Christian Sperka

2014-07-10

Fine Dining – Rough Dining!

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.

2014-07-08

No words required!

This picture says it all – protect the world’s Rhinos – before it is too late!

2014-07-05

One of those days!

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.

2014-07-04

Winter Colors!

Flowering 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.

2014-07-03

Lion Family Life – A short video :-)

2014-07-032014-07-03

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!

Mum and her three cubs

An anxious look

The signs of a good meal

Resting on the kill

It is all mine 🙂

Cubs (2.5 month old and 1.5 month old)

Dad watching the scene

A bloody affair

2014-06-30

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 …

… 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.

2014-06-29

I am back!

This morning I left before sunrise to drive from Pretoria to Thanda. As the mist lifted the African sun appeared and I knew I was back home 🙂

I enjoyed my trip to Europe and the USA very much, meeting with family and friends, gaining a few kilos :-), visiting many “new” and many “old” places. And now it is great to be back in the wild!

PS: Over the next few weeks I will still mix in some “Europe/USA” blog messages as I had no time yet to work on all the images I took!

2014-06-29

Twelve days old!

Imagine you are a twelve-days old Baby Elephant at the new Kaeng Krachan Elephant Park at the Zurich Zoo …

“I have on idea what the fuss is all about? …

… I live in this cool place at the Zurich Zoo …

… and they all treat me like I am royalty or something …

… check out all these people, and just for me! …

… that trunk thing is already working 🙂 – took me a few days to figure it out …

… my mum and my aunties are looking after me very well …

… and that is my daddy in front of our house, big and beautiful, what do you think? …

… and just to let you know, it is our job at the zoo to teach all you guys about my cousins in the wild, even via smart phones 🙂 …

… so, see you at the zoo!”

A few moments in the life of a small zoo Elephant.

Story and pictures by Christian Sperka

2014-06-23

Snowballs in June

I spent two days in the Swiss alps. A former colleague and good friend invited me to stay with him and his family in Innertkirchen, Kanton Berne. And he took time off work to show me around.

We had great fun taking very scenic tours. This picture was taken on the Grimsel pass where the last snow of the season was battling with the sun 🙂

Wolfgang took the picture above – me throwing a snowball in June!

The picture below shows Swiss alps “wild”life – cows in the mountains 🙂

Pictures by Wolfgang Sutter and Christian Sperka