CROCS IN CAVES

 Katavi crocs piling up in front of a croc-cave along the dry river bank, oct 2006.

D200, 80-400 5,6, 95 mm, f5,6, 1400, ISO 400

I saw this TV program the other night about a couple of biologists diving to film crocs in under-water caves in Botswana, and had immediate flashback on my own experiences with "croc in caves" (... I didn`t dive with `em though !).  My story is from Katavi National Park in western Tanzania, all the way towards Lake Tanganyika and the border to Congo. This is my "African Paradise" and actually a well kept "secret" for many photographers. I`ve had the pleasure to visit Katavi several times, often in combination with Ruaha NP. In the wet season the Katavi plains is a huge and for people inaccessible wetland, and in the dry season it converts into a super-dry environment with only one single and critically insufficient source of water for basically the whole Katavi ecosystem. 

The crocs here are huge, they grow up to more than 5 m length and can weigh up to 1 ton. Reaching this size the crocs may be as much as 70-80 years old (the oldest croc ever recorded was 115 !). While the wet season in Katavi is a "crocs Nirvana", the dry season is the opposite. When the last ponds of water dry out in the shrinking river, the crocs survive by digging caves into the river banks and pile themselves up by numbers in the dark. These caves "belong" to the crocs and are being used year after year. They slow down their metabolism and can stay without food for as long as up to 6 months. My Katavi friend Apollo Ambilikile once witnessed such a croc-cave collapse and counted 67 (!!) huge crocs crawling out of the dirt.

My pictures are "a couple of years old", and the quality is a little "un-even", but the story is great I think. The pictures have not been blogged before.   

See you in Africa !

 Katavi crocs outside cave, oct 2006

D200, 80-400 f5,6, 135 mm, f7,1, 1/200, ISO 400

 Katavi crocs, oct 2007

D300, 200-400 4,0, 280 mm, f7,1, 1/180, ISO 400

 Katavi crocs, oct 2007

D300, 200-400 4,0, 330 mm, f7,1, 1/180, ISO 400

 While staying in the caves dirt fall down from the "ceiling" and is being sedimented on the crocs. Even inside the jaws there is hardened mud layers. Incredibly the crocs do nothing to get rid of this armour  until the wet season dissolves it again in dec /jan. Katavi oct 2007.

D300, 200-400 4,0, 280 mm,f6,3, 1/160, ISO 400

 D300, 200-400 4,0, + 1,4 conv = 550 mm, f9,0, 1/180, ISO 400. Katavi oct 2007.

The crocs make no effort to get rid of the hardened mud-helmet.

D300, 400-400 4,0 + 1,4 conv = 550 mm, f9,0, 1/320, ISO 400. Katavi oct 2007.

 Muddy croc-mates, Katavi oct 2007

D300, 200-400 4,0, + 1,4conv = 550 mm, f9,0, 1/320, ISO 400

 Aggressive and at this stage : angry croc guarding her eggs. Katavi oct 2008.

D3, 200-400 4,0, 400 mm, f14,0, 1/800, ISO 1000

 Female croc guarding her eggs. Katavi oct 2008.

D3, 200-400 4,0 + 1,7 conv = 650 mm, f13,0, 1/640, ISO 800

 "All things must pass" (George Harrison), even the super predator of the wetlands. The pressure in the croc jaws can exceed 1000 kg, and a set of teeth lasts for about 2 years before new ones grow out. This guy here will never grow new teeth (and his old teeth are now in my drawer !). Katavi oct 2007.

D300, 200-400 4,0, 280 mm, f9,0, 1/320, ISO 400

  

 This croc apparently died on his way into the cave. The huge croc body now blocs the entrance of the cave (somebody in there ?) and is slowly being eaten from the back. Katavi oct 2007.

D300, 200-400 4,0, + 1,4 converter = 550 mm, f6,3, 1/160, ISO 400

Anyone who expires in these surroundings is immediately being recycled in the ecosystem. These are white backed vultures. Katavi oct 2007

D300, 400-400 4,0, 200 mm, f11,0, 1/500, ISO 400 

SOME EXTREMADURA EXTRAS

 Barbwire bee-eaters

Nothing much happened since last time, this is just some extras from my visit to Extremadura Spain in early May... basically to "shoot" black vultures. In this blog there is nothing but black vultures. 

