while out on a safari in the Kruger National Park and his behaviour fascinated me, so I decided to film an occasion that people normally don’t get to see. The large bull elephant just finished drinking water when he slowly approached a nearby tree. The bull elephant looked very tired and everything he did was in slow motion. The elephant bull then slowly went to rest his head against the tree trunk and amazingly he started to fall asleep while standing upright. A complete head of an elephant, including tusks, trunk, and ears, can weigh over four hundred kilograms. With that in mind, it made sense for the old boy to rest that weight on a tree trunk while taking his nap. I was in awe watching the elephant bull standing in such an awkward position while being so comfortable at the same time standing sleeping. I actually felt happy for the big old elephant getting a well-deserved short nap as I can only imagine how much he has to go through on a daily basis to survive in the African wild.

The video shows how I helplessly had to sit tight on my safari vehicle while filming and begging a bull elephant not to destroy my filming equipment. Living and working in the African wilderness is a great privilege. With filming and photography as my main hobbies, I get the opportunity to go and see remote wilderness areas that most humans have never been to. This gives me the opportunity in my off time to explore, film and photograph the beautiful nature that surrounds us. While one is out there, free and alone, you still have to be aware and hundred percent tuned into your surroundings as every kind of dangerous animal, reptile or insect in the African wild is to be found around you. Doing these trips alone is also not advisable. My wife and I was out exploring a wilderness area one late afternoon. It was just before sunset, and I found a beautiful, elevated spot from where to film a great sunset. I set up my tripod with my camera and had a little chair to sit on while filming. When you are filming and concentrating on what you are busy with, you do lose focus on what is going on around you. That’s why you never do this alone. My wife remained on the vehicle, watching the surroundings while I got going filming the sunset. I was just getting into my filming when my wife suddenly and very calmly told me that an elephant bull appeared and is standing behind the vehicle and is just staring at us. It was unbelievable how quiet a five-ton animal can just suddenly appear and us not hear him approaching. Elephants in general has an incredible ability to walk very soft, contrary to the believe that a big animal will make a big noise when walking. I looked back and there this bull elephant was staring at me rather curiously. My heart almost stopped and realised I was just as far from the vehicle on the one side as the elephant was from the other side. I knew I could not remain where I was. Instinctively I left all my stuff right there and dashed to the vehicle and jumped onto it. The elephant bull got a little agitated with my sudden movements and then calmed down again. I was relieved to have made the vehicle, but a new level of concern and worry came over me. I knew this elephant was going to be curious to see what my camera, tripod and chair set up was all about. After just standing there and staring at us for another minute, the elephant turned his focus onto my equipment. I just knew this was going to happen. I had an old second hand camera on the vehicle and started filming. Why I wanted to film an elephant potentially smashing my gear I do not know myself. The elephant bull slowly made his way towards my setup. My heart was racing and me and my wife even begged the elephant not to damage or trample my equipment, as if that was going to help anything. The elephant bull walked up to my camera on the tripod, gave the tripod a few sniffs and then decided this funny looking black thing needs to go down. The elephant walked closer and knocked over my tripod and camera with his one tusk. I thought that was only the beginning and next he was going to trample it as the elephant remained there smelling the area where I was filming from. I really thought that was it for my camera but to my great relief and surprise, the elephant bull suddenly lost interest, turned around, and slowly walked off into the sunset. Luckily my camera still works and only had a few scratches on it and some dirt went into a few places on the camera. When an elephant bull suddenly interrupts your filming session, it is something to remember for life while I’m thankful to have had my wife with me on that day, awake and alert, saving me from a potential worse situation.

