EmotionsofAfrica

Sitting in the comfort of your own plunge pool while admiring the African wildlife in front of you is a holiday experience never to be forgotten. Having the African wildlife come to your pool for a drink, like these elephants did, is a whole different and unforgettable experience on its own. During a recent break away weekend, my wife and I decided to treat ourselves to a safari lodge in the Greater Kruger area of South Africa. With the current pandemic there are unfortunately no international tourists currently coming on safari in South Africa and all safari lodges have dropped their prices to make it more attractive for the domestic travel market. We decided to take advantage of this and even got ourselves into a room that had a plunge pool in front of it. It was sheer luxury in our minds and nothing beats sitting in your own private plunge pool on a hot summer day while viewing the wild animals in the distance. It was one of those hot afternoons and we decided not to go on safari but rather relax at the comfort of our room and swimming pool. I just got comfortable in the pool when I noticed a large herd of elephants in the distance. I got out to get my camera. On my return I got back into the pool and realised that the elephant herd was slowly making their way towards my direction. At first, they looked a little nervous and I just remained quiet sitting in the back corner of the pool. Before I knew it, the front part of the large elephant herd walked right up to the swimming pool, reached with their trunks over the edge of the pool and started drinking water from the swimming pool. I could not believe what I was seeing in front of me. It was like I did not even exist and the elephants continued drinking from the pool. There was even a little baby elephant among the herd but the little elephant unfortunately could not reach the pool water with its trunk. The elephants rotated and majority of the herd had their fair share of water which also left the pool with more than a third of its water consumed. The herd eventually moved on with their journey leaving me totally stunned with my close experience with these incredible giants.

Few things on a safari are as entertaining as watching baby elephants play in the mud, especially when they end up in the most awkward positions. It was during a late morning safari in the Kruger National Park when we came across a small herd of elephants standing around a mud wallow. The heat of the day was already rising and these elephants were taking the opportunity to cool themselves down by splashing their bodies with the mud. We decided to stop and watch the elephants enjoy their mud bath. In the herd there were a few younger elephants and baby elephants. Watching these youngsters being active near mud usually delivers really entertaining viewing. It was not long before I spotted one elephant that went to lie down flat on its side in the mud. It was the quickest way for the elephant to get most of its body covered with mud. While watching the elephant enjoying his lie down in the mud, things became even more entertaining when a male baby elephant arrived on the scene. The elephant lying in the mud was too much of a temptation for the baby elephant to ignore and signalled playtime to the youngster. The baby elephant then proceeded to climb on top of the bigger elephant. The bigger elephant bull lying in the mud did not seem too amused by the fact that there was young male elephant jumping onto him. The baby elephant was looking adorable while attempting to slide his body over that of his big brother. The elephant lying down finally decided to ignore the baby elephant and laid down his head, causing the baby elephant to lose his position, tumbling down onto his back with all four feet up in the air. This was one of the funniest moments with baby elephants I have seen in a long time. The baby elephant was lying down on his back with all four feet kicking up in the air for quite some time in the attempt to get back onto his feet. Eventually the baby elephant managed to fall over onto his side. At the same time the older elephant quickly got back onto his feet and decided to rather move on after his mud bath was interrupted. The baby elephant slowly managed to get back onto his own four feet, after his playful ‘falling around’ adventures came to an end and left with the rest of the herd. We left the area feeling really happy and heart warmed by the funny and adorable moments these elephants created for us.

There are times when rare events and sights in the African wild can absolutely stun you. I recently came across one of those rare and very unusual sights; an adult male elephant with one leg amputated, amazingly walking around and surviving in the Kruger National Park, South Africa. It was in the middle of a hot day in a private rest camp in the Kruger National Park. Safari guests were taking a break from the heat after a long morning safari drive. The beauty of this rest camp was that there is a watering hole in the front of the camp. This gives everyone the opportunity to enjoy game viewing from the comfort of the rest camp located in the shade. A large herd of elephants came to visit the watering hole during the heat of the day and made for a spectacular sight in front of the camp. After quenching their thirsts, the herd of elephants slowly started moving away from the water. From the opposite direction, a lone elephant appeared from the bush approaching the watering hole. This elephant was clearly one of the stragglers in the herd. We suddenly noticed there was something very strange about the way this elephant walked and to our shock realized that this adult male elephant was walking on three feet only. I have never seen anything like this in my life. I ran to grab my camera and started filming this bizarre looking sight in front of us. It was incredible to see how this male elephant actually managed to move forward. It did not look very comfortable at all but he was moving forward effectively. Due to this slow walking manner, the male elephant was clearly lagging behind the rest of the herd. The first thought that came through my mind was that this elephant must be in incredible pain after losing part of his leg. After closer inspection we realised that the amputated leg had no signs of any raw flesh and we did not see any blood. With the relief of knowing that the elephant was not walking around with a raw open wound, we come to realise that this male elephant has been going like this for many years. We could even see the cracks on the worn skin at the bottom of the amputated leg, which also appears on the feet of elephants. My sense of shock turned into a huge admiration and level of respect for this male elephant. The African wild is one of the toughest places on earth to survive, and that is said for animals with all their limbs intact. This male elephant has taken determination to survive to the next level and we are sure, even though he was lagging behind, the hundred plus elephant herd that he belongs to has protected him all along against the many predators such an animal can easily fall prey to. The most accepted reason to why the male elephant lost part of his leg was that he most likely got caught in a snare during his young years and in the process lost that part of his leg. This male elephant gave me a whole new level of respect for the determination for survival of the African Elephant.

