So often when wildlife enthusiasts go to a hide, they go to see mainly animals and the larger birds. You can see so much more if time is invested in those quiet spells just looking out for the smaller birds at the edge of the waterhole. You will marvel at the abundance and their wonderfully varied plumage.

“There is a way that nature speaks – that land speaks – most of the time we are simply not patient enough – quiet enough – to pay attention to the story” ~ Linda Hogan

A Golden breasted bunting came down for a drink of water. The male has this golden breast plumage and all buntings have the black head with white eye stripes.

We saw many Sombre bulbuls. They usually came down to drink at the water’s edge singly. The olive-green plumage seemed to vary somewhat from a lighter green to almost grey in different individuals. That creamy-white eye is unmistakable and diagnostic.

A Jameson’s firefinch with its vivid crimson front and face. It looks very similar to the Red-billed firefinch but is more vivid in colour and has a black upper mandible and light grey lower mandible.

“Enjoy the little things in life because one day you’ll look back and realize they were the big things.” – Kurt Vonnegut

A female Three-banded plover with her two young chicks. The chicks are born precocial, meaning they can fend for themselves soon after being born. They do on occasions go and tuck under their mother’s wings for warmth and protection. These chicks were tiny, probably only 40 mm in length.

A Common sandpiper foraging along the water’s edge looking for small insects and invertebrates. Its diagnostic white pectoral region above the folded wing was clearly visible.

“Wisdom comes with the ability to be still. Just look and just listen. No more is needed. Being still, looking, and listening activates the non-conceptual intelligence within you. Let stillness direct your words and actions.”
~ Eckhart Tolle

A male Orange-breasted bush shrike in a hook thorn on the other side of the waterhole. It had its back to us so you cannot see the orange breast but the vivid yellow underparts and primaries helped the identification. The male has the black eye band but the female does not.

A lone Hammerkop parked on a rock next to the water’s edge to roost and watch all the goings on around the waterhole. Before resting it had been very busy looking for frogs and insects around the waterhole.

“Stillness is what aims the archer’s arrow. It inspires new ideas. It sharpens perspective and illuminates connections.”
~ Ryan Holiday

A Three-banded plover chick looking for edibles in the well trodden mud around the waterhole. As I mentioned earlier the two chicks were very small being around 40mm in length and when they stopped moving were very well camouflaged against the broken mud and soil.

Often looking at the grass near the water’s edge can reveal small insectivores such as this Rattling cisticola. It was picking small insects off the grass stems.

“The earth has its music for those who will listen.” ~ Reginald Holmes

We saw many Yellow-fronted canaries which usually came down to drink in small groups. This small canary has a grey crown and nape and black facial markings and its under parts are a bright yellow. They did not drink for long but flew down to drink frequently.

A Blue waxbill. We saw many, and like the canaries they drink a little often and then fly off into the bush to forage.

A male and female Jameson’s firefinch. The female is noticeably paler and more peach coloured. Both sexes have similar coloured upper tail coverts and rectrices.

A noisy gathering of mainly Black-headed bulbuls with a single Blue waxbill and a pair of Yellow-fronted canaries. This type of gathering is useful to see the relative sizes of the different species.

“We still do not know one thousandth of one percent of what nature has revealed to us.” –Albert Einstein

An Emerald-spotted wood-dove. It has the two distinctive sets of emerald green wing spots. Doves and pigeons are the only birds that suck water into their mouths when they drink. This species of dove has such a sad sounding call.

A Black flycatcher keeping an eye on the waterhole from its perch in a dead tree at the edge of the tree line around the waterhole. This species can often be seen catching insects above the water but that morning it was too cold and windy for hunting .

“If you truly love nature, you will find beauty everywhere.” ~ Vincent van Gogh

A solitary Purple-crested turaco came down to drink and was joined by a Black-headed bulbul. We only saw this species once in the four days we visited this hide.

