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Dubai – the Green Planet | Howie's Wildlife Images
In mid-January, Helen and I visited our daughter and her partner in Dubai. January was mid-winter in Dubai so the day temperatures were not too hot and the evenings were very pleasant. Dubai has first world infrastructure and there is an amazing variety of things to see and do in this desert locale. It offers…
Marievale – mid summer | Howie's Wildlife Images
My enthusiastic birding wife, Helen, and I visited Marievale Bird Sanctuary at the end of January this year. For us this is a place of practice, fun and wonder at the constant changes. The Highveld in South Africa had very little rain this summer season because of the El Niño effect. Although milder than the…
Masai Mara – watching cheetahs | Howie's Wildlife Images
The Masai Mara is well known for its relatively high density of predators. The Mara offers cheetahs plenty of space and unimpeded views across the plains. This helps them find prey and avoid competing predators such as lions, hyaenas and leopards. Cheetahs are diurnal hunters so tend not to come into contact with nocturnal hunters…
Masai Mara – wandering around the triangle | Howie's Wildlife Images
The Mara Triangle is part of the Masai Mara National Reserve which is located in the south west section of Kenya. The Triangle comprises 510 square kilometers, which is approximately one third of the entire Masai Mara National Reserve. The Serengeti is the Triangle's southern border. The Mara river is its eastern boundary and the…
Masai Mara – unexpected buffalo kill | Howie's Wildlife Images
On the first afternoon of this Mara trip with Wild Eye, we found four lionesses near the lugga that led down to where we saw Nshipai, a leopardess. There were no wildebeest or zebra to be seen. The migration had moved down into the Serengeti three weeks earlier. The lionesses had managed to kill a…
Masai Mara – the migration has moved on | Howie's Wildlife Images
We were based at Wild Eye's Enkishui camp in the southern end of the Mara Triangle. The camp is located on the western bank of the Mara river about two kilometres up river from the Purungat gate. I really enjoy late September-October in the Mara because the crowds have disappeared and the skies are full…
Masai Mara – in and around camp | Howie's Wildlife Images
In October last year I joined a photographic group at Wild Eye's Enkishui camp. This camp is sited on the banks of the Mara river about two kilometres up river from the Purungat gate and rangers' camp. There camp is located in a croton grove which attracts a variety of small wildlife. The camp was…
Manyoni – scenic wonderland | Howie's Wildlife Images
We spent four days in Manyoni private game reserve last September. Manyoni private game reserve lies in the heart of Zululand and its management has a strong focus on endangered species conservation. This focus is on endangered and priority wildlife species, including the African wild dog, cheetah, rhino, lion, elephant, leopard, pangolin and vulture species.…
Manyoni – wildlife wonderland | Howie's Wildlife Images
Manyoni private game reserve lies in the heart of Zululand. Initially formed in 2005 as part of the WWF Black rhino range expansion project, Manyoni has become one of the premier safari destinations in Kwa-Zulu Natal with a strong focus on endangered species conservation. This work focuses on endangered and priority wildlife species, including the…
Amakhosi – elephants, rolling hills and the Mkuze river | Howie's Wildlife Images
This is the third and last post from our recent trip to Amakhosi private game reserve. Each morning at the safari lodge we rose at 5h30 to be ready for the morning game drive at 6h00 after a cup of coffee and a muffin. The mornings were brisk at it was the beginning of spring.…
Amakhosi – prolific birdlife | Howie's Wildlife Images
Helen and I visited Amakhosi private game reserve in September 2023. This was the start of spring in southern Africa so most of the migrants had yet to arrive and it was dry. The rains usually only arrive in late November or early December. Despite this, there is a perennial flow of water in the…
Amakhosi – all the cats | Howie's Wildlife Images
Amakhosi Private Game reserve is located on the banks of the Mkuze river about 25 kilometres south east of Pongola in Zululand, which is in KwaZulu Natal in South Africa. Helen and I first visited Amakhosi Safari Lodge in the reserve in 2008. We were so impressed with the experience that we returned in 2009…
Marievale – end of winter | Howie's Wildlife Images
Helen and I visited Marievale Bird Sanctuary in late August last year. This wetland is a RAMSAR site and is therefore judged to be of International importance because of its uniqueness and biodiversity. The water levels in the wetland have a strong influence on what birds you are likely to see. The time of year…
Pafuri – birding at its best | Howie's Wildlife Images
