Sunday, January 1, 2012

Day Five - Ngorogoro Crater and back to Arusha

Itinerary Day 5, 27th Dec:        After an early breakfast, descend into the Crater for game viewing and a tour with a picnic lunches. Enjoy the game and vegetation in the unbroken caldera home for almost 30,000 animals including the last remaining Black Rhinos till the end of the day before returning to Arusha in the late afternoon.  


So far, we had bagged four of the "big five" animals, so called because they were the object of rapacious colonial hunting. These are elephant, buffalo, lion, leopard and rhinoceros. All populations are strong again except that of the rhino. Only 17 remain in all of Tanzania, and all of those are in the Ngorgoro Crater. There used to be one per 7 sq/km in the Serengeti, and now there are none at all, thanks to poaching. The Chinese believe that black rhino horn is a cure for sexual disfunction. The fewer rhinos remain, the higher the price. Those in the crater are under constant watch, but it may not be enough to ensure their survival. In his entire life, a male rhinoceros will only sire three offspring and not all of those will survive. With so few remaining, the odds are not good. If you care about the black rhino, please send Viagra to China.


WIthin minutes of leaving our lodge, we stopped to photograph a congress of baboons grooming and playing on the highway!
Got one. Hold still, there's another!

Oooo, that's good. Right there. Yes!

The kids had me up three times last night!

Happy family guy

OK. Enough diversion. Here's a peek into the crater floor. Another world awaits.


Can we possibly site a black rhino in this huge area? Down we go to try our luck.


Maribou stork. As for many scavengers, their heads are bald.
Crown cranes strut their stuff.
Hyena asleep in a mud puddle. Anything to keep cool.

Flamingos. High fluoride levels on the pond bottom make them pink.


And then, off in the distance, Tiger spots them - mother and "baby" rhino. (At the time, they were both lying in the long grass. This man's eyesight is uncanny.)
 The backdrop here is not weird sky; it is the side of the crater.


Maximum zoom, then zoomed again after. Now I can see them!
Rhino maternal affection
Glorious sky; glorious land.

Buffalo Family Portrait
Like my "do", babe?

Elephant graveyard.


The wonderful Tiger.


Last photo in the Ngorongoro. Back to Arusha we go!
Just before this photo was taken, we were having our daily picnic lunch beside the hippo pool. A kite swooped down on Paige from behind and tried to take her sandwich right out of her hand! Unfortunately, its beak hit her thumb and index finger instead of the bread. It didn't get her lunch, but it made her digits bleed. It was a bit of a shock, but I had disinfectant and Tiger had bandaids, so no serious repercussions. Plus, Paige got to keep her lunch!


The back-end of our Land Cruiser. Serengeti Lager, ho!

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