Mashatu in Springtime

I cannot believe how much time flew. I was still thinking of putting these pics up about a month ago. Well in the meantime Christmas has come and gone and I already need to process the last Kenya pics. It has been almost a full year now since I have been guiding C4 Images and Safaris trips to Tuli and in the process have come to know the many and varied moods of this remarkable wilderness.

What striked me most of this last trip to Mashatu was how everything has come full circle since my first trip in April 2010. During April the area had excessive flooding and we almost got washed down the river.

On our last visit the last of some of the pools had dried up completely leaving the hundreds of Tilapia and Side striped Barbs stranded. .

A feast for the numerous storks, kingfishers and Herons. We even noticed tracks of Black backed Jackals frequenting these easy pickings

Velvet mites responded to the rains and could be seen scurrying about on the wet soil.

And when the rains kept us indoors, or at least camp bound, a stroll through camp revealed numerous other interesting inhabitants like this Lynx spider.

Fortunately the rains were not far and several millimetres fell during our stay bringing much needed respite, especially to the fish! The area transformed from dry dusty stubble to a parklike environment in a few days and I cannot wait to get there soon to witness the next stage of this ephemeral region.

The thought then came up that as photographers we are always so focussed in getting the ultimate shot that at times we miss the dramas in nature unfolding everywhere around us. And it is often only when you are really aware of the area when the decisive shots present themselves.