African Skimmer

The total African population of the Skimmer is estimated to be 10,000. The adults can tolerate very high ambient temperatures without seeking shade. Their eggs are laid in a depression on the sand banks, as you can see from the photo above the eggs and chicks are very well camouflaged, their chicks are what we call precocial, which means that when they hatch they already have feathers, very soon they will be able to see, walk and feed themselves, if your born on the ground you need a head start in life!

The lions mane

The Lions in the Selous have small manes in comparison to the rest of Tanzania's Lions. This could be due to a couple of reasons. The first is inbreeding and the second is due to the climate in the Selous, we are only 70m above sea level and 100km from the coast, so it can get quite warm here! A big mane would hinder the lions when the temperatures rise later in the year. The Lions mane aids in making it seem bigger, useful in confrontations with other males or Hyenas!

Masaai Giraffe

The Giraffe has an incredible circulatory system, its heart can weight up to 10kg and measure 60cm as it must generate double the blood pressure of average large mammals to maintain the blood flow to the head!

Love is in the air

Snapped this pair of mating Pied Kingfishers early in the morning along the banks of the Rufiji river. They mainly feed on fish, but will take crustaceans and large aquatic insects. The males has two complete breast bands and the female has a single broken band. They are capable of hovering over the water to locate fish.