Another smaller gathering. The different species do not seem to mind each other at all. The two Black-headed bulbuls were joined by a Cape Glossy starling and a Black-collared barbet. I did see an Acacia Pied barbet but it was too quick for me to get a decent image.

“Always be on the lookout for the presence of wonder.” ~ E.B.White

A pair of Water Thick-knees brought their two drinks down to the edge of the waterhole. I did not see any of the family drink any water. The two chicks were incredibly well camouflaged among the small stones around the edge of the waterhole.

On our way out of the hide at the first gate along the walkway to the hide we saw this White-browed scrub robin. It was unafraid of us and we watched it call and display for about ten minutes.

These few images give you a sense of the abundance of small bird species around the waterhole. They are fascinating to watch and their plumage is vividly coloured. If you are only looking for the big things and leave once the mammals and large birds have left the waterhole you would miss all these small avian jewels.

“Slow down, be quiet, be patient and in that stillness nature will reveal things to you way beyond your expectations.” ~ Mike Haworth

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

One morning at the Malibala hide in the Mkuze Game Reserve the peace was broken by a pair of Egyptian geese. Up until that time, they had been the only geese at the waterhole and all had been quiet. As soon as a wandering pair of Egyptian geese flew towards the waterhole, the pair on the ground started to hiss and honk.

“Birds will give you a window, if you allow them. They will show you secrets from another world – fresh vision that, though it is avian, can accompany you home and alter your life. They will do this for you even if you don’t know their names– though such knowing is a thoughtful gesture. They will do this for you if you watch them.”― Lyanda Lynn Haupt

The plumage of both sexes Egyptian geese are identical but the males are usually larger. Their plumage varies greatly in tone, with some birds greyer and others browner. This plumage tone variation is not thought to be sex- or age-related.

Egyptian geese are very vocal, and have a repertoire of snarls, grunts, honks, and hisses. Both sexes hiss in alarm and honk when taking flight, but only males snarl and only females grunt.

Male Egyptian geese fight each other to protect their territory and their females. They are monogamous, so have one mate for life. Despite their territorial imperative, Egyptian geese are known to congregate in large flocks outside breeding season in areas with enough grazing. We have seen this spectacle along the Chobe river. At the waterholes there was usually one resident pair, suggesting that there was not enough food for more than one pair or that the pair were breeding.

“Life’s challenges are not supposed to paralyze you, they’re supposed to help you discover who you are.” ~ Bernice Johnson Reagon

Both sexes are aggressively territorial towards their own species when breeding. Egyptian Geese breed just once each year and lay up to eight eggs. The majority breed in the spring or at the end of the dry season. The breeding season can be anytime from July to March, depending on the area.

“It is not the strength of body that counts but the strength of spirit.” ~JRR Tolkien

When talking about birds fighting, we need to differentiate fighting among individuals of the same species from other aggressive interactions. The latter could include the hunting and killing of other birds as seen with many raptor species.

Direct physical combat between individuals of the same species is not common. Birds have ways to “fight” using ritualised signals and behaviours so that more often than not they can avoid a potentially costly physical fight.

On this particular morning, the early ritualised threats quickly gave way to full on physical fighting. The two males were using the chests to push their opponent around. When that was not enough they started to bite each other. They seldom use their webbed feet in a fight as a raptor would do. Rather they need their feet to find purchase on the ground so they push their opponent.

The fights can get aggressive with both males trying to bite the other on the neck and back. They also hit each other with their wings. Turtle and Laughing doves, and pigeons are often seen slapping each other with their wings in a violent display called “wing fighting”, especially around food.

“Better to fight for something than live for nothing.” ~ George S. Patton

Fighting can be a dangerous time for the combatants. They become so focussed on fighting each other and they are not aware of what is around them. Egyptian geese need to be on the look-out for leopards, lions, cheetahs, hyaenas, and crocodiles which will attack them given half a chance. Raptors such as Black sparrowhawks, African fish-eagles and Wahlberg’s eagles are known to feed on Egyptian geese.