Watching baby elephants are one of the most rewarding things you can do while on an African safari. The video shows just how adorable baby elephants can be while dealing with their daily real-life struggles such as attempting to get back onto your feet while lying down in slippery mud. While on safari in the Kruger National Park, it didn’t take long for us to find our first sighting which was a small herd of elephants. The herd of elephants were on the banks of a small river busy drinking water and playing in the mud. Whenever elephants are near any water or mud, you can be assured that it will be a great experience to watch. Just observing the unique manner in which elephants drink water is a magical experience on its own. Some elephants, especially the youngsters, usually decides to cool down in the mud after their drink of water. This is usually where the real fun and entertaining watching starts. It didn’t take long to spot one of those funny and entertaining moments amongst the herd members. On the opposite side of the river bank was two baby elephants, one was kicking around in the mud in front of him while the smaller baby elephant was lying on its side in the mud. The baby elephant lying down in the mud was making sure that he got that one side of his body covered in mud, helping the elephants to cool down during the heat of the day. The most amusing part of the bay elephant’s behaviour was when it looked like it was making an attempt to get back on to its feet. The baby elephant managed to roll from its side onto its belly. From the belly down position the baby elephant looked very lazy and not very committed to really get back up onto its feet. With what looked like a real big effort, the baby elephant finally managed to get onto it is feet only to suddenly find itself in another wobbly moment. The mud under its feet was clearly slippery and the baby elephant nearly lost his footing before finally gathering himself to stand up straight next to mommy. We wholeheartedly enjoyed our experience and time with the herd of elephants. We left the herd alone and drove off, each person on the vehicle with a smile on their face and the fresh memories of the adorable baby elephant in the mud

While it is true that size does matter when involved in pushing and shoving, the right attitude on the other hand can make a huge difference, no matter the size of your opponent. Watch how a baby elephant shows that a determined attitude can go a long way, even when size is not on your side. It was during a late afternoon safari in the Kruger National Park when we came across a herd of elephants. As a safari guide you know that it is always wise to switch off your vehicle and observe. Elephants are almost always active and spending time watching a herd of elephants will mostly deliver some sort of entertaining behaviour. It was a large herd and the elephants were scattered all around us in smaller groups busy feeding. A sudden movement to my left drew my attention to two young male elephants, looking very busy. Suddenly the young elephants had everyone’s attention when they came smashing through the shrub. The one elephant still looked like a baby elephant while his older brother seemed considerably larger in size. Even though it might seem that the two young elephants were just fooling around, these displays are part of a young male elephant’s life. From an early age, young males establish a hierarchy through these ‘play fights’ that includes head butting, pushing, ramming and shoving each other with the head. Due to elephants being the largest land mammals on the planet, dominance in the hierarchy is established through size. It was so adorable to watch the young elephants going about their battle of pushing and butting each other around with their heads. What stood out the most about the events unfolding in front of us was how tenacious the baby elephant was, showing a real fighter attitude even though he was outsized by his brother. The smaller elephant stood his ground, pushing back as hard as he could. Near the end of the video the baby elephant even mock charged towards his bigger brother, giving him a fright in the process. After that, the bigger elephant brother decided that enough was enough and finally pushed his annoying little brother one last time for a good distance till the baby elephant finally realized that in the elephant world size really does matter.

While leading safaris in the African wild for many years, one of the most common questions I get from safari goers is ‘how do elephants sleep’? There is no one simple answer to this question and this video shows one of the many awkward forms and positions these giants can get into, just to get a little sleep. Being the largest land mammals on the planet, the African elephant is behaviorally adapted and physically structured in many incredible ways to survive in the African wild with such a large body. First things first, the African elephant’s main priority is food, and lots of it. For this reason, the priority of eating outweighs the priority of sleep by far. Elephants feed around twenty out of twenty-four hours a day and interestingly enough are feeding more active during the night than the day. This makes one think then when do elephants actually sleep? It was during the middle of the day on a safari in the Kruger National Park when we came across one large lone elephant bull standing in the shade of a big tree. It was extremely hot and we could see the old elephant bull was looking fairly tired, not feeding or doing much, just standing under the tree. The next moment the elephant bull slowly proceeded to rest his head against the trunk of the tree. It looked like the bull elephant was getting really comfortable and amazingly started dosing off, falling into a shallow sleep every now and then. It was incredible to sit and watch this large creature being happy to awkwardly rest his head against the tree trunk to take a nap. This old elephant bull was a great example of one of the many ways larger elephants can rest or sleep. From experience, majority of sleeping and resting happens during the heat of the day. All the hours of sleeping an elephant achieves does not happen all in one. Resting and sleeping will happen in short on and off periods. Where smaller elephants do actually lie down to sleep, larger elephants always have to improvise a way to lean their bodies against some sort of structure such as a tree or an embankment.

Watching elephants in the wild during an African safari is always a great experience. When these giants are in the vicinity of mud, you can be sure of great entertaining behaviour, especially when they perform awkward looking body movements one would only expect to have seen from a circus elephant in the olden days. It was during a safari in the Kruger National Park when we came across a large herd of elephants gathered around several mud wallows. The herd was scattered all over and our attention was fixed on a small group of large bull elephants, standing around a smaller wallow some distance away from the rest of the herd. It was a blazing hot summer morning and most of the elephants were splashing themselves with mud. The cool mud covering the elephant’s skin brings great relief from the heat. While watching the large elephant bulls enjoying their time in the mud, we noticed that the largest bull was missing his tail. The large bull’s body was almost completely covered in mud and he was just standing there, staring at the wallow for some time. Suddenly the big elephant bull looked like he was about to slip, but his movements became more intent and controlled. I was totally blown away to see the large old bull, slowly bending down onto his knees. I was totally confused by this incredibly awkward body position the bull elephant found himself in. Once on all fours, the elephant bull slowly stretched out his front legs, looking like he was enjoying a good stretch. The old elephant bull then dragged his stomach and hind legs through the mud before easily getting back onto his feet. The bull elephant then casually proceeded to stand next to the other bulls, slightly bumping them out the way, just to reiterate his dominance over them and the mud wallow. Everybody on the safari vehicle was in total awe to see how flexible and agile such a large and old elephant bull can be if he wants to. Whether the old bull just wanted a good stretch or maybe wanting to get mud into a few hard-to-reach places, we will only ever be able to assume and never really know. In the end we could only leave with the total amazement of such rarely seen behaviour out in the African wild.

