Africa - Through the Eyes of Carlos Lopes

Africa

Through the Eyes of Carlos Lopes

White Rhino

The latest statistic reports from ongoing census on the 6 African sub-species indicate that there are well over 12,000 African Rhinoceros in the wild today. This is good news indeed when one compares it to the early 90's census (#8000's), but still way down from the records of the 60's, when 100,000's of these animals could be counted. The demise of this fantastic animal was a direct result of the huge surge in commercial poaching that began in the early 70's and continued through the 80's and 90's. The main attraction being it's horn, ironically the animal's only means of protection. A keratinous mass of amalgamated hair-like fibres, the horn is erroneously thought to be an aphrodisiac by many. It isn't and will never be! It's main use (in the orient countries) is as a powdered form of a fever reducing drug, apparently scientifically justified (unfortunately too, meaning that it will remain high on the buying lists of the far eastern countries). It is also used as material to produce handles for the 'djambiyyas' or traditional daggers carried by the men of Oman and Yemen as a ultimate status symbol.

Yellow Baboon

The Yellow Baboon is similar in appearance to the Olive Baboon, but lighter in color, smaller in size, and it lacks the long hair on top of it's head. Found in savannahs and woodlands from Angola (this one is from South Angola) in the west, to Somalia in the east, and all the way down to Northern Malawi, this primate has a diet very similar to the Olive Baboon. It shows however, a more aggressive nature and like it's cousin, is quite capable of mobbing on a predator such as leopard when attacked. It has a multi-male/multi-female social system, is very promiscuous and the males are extremely aggressive when competing for females. In fact, it is possibly the most aggressive of the baboons. There are constant fights and lots of noise within the troop - the young ones making solo raids to take females in oestrus from the older males (normally at night) and the older baboons forming coalitions and getting them back during the day. Never a dull moment, eh?

Grey Hornbill

This is the only hornbill of the area that has a dark bill with a light patch of cream at the base and a casque (the female has the upper part of the bill pale yellow and tipped maroon). It is found in thornveld and broadleafed woodland (Mozambique interior, as in this picture). It has a peculiar way of calling, when it holds it's bill vertically and flicks it's wings open with each note. It is a soft call, unlike it's cousins the yellowbilled or redbilled hornbills, which can be heard from far away.

Cheetah

The oldest record of a captive cheetah is depicted in a painting on a vase from a Scythian grave at Maikop, dated back to about 500 BC. It is painted wearing a collar. In fact, cheetahs are known to have been used extensively by different cultures centuries ago as trained hunting animals by Moghuls, Assyrians, and Egyptians. Their numbers were prolific. Akbar the Great (a Moghul), is said to have kept up to 3000 cheetahs to hunt antelope. A favorite of most lovers of the wild fauna of Africa, this sleek and graceful hunter is the only modern cat that does not have post-canine gaps. It is exceptionally prone to genetic variations, affecting particularly it's coat color. (There have been records of blue spotted, ochre spotted, less spotted (no spots on neck and shoulders), totally black, and, of course, the more modern King Cheetah, with blobbed spots). These traits appear to be relative to the excessive inbreeding of the species. Cheetahs only hunt during the day, staying in one place at night to sleep, thus, open to the possibility of attack by other predators such as Leopard and Lion. When taking a photo of a cat, using flash, be careful... you won't get 'red-eye', but you'll probably get 'green-eye', so control the amount of flash being released if you can.

Marabou Stork

One of the bigger birds of Africa, reaching 1-1/2 metres in height, it is unmistakable with it's bald head and neck (bar for the speck or two of sparse down), and the very large bill. Like the vultures, this stork scavenges at kills and has a place high up in the queue of who gets there first... sheer size playing a major role here. Often seen displaying in flocks, when it claps the bill strongly and continuously, it is a powerful flier, easily recognized with black wings against a white body. At the end of the day, it perches on the 'sleeping' tree, sometimes in the company of other raptors (kites and vultures), by roadsides, where it is easy to photograph. The white on it's long legs is actually urine and excrement calcification... no, not a clean bird! In the Inharrime area of Mozambique, the 'Rongas' believe that when they die, if they were bad during life, their soul is collected by a marabou!