2007 Swaziland - Mkhaya Game Reserve Mkhaya Game Reserve was established in 1979 by the Reilly family to preserve endangered animals.
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At Mkhaya Game Reserve, visitors who are staying for the night sleep in stone cottages with grass roofs. Animals like antelopes, zebras, giraffes and rhinos are roaming freely around at this area, and when I arrived at my cottage, it was surrounded by grazing antelopes.
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The cottages are well equipped, with bathroom and shower, but without electricity. Oil lamps give light at night. And you can look for animals while taking a shower, using the toilet or staying in bed.
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Most of the first day, I was the only guest at the resort, so it was just me and the guide in the jeep.
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The gazelles in this reserve have little to fear, as there are no lions or cheetahs here. Only the crocodiles have have gazelles on the menu.
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A female African Bush Elephant and her calf. The elephants are used to the jeeps, but the guides will back up if the elephant seems to be bothered with our presence.
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Elephants live in family groups of cows and calves, while bulls live in solitude, or in a same-sex relationship.
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Elephants use 16 hours every day eating, and consume about 200 kg of grass each day.
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My primary goal on this safari was to see rhinoceros, which I had never seen in the wild before. Rhinos once lived in America and Europe, but can now be found only in Africa and Asia. Some of the five remaining species are still in danger of extinction.
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This is a White Rhino, one of two species living in Africa. It is distinguishable from the Black Rhino by the wide lips. It was originally named wyd (Afrikaans), but this was mistaken as white. The White Rhino eats grass, while the Black Rhino eats from trees and bushes. There is no difference in color between them.
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The horns are not true horns, but rather made of hair, without skeletal support.
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Though herbivorous, the rhino is one of the deadliest creatures on earth to humans. They can even attack elephants. On the first safari drive, we came across two rhinos resting by a waterhole. We stopped the jeep and walked around the waterhole to see them closer.
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Rhinos are most dangerous when in the presence of their young, so it was safer to view this mother and calf from a distance.
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A tsessebe also known as topi, tiang and korrigum.
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Another antelope, the wildebeest or gnu.
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The giraffe is the tallest of all land-living animals - it can be up to 5.5 meters tall.
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Each giraffe has a unique pattern of spots.
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Hippos spend most of the day submerged in water, and they even give birth under water. It can stay under water for up to 30 minutes, but normally resurface to breathe every 3-5 minutes. The closest living relative species to the hippo is whale.
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