For more than a decade, Castle Peak has lived a life of isolation, tranquility and idleness.
There is no involution in his world, there is no workplace strife, he doesn't need to deal with too many people of all kinds, and getting along with lions, cheetahs and other fierce beasts day and night is Qingshan's daily life. He often drove to the grassland, and in the endless expanse, he read a book in the car, and the cheetah snored leisurely under the car.
In the afterglow of the sunset, spend the day like this.
It's a slow-paced life that is unimaginable for contemporary urbanites. More than 10 years ago, Aoyama, who had just graduated, followed the life trajectory that was generally recognized by East Asian societies step by stepGo to 985 schools, learn practical majors such as English and economics, and enter the system after graduation and have a decent and stable job.
However, the serious working atmosphere in the system soon made Aoyama tired of it, and he took the initiative to sign up for an expatriate assignment to Tanzania, Africa, and after three years, he completely left the system and worked in the grasslands for 15 years.
Cheetah lying on Castle Peak's car, **Courtesy of the interviewee.
The Serengeti National Park, where he is based, is home to 105 species of mammals, 450 species of birds, 327 species of reptiles and amphibians, and more than 8,000 species of insects. In his eyes, wild animals are more human than humans, and their sense of distress, altruism, and attitude in the face of pressure are all worthy of human reference.
We chatted with Aoyama about his experience, this storyIt is not only about the interesting sights of wild animals, but also a record of a poetic way of living at a time when society is generally embracing pragmatism.
The following is Aoyama's story.
Resign from a job within the system,
to live in the vast grasslands
In 2005, I graduated from Huazhong University of Science and Technology and joined a unit in the system. It didn't take long for me to find out that the units in the system were more suitable for people who wanted to live a stable life, and for people like me, who were used to being free and loose, it was not suitable to stay here. Three months later, there happened to be an expatriate quota in the unit to go to Tanzania, Africa, and I volunteered to apply to the leader, and the leader approved it.
I grew up knowing that Tanzania is home to Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa's highest peak, and the Serengeti, one of the best national parks in the world, with many wildlife migrating every year. When I was a child, I loved to read "Animal World" explained by Mr. Zhao Zhongxiang, and I also liked to subscribe to the magazine "We Love Science", which often published articles about animals. There wasn't much entertainment at the time, I was just fascinated by animals.
Cheetah hunts Tang's gazelle, photo source documentary "Hunting" When I was in college, I majored in English as an undergraduate, and watched a lot of documentaries from the BBC and National Geographic, one to learn English, and the other to absorb the knowledge of wild animals.
But actually coming to Tanzania made me feel more pressure. Because of work, everyone lives in the same yard, there is no space for their own activities, and there are many strict discipline rules, which is very uncomfortable and aggrieved for a long time.
When I decided to quit my job in 2008, I had little hesitation, and this kind of life was not what I wanted. Well, in just a few decades, while I can toss while I am young, I still want to live a life that I really yearn for.
After leaving the system, I joined the Tanzania National Park Authority, and was first sent to a remote reserve in southern Tanzania as a land demolition coordinator for two years, persuading nearby villagers living within the boundaries of the national park to move out to avoid problems such as animal conflict.
It was the poorest place in Tanzania, there was no electricity or internet, and it was the rainy season when I went, and I stayed in a simple guest house in the village, and the room was humid and stuffy. There was only a bed and a table in the whole room, the bed was covered with a very impermeable sponge cushion, and there was a candle on the table, but I never dared to light it, if there was light in the room, all the mosquitoes would fly in.
When I first started in the village, I was very depressed, the small mountain village was isolated from the outside world, and I could only go to the mountainside far away from the village entrance to receive the ** signal. Even if I die there, I guess no one knows.
I asked the national park, can you stop doing this work? The other party replied, "You have already signed the contract, either lose money or find another person to replace you". I couldn't do either, so I had to stay on top.
The good thing about living in the village for me is that the interpersonal relationships are simple, and although the local area is very poor, the villagers are very simple. They knew that I was a foreigner and took extra care of me. My neighbor gave me a kerosene lamp, and other villagers would call me to eat at home and help me carry water in their ox carts.
Aoyama and local villagers sit together, **Courtesy of the interviewee.
It was a time of poverty but also nostalgia.
One weekend, I went to the simple bar at the entrance of the village to eat roast chicken and drink beer, and after drinking a few bottles of wine, I walked dizzily to my accommodation, passing a small river on the way, and many swallows nested under the bridge.
