EmotionsofAfrica

The word hyena brings a rather scary picture to mind for most people. Blood thirsty and dangerous predators living off the left overs of other predators. That whole scary picture totally disappears when you look at them when they are only six weeks old. These little black fur balls are probably the cutest of all predator babies in the African wild. Hyena cubs are extremely curious little creatures. They will bite, lick and chew absolutely everything they can find. It is rather entertaining to watch these cubs. This little guy found his mother’s ear very amusing and was in a playful mood. He could not stop sniffing and licking her ear. He also started nibbling on it and at one stage he was comically shoving his nose down her ear to get a better sniff. Near the end, a second cub pops out the den to see what little brother was up to. Our hearts melted when both of them turned around and looked at the camera. The look on those little faces were just absolutely adorable. Poor mommy was out hunting and feeding the whole night. She was exhausted. She allowed them to carry on regardless. This is all part of the family bonding that is so crucial in the life of a hyena. From a young age these little cubs are given every opportunity to hone their skills and develop strong relationships within their clan. One day when they are big and a little scarier looking, these crucial little play times with mommy will come in handy and help them survive an extremely hostile environment. Hyenas are crucial to the eco system of the African bush. They are the ‘hoovers’ of the bush and literally keeps the bush clean. Without hyenas, the bush would be filled with rotten carcasses and leftover meat. That in turn would lead to a number of diseases that would be detrimental to all other wildlife in the wild.

This video shows a huge herd of Elephants busy moving through the bush in Kruger Park, South Africa. This was not just your average size herd of elephants on the move. What really made this sighting special was the sheer number of elephants that was moving together in this herd. Usually on average, one would find herds of twenty up to fifty elephants moving together in a herd. This herd was estimated at over a hundred elephants at one stage. To see the largest land mammal on the planet congregating in such incredible numbers is really an amazing and wonderful site. During the early 17th century, there were still records of herds numbering up to a thousand. This sadly changed drastically over time and today the picture is very different. Just to try and find fifty elephants or more together in a herd can be a rather difficult task. Fortunate enough to have found this big herd, we decided to follow them and manage to meet up with them at various stages of their journey. When on the move, elephants walk roughly fifteen to twenty kilometres per hour. They can reach speeds of up to forty kilometres per hour when running. The herd is always lead by an experienced old cow, known as the matriarch. This is the female with the most experience and knowledge. We had to estimate their general movement direction the whole time and then look at the map to try and see where they would be heading next. In the end it became clear that this herd was in a hurry to get to the water. It was an extremely hot day and they were obviously hot and thirsty. We were extremely fortunate and overwhelmed at the same time to witness these unbelievable creatures moving together through the plains of Africa.

This video shows one of the weirdest and strangest wonders in the African wild. At first glance, this might look like a magic trick or even camera trickery. Tiny little seeds lying on the ground, bouncing and jumping around on its own. This is no magic trick at all and the real reason for this is a rather interesting story. It all starts with a very interesting tree called the Tamboti. A medium sized deciduous tree found in the warm regions of Southern Africa. Majority of these trees are found in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. The Tamboti is notorious for its poisonous properties. It contains toxic latex that causes blistering, eye irritation and even death if ingested in quantity. Burning on campfires leads to diarrhoea and severe headaches, especially if meat is cooked on the coals. The fruit and seeds of the Tamboti is probably the most interesting part of this tree. The fruit looks like a three lobed capsule. In summer months when they ripen, these capsules bursts open with an audible clapping sound before dropping from the tree. Eventually the ground below the Tamboti will be covered by all the seeds bursting out of the fruits. By now the seeds are infested with the larvae of the knotthorn moth (Melanobasis). The movement of the larvae inside the seeds makes them jump, particularly when they lie in the sun. When you walk past these trees on a warm summer afternoon, one can clearly hear the soft snapping, crackling and popping sounds. Looking closer you will discover thousands of these seeds jumping around, hence the name ‘jumping beans’. The only other place in the world where one can see these jumping beans is in Mexico and better known as Mexican jumping beans. African jumping beans tend to move allot more erratic than their counterparts in Mexico.

