Page 43 - Discover Botswana 23rd Edition 2023

present, but there are also constantly changing conditions over the seasons.
This is similar to the Okavango. This inland Delta has made its name for being a perpetually watery maze, but even here seasonal fluctuations have a substantial impact. In times of flood, this can present challenges to predators who dislike having to traverse swampy terrain. However, they may well be rewarded for doing so by the compression of their prey into smaller areas of high ground. When the seeping stops, and the wildlife disperses, the plains can dry rapidly, adding complications to both grazing and hunting alike.
The biggest changes however are reserved for the vast Baobab-dotted salt pans of Makgadikgadi or Nxai, or even further afield in the gentle valleys and wide plains of the Central Kalahari. Here, when the rains are moving through, every drop of water is greeted like the return of a conquering hero and the attendant transformation is at its most dramatic.
As a typical afternoon progresses, clouds gather and the light gently, but inexorably begins
Above: A passing storm leaves two Bat-eared Foxes drenched in the Kalahari. These enormous thunderstorms will drop life giving waters turning the Kalahari into a green blanket during our summer months.
Below: Life and death continues to play out between predator and prey. It is an unbroken circle that on the onset of the rains brings up the sweet grasses which in turn attract herds of herbivores. Predators like Lions await the abundance and easy pickings that a little bit of moisture can bring.
PHOTO ESSAY
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