Living and working in the African wild has given me many opportunities to film and document the behaviour of a vast number of wildlife species. One of my favourite species of wildlife to observe and film is the African elephant. On the rare occasion, as shown in this video, these African giants will let you know when they are not impressed by the presence of your filming equipment. This can lead to very interesting footage in the end. It was late afternoon when I decided to head out into the wild on my own, kitted with all my filming equipment. I was specifically out searching for a herd of elephants to film. African elephants are my favourite animals to film in the wild as they are almost always busy doing something. Spending lots of time with any herd of elephants can deliver many memorable behaviours and experiences. The Kruger National Park hosts one of the largest populations of African elephant on the continent and finding these giants normally does not take too long. I came across a small herd of male adult elephants close to the road. I switched off and started observing. As a keen wildlife videographer, one always attempts to capture your subject from as many angles and distances as possible. Getting close up footage of the world’s largest terrestrial mammal in its natural environment takes some creative planning and a bit of luck. This was where my GoPro came in pretty handy. Together with the right equipment, planning the rest of the shot involves a lot of anticipation while closely monitoring the elephant herd’s behaviour. Of course, you cannot just throw the camera at the elephant and hope for the best. Anticipating where the elephants will go next is the main priority to get it right. This can take a lot of time and patience. It can vary from getting it right the first time to a whole day or even a week’s worth of attempts. The small herd of bull elephants was slowly grazing towards the direction of the road. I anticipated where they would cross the road, placed my GoPro among some elephant dung for camouflage and moved away some distance. That is where the waiting starts. The elephants can at any moment change direction and move off and the plan can fail. I became excited when I saw two bull elephants crossing the road near the camera but it was yet still too far a shot for anything worthwhile. My excitement levels increased when one large bull elephant slowly walked past the camera before he stopped and took a step back. The bull elephant clearly spotted the small black foreign object lying among the elephant dung and started sniffing it with his trunk. After investigating the camera with his trunk, the bull elephant gave it one more look and kicked it over with his front right foot. Luckily the camera fell in the right position and the GoPro managed to snap a great shot of the elephant straight from below upwards. After showing that he was not really impressed by the camera, the bull elephant casually crossed the road and continued feeding into the bush with the rest of the herd.

It is not everyday that you see wildlife casually strolling through the streets of any town or city. When a family of warthogs appeared in the middle of a main road in town, traffic came to a standstill. It was during a recent trip to a remote area of the Kruger National Park that we decided to visit the nearest town that was an hour and a half drive from where we were. Going to town is usually a full day exercise. It was during the holiday season and the town was fairly busy. I am not keen on entering grocery stores so I decided to go and run a few errands of my own. When I approached my vehicle in the parking lot, I suddenly noticed a group of warthogs appearing and disappearing between the vehicles in the parking lot. I could see they were heading straight for the main road that was situated in front of the shopping centre. I was little stunned by what I saw and quickly grabbed my camera from the vehicle. Once out in the open road, I could clearly see that the group of warthogs was made up of a mother and father with their six incredibly adorable piglets. The warthog adults were leading the way across the main road in a very casual manner, either believing they own the place or they have done it many times. All the vehicles coming down the road from both sides stopped to give the warthog family some space to cross the road. Just like me, many people stopped and started filming this rarely seen occasion. It put a smile on everybody’s faces and it was surely a unique and hilarious experience at the same time. The warthog family casually continued feeding into the piece of bush located across the road.

The leopard is one of the most difficult wild animals to find in the African bush. Finding this elusive, solitary big cat in the wild is a truly remarkable experience on its own. Getting to see two leopards together, a mother and cub, was just a priceless experience. I managed to capture a few quick and adorable moments of love, care and playfulness between the female leopard and her cute cub. It was early morning on a safari in the Kruger National Park when we got word of a female leopard that was spotted in a nearby area. Just knowing that a leopard has been spotted in the area you traverse already gets people excited. Tracking down a leopard in the dense and vast bush can be a challenging task. After checking through the whole area thoroughly, we were finally lucky enough to spot the tracks of a female leopard that was walking down the gravel road. The search for the leopardess became even more exciting when we spotted another pair of much smaller tracks. It was clear that this female had a cub with her. With master tracking skills from our professional tracking team, they managed to locate the leopardess and her cub in a dry riverbed after another hour of searching. We were notified of the location and made our way there immediately. On our arrival we were absolutely stunned by the sight of the leopardess and her tiny cub, playing and cuddling around with each other in the sand. We kept our distance and enjoyed the brief visual of these two leopards. The leopard cub seemed extremely playful while running and jumping on his mother, nibbling her ears and lying down next to its mother to be cuddled and carefully licked clean. The mother leopard showed so much love and compassion for her little cub which was really heart-warming to watch. The mother leopard eventually got up and it was time to go. The cub remained playful by running after its mother while attempting to catch her tail. The two leopards slowly moved out of the riverbed and disappeared into the thick bush. We left the two leopards in peace and carried on with our safari. It was just incredible to see such a bond of love between a mother and her cub and we left feeling totally overwhelmed by the whole experience.

It was during a recent safari in the Kruger National Park that I managed to film a big elephant bull letting his inner child out for a moment, hilariously sitting down before adamantly scratching his back side, looking rather awkward. Having lived and worked among the wildlife of Africa for many years, elephants are still by far my favourite animals in the African wild. Being in the presence of the world’s largest land mammal is already an incredible experience on its own. Elephants are almost always active and busy doing something. Watching these giants going about their many activities is just fascinating, with many encounters turning out to be a very entertaining. While baby elephants are adorable and by far the most playful and entertaining members of an elephant herd to watch, there are a few unexpected occasions when the adult members of the herd can surprise you with their child like behaviour. When I came across a herd of elephants standing around a mud wallow, I decided to switch off my vehicle and spend some time watching these giants going about their business. It was an extremely hot morning in the bush and the elephants were splashing themselves with mud in order to cool themselves down. Baby elephants and sub adult elephants would many a time go lie down or even role around in the mud, as getting back onto their feet is also a lot easier. I suddenly noticed a large elephant bull kneeling down onto his back knee before sitting down flat on his back side. To me this looked awkward and hilarious at the same time as you just don’t see big elephants sitting down like a dog. This bull elephant had only one mission in mind and that was to adamantly scratch a serious itch that was just too hard to reach in any other way. The bull elephant was adamant to get rid of his itch and he was moving back and forth on the slippery mud, looking really funny. After enjoying a good scratch in the mud, the bull elephant got back onto his feet without any real difficulty. Seeing such a large elephant sitting down made me think of the trained circus elephants from an era gone by. This elephant bull clearly does not need any trainer or circus to behave in such an entertaining manner. We left the herd to continue with their muddy business while we continued with our safari.

