Photos of Impala by Yvonne van der Mey

An animal that you'll see on a daily basis in the Kruger Park, there are loads of them. Their estimated numbers in the Park is over 100.000 animals, but that can fluctuate each year. The Impala is on the menu of most predators, almost being fastfood. Based on the white marks on their rear-end, they have been given a couple of nicknames. Their white mark has the shape of an M, so they are called "MacDonalds" and if you turn the M upside down, you get the W of "Wimpy". Just a silly joke of course.

They are fascinating to me; their colours and shape are so beautiful, and especially their eyes. When we are in the Park in December, it's such a joy to find a nursery group very early in the morning while it is still cool. Then you can witness the lambs being trained to escape from predators. They run and jump in large numbers, so hard sometimes that you hold your breath. Impala's have something very special, they can't trot. They can only walk (and stand of course) and run, it's very odd.

Another thing about Impala herds, is that they can often help you find a hidden predator. Their alarm calls (snorting) can point out predators perfectly. On numerous occassions, it has helped us find big cats like Lion and Leopard. Another reason to spend more time and attention to these "common" animals. I hope you enjoy this series of photographs as much as I do.

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