Category: Ethiopia Selection

2025, Ethiopia Selection, Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis), Mammal

Ethiopian Wolf, Nose to the Wind

Ethiopian

Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis) catching a scent – Bale Mountains, Ethiopia

 

The Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis), also known as the Simien jackal, is the world’s rarest wild canid, endemic to the highlands of Ethiopia. A rodent-hunting specialist, it moves gracefully through alpine meadows.
In this image, one wolf lifts its head into the morning air—perhaps in search of prey, or simply attuned to the subtle cues of its wilderness.
With fewer than 500 individuals remaining in the wild, witnessing this animal is a rare privilege. Its russet coat, slender muzzle, and poised silhouette make it a quiet but powerful symbol of Ethiopia’s natural heritage.

2025, Bird, Ethiopia Selection

Blue Sparkle of the Male Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu (Uraeginthus bengalus) – Ethiopia

Éclat

Éclat bleu du mâle cordonbleu – Cordonbleu à joues rouges (Uraeginthus bengalus) – Ethiopie

 

Perched in the midst of a thorny bush, this male Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu (Uraeginthus bengalus) displays his striking plumage: a bright turquoise breast and belly, highlighted by the characteristic red patch on the cheek. In females, the colors are more subdued, with less blue and no red on the face. This contrast makes it easy to distinguish between the sexes. Widespread across the savannas and shrublands of sub-Saharan Africa, this delicate little bird enlivens the Ethiopian landscape with its vivid colors and quick, lively movements, often seen in pairs or small groups.

2025, Ethiopia Selection, Gelada (Theropithecus gelada), Mammal

Young Gelada female on a Cactus

Young

Young Gelada female (Theropithecus gelada) on a Cactus – Ethiopia

 

Le gelada, primate endémique des hauts plateaux d’Éthiopie, se distingue par un régime alimentaire presque exclusivement herbivore. Contrairement à la plupart des singes, il passe la majorité de sa journée à brouter de l’herbe, à la manière des ruminants. Plus de 90 % de son alimentation est composée de pousses, de graines, de racines, de fleurs… et même de cactus, dont il consomme les parties tendres riches en eau. Cette spécialisation unique parmi les primates lui permet de survivre dans les prairies d’altitude, où les ressources sont saisonnières mais abondantes.

2025, Ethiopia Selection, Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis), Mammal

The Ethiopian Wolf, Sentinel of the Abyssinian Highlands

The

The Ethiopian Wolf, Sentinel of the Abyssinian Highlands

 

Bathed in golden light, a lone figure stands against the rolling backdrop of the Ethiopian highlands.
The Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis), the world’s rarest wild canid, is a highland specialist, roaming open alpine grasslands in search of rodents.
This image captures the animal’s solitude and elegance within a vast, dreamlike landscape. Though elusive and threatened, it remains one of Africa’s most iconic predators—and a quiet symbol of the country’s vanishing wilderness.

2025, Ethiopia Selection, Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis), Mammal

The Abyssinian Wolf, Watcher of the Ethiopian Highlands

The

The Abyssinian Wolf, Watcher of the Ethiopian Highlands

 

Alone on the highlands of Abyssinia, the Ethiopian wolf scans the horizon. This slender predator, perfectly adapted to life at high altitude, is now one of the most endangered mammals on the African continent. Threatened by habitat fragmentation and diseases transmitted by domestic dogs, only about 500 individuals remain in the wild.

2025, Ethiopia Selection, Mammal

Male Mountain Nyala (Tragelaphus buxtoni) – Bale Mountains, Ethiopia

Male

Male Mountain Nyala (Tragelaphus buxtoni) – Bale Mountains, Ethiopia

 

Shy and elusive, the mountain nyala lives only on the Ethiopian highlands, among misty heather forests, alpine meadows, and shadowy clearings. Fewer than 4,000 individuals remain in the wild, most of them confined to the Bale Mountains — the species’ last stronghold.

Males are especially striking: larger and darker than females, they bear long, spiraled horns and a dark crest along their back that stands erect during tension or display. These features make them elegant, ghost-like figures of the high-altitude forests — rare, silent, and hard to glimpse.

2024, Ethiopia Selection, Ethiopian wolf (Canis simensis), HD, Mammal

Pack of Abyssinian Wolves on Patrol in the Bale Mountains (Canis simensis), Ethiopia


Pack

Pack of Abyssinian Wolves on Patrol in the Bale Mountains (Canis simensis), Ethiopia

Click to see the complete picture in a virtual tour

 

Abyssinian wolves feed almost exclusively on rodents. Their habitat is limited to the high plateaus and mountains of Ethiopia, where rodent density is particularly high. In the Bale Mountains, where this photo was taken, up to 6,000 rodents can be found per square kilometer.

This diet has shaped their behavior: unlike other wolf species that hunt large prey in packs, Abyssinian wolves hunt alone.
Yet each morning, before spreading out to search for food, clan members carry out a joint patrol across their territory.

On this particular day, six wolves from the Meguiti clan were roaming their land, ensuring no intruders had trespassed.

2015, Encounters, Ethiopia Selection

Yemrehana Krestos Church, Amhara area, Ethiopia

Yemrehana Krestos Church, Amhara area, Ethiopia

The Yemrehanna Krestos Church is an Ethipian Orthodox Church built inside a cave.
Located at the bottom of Abouna Yossef, a 4190m above sea level mountain.
The church naming is because of the king Yemrehanna Krestos who achieve to built the church during the 12th century