The video shows a couple on safari going through some panicky and hilarious moments when a cheetah decides to jump on top of their safari vehicle. A cousin of mine and her boyfriend recently travelled to visit several National Parks in Tanzania. They came home with one of the most memorable safari holidays they could have dreamed of, with experiences that they will remember for a lifetime. One such experience was during a full day safari in the Serengeti National Park. While travelling long distances over the open plains in search of animals, they came across three cheetah brothers sitting in the open in the distance. Cheetah are one of the most common predators in the park, finding its open plains ideal for its high-speed hunting abilities and skills. Marian and her boyfriend were the only two safari guests in the vehicle which was closed and had an open roof for viewing purposes. Both were sitting in the back with the safari guide in the front. The next moment no one could believe what they saw. The one male cheetah got up and slowly started approaching the vehicle. Safari goers at this stage thought the cheetah is so kind to come a little closer to give them better photo opportunities. Little did they know this cheetah had different ideas. Next thing, the cheetah jumps onto the bonnet of the vehicle and their it stood, staring around and at those inside the vehicle. Marian immediately found the cheetah too close for comfort. She became panicky and somehow believed that climbing over to the front, she might somehow be closer to the safari guide and be more protected than her boyfriend. The safari guide in the video is still trying to explain to them that there is nothing to worry about when the cheetah jumped onto the roof and came right to the sunroof opening which had a small canopy for shade. With the cheetah peeping through the sunroof, Marian’s boyfriend clearly also went into panic mode. The noise and commotion inside caused by panicky safari tourists looked to be just too much for the cheetah and the big cat decided it was time to move off again after his brief visit. Marian and her boyfriend were in pieces laughing about the tense but hilarious moment they just experienced with this cheetah. There was a huge sigh of relief that came over them and the laughter continued. Looking at the video closer, one can also see that the other cheetahs attempted to get onto the vehicle in front of them as well. Were the cheetahs keen to get into the vehicles and eat all the tourists? Most likely not. On the open plains of Tanzania’s National Parks, there are not many large trees that provide shade for animals such as the cheetah during the heat of a scorching summer day. Over time, these cheetahs have come to learn that the vehicles and people in them will do nothing to them and started jumping onto the vehicles to get into the shade of the little canopies on top of the safari vehicle’s sunroof. A safari experience no one will really forget.

The Blue Wildebeest bull in this video shows how much fun and joy there can be in a good face-rubbing session in the mud. Blue Wildebeest are one of the most common plains game species found in Southern Africa. They are well known for their migratory habits in massive herds and are a significant food source for the large carnivores in Africa such as lion, hyena, and crocodile. The Wildebeest has also been voted over the years into the rankings of the top five ‘ugliest animals in Africa’ , right through to a place in the top five ‘least intelligent animals in Africa’ category. Majority of the time when you see these animals, they are either feeding, walking, or drinking water. With this general perception, it does not put the Wildebeest at the top of the list as the most wanted or excited animals to see in the African wild while on safari. But you can imagine the total excitement when you do find a wildebeest doing something totally different and unexpected. During a safari in the Kruger National Park, we came across a small group of male wildebeest stand around a nearly dried up pan. We thought the wildebeest were there for their daily drink but we were totally surprised by their fascinating behaviour that most people never get to see. These wildebeest males were not around this muddy wallow for a drink, but instead were there to enjoy a good old face rubbing in the mud. It was really entertaining to watch how the leader of the herd was having the time of his life while shoving his face in the mud. The wildebeest looked he was going crazy, first digging up the mud before repeatedly shoving and rubbing his face in the mud. This was fascinating to watch and probably the longest time I have ever spend watching these animals. While this behaviour seems very amusing, there is also a great explanation for why this bull was so adamantly rubbing his face in the mud. Wildebeest are territorial and a typical territory is usually positioned in an open area and nearby water. Wildebeest have pedal glands, glands between their hooves, and they rake the soil with their feet to release the scent into the soil or mud. They also release this smell when they walk. Dominant bulls such as the one seen in this video, will engage in this type of face rubbing to transmit glandular secretions from below their eyes. It was incredible to realize that all this amusing face rubbing in the mud was part of marking his territory. What a fascinating manner to mark your territory indeed coming from an animal many do not find so fascinating on an ordinary day in the African wild.

