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Old-timers

As buffalo get older and their reproduction peaks pass males will often be chased from the larger herds and are often found in small groups or on their own. These animals then get the nickname Dagha boys. Dagha is the Zulu name for mud and refers to the buffalo spending a lot of their past time in mud wallows. Buffalo are very easily recognizable on a game drive as they are a large ox-like looking animal with very large bossed horns. Buffalo are dimorphic which means there is little difference between the male and the female. Male buffalo are often covered in mud and their bosses met in the middle of their head to form a helmet-like structure on the head. Younger bulls often still have hairs on their horns.
Info source: https://hluhluwegamereserve.com/african-big-5/cape-buffalo/

27 March 2019Picture of the day, Wildlife

Hidden

Rhinos live in home ranges that sometimes overlap with each other. Feeding grounds, water holes and wallows may be shared. The black rhino is usually solitary. The white rhino tends to be much more gregarious. Rhinos are also rather ill-tempered and have become more so in areas where they have been constantly disturbed. While their eyesight is poor, which is why they will often charge without apparent reason, their sense of smell and hearing are very good. They have an extended “vocabulary” of growls, grunts, squeaks, snorts and bellows. When attacking, the rhino lowers its head, snorts, breaks into a gallop reaching speeds of 30 miles an hour, and gores or strikes powerful blows with its horns. Still, for all its bulk, the rhino is very agile and can quickly turn in a small space. The female family groups are often visited by mature males checking for females in estrus. Several interrelated family groups may inhabit an area and know each other well. When they meet at watering holes and feeding places, they greet each other affectionately.

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Info source: https://www.sa-venues.com/wildlife/wildlife_rhino.php

26 March 2019Picture of the day, Wildlife

Teenager

Waterbuck calves are kept hidden for two to three weeks or even two months. At about three to four weeks, the calf begins following its mother, who signals it to do so by raising her tail. Though bereft of horns, mothers will fiercely defend their offspring from predators. Calves are weaned at eight months, following which time they join groups of calves of their own age. Young females remain with their mothers in nursery herds, or may also join bachelor herds. The waterbuck live to 18 years in the wild and 30 years in captivity. As soon as young males start developing horns (at around seven to nine months of age), they are chased out of the herd by territorial bulls. These males then form bachelor herds and may roam in female home ranges.
Info source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Waterbuck

25 March 2019Picture of the day, Wildlife