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I watched this handsome male lion for a long time, wondering how he could stand all the flies that seemed to be a permanent fixture on his nose. Finally he yawned and I think you can even see the flies' wings as they buzzed around. I think a few ended up as lion lunch - you can see one or two on his tongue. The female lioness that he was with didn't seem to mind his fly breath at all.
There's a funny story behind this shot. Everyone in our group (mostly professional photographers) was trying to get a good close-up shot of a hippo when it surfaced. I was one of the more inexperienced photographers and definitely more lax in my approach. If I get a good shot, bonus. I happened to be the only photographer in our group standing where I was and I was just taking in the sights, looking around, laughing at stuff. Then all of a sudden this hippo pops out of the water right in front of me - just a few feet away. I was able to get this shot but after that he became more elusive and wouldn't come as far out of the water as he did in this pic. Here's to quick reflexes and luck. I'm sure there are much better hippo-peeking-out-of-water shots, but I was happy with this one. I especially love that he has a sleepy/lazy look in his eye.
I think this guy is a Cape Griffon or Cape Vulture, but if I'm wrong I'm sure someone will correct me.
I was honestly amazed at the detail in this photo because I wasn't anticipating it to be a decent shot. These are the guys that we'd see swarming around carcasses. The hyenas were constantly trying to chase them off but these guys are pretty quick.
This mother cheetah was very protective of her young 'un and this pose perfectly displays that.
This was the first time I had seen cheetahs in the wild so it was pretty damn cool for me. The cheetahs would perch on top of these termite mounds that appear all across the savannah so they can get better viewing of any game they want to hunt.
Ah, this big beautiful matriarch elephant was one of my favorite sights. I told our Maasai driver that he could just drop me off with the elephants. I'd hang with them all day and be perfectly happy. Elephants are my all time favorite; their sensitivity and intelligence are just amazing. Rumor has it they're telepathic.
This "cute" little hyena cracked me up because he reeked! Stink doesn't begin to describe it.
It was quite frankly like something out of Satan's ass. Or, what I'd expect something out of Satan's ass to smell like. After seeing the look on his face in this shot, it made it even funnier. It's as if he knew he reeked and was in on the joke.
Animals Matter. Even the stinky ones.