The close-up video shows two male lions, delivering a loud and powerful roaring performance close to a group of safari tourists. A safari experience that left everyone in awe and stunned. The African lion, also known as the king of the beasts, is the continents biggest cat and rules the African landscape as the top predator. The lion is on top of the Big five animal list and by far one of the most popular animals to try and find during a safari in the African wild. Should you be lucky enough to find a lion in the wild, it will always be an experience to remember. Occasionally, a lucky few safari goers might get the rare opportunity to witness lions performing their loud and powerful roar, mostly at night. The roar of a lion is one of the most iconic sounds in Africa. This video shows the incredible occasion of two beautiful male lions roaring like there was no tomorrow, in broad daylight, which is very uncommon. After finding these two male lions just relaxing not too far from the road, they suddenly started their roaring. Lions roar to signal territoriality and to locate distant pride members. The roar of a lion can be heard as far as eight kilometres away at night. With a vehicle full of safari guests, we were parked away a mere twenty meters from the two roaring lions. We could literally feel the powerful vibrations going through our bodies as these two male lions roared. With the deep base rumbling right through your stomach, the powerful roaring sounds leave you with fear, fascination, and absolute total respect. When the king speaks, everybody listens. I had to take my camera and film the expressions of those safari guests on my vehicle. For some it was their very first safari. It was priceless to see how much in awe everyone was, fortunate enough to have experienced such a rare and incredible occasion in the African wild. To see the king of the African bush, performing one of the continent’s most iconic wildlife sounds is a safari experience that will be very hard to beat.

This video shows a frog’s smart tactic of grabbing onto the face of a predatory bird, determined not be swallowed. The video also resembles two life situations many of us can relate to. Sometimes our eyes can be too big for our stomachs and secondly, never give up when you are fighting for something, especially your own life. When going on safari, the focus is mostly on finding the big mammals roaming the African bush. While the larger and more popular animal species attract more attention, the African wild of course is filled with so many other smaller animals such as birds, reptiles, and insects. When you spend a little more time looking closer, you will discover a whole new world. While leading a safari I could never have imagined that we will be so fascinated by a frog and a bird. We arrived at a small watering hole during our early morning safari. There were no animals around to be seen. After scanning the area thoroughly, I suddenly noticed some erratic movement at the edge of the water. It was a predatory bird called a hammerhead stork. Their diet consists primarily of frogs, tadpoles, small fish, crustaceans, worms, and insects and are almost always found near water. This particular bird had a huge frog in its mouth. After slapping the frog around a few times, the bird decided it was time to swallow. I thought to myself, ‘gosh that is one big meal to swallow for breakfast’. A whole frog like that would last the bird for more than a day. But to everybody’s total surprise, the frog had different plans with a true ‘never say die’ attitude. As the bird attempted to swallow the frog, the frog would react by grabbing and then holding onto the beak and face of the bird. This tactic made it impossible for the bird to swallow the frog. This was fascinating and hilarious at the same time to watch. These hammerhead storks normally make a quick deal out of their meal but not this time round. For a second time the bird attempted to swallow the frog. Once again, the frog refused to be swallowed, grabbing the bird’s face, holding on for dear life. That frog decided that it was not going down on that day and amazingly the bird eventually dropped the frog and moved on, realising its eyes on this occasion was way bigger than its stomach.

