We’ve just returned from a morning outing in the Moreletakloof Nature Reserve near our home, where we encountered this zebra. If you’d like, there are more photos from our trip here.
We’re participating in the online adventure travel and photography magazine LetsBeWild.com‘s Wild Weekly Photo Challenge for bloggers. This week’s challenge is “Now“
Probably the best thing about living in Pretoria is that there’s a bunch of nature reserves very near to us. The tiny (100 hectare) Moreletakloof Nature Reserve is just one example: it is only 2.6 kilometers from our home, and early this morning Joubert and I headed there for a bit of walking. Despite it being overcast and drizzling we had a thoroughly enjoyable father-and-son experience, encountering a variety of birds and animals along the trail.
Ostriches are frequently encountered in Moreletakloof, and can be dangerous when protecting chicks.
Moreletakloof’s animals are quite habituated to the human presence
Zebra foal with an irritating itch in the ear
Impala
More impala
Red bishop
And even more impala
This small stream meanders from one end of the reserve to the other
Trail through thicket
Restored farmhouse from the late 1800’s now operating as a restaurant, with blesbuck grazing on the grounds
Blesbuck
Who’s watching who?
Game viewing in the Moreletakloof – a tiny nature reserve smack in the middle of Pretoria’s eastern suburbs.
(this is our second entry for this week’s challenge – have a look at the first if you’d like)
Have a look at other bloggers’ interpretation of this week’s theme “Beyond”.
de Wets Wild is inspired by spending time together in South Africa’s wild places – as in this picture featuring Dries and an eight-month old Joubert negotiating a trail in the Moreletakloof Nature Reserve in Pretoria, South Africa.
A collection of images depicting the splendour of the natural vegetation found in South Africa’s wild places.
(click on an image to view the picture carousel):
South Africa is home to both species of African rhinoceros: the extremely aggressive black rhino and the much more placid white rhino. Encountering either species during our visits to our country’s wild places is always a thrilling experience and losing these beautiful beasts forever, due to human greed and superstition, is a thought too terrible to ponder.
As I post these images I cannot help but wonder whether the individual animals they depict are still alive and well?
The 22nd of September 2012 is internationally celebrated as World Rhino Day. The message that rhinoceros horn holds no curative or aphrodisiac properties needs to be spread loud and clear so that the market for rhino horn can be wiped out, and it cannot happen soon enough. There are many people from all over the world and from all walks of life working tirelessly, and even putting their own lives in the firing line, to protect these magnificent creatures from savage poachers, but the onslaught from the organised crime syndicates continue unabated – so far this year we’ve lost at least 381 rhinoceros through poaching in South Africa alone (according to the official figures published in September 2012).
Please lend your support by spreading the message of World Rhino Day to the world.
A wonderland entirely surrounded by the ever growing expanse of our capital city.
The beautifully tended gardens and fascinating natural vegetation of the Pretoria National Botanical Garden, teeming with birdlife and small animals, offers escape from the urban rat race. A number of trails have been laid out to all parts of the gardens, and one can spend hours walking the grounds or enjoying a picnic while taking in the sights, sounds and smells.
We spent a lovely morning exploring the Botanical Garden on the 21st of July 2012 – the homemade chicken pies at the Milkplum Café alone was worth the trip!
DeWetsWild 