THREE LIONESSES & ONE DEAD ZEBRA UNDER THE TENT !!

Since October this year wasn`t my best month, I choose to give you an older story from a couple of years back. This was in Katavi NP Tanzania (one of my favorite places in TZ), one early morning we spotted a pride of lions on a fresh zebra kill just right next to the camp. We jumped in the small open Indian jeep and had a great time with the lions. As the sun was getting unpleasant for the lions one adult female suddenly grabs the zebra carcass by the neck and starts puling the heavy load (approx 300 kg !) determinately towards the only shady place available : underneath the thin wooden floor of tent no. 2, meaning : we had 3 adult lions & one dead zebra under the tent !! The lions had all the time in the world, feeding on the carcass and sleeping there "lion wise" the whole day through. The problem was however : the two American guest who were living in the tent should leave on a Cessna flight the same evening, and their passports were inside !! Nobody dared to approach the tent with the feeding lions underneath, but in the lat afternoo the lions crawled out and "displayed" in front of the tent. The 2 Americans were getting desperate for the passports and I (beeing a stupid idiot !!) volunteered (!!!) to try to get them. We drove the vehicle all the way up to the entrance with the lions only 2 - 3 m away and the remains of the zebra still below the tent, and, with my heart beating like a heavy drum, I "discretely" slipped inside, found he passports with shaking hands & slipped out again.

Risky, but I got away with it !!

The following night hyenas finished the carcass with severe noise. 

Next morning : only the tip of the zebra tail was left.

Great memories !!  

 

These pics were edited a long time ago, the quality is not good, ... but the story stands out !!

Even though he winks his eye, don`t ever trust this guy !!!

This young bushbuck calf had lost her mother and had found safety under the floor of my tent. I was instructed by the crew not to trample my feet on the floor, be as quiet as possible and put out a bowl of water to her twice a day. She was a real beauty, and accordingly named Soqui after the beautiful bushpilot operating the local Cessnas. However she was frightened by the lions & the hyena noise, fled and was killed by a leopard.

OM BETYDNINGEN AV Å HA BOMTURER / THE IMPORTANCE OF HAVING FAILED PROJECTS

October forest
D4, 70-200 2,8, f/2,8, 1/200, ISO 125

Mange har etterhvert påpekt at jeg tilsynelatende lykkes med de fleste prosjektene jeg setter igang,- fra enkelte er det endog antydet forekomst av "gullhår et visst sted".  Jeg iler derfor til for å dementere !
I sept / okt hadde jeg feks. 2 bomturer på rappen. Først ble optimistisk satsing i kamu i flere dager .... med visjoner om spektakulære møter mellom rovfugl og nøtteskriker over et nattsvart skogstjern ... til et knippe ordinære bilder av nøtteskrike. Siden rant 6 dager avsatt til brølende hjortebukker i brunst i nord-mørske skråninger ut i hysteriske vestlandske regnvær og en fremskyndet returflight til Gardermoen.

Jeg synes egentlig det er helt greit med bomturer (i alle fall en gang i blant), i mitt hode er nedturene faktiske nødvendige for å verdsette de gangene man lykkes ..... og har man ikke bomturer sikter man antakeligvis ikke høyt nok !

Ryktene om gullhår burde herved være avkreftet... en gang for alle.

English : I`ve always said (and meant) that failed projects are necessary to appreciate success, and if you don`t have failed project you probably don`t aim high enough. I`ve recently had 2 failed projects in a row, first my ambitious plan to shoot interaction between raptors & jays  over a black forest pond failed .... and secondly 5 days of shy Norwegian red deer-adventure literally was washed away in halerious autumn rainfalls.

However, new projects are coming up. My next is lammergeier in Spanish Pyrenèes. I hope for better luck with them.... so : stay tuned!!

These guys are NOT like their habituated Mid European relatives, these guys are night active and extremely shy.

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/160, ISO 2200

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/200, ISO 3200

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/100, ISO 7200

When they eventually show up, they come ... and go in seconds, it all happens very quickly, and then you wait another 24 hours for next possible situation.
D4, 600 ,0, f/4,0, 1/320, ISO 1400

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/500, ISO 2000

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/640, ISO 2800

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/640, ISO 2200

Common jay in early morning night frost
D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/500, ISO 2000

