Does it get any better?

09 January 2021 - Leadwood Big Game Estate; Day 3

The girls opted to sleep in on our last day, but Simon and I were out again before sunrise.

At the dam, we saw an African Spoonbill feeding in the shallows - so spent some time watching and photographing it. I was really fortunate to capture it catching a fish - this is where 12 frames/second pays dividends.

African Spoonbill (Platalea alba)

We then went to check on the Woodland Kingfisher nest, but the adult was not there. It was then that we heard Impala and Zebra alarming and assumed that the Lion were near. All of a sudden, the Zebra and Impala came bolting out of the bush next to the dam and we expected to see the Lion in hot pursuit. This was not the case, it was even better, as an adult Cheetah came past at full tilt after the Impala. I grabbed my camera and squeezed off 5 shots before it disappeared, knowing that I did not have the right settings. Turns out I was more the 2 stops underexposed which was far from ideal, but since I shoot in RAW, I was able to recover the 3 of the 5 images in the sequence. What an adrenalin rush and the first time I have seen a Cheetah hunting at such close quarters.

Cheetah (Acinonyx jubatus) at full tilt

After we calmed down, we noticed a Pied Kingfisher had arrived at the dam, so drove over and got a few images of it hunting. It is amazing how still the head is kept, whilst hovering.

Pied Kingfisher (Ceryle rudis)

We then drove to another pan where Lesser Striped Swallows were gathering mud for their nest. I was able to get down low for this image

Lesser Striped Swallow (Cecropis abyssinica)

Not far off, we encountered a Dark Chanting Goshawk.

Dark Chanting Goshawk (Melierax metabates)

When driving, you also need to keep an eye on the tracks in front of you. By doing so, we found this Giant African Land Snail slowly making its way down the track. It is very seldom you find a live one - so this was certainly worth stopping for. The photograph doesn't provide a sense of scale, but it was as big as the palm of my hand

Giant African Land Snail (Achatina sp.)

On the way back to the house, we saw Long-tailed Paradise Whydah

Long-tailed Paradise Whydah (Vidua paradisaea)

And a kettle of circling White-backed Vulture

White-backed Vulture (Gyps africanus)

I found this unidentified Moth when we arrived back at the house.

Moth sp.

Again we enjoyed a chilled breakfast on the patio before having to reluctantly pack the car and bid our cheerio's until next time.

What an awesome and enjoyable few days in the bush at both Motswari and with Simon and Jen at Leadwood. We had a full house of sought after mammals along with some pretty good birds and notwithstanding the good company and laughter - till next time!