Cee is starting a new series on color in her weekly challenge, Cee’s Fun Foto Challenge.
This week is all (or mostly) one color.
CFFC: Monochrome
mongoose
Serengeti NP: Topis, Kopjes and Hippos, Oh My!
Feb. 12, 2018
Our last day at Serengeti National Park, and our last safari day, was spent looking for kopjes and spotting some new animals. We also spend some time observing hippos.
Once again, we were up at dawn.
Our first animal of the day joined us during our breakfast – a praying mantis!
The tall grass in this area of the Serengeti at times made it difficult at times to spot animals or observe their behavior on our first game drive. We came upon a troop of baboons, and saw this male possibly mating with the baboon underneath him, but she was barely visible so we couldn’t be sure. He could just be grooming his companion, male or female.
We also saw mongoose roaming through the grass. I was lucky to get this shot before they were completely hidden in the grass.
We spotted several species of birds that we had not seen before, including the martial eagle,
a barn swallow,
and a grey-breasted spurfowl.
In this area of tall grass, we saw many herbivores, including elephants, 
buffalo, 
ostriches, 
impalas and species of antelope we hadn’t seen before, including the topi. Topis have a very distinctive coloring, with large gray areas on their thighs and black faces.
SONY DSC
Their calves are hard to distinguish from the calves of other species, because they are light brown at birth and when they are very young.
Both males and females have ribbed, gently curved horns.
Another antelope we saw for the first time was the hartebeest.
David (our guide) had told us we were going to find kopjes today – a Dutch word referring to outcrops of rocks scattered over a section of the Serengeti. 
These rocky piles constitute a different ecosystem and one can spot different species there, as well as leopards and lizards, that bask on the rocks. Most prevalent is the hyrax, a small mammal that looks something like a guinea pig, but with a more pointed face and that is in fact related to the elephant! They can be hard to see at first, because they hide between the rock layers and their fur camouflages against the rocks.
- There are two hyraxes in this picture. Can you spot them?
Even if you don’t spot them right away, you can tell the presence of hyraxes by long white streaks on some of the rocks. Their urine is very acidic and causes these white streaks to form on the rock!
We saw no leopards at the kopjes, but did spot interesting birds hidden among the acacia branches.
Usambiro barbets
- Long-crested eagle
Nearby, a giraffe family was grazing.
In addition, there are some adaptable plant species found growing in the kopjes.
Candelabra cactus
Fig tree
We then spent quite a long time observing hippos at a pond where they gather. There must have been 40 or more of them submerged in the water there!
A sign informs us about the pool and its inhabitants.
Which are hippos and which are rocks?
A nearby crocodile co-exists with the hippos – they present no danger to each other.
Hippos spend as much of their time as possible submerged in water. However, they must go ashore to forage. Notice their feet which seem a little webbed.
On land, they seem unwieldy and clumsy, but they can be formidable opponents.
One hippo was hesitant to go back into the pool, because another hippo was giving him the evil eye.
When he finally ventured in, the aggressor lunged at him.
Soon things settled down.
A baby swam contentedly alongside its mother.
Meanwhile, a black-headed heron stood vigilant at the water’s edge.
A family of geese played in the water.
Throughout this safari, I’ve noticed this is a good time to see animals with their young. On our way back to Ang’ata Camp, we spotted a mother baboon with a baby on her back.
Another baboon came up behind and looked as though it was going to grab the baby off her back! I don’t know why, and our baboon expert was in the other vehicle! The consensus in our vehicle was that it was a playful gesture.
That evening, being our last night in Tanzania, we had a little celebration and the staff surprised us with a special cake, which they brought out – including the chef! – singing! We also played charades (strict rule: NO PHOTOS!) and recited haiku poetry about the animals of Tanzania.
Asante sana, Ang’ata Camp staff!
Sunset at Ang’ata Serengeti Safari Camp
This is what a hippopotamus sounds like!
Where the Tall Grass Grows
Feb. 4, 2018
In Tarangire National Park, the tall grass offers cover for animals to hide. Today, in fact, we saw our FIRST LION! Here’s what we could see of what seems to be a young male:
A young impala also has cover, but prefers to raise her head and look around:
On our first drive in Tarangire, we saw a number of ‘new’ animals. Impalas are ubiquitous here. They are mostly found in all-female and all-male groups. Notice the warthog passing through a group of grazing female impalas!
