KILLING TIME AT THE SERENGETI
Sun sets down on the vast plains of Northern Tanzania, coloring the Serengeti in Scarlet and Orange. Photographers call this time the “magic hour”. They say it’s because the warm and angular lightning makes the pictures more dramatic. But there’s another drama playing here. Dusk also happens to be the best hunting hour for the big cats, and one of them just happens readying itself for dinner on top of one of the Acacia trees ahead of us. We stop our breath in anticipation…
Serengeti for beginners
The Serengeti is one of the world’s most famous national parks and with a good reason. First, it’s huge. With approximately 30,000 km2 it’s substantially larger than my home country of Israel. Second, it hosts one of the largest mammal migration in the world. The Serengeti also boasts a large predator population (i.e. Big cats – Lions, Leopards, Chitas) and is one of the best places to observe Lion prides in their natural environment. Overall more than 70 large mammal and 500 types of birds call this place home. No wonder the place had been titled as one of the Seven Natural Wonders of Africa, and subsequently also as one of the ten natural travel wonders of the world. And that’s the reason we’re here – Three boys, one wife, a modified Safari Land Cruiser, a guide, and yours truly.
Love wildlife? read these wild posts below:
– The most common rare bird
– 28 hours later
– Where do elephants go when it’s raining?
It’s the dry season here which means middays or too hot to travel and nights are too dangerous to venture out of the lodge. We venture out of our pampered, air-conditioned bungalows just ahead of four o’clock and venture down into the parched, endless land below. They say the wet season is great to see the massive herbivore migration, but the dry season is best to see some killing. As temperature rise and the grass wither, all hunters and their pray concentrate around few muddy streams and water halls. For the lazy tourists we are, this a real boon. Spotting a Leopard and a nice, juicy Gazelle does not require covering endless miles and Millions of Wildebeests.
Speaking of which, “Hey! There’s one right ahead of us!”
Cat chow, or big Miao?
I grab my camera and telephoto lens and start shooting (pictures). It is a magnificent, large predator. The Leopard (Yes, Leopard, Tigers wear stripes and hang around in Asia), oblivious to us, stroll majestically down from the canopy towards the big “Y” of the trunk. It posses for a minute, just enough to take a “National Geographic”-like picture. “Hah!” I think to myself, “and those bozos from BBC nature programs sit endless weeks in wait, while I only needed a few moments and an amateurish Olympus EM5.”
Then the unbelievable happens. Something down on the plain attracts Leo’s attention. It’s a Gazelle! A fast and small antelope, and prized cat chow. In a blink of an eye, the once lazy leopard loses all signs of late afternoon fatigue. It tenses its muscles, ready to make the jump.
We all hold our breaths in anticipation – the three boys included. The Gazelle below is completely oblivious. “What a stupid careless animal”, I think to myself, not believing my luck. “Will the tiger eat the little deer?” whispers the young one. I want to tell him “I sure hope so”, but decide not to. The older kid is so transfixed on the scene he failed to notice (and loudly correct) the young one’s two zoological mistakes.
Hitchcock in the savanna
It’s a suspense movie. Everybody knows what about to happen – but the victim itself.
Is the gazelle doomed? Will this cat take the plunge? Is it “hungry like the wolf”?
Not this one. Not this time.
Deciding the chase is not worth the effort the large carnivore decides to let this one go. The gazelle oblivious to the drama unfolding, walk calmly on. Lucky for him. Damn it!
We go back to the lodge, the pool, and the Zebras (who hang around it for no reason). We may need to watch the BBC to see a real chase after-all.
But at least we got ourselves a front seat ticket to a nature real drama,
sort of…
