In a diverse week, we celebrate such incredible light, sunsets and an array of stunning subjects all going about their daily lives, that we are fortunate enough to share a moment in time with. As the seasons begin to shift, the golden light and breathtaking sunsets have made for unbelievable photographic moments.
Having wild dogs on the property has been special enough in itself, but to capture them in the way we have this week has been the icing on top of the cake.
Lions and leopards have also stepped up to the mark to feature in fabulous fashion. The Ntsevu Breakaway Pride have been back on the property and have provided great sightings on every occasion. What would a Week in Pictures be without some stunning leopard shots? From the Piccadilly Female yawning atop a large boulder to a Black & White image of the Ximungwe Female glancing up, or an intense look at the Flat Rock Male on a territorial patrol. The gorgeous Three Rivers Female or playful Nkoveni Young Female. All have earned their rights to feature in this week’s photographic splendour.
Let us know your favourite image in the comments section below.
Enjoy this Week in Pictures…
Golden light and textures make this portrait shot stand out.
The calm before the storm. 5 members of a wild dog pack scan their surroundings from an elevated area just as the sun is starting to dip towards the horizon.
With the marula trees fruiting during the summer months, the elephants make a feast out of them often roaming from one marula tree to the next in search of the tasty ripening fruit.
Over the last few days, there has been a pack of wild dogs roaming the reserve. After enjoying a spectacular morning following them around they eventually settled down in the shade to rest for the warmer parts of the day.
The Ximungwe Female glances up to check if her kill is still secure in the boughs of the marula above.
The Sand River has been the lifeblood of Londolozi for millennia, during a hot morning a small herd of elephants came down for a quick drink before moving on to carry on their daily feeding missions.
While busy traversing the Londolozi airstrip, this female giraffe stopped for a moment, allowing us to capture the number of Red-billed Oxpeckers arriving to comb through the fur on her neck.
The Flat Rock Male has proven to be more of an elusive individual than he used to be. Now predominantly territorial over the northern section of Londolozi and beyond, it is more difficult to find him.
A Malachite Kingfisher perches on a blade of grass. This Kingfisher glares without losing focus at the river as it flows over the causeway in search of any prey. Being as light as 17 grams, the blade of grass does not even bend under the weight of the little bird. Imagine being that light.
Two of the Ntsevu Sub-adults rear up onto their back legs in a playful wrestling showdown.
It’s during these bouts of playful behaviour that the lions develop important skills and strength that help them hone their hunting and protection abilities. Not to mention, it’s rather entertaining for both us and them as well!
Two large bulls stand side by side with dark grey clouds looming in the background.
The Ntsevu Sub-adults have recently returned from their adventure further south of Londolozi, and are providing some great sightings. Here one of the young males rests his head down as they listen to the disgruntled herd of buffalo move away in the distance.
These Ntsevu breakaway lions watch a giraffe very intently as he feeds peacefully beyond the vehicle.
The Three Rivers Female leopard stares intently at a passing Nyala. Biding her time for the hunt or rather just wanting to remain unseen? In the end, the nyala moved off in one direction and she carried on her patrol in another.
A stunning setting as we watch two of Africa’s largest land mammals roaming through the clearings. Both species sport such incredible detail in the skins, always making for great photographs. Often these details can be enhanced when converting the photograph to monochrome.
The Ximungwe Young Male has been such an entertaining young leopard to spend time with over the last few weeks. His confidence and adventurous nature constantly keeps us intrigued as to what he will do next.
A very young elephant, still unable to control its trunk successfully extends it out in our direction. The dappled light broke through the trees highlighting the little one’s face beautifully.
The two Nkoveni Young Females have always been fun to watch as they play with each other, developing their skills during the periods when their mother is away hunting.
great pictures !!!
Thank you so much, Dina.
Amazing study photo of the Three Rivers Female–such detail!
Wonderful, detailed photo of the Malachite Kingfisher a bird I had never seen previously!
Thank you so much, Vin. It is such a great image of the Three Rivers Female. As well as, that Malachite Kingfisher is stunning.
So MANY great shots here! It is hard to pick a favorite, but because I am a BIG FAN of The Three Rivers female, you know which one I picked! I watched her with her mother when she was tiny. That said, that portrait of her is absolutely perfect! So it is tops on my list. Close runners-up would be the dogs with the beautiful sunset, the playful lions standing up, and the rhino in the golden light! Congrats to all because they all were terrific shots.
Thank you so much, Darlene. Those are some great images. I also love the shot of the Three Rivers Female.