I simply lay on the grass by the bridge, looking at the blue sky and white clouds overhead, and hundreds of swallows screaming around me. At that moment, I felt too a**, as if the work pressure of the previous years was slowly relieved in nature, and I fell asleep after a while, and I didn't wake up until midnight.
I was so touched by this experience that I had been in a state of insomnia for at least half of the three years I had been working in the system, and when I came to this impoverished village, I was surprised to find that I could fall asleep so easily.
Slowly, I fell in love with life here.
Source: "Earth Pulse" documentary.
After two years as a land removal coordinator, I returned to the Tanzania National Parks Headquarters to promote and attract more visitors to see the animals.
There are two common mindsets among visitors here: one is to demonize wild animals as fearsome beasts; The other is to see them as pets and often ask "can I touch them"?
Wild animals are not as dangerous as people think, and they are not the same as domestic pets. Domestic pets and owners are interdependent. But wildlife and humans are more like an equal partnership. Over the years, I have seen wild animals as friends and positioned myself as one of them, rather than as a so-called "higher creature".
15 years with wild animalsSubvert 99% of animal behavior cognition
It wasn't until eight years ago that I really settled down and started photographing animal behavior. Every day, I drive to the Serengeti to find the wildlife I want to photograph and record their behaviour from a distance of 10 metres. Accumulate enough relevant materials to form big data, so as to deduce their behavior patterns.
Biologist Jane Goodall once told me that "to understand the behavior of an animal, you need to observe it for at least ten years". She even spent sixty years observing chimpanzees.
Aoyama and Jane Goodall, **courtesy of the interviewee.
Jane Goodall is a world-renowned zoologist, 90 years old, still working diligently to observe wild animals for a long time, in fact, it is very monotonous and boring. It may take a long time to wait for a specific behavior, but as long as you wait for a wonderful moment, such as lion food protection and cheetah hunting, you will feel that the boredom you endured before is worth it.
After observing wild animals, 99% of the knowledge I had gained about animal behavior was turned upside down.
I am probably the one who has observed the wildebeest migration in all of China, and I have seen thousands of wildebeest migrations so far. People often mistakenly think that wildebeest migrates to go somewhere. In fact, sometimes they just go to the other side of the river to graze and drink.
When the wildebeest crosses the river, it does not go forward bravely, but often turns back. It's hard to give a definite reason for wildebeest's behavior, but they are constantly migrating every day.
Wildebeest crossing the river,**Courtesy of the interviewee.
In the past, I was influenced by the cartoon "The Lion King", and I thought that the posture and hair of lions were fierce and powerful, but in fact, wild lions are not as fierce and vicious as I imagined. Most of the time, lions are cute and harmless.
Lions are at the top of the grassland ecological chain, but they are not the real "king of beasts". Seven animals, including elephants, rhinoceros, spotted hyenas, and crocodiles, will take the initiative to attack lions, posing a serious threat to their lives. With so many animals in an ecosystem that can threaten the life of a lion, can it still be called the king of beasts?
Lions resting, **Courtesy of the interviewee The only animal that comes close to the "king of beasts" is elephants, which have no natural predators. When the elephant walks to the pond, all the animals will obediently avoid it, and the elephant has the majestic temperament of a "king".
Elephants are also the only animals other than humans that mourn the dead. If a companion dies, the herd holds a moment of silence. Each elephant gently touches the body of its companion with its nose, even if it is just a puddle of bones in front of it. At this point, all the elephants remain silent and will spontaneously dump dirt on the corpses of their companions.
Elephants, **courtesy of respondents. At the foot of Mount Kilimanjaro, there is an old male elephant that has been wandering the grove for the past three years. I thought it was too old to go too far. It wasn't until last year that I discovered the bones of other elephants in the grove, and the old elephant had probably been guarding the pile of carcasses.
Influenced by social Darwinism, people always think that the animal world is cruel, that animals are cunning and selfish, and that the law of the jungle is the strong, and that it is used to describe the cruelty of human society.
We exaggerate the competition between animals and ignore the fact that there is a lot of altruistic and assisting behavior among them.
Through my observations, I have found that there are emotions and cultures among animal groups, and they know how to educate and have a sense of morality.
The herd is usually solidarity and if an elephant is injured, the whole herd will stop and wait for it. Adult elephants have an obligation to educate and protect all calves, even if they are not their own children. There are 200 billion neurons in elephants' heads that control emotions, five times more than humans.
In addition to elephants, chimpanzees care about their companions and if they are bitten by an intruder, other chimpanzees lick their wounds for them. If a chimpanzee is injured, its companions will also take the initiative to throw fruit down from the tree to help it eat.