The songs of birds, some of which are wonderful to listen to, are the ultimate signal (usually males to other male birds) of the singer’s territorial imperative, and any intrusions into it will be dealt with harshly. If one male is foolish enough to ignore the message of territoriality from the song of another and violates the space of the singer, then behaviours may quickly escalate. If the singing doesn’t do the trick, the next step may be the communication of aggression through a specific ritualised behaviour. If that does not deter the intruder then the behaviour is likely to get physical.

The waterhole’sresident male Egyptian goose, spurred on by his female, decided the intruder needed to be taught a lesson. So the fight went into the second round.

“You may have to fight a battle more than once to win it.” ~ Margaret Thatcher

If the songs and rituals aren’t enough to stop two aggressive individuals from challenging each other then, beak, claw and wings are needed. With Egyptian geese, the threat posture is shown by an extended neck and hissing. Threatened birds mostly avoided the opponent, with only one in forty encounters resulted in a physical fight.

“Success is not final, failure is not fatal: it is the courage to continue that counts.” ~ Winston Churchill

When it comes to winning bird feuds, researchers have determined that beaks and build are the best predictors of who wins the battle.

Egyptian geese mostly eat seeds, leaves, grasses and plant stems, which is why they remain close to waterholes or wetlands. Occasionally, they will eat locusts, worms, or other small invertebrates.

“Don’t fight a battle if you don’t gain anything by winning”. ~ The Art of War by Sun Tzu 

Egyptian geese moult annually, migrating to a safe wetland to shed their flight feathers. The moult period lasts about 3–4 weeks, during which time the geese are unable to fly. We have seen a huge flock of Egyptian geese unable to fly next to the Chobe river. When trying to get away from our boat, the flock effectively did butterfly strokes with their wings to propel themselves across the water.

Egyptian geese are beautiful birds but in South African urban areas they can be a pest and can be very noisy. Out in the bush they are not so common and given some quiet time at a waterhole you may be fortunate enough is see some fascinating behaviour from them.

“Life shrinks or expands in proportion to one’s courage.” ~ Anais Nin

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

The Malibala hide is half way between the Mshophi gate and the Matuma camp in the Mkuze Game Reserve in northern KwaZulu Natal.

Helen and I visited the hide every day for four days. The weather proved variable. It was surprisingly cold in late September, which is springtime. This can be a very hot part of the world in summer. It was overcast and raining intermittently. There was a cold easterly wind blowing for much of the time we were in the hide. To our very pleasant surprise all the hides we visited in Mkuze Game Reserve were in excellent condition. Well maintained and positioned for best views of the waterhole.

Whilst we did not see many different mammal species we saw plenty of birds despite the difficult weather conditions. I have no doubt that we would have seen many more bird species if it had been warm and sunny.

There were many young birds around in late September. We were fortunate enough to see Three banded plover chicks with their mother and Water Thick-knee chicks with both parents.

The Water Thick-knee is crepuscular and nocturnal. It is never far from water. It is a tall, dome-headed, plover-like bird with large, yellow eyes. It is mostly brownish in colour, and has a grayish wing panel that is bordered above with a narrow white bar. 

The greyish wing panel is clearly visible on the adults’ wings.

The colour of the chicks blended so well with the grass and even in the stoney area leading down to the water’s edge. The parent were very attentive.

After drinking at the waterhole in front of the Malibala hide a wildebeest bull started walking towards the Water Thick-knee family. Immediately the male Thick-knee spread his wings in a defensive posture. Despite the vast size difference the male Thick-knee stood his ground and the Wildebeest walked around the family with no incident.

The Water Thick-knee family were on the far side of the waterhole but thankfully a Three-banded plover and her two chicks were close to the hide on the left hand side. Just as well as this plover is very small. Needless to say her chicks were even smaller. When the wind blew strongly or it was getting too cold, the chicks would nestle under their mother’s wings and all you could see were numerous legs and feet under her body.

