White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) - Wildlife and Nature Pictures

White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) Heading for extinction? 

The White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) is one of only 2 species of Rhinoceros in Sub-Saharan Africa. The other species is the 'Black Rhinoceros' (Diceros bicornis). The White Rhinoceros is easily distinguishable by it broad square lip as its some times called the square-lipped rhinoceros, Black Rhinoceroses lips are a more 'pointed' affair.

These magnificent animals are being poached in South Africa at a rate faster than they can produce. Last year 2013 the White Rhinoceros alone was poached and horribly mutilated in the process, at a rate of nearly 3 a day in South Africa, todate March 2014 37 have already gone, thats almost 2 a day. They are slaughtered to service in most part the Far Eastern 'powdered' rhino horn trade, used amongst other thing as an aphrodisiac!!

This white rhinoceros photograph below could be all that is left to see in a few short years if we can not successfully combat this horrific barbaric act being commited it would seem at will by organised international gangs.  We need your help, Rhino Revolution is one such organisation trying to combat the senseless slaughter here in South Africa. 

Under severe threat from poaching-White Rhinoceros (Ceratotherium simum) - South Africa

Wildlife and Nature Pictures - African Elephant (Loxodonta africana)

Wildlife and Nature Pictures - African Elephant

(Loxodonta africana) a Kruger Tale

As many of you know South Africa is known for its splendid national wildlife parks and an opportunity to see and photograph nature at first hand, especially Africa's Big 5 which includes the magnificent African Elephant (Loxodonta africana) as its largest and possibly most dangerous member. 

Many wildlife photographers, including myself ensure we prepare ourselves for a photographic trip the night before and get up very early the following morning to ensure we can capture natures wildlife in all its natural glory in those few hours just before and after sunrise, this we call the 'golden hours' just a few hours either side of sunrise and or sunset when the light is at its best.

So with all this preparation and very early mornings, you wouldn't be surprised that normally around 8am my wife and I usually steer ourselves to one of the very splendid picnic spots South African national wildlife parks provide its customers for a much welcomed breakfast break.

It was at one such picnic spot called 'Tshokwane' (named after 'Tshokwane' a South African man of 'Muti' or 'medicine man' in the area) between Kruger National Parks most famous of rest camps 'Satara' and 'Skukuza' we stopped for a 'breakfast break'. It was here that my wife and I experienced a simple and somewhat tender moment with one of South Africa's Big 5 the African Elephant. We were just finishing up our breakfast when I noticed 3 or 4 African Elephants (possibly made up of a Matriarch and some younger female siblings) come out the bush and step over a small fence separating the picnic spot from the rest of the park. Here raising their trunks they all proceeded to feed on ripe green leaves on trees just inside the picnic spots entrance. 

We were mesmerised, to late to move out the way we sat their quietly only a couple of meters from these magnificent animals enjoying a 'special' African Elephant moment, while they to enjoyed their breakfast. The experience lasted about 10 minutes, and they soon disappeared  back into the 'bush' as quickly as they arrived. 

It was estimated at the last census count of African Elephants in South Africa's Kruger National Park their numbers were a little over 13,000, up considerably from 2006 when African Elephants counts were just over 700.

Female African Elephant (Loxodonta africana) having breakfast
  at 'Tshokwane' picnic spot the Kruger National Wildlife Park - South Africa

Leopards - The Majesty of the African Big Cats

Wildlife and Nature Pictures-Leopards

I thought I would start off our blog with one of our images from our recent trip over late December to the Northern part of the Kruger National Park. We were staying at the 'Punda Maria' rest camp and on our second day in the park we had just completed a late afternoon drive on one of the nearby 'Loops' (25km) mainly looking for bird species that can mostly be found in that Northern region.


The weather had been blistering hot all that day (39C) but quite over cast and the light was not at its best, so we returned to camp about 6pm just before the gates closed. About 300m from the gate there it was laid right next to the road and very relaxed this magnificent leopard (Panthera pardus).

I only had seconds to take a few frames and before another car came along startling the leopard and it slunk off back into the bush. Wildlife photography is so often like that, a few precious seconds are all you have. You can't control where or when, the weather or pretty much anything else in the field.

Male Leopard (Panthera pardus) taken near Punda Maria Camp, South Africa