Safari now Identification Flashcards
Giant plated lizard
2 dwarf mongoose
in an abandoned termite mound
Giant plated lizard
What behavior is this elephant displaying and what does it mean?
One of the elephants feet is half raised hoovering in the air. (Front right in this example but rear left a minute earlier)
Indecisiveness and discomfort.
In the video there is a jackal just behind the elephant and the elephant is deciding how to respond, thus the uncertainty and discomfort.
Elephants often do this when they’re deciding what to do and their behavior often changes when they’re done (once they’ve made a decision)
What animal is this and what unusual behavior do we see?
Hooded vulture and it’s perched much lower than they usually rest and they’re by themselves and looking into the grass.
It was watching a dead impala a hyena was guarding.
What 2 animals are seen here?
Elephant and jackal (black backed or side striped unclear)
Identify
Nyala (2)
How do wildebeest fight?
On their knees, they knock horns together and push each other around until dominance is established.
These are two young male wildebeest fighting without much aggression or enthusiasm. Likely practicing and without any females around.
What behavior is seen in these wildebeest?
They are responding to an impala alarm call by running very briefly.
What behavior is seen in these wildebeest?
This is an alarm stance. After some impala alarmed they jumped up, trotted about 50 feet then took this alarm stance and began making a chuffing sound.
There was a leopard a short distance away.
(11.06.2022 2h 11m)
What is the middle zebra doing? What for?
Flehmen grimace
Not exclusive to zebras, thus is a smelling behavior. They curl their upper lip exposing their teeth, inhales through their nose and holds for several seconds.
It exposes vomeronasal organ to a scent of pheromone.
What is advantageous about this den site for these jackals?
It’s on top of / beside a termite mound offering them a better vantage point to look for danger.
These jackals are 5 weeks old and have already been trained to run straight into the den if they hear anything that might be dangerous.
Why is this wildebeest alone?
He is a territorial male waiting for a herd of female wildebeest to pass through his territory.
What is this? And where do they lay their eggs.
Water monitor. In termite holes.
Identify this animal and what kind of herd this is?
Impala bachelor herd. Small herd of just 4 males. More nervous because of their small numbers.
What’s wrong with this terrain / habitat for leopards?
It’s too open for them.
What behavior are we seeing here?
The middle cub is showing submissive behavior to the cub on the left / back.
Submissive behavior in hyena Cubs is pretty dramatic and almost makes them appear injured.
Why do bull elephants in musth constantly dribble urine like his?
Because too much testosterone in their system can actually be toxic. The urine dribble is a method of regulating the testosterone by releasing it via urine.
These impala are showing alert stances usually indicating a predator. These impala are not. What could cause the false positive so to speak for alert stance?
Its really windy there today and that’s impacting their ability to hear/smell/detect predators. Thus while normally this behavior should make you look for a predator, here they are just alert and cautious because of the wind
