Christian Sperka is a wildlife photographer based at Thanda Private Game Reserve, Kwazulu Natal, South Africa.
Over the last 11 years, Christian has traveled the world photographing animals in wild game reserves of South Africa and Namibia, the jungles of Costa Rica, in Yellowstone National Park in the USA, as well as zoos in Europe and the United States. His work has been featured in wildlife magazines, in books and in many zoo publications.
He actively supports wild cat conservation, working as a partner photographer for Panthera, the world's leading organization devoted to the conservation of all wild cat species (panthera.org).
From 2009 to 2012 he has worked as the official photographer and photography teacher at Nashville Zoo at Grassmere, Tennessee, USA (nashvillezoo.org).
Christian is also a qualified South African field guide. He now works as specialist photography guide on Thanda Private Game Reserve in Kwazulu Natal, South Africa (thanda.com).
European Bee-eaters breed in southern Europe and in parts of north Africa and western Asia. They are migratory, wintering in Africa. I took the picture of these four last week on Thanda. Soon, they will be leaving for their flight up north.
This small Elephant calf is in the process of learning how to ‘operate’ its trunk.
For the first six to nine month of their life the Ellie babies do not know what to do with this incredible versatile tool which functions as a hand, a nose, and a drinking cup (not as a straw because they do not drink through their trunk. They just use it to suck water into it and the deposit the water into their mouth).
I love photographing large felines. Seven of my EYES Series Cats Pictures are now on display at Thanda Safari’s Tented Camp. The images look fabulous being printed on very large high quality canvases (the largest are 1.6m x 1.3m).
For more information about my photography or about Thanda Safari just send an email to info@sperka.com!
This Pied Kingfisher male was feeding another Pied Kingfisher.
He is either the father or a male helper feeding either a chick or one of the breeding birds. These ‘helpers’ are males whose breeding attempts have failed.
There testosterone level is reduced and they help the species along by providing ‘catering services’!
Picture taken at Kruger National Park, Lake Panic Hide.