Interesting fact about the bat-eared fox — the males are the primary care givers to the young, unlike most other canines. The mothers will lactate for about 15 weeks, after which the males take over grooming, defending, huddling, chaperoning, and carrying the young between den sites. I photographed this bat-eared fox in the Masai Mara of Kenya on a rainy afternoon.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 300mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/250th of a second

I have a lot of tight, frame-filling shots of white rhinos, but I prefer adding a bit of the environment when possible, especially since rhinos have such an iconic shape. This one was taken in the Lewa Wildlife Conservancy in Kenya. Being November and in the middle of the short rains, the landscape was lush with vegetation and the skies were full of photogenic clouds. Rhinos, of course, are an endangered species, so always great to see them no matter the conditions. White rhinos are doing considerably better than many of their cousins, however, and are currently listed as the more encouraging “near threatened.”
Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 98mm) ISO 400, f/5.6 at 1/1600th of a second

Always nice to see these giant creatures with plenty of room to roam. The Ol Pajeta Conservancy in Kenya, where I took this photo, is an interesting place. During the colonial days, the 90,000 acres of land were used for cattle grazing (wild animals, at the time, were deemed to have no value to landowners and they were displaced for the most part by ranchers). Elephants, however, always used the land as a transit route. Eventually, cattle ranching became less profitable, and it became too expensive to continually repair the fences that the elephants inevitably destroyed. Over the years, several different conservation groups have helped return the land to its wild origins. Today, it not only is inhabited by elephants, but by many other African plains animals, including the big five (elephants, lions, leopards, buffalo and rhino).
Nikon D700 with Nikkor 70-200mm lens (at 170mm) ISO 400, f/2.8 at 1/1000th of a second

This is what a safari must look like to a cheetah. The vehicle is actually ours, and I was on the ground behind the cheetah. I’ve posted photos of her before — she was saved by a Masai warrior when she was six weeks old and caught in a barbed wire fence. In this photo she was six months old and just beginning to venture out and hunt on her own. She was still very trusting of humans and we were able to actually play with her out in the field (see my bio pic here when she was up on our vehicle’s front hood).
Nikon D700 with Nikkor 17-35mm lens (at 17mm) ISO 400, f/6.3 at 1/1600 of a second

This lioness had seen some action, with a deep horizontal scar across the top of her nose. She was relaxing down by a river in the Masai Mara with her cubs and the rest of the pride.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 1600, f/4 at 1/1250th of a second

This little dwarf mongoose was lurking in the tall grass around a camp we were staying at in the Masai Mara of Kenya. As the name would suggest, it is a rather small mongoose, growing to only about 11 inches long. It also has the distinction of being Africa’s smallest carnivore.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 400, f/6.3 at 1/160th of a second

When giraffes fight, they use their long necks to slap massive blows at their opponents neck and body. The practice is called necking. These two were just finishing a bout, with one final smack coming from the giraffe on the right. Perhaps the guy on the left was distracted by the passing stork. We watched them going at it for quite awhile before they casually went back to eating grass.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 360mm) ISO 400, f/5 at 1/320th of a second

I decided to go tight on this one to highlight the skin on an elephant’s torso. Elephants are so big and you can get so close to them (when in a safari vehicle, of course) that it was easy to go edge to edge with the cropping. An elephant’s skin can be more than an inch thick. This particular elephant was in the Olare Orok Conservancy, a private concession just north of Kenya’s Masai Mara Reserve.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 400mm) ISO 1600, f/6.3 at 1/320th of a second

This little cub wanted to play but mom was a bit too tired to oblige. They were nestled into a pile of fallen tree trunks along a river in the Masai Mara of Kenya. Another ten or so lions were also in the pride and resting and playing nearby.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 300mm) ISO 800, f/6.3 at 1/400th of a second

Always nice to photograph hippos when they are out of the water. Usually that means getting them first thing in the morning before the hot sun forces them back into rivers and other water bodies. This guy was grazing in an open field in the Masai Mara of Kenya just as the sun appeared on the horizon. In the background you can see a few resting cape buffalo. Fun fact of the day about hippos — their skin alone can weigh in excess of half a ton.
Nikon D300 with Nikkor 200-400mm lens (at 240mm) ISO 800, f/4 at 1/250th of a second