Africa - Through the Eyes of Carlos Lopes

Africa

Through the Eyes of Carlos Lopes

Gallery Three

Leopard

For the African tribesmen, this large feline is the ultimate symbol of power. Having seen personally, it's courage and tenacity in attack, I could never dispute that. It's skin is part of a warrior's regalia (i.e. Karamajo and Acholi - East Africa) and Kingship (i.e. Bugandas and Zulus - Southern Africa). The Buganda go further: They smoke the tail fur whenever a relative goes astray, in the belief that just as the leopard's tail is always restless, so will be the wanderer relative's soul, until his or her return. Leopards are successful survivors and inhabit all types of ecosystems, being able to survive even in deserts. There are some 8 sub-species of leopards. I have yet to see a black leopard in the wild (often referred to as a 'black panther') - their coloration due to the result of the autosomal recessive gene (similar to the king cheetah's). Today, your chances of finding one in Africa, is limited to Mt. Kenya and the Ruwenzori Mountains.

Elephant Herd

Elephants are water dependent. Their use of the environment is in direct relation to the spatial and temporal distribution of water. So, to cut a long story short, in cases like the Kruger Park - a semi-arid environment during the wet season, elephants disperse, thus resulting in a vegetation impact spread over a wide area. During the dry season, elephants (and consequently their impacts) are concentrated around sources of water. The best spot for studying and seeing elephant behaviour is the riparian zone of a seasonal river, since water is always present, but in different quantities at different times of the year. I learned some of this, when several years ago, I had to translate some scientific papers on the species for the EWT (Moçambique). It took me three days just to decipher 'poliocrilamied-gel electrophoresis' (boring stuff to do with genetic variations). In fact, I still have nightmares from it, but let's continue. Resultantly, some believe that a persistent population increase is considered to be a threat to habitats in terms of both water resources and the probable modification of plant communities (such as the vulnerable Baobab tree in the KNP). Zimbabwe's Hwange National Park is smaller than the Kruger and has double the elephants. To me, unless you know the long term dynamics of the population and it's responses to climatic cycles under normal circumstances, human management will never be able to compare to those resulting from the disturbances of, say, culling operations. In Botswana, where some 15% of the African elephants are concentrated, there are no human regulatory management programmes, and of late, elephants have appeared in places where they have been absent for years. This photo was taken on the banks of the Chobe river where herds congregate in the hundreds.

Hammerkop

This is probably the strangest looking bird I've seen, after the shoebill. Unmistakable head, shaped like a hammer, in dull brown coloration, it is found on virtually all freshwater dams, lakes, and rivers throughout southern Africa. It poses, very still (for a very long time, trust me), looking at the water, waiting for small fish to pass by, and very quickly it snaps it. It builds an amazing nest, domed and with an entrance on the side, normally on trees or cliffs. Once some friends and I were at the Vuti river in Mozambique and heard what sounded like a bunch of frogs together. It got quite annoying, so we decided to investigate the possibility of an 'earlier supper' - turns out it was four hammerkops croaking (probably their version of a serenade) excitedly to a fifth one, presumably a female. The N'jaus of Zongo Valley call it the frog bird... now I know why! This photo was taken at the second bridge from Skukuza to Lower Sabie - quite an easy photo for anyone to take .

Young Kudu

Clear indications of a Southern Greater Kudu are the hair on it's mane and the black on the face, between the two white markings. This is still the only animal, in all probability, that may support trophies to leave one flabbergasted. This little guy may one day have horns with three full turns and close on the all-time record of 1m 75 (69.25 inches) long. An unbelievable sight indeed! Despite their size, they conceal themselves in the most elusive way, remaining stationary, merging their bodies in the stripes of light and shade in the bush. They possess remarkable hearing and scent, and if disturbed, slide off into the scrub, tilting their heads so that the horns lie back almost horizontally, going under, rather than jumping over thick thorn bushes. Not being fleet on foot, they will rely on concealment, rather than speed for safety. Most of their feeding activities take place at night.

Natal Robin

This is an easily identifiable robin and it is found commonly in Mozambique. Like most robins, it prefers the dense thickets near rivers and is capable of flying in amongst the tangles of the vegetation at amazing speed. Like most robins, it can mimic the calls of other birds. I always get it wrong when in South Africa, as it normally turns out to be the Chorister's song and not the Natal's. Never take a bet with this one... it will cost you. This picture was taken near the Ponta do Ouro Resort, south of Maputo.