Watching baby elephants in the wild is most of the time a really entertaining and funny experience. One can also not help but to feel sorry for these little ones as they go through their daily struggles and challenges. These challenges are all part of the learning experience for an elephant and prepares them for life in the tough conditions of the African bush. Crossing a river with the rest of the herd is just one of those many challenges they have to face. Trying to find your footing and keep your head above the water at the same time can really get interesting and difficult. This video shows a baby elephant following the herd through a river crossing. As soon as they enter the water the fun really starts. From the beginning the little one finds it hard just to stay on his feet. Moving through the water in such a comical manner had everyone in laughter. The baby elephant was tripping, falling and stumbling along the whole way. At times he would fall face first into the water, getting back up to stumble forward again. At one stage the poor little thing tried to grab a hold of mommy’s tale but with no success. There were also no real help from the adults and the little one just had to push through and show some real determination. Closer to the end of the crossing, the baby elephant slips, but manages to hold his balance, only to fall down again. He got up again to finish off with one entertaining tumble and a big splash. Again he gets up and luckily for him that was also the end of the river crossing. He safely made his way up the bank and headed off with his family into the thick bush. This little elephant showed all of us what it really means to take on a challenge with persistence, dedication and determination.

This video contains graphic footage that might upset sensitive viewers. In saying that, this is something that regularly happens in the African wild. It is just very rarely witnessed by humans. Most of the time Lions hunt under the cover of darkness or at dusk or dawn. This lion hunt was on the other hand, something very different and rare to see. In the middle of the day in broad daylight. This whole encounter took place in a remote Wilderness area of the Kruger National Park, South Africa. It was around 11:30 am and we found a pride of eight lions, lying flat on the sand in a riverbed. Lions usually do absolutely nothing during the heat of the day. The one distinctive factor on this day was a strong wind blowing the whole day. Perfect hunting conditions for predators. The strong wind makes a huge noise blowing through the thick bush. Prey animals like buffalo can’t then really hear anything. Secondly, with the wind blasting in all directions, their sense of smell is all over the place. While watching this lazy pride of lions, one female suddenly lifted her head and stared into the distance. Out of nowhere, about two hundred metres down the dry riverbank, an old buffalo bull came walking down to graze. The one lioness got up, and started walking slowly and very persistent in that direction. With the blowing wind in her favour, she manages to stalk the buffalo and gets within metres. Still no sign of the other lions at this stage. Eventually the buffalo realizes something is not well and turns around. Immediately his instincts takes over and he charges the lioness. Buffalo are extremely dangerous mammals and have killed many lions before. They are much bigger and stronger than lions and those horns are deadly. The rest of the lion pride in the meantime strategically moved around and was on the opposite side, trying to circle around their prey. The buffalo charged in all directions and kept these lions guessing for a while. Then the number of lions just became too much for this lone bull and they manage to slow it down, biting it from behind and on the legs. There were also a few attempts from a lioness jumping on its back, trying to bite into the spine. Usually lions would go for the throat first, and suffocate their prey before they start feeding. This particular pride of lions were obviously experienced enough to understand the dangers of a buffalo’s horns but inexperienced enough to not be able to get around those horns and go for the throat. This ordeal lasted for over forty five minutes. Eventually the buffalo gave in and went down on the ground. At this stage one could hear the distinct distress call. He couldn’t fight back anymore. His adrenalin and energy was depleted and the lions started eating it alive from behind. After watching this for almost an hour, we had to go back to camp for work. It was still alive when we left. News came in later that the old bull eventually died not long after we left. This pride of lions were on the carcass feeding for another three days thereafter. Witnessing nature in action at such a level is definitely a once in lifetime experience and not something we will forget in a long time.

