Home»All Albums & Groups»Kenya — January, 2015»Samburu — Two Oryx Visit a Waterhole

~ Not long after the impala herd departed from the waterhole two Beisa Oryx tentatively approached it. Their initial hesitance resulted in a start-and-stop pattern, until finally they were satisfied that the availability of water outweighed any potential risk of a predator. They drank longer than the impala, walking around the waterhole, lowering their muzzles in different places. An adult oryx is a large, solid animal. Nothing especially delicate about them beyond their preternaturally long horns. Whatever selection pressures influenced the evolution of the oryx, the result is graceful, mightily pleasing to the eye.