The Pafuri area of the Kruger National Park is located in the northern region of the park. It has Zimbabwe as its northern border and Mozambique as its eastern border. The Limpopo and Luvuvhu Rivers converge in this birder’s paradise, where over 400 species have been recorded. "We should preserve every scrap of biodiversity as…
Pafuri – elephants along the Luvuvhu river | Howie's Wildlife Images
In July 2023 we stayed at Pafuri Tented Camp. This has become one of our special places in South Africa. The camp is located on the banks of the Luvuvhu river in the Makuleki Concession. The 24 000-ha private concession is located between the Luvuvhu River to the south and the Limpopo to the north.…
Bushwa- a rewilded gem in the Waterberg | Howie's Wildlife Images
In May this year Helen and I visited Bushwa Game Lodge. For a long time we wanted to stay in the Waterberg as we drove through it every time we travelled to Mashatu and it always looked diverse and fascinating. Bushwa is located about 15 kilometres north east of the town, Vaalwater in the Limpopo…
Chobe river – beauty everywhere | Howie's Wildlife Images
The Chobe river is the east section of the northern border between Botswana and Namibia. The Chobe river starts at the south east section of Lake Liambezi flows to Ngoma and on to Kasane. The so-called "Chobe riverfront" spans from Ngoma in the west to the rapids below Kasane town. From the rapids, the Chobe…
Chobe river – Jacana ally | Howie's Wildlife Images
In April this year, Helen and I joined CNP Safaris on their photographic boat on the Chobe river. This has become a tradition which we have done since 2009. The Chobe river has a wonderful diversity of wildlife, both mammals, reptiles and birds. Photographing wildlife from a boat specially equipped for photography offers a unique…
Mashatu – watching the secretary | Howie's Wildlife Images
On the fourth morning of our surprise trip to Mashatu in February this year, we were fortunate enough to see a Secretarybird on two separate occasions. The first was fleeting but the second gave us an opportunity to watch an adult Secretarybird hunting for about 45 minutes and it was fascinating to watch. As good…
Mammal diversity | Howie's Wildlife Images
Mashatu is a private game reserve in the south eastern part of Botswana and is the largest part of the Northern Tuli Game Reserve (NOTUGRE). The wildlife is free to move in and out of the reserve. To the east is the Shashi river which demarcates the border with Zimbabwe and is an area of…
Mashatu-avian diversity | Howie's Wildlife Images
By chance we were back in the "big smoke" for a week after our week at Giant's Castle when my brother Jerry told me that his guest who was going to take the week in Mashatu could not make it. Helen and I jumped at the opportunity to return to Mashatu in February this year…
Bearded vulture hide – unusual behaviour | Howie's Wildlife Images
This is the last post from our six day sojourn at the Giant's Castle vulture hide. Helen and I stayed for a longer than usual period hoping to see different behaviour that we had not seen during our previous one and two day visits. We awoke on our last morning to heavily overcast weather with…
Bearded vulture hide – swallowing bones | Howie's Wildlife Images
On day four, we were just over half way into our six day visit to the Giant's Castle vulture hide. We had seen many fly-bys by the fledged juveniles and adult Bearded vultures. At times the fly-bys were far away in the middle of the Bushman's river valley. At other times they were way above…
Bearded vulture hide – when not watching vultures | Howie's Wildlife Images
The main attraction of the Bearded vulture hide in Giant's Castle Reserve is the sightings of rare raptors such as the Bearded and Cape vultures. These vultures are not around the hide all the time. While waiting for the vultures to appear above the Bushman's river valley there was plenty of wildlife activity in front…
Bearded vulture hide – fly-bys and fly-ins | Howie's Wildlife Images
The Bearded vulture hide in Giant's Castle National Park is sited on the eastern section of a terrace on the edge of a plateau which falls away into the Bushman's River valley some 700 metres below. The hide is a perfectly positioned to observe and photograph a variety of birds in their natural environment. “Everyone…
Bearded vulture hide – summer days | Howie's Wildlife Images
Helen and I visited Giant's Castle Reserve in late January this year. Apart from wonderful scenery and walks, the big attraction in Giant's Castle Reserve is its Bearded vulture hide. We usually visit the vulture hide in winter when the Bearded vultures are breeding. This time we were interested to see how things change around…
Mashatu-where predators prowl | Howie's Wildlife Images
Mashatu Game Reserve is located in the south-eastern corner of Botswana. There is a great variety of wildlife, both mammals and birds, in the several different ecosystems. In this post, I show a few images of the main mammal predators which I have seen prowling around Mashatu. "It is in the wild places, where the…
