Caracal (Felis caracal)

Very few things give us more pleasure than finding something special, be it bird, plant or animal. In this case it was a caracal. Only seen by us and another couple, before it disappeared again on that day at least, we were pretty excited. We saw one a few years back, fleetingly, and we saw a couple in breeding facilities, but to see it in the wild, something special. It is the biggest of the African small cats, males being just over 1 meter in length, 45 cm at shoulder and males weighing around 13 kg. The markings around face and base whiskers are distinctive. Lovely long tassels on the tips of the ears. This one had a tick on the forehead too. But the eyes, I loved the eyes. They take mammals up to 40 kg, like small antelope, hares, rodents, birds, like the spurfowls and guineafowl we saw earlier. Also reptiles form part of the menu. Interestingly they do not have long tails either, shortened to such a point one may think it had an accident, but that is one of the animals traits. The luck part was emphasized by the fact that it stood up, because it just awoke, and in the process gave a nice yawn for the camera. They are nocturnal, so to see this one was a great gift indeed, and usually alone. These are moments that will be edged in my mind, I will always remember this occasion without question.

 

Stretching legs and nap

After a morning of hunting for animals and birds, it was time to get back to the camp and let Boeta stretch his legs for a bit before lunch and nap time. We decided to go down to the lookout inside the camp, see whats there and also let the little man run. Not much was going on, midday after all. We saw a few warthog and a kudu (female) coming down for a drink. So, mom put the little man down and watch him go. By now he was very much into this wildlife and freedom holiday. He enjoyed every minute. We went back to the chalet and after the changing and feeding the runner got a chance to nap. He woke up refreshed, but as his mom, takes a little time to really wake, so daddy took the chance to take pictures. It does not take long for him to be at full speed again. The camping cot changer also made for a nice "grotto" to hide and play in, so we left it on. Off to do some more safari-ing.

 

FW: Speckled Mousebird (Colius striatus)

Endemic to Africa, this specie is fairly unicolor grey, with a rufous belly. Still they are always good to see, just because they tend to hang on branches, rather than sit on it. Usually in small groups, whenever you see them. Although I read nowhere about the blueish tint around the eye, still looks like it to me. They love fruit trees, both in the garden and wild. The hanging with the belly out is also called "sunning." Long tail to complete the picture and a nice crest.

 

Southern Boubou (Laniarius ferrugineus)

My son's favorite bird for now and another example of an adaptable bird. They are described shy birds, not so, in the Addo. They were very willing to see what is cooking at the picnic site as well as the chalet. The female is said to have a more rufous belly towards the breast, whereas the male has more white towards the breast. They tend to like hunting in the underbrush for insects and fruits. Endemic to South Africa's east and south-western coasts. Given the description the bird at the chalet could be a male. He was very sociable and had some breakfast scrambled egg with me, but also came into the chalet a few times, much to the amusement of our son, who had the job of chasing him out. He loved the interaction with nature or then a bird, led to many laughs and lots of running.

 

Main camp – taking a break

After another day of finding various wonderful new scenes and Boeta seeing his first elephants (post to follow soon), we arrived at the main camp of the Addo National Park. It is much more developed and active than the first camp with a restaurant, shop, various information centers, hides to go sit and watch birds or animals and many more. Our chalet basically had the same to offer as the previous, little bigger and at ground level. So Boeta immediately felt comfortable as he sort of knew the layout. The night sounds included the call of the black-backed jackals intertwined with nightjars and a few crickets. That night we decided we would put the little man in bed and then just enjoy a little "silence" with a nice glass of red on the deck. You feel so blessed then, rich beyond what money can buy or will ever be capable of buying. Wonderful.

 

Buffalo

The buffalo of the Addo are descendants of a 30+ strong Cape buffalo herd, enclosed with the formation of the park and the possibly the largest disease free herd in South Africa. At 1.5 meter high on the shoulder (males) and with those massive horns, weighing around 625 kg, they are pretty impressive animals. The picture below show what happens with age, as they lose their hair. They are also the saddest looking bunch of cows I have ever seen! He he. Interestingly the Addo buffalo seemed to be more nocturnal, and it is said it could have been due to hunting pressures, but this is also changing as the presence of lions, introduced later into the park, has also seen buffalo coming out to feed on open grasslands and at waterholes during the day. In the Kruger National Park they occur in huge herds, up to 1000+ animals, but in Addo we saw only one biggish herd of about 30 – 50. They are usually calm animals, but also can become seriously aggravated and dangerous, attaining speeds up to 50 km/h.

 

While he slept, another Elephant

Boeta was sleeping soundly when we met another female elephant with baby on the road. This, unknown to us, would be the first in a few elephant "hits" for the day. I am doing the post and will add the other sightings as well in future posts, but for this a few things to notice. 1. She was busy dusting herself, while baby was allowed to suckle. This is a form of sun block and for insect control, I have read. 2. She was wearing a tracking collar. Speculating it could be an introduced female to increase gene pool, or part of study to determine movements and impacts on park. 3. Looking closely you can see the little one pulling trunk up to suckle on mammae just behind the forelegs.Nice scene and always something to see or learn.