Chimpanzees for mutual aid,** provided by respondents.
In the Serengeti, the so-called "law of the jungle" phenomenon does not even exist.
British scientist Hinckland, who worked in the Serengeti for fifty years, came up with a "Serengeti's Law", where herbivores, considered weak, determine the number and living conditions of carnivores.
The Serengeti has some of the best pastures in the world, and instead of a shortage of food, herbivores struggle to survive, and if herds of herbivores migrate, they will fall into severe famine.
Even in the case of famine, most animals live in a normal food chain and will only attack the food they have eaten, and will not actively attack humans. They are well aware that humans are not their food. Over the years I have been with animals, they have never attacked me.
Many people have asked me if I have ever been in danger on the grasslands. I will always answer that I have only encountered danger from humans, such as poachers and some people with ulterior motives, and never encountered danger from animals.
Live like an animal:Learn to deal with stress and failureOver the years, I've learned more from animals than from books.
I am also used to spending time with animals, building trust with a strange cheetah, just need to be quietly with you for an afternoon, when you are trusted by an animal, you will feel that this is the most simple and beautiful thing in the world. And with people, no matter how long it takes, it is difficult to build real trust.
*Provided by respondentsAs a result of my long-term observation of animals, my senses have become extremely acute, including hearing, smell, and sight. As long as there is wind and grass in the outside world, I can sense it for the first time.
Empathy has also become stronger, and when a familiar animal is successfully hunted, I feel a sense of accomplishment and genuinely happy for them. When they are in trouble, it also makes me worry about it all the time.
In the past, when I worked in the system, I would deliberately numb my senses and hide my true feelings. But after staying on the grassland for a long time, whether it is words or behaviors, I gradually follow my heart and become more open.
From animals, I also learned a little:Be comfortable with stress and failure.
Cheetahs are one of the most stressful animals to survive on the grassland, they have the ability to run to the extreme, but also pay a huge price for this, the forelimbs lack enough strength, the claws can not be retracted, and the bite force is not strong, these costs make the cheetah very vulnerable in the grassland, and food is often snatched away by lions and vultures.
However, anyone who has seen a cheetah, whether it is a tourist or a researcher, has admired its beautiful appearance and temperament.
Close-up view of cheetah in Castle Peak, **courtesy of the interviewee.
In the evening twilight, cheetahs like to crouch on raised termite mounds and twist their bodies into an S shape to guard against the invasion of lions and spotted hyenas, in a posture like ancient Greek statues.
I can even see the "beauty of weak virtue" proposed by Teacher Ye Jiaying from them. The so-called beauty of weak virtue represents a tenacious and elegant attitude towards the world, and it is also the attitude of the weak towards life.
Whether it is the animal kingdom or human society, the "weak" account for the majority, and when faced with all kinds of oppression and aggression, not everyone can be as free and easy as Su Dongpo, or Qu Yuan like "never go with the world".
The weak often do not have the ability to resist directly, and at this time, we can learn from cheetahsSuperficially succumb to external pressure and do not struggle, but stick to their own posture, silently bear the pressure, and complete their lives.
Aoyama rescued a female cheetah who was besieged by spotted hyenas, and even though she was bitten and bruised, she still calmly walked past his car and looked around with her head held high, **Courtesy of the interviewee.
Lions also often face hunting failures, and when they fail, they are very calm and sleep under the trees. When the opportunity arises again, they will devote themselves to a new hunt.
One of the most fascinating things about felines is their pre-hunting expression, their eyes fixed on their prey, their muscles tightened, and their minds tightened, as if nothing could disturb them.
Animals worry about how to avoid predators, how to hunt and eat, which is a natural sense of worry. They use their vigorous vitality to fight against the great uncertainty in the hunting process. And we, as bystanders, can also feel the resilience of life.
Aoyama wrote about his observations about animals over the years in the book "We Are in Africa".
I have always believed that animals can be used as a mirror of human beings, and we can learn from their strengths, and we can also learn from their shortcomings.
Now, I'm in my forties, and the first half of my life is over and the second half is over. At this age, there is no longer much interest in how much money is made and how famous it is, and in the future, I hope to further promote the public's understanding in animal behavior observation.
I hope more people know that there is a land in distant Africa, which still retains the original appearance of the world, and the animals living on the land are so innocent. Their tenacity and straightforwardness have deeply influenced my outlook on life. And sharing their stories with you is not only my honor, but also my duty and mission.