Cheetahs and Wild Dogs
OK. It has been more than two weeks since we posted. We had problems with the weblog as some of you know from logging in about ten days or so ago and seeing an error message. After some e-mails with the good folks from bootsnall (who’s weblog support we are using) we seem to have it back up. Let’s hope it stays that way! Also, the week in Kruger National Park came with no Internet access at all. Which is a good thing I must say. So here we are. We are now in Cape Town, newly settled in our new home (more on that when you get to it in sequence) and can now dump lots on you. So here you go.
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For the first time since leaving the US we rented a small car. It was very freeing to have our own wheels and a welcome break from public transport.
We took advantage and went to visit a cheetah rehabilitation center about an hour outside of Pretoria. The center is world-renowned for it’s success in breeding cheetahs. In 1960’s cheetahs were on the endangered species list. This center was the first to have surviving cheetah babies born in captivity. Due to the research done here, cheetahs are no longer on the list. Since inception they have successfully bred over 770 cheetahs.
The Center does a wonderful 3 hour tour, mostly on an open safari vehicle. Seeing vultures, wild dogs, hyenas, ostrichs, impalas, elands, and cheetahs close up was fabulous. Our guide was very informative, especially about the relationships these animals have to each other and the circle of life. For instance, in the wild, when a cheetah kills an impala they eat most of the meat out of the carcass. Next in line for the impala are the hyenas. They have such strong teeth, they can eat most of the rest of the animal. They’ll eat meat, skin, teeth, and hoofs. The hyenas eat anything but glass and metal. The vultures come in last and eat the rest of the meat and the bone shards left behind by the hyenas. Without the hyenas breaking down the bones, the vultures don’t get enough calcium in their diet. Without calcium baby vultures can’t fly.
The highlight for the kids was petting a tame (relative term) cheetah at the end of the tour. Their fur looks soft, but is the same texture as a horse.
The center provided us excellent practice in photographing wild animals prior to Kruger National Park next week. The animals move so quickly and their expressions change just as fast as human expressions.
Our drive back to city was uneventful and we decided to go back to the great restaurant we walked to on the first night. More meat and beer and we were all ready for a good night sleep in our new backpacker. We decided to switch to a new one as we just didn’t feel comfortable in the first.
Tags: Photography, South Africa, Travel
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