Baby elephants are just plain adorable and always a huge favourite among safari goers. This video is a great example of just exactly why, showing how a male baby elephant finds it difficult to get back onto his feet without any real interference. It was early morning in the Kruger National Park and we headed out on our morning safari. At first there were not many animals to see but as the morning progressed, wildlife sightings became more active. Halfway through our morning safari we were surprised by a large herd of elephants standing next to the road busy feeding. It was breeding herd made up of many female relatives and their young. There were a good number of baby elephants also in the herd and we decided to spend some time watching the herd with all the focus mostly on the baby elephants. Everybody was amazed by just how cute the largest land mammal on earth in baby form can be. During the first part of their lives, baby elephants have an incredible number of abilities and skills to learn in order to survive in the African wild. While it can take a baby elephant up to three years to use its trunk to its full potential, walking and standing on their own two feet can also be a challenge as shown in this video. All our attention moved to one specific baby elephant that was lying on its own in front of us in the road. For no particular reason, this baby elephant decided to go lie down on its side right on the edge of the road. We couldn’t really understand the reason for this behaviour but it looked hilarious and so adorable. It looked like the baby elephant was just enjoying lying in the dirt. Once it had enough of playing in the dirt, the baby elephant decided it was time to get back onto its legs. This effort turned out to be more complicated than anticipated by us and the baby elephant. In the attempt to stand up, the baby elephant stepped backwards, stumbling on the edge of the road before falling down onto its knees. We felt sorry for the baby elephant but at the same time we could not help but to laugh at the comical and clumsy display. While sitting on its knees on the ground, the baby elephant made another awkward looking attempt and finally got back onto his feet. The baby elephant looked a little confused, first smelling the soil before giving a few funny looking steps backwards. With a flick of the trunk, the baby elephant turned around and finally started walking properly back to the rest of the herd. It was so amazing to see how a baby elephant on its own, without any other interference, can be so entertaining to watch. We left with big smiles on our faces.

While enjoying a drink in a local bar, we were totally surprised by the sight of a donkey walking into the bar as if it owned the place. Immediately one of the many ‘donkey in the bar’ jokes came to mind. The only difference here was that there were no jokes to be told, only smiles and laughter, amazed by the real deal playing off in front of us. It was hilarious to see how casual this donkey went about his business in the bar. It was during our last road trip, just before the national lockdown was enforced in South Africa, that we decided to stop at a sports bar located next to a main road, on our way to the Kruger National Park. The sports bar was located on a farm, making for a relaxing environment in nature. We settled down and ordered a drink and lunch. It was not long before we were stunned by the appearance of a donkey. The donkey casually walked in as if it owned the place. It was hilarious to see the donkey stopping next to a counter in the bar and starting to scratch its neck and head against it. None of the people that worked there seemed to be bothered by the donkey just strolling into the pub. Outside the bar were another three donkeys standing. One donkey was braying loudly from the outside, adding to the bizarre atmosphere we experienced in this sports pub. After a good scratch against the counter, the donkey rested his head on the counter for some time, looking very relaxed with its actions in the middle of the public space. After resting his head on the counter, the donkey slowly strolled out again to meet up with the other donkeys. This was definitely one of our most bizarre and funny experiences in a long time. The quick lunch-stop definitely turned out to be a memorable experience for obvious reasons.

Finding a leopard in the wild while on a safari is always a special occasion. Finding a leopard mother and her cub in the wild is a priceless, once in a lifetime, experience. I recently had the rare opportunity to film the adorable moments of a playful leopard cub, totally amused by its mother’s tail. The leopard is one of the most elusive animals in the African bush. This shy and solitary big cat is part of the so called Big five animals in Africa that also includes lion, buffalo, rhino and elephant. The leopard is by far the most difficult to find and see. The leopard relies on its camouflage and stealth to bring down prey that can range from mice to large antelope species. It was during a recent safari in the Kruger National Park that we were lucky enough to come across a female leopard, lying alone in the sand of a dry riverbed. We were absolutely ecstatic with our find. We all whipped out our cameras and started filming and taking pictures. It was not long before we were absolutely exhilarated by the fact that the female leopard had the most adorable cub. Out of nowhere, the cute leopard cub appeared. The appearance of the cub took us all by surprise and we couldn’t believe that we were actually sitting with two leopards in front of us. Leopards are solitary predators and do not like to be seen. If you are lucky enough to find a leopard in the wild, it will always be alone. Only under rare circumstances will you get to see more than one leopard together such as this one with the mother and her cub and when a male and female meet up to mate. The moments that followed between this leopard cub and its mother was filled with playfulness and motherly love. When the leopard cub appeared from the bush, it was immediately interested in its mother’s tail. It was so cute to watch how the cub’s hunting instincts was triggered by its mother’s moving tail. Every time the female leopard would move her tail, the cub would playfully paw at her tail while trying to grab it. This playful behaviour continued for a while until the cub became bored with its mother’s tail. The leopard cub decided it was time to snuggle up against its mother before falling asleep. We decided that we would not overstay our welcome and left the two leopards in peace.

Finding baby animals on a safari in the African wild is always a special experience. During a recent safari in the Kruger National Park, I managed to capture this heartwarming moment between a baby elephant and its mother. It was early morning in the African bush. We headed out on our safari just before sunrise and it was not long before we came across a large breeding herd of elephants, slowly feeding alongside the road. The large breeding herd was made up of mostly female elephants that are all related. There were also many sub adults and baby elephants in the herd. To see the largest mammal on the planet in baby form is just adorable. We decided to switch off the vehicle and spend some time watching the herd and the many baby elephants. One particular baby elephant caught my attention and I focused my camera onto the little one, looking less than three weeks old. During their first three weeks of life, baby elephants are still very unstable on their feet. Keeping up with the herd while making their way over the rough and uneven terrain of the African bush is one of the many great challenges a baby elephant faces at the beginning of its life. The video shows how the month-old baby elephant suddenly stumbles over a small bush before falling flat on its side. The unexpected fall left the baby elephant looking totally confused with what just happened. The mother elephant was there immediately with her trunk to support her baby. The baby elephant was lying on top of the small bush and was struggling to get back up onto its feet. Like a true toddler, the baby elephant suddenly uttered two loud screams, throwing a quick little tantrum, looking for immediate attention and assistance. The mother elephant immediately responded by using her foot and her trunk to get her screaming baby back onto its feet. The baby elephant managed to stay on its feet, while still looking a little uneasy. The baby elephant proceeded to drink on its mother. It was not long before the whole herd of elephants disappeared into thicker bush. Everybody on the safari vehicle had a big smile on their faces and this sighting was by far the biggest highlight of the day. We were overwhelmed by the cuteness of this baby elephant and to see how caringly the mother elephant responded to her screaming baby.

