This amazing video documents the story of Wounda, one of the more than 160 chimpanzees living at the Jane Goodall Institute’s Tchimpounga Chimpanzee Rehabilitation Center in the Republic of Congo.
Category Archives: Uncategorized
Getting to grips with Mokala National Park
After the epic Kgalagadi, Scott headed first to the impressive Augrabies National Park, and then Mokala National Park, which is south-west of Kimberley in the centre of South Africa.
Augrabies Falls National Park
Scott Ramsay visits the Augrabies Falls National Park and discovers some of the best scenery in South Africa.
Kindess of strangers in Kgalagadi
As Scott leaves the Kgalagadi, he reflects on the kindness of strangers and the friends he has made along the way.
The stare of a lion
Scott Ramsay discovers that the stare of a wild lion can teach us something. Something about us, as modern humans, and where we fit in a wild world.
Swimming with wild dolphins in Mozambique
Join us as we go swimming with wild dolphins in Mozambique and learn to dance like nobody is watching for a truly magical encounter!
A lion show down in the Kgalagadi
During a game drive at Ta Shebube Lodge near Polentswa, Scott Ramsay gets to witness (and photograph) a lion show down between rivals. See the photos here.
Kgalagadi to Mabuasehube adventure
Scott Ramsay goes back towards simplicity with an adventure through the Kgalagadi Transfontier Park to Mabuasehube.
A quarter of the world’s sharks and rays face extinction
A quarter of the world’s sharks, rays and chimaeras are threatened with extinction according to the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species.
The Kgalagadi in summer
While everyone was driving south out of the Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park in middle of January, going back to work and heading back to school, Scott was driving north, into the heat. Read about his summer adventure.
How the engagement ring proves that we shouldn’t trade rhino horn
Is your engagement ring to you what rhino horn is to the Chinese? We investigate some marketing myths in light of the proposal to legalise the trade in rhino horn.
21 elephant calves a testimony to anti-poaching efforts
Twenty-one new elephant calves have been sighted at Zakouma National Park in the Republic of Chad, marking a turnaround in the fortune of the park’s beleaguered elephant herds which had been decimated by poaching in recent years.
Gondwana Canyon Park
Gondwana Canyon Park is one of the more established private parks in Namibia – started in 1995 and at almost 1 300 square kilometres it is one of the biggest too.
The extreme beauty of Ai-Ais National Park
Scott Ramsay crosses the Orange River to Ai-Ais National Park in Namibia and explores the second-biggest canyon in the world – the Fish River Canyon.
Richtersveld National Park in summer
The scenery at the Richtersveld National Park is unique – desert mountains that surround massive sandy plains, and of course the Orange River that flows through the gorge.
Parrots of Africa, Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands
We review the book: Parrots of Africa, Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands by Mike Perrin with photos by Cyril Laubscher – a long overdue and proud addition to anyone’s coffee table.
Namaqua National Park’s cool side
Famous for its flowers, Namaqua National Park’s coastal section makes for a superb wilderness experience even in the off season.
The Kgalagadi – a photographer’s paradise
The Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, famous for its predator viewing and diversity of smaller mammals and birdlife, has to be a photographer’s paradise.
Getting to know the gorillas of Uganda
There are less than 900 individual mountain gorillas left in the wild. This photographer goes trekking in search of the groups that live in the Bwindi forest.
Travelling to Chundu Island
This blogger leaves Zambia to explore Chundu Island in the Zambezi River on the Zimbabwe side of Victoria Falls.
The wooden makoro, a Zambezi specialty
On the Zambezi, we discover the makoro, the traditional dugout canoe that has been making river life easier for the area’s inhabitants since it was introduced several centuries ago.
Walking De Hoop’s beaches and dunes
De Hoop Nature Reserve is unique. It’s oozing scenic Cape beauty and boasts several unrivaled physical features and is perhaps one of the most important birding areas on the continent.
A sense of surreal in strange Solitaire
In the middle of nowhere in Namibia, somewhere between Sossusvlei and Walvis Bay, lies the one petrol-station town of Solitaire – a photographers dream come true.
Crazed Giraffe Attacks Vehicle
What started off as a lovely sighting of a magnificent giraffe soon turned sour as a 13ft Male giraffe chased a group of tourists in a safari jeep for 2 miles. Scroll down for video! The giraffe saw the 4×4 miles away and started coming straight for it. The animal kicked out at the driver and smashed the […]
Top 10 Things to do in Greyton – South Africa’s Little England.