The life of a baby Elelphant is filled with struggle and challenges and they are real. Getting back on their feet is just one of those challenges they have to deal with. This video shows a female baby Elephant lying in the mud and then trying to stand up. What a mission it was indeed in the beginning. Several attempts was a failure. The manner in which this cute little one wanted to get back up was rather comical. This had everyone in laughter. At the same time though, one could not help but to feel sorry for the poor Elephant and her struggle. There were also no help from any of the other adult Elephants around. For Elephants just to go lie down flat on their sides is a rare occasion. One of the most obvious reasons is their size. How does three to five tons go lie down flat and then get back up again? That is a real problem and challenge. Baby Elephants on the other hand are not that huge in size yet, so they will still attempt to lie down every now and then. This specific little female enjoyed some time flat on her side in the mud. It was in the middle of the day and extremely hot. Elephants do not have sweat glands like we as humans do. They cannot sweat to cool themselves down. These giant creatures love to throw mud and water all over themselves to cool down. Rolling in the mud covers the whole body for a cooldown, and at the same time helps them to get rid of any skin irritations. This little one did exactly just that. After her cooling down session, it was time to get up. She tried to use momentum to get back up by swinging the left back leg up into the air several times. The momentum created was just too little every time and the poor Elephant would then fall back on her side again. Eventually, after some real effort, the momentum build was just enough to roll her over onto her knees. From there she could get herself back on her feet. All covered in mud and surely a little tired as well, she was up and ready to carry on with her journey with the rest of the herd. This short struggle is only one of the many challenges lying ahead for our adorable little one. Her life as a baby Elephant will teach her all the lessons and skills necessary to hopefully one day, lead her own herd through the plains of Africa

This funny incident was filmed at a water point in the Kruger National Park. This video tells the story of a very temperamental and cheeky young elephant bull that believes a certain waterhole belongs to him. At the top of the hill, there is a concrete reservoir, storing the water for the below open water point. Over time elephants figured out they can drink straight from this reservoir as they are tall enough to reach inside with their trunks. So they have this one all to themselves. This concrete reservoir then feeds the open water point below, roughly a hundred yards away. This water is then accessible for all other animals that cannot reach over the wall of the reservoir. All of this did not seem good enough for this young bull elephant. As much as elephants love fresh water, just as much do they hate to share any water with other animals. Why is that? Well probably just because they can. You are the largest land mammal on the planet weighing close to five tons and drinks up to 150 liters of water per day. Why should you share? This elephant adamantly and full of cheek made his way from the reservoir, down towards some blue wildebeest standing at the water. Poor animals were just trying to have a drink at the open water point. One can hear the rumbling noise while he approaches with his head held up high. This guy was on a mission to show everyone who is boss. With a loud scream, followed by a trumpeting noise, he chases away the poor wildebeest before they can even have a proper drink. Then it gets even funnier. This cheeky elephant then takes a trunk full of mud and slings it towards the wildebeest, just to really show them what he thinks about them sharing "HIS" water. The last part of the video shows a few other elephants now joined the cheeky bull elephant. The wildebeest think about returning to the water in desperation. The elephant bull walks up to them again in a threatening manner, head held up high and ears out. Then, just as the young one did earlier, another elephant takes a trunk full of mud and slings it at the wildebeest in a comical manner. The wildebeest there and then decided they had enough of this harassment and eventually moved off, only to return later once the elephants moved on. Who knew elephants could get involved in mudslinging!

Meet the bird with probably the most unusual and unique call in the whole of Africa. The Black-Bellied Bustard, a large ground-dwelling bird found in woodland and open grassland areas of sub-Saharan Africa. These birds are uncommon local residents in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. The most attractive and fascinating part about this whole bird is by far its unique and rather funny call. At first the male bird is busy shaking and preening his feathers. It's very important for this male to look at his best and in great condition. During the call, he displays with his tail held in an upright fanned position. He lifts his head high and then the call starts with a "quaaaark"... There is silence for 2 -3 seconds during which he pulls his neck back down. He then finishes the call with a funny "kwww ick" sound or otherwise referred to as a "cork popping" sound. The male bird uses this unique sound to promote and advertise his presence in his territory so other males can stay away. At the same time, it also let's all the females in the area know that he is the man, and ready for action. This is a call that people will seldom only hear over the grassy plains of the Kruger Park, never mind seeing the bird in action while performing this unique call. What a great experience to have this bird right in front of us, showing off in style.

