Kwara Camp: Jack Stephens

Elephant

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:07 GMT

]]>This lone female elephant was browsing quietly on these trees one morning. Botswana has had great success in controlling illegal poaching, and has the largest elephant population of any country in Africa.

Bearded Woodpecker

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 17:23:04 GMT

]]>We spotted several species of woodpecker on our trip. This Bearded Woodpecker was one of the more common ones. The name comes from the dark band of feathers coming down from the base of the bill.

Lion

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:16 GMT

]]>Only when I looked at this photo later did I notice that this lion has likely lost vision in his left eye. This is likely from a fight with another lion over territory. It isn't easy being a male lion.

Genet

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:10 GMT

]]>Another lucky sighting was this Genet on a night drive. Nocturnal and shy, they are hard to find. There is no close North American relative, they are something like a cross between a cat and a racoon.

Honey Badger

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:11 GMT

]]>We were very fortunate to see this Honey Badger close to the road during one of our game drives. He was close enough that I was able to ask him directly, and in fact he affirmed that "Honey Badger don't care".

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4r7wHMg5Yjg&t=2s

Black-headed Oriole

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:07 GMT

]]>Unlike the neotropics, there aren't that many brightly colored songbirds in the African savanna. This Black-headed Oriole is a nice exception. They have no relation to the New World orioles (eg Baltimore Oriole), they just look somewhat similar.

Impala

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 17:23:05 GMT

]]>Impalas are the preferred prey animal for many of the large predators in Africa. The running joke amongst African guides is that the black M on their hind quarters stand for "The McDonalds of the Bush".

Hyena

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:20 GMT

]]>Hyenas hunt in packs, but most of the scavenging is done alone. This one stopped for a drink right outside of our camp.

Kori Bustard

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:11 GMT

]]>The Kori Bustard's claim to fame is that at 40 pounds, it is the heaviest flying bird on earth. It is the national bird of Botswana.

Leopard

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 17:23:04 GMT

]]>Leopards often hang out in trees. It gives them a good view of approaching prey animals, they can drop down on prey when they are close, and they can hide their catch there from hyenas and lions.

Lilac-breasted Roller

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:13 GMT

]]>Wow. Just wow.

Lion

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:16 GMT

]]>How many photos of lions pooping have you seen? Me neither.

African Pygmy Goose

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:07 GMT

]]>Like many waterfowl, the African Pygmy Goose is quite handsome with its green, white and tan plumage.

Little Bee-Eater

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:16 GMT

]]>Like all bee-eaters, this Little Bee-eater is no slouch in the looks department. They are wide-speard throughout sub-Saharan Africa.

Malachite Kingfisher

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:16 GMT

]]>Smaller than many sparrows, Malachite Kingfishers hide in the reeds along quiet stretches of water. We got lucky seeing this one on the boat ride to a heron rookery.

Yellow-billed Stork

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:21 GMT

]]>This Yellow-billed Stork is gently attending to its chicks on a rookery we visiting by boat.

Marabou Storks

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:20 GMT

]]>Marabou Storks live by scavaging at carcasses, so they have no feathers on their head similar to vultures. Combined with their appearance evident in this photo, their nickname as "the Undertaker Bird" makes sense.

Elephants

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:08 GMT

]]>This young elephant is about 5-6 years old. Even at that age they stay close to their mothers, and are still protected by other members of the herd.

Martial Eagle

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 17:23:05 GMT

]]>Martial Eagles are one of the larger raptors on the Africa savanna. This one is not to be messed with, just check out those talons.

African Hoopoe

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 17:23:04 GMT

]]>My "life list" of species seen while copulating went up by one with this view of Africann Hoopoes. It was touching watching the male display to the female, and then lots of mutual grooming.

Red-billed Oxpecker

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 17:23:05 GMT

]]>Oxpeckers live on the backs of the large grazing animals in Africa. The good news is that they feed on the ticks that plague these animals. Isn't that nice! The bad news is that if the ticks are scarce, they will pick sores on the skin of the animals and drink the blood. Welcome to nature.

Saddle-billed Stork

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:20 GMT

]]>Most herons, egrets and storks are all white. The smaller ones can be camoflaged in earth tones. "Forget that" says the Saddle-billed Strork. "I choose striking black and white plumage with a blood-red bill with a black racing stripe and a jaunty yellow accent on the base of the bill" .

Wattled Crane

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Sun, 25 Oct 2026 05:19:55 GMT

]]>Not to be outdone by the Saddle-billed Stork, the Wattled Carane chose and elegant combination of black, white and gray.

Ellen and Mr. G

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:09 GMT

]]>Many of our guides and spotters had nicknames. I asked Mr. G if he was related to Kenny G, but sadly there is no connection.

Crested Barbet

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Sat, 24 Oct 2026 20:01:13 GMT

]]>Barbets are these colorful, chunky birds found in the tropics world-wide. This one was cooperative and posed for me so I could take this photo.

Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Fri, 23 Oct 2026 17:23:05 GMT

]]>Along with its cousin the Southern Red-billed Hornbill, the Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill was one of the most commonly seen birds on game drives. They eat a wide variety of foods, from fruit to insects to small animals.

Spotted Hyena

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:22 GMT

]]>This elephant died of natural causes near our camp. The hyenas are doing their clean-up work as the savannah's scavengers.

Mike and Mr. G

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:18 GMT

]]>Spotter Mike and Mr. G posing for us after we were relaxing in the VIP lounge.

Our new career!

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:09 GMT

]]>We got along so well at Kwara camp that they offered us internships as a guide and spotter. We are now studying for the final exam so we can let licensed.

Ellen sunset

jackstephens.edmonds@gmail.com (Jack Stephens) — Tue, 20 Oct 2026 01:17:09 GMT

]]>This was a snapshot I took of Ellen on our boat ride. Our son Brian had it converted to look like a watercolor painting.