Sean, What fun you had! The images this week are really entertaining and we enjoyed sharing them with our visiting grandchildren! Hoping to bring them to Londolozi someday!
Thank you so much, Michael and Terri. It was a great week thanks. I am glad the grandchildren enjoyed the images. Hopefully we get to see them here sooner rather than later.
All pictures are superb and many favourite animals of ours, say big cats, elephants, rhino and giraffe. The elephant calf is too sweet! But the Three River Female ‘s picture is the one I’d love to see on my wall. Nature is thriving and you are all excellent at taking such unique shots of life.
Thank you so much, Francesca. The wildlife here is thriving and it is so amazing to spend time with them out here making the opportunities to capture some great shots possible.
Sean, thanks for another wonderful week in Pictures. The playful lions, the baby elephant and the little kingfisher were my favorites.
Thank you so much, William. Those are some great shots.
What a beautiful selection of photos this week! It wasn’t hard to pick my favorite after viewing them all! It has to be the Wild Dogs looking over the land with the perfect background! The colors are amazing!
Thank you so much, Debra. That shot of the wild dogs is stunning.
Stunning photos. I love the one of the Malachite Kingfisher best. Its colors are so beautiful .
Thank you so much, Christa. Malachite Kingfishers are such gorgeous birds, and Jess’s photo does such a great job of portraying that.
How many Ntsevu sub adults are there in the breakaway pride? And what is the male to female ratio?
Hi Chris, if I am not mistaken there were initially 12 with a breakdown of seven males and five females. Now I believe that there is only six males left. They are no longer all spending time together so tricky to keep track of who and where they all are.
Great pics Sean. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you so much, Leonie.
A beautiful composite of images this week, especially in the predator category. However, I have to compliment Jess for her stunning Malachite Kingfisher photo. They are difficult to capture due to their size and rapid movements. The rhino in the the golden light is another wonderful image.
It’s hard to believe it’s been almost a year since I was at Londolozi and viewing the week in pictures as well as the virtual safari intensifies my longing to return. Unfortunately I won’t make it this year due to the surgery complication, but my plan is to return next summer! In the meantime, I’ll continue to live vicariously through all your images.
Thank you so much, Denise. It was a great photographic week for everyone.
I am so glad that you are planning to come back next summer. We will certainly keep you up to date with all the TWIPs and Virtual Safaris.
Difficult choice as always, but my favourite this week has to be the wild dog pack with that gorgeous sky – stunning. By the way, I love where you placed the TWIP banner over the lions!
Thank you so much, Suzanne. That picture of the wild dogs is amazing. Thank you, It was such a great pic of the lions fighting and works very well as the banner.
Oh, the shot of the baby elephant! And the one with a rhino AND elephants! So great!
Thank you so much, Linda. Those are some great choices too.
Gosh the Three Rivers female and the black and white of the Ximungwe female are my winners this week what fabulous photographs ‼️💗…..followed closely by the baby elephant. But as always Sean and team they are absolutely stunning. Thank you for sharing as always🙏🏻
Thank you so much, Cally.
They are ALL beautiful.
Thank you so much, Gerald.
This truly was a spectacular week for pictures! Really hard to pic a a-favorite but if I hone it down to just good photography and not the characters I love so much for me it was the Wild Dogs in the glow of the golden light and the Malachite Kingfisher the way his body twists lyrically around that stalk. Great shots!
Thank you so much, Johanna. Those are some great choices.
Even by it’s normally high standards, this TWIP is a cracker
Sean this was jam packed with such stunning foto’s. The baby elephant is absolutely gorgeous. Loved the foto the lions playing and the Ximungwe male cub is so beautiful. Not to talk about Nkoveni female cubs that give us endless viewing of them playing. The rhino fotos are unique and it is not always that we see them.
SO many great photographs this week! The kingfisher is spectacular 🤩.
I imagine watching the lions play fighting was entertaining. They certainly looked like they were having fun!
Awesome pics this week! My favourites would have to be the stunning pic of the wild dogs with that incredible backdrop, and the gorgeous baby elephant!!
Thank you so much, Carly. The pic of the Wild dogs with the gorgeous sky behind is stunning.
Stunning TWIP Sean! Simply cannot choose one this week.
Counting the sleeps until we are back with you all again.
Thank you so much, Jane. I am sure you are so excited to be coming back.
These pictures were so fun to see plus such a variety of animals. Like you said, they looked happy as I did seeing these wonderful pictures you give us every day. Thank you! We look forward to seeing you soon!