I am convinced of something after this past week. You don’t know what an adrenaline rush is until you’ve seen a peeved elephant dig her foot in the ground, flap her ears, and swing her trunk up in the air as if to say "I’m coming for you if you don’t turn around and back it up.”

Let me explain by going back a bit further. Here in the reserve, my aim is to hitch every ride possible that may lead me to an encounter with a rhino or elephant. This method has worked out quite well with the rhinos, but unfortunately, the 25 or so elephants on the reserve have proven to be a bit more elusive. A couple weeks ago, Alicia and I followed some broken water pipes, stripped bark pieces, and dung piles (a sure sign elephants have been gallivanting nearby) and of course, the sound of small trees being pushed over, until we spotted the main ellie herd down in a valley. We climbed as far as we could so as to get the best possible view of the giants without trees blocking our way, and I counted 17. This includes one VERY large bull, the matriarch, a few other adults, two infants, (probably born within the last 6 months to a year) and many juveniles. This leads me to believe the other, smaller herd consists of either the rest of the bulls that have been kicked out by the females as they got too old and feisty (girl power OOH RAH), OR one of the daughters or sisters of the matriarch started her own herd with a few females. Either way, watching these elephants from no more than 150 ft or so on foot was breath-taking and inexplicably rewarding. I started to identify the ellies with the help of Alicia, and I felt like I was becoming acquainted with the herd. However, I wanted more. Seeing these elephants from a truck or mountain ledge is one thing. But I wanted to be on level ground with them.

The bull with one of the juveniles

Then, just a few days ago, I got word that the elephants were nearby and on the side of the road. I ran out of my apartment in my pajama top, shorts and sandals, and practically jumped into Alicia’s bakkie while it was still moving. We caught up with them fast enough, and I took a couple nice pictures of a female and her calf, as well as the large bull from the truck window. But I knew I wanted to be on the other side of these ellies, away from the road and other people with their snapping cameras. I called my friends on the reserve, Paula and Martin, who also have a passion for these creatures. Within ten minutes I found myself walking through the bush in my birchenstocks, without any of the appropriate bush gear- except for my beloved camera. (Note: this is NOT how to go on an expedition in the African bush, but Carpe Diem I suppose.) We followed their tracks and some muffled trumpets until we came across the large bull, the matriarch, a young bull, and some young-adult females. We crept up to about 20 meters away from them (which, for all my non-metric using American friends, is pretty damn close) and I knelt down on one knee to watch these magnificent creatures. The wind was in our favor, blowing toward us so as not to bring our scent directly to the keen-sensed ellies, but nonetheless, they undoubtedly knew we were there. I picked up my camera and tried to focus on one of the females spraying red sand on herself with her trunk, while at the same time trying to keep my center of gravity and not fall over. At this point, they were tolerating us, but I’m not sure they were aware of exactly how close we were. Any stick- breaking or leaf-rustling could have startled them.

The female giving herself a sandbath

They had all turned their backs to us, a sure sign they were content and not nervous at all, and we assumed they were going to take an afternoon nap. I was just resigning to the thought that it may be time to go home and let these guys rest when the female who had been sand-bathing herself turned around so she was facing in our general direction. She put her trunk up in the air, a way to better catch foreign scents.  Something in me said we should turn around and start moving away immediately, but that was obviously far too rational a solution at such an exciting time like this.  Paula and her son behind me picked up on the sudden change in demeanor from the elephants, but they decided to wait it out and we all remained silent for another few moments. I put my camera to my eyes, not to take a picture, but to better see this female and what she was doing. She was shifting in place, clearly unsettled. Then, she turned and looked DIRECTLY at us, and she threw her trunk in the air and began pawing the ground, while Paula called out “OK, time to go! That’s our cue!” Now, I don’t know if the part of me that acted next is the adventurous tourist, the science nerd, or the just plain STUPID person, but instead of turning around and fleeing I started to snap my camera. I continued taking pictures for another couple of seconds, enough time for this elephant to take a few giant steps and for my stomach to drop to the ground. I finally turned and starting running in the other direction with Paula and her son, and when I looked back the ellie was still staring at us but she was already re-focusing her attention on a nearby branch with some tasty leaves.