Greyton is a wee, twee village a couple of hours drive from Cape Town. Set in the Overberg region, with the Sonderend mountains as a backdrop, Greyton is all oak-lined lanes and itsy, bitsy country cottages. I recently spent a weekend here and it felt like I’d wound back the clock and time travelled into […]
Victory for Animal Welfare: Zimbabwe Releases Captured Baby Elephants
Post courtesy Simon Bloch – Sunday Argus – January 20th 2013 A day after the Zimbabwe Conservation Task Force announced its intention to bring a high court application against the country’s wildlife authority for selling baby elephants to zoos in China, its chairman and animal rights campaigner, Johnny Rodrigues, declared a huge a victory to […]
The 10 Most Remarkable Birds in Ghana
Here they are – the most interesting and sought-after birds in all of Ghana according to Africa Geographic travel director Christian Boix. 1. White-necked Picathartes Bounds through the forest stealthily and effortlessly from one liana to the next in gollum-like fashion. These birds gather in silent and mysterious crowds by cave entrances to breed in […]
‘Killing for Profit’. A Review of Julian Rademeyer’s Exposé of the Illegal Rhino Horn Trade.
This is essential reading if you want to truly understand the rhino issue and contribute meaningfully to the ongoing debates. It reads like a serial murder investigation and yet this is a blow-by-blow account of the underworld of illegal rhino poaching and horn trading, extracted during years of often life-threatening investigative journalism. Make no mistake, […]
Shiwa N’gandu, Zambia’s Enchanting English Estate
Northern Zambia. Shiwa N’gandu to Kapiysha Hot Springs. 22- 24th November 2012 After leaving the Great North Road, I drove along a dirt track until I came to a surreal visual. The scene was old, English countryside brick houses and an avenue of eucalyptus trees leading up to a huge country estate in the middle of […]
On Toad Alert
On those cold, miserable winter evenings, when you were snugly tucked in front of the fire, Karoline Hanks was tackling the elements, on the lookout for toads. It’s nightfall in Noordhoek. Angry black storm clouds shunt over the mountain and then clear temporarily to reveal a perfectly plump, full moon. Right now, the rain is coming […]
My Life with Leopards
On May 31, 1993, two 6-week-old leopard cubs were brought to the Londolozi Game Reserve, a private reserve bordering the Kruger National Park. In charge of the cubs was Graham Cooke, a 22-year-old old game ranger who had been working at the reserve since 1988. The intention was to rehabilitate the cubs back into the […]
Young mountain gorillas destroy poachers’ snares
Today in Rwanda, field staff of the Dian Fossey Gorilla Fund observed several young gorillas from Kuryama’s group destroying snares set by poachers! “We knew that gorillas do this but all of the reported cases in the past were carried out by adult gorillas, mostly silverbacks,” said Veronica Vecellio, gorilla program coordinator at the Karisoke Research Center. “Today, two […]
Caracals count too: mesopredator research in the Cederberg
On a recent trip to the Cederberg with my 9-year-old son, I arranged to meet a young researcher working for the Cape Leopard Trust. I was keen to chat to her about the work of the CLT in the area, and to try and expose my son to the blood, sweat, mud and tears side […]
Gorilla trekking in gumboots
Crossing into the Congo wasn’t the most comfortable experience we’ve ever had but it was an awe-inspiring adventure to go and meet the majestic mountain gorillas, making a childhood dream come true for Marcus. Bouncing around in the back of a safari truck, we wound our way through fertile farmland and villages with grass-thatched huts […]
Top 10 ways to protect Mountain Gorillas
By Molly Feltner The recent popular YouTube video showing a tourist being touched by wild mountain gorillas has captivated more than a million viewers and will likely inspire many travellers to book a trip to visit mountain gorillas themselves. For those of you looking to make a positive impact on mountain gorilla conservation, the Mountain Gorilla Veterinary […]
Recycling Optimism
PLASTIC. Around the world 300 million tonnes of the stuff is produced every year with 7 million tonnes “drifting” into our oceans. At present, in the North Pacific there is a plastic island the size of South Africa floating around. How much is recycled in a year? Only 4% of all plastics, around the world […]