The chicks were minute. The Three-banded plover chicks are precocial. This means they are born with a downy covering, open eyes, and are able to move around and find food almost immediately. We have seen this behaviour among African Jacana chicks.

Precocial chicks need to be able to escape danger from the moment they hatch. They rely on their crypsis to evade predators by staying motionless on the ground. Crypsis is the ability of a creature to conceal itself especially from a predator by having a colour, pattern, and shape that allows it to blend into the surrounding environment.

In the four days we visited the Malibala hide we only saw a solitary White-backed vulture. It landed in the morning around 9h00 when the conditions were cold and windy and it was overcast. It was probably waiting for the air to warm up and thermals to develop. While waiting, it decided to have a drink of water.

This vulture drank water in a similar way to all other raptors. Raptor do generally not need to drink water often because they get most of their fluids from their prey. Most bird species drink by dipping their beak into the water, then tip their head backwards to swallow. Doves and pigeons are the only birds that use suction to draw water into their throats. Vultures also frequently bathe to keep their feathers clean.

There was a single Grey heron at the waterhole while we were watching. Grey herons tend to operate at the water’s edge unlike the Black -headed heron which hunts in the grass and reeds along side the water. Most birds stretch their wings to keep supple and get blood flow to their muscles in case they need to take flight suddenly.

The Grey heron can take on comical poses at times. It is always on the look out for aerial raptors which can swoop in and radically change the dynamics at the water’s edge.

On the few occasions that the sun emerged, the Grey heron shook its feathers and took in the ambient warmth.

We had a solitary “lightning bird” fly down to the water’s edge. The Hamerkop, also known as the Lightning Bird, is one of Africa’s most fascinating species and the subject of many traditional beliefs amongst the people of Africa. Some African cultures believe that if you tamper with its nest you will be struck by lightning. With no lightning around this Hammerkop just walked around the edge of the waterhole looking for something to eat.

The Hamerkop feeds predominantly on tadpoles and adult frogs, fish and some insects. It hunts by moving along the water’s edge and puddles of water in a dirt road stirring up mud with its feet to find edibles that are lurking in the shallow water.

As you can see from the images there are plenty of birds that frequent the water’s edge. In the next post I will show some of the smaller birds that we saw along the edge of the waterhole at the Malibala hide.

If you are prepared to take the time to slow down and wait for mother nature to reveal herself at her own pace you will be amazed at what you will see. The show is not preordained and does not happen at regular intervals but some time quietly invested can reveal wonders.

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

In late September last year, Helen and I visited Mkuze Game Reserve. After such good wildlife sightings at both Amakhosi Game Reserve and Rhino River Lodge in the Manyoni Game Reserve, which area in the same part of the world, we thought we would explore this part of the world a little more.

We stayed at Ghost Mountain Inn which is about 16 kilometres from the Mshophi Gate in the Mkuze Game Reserve. The road from the Inn to the gate would put off the ‘faint of heart’. We mistakenly thought that we would get warm weather with blue skies at that time of the year. We were completely wrong. The weather cold, overcast, rainy with strong easterly wind blowing for a good part of our visit.

After the initial rough drive to the Mshophi gate we were not sure what to expect. But once in the game reserve we were pleasantly surprised. The main roads were tarred and good condition. The gravel roads were also in good condition. We were really impressed with quality of the four hides we visited in the game reserve. They were well positioned and well maintained.

The first hide we visited was the Malibala hide. It was half way between the Mshophi gate and Matuma camp. Despite difficult conditions with initially freezing cold temperatures, strong easterly winds and rain, we had good sightings when the weather partially cleared on several occasions for a short period.

The “big five” can be seen in the Mkuze Game Reserve but we did not see them because of the weather. Though we did have some good sightings of Nyala, Wildebeest, Zebra, Giraffe and Warthog. Despite the tough weather conditions we had some interesting birds visit the waterhole.

Nyala families came down to drink at the waterhole regularly during the day even though it was overcast and cold in the morning with intermittent rain.

