An elephant enjoying his mud bath (or is that spa treatment?) near Skukuza in the Kruger National Park.
One would be forgiven for expecting that the most memorable experience of a visit to the Kruger National Park would entail one of the big, charismatic mammals exhibiting some or other fascinating behaviour: a pride of lions making a kill, an elephant cow giving birth or a thousand-strong herd of buffalo stampeding to a waterhole, for instance. However, as I found out during my solo visit to the Kruger Park at the end of May, a bounty of beautiful butterflies can easily make those hairy-and-scary creatures fade into the background! In both Pretoriuskop and Skukuza Rest Camps I found blooming Lowveld Bittertea bushes (Gymnanthemum coloratum) and the surrounding gardens and lawns attended by literally hundreds of butterflies of at least 28 different species! They kept me busy and entertained for quite some time and I hope this gallery of pictures convey at least a sense of this awesome experience.
Of course, the butterflies were not the only insects making good use of the proliferation of winter flowers, and various other insects, most notably bees and wasps, were to be seen in attendance. A few dragonflies and birds then also made use of the opportunity to catch an easy meal on the wing.
Two weeks later we returned to the Kruger Park, this time to Shingwedzi Rest Camp about 280km north of Skukuza. Here we found fewer butterflies – perhaps winter had set in now, with nighttime temperatures especially being on the cold side – but there were still enough of them flitting around to keep us thoroughly engaged while spending the midday hours in camp.
I’d like to dedicate this post to a great friend to de Wets Wild and the biggest butterfly fundi I know – AJ Vosse of “Ouch My Back Hurts” .
Ever get the feeling that your kindness is being abused, Mr. Hippo? Just asking…
This temporary island being used (abused really, don’t you think?) by sunbathing Marsh and Serrated Hinged Terrapins was seen at the Kruger National Park‘s Nwaswitshaka Waterhole on the S65 road between Skukuza and Pretoriuskop in May 2019.
After nine-and-a-half wonderful days at Shingwedzi in the Kruger National Park we’re back home in Pretoria for a day or two, before heading off on the next leg of our winter holidays. We’ll soon be sharing lots of wonderful wildlife encounters from our days in Shingwedzi with you, but herewith so long a gallery of highlights – These photos were all taken by Joubert!
We’ve watched the sun set for the ninth and final time over the Shingwedzi River on this visit to the Kruger National Park. Of course there’s many, many photos from this wonderful place that we’ll be sharing with you in weeks to come!
In case you were wondering how Joubert’s photo turned out:
Tomorrow we’ll be heading home via Phalaborwa Gate for a quick two-day “lay-over” in Pretoria before heading to our next winter holiday destination.
Grey, Red-billed and Yellow-billed Hornbills visit us at our campsite here in Shingwedzi in the Kruger National Park around lunchtime every day, amusing us with their bold yet unsuccessful attempts to pilfer food from our plates…
I had trouble deciding whether to show you the beautiful lions we saw today near Babalala Picnic Spot, or the beautiful leopard we saw within a stone’s throw from Punda Maria Rest Camp. So, I will show you both!
Three bull elephants sharing an afternoon drink at their local watering hole (a pool in the Shingwedzi River)
Elephants gathering in their numbers along the dwindling waterholes of the drying Mphongolo River
(You can click on the image for an enlarged view)
The last photo taken today – sunset over the dry bed of the Shingwedzi River.
(You can click on the photo for a bigger view)
DeWetsWild 