Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda.

So after our discussions about education and success in Uganda driving to and from Murchison, which I shared HERE, and our gorgeous sunrise on the Nile, now I'll share with you some of the animals we encountered on our game drive in Murchison Falls National Park. The thrill of safari hasn’t remotely left me after my experiences in South Africa. Here we encountered most of the animals at quite close range and the ecosystem is drastically different, so it's interesting to see some of the same animals in such different habitats.

I saw very little in the way of hippos in South Africa, so it was fun to see piles and piles of them here, and a few crocodiles, too.  

Here was a very interesting fellow we encountered, the Abyssinian ground hornbill. Quite a snazzy red cravat he's got on! And a nice blue mask to accompany it. Strolling toward some flowers ... maybe he's about to put one through his buttonhole.

Elephants came up very close to our vehicle to check us out. 

Giraffes seem well suited to this lush environment. Loads of tall trees to stretch their necks up to. It was kind of neat seeing the giraffes from afar, looking down on them instead looking up at them. 

The landscape is quite striking from up high, looking across the green plains with the mountains behind.

Though they might not be the cutest and cuddliest of African wildlife, I actually am quite fond of warthogs. 

The cape buffalo were notoriously unpredictable and frightening creatures to encounter on foot when I was doing the census survey in South Africa. Here, from the comfort of my vehicle, they seemed rather docile. This guy seems kind of sleepy ... maybe he's just settling down for a nap and too tired to be grumpy.

This pic makes me chuckles a little because the two skinny twigs sticking up behind the buffalo's head look like little antennae. An alien buffalo! Or else he's trying to get TV reception. 

These baboons also seemed rather friendlier than the psychotic baboon Ngugi at the UWEC!

A red hartebeest greeted us. Not sure how he got mud on his face! Below him is the Ugandan kob. (a bit blurry, sorry)

And a great triumph occurred, which is that I saw two leopards in a tree together. This was the one iconic animal I had very much wished to see in South Africa and did not. I felt very happy over this. They were quite far away and visible only in patches owing to the leaves of the tree branches on which they were residing. So my photos are hardly worth publishing here. But here's one anyway, if you can make it out. :-) Still, I was overjoyed to have seen them. 

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