Our last morning in the Park brought relief after the previous day’s heat. This clearly revived the predators, who were out and about.
Our first sighting of the morning was a Hyena family
While we sat watching them, Hennie got word of a pack of Wild Dogs nearby. We immediately abandoned the hyenas and set course for the Wild Dogs. We arrived to find a pack of thirteen of them jogging along the road and fooling around with one another.
Clearly someone had lost a cap and they were using it for a game of tug.
Things soon turned serious and they started hunting.
Their first attempt was unsuccessful, but this did not deter them. It was fascinating to see the teamwork involved, some flushing the impala out, while others did the takedown. Their second attempt was successfull, but due to the gruesome nature of the photos, covered in a separate post, linked here, not for sensitive viewers.
The impala was devoured within three minutes. Even the dog with a sore leg, who had surely not been of great value in the hunt, managed to eat its fill.
In the meantime, vultures started arriving to see whether there would be anything left for them.
While all of this was taking place, a Tawny Eagle also arrived on the scene
A Drongo took exception to the Eagle’s presence
After leaving the Wild Dogs, I had another opportunity to photograph an Oxpecker, this time cleaning a rhino’s nose
A stop at Lake Panic gave us opportunity to watch a Malachite Kingfisher and a Squacco Heron fishing.
Then it was time to pack up and leave for the airport.
On the way there, we still had one last surprise: a leopard trying (unsuccessfully in the time we had there) to crack a tortoise’s shell
Thus ended our week in Kruger National Park with our excellent hosts and guides, Bernhard and Hennie of B1 Photo Safaris
Etienne's Camera 