Two birds, one cage !!?? Griffon vultures (gåsegribb)

Portrait of griffon vulture (gåsegribb)

Another griffon

The great bustard (stortrappe) is the biggest bird of all Europe, with the maximum weight of incredible 18 kg !!!! Open any field guide to European birds and you will know that the great bustard is very rare, inhabits a few remaining pockets of landscapes in Spain and eastern Europe, and is extremely shy.  I spent "a little bit of time" in a hide hoping to have a glimpse of the bird, and that was basically what I got : a short glimpse of a huge bird cruising through the meadow like an ancient sail ship !! 

A great moment. I hope to be back for some more next year !!

The great bustards little cousin is the small bustard.... but small ???? This is still a big bird.

(Dvergtrappe !!?? Den norske navnekomiteen må ha vært i koma den dagen. Denne er stor som en orrhane !!). This is also a "shyguy", I spent a night & a day in a hide where the little bustard was seen  playing. I was lucky : it was performing with hundreds of jumps close to the hide, but still unlucky because this happened at the back of the hide away from my camera angle. Only once it came shortly into my camera angle... 6 quick shots in "silent-mode", stressed, and then again : gone. My first experience with this bird !

    

Will you believe : the first visitor to the vulture-carcass was : a stork !! This one is shaving siesta.

Blurred sex on the roof !! A pair of lesser kestrel (rødfalk)

A Spanisk Raven

Red kite (glente)

Black kite (svartglente). The black kite may sometimes be hard to classify from the red one (glente), but no matter similarities in feathers, the wings go the black one sticks out similar to the tail, while the tail the red one sticks out longer (..... just in case you wanted to know). 

Black kite (svartgelente)

Black kite (svartglente) with assumed red kite in the background.

IBERISK MUNKEGRIBB / IBERIAN BLACK VULTURES

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/1000, ISO 1250

Jeg vet ikke riktig hva det "er" med meg og gribb, men disse fuglene fascinerer meg virkelig !! Digre, sky, grasiøst akrobatiske, uelegant klumpete, teatralsk vakre, kompromissløst stygge, udelikate matvaner, dårlige manerer, aggressive, sosiale, grisete, renslige, dårlig ånde (...antatt) og : der det er gribb ... er det action !! Med andre ord : Rock`n`roll !! Punken har åpenbart hentet mye inspirasjon fra denne gjengen.

Jeg er i Extremadura, området på en spanske høysletta langt vest mot Portugal, i et landskap som er kjent som "den spanske savannen" : Et bølgende landskap der endeløse gress-sletter veksler med spredte trær og knudrete fjell. Her har naturlandskapet og kulturlandskapet inngått et langvarig, men likevel halvhjertet samarbeide, der ingen av elementene egenlig gidder å ta styringen. Resultatet er vakkert og egenartet, og gir absolutt assosiasjoner til den Øst-Afrikanske savannen.

Jeg har primært kommet hit for å fotografere munkegribb (Aegypius monachus). Munkegribben er enda (litt) større en gåsegribben (bortimot 3,0 m i vingespenn !), den er svart, kraftig, ser "tøffere" ut enn de andre gribbene, har flotte farger og detaljer på nært hold.... og ser definitivt ikke ut som noen "good guy" ! En riktig fotogen type. Sammen med min spanske venn, fotografen Dario Mesonero-Romanos, investerte jeg 3 døgn og rikelig med slaktavfall i et avsidesliggende område med bestand av munkegribb.

Beklager å plage dere med såpass mange bilder, men jeg klarte faktisk ikke å kutte ut flere !! Tror det må komme en oppføler med "Extremadura Extras" !!

English : I am really fascinated by vultures!! They are huge, shy, gracefully beautiful, uncompromisingly ugly, have bad table manners, they are aggressive, social, obscene, neat, have bad breathe(...assumed).. and : where there are vultures .. there is action !! Just like punk rock`n`roll !! I`ve come to Extremadura in western Spain to "shoot" black vultures, the big (close to 3 m wingspan), black still colorful, tough looking"super vulture of the Spanish Savannah". Hope you like `em !!

