Last set of pictures from the big camera/lens combo

These are from Ndutu and Serengeti with a couple of elephant shots from our first day in Tarangire.

We came across this old zebra kill, which had been abandoned by the larger carnivores to the vultures. It was obvious from miles away by the circling birds

A still photo does not do justice to all the squabbling and ripping and tearing that was going on here

Sonya remarked that the Marabou storks looked like they were policing the whole thing

Birds were continuously arriving

Back at the lake near our camp, a herd of wildebeests had arrived

Giraffes were also drinking at this end of the lake

I believe this is a Tawny eagle

The giraffes were frightened away by all the vehicles returning to camp

Marabou stork wading at the end of the lake

And a Tawny eagle stands nearby in the stream exiting the lake

Sunrise at our tent camp

An old tusker in Tarangire approaches the vehicles

Skittish wildebeests

We certainly achieved one of our goals, which was to view the great migration up close

While we saw the largest numbers of migrating animals in Ndutu, there was plenty of wildlife in the Serengeti. These wildebeests graze in front of one of the kopjes or stone outcroppings for which this area is famous

Yet more safari pics

 These are once again mostly from Ndutu and the Serengeti

Common Eland

One of several prides of mostly female lions we saw in Ndutu

Every now and then one lion would get up and take a look around presumably scanning for prey

Every day in Ndutu we saw large migrating mixed herds

Because Ndutu is in the Ngrongoro Conservation Area and not inside a national park, the guides are allowed to drive off road. This allows for a more immersive experience at the expense perhaps of stressing the wildlife

A secretary bird surveys us from an acacia tree

The prides we saw ranged from under 10 up to 17 lions - a mix of adults and young lions

Spotted hyena

Banded mongoose

I spotted this Homo Sapiens resting at the entrance to our tent

Our vehicle is the further one. These are Toyota Land Cruisers modified heavily by an Indian company to extend them and provide a pop top for viewing. They take an incredible amount of abuse during safaris, bouncing over appalling roads and cross country.

Our guide found these cheetahs by looking for clusters of safari vehicles. Wherever vehicles gather you can be pretty sure there will be cats on display

Late in the day we returned to our tent camp via the lake. The light was much nicer for photography

The lake is home to wading birds and hippos and along its shoreline we saw herds of antelope. Here a flamingo feeds alongside flocks of smaller plovers and pipers

This herd of impalas was grazing near the road

One of the highlights of our second day in Ndutu was seeing our first hippos

The next morning we saw this chap at the other end of the lake

We saw many herons near the lake but I was only able to get one decent photo. This is a black headed heron

I love the texture of the grasses in this picture

These cheetahs were feeding on a warthog. They really get into their meal as you can see by their faces

These two finished early leaving the remainder to the third cheetah

More pics to come...