The interaction between the Nyala bulls was interesting. There was a clear hierarchy. The bulls circle each other, with heads lowered, backs arched with horns facing forward. They circle each other broad side in a lateral display, attempting to make themselves appear as big as possible. They fluff up their tails and the dorsal manes on their back. Perhaps because of the lack of other mammals, the Red-billed oxpeckers were paying all their attention to the Nyala bulls.

A family of Warthogs came down to drink at the waterhole. The waterhole was large around 50 metres in diameter.

All the herbivores approached the waterhole from the east and south west. This was probably because of the openness. The hide was on the north west side of the waterhole and there was quite thick vegetation on the north side which would have been ideal for predator ambushes. Small herds of Plains zebra came down to drink frequently during the day.

These Plains zebra only had very light shadow stripes on their flanks. Zebra often walk deep into the water to get the clean undisturbed water but not on this occasion.

A few Blue wildebeest came down to drink only once and did not return. The occasional single bull also came down to drink, temporarily leaving his territory.

The Red-billed oxpeckers remained close to the water and took advantage of any and all herbivores that came down to drink.

On the road driving away from the Malibala hide we saw a few Southern African giraffe, identified by their distinctive pelage pattern. It is dark brown rounded patches on a tawny background. The patches are mostly convex with irregular incisions and extend down the legs, getting smaller as they go. The darker the pelage usually the older the giraffe. Also the small hairy ossicones signify the young age of the giraffe. The mature males have no hair on the top of their ossicles as it gets rubbed off when fighting.

We also came across a troop of Chacma baboons with one of the large males high up in what looked like a Appleleaf tree. He looked to be on sentry duty but was taking advantage of the trees blooms.

We did not see buffalo, rhino or elephant, neither did we see lions or a leopard. In fact we drove all around the game reserve with no sightings of the “big five”. This was not an issue because the birdlife in the game reserve was prolific.

At the Matuma camp it was very quiet but the weather brought out the blooms of the Impala lily. In Southern Africa, this lily is known as a source of fish poison and arrow poison. The poison is prepared from latex in the bark and fleshy parts of the trunk, and is always used in combination with other poisons.

This post showed a few of the mammals we saw at and around the Malibala hide. In the next post I will show you some of the wonderful birdlife we saw despite the cold, rainy and strong windy conditions which usually keep the birds tucked away in the shelter of the trees.

We were very impressed with the condition of the hide. It was spacious and well maintained.

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

This is my first post in seven months after an extensive home renovation which was a complete and prolonged distraction.

Helen and I visited Marievale Bird Sanctuary in mid-September. This bird sanctuary is about 45 kilometres south of Johannesburg in the Highveld region of South Africa. Marievale Bird Sanctuary is a protected wetland area and a Ramsar site. It is about 15 km² in size, and constitutes the southern half of the Blesbokspruit wetland, which extends from near the town of Springs to the town of Nigel. The Blesbokspruit is a major perennial river in Gauteng and is flanked by extensive floodplains. Surrounding the Marievale sanctuary are the old mine dumps left over from an erstwhile thriving gold mining community.

The Blesbokspruit wetland is designated as an Important Bird Area with almost 300 bird species recorded, according to the Wildlife and Environment Society of South Africa (WESSA). Helen and I have been visiting Marievale for about 15 years. It is a wonderful place to practice bird photography skills and to see and learn about new birds and bird behaviour.

Mid-spring on the Highveld in South Africa was a time when the temperature started to warm up but it was very dry. The rains were only expected to start around mid-November and turned out to be late. The weather on this particular day was variable. It was cool in the early part of the morning with plenty of wind but it warmed up by late morning. It was partly cloudy dictating that the photographic light and colour was variable.

A view from the access road looking east across a dry pan in front of the Flamingo hide. This was the first time I had seen this pan bone dry.

