"This is my territory," roars the lion

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Lions have dominated my last few safari posts. I promise you that we are seeing other animals. But, I can’t resist writing about such wonderful sightings. And, so it is again this morning.

Once lions are spotted, Jaco drives off-road to follow them. We watch as a female lion displays submissive behavior to a male, cowing down before him. Then, the Land Rover creeps along as the male and female walk towards a small lake where the rest of the pride waits.

Suddenly, the lion gives a long roar followed by four short bursts. After the second roaring session, the lioness joins in. According to Jaco, the lion is telling any lion within ten miles that this is his territory.

We sit quietly watching two cubs pounce on each other, practicing stalking skills. Wandering away, they test the limits of their mother’s patience. Soon, she’s following to make sure that they stay out of trouble.

Later in the morning, Jaco spots an older bull elephant grazing on a hillside. We sit and observe as he gracefully lumbers down a hill, snatching the grass with his trunk.

At another watering hole, we stop for amarula and coffee. Then, Jaco checks out a brown hyena’s den located in the rocks above us. The mother hyena slinks off but the baby pokes his head out to take a look at us.

Stopping again, Jaco, who is an entomologist, picks up a dung beetle. We listen to a thirty-minute talk on the importance of the dung-eating insect. Who knew that we were looking at nature’s garbage disposal?

After breakfast on the deck at Madikwe Hills , it’s time to catch up on a little sleep before the afternoon’s game drive. Safaris are hard work.

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Comments

[Al]

Beautiful photos
You've come into your own as a photographer. These are beautiful shots.