Other than packing, I have been assisting with general preparations for the mission, this includes washing and fixing the makoros. Yesterday, we drove eight hours around the delta to a camp called Seronga.
Me holding the shedded skin of a black mamba in Seronga.
At Seronga, my mentor Chris Boyes flew in a helicopter over the delta for them to choose the best path for the expedition. This year, due to both a drought and necessity to research other parts of the delta, the OWP will deviate from their regular path of nine years. This calls for scouting the eastern part of the delta. He established a route that has not been used in decades. This route is filled with hippo activity, but contains water, which is not guaranteed due to the drought.
Each circled item is an animal; blue is hippo, red is monitor lizard, green is crocodiles.
Closer image of crocodiles, monitor lizards and an egret.
Outside the office, I have been staying with my mentor Chris Boyes. This situation is ideal, as I get to understand and learn in a non-working environment. In the city of Maun, the wildlife gathers around the few remaining puddles of water, and as sad as their conditions might be, it creates an urban wildlife experience that is hard to come by. In our time off, we have been able to witness baboons, hippos, elephants, crocodiles, zebras, and large amounts of birds. I have taken a certain liking to the blue waxbill, a minuscule bird of a brilliant color. I am grateful for a lifestyle that is far different from my own, but excellent nonetheless.
First elephant we saw, right outside the city of Maun.
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