Short introduction
Hi guys,
I’m new to this forum so I thought I’d quickly introduce myself. I’m Lennart Verheuvel, I’m 21 years old and I’m from the Netherlands. In the Netherlands, most animals that I look at are birds, but I have a secret love for mammals. Last year I visited Svalbard with OceanWide Expeditons and I thought that at least some mammals are just way cooler. I am a big fan of all kinds of sea mammals and carnivores. Not really surprising, I think most people are. Best mammals on my list right now are polar bear and bowhead whale, hopefully that list will expand in the years to come. Still, the group of animals that I am most fond of are cats, although I still haven’t seen any in the wild. My goal is to see every species of the Felidae family this world has to offer, bit ambitious perhaps, since I have not a single one on my list yet, but we”ll see how it goes. Anyway this was my short introduction, I look forward to reading your way more interestesting forum posts and trip reports!
8 Comments
-
Miles Foster
Hi, Lennart,
and a warm welcome.
my wife, Ingrid, and I are carnivore fans too, although neither of us eats meat! You have already seen two species on our wish list: polar bear and bowhead but, like you, cats are our favourite. You will find two or three contributors here who have seen most of the world’s felids and I am sure you will find their posts helpful.
If, as and when you can afford it, I would suggest a trip to Africa; with careful planning you should be able to see lion, leopard, cheetah and serval without too much trouble. So far, caracal have eluded me and Ingrid but we hope to see them one day. Nearer to home, you could try for Eurasian wildcat in Germany. I am not sure of their current distribution but in the 1970s they were also found in the Ardennes in both Belgium and France. Others on the forum will know more, I am sure. You could also try for Iberian lynx in Sierra de Andujar. Ingrid and I are just back from Spain and we did – finally – manage to see the lynx. It wasn’t easy, but well worth the effort. There is lot’s of information here that would help you plan a trip and we would also be happy to advise you.
Anyway, I am sure we all look forward to hearing your progress as a mammal watcher.
Miles
-
Lennartv
Many thanks for the warm welcome everyone! I indeed saw the cat thread, amazing how many cats some people have seen, something to look up to! Actually I am planning to start of with a really good one: snow leopard next year (end of january begin february). I’m thinking about going for a couple of years now and I think next year will be the one when I will finally go. Africa is of course also one of the locations that I really want to visit. Iberian lynx is also at the top of my list. I will probably post something about the snow leopard trip in the summer or autumn (perhaps more people are thinking about doing the same), I will keep you guys posted!
-
jo dale
I finally made my snow leopard quest last year. Here’s my trip report : http://safaritalk.net/topic/16206-in-search-of-the-grey-ghost/?fromsearch=1
I combined it with Tadoba to cover tigers as well.
There are options other than India for snow leopard that have started to surface in recent years that may also be worth checking out. Some good reports here on mammalwatching.com
-
-
Miles Foster
Hi, Lennart.
re snow leopards, a couple of people who would well be worth talking to are:
Martin Royle, Director / Guide at Royle Safaris and a contributor to this forum: info@royle-safaris.co.uk
and
Jamin “Lobsang” York, Owner and Lead Guide of Land of Snows: thelandofsnows@gmail.com
Both were very helpful when I was contemplating a trip to Tibet last year and both would be able to help you find snow leopards in Ladakh.
Miles
-
Leave a Reply
You must be logged in to post a comment.
jo dale
Welcome to mammal watching! There are quite a few cat fans here. There’s a fairly recent thread about who has seen the most cat species. worth checking out.