What would a post of the things of Africa be without a picture of a sunset?? Whether it is summer or winter, I love to watch the changing colors in the sky during these times and never fail to be amazed at the variety.
This is a Monitor Lizard. They grow to about 6 foot in length and we have two types, the Water Monitor and the Ground Monitor. They are very similar in looks having only slightly different markings, but their choice of habitat is completely different as their names imply. Our largest eagle, the Martial, is it's worst enemy and I have seen them get into big fights.
This smallish buck is called a Klipspringer (translation: rock jumper). It stands about 2-2.5 feet to the top of it's head and is found on most rocky outcrops where they are quite at home. The male and female mate for life and they stay in the same area all year through. They will have one youngster at a time which will stay with the parents for about 2 years. Only the males have horns.
The name Hippopotomus is Greek for "River Horse". They weigh about a tone and love basking on the sandbanks when it is not so hot. They are very agile for their size and are said to have caused more deaths in Africa than the lion.
The Cape Buffalo is not scared of anything although they are the favorite prey of lions who mostly go for the young and sick amongst a herd. Both sexes have horns and the males often form herds on their own returning only when they want to mate with the females. I have seen huge herds of 200-300 during the early morning or late afternoon when they go down to the rivers to drink water.
The Bat-eared Fox is small, maybe 1 foot at shoulder height and mostly come out to forage at dusk and dawn. They are insect eaters and with those huge ears, are capable of hearing the smallest insect living under the soil. They are very adept at digging these out to eat.
The home of the lion!! It is quite amazing to think that these beautiful creatures were once found in Europe and are now confined to small pocket areas in Africa only.
This smallish buck is called a Klipspringer (translation: rock jumper). It stands about 2-2.5 feet to the top of it's head and is found on most rocky outcrops where they are quite at home. The male and female mate for life and they stay in the same area all year through. They will have one youngster at a time which will stay with the parents for about 2 years. Only the males have horns. The name Hippopotomus is Greek for "River Horse". They weigh about a tone and love basking on the sandbanks when it is not so hot. They are very agile for their size and are said to have caused more deaths in Africa than the lion. The Cape Buffalo is not scared of anything although they are the favorite prey of lions who mostly go for the young and sick amongst a herd. Both sexes have horns and the males often form herds on their own returning only when they want to mate with the females. I have seen huge herds of 200-300 during the early morning or late afternoon when they go down to the rivers to drink water. The Bat-eared Fox is small, maybe 1 foot at shoulder height and mostly come out to forage at dusk and dawn. They are insect eaters and with those huge ears, are capable of hearing the smallest insect living under the soil. They are very adept at digging these out to eat.The home of the lion!! It is quite amazing to think that these beautiful creatures were once found in Europe and are now confined to small pocket areas in Africa only.
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