Baby animals will always have a soft spot in most people’s hearts. Seeing baby animals in the African wild is always a special occasion. It was during a safari in the Kruger National Park that this adorable moment between a lion cub and his father was captured. It was like watching a possible real-life scene from the Lion King movie with Simba jumping on top of Mufasa, looking for attention. We recently had incredible luck on our side during a safari when we came across a large pride of lions resting in the shade. Lions are big sleepers and they can easily spend twenty hours of the day just sleeping, resting and doing absolutely nothing. Part of the pride were three adorable cubs, clearly not looking to go to rest any time soon. While the adults were sleeping, the cute lion cubs had other plans of their own. I remembered as a child the trouble I got into for making a noise while my parents were trying to take their afternoon nap. One male lion cub, who clearly had all the courage in the world or couldn’t care less, decided it was time to go and seek some attention from his father, a big male lion sleeping a short distance away from the rest of the pride. The lion cub carefully approached the King of the Jungle, making us wonder how this whole ordeal was going to turn out. What happened next totally amazed us. The lion cub unexpectedly decided to climb on top of his father, curiously investigating his impressive mane. Still there was not a single response coming from the big male lion. The lion cub sat on top his father, looking very comfortable, thinking of what else he can do to get his father’s attention. The cub decided to get down from his father and thought that cuddling with his father would do the trick. Even after placing his paw on his father’s face, licking him a few times again after, the lion cub realized that he was not going to receive any sort of attention. The cub turned around and started planning his next move while checking to see what was happening with the rest of the pride members. At that very moment the big lazy male lion slowly turned onto his back and continued snoozing with his feet up in the air, acting as if nothing happened. The cub was already so fixated on his new mission that he totally ignored his father and went back to play with the other two cubs. Even though the male lion did not show any sort of response while his son looked for attention, we were amazed by the unconditional patience and acceptance the male lion showed towards his son. With a paw the size of the cub’s head, the father could easily have sent his son flying in annoyance which has happened before. In our opinion this was a sign of true fatherly love as we all knew the big male lion wasn’t really fast asleep all that time and he was well aware of what was going on the whole time.

Watching any form of life being born into this world is a miracle experience. During a recent safari in the Kruger National Park, I had the rare and special opportunity to witness the very first heartwarming moments of life for a newborn impala lamb in the wild. The adorable attempts of the newborn lamb to take its first steps while learning to walk was just remarkable to watch. Impalas are by far the most prevalent antelope species in the Kruger national Park and that is partly due to their breeding strategy. Even though the impala antelope is the most common prey for most large predators, the birthing strategy of the impala antelope species ensures a relatively large proportion of them go on to survive to adulthood. Impalas combat the pressure from predators by essentially flooding the ecosystem with young that are simply too many for predators to catch them all. At end of November and the beginning December, which is the start of the summer rains, almost ninety percent of all impalas will be born at the same time during a three-to-four-week period. More than half the new population will have enough time to grow strong enough and streetwise enough to evade predators. Even though thousands of impala lambs are born during this period, it is incredibly difficult to witness the birth of or the first moments of life for an impala lamb in the wild. It was during a cool morning while on safari that we came across the remarkable experience shown in the video. While watching a herd of female impala, I suddenly noticed a female that was standing separate from the herd in the distance. The female constantly had her head down and looked intensely occupied by something. I changed the position of the vehicle to get a better look of what was going on. We were absolutely stunned when we saw a newborn baby impala lying on the ground. It was still wet and must have been born literally a few seconds before our arrival. I decided to capture this rarely seen moment. The newborn impala was lying on the ground, looking helpless at first. Being preyed upon by almost every big predator, impalas evolved into being born with their eyes open and are miraculously able to stand, then walk and later on run on their new wobbly legs, all in a matter of twenty minutes. Watching this newborn lamb learning to get up and walk on its new legs was one of the most heart-warming experiences I have seen in the African bush in a long time. During this time the mother can be seen eating the remains of the placenta. Consuming the afterbirth immediately after giving birth is another example of anti predator behaviour shown by the impala, eradicating the scent of their newborn, protecting them against predators. The baby impala struggled for a good ten minutes to get standing on its feet, looking clumsy while falling over a number of times. After one last attempt, the baby impala just managed to hold its balance, standing still while swaying from side to side. After fifteen minutes the transformation was unbelievable. The lamb went from being totally helpless and vulnerable to standing, then walking and eventually running. The running still remained wobbly but at least the lamb was up and going. The impala mother continued licking her newborn, cleaning its skin from the last remains of the afterbirth. The baby impala’s condition improved by the minute and in as little as twenty minutes, the youngster was bouncing around, staying close to mommy while exploring its direct new environment and the art of running. The time spend with this mother and her newborn was incredible and we left them in peace, knowing that the lamb already has a great advantage of survival by being able to run around with its mother. Mother Nature just never cease to amuse.