The video shows the hilarious sighting of a grumpy elephant bull chasing away a lone wildebeest from a watering hole with its trumpeting noises and water throwing skills, using his trunk like a hosepipe. The African elephant is the largest land mammal on this planet and they rule the African landscape with their sheer size. Elephants also consume the most food and drink the most water on a daily basis of all animals in the African wild. During the dry season, water resources become very limited, and this seems to get elephants on edge when it comes to sharing any water resource with other animals. While on safari in the Kruger National Park, we came across a classic example where an elephant bull behaved in a manner that showed he was clearly not prepared to share a small watering hole with a lone and very thirsty wildebeest. It was a scorcher of a day at thirty-eight degrees Celsius and the animals were thirsty. While this lone elephant bull was drinking water, the lone wildebeest appeared and casually went to the opposite side of the water to have his drink, not even looking or acknowledging the elephant bull. The elephant bull stopped drinking and stared at the wildebeest that just pulled in for a drink. This was where the real funny bit started. The elephant bull gave the wildebeest bull one more look and to our surprise, the elephant bull sucked up some water in his trunk and sprayed it in the direction of the wildebeest while uttering a loud trumpeting noise. The wildebeest got a fright and moved off a little. The elephant bull clearly wanted the wildebeest further away from the water and repeatedly used his trunk like a hosepipe to throw water at the poor wildebeest, while making his intimidating trumpeting noises. The wildebeest decided it was better to get away from this old grumpy bull elephant. While this was so unexpected and funny to watch, one question remained with us: “why did the elephant bull chase off the wildebeest, who politely went to the opposite side, away from the elephant to drink in peace?” While there might not be one clear answer for that question, our summary to why the elephant did this was purely because he can.

This heartwarming video shows the incredible efforts of an elephant mother desperately attempting to rescue her calf struggling to get out of a mud wallow. Not only are elephants the largest land mammals on this planet, they are also some of the most intelligent and fascinating mammals found in the animal kingdom. This video shows one of the many incredible moments of interaction that can exist among elephants who have a strong family bond. While leading a safari in the Kruger National Park, we came across a herd of elephants, enjoying a brief stop at a large mud wallow. It was hot and the elephants needed to cool themselves down by getting into the rather deep wallow and splash themselves with mud. When majority of the elephant herd got out the wallow and was ready to move on, my eye caught one baby elephant that was having a hard time getting out of the wallow. The mud wallow was just too deep for the little one to get out and it was a huge struggle. With the elephant herd moving on, the elephant mother and a younger sister became extremely concerned by the male baby elephant’s inability to get out of the wallow. The mother elephant immediately rushed to the rescue and by using her trunk, she made many unsuccessful attempts at first to get her baby out the deep and slippery wallow. It was quite intense watching the efforts of the mother elephant and everyone on the safari was very worried that the baby would not be able to get out. The incredible efforts of the elephant mother had us in awe. At one stage it looked like grabbing her calf by the tail became the best option. There were trumpeting, screaming and rumbling noises coming from the elephants, clearly signaling that they were in distress. Finally, to everybody’s relief, the mother elephant managed to get a good grip on her baby with her trunk and hoisted her calf to safety. Everybody on the safari felt a great sense of relief and applauded the heroic efforts of the mother. What an astonishing moment out in the African wild.

This video shows a group of fishermen hastily loading freshly caught fish onto the backseats of a sedan vehicle. Something I have never imagined seeing in my life and surely something that will make most people cringe. During a recent visit to the Western Cape in South Africa, we wandered down the docks of a large harbour, interested to see what all the boats brought in after a good morning’s catch. We also use this opportunity to buy fresh fish directly from the local fishermen at a good price. The daily catching and selling of fish is the only source of income for most people in this particular area in the Western Cape. While wandering along the harbour, looking for the freshest catch of the day, I noticed in the distance something I thought at first cannot be. I walked a little closer and couldn’t believe what I was seeing. A group of fishermen busy loading the backseat of their sedan vehicle full of fish that is called snoek. The fishermen was not wasting any time and hastily loaded an incredible amount of snoek fish into the back of the vehicle, throwing the fish one by one through the back window. It looked like it was not the first time this vehicle has transported fish in this manner. I was totally blown away by the total lack of care for the interior of the vehicle. The fishermen clearly worked with a plan and was on a mission. I obviously had to ask the fishermen why do they use the inside of a sedan vehicle to load their fish in? Their short explanation to me quickly cleared up my confusion. That vehicle is their only way to get their freshly caught fish from the docks straight onto the cold rooms and then onto buyers. They do not have money for refrigerated transport or a loading truck. The fishermen decided out of desperation to offer up one of their own vehicles for this purpose daily, just to make a living. While the sight of fish in the back of a vehicle will have most people cringe, I take my hat off to the “do whatever it takes” attitude of these fishermen.

