Africa: Kruger National Park/Nkambeni Tent Camp/Hippos/Waterbucks/Birds

Hippopotamus

Kruger National Park was what I had really been waiting for on our trip to Africa and it did not disappoint. We even saw our first Impalas ...

Common Impala

... and a Crested Barbet before we made it to the Camp.

What a cutie!

We stayed at the Nkambeni Tented Camp, somewhat like an upscale Girl Scout Camp. 

Very upscale for a "tent"

Outdoor shower

Our rooms were separate elevated tent cabins equipped with comfy beds shrouded in mosquito nets. We never needed the nets or all the repellent I brought. I didn’t see a single mosquito in Kruger. 

There was a pattern in all the hotels -- queen or king beds instead of separate beds -- not quite perfect for non-couples sharing a room. Ours was technically two, but it wasn't really possible to separate them. 

The rooms had electricity and a bathroom with both an indoor and an outdoor shower. 

I am not certain why one would need an outdoor shower, but it was chilly in the mornings and afternoons, so we stuck to the very delightfully hot indoor shower. Although the tent had plumbing (sink, toilet, showers), the shower itself just drained out under the tent platform. I guess that was a way to return the water directly to the land.

The lodge has a definite safari feel – and it has a nice deck on the back for animal viewing.

But, hey, why would we hang around the lodge – except maybe to photograph some of the birds? And, right off the bat we saw some absolutely beautiful Cape Glossy Starlings. These birds look like Grackles or Blackbirds until the sun hits them and then they turn a brilliant turquoise.

I love the dots on the wings

From this point in the blog, I am not going to try to be too, too chronological (it would be “then we saw this, then we saw this, then we saw this”). Instead, I’ll just discuss what we saw in specific areas.

Watering hole

And, what we saw at the watering hole was fantastic – Hippopotami (or Hippopotamuses, whatever!).  Adults in the water ...

Chillin', but very wary

... and a baby napping on a rock ...

Sleeping (kind of) on the edge

Well, he was napping until a Grey Heron flew over to pay a visit.

Hey, I'm nappin' here!

Then, the baby begrudgingly got up and slowly re-entered the water with the adults ...

I guess the big 'ol Heron scared him away

We watched and listened to the Hippos until the light got so poor that we had to give it up. Hippos are quite noisy when they are awake, so there is really no question where they are. Of course, they sleep a lot, too, as we saw later. These guys, however, were pretty active …

Grunting ...

Really, they were active!

Yawning …

A big yawn; Photo: Caty Stevens

And, occasionally sparring with each other.

Two Hippos

We heard that the following night there was a pretty large altercation and the dominant male chased another adult male out of the pond. That would have been fun to watch, but I think it was after dark.

A big mouth; Photo: Becca Stevens

The Hippos we saw were actually South African (or Cape) Hippopotami – one of four living species (the Pgymy Hippo is a different genus). 

The name Hippopotamus comes from the ancient Greek for "river horse.” After the Elephant and Rhinoceros (we saw those too!), the Hippopotamus is the third-largest land mammal. 

Despite their resemblance to pigs and other ungulates, their closest living relatives are cetaceans (whales, dolphins, porpoises, etc.) from which they diverged about 55 million years ago. 

The earliest known Hippopotamus fossils date to around 16 million years ago.

Climbing down

Adult  male Hippos average 3,300 lbs.; females average 2,870 lbs. Despite their stocky shape and short legs, they can run up to 20 mph over short distances. Their weight allows them to sink and walk along the bottom of shallow rivers and ponds. They can't jump, but can climb steep banks.

Despite being semiaquatic and having webbed feet, they are not particularly good swimmers and they don’t float. 

Hippos’ eyes, ears, and nostrils are high on the roof of their skulls so they can remain above the surface while the rest of the body submerges.

All but eyes, ears and nose

Hippos are highly aggressive and unpredictable and are ranked among the most dangerous animals in the world. Nevertheless, they are still threatened by habitat loss and poaching for their meat and ivory canine teeth.

A slow yawn

The Hippopotamus is semiaquatic, inhabiting rivers, lakes and mangrove swamps, where territorial bulls preside over a stretch of river and groups of five to 30 females and young. During the day, they remain cool by staying in the water or mud; reproduction and childbirth both occur in water. They emerge at dusk to graze, when an adult can consume up to 150 lbs. of grass in one night. Hippos stay in a group (called a pod, herd, raft, dale or bloat) while in the water, but are solitary on land.

A bloat

The Hippo's jaw hinge is located far back enough to allow it to open its mouth at almost 180 degrees. Hippopotamus teeth sharpen themselves as they grind together. The lower canines and lower incisors are enlarged, especially in males, and grow continuously. The incisors can reach 16 inches, while the canines can reach up to 20 inches. Neither canines nor incisors are used for eating – they are strictly for combat.

Giant teeth

Hippo skin secretes a natural red-colored substance sometimes referred to as "blood sweat;" but it is neither blood nor sweat. These secretions inhibit the growth of disease-causing bacteria and act as a sunscreen.

Blood sweat inhibits growth of disease-causing bacteria and acts as a sunscreen

A Hippo's lifespan is typically 40-50 years; the oldest known Hippo died at 61.

In water, adult Hippos typically resurface to breathe every three to five minutes; calves have to breathe every two to three minutes. Surfacing and breathing is spontaneous; a sleeping Hippo can rise and breathe without waking up. Hippos occasionally visit cleaning stations and signal, by opening their mouths, readiness for being cleaned of parasites by certain species of fishes.

Kruger National Park has more than 3,000 Hippos

Hippos are very aggressive and frequently attack boats. In one case in Niger, a Hippo capsized a boat and killed 13 people. 

Fun viewing

So, what else could we see from the grounds over the two days we spent at Nkambeni?

Bush hares (which I never got a picture of) and lots of birds …

Cape Bulbuls

Forked-Tail Drongos

Blacksmith Lapwing that didn't bother the baby Hippo the way the Grey Heron did

Brown-Headed Parrot

Karoo Thrush

 Groundscraper Thrush

Grey-Headed Bush-Shrike

Kurrichane Thrush

Red-Headed Weavers, male and female

Southern Grey-Headed Sparrow

Willow Warbler

Little Bee-eater

Lesser Striped Swallow

A female and young Ellipsen Waterbuck off in the distance – I wonder what evolutionary process decided to brand Waterbucks as the Target mascot? The “Ellipsen” in the name refers to the elliptical ring on its butt (the ring on its cousin, the Defassa Waterbuck is filled in with white hair). Their coloration varies so much that the Ellipsen waterbuck has four subspecies (the Defassa has nine!). 

Female and juvenile Ellipsen Waterbuck

A large antelope found widely in sub-Saharan Africa, Waterbuck does and bucks average about 47 and 54 inches tall, respectively, and weigh between 350 and 575 lbs. The males have long, spiral horns. We did see some males later. Because Waterbucks cannot tolerate dehydration in hot weather, they live on grasslands close to sources of water. Although Kruger has almost 5,000 Waterbucks, we only saw a few.

And, all those animals and birds were what we saw just walking around on the grounds …

Gray Heron

But, the really good stuff happened the next day on the game drive.

Kristen watching a Giraffe during our game drive

Trip date: August 25-September 9, 2017