The female in the process of mock charging

After that day my appreciation for these elephants, and really every wild animal, must have tripled. I have now officially been exposed to my first mock-charge (if that had been a real charge I would most likely be injured and/or a bit traumatized), and I’m starting to realize that I really know so little about this animals. What I do know is that they clearly don’t want confrontation, and they will give us- and any other beings- plenty of warning to take a hike. If pushed, however, the otherwise gentle, family orientated herbivores will come at you like a cement truck, thus deserving the utmost respect from both you and I.  I’ve read that in plenty of books, but I’m a visual and experimental learner, so I clearly had to test this statement myself. I concur that the scientists and behaviorists are right.

I apologize in advance if you thought I was done, because that was just one part of a long string of amazing events that have happened in the past couple weeks. Yesterday I awoke to a tiny infant bushbuck at my door. My friend Alicia quickly explained that she had found the baby in the nearby trash pit and its mother was nowhere in sight. I called Paula and she came to my apartment with some milk and a bottle, and the three of us spent the morning trying to get this terrified, confused baby to eat. I spent the afternoon alone with the bushbuck baby. The two of us sat in a nest of blankets I made in my backyard as I read my book with her in my lap, occasionally stopping to try to feed her or chase her around my yard when she suddenly remembered I’m not her mother and she bounded and bucked around me crying. By the end of the day she was quite used to me and I could calm her down just by petting her. JUST as Alicia and I had started to decide on a name, I got word that a bushbuck mother, that once was a pair with her baby, was spotted alone nearby. I brought the baby to her and they accepted each other back with nurturing licks. It was really the best possible ending to my little adventurous day, and as much as I would have loved to have been that little buck’s surrogate mother, I’m relieved she was reunited with her true, hoofed mom.

A Fish Eagle looking to scoop some fish for breakfast

A stunning rhino bull

After my encounters with the ellies, almost getting bitten by some hungry monkeys, getting snuck up on by a fairly aggressive male ostrich looking for his sweetie pie, and being a bushbuck’s mom for a day, I’m starting to grasp how little I really know about this bush (and subsequently, that there’s nowhere else I’d rather be). Every day I learn something new, and am modestly corrected about something I thought I already knew. This has been a very humbling experience in the sense that a degree can only get a wide-eyed American so far when she’s experiencing nature’s classroom first hand.  You can only learn so much from the Discovery Channel, and that doesn’t include, for instance, identifying the musty smell of a nearby elephant herd, or how to reunite a wild antelope and its young. With that said, my good friends, don’t call me Eliza Thornberry just yet…although I like to think I’m getting there. :)

Before I arrived in South Africa just over a week ago, I had almost forgotten how much I love the crimson-colored dirt that creates a thin veil over everything. I almost couldn’t hear the sound of rainbow-painted birds chirping and monkeys playing on my roof at the crack of dawn when I closed my eyes. And I’d almost forgotten how my heart halts during those thrilling, brief moments between the time when you hear something rustle in the bush and when you actually see what it is. Thankfully, I got back here just in time.

I moved into my apartment in the bush a week ago today, and I feel like I’m home again. I live in the Mabalingwe Reserve staff housing; in a beautiful little South Africa-esque apartment that has more space than I ever could have asked for (All I wanted/expected was a hot shower every morning and a bed to sleep in every night).  In case you are wondering where in the world I actually am,  (because I’m only 8,000 miles away from home, after all) take a look at the map to the right. It shows where the Limpopo Province is in South Africa, and where Mabalingwe is in respect to Limpopo.