The video shows a pair of mating lions, causing a spectacle in the middle of a main road in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. The world-renowned Kruger National Park in South Africa is one of the largest game reserves in Africa, covering a prime wilderness area of just under 20 000 square kilometres or 2 million hectares. It is about the size of Israel and slightly smaller than Belgium. The park boasts an incredible diversity of fauna and flora with 2 000 plant species, 147 species of mammals, 114 reptile species and 510 species of birds. The world famous Big Five animals which include lion, buffalo, leopard, elephant and rhino are mostly at the top of the list of things to see for most tourists visiting the park. With this picture in mind, it is clear that this place is a true nature lovers paradise. Following a network of tarred and gravel roads, tourists can self-drive through the park and enjoy the wilderness at their own time. There are a total of 3000 kilometres of road for tourists to access of which 850 kilometres are eco-friendly tarred roads and the rest are all dirt roads. Still, tourists only have access to roughly 20% of the total park, with the rest of the park’s wilderness area never seen or visited by anyone, leaving remote areas untouched. With this background information on this special wilderness area in mind, one can imagine that driving around in the park for a few days, your chances of seeing amazing sightings or be surprised by something you have never seen are very good. Even if you go there over and over, everyday and every drive delivers something new and interesting. This video shows just one of the many surprises that can await you while driving along one of the main roads in the park. My wife and I were on a self-drive holiday for a few days in the park. On this particular morning we were heading north, following one of the main tarred roads in the park. In the distance we saw several vehicles standing still together in one place. When tourist vehicles all stop around the same spot on the road, you can be sure there is something of real interest. We slowly approached all the vehicles to see what was going on. We quickly realized what made everyone stop. A big male lion and a female, lying in the middle of the road. Seeing lions crossing the roads of the park are not uncommon but these lions were literally lying in the middle of the road. What followed next took us by surprise and it all made sense why this male and female were lying together so close to each other. These big cats were a pair of mating lions, casually going about their mating business, with not a care in the world about who and what was around them. Seeing lions in the wild is a great privilege but to see a pair of lions mating in the wild is a rare occasion and priceless. Seeing such a rare sighting, right in the middle of a tarred road, out in plain sight, was like nothing we could ever imagine seeing. Vehicles started piling up from both directions as travelling tourists started to arrive at the sighting. The lions blocked one of the busiest main roads of the park and no one was really prepared to disturb the mating lion pair. The whole sighting was extremely mind boggling for us at the same time. We asked ourselves the question “why here”? With almost two million hectares of bush and all the privacy in the world, why did these lions decide to mate in the middle of one of the busiest roads in the park, right in front of a crowd of onlookers? The answer to this one can be anyone’s guess. These lions clearly did not have the care in the world about all the onlookers or that they are blocking a main road causing a traffic jam. The pair usually mates for less than a minute, but it does so about every 15 to 30 minutes over a period of four to five days. After sitting watching this mating pair for close to an hour, they eventually decided to lie down on the side of the road, finally giving a long string of vehicles the opportunity to pass. Never did I think we will witness such a show right in the middle of a tarred road. The question still remains with me today, “why there”?