Mashatu -around the bird bath | Howie's Wildlife Images
Mashatu Game Reserve is located in south eastern Botswana. It is a dry part of Botswana where the rains usually only fall between November and April each year. In September, it is early spring in Mashatu and is very dry. I am fortunate to be part of a syndicate which operates Rock Camp, a bush…
Mashatu – an amazing morning | Howie's Wildlife Images
September in Mashatu is early spring but the rains have not fallen for the past five months so it is very dry, especially away from the main rivers. At this time of the year we get out of camp at 6h00 every morning because sunrise is a few minutes before 6h00. "It is well to…
Mashatu – raptors large and small | Howie's Wildlife Images
Mashatu offers a variety of raptors many of which are resident but their numbers build as migrants arrive for the summer. I did not see a Martial eagle this trip but there is a pair resident in Mashatu and I am told that Black eagle's have been seen hunting dassies in the rock outcrop next…
Mashatu – crimson jewels | Howie's Wildlife Images
Mashatu is a private game reserve in the Tuli Block which is in south-eastern Botswana. It has several ecosystems which are unique in Botswana. Along the seasonal rivers the vegetation is relatively thick, and the river is lined with large trees such as Leadwoods, Apple Leafs and Nyala Berries (affectionately called Mashatu trees). In the…
Memories of Eagle’s Rock | Howie's Wildlife Images
On several occasions, long-standing friends, Bill and Judy Pierce, invited Helen and I for a weekend at their syndicated bush cottage in Eagle’s Rock estate. This is a private wildlife estate located about 15 kilometres north of Witbank in Mpumalanga, a province in South Africa. "Old wood best to burn, old wine to drink, old…
Marievale – start of spring | Howie's Wildlife Images
We visited Marievale in early spring knowing full well that the warmer weather would bring more birdlife and low water levels in the wetland would attract certain species. The Marievale Bird Sanctuary is situated in the southern half of the Blesbokspruit RAMSAR site, an area that is also a designated Important Bird Area (IBA SA021)…
Little Sparrowhawk | Howie's Wildlife Images
A pair of Little sparrowhawks are resident in our suburb and they visit our garden each day. The regular visits are probably because we put out food for the birds which helps their hunting success rate. "Expect nothing. Live frugally on surprise." ~ Alice Walker The Little sparrowhawk is a small and secretive raptor, just…
Suburban garden birds | Howie's Wildlife Images
I am fortunate enough to have worked from home for the past 14 years. My office has a set of french doors which open onto the garden. We live along the Outspan bird sanctuary which has a stream flowing through it. This sanctuary has many trees so looks like a forest. The Outspan stream flows…
Marievale – end of winter | Howie's Wildlife Images
We visit Marievale bird sanctuary regularly to practice our wild bird photography and expand our knowledge of birds and their behaviour in this wetland sanctuary. The Marievale Bird Sanctuary is located about five kilometres north of Nigel and lies within the Blesbokspruit Ramsar wetland which is internationally recognised. The Blesbokspruit forms part of one of…
Giant’s Castle – colour , light and vistas | Howie's Wildlife Images
Helen and I spent five days in Giant's Castle Nature Reserve in the central part of Maloti-Drakensberg mountains. This reserve gets its name from the towering peaks of the Drakensberg Mountains, whose shadows resemble a sleeping giant. The uKhahlamba Drakensberg Park is a World Heritage Site and Giant's Castle is in the middle of it.…
Giant’s Castle – birds everywhere | Howie's Wildlife Images
Giant's Castle vulture hide in the central section of the Maloti-Drakensberg mountains is a place where you can get lost in all the grandeur and the wildlife activity. Sitting in a hide for nine hours might sound boring until you try it. The hours melt away as your attention is caught by all the avian…
Giant’s Castle – Cape vultures | Howie's Wildlife Images
One of the two vulture hides in the Drakensberg is located in the Giant's Castle Nature Reserve in the middle berg section of the Maloti-Drakensberg mountains. The hide was opened in 1967 and built to create a greater interest in vultures in response to their declining numbers. The hide is pre-booked for the day at…
Giant’s Castle – Bearded Vultures | Howie's Wildlife Images
The Giant's Castle hide was built in 1967 to enable birders and photographers to better appreciate vultures, especially the Bearded vulture. The remaining southern African population of Bearded vultures lives in the Maluti-Drakensberg mountains in South Africa. While you are likely to see a variety of birds from the hide, the grand prize is the…