It was straight after the travel restrictions were lifted in South Africa that we decided to go on a two-week break to a remote wilderness reserve, located on the Zambezi River in Zambia. It was a five-day journey to our destination. We were looking forward to a week of wild camping among the wildlife of Zambia which was always going to be a thrilling experience. And so, it turned out to be. Camping in an unfenced area anywhere in the African wild is a thrilling experience but at the same time, while on holiday, you can never let your guard down a hundred percent. While relaxing, one has to stay vigilant at the same time. It was a soon as day two of our camping expedition that we got reminded how dangerous wild animals can be, large elephant bulls in specific. While enjoying a late morning brunch at our campsite, I suddenly heard loud metal banging noises coming from the one side of the camp terrain. The noises continued and I decided to go and investigate. In the distance I saw a few local staff members gathered near the entrance of the camp terrain. I couldn’t believe what I saw and pulled out my phone to start filming. The metal noises I’ve heard was made by a massive elephant bull that was busy on a rampage, destroying another holidaymaker’s vehicle trailer. The elephant looked like it had serious issues with the white trailer. When I arrived, the trailer was already badly beaten up but the destruction continued. The big bull elephant would trample on the trailer, throw it over, trample it again and throw it over again like it was a piece of lightweight plastic. The local staff made an attempt at clapping their hands at the irate elephant bull, but to no avail. The elephant couldn’t care less and continued bashing up the trailer. Only until the very end, the reason for the elephant bull’s behaviour became all too apparent when he opened the front compartment of the trailer and shoved something into his mouth. This elephant bull was not so much angry with the trailer itself, but was adamantly after a bag of maize meal that was stashed in the front compartment of the trailer. The elephant clearly smelled the maize meal inside the trailer and made every effort to get to it. The owner of the trailer was out on safari for the day and we couldn’t do much more either but to watch the elephant bull gobble up the bags of maze meal. The trailer was also a total write off of course.

It was just after sunrise when we left our camp to go on a safari in the Kruger National Park. The first hour of the day is known by many as the ‘golden hour’, where the soft golden light creates perfect conditions for photographing and filming wildlife. It was during this time that I managed to film two male zebras, locked in combat. The biting and kicking added to the drama while the golden light and dust made for a spectacular setting overall. The first place we went to check after departure was a nearby watering hole. Many species of wildlife make use of the early hours of the morning to get their daily fill of water before the relentless heat takes over the rest of the day. On our arrival there were some buffalo near the water and a small herd of zebra more to the back of the buffalo. It was during the peak of the dry season and the landscape was barren and very dusty. We decided to spent some time at this watering hole, watching the animals coming to the water. While scanning the vast and open landscape, I suddenly noticed clouds of dust appearing from behind the nearby buffalo. I noticed that there were some erratic movements coming from the small herd of zebra standing in the distance. Two zebras in particular were rising up and down while bumping against each other. I quickly realized that it was two males starting a fight with each other. These fights usually do not last long as young males like to practice their fighting skills in short bursts of play. Fights only get serious when an interloper attempts to abduct a father’s daughter. It was soon clear that this was no play fight and the fight continued. I started filming and the video shows a part of the intense battle in the golden light filled with dust. Zebra fights consist mainly of biting and wrestling, rarely flailing with the fore feet and only occasional kicking with the back feet, the most dangerous form of combat. The two male zebras started with rearing, jostling and neck-wrestling. The fight became more serious when they dropped to the ground, then circling on their knees. This happens when an opponent seeks a grip to bite on the opponents fore or hindleg. The two zebras then quickly jumped back onto their feet and with lightning speed, the one male zebra lashed out with his back feet, hitting his opponent right under the very tip of his jaw. A kick like that hitting the head of an opponent can be fatal. The zebra that was on the receiving end of the kick was very lucky but it looked like the lightning-fast powerful kick was hurting enough for him to give up, shaking his head while looking a little disorientated. The losing zebra slowly disappeared after the incident. I was grateful for waking up early and having the opportunity to see such an unexpected event during the golden hour of the morning in the African bush.

Living and working in a remote wilderness area in the African wild of the Greater Kruger National Park in South Africa, gives me and my wife the daily opportunity to live among, see and sometimes interact with a multitude of animal species found in the wild. This video shows a great example of our local resident baboons making use of our self-build bush swimming pool on a hot summer day with some hilarious behavior to go with it all. Being fortunate enough to live so close to a large variety of animal species, we often get to see some amazing and unexpected events that mostly put a big smile on our faces. Living in the African wild also means living along with the extreme heat of the summer months. So over time I decided we needed a swimming pool just big enough for two people to help us cool down on those long and very hot summer days. With a help of few fellow workers, we managed to use rock from the local environment to build this bush-style swimming pool. It doesn’t look like much but it works extremely well. It was during one of those scorching hot days where temperatures rose beyond 40 degree Celsius. My wife and I had a quick cool down in our bush-style swimming pool during lunch time and after we headed out again back to work. It was just past five in the afternoon and the temperature outside was still unbearable. When I walked into the house, I saw through the window that someone was actually in our swimming pool. My confusion to who might be in my pool right now was quickly replaced by the realization that it was actually a small group of baboons. I couldn’t believe my eyes. I went outside and the baboons jumped out and ran off not too far, sitting in the shade while staring at me. My wife was not home yet so I thought I would capture these baboons swimming for her to see later on. The baboons were having the time of their lives, totally loving the water. It was like watching a couple of kids play in the swimming pool. The video shows the highlight and most hilarious part of the whole event. I watched all the baboons climbing into the water fairly gently but one specific baboon decided it was time to show off. While the one baboon was in the water, the other suddenly appeared. The baboon analyzed the situation for a short while before running to the other side of the pool, looking extremely excited. The baboon then pulled itself up from the swimming pool wall and jumped into the air to perform the most hilarious looking acrobatic style dive into the water. It all happened so quick, I had to add the little slow-motion bit at the end to really appreciate the unbelievable excitement and freedom the dive was performed with. To date this was definitely still one of my top highlight experiences and sightings while living and working in the African bush.

