|
| duxup wrote:
| I really don't think of lions and the beach much but it also
| occurs to me "why not?"
|
| It's interesting how we visualize things in our minds to be
| specific settings.
| mdp2021 wrote:
| > _why not_
|
| Because typical preys don't drink saltwater.
| lotsofpulp wrote:
| Not quite saltwater, but close.
|
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mineral_lick
|
| There are man made salt licks on safaris so tourists have a
| greater chance to see a predator, and possibly even a hunt
| since the prey is gathered there.
| mc32 wrote:
| Right and they only went there when their normal prey
| (ungulates) became scarce so facing starvation they opted to
| hunt for shore animals like seals and birds that frequent the
| seashore.
| armadsen wrote:
| That's a bit of a simplification of what the article
| reports, which is that desert lions were there before being
| driven out by nearby farmers in 2002. They came _back_
| because of the drought and lack of non-marine prey. Seems
| likely that there have been lions there for a very long
| time, which sort of by definition means that they 're
| adapted for living there, even if that adaptation was
| spurred by difficulty in getting "normal" prey.
| tiedieconderoga wrote:
| Cats are pretty well adapted to water despite the
| stereotypes, and fish are typical prey for many species.
|
| Tigers famously live along deltas, there are spotted wildcats
| which live in mangroves called "fishing cats", flat-headed
| cats stalk the waters around the Gulf of Thailand, even
| Pallas Cats have been known to go fishing in the steppes.
|
| Although, according to the article these lions started eating
| birds that live along the coastline because their usual
| mammalian prey are dying off from drought. It's pretty common
| for birds, especially migratory ones, to hang around
| saltwater while they feed on things like algae and small
| shellfish.
| mdp2021 wrote:
| > _fish are typical prey for many species_
|
| They know, and they don't take it lightly. Welcome
| tiedieconderoga and please receive this in appreciation:
|
| https://www.comedywildlifephoto.com/images/wysiwyg/00000053
| /...
| sgt wrote:
| They just need to watch out for aggressive schools of tuna.
| armadsen wrote:
| I visited the Skeleton Coast in 2021 for a couple days. It's just
| an incredible other-worldly place (well lots of Namibia is like
| that, really). I had no idea at the time that lions had started
| coming back.
|
| There's a massive colony of Cape fur seals there
| (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cape_Cross).
|
| There are also desert adapted elephants in Namibia. We had a
| local tour guide take us out to find them, which was one of the
| wildest, most interesting experiences I've ever had.
| esel2k wrote:
| I recommend Namibia too, and especially the skeleton coast for
| a different experience than the most visited parts (dunes,
| safari parks). Driving on the skeleton coast lead to the
| experience to drive for 5-6 hours without meeting any other
| car. Having that feeling of driving in a beautiful- though
| extremely dry- spot on this planet with nobody around for 100s
| of kilometers is an amazing feeling.
|
| The cap fur seals make funny - fart-like noises and it is quiet
| smelly - but funny experience.
| technothrasher wrote:
| I never made it to the Skeleton Coast, but being out on the
| sand dunes in the middle of nowhere in the Namib desert was one
| of the most surreal things I've ever experienced. It felt like
| I was on Mars, except for the incredibly deep blue sky.
| armadsen wrote:
| I'm lucky in that the family I married into is strongly
| connected to Namibia. My wife lived there when she was young,
| and her family goes back regularly, so I've been able to tag
| along with them. Getting introduced to that place --
| somewhere I likely never would have known otherwise -- is one
| of the (many) things that makes me feel grateful for my life
| and my wife.
|
| Well, well worth a visit. Southern Africa has its problems
| like anywhere, but it's a really special place in the world.
| rramadass wrote:
| It is criminal that the article does not mention the fantastic
| "must watch" National Geographic documentary : _Survivors of the
| Skeleton Coast_ - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce09ZygnMLg
|
| The only video that i know of where you can see a Lion feeding on
| a Whale carcass on the beach!
| traeregan wrote:
| That is quite wild, thanks!
