Greater Kudu
For our last two nights in Namibia, we were in Okonjima, a private reserve of some 220 square kilometres. It was originally a cattle farm, but the family who owned it became increasingly concerned by the amount of human/leopard conflict, and in the 1990s they turned the place into a reserve. It is home to 33 leopard who have been extensively studied – some are collared, and are tracked by telemetry. I’m always a bit torn in these situations, but the scientist in me realises that the information obtained can be very useful in trying to understand leopards and to protect them. Plus, the leopards that we found seemed extremely relaxed: one male barely flicked an ear when we drove up.
We also found a female with cub, who was equally indifferent to our presence, at least on the face of it.
But wonderful as it was to see the leopards, they weren’t the highlight for me: the bat-eared foxes were wonderful. I’d never seen them before, and the cubs look like little Yodas. They make their dens in termite mounds, and we saw two families, one with two pups and one with three. As with most foxes, the male and female look after the cubs. In both cases, the male ran off and watched from a safe difference, while the female stayed put and kept an eye on things.
I only wished I’d gotten some video of these little heads popping up and down, but you get the general idea I’m sure. What exquisite little creatures these are! They live mostly on beetles, crickets and other grassland invertebrates.
There were, of course, birds too, and I rather fell in love with these Go-Away birds. They are members of the Turaco family, but are rather more austerely coloured than their rainforest relatives. The name relates to their call, and I suspect that they are the ruination of many a hunt, animal and human, with their habit of alarm-calling at the slightest sign of trouble.
I really loved Okonjima, and in the afternoon there was a chance to relax. It’s the only place I’ve ever been where it’s possible to birdwatch from the bed. This was the view from our window…
And here’s a view at sunset. What an absolute treat, and what a place to spend our last days in Namibia.
Bat-eared foxes are a favourite with me too. We occasionally see them in both the Addo Elephant National Park and the Mountain Zebra National Park. You have some beautiful photographs of them!
Thank you for the wonderful account of your holiday. I have just enjoyed a catch up of your blog, a great antidote to the miserable day outside my window. The rock art was amazing, such clearly identifiable animals. You were fortunate to see something of two seasons in one visit and I really enjoyed the descriptions of the strange plants as well as the lovely photos of the more obvious animals.