This is the direction in which my research seems to be heading currently: For the next few months I am attempting to track the 16 rhinos, as well as the 20 elephants that are residing in Mabalingwe. I am trying to identify their migration and feeding habits while doing some behavioral studies. I'm also going to try to figure out what to do about the destruction they cause on the reserve. After a week on this farm, I’ve seen what kind of BIG damage elephants can cause. Most of it centers around the water pipes. The clever ellies walk right up to the water pipes and burst them so they can enjoy an afternoon refreshment from the new geyser they made all by themselves.  The management and conservation of both of these animals is directly correlated, so I hope I can help the big beauties as well as the reserve with my research.  So far I’ve seen the whole elephant herd once as it crossed the road, and I’ve seen between two and four rhinos at a time almost every day since Monday. I'm not going to post a picture of the elephants on this blog just yet because i'm confident i'll get better ones! In order to help with this research, since these big guys don’t exactly love making their presence known, I have given some maps to the reception desk in hopes that vacationers as well as those who live in the reserve will identify when and where they see ellies or rhinos on the reserve.

This is an example of what the elephants can do with just a nudge of their feet or scratch of their backsides! Broken water pipes and tanks like this all over the reserve = MAJOR problem.

The wildlife, including animals, trees, and birds, is just as incredible as I remembered it. There’s something really special about waking up before the sun does each day and spending all hours of daylight on the hunt for the animals I’ve always loved and revered. I’ve gotten to see the lions and lion cubs (the lions have their own, very big enclosure to protect the people and them), I’ve almost gotten charged by a bathing hippo,  i've learned how to call an owl (thanks, Alicia!), and I can now safely say I'm a birder. MOST IMPORTANTLY, however, I was able to see the swiftly moving elephant herd my first day here, and I have now seen a rhino calf and her mother enough times that they have become recognizable.

A baby kameelperd, or giraffe,  is still feeding from its mum

The experience has been made even more wonderful by my Prof Van Hoven; his friends Erna and Enrico; Bob and Annette; and my staff neighbor/guide/and exploring partner, Alicia. My new friends have been kind enough to share their royvein (red wine) with me, and they are patiently teaching me more Afrikaans (which is the primary language of most people here).

I sometimes still can't believe I am doing the kind of work I've always dreamt of! My research has really just begun but I've already learned so much about this wildlife and culture. I get to wake up early every morning and go on another adventure, unsure of exactly what i'll see, with other people that share my passion for these animals and this land. I'm not sure it gets much better than that.

A male klipspringer being as handsome as ever

Until next time, Cheers!!!

Hello to all who made their way to this blogsite! I am honored that you found yourself bored enough to check out my blog, but my goal is to keep this exciting and interesting with mostly photos and limited text.

In case some of you are wondering what possessed me to pack a couple bags and head to a reserve (by myself) in South Africa for a year, let me give you a quick debrief.

1. I've always been obsessed with Africa, and animals.
2. I actually went to South Arica in 2011 for 3 weeks with a group called Ecolife (shout out to my Pride)
3. I just graduated with a degree in Animal Science from UVM
4. I found myself jobless, and also not thrilled about starting a big-girl life in America yet, which led me to remember numbers 1 and 2...
5. So I contacted the Chairman of Ecolife, and he was kind enough to give me the amazing opportunity in the form of a pretty rad adventure, of which I am about to embark upon

So what am I doing here? I will be staying in South Africa for the next ten months, working in the bush and participating in a research project which includes elephants and rhinos. For the first few months I will be staying in an apartment in the Mabalingwe Reserve in the Limpopo Province. After that I may move to another reserve. And that's about as much as I know at this point! The rest I (presumably) will be finding out as I go, which is part of the fun and excitement. 

Sorry for so much writing this time around, it will not be like that once I get there. I hope to post mostly pictures with the occasional crazy story. Also, please bear with me here because anyone who knows me should already be aware that I am NOT technologically inclined. The fact that I am even attempting to do this blog is pretty impressive for me. Check out that zebra print that outlines the homepage...I did that myself. And take a look at those links. I'm still proud. 

Thanks for stopping by! Cheers!