ZEBRAS IN ADDO

There is always a sense of anticipation whenever we enter a national park: what animal will we see first? On this day trip to the Addo Elephant National Park, zebras won hands down: they were everywhere!

Some ignored vehicles in order to continue grazing right next to the road.

This one was literally pulling up daisy-like plants.

It has been a good season for babies.

The herds of zebra were always accompanied by flocks of Cattle Egrets, eager to catch insects in their wake.

These two were standing apart from the rest.

Advertisement

ZEBRAS UP CLOSE

Zebras feature very often in this blog, which is no wonder for they are a magnet for me. They look beautiful out in the wild and so, how can one resist photographing these two standing so closely together?

As you can tell, I find zebras endlessly fascinating – look at this gangly youngster.

Zebras swish their tails to get rid of flies.

They also occasionally rest a hoof.

Zebras close-crop the grass.

This is what their heads look like underneath.

DROUGHT LANDSCAPE

People who live in places where they have had so much rain that they complain about it now and then cannot always comprehend the impact of a serious drought on the landscape. These photographs were taken in the Addo Elephant National Park about two weeks ago.

There is very little ground cover left after the dry winter – and nary a sign of spring flowers!

Even where there is still grass, it looks dry and lifeless. Yet, the animals survive somehow and – as long as good rains fall before it is too late – the veld manages to renew its growth of essential grasses, herbs and other vegetation to a point.