The South Pride is back! Conflict between the Kruger Male and the Sparta Males in the Sabi Sands’ southern reaches has resulted in the older South Pride females bringing the young members of the pride to unfamiliar territory. Unfamiliar territory for them means unfamiliar lions as well, and the potential for further trouble. Will they be able to keep the youngsters safe in what is essentially an area controlled by the Majingilane?
Most of the migrant bird species have headed North for the Winter, leaving the resident birds and the odd confused cuckoo to brave the cold temperatures that are dropping all the time. The bush is taking on its dry season hues of brown, chocolate and tan, but the mornings are crisp, the lighting for photography is exquisite, and without the oppressive heat, the animals stay active until much later in the morning.
Enjoy this week in pictures…
Sunrise breaks over the mist at Londolozi. This is my favourite time of year; getting out before the sun is up combined with the dawn chill makes heading out on drive just that tiny bit more exciting for me. f3.2, 1/4000s, ISO 160
A large male warthog takes advantage of a wallow while it still has water in it. The ephemeral pans are steadily drying up as winter approaches. F4.5, 1/800s, ISO 100
The Mashaba female yawns broadly in the dawn light. She followed a scent trail into dense Combretum thickets on this particular morning, straight to where the Marthly male was scaring the Camp Pan male away from a kill. As if that wasn’t enough, she then led us back to where she had stashed her cub. A crazy morning in the bush! F3.2, 1/320s, ISO 160
A brown snake eagle surveys its domain on a chilly Autumn morning. The large heads of these eagles make them identifiable from a long way off, and once up close, their distinctive yellow eyes render this species unmistakeable. f5.6, 1/400s, ISO 100
A magnificent bull elephant stands nonchalantly nearby. His left tusk gone, it could have been broken off in a fight with a rival male or snapped while uprooting a tree. F3.2, 1/1000s, ISO 100
My favourite lions: the Southern or Selati Pride. The largest pride in the Sabi Sands, they are not often seen on our property, but provide wonderful viewing when they do appear. They might be around for awhile if the turmoil between the males to the south does not resolve itself soon. F6.3, 1/320s, IS0 100
One of the senior members of the Southern Pride, this lioness is easily distinguished by her floppy ear. for some reason she had an empty belly on this morning while the rest of the pride had fed well during the night. F5, 1/500s, ISO 100
The diversity of the lions in the Southern Pride is what I love. Young males, young females, older lionesses and cubs; when in a sighting with them, wherever you look there is a lion of a different shape and size. F4.5, 1/800s, ISO 100
A bit of chaos as some whitebacked vultures all try to land on the same dead leadwood simultaneously. F4.0, 1/1250s, ISO 160
The golden orb-web spider dangling near this Majingilane’s right ear made me include this photo. f2.8, 1/250s, ISO 800
In an outrageous display of strength, one of the Majingilane picks up a giraffe carcass weighing probably in excess of 200kg and moves it a good 150m. We think this male robbed the South Pride of this kill. Their tracks were in the area and some of the carcass had already been eaten; too much for the male to have eaten by himself. f2.8, 1/80s, ISO 320
A whitebackd vulture comes in for a landing as the Majingilane male moves the giraffe carcass… F2.8, 1/1000s, ISO 100
Fresh leopard tracks and a jackal alarm-calling told of a male leopard in the vicinity. It was the Maxabene 3:3 young male, on the scent trail of something, as he sniffed around continuously for 30mins before disappearing into a Terminalia thicket. F9, 1/400s, ISO 100
A side-striped jackal hops up from the warm sand of the track. These little omnivores are often to be found in pairs, but their grey and brown colouration makes them difficult to spot in long grass. F4, 1/800s, ISO 400
A young vervet monkey ponders life while his mother sits nearby. F2.8, 1/640s, ISO 320
Photographed by James Tyrrell
Wonderful blog, thanks ! I bet Adam will be peeved that he left too early to see the Southern Pride back on Londolozi ! I wonder why Floppy Ear wasn’t allowed to eat ?
These photos bring back so many wonderful memories of our trip to Londolozi back in 1999.
Thank you so very much for your wonderful photos and comments.
Always a pleasure to share a bit of your corner of paradise.
More incredible photos. Love your detailed blog and hearing about the changing season. Thanks James!
James, the sunrise pic is simply splendid and I understand you get up early for that!! One techie question: do you use aperture priority for most of your pics?
Keep them coming. Looking forward to it every Friday.
Jan-Erik
Hi Jan
To answer your question as James is away on leave-yes, I know he does shoot on aperture priority. It is generally the mode used most often in wildlife photography, but there are many different ways of achieving the same outcome and in the end it comes down to personal preference.
Thanks Dave,
I do indeed shoot on aperture priority but like David says, it is a matter of preference. I like aperture priority as the depth of field is under your control.
For the sunrise pic I made sure to underexpose by 2 stops (2 stops isn’t always necessary and the amount can be played around with) in order to capture the gold and orange and not have the pic completely blown out.
James
Great Friday viewing in Hawai’i. Mahalo.
Thank you James for the wonderful photos – in Sydney this morning with the never ending dream and memories of Londolozi last year. Such an amazing place 🙂
What a beautiful collection of pictures! Sunrise over a misty April Londolozi brought on a severe spasm of ‘homesickness’.
Another great week!! What incredible photos as always JT!
Awesome photos!!! Thank you for sharing with us!!!!
As always, thank you James!