February 17, 2011
Lion Cub in the Serengeti, Tanzania

The twelfth day of my safari in Tanzania, and the fifth in the southern Serengeti, was a little slow.

We went searching The Migration of wildebeest and zebra for a wildebeest giving birth. The Migration wasn't in the usual location this time of year because it hadn't rained as much as usual so they were grazing elsewhere. The day before, The Migration had started to move into their usual location after the heavy rain the day before that. We didn't see any females giving birth, but there were lots of calves that had been born in the last few days. We photographed lots of vultures, maribou storks, and a tawney eagle at two different wildebeest kills. Then we found a lioness babysitting three cubs. She had a bad right eye, and was probably better suited to watching the cubs than hunting with the rest of the pride. I love the shot of one of the young males peering over some brush.

Later in the day, we photographed a big male lion then three cheetah brothers recuperating after gorging on a wildebeest — think loosening your belt after Thanksgiving dinner — their bellies were huge! Then we photographed lots of giraffe, including one drinking, and some elephants. Yes, it was a slow day. :)