Caracals are creatures that cultivate anonymity. A sleek and mysterious wild cat, is known for its striking appearance and agile hunting skills. What is a caracal? A caracal is a medium-sized beautiful wild cat with a sandy coat and some freckling (often faint) on the belly and the insides of the legs. It has large, […]
Tag: Vervet monkeys
“Long, curved talons can crush the skull and break the spine of large prey – and carcasses too heavy to carry are dismembered where they fall”
The crowned eagle is considered Africa’s most powerful raptor. Built for ambushing prey among the trees, it kills monkeys and antelopes almost four times its own weight, crushing their skulls in its enormous talons. Its prowess may even have made it a hunter of our distant ancestors. Yet its strength offers little protection against the disappearance of […]
‘The leopard was crouched 3m away, its golden eyes locked on mine. What happened next is still a blur’
We took the bridge over the River Khwai. A phalanx of firewood rattled in the back of the beat-up Land Rover. Sardined beside it, my siblings nattered and quibbled. It was 2012 and we were a full-house family – two adults, three children – eight weeks and two breakdowns into a self-drive safari sabbatical. Travelling […]
Watch dramatic BBC footage shows desperate, ravenous leopard mother risking death for her cubs, high in the treetops
In Botswana’s wild Okavango Delta, leopards love to feast on large ungulates, such as antelope and zebra. The Delta is usually home to a rich array of flora and fauna, attracting huge populations of elephants, hippopotamuses, crocodiles, buffalo and antelope from across the region. The abundance of prey makes it a prime location for Africa’s […]
Watch dramatic BBC footage shows desperate, ravenous leopard mother risking death for her cubs, high up in the treetops
In Botswana’s wild Okavango Delta, leopards love to feast on large ungulates, such as antelope and zebra. The Delta is usually home to a rich array of flora and fauna, attracting huge populations of elephants, hippopotamuses, crocodiles, buffalo and antelope from across the region. The abundance of prey makes it a prime location for Africa’s […]
Colony of world’s highest-flying bird under threat in Uganda
LUKU CENTRAL FOREST RESERVE, Uganda — Ornithologist Ivan Oruka stops suddenly near the foot of a cliff that’s streaked with the telltale whitewash of bird droppings. He quickly presses his binoculars to his eyes. Against the clear blue sky, on a bright September morning, at least 29 large birds circle effortlessly above on broad, dark […]
In the drylands of northern Kenya, a ‘summer school’ for young researchers
ISIOLO, Kenya — A hot wind sweeps across the rocky brush of Camp Simpirre in northern Kenya’s Isiolo county. Baboons cross the pathway to the dinner hall; vervet monkeys patter across the tin roof that shades an assembled group of 47 researchers and academics from the beating midday sun. The night before, some were jolted […]