A well kept secret

So the little leopard cub that was so photographically obliging a few months ago, (http://kurtjaybertels.wordpress.com/2011/09/23/cute-vs-cute-part-2/), was holding onto a secret – one which was revealed in the last light of a great afternoon safari!

I had been down to the den site numerous times to see if I could get a few more shots of the little fella, but was unsuccessful every time. On what seemed like a pointless bet, I gave it one last throw of the dice, and came up trumps!
I caught a glimpse of a leopard as I was approaching the rocky outcrop, but it seemed a little too big to be the star of the Cute vs. Cute showdown. When I got within a decent distance, it turned out it was the mother of the cub, and as a bonus, the now slightly larger cub was out and about, annoying it’s mother tirelessly. The two leopards groomed and played with each other for a glorious half an hour, providing many great gigs worth of photos!
Almost instantly, the fun and games stopped. The cub bolted off behind the rocks, and was out of sight. The mother paid no attention, so I waited with her, hoping the cub would come back, and the clicking of the cameras could continue.
The little spotted head appeared from behind the rocks, and I aimed the camera in that direction… While I was looking through the lens, a second little head appeared! The little blighter has a sibling!
The clicking went into overdrive, and I was sure that someone’s shutter was about to catch fire!
The happy threesome got a little more mobile with their playful antics, and the light was fading fast, which made things a touch more difficult. I did manage to get in some good shots before they moved off through the rocks though, which will keep me happy until I manage to find them again!

Always nice.

I got a lovely piece of news recently. I managed to get an image into the Fuji/Getaway Wildlife Photographer of the Year 2011!
This competition is the biggest competition in Africa, so it is always nice to be a part of it! The competition was stiff, as it always is, with great talent being showcased from around the continent.
My image, Celebrity, sneaked into the ‘People in Nature’ category; a category that highlights the relationship between humans and wildlife. I have tried images like this for years, and came close, but this particular image had a little something extra.
It is a competition I have won before (2006), and the dream of a second win is still on the cards, so keep an eye on next years awards…

Fuji Award 2011

A good old fashioned beat down

Madness! That is the only way to describe it! Pure, sharp toothed, claw extended madness! It all started quite peacefully but ended up being a good old fashioned beat down!
I found a young male lion, moving through the bush with a purpose. At this point, I am sure his intention did not match the eventual outcome! He had picked up on a scent, and was moving quickly towards its owner. Nose to the ground, he gathered momentum, closing in.
Unknowingly, he found himself in the boxing ring. He stood still, quizzically looking at the pride of lions he had been tracking, and watched, confused, as the oldest female in the pride came barrelling towards him, teeth exposed, ready for action. It almost seemed as though he didn’t think she would follow through, because he just stood there, processing. I, however, had fully processed and lifted the camera!
The bush was quite thick, so I drove, hurriedly some would say, to get ringside seats. As luck would have it, I ended up right next to the fight (almost too close – for comfort anyway), and what followed was a blur of shutter; lions fighting; dust; shutter; lions fighting; hair; shutter; lions fighting; teeth; shutter!
Madness!
The young male got taught a serious lesson in approaching unfamiliar prides! The two females got hold of him, and gave him a quick once over, while the sub adults in the pride, although keen to engage, stood in their mothers corner and took it all in!
He managed to pop out of the attack seemingly unhurt. He had some blood on his head, but I don’t think it hurt as much as the bruised ego!
Somewhere in all the madness, the shutter clicked at the right time, and I got some pretty cool images!

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Lions fighting

Cute vs Cute: A surprise late entry!

Just when the judges were tallying up their scores, a surprise late entry into the cutest cub competition enters the fray, and they are hard to ignore!
The entry was in fact so late, that the ringside announcer went home, leaving me to do the honours. At a cool 30 pounds combined, a matching his and hers combination from the deep south, born from the belly of National Geographic’s hyaena queen herself… two little hyaena cubs!
(I don’t think I quite managed to pull off the ringside voice.)