This video shows the adorable moments of three very cute baby hyenas, grooming their mother with lots of enthusiasm and love. While hyenas in general will not make it to the podium at a beauty pageant, their babies on the other hand will take all prizes for the cutest and most adorable looking baby animals in the African wild. Hyenas have a fearsome reputation in general but when you get to spend more time with these magnificent creatures, you come to realise that these unique animals have a fascinating social structure. Hyenas live in clans of up to forty individuals and strong family bonds are kept and maintained in various interesting ways and manners. Females rule the world of hyenas; clans are led by matriarchs and males remain subordinate for life. Female hyenas are also bigger and stronger in build than males. What I saw on this day while sitting at a hyena den in the African wild made me realise once again how much love exists among animal parents and their babies, scary looking or not. The big mother hyena was lying outside her den. Hyenas normally use old burrows in termite mounds as a den where their babies will remain in and close by for several months after birth. The mother hyena was guarding the den with her three cubs on the inside. Hyena babies are called cubs and contrary to their dog like looks, hyenas are more feline related than canine. The mother hyena was enjoying an early morning nap when her three adorable cubs came out the den all curious. At first only one hyena cub started but soon all three jumped in, eagerly nibbling, and licking at their mother’s head. These cute hyena babies decided it was time to give their mother some love and care, simultaneously treating mommy to a proper grooming session with lots of love. The mother hyena looked like she had a smile on her face the whole time and seemed super relaxed. The large female hyena slowly opened her mouth for a big yawn, creating a scary looking image for a quick moment, momentarily interrupting the ongoing cuteness. After a few minutes of grooming their mother, the cubs lost interest and wondered off to explore the area around their den.

This video shows the nerve-wrecking moment when a lioness gets too close for comfort during a safari in the African wild. Going on a safari, especially on an open vehicle, the experiences can vary and be anything from ‘not much happening’ to ‘exciting and adventurous’ to ‘hair-raising in a second’ like shown in this video. Unlike in East Africa where safaris are done in closed vehicles, in Southern Africa most safari operators operate their safaris in open vehicles. These vehicles are specially equipped and designed for safaris out in the African wild. A safari is normally lead by two people. The nature guide will be driving the vehicle and interact with the safari guests. On the front left of these safari vehicles, a seat is mounted. This seat belongs to some of the bravest people in the African wild, the tracker guides. The tracker guides sit out there in the front, focusing on the road and surroundings in search of any animal tracks or signs. These guys are incredibly observant and are master animal trackers. Together with the nature guide they make a formidable team to try and find the best possible sighting for their guests out in a vast wilderness area where animals roam free. During this safari shown in the video the guiding team managed to find a great lion sighting for their guests. It was an incredible sighting indeed. A total of seven lionesses lying next to the road in the open. There were great photographic and video opportunities. The lionesses were all just lying around and not even really paying attention to the safari vehicle. Well that was until one lioness casually walked across the road and suddenly came to a standstill right in front of the tracking guide on his seat. This lioness had her eyes fixed right onto the tracker. With her ears pointed, eyes staring straight into the eyes of the tracker and her tail wiggling from side to side, the danger signs were there. This lioness was suddenly very interested in the person in front of her and way too close for comfort. Through all of this, the tracker did not even flinch or move, looking very calm, like he was chilling on a couch. Luckily the guide in the driving seat read all the danger signs and decided to start the vehicle and get some distance between them and the lions. Everyone on the vehicle was stunned by the incredibly close lion encounter they just witnessed. Salute to the tracker guide for keeping his cool and not moving or triggering anything further while face to face with a wild lion out in the open.

The video shows a three-legged elephant that was first seen a year and a half ago, amazingly still surviving in the African wild and doing fine. During a safari in the month of April 2021, we came across the unusual site of an adult elephant walking on only three legs. https://rumble.com/vfmzn7-watch-how-male-elephant-amazingly-manages-to-walk-with-only-three-legs.html. Not only were we stunned to see that the elephant managed to be mobile on three legs, but also by the fact that the elephant managed to survive for that long out in the African wild. One major factor I could tie to his success of survival is that this male elephant on three legs was part of a massive herd even though he straggle behind most of the time. During early November 2022, I was leading a safari in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. The Park boasts a healthy population of over thirty thousand elephants, and you get to see many big herds and individuals during a safari. During this specific safari we came across several big herds of elephants. Watching these incredibly intelligent giants going about their business is always a great experience. We decided to stop at a watering hole to observe another large herd of elephants busy drinking during the heat of the day. Suddenly I saw one elephant walking funny in the distance and I couldn’t believe my eyes. There he was! The same three-legged elephant without his tail, still with his protective herd. In a nineteen thousand square kilometre wilderness area, among thirty thousand plus elephants, there was the same elephant from one and half years ago. What are the chances. I told my group of tourists the story and everyone was happy to know that the elephant was still doing great and carrying on with life in his herd as normal. The elephant is suspected to have lost his leg in a snare many years ago. Amazingly he has lived past fifteen years of age. With his determination to survive and with the support and protection of his family, this brave elephant bull will hopefully live many more years to come. I hope to see him out there again one day. Respect.