... and later in the day.
D4, 600 4,0, f/5,6, 1/320, ISO 1100

D4, 200-400 4,0, f/4,5, 1/2500, ISO 2000

D4, 200-40 4,0, f/4,0, 1/1600, ISO 1400

FJELLREV / ARCTIC FOX

D4, 200-400 4,0, f/4,0, 1/400, ISO 280

Vi har dessverre lenge vært i ferd med å miste fjellreven fra norsk natur. Noen forklarer dette med klimaendringer og andre med at rødreven konkurrerer fjellreven ut av sine høyalpine habitater. Fjellreven har slitt LENGE i Norge, lenge før klimaendringene ble merkbare og de nevnte "forklaringene" er etter min mening bortforklaringer. Årsaken til at fjellreven ikke klarer seg i Norge er åpenbart mangel på føde om vinteren. Om sommeren lever fjellreven av smågnagere, fuglekyllingr og krekling. Om vinteren er fjelleven fra naturens side primært en åtseleter. Hva er så problemet ? Jo, det finnes ikke lenger åtsler i norske fjell. Årsak 1 : Vil åpenbart ikke ha jerv i dette landet. Jerven evner som kjent å nedlegge rein som bytte og er en notorisk hamstrer. Disse jervdeponiene er selvsagt viktig potensiell vintermat for fjellreven. Årsak 2 : Det finnes ikke lenger kadavre i norske fjell. Villreinstammen har "i alle år" blitt forvaltet etter prinsippet størst mulig slaktevekt. Dersom gjennomsnittlig slaktevekt over tid går ned kompenseres dette med større jaktkvoter. Konsekvensen blir nødvendigvis at ALLE dyr i populasjonen er i like god tilstand / kondisjon og INGEN individer dør av sult og utmattelse om vinteren. Det er IKKE på et slikt grunnlag evolusjonen har gitt oss fjellreven, og en fjellnatur med null selvdøde dyr betyr ganske enkelt at det ikke er livsgrunnlag for fjellrev i Norge. Norsk viltforvaltning er som et uøkologisk høste-gufs fra 50 og 60 åra, ensidig basert på prinsippet om høsting der jegernes utbytte av jakta er et altoverskyggende kriterium i forvaltningen. Alle festtalene de siste 10-åra om biologisk mangfold er åpenbart holdt for døve ører. Mens halve norske artslista etter hvert står på rød-lista og det biologiske mangfoldet bokstavelig talt blir borte mellom fingene våre .... fortsetter norsk viltforvaltning med støtte av ALLE jegerorganisasjonene ufortrødent videre med sin uøkologiske praksis som ukritisk redskap for gammeldagse jegere.

´Kanskje på tide a våkne opp til 2013 ???

English : Unfortunately the arctic fox is now extremely rare in Norway. In my opinion this is due to lack of food in winter and the reason for this is obviously the way maintain out reindeer populations in Norway. However I was lucky to be able to followed a pack of young foxes over several days in Dovre mountains, Norway in September. They really melted my heart !!

  

D4, 600 4,0, f/6,3, 1/800, ISO 800

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,5, 1/500, ISO 500

D4, 600 4,0, f/6,3, 1/1600, ISO 1800

D4, 600 4,0, f/6,3, 1/1600, ISO 2200

D4, 600 4,0, f/5,6, 1/1250, ISO 2200

D4, 600 4,0, f/6,3, 1/800, ISO 800

D4, 600 4,0, f/5,6, 1/1000, ISO 1000

D4, 600 4,0, f/5,6, 1/1000, ISO 1250

D4, 600 4,0, f/5,6, 1/1000, ISO 1000

D4, 600 4,0, f/6,3, 1/1600, ISO 900

D4, 200-400 4,0, f/4,0, 1/500, ISO 400

Morning toilet !!

D4, 200-400 4,0, f/4,0, 17320, ISO 400

D4, 200-400 4,0, f/4,0, 1/500, ISO 1600

D4, 200-400 4,0, f/5,0, 1/800, ISO 720

D4, 200-400 4,0, f/5,0, 1/800, ISO 450

D4, 600 4,0, f/5,6, 1/1000, ISO 500

YOUNG KESTRELS ON OLD BRANCHES / TÅRNFALK

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/1600, ISO 1100

Pictures of young kestrels were shot with Jostein Hellevik in Dalen, Telemark in July. Having left the nest the birds were surely unpredictable and hard to shoot from improvised hides in the terrain over several days. I still got a few..... 

Jostein has a lot of new, interesting projects going on eagles, goshawks, sparrowhaws, jays, woodpeckers, ospreys, owls etc etc .... depending of time of year.  A stay at his place is highly recommended !! His contact is : 

jostein@hovdmyra.no

   

D4, 600 4,0, f/6,3, 1/1000, ISO 1250

D4, 600 4,0, f/6,3, 1/1000, ISO 1000

d$, 600 4,0 + 2x conv = 1200 mm, f/8,0, 1/100 MLup, ISO 2500

D4, 600 4,0 + 2 x conv = 1200 mm, f/9,0, 1/100, MLup, ISO 1800

D4, 600 4,0, f/4,0, 1/100, ISO 800

D4, 600 4,0, f/5,6, 1/2500, ISO 1600

D4, 600 4,0, f/5,6, 1/2500, ISO 2200 

Jostein & Maj-Lena hosting ambitious photographers to shoot spectacular Telemark nature ! 

I never put my ass on a horse before !! The 3 hours ride in spectacular Telemark nature is something I`ll never forget !