Author: Christian Sperka

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).
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Golden Light!

It is my favourite time of day. When the sun goes down and the light turns golden it is the right time to take photographs.

I was working in my office this afternoon when I heard Elephants trumpeting at the waterhole near Thanda house. I grabbed a camera and sneaked outside towards the fence. The Elephants did not detect me, so I was able to take a few shots on foot before I retreated back to the house. The Thanda guests were watching on game viewing vehicles from the other side of the dam.

This is my favourite shot of this sequence 🙂

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Aggression and Family Life!

What a sighting!

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This afternoon the Thanda guests got a great display of Lion family life combined with signs of aggression!

When Thanda’s dominant male and his family (two adult females and six cubs) walked out onto a savanna area they were greeted by the presence of another adult male Lion.

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The older female showed immediate signs of aggression towards the second male. A growling match followed. Thanda’s dominant male just observed the situation and placed himself between the second male and his pride.

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They all settled on the side of a road and they remained there for a long time. While the adults had their shouting match the little ones grouped around one of the females, played a bit and had a little snooze 🙂

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An exciting day for Thanda’s young Lions and for our guests!

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Fine Dining – Rough Dining!

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Tonight the guests at Thanda’s Villa iZulu had just finished a delicious dinner and we were still sitting around the dinner table when a high screeching sound cut into the conversation. After a few seconds of stunned silence we rushed outside onto the observation deck to see what happened.

At the small waterhole in front of Villa iZulu a pack of Hyenas had just killed an Nyala antelope bull. Illuminated by a floodlight more than ten of these strong carnivores where fighting over the kill and started having their rough dinner!

We all agreed that this was certainly one of the most fascinating and memorable dinner of our lives!

The picture shows a few of the Hyenas on the kill in front of the illuminated Villa iZulu.

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One of those days!

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It was a windy winter’s day with a lot of the animals hiding in the thick bush. We drove and tracked for over two hours before we found the breeding herd of Elephants. They also had decided to feed in a very dense area and we only caught occasional glimpses. When we were about to leave the sighting, to find a nice location for our drinks stop at sunset, a dozen Elephants crossed the road right in front of us. What a sighting!

It was one of those days, which needed patience for a long time and which ended with a big reward for not giving up!

The picture above shows one of the youngsters waving his trunk before it disappeared after his mum into the bush. The picture below shows the group walking past the vehicle.

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Winter Colors!

20140704 - CS1_0497 - EFlowering Mountain Aloes on the rolling hills of Zululand are a beautiful sign for the winter time. As all the brown tones replace the vivid greens of summer these stunning plants provide color to the dry season landscape. Looking over one of the many Thanda valleys with Mountain Aloes – while enjoying a hot chocolate at sunrise or a gin&tonic at sunset – is one of the lasting memories for many of our guests.

About …
Aloe marlothii (Mountain Aloes) are large, single-stemmed Southern African aloes of rocky places and open flat country. In full flower they present a magnificent spectacle. The flower colour ranges from yellow through orange to bright red. Flowering takes place through the winter months, as is the case with most aloes.

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Lion Family Life!

During this morning’s drive we spotted a Lioness with her small cubs along the road. She was leading us directly to a Wildebeest kill. The Lions had taken down the antelope only a few minutes before we arrived.

We observed the two Lionesses and their six cubs (three cubs approx 1.5 month old and three cubs approx 2.5 month old) while they had their relaxed meal. The little ones were eating and playing at the same time.

The cubs’ dad, Thanda’s dominant male, had obviously eaten before. He had a full belly and just watched his family having their feast. After a while he joined them without feeding, just to play with the kids 🙂

Warren Beets – Thanda’s Reserve Manager – was with me on the vehicle and as he had the better view from his position he operated the camera from time to time – Great job!

Lion Family Life – Enjoy the pictures!

20140703 - CS1_0246 - EMum and her three cubs

20140703 - CS1_0316 - EAn anxious look

20140703 - CS1_0344 - EThe signs of a good meal

20140703 - CS1_0358 - EResting on the kill

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20140703 - CS1_0381 - EDad watching the scene

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Should we move?

It is a very thrilling experience for many guests when a breeding herd of Elephants walks towards the vehicle.

And as a guide one sometimes hears a timid voice from the back asking “Should we move now?”

And the answer is …

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… it depends. Thanda’s experienced guides and trackers know when to move and when to stay. In this case there was plenty space for the Elephants and all of them were very relaxed as they moved past the vehicle. So the guests were able to enjoy a close encounter with these gentle giants.

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