Collected Moments of Survival

Here's the shocker. According to WWF the world has lost 97% of its Tigers in the last 100 years.  A great endorsement to the human race that will constantly declare its superiority over anything else out there. Well Done Chaps!! If you try just a little harder then that figure could read 100% in 100 years.  Research reveals that there are less than 1400 wild Tigers in India with less than 3500 world wide. Tigers disappeared from Bali in the 1940's. In Central Asia they disappeared in the 1970's. Java said goodbye to their last Tiger in the 1980's and in the 1990's South China followed suit. The other side of the coin, or should we say cages, is that there are between 15 000 and 20 000 Tigers in captivity world wide. I am galvanized into action by the realization that time is running out for me to see a Tiger in the wild. A chance encounter at Chief's Island in Botswana introduces me to the world of Tiger Canyons. I have to admit that buri...

Rather shockingly, a small amount of research about African animals reveals the following: There were once 100 000 Black Rhinos in Africa, now there are approximately 2700. In 1930 there were 5 – 10 million African Elephants and now we have less than 600 000. 100 years ago African Wild Dog packs numbered up to 100 per pack seen on the Serengeti Plains. Now a pack is usually 10 dogs and we have about 1 500 dogs left in Africa. The African Lion numbered 50 000 roaming free only about a decade ago. Now we have around 10 000. In 1900 there were 100 000 wild cheetah in Africa, now the number is closer to 10 000. Please note that the above statistics are unverified and should be taken as being approximate. On the other side of the scale the world population figures read as follows: 1800 - 1 billion 2000 - 6 billion 2012 – 7 billion Have you got out of your seat yet? The next statistic to look at is the land area of the earth. 150 ...

There is no doubt that the African bush has a magical quality that, once it has crept into your soul, never leaves again. Each visit beguiles one more and the yearning to return time after time drives a search for undiscovered places and new experiences. kwaZulu-Natal has only a smattering of destinations to explore and the most desirable of these is Phinda Game Reserve. A destination much vaunted for its Black Rhino, Cheetah and Lions this reserve has to be high on the agenda of the bush junkie. So it is that I find myself heading east towards the Indian Ocean. On our first sortie the familiar feel of the wind whipping through my hair is a welcome one while the discomfort of the bench on the back of the safari vehicle allows me to savour the moment of being back in the bush. We head for the open plains (referred to as the Marsh Area) to look for a lion pride that has been seen in the area. Without too much searching we find our target. A sizable pride consisting of tw...