From a hydrological perspective, wetlands have many functions. Although often viewed as waste lands they play a crucial role in mitigating the effects of both flood and drought conditions in a watershed. Wetlands act like a sponge and in so doing help store and release water relative to the amount of water in the surrounding area. They also filter and clean polluted water, recharge ground water, provide habitats for wildlife, and provide recreational value.

Natural water regimes dictated by rainfall and groundwater flow provide a pattern of wetting and drying which are the key to the health of rivers, wetlands and floodplains. High flows and floods connect rivers to floodplains and wetlands, moving nutrients around, allowing seeds to germinate and supporting breeding and movement of birds, frogs, fish and other animals. Low flows keep rivers flowing, allowing fish to migrate and breed. Dry periods where there are no flows can be important too and don’t necessarily indicate a wetland is not healthy. (Source: Wetlands and changes in water flows, Australian Department of Climate Change, Energy, Environment and Water Wetland publications).

On the South African highveld, late spring and early summer was a particularly dry period which reduced the water levels in the Marievale Bird Sanctuary to the lowest I have seen in the years I have been visiting this bird haven. The intriguing aspect of the water levels in the wetland waterways is the profound effect it has on which birds you are likely to see and photograph.

An African rail, skittish as usual, running away to hide in the reeds.

Prolonged low water flows have an important impact on wetlands such as reduced carbon absorption through loss of river bank vegetation; increased algal blooms; decreases in waterbird populations—when wetland habitats are lost or reduced and water is not available at the right time for breeding or feeding; increased pest fish species (such as carp) leading to loss of native species—when the patterns of flow favour introduced species over native species.

The unusually low water levels meant that the water’s edge was further from the hides so longer lenses were needed to capture the small birds.

On this particular visit we saw more African snipe than in all our previous visits combined. Usually when the water levels were higher we found African snipe foraging at the edge of the reeds because the water was too deep for them. On this occasion, the depth of the water was ideal for them given their short legs and long beaks.

This snipe’s plumage looks cryptic from above. Its upperparts, head and neck are streaked and patterned with bold dark brown stripes and gold edges to the feathers forming lines down its back. The belly is white, with some brown barring on the flanks. Its beak is dark brown, long (for the bird’s size), straight and fairly robust. The legs and feet are yellowish-olive to greenish-grey. The sexes have similarly coloured plumage.

It was very unusual to see these African snipe wading around in the open water areas. The image below on the right hand side shows several African snipe together in just small area. Usually, we only see an individual.

Ruffs are often the first Palearctic migrants to arrive at Marievale. These large sandpipers have their non-breeding plumage in the South African spring and summer months. They are plain-looking waders, with a longish neck and small head. Non-breeding birds are a pale fawn-brown all over, with a paler belly. These waders have a slightly de-curved beak and long yellow-orange legs.

Ruffs are usually found foraging either in shallow water or exposed mud flats. They feed mainly on insects but will also go for spiders, crustaceans, worms, small fish, frogs, and seeds.

Little stint stretching its wing. This diminutive wader forages for mainly small invertebrates such as midges, crustaceans and gastropods, like slugs and snails. This diminutive wader does most of its foraging in very shallow water or mud.

The low water levels suited the Lesser flamingos. Lesser flamingos have a much finer beak filter than Greater flamingos and are surface feeders that skim the top layer of water for nutrients like blue-green algae and diatoms. Lesser flamingos and Greater flamingos can feed in the same water sources without competing for food because they have different diets and feeding methods. By contrast, Greater flamingoes forage by sifting food from the lake bed of shallow water bodies consuming mainly crustaceans like shrimp, mollusks, and other invertebrates but will also feed on small organisms like plankton, tiny fish, and fly larvae.

Lesser flamingos have a carmine red beak and pink plumage whereas Greater flamingos have a pink beak with a black tip and its plumage is white with pink tinges. Its wing covers are pink and its primary and secondary wing feathers are black.

A group of Lesser flamingos walking through the shallows. It was cold so the front flamingo was puffed up and had pulled its neck in to keep warm.

