A few days before I left the Valley I spent a morning at Mfuwe lodge photographing elephants walking in and out of their reception area. There is a wild mango tree fruiting at the moment in the courtyard of the lodge and the only way to it is through reception! Although they are wild elephants they have been doing it for many years now and seem quite relaxed with people watching and photographing them…

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

I am currently in Lusaka, far away from the Valley and already missing it terribly. I won’t be returning until early January when the river is full again and we can use the boat to get back to camp. I will still be posting here throughout December with images from the past season although probably not as often.

This is a photo of the largest of the three Mwamba males who seem to have taken over the Hollywoods’ territory. He is just entering into his prime and by next year he will be a very impressive lion with a nice big mane. There was a lot of mating going on in the weeks before I left camp (with random females - some of which swam across the river from the Nsefu side of the park!) so hopefully there will be plenty cubs around next season as well..

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

It is that time of year again when the impala drop their young in preparation for the lushness of the rains. Unfortunately they are very secretive in this area and run off as soon as a vehicle approaches. I like this photo as it shows what you normally see - mother and baby running away at high speed..

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

We have had some very windy days over the last week with storms building up and breaking in patches all over the valley. The air is thick with that damp, dusty smell of the first rains and there is a definite tension as we all wait with anticipation for the real rains to arrive. It is certainly an exciting (and extremely hot!) time of year…

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

This striking bird is an immature Bateleur. It is sometimes known as the conifer eagle because it’s feathers resemble a conifer or pine cone when fluffed up like this. It takes seven years to attain the red legs and facial skin as well as the black and chestnut plumage of the even more striking adult Bateleur.

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

I shot this abstract photograph of an old bull buffalo at midday today in very harsh light. I underexposed the image severely so that the highlights formed the general outline and the rest of the photo turned to pitch black.

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

I came across this pair of Saddle-billed storks fishing in a lagoon near here late yesterday evening. I thought their reflections looked quite interesting rotated to give a more abstract image. It is getting extremely hot here now but still not much evidence of rains apart from the odd rumble of thunder in the distance. This time of year is always exciting with the anticipation of the rainy season bringing cooler weather and transforming the valley to lush greenness again..

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography

Although the game viewing is excellent at the moment our leopard sightings have dropped quite a lot in the last few weeks. I think it might be due to the heat as this is often the case at this time of the year with the leopards only becoming active later at night. There is also a lot of lion activity in the area which seems to make them more cautious.

We came across this small female leopard hunting some impala out on an open plain. She soon made a kill but didn’t want to risk having it stolen by hyaenas and so quickly dragged it away and up the nearest tree. This was quite a struggle as the impala was easily the same size and probably heavier than the leopard…

Content Copyright Patrick Bentley Photography