Biography
ENLARGE
Before encountering Africa Roz worked on a research project in Borneo with Orang-utans, travelled around Ecuador, the Galapagos Islands, China, Malaysia and Indonesia. However, on her first trip to the continent after graduating in 2007, Roz fell in love with Africa. She started working in South Africa with a game capture team and as soon as her time was up she started planning how to go back! As Roz’s main interest is in wildlife, she then completed a MSc. in Wild Animal Biology. After graduating she immediately went back to Africa, this time to the Okavango Delta in Botswana where she lived in a Bushcamp for a year assisting with a PhD research project. During her time in Botswana, Roz travelled throughout the country, visiting the Makgadikgadi Pans to dart zebra, visiting friends at different lodges and camping in the Central Kalahari. A recent return trip with Audley has seen her driving herself 3000km around Namibia, canoeing in the Zambezi River avoiding clusters of crocodiles and hippo, approaching lions, wild dogs and elephant on foot in the South Luangwa, kayaking with seals off Pelican Point, zipping over the Okavango Delta in a Cessna 206 and struggling up the dunes at Sossusvlei!
My Most Memorable Experience
My most memorable experience happened in Selinda Reserve in the Linyanti, Botswana. We were on a standard afternoon/evening game drive and were trundling along when we suddenly came across a lioness in the road. We were really impressed as she seemed so indifferent to us and casually started grooming herself. Once we moved off, our guide mentioned how swollen her abdomen was and pointed out her protruding nipples. He explained that it looked like she had recently given birth which filled us with excitement! We tracked her back in the direction that she had come from and eventually came across an acacia thicket where her tracks stopped. We held our breaths as we circled the thicket and through a slight opening we were all astonished to see the tiniest little lion cub! It was around 24 hours old and its eyes were all squashed up and its mouth was all pink and gummy. It was absolutely precious and we were so lucky to have had such an amazing guide and such fantastic luck!!
My Favourite Destination
This park simply blew my mind. I had lived in the Okavango Delta for a year and arrogantly thought that nowhere else could come close in terms of wildlife abundance and scenery. I am really pleased to have been proven wrong! In my first seven days I saw eight leopards, and there is a really healthy game population present to support this large density of predators. There were lion facing up to imposters, baby puku jumping around and buffalo and hippo in abundance. The other really striking thing is the vast number of Carmine bee-eaters which nest in the banks of the Luangwa River once the water levels have fallen. These fabulously colourful birds leave en-mass when a food source passes nearby and the result is beautifully enchanting as the whole flock of hundreds of birds moves as one.
My Favourite Accommodation
This is one of my favourite spots in southern Africa. Located in a remote part of the South Luangwa National Park on the bank of the Kapamba River this small camp has only four rooms. These are large and private and you can enjoy the sights of elephants coming to drink at the river from the comfort of a humungous bath! The food here is fantastic and the river is shallow for most of the year, with no crocodiles or hippo this means it is perfect for paddling or even sun-downers. Drives are possible from this camp but the main attraction is walking safari and the guide will lead you along the river bank challenging you to decipher the signs of life in the sand.