h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Lovely pictures by you and your Dad, Willem

What a joy to be able to see them up close at the base camp

And you header Am-bushbuck made me chuckle

Hi Peanut! I'm glad you liked my bushbuck family! I wonder if I'll ever visit Letaba again.

I think you are lucky to have some many types of antelopes in SA, Willem. Our white-tailed deer, mule deer and pronghorn antelopes are sort of all we have, besides caribou, elk, and moose in the north. The deer are all rather plagues in that they are a bit too successful in terms of moving into suburbs where they wreck havoc on gardens and landscapes and running into autos. Unfortunately they tend to overpopulate and since we have killed most of our apex predators and send them back to unpopulated areas, we get stuck with very big pests.

Not that it isn't our fault, we sentimentalize them (Bambi) because (they are pretty) and you can't really hunt in the city parks or suburbs. And people still insist on thirsty big lawns even though a wilder landscape would encourage more diversity.

I think it is that the rams are so feisty and that they can swim!

Hi Elektra! I'm glad you liked the article. I would prefer the entire Earth to be 're-wilded' with herbivores and carnivores in the right balance which would then be naturally maintained.