This video was recorded while on Safari in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. We stopped at a waterhole to watch a few hippos lazing around in the water. Hippos spend most of their day in the water, keeping their skin cool and protected from the harsh African sun. During the day they will do as little as possible. Around dusk time they start leaving the water to go and graze for a few hours. We watched these lazy hippos in the water for a while when we noticed something interesting and funny. Out of nowhere, these birds started landing on the heads of some of the hippos. They were identified as Oxpeckers. Oxpecker birds are one of the most fascinating bird species in Africa. These birds predominantly lives on ticks. They also feed on ectoparasites and blood from wounds. Their favourite host animals are Giraffe, Buffalo, Rhino, Kudu and occasionally hippo. It was during the heat of the day and these birds saw another opportunity instead of parasites on the hippo’s skin. They wanted a safe place from where they could drink water. They found that safe place right in the middle of the waterhole, on a hippo’s head. It is a lot safer than landing on land at the edge of the water and then trying to have a drink while you are vulnerable to many terrestrial dangers such as snakes and monitor lizards. These birds also only have limited time on the head of the hippo and they must drink quickly. Eventually the hippo will move and chase them off or it will go under water. This video shows how the birds have to get their timing right while one of them even gets sprayed by the breathing of one of the hippos. They stick it out right until the end when the hippos decide to go under the water eventually. It was a great experience to witness such comical interaction between mammals weighing over two tons and birds each weighing in at 60 grams.

We like to think that nature is merciless and that may be the case, but it's not always that all the animals are on their toes. It's not always that everything is serious and everyone is constantly looking out for their life. Some times, when zebras aren't running away from predators and not seeking for food nor sleeping, they also like to have fun. As this might come as a surprise to all of you, it actually happens. So, as you will see in this video, there is a baby <a href="https://rumble.com/v33d2w-the-singing-zebra.html" target="_blank">zebra</a> and a stork in close distance from one another. At a point it seems like they are both trying to find some food and eating while at the next it seems like someone is too excited and ready to play. This little zebra has had too much of all the chores of staying alive, staying close to mom and all other things one animal has to do in order to stay alive out there. For once it need to play by its own terms, and those terms currently are to have fun. Take a look at its enthusiasm and the way it provokes this stork to join in the fun. This video was recorded in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. Check out the funny interaction between a young zebra and several large storks. This is definitely not your everyday sighting in the wild!

Majority of people on this planet today are becoming busier than ever before as life just becomes more and more demanding and allot faster at the same time. Living the Rat Race, chasing after money and success. Slogging our bums off Monday to Friday and living for weekends. That all leads to allot more stressful people. This video was created to bring a smile to everyone living the crazy busy Rat Race. Using various Elephant scenes from the wild to portray our stressful lives in a more humorous manner. This might not be the exact order of a typical day for many but there is somewhere something many will be able to relate to

While on Safari in the Greater Kruger Area of South Africa, we came across a small herd of Elephant. One particular Elephant walked up to the vehicle for closer inspection. While approaching the vehicle, we noticed that this was clearly a male. It literally looked like he had a fifth leg and everyone was stunned and in awe. African Bull Elephants hold the title for the largest relative genital organ size of all terrestrial life on this planet. It can measure up to six and half feet and weigh up to 55 pounds. No wonder it almost looks like another leg.

his footage was recorded in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. It’s fascinating to watch how the tallest land mammal on this planet go into battle to settle their differences. Giraffe are not territorial and a local status hierarchy develops according to age and size. This is established through ritual necking encounters amongst bachelors from an early age. These fights are not violent unless two equally matched bulls are contending for a female ready for mating. These necking rituals are synchronised and seem like a graceful dance.

The Oxpecker is one of the most fascinating birds in the African wild. These birds spend their time picking and consuming ticks and other parasites off their hosts in a win-win relationship known as mutualistic symbiosis. In this case, a bird gets its food and the rhino ends up with a good cleaning! Filmed in a remote area of the Greater Kruger Wilderness, South Africa.

This video was filmed by two individual tourists, at the same time, while on Safari in a wilderness area of the Greater Kruger Park, South Africa. They stopped at a herd of elephants for a while. One individual specifically caught everyone's attention. Not something you see everyday, this Elephant was digging in the sand for water. Elephants have a very acute sense of smell and rather prefer clean water below the sand than muddy water at the watering holes. With a few kicks in the sand to about a meter deep, fresh water starts cyphering through the sand. The sand acts as a filter delivering fresh water from the below laying water table in the dry river bed. While this guy was sucking up some of his newly found fresh water, he decided without warning, to splash a whole trunk full of water mixed with a lot of sand all over the vehicle and tourists. Listening to the amount of sand hitting the vehicle, it clearly indicates that specific slurp full was not pleasant enough for him and gave it to the people. Was it by accident or intentional? It can be debated. From past experience and understanding how intelligent these creatures are, Elephants very seldom do things just by accident!

