A few more photos from our visit to South Africa last year.

Maximum temperature in the Charente today 10C, minimum 4C. 2mm of rain measured this morning but we had a dry day. 23km/h south-westerly winds with gusts up to 45 km/h.

African elephant (Loxodonta africana).
Again, I will not state exactly where animals were seen because of poaching risks.

Note those long eyelashes!!

African hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius) out of the water grazing. Usually, grazing occurs during the evening or the night, but looking at the amount of grass around I guess they need more feeding hours.  Recent rains have fallen in many places in South Africa but some are still drought-stricken.

Greater kudu, female (Tragelaphus strepsiceros). Note the Red-billed oxpeckers (Buphagus erythrorhynchus) on her back

As above; see she has an oxpecker on her head.  The birds do a fabulous job of keeping the animals free from ticks and parasites.

Kudu male.  The female does not have horns.

Lion (Panthera leo)...

and lioness.

Common warthog (Phacochoerus africanus).

Waterbuck  (Kobus ellipsiprymnus)...

As above

African wild dog (Lycaon pictus)

Sometimes one has to just relax, hook your trunk over a tusk and close your eyes for a snooze

Last but not least this couple totally ignored us. Females are receptive to mating for three or four days within a widely variable reproductive cycle. During this time a pair generally mates every 20–30 minutes, with up to 50 copulations per 24 hours.

See also my

 Bird blog

Photos taken while in Africa - because of poaching I am not stating where they were seen, we travelled to many places.

Maximum temperature in the Charente today 14C, minimum 0C. Dry. 13km/h North-Easterly winds with gusts up to 25 km/h!!

Impala, (Aepyceros melampus). An interesting fact about the Impala is that mothers can delay giving birth for a month if the weather conditions are harsh. 

Waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus) facing the camera and Hartebeest, (Alcelaphus buselaphus), with its back to the camera.

African buffalo or Cape buffalo (Syncerus caffer).

Young South African giraffe (Giraffa giraffa).

As above.

White rhinoceros or square-lipped rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum).  This animal is a hand-reared orphan returned to the wild after its mother was killed by poachers!!  Hopefully, it will have a better life than its mother

The rare occasion of elephant twins. African elephant (Loxodonta), they were only a couple of weeks old...

As above...

As above.

Male lion (Panthera leo). The female was hiding behind a bush. They were both fat and lazy ofter a meal of zebra...

As above.

Yellow mongoose (Cynictis penicillata), sometimes referred to as the red meerkat.

See also my Bird blog, I have many photos of birds and I will put most of them on this blog.

30/04/2017 Wet day and I have been catching up with photos taken on our trip to Botswana in February, so here are a few of them.

Maximum temperature 18C, minimum 6C. 29 kmh with 50 kmh gusts SW wind. Cloud and sun.  Quite a bit of rain not measured as yet.

Waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus).

Black-backed jackal (Canis mesomelas).

Young Zebra.  Burchell's zebra. (Equus burchelli).

Broad-bordered grass yellow  (Eurema brigitta).

Brown Veined White  (Belenois aurota).

Crimson-breasted shrike (Laniarius atrococcineus).

Elegant Grasshopper (Zonocerus elegans).

South African giraffe  (Giraffa giraffa giraffa).

Red hartebeest (Alcelaphus buselaphus caama).

White rhinoceros or square-lipped rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum).

Baboon in hiding!  Family (Cercopithecidae).

Wait for me Mum.  Elephant  (Loxodonta africana).

Pied kingfishers (Ceryle rudis).

Rainbow at Chobe.

and sunset on the Chobe river.