|
| Here's a direct link to that part of the video:
| https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ce09ZygnMLg&t=1435s
| shswkna wrote:
| This way of managing the balance between the needs of wildlife
| and the wants of humans, stands out in a world where normally the
| animals (and plants) have to give way to fulfil the desires and
| safety needs of humans.
|
| May it remain so.
| steppi wrote:
| _" When I was your age I was before the mast on a square rigged
| ship that ran to Africa and I have seen lions on the beaches in
| the evening."_
|
| [...]
|
| _He no longer dreamed of storms, nor of women, nor of great
| occurrences, nor of great fish, nor fights, nor contests of
| strength, nor of his wife. He only dreamed of places now and of
| the lions on the beach._
|
| Ernest Hemingway. The Old Man and the Sea.
|
| I'd read this long ago, and never gave a thought to it that this
| detail must have been rooted in reality. It's interesting to
| learn what the lions were doing there.
| laxd wrote:
| Holy smokes! I had the book recommended to me 15-ish years ago.
| Today I incidentally grabbed it from our book shelf and read
| half of it. The lion thing stood out to me. I've never heard of
| lions at a beach. And now this. There is something strange
| about this world. Maybe time to re-read what Jung said about
| synchronicities.
| stjo wrote:
| I'm sure it looks incredible from your point of view. But
| take a peak from my perspective:
|
| 1) someone writes something about lions (100% chance to
| happen, because someone is writing something all the time)
|
| 2) someone else quotes a popular book from a renowned author
| about the topic - nothing out of the ordinary
|
| 3) you, one of the thousands of readers of the quote
| mentioned above, started reading the same popular book today.
|
| Also, the first two happen across hundreds of posts daily on
| hacker news. Statistically it is not that exceptional.
|
| It still freaks me out whenever something similar happens to
| me :)
| laxd wrote:
| Yes, out of the uncountable unlikely coincidences, some are
| bound to happen. The comment was mostly a joke. Still, the
| evidence keeps piling up - that you're all just agents in a
| humorous world that revolves around me :)
| harry8 wrote:
| Nah dude, it's me, I'm the center and comments like yours
| are just trying to cast doubt in my mind by pretending
| all you NPCs have the same thougt so it must be
| delusion... Take that for a response, Matrix! :)
| modriano wrote:
| Nominally related: Ocean Conservation Namibia [0] is one of the
| most oddly soothing and satisfying YouTube channels I've ever
| discovered. These guys sprint across beaches to catch sea lions
| that have fishing lines/debris around their necks and cut the
| debris away. Highly recommend.
|
| [0] https://www.youtube.com/@OceanConservationNamibia
| someuser54541 wrote:
| They better be careful. Once the fish get a taste for lion, they
| may establish a beachhead, and construct a breathing apparatus,
| perhaps of kelp, to hunt down the remaining members of the pride.
|
| It may not go the way the lions think it'll go.
| finnh wrote:
| Will the breathing apparatus work indefinitely? No, but 30, 40
| minutes sure. More than enough time
| xvedejas wrote:
| On the remote beaches of western Latvia, in the sand are frequent
| paw tracks left by wolves. I wondered whether they were able to
| hunt any sea life, or if it is just an easy travel path alongside
| the pine forests that are immediately alongside the beach.
| glonq wrote:
| Canada also has "sea wolves"
| https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vancouver_Coastal_Sea_wolf
| gavin_gee wrote:
| Namibia is one of the most incredibly diverse countries in the
| world. And as a new to Africa tourist its super easy to get a
| flavor of this magical continent.
| Prbeek wrote:
| Not to forget the first genocide of the twentieth century where
| the Germans wiped out the local Herero tribe
| daxfohl wrote:
| And few tourists and the roads are nice. You can go rent a car,
| drive to a national park, hang out by a watering hole with a
| ton of wildlife, and have the whole thing largely to yourself.
| Completely different experience from Kenya and Tanzania. (at
| least, 20 years ago when I went).
___________________________________________________________________
(page generated 2023-03-09 23:01 UTC) |