February 8, 2012 Gemsbok in Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa
Gemsbok
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, South Africa
Canon EOS 1D Mk IV, 500 f4 & 1.4x III, 1/350 sec, f8, ISO 400
Image taken on April 8, 2011.
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park, which encompasses the former Kalahari Gemsbok National Park of South Africa, is one of my favorite game parks in South Africa. The vegetation is mostly much lower and sparser than in other parks which makes wildlife viewing and photography easier, it's in a remote part of the country which means fewer tourists, and it has several species that are unique to South Africa. One of those unique species is the Gemsbok, the namesake of the former National Park. Both the males and females have long slender horns, and their markings are quite striking. I photographed this male gemsbok this past April as he walked through the near side of a herd of springbok.
