We were heading back from an extensive day of wildlife viewing, when we saw a herd of 4 or 5 safari vehicles along with their patrons all stopped and staring off into the thick bush. This was a good sign. When these packs of vicious viewers congregate you know you are in for a show. Finding the critter that these khaki clad campers have come across can be more difficult then finding cell phone service in your house. Just like tracking a creature, it is vitally important to follow the signs. The most useful sign is to look at the khaki crew and see where they are looking, along with what they are looking with. What to watch for:
-If point and shoots are being used (especially at rapid fire) then it is safe to assume that the findings are close. Note: Don’t automatically deduce that just because point and shoots are being used that the animal is close, some people just don’t have a clue, but if what they are looking at is far away most will give up the feeble attempt fairly quickly and put down the camera.
-If binoculars are being used, than it is a pretty safe assumption that the creature is further away. Note: Again don’t immediately infer that because you see binoculars that creatures are fact away, some people are just blind, or stupid. It is vital to assess the entire field before pulling out your weapon of choice. Once you have done that, let the searching begin!
After reading the signs, it became obvious that today was going to be a "Where’s Waldo" type of day. Our scene today was a rocky, slowly sloping hillside about 50 meters away. In the bush you can ask where something is located, but even the keenest linguistics will have trouble sometimes. Saying things like: “It’s next to the rock” or “They are in front of the tree” is useless. Why? Because do you know how many trees and rocks there are here?! Duh it is going to not only be around just a single rock or a lone tree, but a plethora of them! They are everywhere. Fortunately though, Mother Nature has provided us wildlife junkies an easier way to get our fix; I will spare you the charts, technical graphs and extensive scientific jargon and simply call it hydration. Animals need fluids, so it is a safe bet (especially in the current dry season) that animals can be found in the more open areas, near water. Today, this was not the case though. Unfortunately, nature also does this thing called evolution (for further reading see Darwin). In a place as hot and dry as Botswana, all creatures that required their equivalent of 8 cups of water spaced evenly throughout the day have long since died of dehydration or been a tasty treat to a predator who was waiting near the watering hole. Animals who have small bladders died off long, long before there was medication to treat it.
Today we were attempting to spot two baby cheetahs, left by their mother so she could go hunt for them. If trying to spot them wasn’t hard enough due to nature, you also have to deal with your own ecosystem. And by that I mean, dealing with the dynamics of your tour vehicle. The vehicle is a pick-up, with the bed having three rows of raised seats and an overhang to protect the patrons from the blistering sun. Getting a good view is half luck and half skill. You never know what side you are going to see something on so you either could be in the best spot, or behind everyone. In that case it is up to your wormy attributes, mixed with some ancient and forgotten yoga poses and your diplomacy skills (remember you have to ride with these people and repeat this process many times) to get you into a prime viewing position. And even then, animals are animals and they move; it is a constant ebb and flow and one must be able to adapt at all times. And that is what I had to do today. Fortunately because they were cubs, they didn’t move around too much and once I found my position I was set.
After taking full appreciation of the sight, it was time to move on. As we continued on the path, giddily searching around every tree and stone (ok many of the trees and stones) for the next critter which we were to see. Where then, we would scramble over our seats and scamper to get the best look and shot of our new friends.
Just heard a lion howl, feeding time.
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