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,0, 1/1600, +0,33, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,0, 1/500, +0,33, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/1250, -0,33, ISO 800

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/250, +0,33, ISO 800

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/500, +0,67, ISO 800

 Posing to look impressive !

D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/500, +0,33, ISO 800

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/400, ISO 1250

 Incredible experience to be this close to the black vulture, this image is uncropped !

D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/1600, ISO 1250

 Presumably a grey, old lady with style !!

D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/1250, +0,33, ISO 1000

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,0, 1/800, +0,33, ISO 1000

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,0, 1/400, +1,0, ISO 1000

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,0, 1/250, +0,33, ISO 1000

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,0, 1/800, +0,33, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/250, +0,33, ISO 800

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/250, +0,33, ISO 800

 2,9 m wingspan !!

D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/320, +0,33, ISO 800

 Difference in size and expression between griffon vulture (gåsegribb) and black vulture (munkegribb)

D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/800, ISO 800

The closest you get a landscape picture from my hand : Black vulture in Extremadura landscape.

D3s, 200-400 4,0, 200 mm, f6,3, 1/320, +0,67, ISO 400

I will make an "Extremadura follow-up" with some other stuff from this project.

TIUR MED HJELP FRA OVEN / CAPERCAILLIES WITH A LITTLE HELP FROM ABOVE

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/640, +0,67, ISO 3200

Bilder av tiur på leik har vi jo sett en del ganger før, så målet mitt var å treffe de få dagene røyene er på leiken. Prøvde på dette i fjor også, men traff ikke helt. Med utgangspunkt i disse erfaringene ble tidspunkt justert og jeg investerte 4 døgn i de dype skoger langt øst i Norge. Forventet vår,..  med fuglesang og "musører".... og Vårherre tok ansvar og sendte meg en fotografisk gave :  full vinter !!

I løpet av den andre natta kom det 15 cm vår nysnø, ...veldig  våt nysnø. Kamu-teltet mitt var definitivt ikke bygget for dette, og 15 cm smeltende snø på duken gir MYE vann, teltet (såkalt "lang lav") lakk som en sil, særlig i kortendene rundt inngang og kamerautgang. Det ble rett og slett ufattelig vått inne i teltet og kniven måtte fram for å skjære ut bunnen for ikke å "drukne". Forsåvist en litt ubehagelig prosess : først våt sovepose i fot-enden, så i hode-enden, så i berøringspunktene mot bakken : hofter, knær, skuldre. Min nyervervede høykvalitets (?) dunose fra Chile (Doite) stinka som en forsømt latinsk hønsegård !!! .... men snøen var en fotografisk gave !!

Neste natt ble ganske kald med klissvåt sovepose & våte klær (+ våt kneipp) og et merkbart knippe kuldegrader. 

Da jeg etterhvert kom hjem, hang jeg de våte effektene opp til tørk i stua,... inkl "hønsegården".... hengende fra hemsen ned i stua. Fruen var mildt sagt lite begeistret over dette, og bedre ble det ikke da hun i nattens mulm & mørke måtte opp for å gå på toalettet. Famlende i nattsvart mørke kom hun i skade for å treffe kamuflasjeteltet som like godt falt ned fra hemsen og dekket til hele damen !! 

Det falt noen stygge ord i mørket !!

English : I spent 4 days & nights in eastern Norwegian forests trying to capture the magic of the capercaillies` mating season. I expected spring.... and had : full winter !! 15 cm of dripping wet snow in combination with heavy leaking bind... made it i wet experience... but in photogtaphic terms : 

a gift from above !!

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/500, +0,67, ISO 3200

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/500, +0,67, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0,1/640, +0,67, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, 1/500, +1,0, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, !7250, +0,67, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, f6,3, 1/1000, +0,67, ISO 1000

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/500, +0,67, ISO 3200

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/125, +0,67, ISO 3200

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/640, +0,67, ISO 1250

 D3s, 600 4,0, f5,6, 1/1000, +2,00, ISO 1250

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/200, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/200, ISO 1600

 D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/160, ISO 1600

D3s, 600 4,0, f4,0, 1/100, ISO 1600