Warthogs are also very common, usually seen in groups called “sounders.” 
Like many of the other animals that live here, a sounder consists of adult females and their offspring, while males go off on their own and may join up with other males.
Warthogs are herbivorous and feed on short grasses during the rainy season (which starts in late January to early February). 
Half-hidden in the tall grass, young warthogs playfully wrestle with each other.
Adult warthogs are mostly bald, while the young have tufts of hair along the back of their necks. 
Warthogs make their dens in holes dug by aardvarks. Female warthogs will fiercely defend their young if threatened.
I got most of this information about warthogs from Wikipedia. I always thought warthogs were rather ugly, but observing them in the wild, playing or running with their tails in the air, I thought they were rather cute!
Another animal that burrows in “homes” made by others is the dwarf mongoose, most often seen poking out of large termite mounds. Apparently the termites don’t bother them or have already abandoned these mounds.
According to Wikipedia, they are social animals that live in groups of 20-30, headed by the dominant pair. All adults help raise their pups.
Also appearing among the grasses were guinea fowl…
monkeys,
and shy, diminutive dikdiks.
What are these two vultures doing in the grass?
Where there are vultures, there is a carcass to feed on – in this case, a hyena.
Up above were a wide variety of bird species, such as this white-headed buffalo weaver,
a pair of go-away birds,
a marabou stork standing at the very top of a tree,
superb starlings with their flashy colored feathers,
a grey-headed kingfisher,
a Von der Decken hornbill,
a red and yellow barbet
and the all-black common drango.
By the time we returned to the Tarangire Safari Lodge, it was nearly dark and we had dinner late (even by safari standards) – at 8:45 p.m.!
Tanzania Safari Journal: Arusha to Tarangire
We had about a 3-hour drive to our next destination, Tarangire National Park.
I took a few shots of the noisy colobus monkey that resides at Rivertrees Country Inn, but there were other monkeys too – blue monkeys and grey vervet monkeys. I was sad to leave – it seemed our stay here was so short. In my Mindful Travel Journal, I wrote about or drew each place we stayed. My observations about Rivertrees:
At 8:00 a.m., we were on our way. We drove through the city of Arusha, which has a population of about 1,000,000, stretched out along miles of road so that it looks more like a series of small towns, which perhaps it is – this population figure includes the metropolitan area.
Waiting for a bus
This drive was a good chance for taking quick shots of people along the road. As it was Sunday, there were a lot of people dressed up in their best clothes for church. The women wore colorful wraps and the men wore Western style suits and ties. I also saw Muslim women, some covered head to toe, others wearing simple hijabs. About 40% of Tanzanians are Muslims; an equal percentage are Christians.
There were also a lot of markets being held, causing crowds and commotions in that section of the town.
Most of the dwellings we saw were quite poor – simple structures or shacks. There were also Maasai-type dwellings, which are round with thatched roofs. 
I took a picture of a group of boys all dressed in black with white designs painted on their faces, who were standing along the side of the road. Before long, I saw more of these groups of boys.
David, our guide, said this is something very unusual to see. These boys are undergoing the Maasai coming-of-age ritual which includes isolation from the rest of the village and circumcision. They paint their faces so that they will not be recognized (supposedly) by others in the village and they live for about three months in huts isolated from the rest of the community. This ritual only takes place once every three years, so these boys range in age from 12 to 15.
Girls apparently do not undergo a similar ritual, and female circumcision is now officially illegal, although some traditional people still practice it.
We stopped at a modern shopping mall, most of which was closed because it was Sunday. Some people wanted to exchange money, so the rest of us either headed for the bathroom, or the supermarket (the only store open), or both. The only people we saw outside the supermarket were workers cleaning the hallways – mopping the floors of the corridors and in the bathrooms.
This is where only 15% of Tanzanians can afford to shop, I thought. Dale and I went into the supermarket and I casually perused the aisles full of neatly stacked merchandise. One aisle had school supplies and I decided to buy colored pencils to draw in my Mindful Travel Journal.
