There’s a nip in the air again, so the balaclava came out this morning on my way to Nduna. What an awesome way to start one’s day, in one of the most picturesque places on the entire reserve. I went right down into the camp to get some audio sounds for Kim’s movies, but as the sun started piercing the mist hovering over the water, I couldn’t resist shooting as much as I could before sun was too high. The colours were so intense that It looked as if there were flames burning on the water. From far off, the hippos would snort, which looked like a dragon blowing flames from its nostrils – good thing we don’t live back in the day, it could be quite frightening.
When the sun had finished its job of bringing the landscape to life, I headed for Bandama Pan. This is one of the hot spots for rhinos, so I waited around for a long time capturing pictures and hoping for a little luck. I surprised two marabou storks raiding a nest in a shrub, and I saw four three-banded plovers giving the pan the once over.
Later in the day I was keen to get those sable antelope again, except this time I wasn’t going to rely on my luck. I followed the researchers in to a herd they were checking up on, then stuck with the herd until sunset. They were a little shy at first and weaved their way around the Mopane woodlands.
Every now and then there was an opening where I could move in on, but it wasn’t until an hour of me sticking to their movements that they relaxed and allowed me to get a little closer. This was a herd of seventeen sable with at least four juveniles. I was hoping to get a little more behaviour from them, but I’m sure as they relax a little more they will carry on as normal. We are privileged to be able to capture this majestic species, and we are now able to track them with our radio receivers, which makes it easier to keep tabs on them.
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