This blog is a tribute to all of the wonderful, and not so wonderful animals I have seen and experienced while in the KwaZulu Natal province here in South Africa.
Spiders are a common thing around here. They range from small enough to build a web between the hairs on your arm to being as big as your palm. They are so common that people don't even flinch anymore when they look above them and see a hand-sized spider chilling next to a cluster of eggs. The staff usually takes care of it the next morning... usually. Spiders are also commonly found in the bathrooms and showers. I don't recall having a single shower without at least five spiders in the corners, and I think we have moved it up to about a dozen now. But everyone leaves them where they are, because then they can eat all the moths. In fact, on several occasions, we have actually captured ants and small bugs to feed the bigger spiders. In the end though, if you don't go looking for the spiders, they won't go looking for you.
These little monkeys are a menace. They may look cute and soft and innocent, but believe me when I tell you they're not. We have had these monkeys around campus from day one, and they have been stealing food since then too. If you leave your window open and leave the room, you are sure to have at least four monkeys come in, steal all your food, leave muddy paw prints and maybe a little urine on your bed. The monkeys are usually afraid of the males around campus, but they will often lunge at the females just for sport. Once, when I was keeping two monkeys out of our Chalet, I made a kicking motion at one of the terrors. He backed maybe a step away, and then lunged for me, but not fully. We did this back and forth until I finally grabbed a chair and he took off.
One of the monkeys, who is missing a tail and was therefore named "No Tail" or "Nubs" is the worst. He is incredibly smart, and will be so daring to come up behind you and try to take the fruit right out of your hand! He is so silent too that you don't even notice he is in the kitchen until several sugar packets or yogurt tubs are taken. Many of the students bought or made sling shots to try and hit the monkeys with... but most have been unsuccessful. Either way, the monkeys are not the cute cuddlies they look like. Trust me.
These were the first monkeys we saw on our safari. They used their tails to balance on the telephone wires!
You lookin' at me?
Leopards are extremely rare and very sneaky animals, so this was an amazing find.
A leopard...? Where?
This guy was injured and was running all across the road right in front of our cars.
The elephants were in mating season... so naturally this guy was a bit grumpy. He charged several of the vehicles, and one of the braver guides eventually had to drive toward the elephant to scare him off the road. I unfortunately wasn't in that car.
All the animals found in the reserve.
Ugliest creature... seriously. Sorry Pumba.
One of the many mother and baby pairs we saw. This baby giraffe was adorable.
Trivia: Only three animals walk with the same foreleg and hind leg. The giraffe is one and the camel is the other... anyone know the third?
A mom and maybe a six week old baby white rhino. This was extremely lucky especially in the heavy rain. The baby didn't even have a horn gowing yet.
Crickey! Look'a that beauty!
Angry, wet, male buffalo who likely had just been overthrown in his herd.
Some of the 14,054 impala.
Wildebeest aren't the brightest of animals. These are more young ones with a mom or dad or older cousin I suppose.
This lion cub completed my Big 5 viewing experience. Thank you Karissa Thomas for spotting it! He was one of maybe three to five 6-month-old lion cubs hanging out right by the perimeter of the reserve.
These birds were grounded because of all the rain. "Wha'do you wanna do?" "I dunno... wha'do you wanna do?"
Baby zebra and mum.
Wild Dog.
Do you think this guy is resting or dead...? I'm going with the former.
Overall, it has been a very fun experience getting to see al these animals, and I am going to miss the entertainment the monkeys brought to campus life. One thing is for sure... they certainly kept you on your toes!
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