These two little chaps have been quietly growing up under a massive rock in the southern most reaches of the reserve, unbeknownst to us, until now. A bit of luck, well, mostly guess work, led to the discovery of the den site a few weeks ago. Patience turned out to be the key, as they were rather nervous at first of the massive Land Rover parking on top of their rocky fortress. This was until we were lucky enough to be there when the mother arrived back at the den site, and introduced her youngsters to the vehicle. Since then, it has taken a few trips down south to get useable shots of these little guys, but it has been well worth the wait!

I fully understand that hyaenas are not everyone’s cup of tea, no thanks to Disney there, but look at these faces! How could you not give them a vote in the cutest cub throw down?

Check out the poll at the end, and cast your vote!

Hyaena cub

Hyaena cubs

Hyaena cubs playing

Hyaena cubs playing

Hyaena cub with it’s prize

Hyaena cub investigates the water

Hyaena cub moves closer

Hyaena cub

So much for the textbook!

Mating leopards, according to the textbook, are not supposed to bother with hunting. Recently, I saw them throw the textbook out the window, interrupt their less than romantic copulations, and chase down a baby nyala.
Well, there wasn’t much chasing to be done, because the nyala was only a few days old.
The male leopard, took off like a shot into some thick bush, the stalk forgotten about, and popped back up with the helpless victim in his clutches.

Adding to the unusual events, he had not killed the little chap, but instead, stood over it, looking quizzically at it. The female leopard, having heard the cry for help from the little nyala, came rushing in to see if she could get a part of the meal on offer. She too put instinct aside, and watched it for a while.
By the time I managed to get into a position to photograph the madness, the nyala lamb made a mad dash for it, taking the two leopards with it, in what became a cruel game of cat and, well, nyala. These miniature chases went on for a while, but only allowed one photo opportunity. I did get a sequence that I am extremely proud of, given the terrain, and lighting! (Check the madness on Mating leopards kill nyala)
Eventually though, it all came to an end, when the female leopard laid down the business, ending the nyala’s misery.
Immediately after, the male came back to the kill, chased off the female, and took his prize. While he was feeding, she repeatedly tried to mate with him, but he took her advances as an attempt to steal his quarry, and met her with enough aggression to keep her at bay.

Leopard catching nyala

Leopard catching nyala

Leopard catching nyala

Leopard killing nyala

Male leopard steals back his kill

Cute vs Cute: Part 2

In part two of the difficult choice showdown, we have, (said in the same ring side announcers voice) the challenger… tipping the scales at a massive 6 pounds flat, representing the flat rocks on the eastern bank of the Sand River… an adorable little leopard cub!

Now the two on one fight is not usually fair, but this little chap brings a few extra weeks experience to the table, aging comfortably at between six to eight weeks.

The little blighter was found completely by chance, while watching kudu feeding nearby the rocky den. The spotted fluff ball made a dash across the rocks, giving away the den site, and allowing us a unique photographic opportunity! When he realized he had been seen, he went for the tried and trusted, ‘stand still’ approach that leopards instinctively use. The near foolproof technique almost worked, but the human frontal lobe won the battle, and I managed to find him again.

Amazingly, he relaxed up to the vehicle almost immediately, and allowed for a good photo session. He moved cautiously around the large rocks for a while, and then very casually rested in some shade, right next to me!

So there we have it, the throw down has been…thrown down… Which ball of fluff takes the title of the cutest cub?

Leopard cub

Leopard cub

Leopard cub exploring

Leopard cub relaxing

Cute vs Cute: Part 1

Two sightings have produced one very difficult choice. Which one is actually the cutest?

In part one of this showdown, we have, (said in ring side announcers voice) weighing in at a combined weight of eight pounds two ounces, hailing from a rocky outcrop in the north of the reserve… two of the cutest little lion cubs I have ever seen!
I managed to get a glimpse of these little chaps at between three and four weeks old! Unbelievable luck!
It all started with a sighting of the female, moving through some pretty tall grass. When she moved through an open patch, a couple balls of fluff were scampering around her feet. I managed a few glimpses through the grass, but no pics were on offer.
Being a seasoned pro, (the mother of the cubs is the oldest female in her pride, at roughly sixteen years), she felt comfortable enough around the vehicle to move out onto the road – and where mom goes, the cubs will follow! This produced an amazing opportunity to get some shots!

