10th November 2014

Our accommodation in the Tarangire Safari Lodge consisted of very comfortable, permanent tents which held a degree of vulnerability. My sleep wasn’t helped by the distant roaring of lions or the much closer growling of baboons – I didn’t find out the identity of the latter until several days later. Unfortunately the most disturbing growling came from my own stomach and it soon became obvious that I wasn’t going to be able to join that morning’s game drive. Stocked with water, Immodium, binoculars and camera I sat outside the tent as the others disappeared and felt very sorry for myself. It turned out however that being stuck here wasn’t such bad news after all.

                               Vervet Monkey

There was a steady stream of elephants, warthogs and antelope through the valley below, Vervet monkeys and Impala in the camp itself and dozens of birds in the surrounding trees. In just a couple of hours I had recorded Grey Kestrel, Bateleur, Yellow and Red-necked Francolin, Lilac-breasted Roller, Red-billed and Von der Decken’s Hornbill, Brubru and 3 species of woodpecker.

                                Lilac-breasted Roller

The Immodium did the trick and I felt well enough to go on the afternoon game drive. The others had seen their first lion that morning and I was keen to catch up with them. We quickly did that with a female sleeping in a concrete underpass below the main track – not really the circumstances I had imagined seeing my first wild lion! A bigger surprise was coming across a pair of the normally nocturnal Bat-eared Fox lazing outside their burrow; they didn’t seem too disturbed by our presence and allowed prolonged, if distant, views.

                                Bat-eared Fox

Dark Chanting Goshawk was another good find with a pair by the side of the road and the first bustard of the trip, a White-bellied, quickly walked off as we pulled up. Our first Red and Yellow Barbet digging and feeding from a termite mound showed well as we returned to the lodge.