The video shows a rare sighting of a pink male baby elephant swimming with his family in a river in the African wilderness. A while ago I was leading a safari that produced one of the rarest and most adorable sights I have ever seen out in the African wild. It was a sweltering hot afternoon and we decided to drive along a river bank, in the hope to maybe find animals near the water. It was not long before we came across a big herd of elephants in the river. The elephants made use of the opportunity to enjoy a cool down session of swimming in the water. Suddenly one of my guests yelled from the back,” what the hell is that swimming among the elephants!? “. I quickly grabbed my binoculars and couldn’t believe what I saw. It was definitely an elephant but it was pink!! Everybody including myself sat there totally dumbstruck, watching a bright pink baby elephant swimming among the rest of the elephants right in front of us. I realized that we found a true albino baby elephant, with no protective skin pigment, melanin, with unpigmented eyes and not so white but pink skin. Only a handful of sightings have ever been reported on pink elephants in the African wild. Finding albino elephants among the Asian species is more common. For a true albino baby elephant to make it to adulthood in Africa is very rare. The harsh African sun makes survival a struggle for non-pigmented animals. Over time the sun can also cause blindness in their unpigmented eyes. Over and above all these factors, albino animals also stand out, are less camouflaged, which makes them much more vulnerable to predators. Luckily this pink baby elephant has a massive herd protecting him. It looked like the pink baby elephant had the time of his life swimming with his family during the heat of the day. When it was time to get out, like with any other baby elephant, it was an adorable struggle to get up the slippery riverbank. The baby elephant made one attempt only to slide back into the river. With a little courage and help form his mother, the pink male baby elephant managed to get out and disappear into the bush with his family. Everybody was in awe, and we left the area feeling totally stunned by what we saw out in the African wild.

The video shows a group of safari tourists, totally surprised on arrival by two hyenas casually lazing around their accommodation. Going on a safari holiday in Africa is an adventure and a trip of a lifetime. If you love unspoiled wilderness nature, the African wild is the place to be. Working and living in such a wilderness area gives me the opportunity to see daily how tourists react to various experiences while on their safari holiday. Doing two safaris per day is one of the major highlights, while the food and accommodation plays an equally important role. Most safari camps are unfenced, so wild animals can roam through most camps at any given time. This concept gives everyone an authentic wilderness experience, up close and personal. Tourists are always accompanied by a field guide when outside their accommodation and if everyone follows a few simple instructions, there is not much to worry about. This video shows one of those random unexpected encounters with wildlife inside a safari camp. I was driving a group of guests to their remote lone standing hut when I noticed something lying on the one side of the building. I stopped the vehicle and quickly realised it was an old female hyena taking a nap in the shade that the tourist’s accommodation provided. It was after all just past two in the afternoon which is check in time and it was sweltering hot. There are not much shade around the safari hut, so the hyena female discovered that a thatched roof provides excellent shade and cooler temperatures on the cement around the building. I drove around the building only to find another female hyena also casually lying against the building, enjoying the shady spot during the heat of the day. Everyone was totally surprised and even amazed by the fact that these two hyenas were blocking their checking in process. This is the African wild for you and you can always expect the unexpected. What do you do now with your guests in such a situation? I decided to rather head back to the main lodge, where everyone can enjoy an awaiting lunch and drinks and leave the checking in for a little later. Of course everyone was just too happy with the solution, giving the hyenas time to move off once it became a little cooler that afternoon. This was another great safari experience to remember.