African elephants are the world’s largest land mammals. The video shows that you need nerves of steel when meeting a giant elephant bull face to face. With no tourists around at the moment, I decided to head out on a self-drive safari, exploring a remote wilderness part of the Kruger National Park. Going out in the wild is always an exciting experience as you never know what you will encounter around the next corner. Even though a safari can be filled with excitement and great sightings, one of the first and foremost things to keep in mind is that the animals you encounter on any African safari are wild, can be very dangerous and even lethal. These wild creatures demand the utmost respect at all times. As a safari guide that mostly lead groups of tourists that has never been in the African bush, it is our responsibility to always keep safety in mind and show respect for wild animals at all times. Different animals react in different ways and as a safari guide, you are trained on how to deal with various situations that involves dangerous animals. The one blanket rule in the African bush is to always keep a safe distance between you and the wild animals. There are times when things can actually take an unexpected turn. While I was driving around in the wild, I came across a large watering hole. In the distance I saw one lone bull elephant enjoying a drink of water before splashing himself with mud in order to cool himself down. I scanned the surroundings and didn’t see any other wildlife nearby. I decided to spend time watching the large bull elephant going about his daily business. Once the elephant bull was done at the water, he slowly started walking in the direction of my vehicle. Originally there was a safe distance between me and the male elephant but with him slowly walking towards me, that distance very quickly shrunk. It would have been suicidal to start the vehicle and make an attempt to get away while the male elephant was approaching. Any sudden behaviour or noise can possibly aggravate the bull elephant, which is something I definitely did not want to do. I had to fall back on my experience and did my best to remain calm and stay very still. This is easier said than done as your natural instinct tells you to get away immediately. The bull elephant ended up right in front of me, towering over my vehicle. It was extremely intimidating to have the bull elephant’s face right in front of me, while sniffing at me with his trunk. With over five tonnes standing right in front of me, not knowing what the animal’s next move will be, it became an absolute heart racing experience for me. The bull elephant then slowly moved to left front of the vehicle. On the front of the vehicle is a seat normally occupied by a scout that helps with spotting and tracking wild animals during a safari. Luckily on this day I was alone. The bull elephant then proceeded to use that seat as a rubbing post, slowly scratching off the mud still stuck on his trunk. After scratching his trunk against the vehicle, it looked like he was moving away to my relief. The relief inside of me quickly disappeared when the massive elephant decided to turn around and have a go at the vehicle with his tusks. The elephant bull bumped the vehicle slightly with his tusks before giving the vehicle a slight lift. The bull elephant was clearly very curious to test his abilities against that of the safari vehicle. This elephant’s behaviour was totally unpredictable and I knew that he could very easily flip my vehicle over. With all of that going through my mind, I used a steady and firm tone of voice to mumble my disapproval of what he was about to do. Luckily my mumbling worked as the elephant stopped banging the vehicle with his tusks and finally pulled away. The elephant bull remained close to the vehicle for another few minutes before he eventually moved on, leaving me in peace. A huge sense of relief fell over me while my heart rate was still going through the roof.

Baby elephants are just adorable and make for entertaining viewing. Watch this excited baby elephant’s hilarious behaviour while playing in the water. During a recent safari in the Kruger National Park, South Africa, we came across a large herd of elephants. We decided to switch off the vehicle and spend some time with these amazing creatures. The African elephant makes part of Africa’s big five list, the top five most dangerous and wanted to see animals, together with rhino, buffalo, leopard and lion. Not only are elephants the largest land mammals on earth but they also rate amongst the most intelligent. With all of these facts in mind, it makes sense to spend time with these fascinating animals. What made this sighting even better was the fact that the elephant herd was around a watering hole. Whenever elephants are near water, they always look at their happiest and can become very playful. Elephants are partial to bathing, swimming and mud-wallowing. An interesting fact about elephants is that they have sweat gland-free skins. Elephants have various forms of thermoregulatory exercises and the use of water is a very important way to cool themselves down during the extreme summers in the African bush. Applying a layer of moisture to the sweat gland-free skin traps a layer of cooler air close to the skin and also prevents excessive exposure of the skin to the harsh African sun. While we enjoyed watching the herd of elephants, drinking and cooling down in the water, my attention was drawn to one particular baby elephant the entered the water. Next to the baby elephant was its mother, busy spraying the underparts of her body with muddy water. It was an absolute scorcher of a day and the baby elephant looked very excited to be in the water. The baby elephant was slapping the water with its trunk in an attempt to imitate its mother’s way of getting a cool down. The baby elephant suddenly decided that there is a much better way to get the job done and dropped on its side into the muddy water. With most of its body covered by the muddy water, the baby elephant took it one step further and proceeded to dunk its whole head and face into the muddy water. This was so funny to watch. The baby elephant slowly returned to its feet, totally covered in mud. Once on its feet, the adorable baby elephant rapidly shook its head and trunk around in circles a few times, looking very playful and excited at the same time. The head shaking of this baby elephant was just hilarious to watch. Knowing how far these elephants had to travel in the severe heat to get a drink and cool down, we could only imagine the satisfaction and relief the baby elephant felt after being in the water. Looking at the baby elephant’s behaviour, it surely looked like it enjoyed every minute in the water. It was not long before the herd headed off, walking back into the very hot and dry bush. Even though elephants love spending time in and around the water, they cannot waste too much time playing around. Due to their size, elephants need to eat a lot of food and constantly need to be on the move in their search for food.

Leopards are normally dangerous and deadly predators, making this male leopard’s hopeless attempts to catch a few annoying flies just adorable to watch. Going on a safari in Africa gives people the unique opportunity to see the continent’s most fascinating creatures living and behaving in their natural environment. The most wanted animals to see while on safari is known as the big five animals and consists of elephant, buffalo, rhino, leopard and lion. The one animal that is by far the most difficult to find is the leopard, a big cat closely related to lions, tigers, and jaguars. The leopard is the most secretive and elusive of the large carnivores and finding one while on safari is a memorable experience. During a recent self-drive safari in the Kruger National Park, South Africa, I was lucky enough to find a male leopard lying on an old wall from a time gone by. It was late afternoon and the beautiful golden light added the perfect opportunity for taking pictures and video. Besides its formidable abilities as a predator, the leopard is admired by humans for its mesmerizing and beautiful appearance. Animal prints such as that of the leopard has fascinated humans for centuries. Leopards have intricate patterning all over their bodies. This pattern is unique to each animal. Majority of the leopard’s body is covered by black spots that are arranged together to form rosettes. The back and flanks of the body are a golden colour and the underside almost pure white. In combination, these disruptive markings and colours provide the leopard with highly effective camouflage. The patterning breaks up the shape of the body and allows the leopard to almost melt invisibly into any habitat. This is critical to facilitate hunting and to remain elusive from its own enemies. An interesting fact is that black leopards or black panthers are in fact simple genetic variations of the normal spotted leopard. The black colouring is known as melanistic form as it is caused by an excess of black pigment called melanin. I was in awe by this stunningly beautiful big cat lying in the golden afternoon sun. The male leopard looked totally relaxed for a while before I suddenly noticed something grabbing his attention. I could not make out what it was and saw the leopard slowly wiggling his tail, looking totally amused by it. The next moment the male leopard lifted his head, snapping with his mouth in the air. The leopard’s large razor-sharp canines were snapping repeatedly in the air. This looked so adorable and I realised the male leopard became annoyed with tiny flies buzzing around his head. It was so funny and cute at the same time to see such a formidable hunter attempting to catch something so small that we and maybe the leopard himself couldn’t even see. This comical behaviour by the leopard is not something one usually see and I was totally pleased to have seen a leopard behaving in such an entertaining manner, right in its own natural environment. When the leopard means business and goes out to do serious hunting, its technique is to either ambush its prey or to stalk it. Leopards rely on the element of surprise and their powerful bodies to capture prey, which is grappled with the fore-claws and then bitten on the back of the head or around the throat. When these killing machines are out hunting, it is hard to believe that there is also a cute and comical side to these wonderful creatures.

