The dik-dik (Madoqua) is the smallest of the antelope species living on the Savannah and in the brush - roughly the weight of a house cat.
The name is apparently onomatopoeic - the females repeatedly whistling the sound when threatened.
We caught glimpses on several occasion, though they were very difficult to photograph - hiding in thicker vegetation - coupled up and protecting their little plots. They are hunted by more or less anything that is capable of hunting - including eagles and even baboons!
They have great eyesight - defend a known, well defined territory and with their tiny size and narrow snouts are able to pick at leaves on the very spiny branches of the acacia trees.
And the small "forests" that they inhabit - never managed to catch one in the open.
Showing posts with label Mammals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Mammals. Show all posts
Tuesday, January 14, 2020
Dik-dik (Madoqua)
Monday, January 13, 2020
Common warthog (Phacochoerus africanus)
The common warthog (Phacochoerus africanus) was our near constant companion on our journey across this part of the world.
They welcomed us on our first day - never getting too close - often running off with its tail raised up in fear before stopping, relaxing - looking around to see why the hell it was running in the first place - occasionally to be eaten.
The largest of these guys can reach 150kg - a somewhat scary proposition... Those tusks look like they could do some serious damage!
Apparently Pumba has a very short memory span of around 30 seconds by local accounts.
And of course running away through a group of fake meerkats, tail raised, before getting confused and looking around in a daze:
They welcomed us on our first day - never getting too close - often running off with its tail raised up in fear before stopping, relaxing - looking around to see why the hell it was running in the first place - occasionally to be eaten.
The largest of these guys can reach 150kg - a somewhat scary proposition... Those tusks look like they could do some serious damage!
Apparently Pumba has a very short memory span of around 30 seconds by local accounts.
Mothers with young do a fairly good job of camouflaging themselves - the babies are barely visible - though some parents do a better job than others - each of the photos below feature a mother and two young:
And of course running away through a group of fake meerkats, tail raised, before getting confused and looking around in a daze:
And a family group - most likely sisters - raising their young together - if one of the adults is to be hurt or killed the other can continue providing milk to her sisters offspring.
Some photos of some sisters with their babies - small age gap clearly visible.
Labels:
Africa,
Amboseli,
Animal,
Animals,
Camouflage,
Common Warthog,
Kenya,
Mammal,
Mammals,
Omnivore,
Phacochoerus africanus,
Pig,
Pumba,
Safari,
tusks,
Vertebrate,
Vertebrates
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