ZEN MONKEY

With the holidays over and life returning to "normal", we can all take some time to sit back and reflect on things...... Just like this Chacma Baboon seems to be doing up in his tree.

"ZEN  MONKEY"
Cape of Good Hope, South Africa

If you'd like to "reflect" on other cool critters....please visit Misty Dawn's Camera Critters Meme.

Happy Mother's Day

During this spring season of rebirth and growth, we take a day to recognize and celebrate those women in our lives who play such a pivotal role in the outcome of each of our lives. From the nausea, cravings, and discomfort of the miracle of pregnancy and childbirth to the sleep deprived nights of infancy to the hyper vigilance of the active toddler years through the terrible twos (and Threes!) and teaching us how to be more self sufficient as we grew from childhood into the mazes of the tween and teen landscapes. From friendly advice to heartfelt admonitions, to some extra cash when the account was low, our mothers have each shared of themselves in a myriad of ways (blood sweat and tears) that has molded us into the successes we are today.

Moms are there to listen to our trials and tribulations.

Moms teach us to share

Moms teach us that beauty is more than skin deep!

Moms help take the sting out of life's unpleasantries

Moms give us the freedom learn things on our own...

but they are there to carry us when we get overwhelmed!

Moms help show us the right paths in life.

Moms stand by us even when we are big enough to think we know better ;-)

To all the MOMS of the world, you have the EVERLASTING LOVE of your sons and daughters!

In short Mom, You're ONE OF A KIND!

PS - feel free to send this to a special MOM in your life to let her know you appreciate all she's done for you.

HAPPY MOTHER'S DAY

In honor of Mother's day today I want to share some of my images of mothers and their children. In the animal world, moms work tirelessly to provide for their offspring in a myriad of ways. From providing food, to teaching the basics of hunting (or how to avoid being hunted!), to comforting after a "boo boo", to tucking one in a bedtime, animal moms really get minimal rest (kind of like many human moms!). Both of the images I'm sharing today reflect the 24/7 nature of moms needing to be both wary and supportive to their youngsters.

The first image was taken in Botswana at the Chobe National Park. The herd of elephants had been spending most of this mid winter afternoon in the water and had just emerged as they were getting ready to head away from the river to begin their late day foraging. While elephants are not hunters, they are among the most aggressive of all the animals I encountered on my safaris. In this image you can see that "Junior" is rather oblivious to my presence, but mom is clearly aware of me and her extended ears are a definite sign that she does not take my presence lightly. Thankfully, the ear flap was all she did as she hustled Junior out of harm's way.

This second photo is of a Chacma baboon mother carrying her youngster on her back. Both were clearly tired as there had been a lot of excitement in the baboon troop that day with the nearby presence of a pride of lions. Since lions are one of the most prominent of baboon predators the troop was hyper vigilant and on edge until the lions moved away when a herd of Impala presented themselves as a better hunting opportunity. I call this image "Tuckered Out" as it reflects that total exhaustion that children have when they've had a day full of new adventures and just need mom to carry then off to bed. Indeed this little guy barely moved at all as mom trundled across the savannah with him holding tight to her back.

In homage & respect to all the wonderful moms out there... HAPPY MOTHERS DAY! Thanks for all you've done for your loved ones over the years!