It really was a dream come true.
The elephant herds moved on to Banyini in the middle of the day. I’ve never seen them here other than at dusk.
And to crown it they came out in force. Nearly the whole Malilangwe elephant population was there, probably about 120 elephants. What a most awesome sight!
The pan was totally surrounded by elephants and in today’s heat they were all going wild in the water and mud spending about at least an hour there.
I was so engrossed and so stunned at this impressive sight I didn’t feel the heat that had escalated to over 40 degrees C. No wonder the elephants were loving it so.
A young bull was desperately trying to chase the Saddle-billed Stork that was fishing in the pan and I was fully engrossed in filming the scene when I suddenly felt my vehicle rocking and looked up to find Tuchem (an adolescent bull) pushing the front of my car. He wasn’t a threat and soon moved off.
Wow! Wow! Wow!
These sights of Africa’s wildlife and their interactions with me are such gems that will and do stick in my mind forever. My library of these experiences is just growing in my head and will never be satiated. All such special stuff!
(Sorry don’t mean to rub it in but hell I sure do realise how amazingly lucky I am!)
I left the elephants to repair a couple of punctures and for my daily run which in this heat was a challenge just to make it back to base.
The lions were still with their zebra carcass at dawn, which no doubt they’ll finish tonight not leaving much for the many vultures that have waited nearly 3 days to get a few scraps.
At sunset the elephant herds were back at Banyini but unfortunately it was now too dark to film. Which in a way was a great change as I could now sit back and absorb the beauty of it all.
A White Rhino and calf had to make way when the elephants arrived. They were covered in Yellow-billed Oxpeckers which was a little unusual. Was it maybe they were getting ready to roost as these oxpeckers roost on their host?
I envy you soooooo much !
I hope you’ll be able to continue what you do for a long time, thank you so much for sharing your experiences.
What a beautiful sight. I wish I was there to at least carry your camera equipment!
I do think you have to be the luckiest guy around. You and Sir David Attenborough are my favourite nature guys. Thanks for inspiring me every day!
What a treat AGAIN tonight!! Awesome,awesome,awesome - certainly no need for words! I do love elephants! You are indeed a lucky man but it’s refreshing that you know it & I think we’re all very lucky to have you - you share so much with us. Most of us would never get a chance to see what you show us everyday - thanks doesn’t quite seem to be enough but hope you know we do appreciate you!
Kim - here comes another one of my silly questions - how many herds is that? Do they tolerate each other from other herds? Last - why was Tuchem bumping your vehicle? Is he just fooling around & how do you know him? Ok - keep cool - see ya tomorrow!
Your link you delivered to me came thru, thanks, but it looks to not be working, does anybody have a backup, or mirror source? Just something that works.
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