They were full of energy, and seemed to be enjoying their first outing into the real world, and in a world where danger lies waiting around every corner, there is a certain freedom afforded to the cubs of the top of the food chain!

In part two, we will have a look at the challenger…

The proud mother

Lioness and cubs

Lion cub scampers through the grass

Lioness and cub emerge onto the road

Lion cubs

Lion cub

Lion cub

Lion cub

This is getting ridiculous!

I am running the risk of being called a liar – but it’s worth it to bring you a little friend I have affectionately named…number 4!

I have been going on over the last few months,(The good luck continues; It took a while to find it) about the seldom seen pangolin, and how lucky I have been to see them, but the rumours seem to be losing momentum, as a lifetime fourth popped up!
This is the first one I have seen at night, surprising, as they are mostly nocturnal, and gave me the chance to try using the spotlight to light the scaly subject up.
It was great to see him roll up into his defensive ball, then poke his head out just a bit, to see which direction was the safest, followed by a charge for the tall grass.
The greatest challenge, however, was not the lighting, nor trying to find the head, but trying not to loose yourself in the moment, and forget that the lions, leopards and hyaenas do not stop prowling through the night, because you want to photograph a pangolin!
With a little help, I managed to stay on the right side of trouble, and have added a few shots to the pangolin library that I am proud of.

Pangolin in defensive ball

Pangolins armour

Peeking Pangolin

Pangolin

You little beauty

In wildlife photography, there is only one thing better than luck – a relaxed individual! Combine the two, and you will get images that I never dreamed possible!
A young serval kitten has recently left her mother, and is starting life out on her own. Surprisingly, she seems very relaxed about the business of surviving!

Now, finding servals is not easy, (see Slightly smaller spots.), but finding them in the day, is a near impossibility! This little lady, however, is going against all the textbooks! She is as relaxed as you like, and seems to be more active in the day, than at night. This makes photographing her a whole lot easier! It also helps, that if you are patient enough, she walks right up to you, and poses beautifully!
I was patient enough; she posed beautifully!

At one point, she smoothed past a LBJ, (little brown job – a term for an unknown bird {turned out to be a Cisticola}), and I thought I was in for the shot of a lifetime, (see the serval flying through the air, bird in claws), but after a quick look, she decided to keep at the mice, her meal of choice. She did catch one or two, but in a scrappy fashion, (read: No photos), not the usual glamorous leap they are famous for. I will keep trying for that shot!

I will continue hanging around the areas where she has been seen, as this treat might not last forever. Whatever happens, I will definitely let you know!

Serval moves through the grass

Serval cat inspects the field

Serval stalking through the grass

Serval stalks through the grass

Serval looks into the grass

A bird watches the serval move on

Servals ears

Serval pose

Serval licking lips

A messy little miracle

The miracle of birth…
An often romanticised idea of new life entering the world, wrapped up in a towel, with the doting parents covered in smiles and pride.
This is not how it works in the buffalo world – I can assure you!

It is a very uneventful, emotionless affair, with the little blighter being dropped into the dry winter grass in a slump of buffalo and afterbirth.
The rest of the herd didn’t even break rhythm from their cud chewing to take notice of the little fella as he joined the team.

We all know that the lions enjoy a good buffalo every now and again, and our newbie, by default, instantly became target number one! The trick to beating this unfortunate start, is to get up and moving as quickly as possible. Like a heavyweight boxer after taking a good right, the fourteen minute old buffalo calf wobbled around trying to find his legs. No more than two and a half minutes later, he was able to follow his mother! This was an amazing a feat as the actual birth! It was a solid effort from the wide eyed young gun, as his journey from cute, young calf to grumpy old male began.

Female Buffalo

Buffalo birth

Buffalo birth

Buffalo birth

Buffalo birth

Buffalo birth

Buffalo birth

Buffalo birth

Buffalo birth

Buffalo birth

Buffalo cleaning the afterbirth

A tender moment

A tender moment

Unfolding the legs

Unfolding the legs

First steps

First steps

First steps