Hyenas are mostly perceived as scary, ugly looking creatures that are made for nightmares, but this video actually shows how incredibly cute they can be. The spotted hyena is arguably the most successful large carnivore in Africa. This formidable creature is both a proficient hunter and scavenger, exhibiting resourcefulness and stamina in its foraging pursuits. Throughout history and across cultures, the hyena has been condemned as a scary, evil and ugly villain with a demonic laugh. With such a bad reputation, the hyena is always seen as the bad guys in traditional folklore and even today in movies such as The Lion King. Once you get to know more about the hyena, you realize that these complex creatures are like none other on earth and that the stereotype reputation is far from the truth. Not only are hyenas extremely intelligent but they also fulfill the vital ecological function of eliminating sick and old animals from populations while their scavenging behavior keeps the African bush clean from rotten carcasses and the possible spread of disease. Many people will also claim that the hyena is not a very attractive animal to look at. While this might be the case, their offspring at a young age is a totally different story. Hyena cubs are some of the most adorable baby animals in the African bush. When going on safari, it is always one of the highlights to see cute hyena cubs in their natural environment, if you are lucky enough. One of the best ways to find hyena cubs is to find a hyena den during the winter months of the year. The focus of a hyena clan centers on a communal den where all the females keep their young. During a recent self-drive safari in the Kruger National Park, South Africa, I did just that. I decided to go to an old hyena den I got to know about over the past few years. Hyena dens are usually located in disused termite mounds, large sand structures that are easy to recognize. On my arrival at the den, I was happy to find the den active with two cubs and one female adult. Hyena cubs are in general very playful and make for entertaining viewing. On this occasion things turned out to be the total opposite. I noticed the two cubs lying against each other while basking in the early morning sun. They looked very tired and sleepy, struggling to keep their eyes open. Hyenas are creatures of the night and are mostly active during this time. It was clear that these two cubs had a long night out. Both cubs attempted to keep their heads up but it seemed to be a tough task. It was adorable to watch how the hyena cubs started nodding off while their heads would tilt to the one side as gravity took over. The hyena cubs would suddenly wake up, only for their eyes to close again and their heads falling over again. It was really funny to watch actually how tired these cubs were. Eventually the one cub found itself in a more comfortable position. The second cub finally fell over, fast asleep, with its head hitting the ground. The two cubs did not move again for quite some time. Even though the cubs were not their normal playful self, I was still totally amused by the cute behavior of these two sleepy hyena cubs. With a smile on my face I decided to leave them to sleep in peace and continued with my safari.

The giraffe is not only the tallest land mammal on earth but also one of the most beloved iconic symbols of Africa. These majestic creatures are known to be peaceful in manner with an elegant and graceful appearance. With such a great reputation, I have never met anyone that do not love giraffes and seeing them during a safari is always a great highlight. While these facts are true majority of the time, there are still those rare instances and moments when Mother Nature suddenly reveals a whole different side to these creatures that most people have not seen before. I was leading a safari in the Kruger National Park when we came across a large herd of giraffes that gathered on an open plains area. Seeing many giraffes together always attracts a lot of attention. I decided to switch of the vehicle and spend some time watching these fascinating creatures going about their day. I scanned the area and to my one side I saw two males standing closely together in a side on position. While they were just standing there, I realized that these two male giraffes were locked into what is called a necking battle. Giraffes are not territorial and a local status hierarchy develops according to age and size. This is established through the ritual necking encounters among bachelors from an early age. Majority of the time these duels are not violent and seem like a well synchronized elegant dance and the ultimate intention is for one bull to thrust his neck sideways, making well-placed blows with his horns and knobby head on the opponent’s body while the two animals stand head-to-rump. These fights usually end with the youngest or smallest of the two contenders walking away in order to prevent any serious injuries. When two equally matched bulls are contending for an oestrus cow, it becomes a totally different story and things can become seriously violent. When one of the male giraffes started shoving the other male giraffe into a very thorny tree, I realized that this fight was serious and there was nothing elegant or graceful about it. I grabbed my camera and started filming the event. The one bull managed to realize himself from being shoved into the thorns with a neck swing, hitting his opponent on the body with a serious blow. The two giraffes then stood firmly against each other, sizing each other up with a few mocking attempts. I noticed that the fight was intensifying with the dominant bull starting to use a much more dangerous approach than the usual neck sweeping. The dominant bull used short and very quick backward bursts of the head, hitting his opponent between the junction of his skull and spine with his powerful horns. The dominant bull managed to repeatedly hit his opponent on the same spot, causing a serious open wound. The sound of the blows falling was just unbelievable. A few more blows were exchanged when suddenly, one giraffe fell straight to the ground like a bag of potatoes. I was totally stunned by what I saw and realized the fallen giraffe was knocked out clean. What amazed me even more was the behaviour of the dominant bull afterwards. With his opponent lying ‘lights out ‘on the ground, the winning male surprisingly went and stood on his opponents’ body with one foot. It looked like the dominant giraffe took some sort of a victorious stance, celebrating the victory over his opponent. I was totally speechless by what I saw. With all my years living in the African bush, this was the very first time I have ever saw something like this and will remember it forever.