On our way again, we passed more villages, more colorfully dressed Maasai women fetching water, more groups of boys dressed in black, before finally reaching the national park. I thought I would spend at least part of this ride sleeping, but instead was wide awake conversing with the others in the group.
When we got to Tarangire Safari Lodge, we were given our tent assignments. Yes, literally tents! They are thatched structures with canvas walls and zipped screens at the front and back of the tent. There is a vertical zipper and two horizontal zippers.
There are no keys to lock the tent, just a “monkey lock” to keep the monkeys from coming in while guests are out! The monkeys have figured out how to use the zippers, but the lock is slightly too complicated for them: The lock consists of a small block of wood with three drilled holes, two of them connected, with a thick wire attached. The wire has a plug on the end. To lock it, first you loop the wire through the horizontal and vertical zipper tabs; then you insert the wire end into the big hole in the middle and slide it into the smaller hole so it doesn’t come out. Behind the tent itself is an add-on structure containing a bathroom and shower area. Electricity is only on in the morning from 6-10 am and in the evening from 6-11 pm. We have to charge our electronics during those hours in the main building by the bar.
Camels near the road! They must be part of somebody’s herd, although I didn’t see any people around. However, this was the only time we ever saw camels on this safari trip.
We had only a short time before a drive through the park, after which we had dinner (about 8:45 pm!). We first stopped at the entrance to Tarangire National Park, where there were restroom facilities, a gift shop, artwork, informational signs, a large baobob tree, and a bold hornbill bird!
In Tarangire National Park, there were fewer giraffes, but lots of elephants and impalas. Here are several of the different animals we saw.
This giraffe has to splay its legs to eat grass from the ground!
Giraffe butts – tails swinging in tandem!
Hornbill
Hyraxes
A monitor lizard lies in the sun on a rocky bank of a river.
Heron
A group of young male impalas
Sometimes young males will practice sparring with each other.
A colorful bird on thorny acacia branches. Unlike the giraffes, the thorns apparently don’t bother the birds!
Then we saw OUR FIRST LION!! It was a young male lying in tall grass so we could only see the top of his head and his eyes.
Fowl or quail
Buzzard
A group of female impalas (there’s a warthog passing through on the left!)
Mongooses poke their heads out of a termite mound where they’ve made their home.
Lilac breasted roller
Guinea fowl
Turtle
Egyptian geese
Old (abandoned) weavers’ nests
A starling, perhaps
Hornbill
Dik diks are shy, reclusive animals. They are normally seen in pairs, usually in tall grass. I got a good shot of this one after it urinated in the road in front of us!
Vervet monkey
This day was more awesome than yesterday – and each day would increase in awesomeness!!
Next: Elephant stories of Tarangire!
Tanzanian Pairs
Paula at Lost In Translation has a weekly challenge “Thursday Special.” This week’s topic is pairs.
Elephants (mother and offspring) in Arusha National Park after a mud bath!
A pair of Bare-Faced Go Away Birds up in a tree
Curious mongooses check out what’s going on from the safety of their hole in a termite mound in Tarangire National Park.
The smallest antelope, the dik dik, is very elusive. They always travel in pairs.
Another animal that you always find in pairs is the jackal. The pair works together to hunt or claim their prey. This pair lives in Ngorongoro Crater.
Impalas are a common and beautiful antelope. Here are a mother and her fawn.
Shy boys at a Maasai Village near Ngorongoro.
This is a mating pair of lions that live in Ngorongoro Crater. The male and female will stay together for about four days, then go their separate ways.
Hippos in a pond at Serengeti National Park
These are weavers’ nests! Weavers are small, bright yellow birds. The male makes the nest using grass and other materials, then awaits approval from the female.
Another large and ubiquitous animal is the long and lanky giraffe. One way to tell the male and female apart is by noticing the stubs on their heads. The female giraffe’s have tufts of hair, while the male’s are flat.
A furry little resident of the Serengeti lives in the rocky kopjes (an Afrikaans word pronounced like “copies”). These are hyraxes, which, strangely, are related to the largest animal of the Serengeti, the elephant! Can you see the resemblance??
And finally, one of my favorites – a pair (actually mother and cub) of cheetahs in the Serengeti. We watched these two for a long time.
Wanderlust & Wonderment 