Filmed in Kruger National Park, South Africa. The video shows a little squirrel trying to make the most of this healthy and rare snack. This made for some comical viewing as the little one was running around like crazy, trying to get as many as quickly as possible. Most people will know squirrels to be herbivores. Generally they will feed on most plant foods around such as fruits and flowers, seeds, nuts, roots and bulbs. On rare occasions, after the first rains in this very dry African Wilderness area, these flying ants and termites emerge from their nests in their millions. Highly rich in protein, these insects are enough to turn any herbivore into a carnivore for a little while.

The life of a baby elephant can be tough and a great challenge at times. This video show two baby elephants, one after each other, crossing through a river with the rest of the adults. One can see the effort, courage and determination it took for these youngsters to cross through this river and then up the embankment. A little assistance from the adults were also welcome. Once the struggle and challenge was over, they met up for a quick drink!

Every year, the African wilderness of North Eastern South Africa goes through a harsh dry period that roughly lasts for 6 months and sometimes even a year. While the drought holds this wilderness area firmly in its grip, conditions for wildlife becomes really tough and challenging. The grass and leaf eaters take the biggest strain as food becomes extremely scarce and vast. Then the one and only thing that can bring all wildlife to their knees – The Lack of Water. Only certain areas and places might hold water right through the dry season and these waterholes become more and more limited towards the end of the season. Animals have to travel huge distances, just for their daily water requirements. All of this in turn, creates some of the most incredible Safari game viewing opportunities. This video is a great example of a remote waterhole at the peak of the dry season. Spend 8 hours at this waterhole and the masses of wildlife that visited during that time was astounding. Wildlife that came to drink during that 8 hours included Giraffe, Kudu antelope, Zebra, Blue Wildebeest, African Elephant, Cape Buffalo, troop of Baboons, pack of Banded Mongoose and masses of Impala antelope. No chance of seeing this amount of African Wildlife in such a short period of time at any other time of the year. Once the heavy rains arrive back in summer again, the area slowly returns back to a lush, green and extremely thick wilderness paradise. Water is plenty and animals just have to look left or right to find some drinking water. During this time, game viewing then becomes a lot more challenging as animals now are scattered all over and not concentrated around waterholes anymore.

After watching and filming this old Buffalo Bull struggling around in the mud, I couldn't help but to see the striking similarities between his behaviour and that of some wise words most of us have heard in life before. We all get stuck in the mud, just like this old Bull, on occasions during our journey of life. Most of the time we are left with only one choice but to pull ourselves together, get up, show courage and keep moving forward. So when life is pushing down hard again, just remember this Wise old Buffalo Bull showing some balls.

This footage was captured in a wilderness area of the Kruger Park, South Africa. The love and affection for this cute tiny leopard cub is unbelievable. The mother shows great care for her youngster and she even gives him a few hugs during the video. This little one definitely melted the hearts of many on the safari vehicle lucky enough to witness this, in the wild, right in front of them!

This video show what it looks like when one of Africa's top predators, The Spotted Hyena, come together in numbers. Covered in blood, these hyenas were busy devouring a whole African Buffalo which they stole away from 4 lions earlier that morning. Things can really get heated around the dinner table when these predators get into action. To everyone’s amazement and distress, the one hyena ended up coming straight towards the vehicle to the driver’s side with a funny look on his face. Once it reached the driver’s door side, a bash with the knee against the door from the inside was all that was needed to scare it away from the vehicle. This amazing but tense experience was the highlight of the safari for all tourists

Yes that's correct,a male Baboon rubbing one out.Right there, out in the wild, in the open,all nonchalant. This was filmed in a wilderness area of the Kruger National Park,South Africa

Footage captured in a Wilderness Camp in Kruger National Park, South Africa. Walking down a pathway, we came across this scene right next to the pathway. The snake was identified as a Western Stripe - bellied Sand Snake. It killed and swallowed a lizard called a rainbow skink. The footage show how the snake bites the lizard, injects it with venom and waiting for it to die. After a few last kicks from the lizard, the snake proceeded to swallow it whole, bit by bit. After finishing his meal,the snake moves across the path and one can clearly see the snake had a meal that will last it for a good while