A pair of Cape shovellers with their unique shaped bill.

Glossy ibises were the only species of ibis we saw at Marievale on this visit. Glossy ibises have a purple and green iridescent gloss on the feathers. In the breeding season, the head and neck have a reddish brown plumage. When non- breeding, the head and neck are a duller brown with white streaks and the plumage loses its iridescence and so is duller.

There were quite a few Pied avocets enjoying the relatively shallow water. Avocets use their long, up-curved beaks to feed by sweeping them from side to side in shallow water to stir up prey.

Avocets feed on aquatic insects, worms, crustaceans, and sometimes seeds. They are good swimmers and are able to dabble when the water is too deep for them to stand in. The food that this species feeds on is small so they have to forage for long periods to ingest sufficient nutrients.

There were several pairs of Red-billed teal swimming in the open channels of water feeding regularly. Red-billed teal are a type of dabbling duck. The species is the largest of all the teal family, and slightly smaller than a Yellow-billed duck. The Red-billed teal and Cape teal look quite similar but the Red-billed teal has a brown crown, forehead and nape where as the Cape teal has a pale, mottled gray head and neck, with distinctive pink rather than red bill. 

A Black crake walking across the muddy remains of an erstwhile channel in front of the Hadeda hide. The wetland birds looked quite scruffy due to all the mud. This member of the rail family usually has a vivid yellow beak and bright pink-red legs. As usual this Black crake was skittish and dashed for the reeds as soon is it saw us.

The only Marsh sandpiper we saw was also enjoying the relatively shallow water which enabled it to forage over a larger area. This is a relatively large sandpiper which feeds by probing in the shallows. The Marsh sandpiper is easily mistaken for a Greenshank but the former has longer legs, is more slender and has a longer neck and beak. The Marsh sandpiper is a Palearctic breeder so it migrates to Southern Africa in our summer season.

The ubiquitous Black-headed heron in the wet and marshy areas along side the water ways. This voracious hunter seeks rats, mice, frogs and insects in the undergrowth and grasses. It does not usually venture into the water or even hunt along the water’s edge like a Grey-headed heron.

A Cape wagtail walking in the shallow water in front of the Otter hide. This wagtail forages on tiny insects on the surface of the water and sand and mud on the water’s edge. The Cape wagtail has a grey head and back and a distinctive black “v” shaped collar. All wagtails forage for food while walking along the ground, bobbing its head and tail constantly.

A White-throated swallow perched on a falling log in front of Otter hide. We always see a pair at this hide because they have built their mud nest in the roof of the hide. The White-throated swallow has distinctly different markings to the Barn swallow in that its throat is white and it has a dark blue necklace.

A male Long-tailed widow bird with its non breeding plumage. Outside the breeding season, the males of this species lose their long black tail feathers and black body and wing plumage. These seedeaters are normally seen around many females but we saw very few females on this visit.

The iSimangaliso Wetland Park is the largest wetland area in South Africa but the largest and most unique wetland in southern Africa is the Okavango Delta. To better understand the dynamics of one the main rivers feed the delta, Dr Steve Boyes and his research team’s journeyed from the source of the Cuito river in the Angolan highlands to the Okavango Delta. En route they encountered a huge peatland which is a unique type of wetland which is estimated to be 1634 square kilometres in size in the Cuito river basin (Source: Jennifer M. Fitchett etal, Angolan highlands peatlands: Extent, age and growth dynamics). Through carbon dating the team revealed that for thousands of years this living landscape has been absorbing carbon dioxide. Peat layers are estimated to contain between 4 and 25 times more carbon than the trees. Healthy peatlands capture CO2 from the atmosphere through photosynthesis. Because the plants that grow on peatlands do not fully decompose under wet conditions, they do not release carbon which would otherwise be returned to the atmosphere as CO2. The peatland is also a massive sponge which regulates water flow of water from the Quito river into the delta.

The Marievale wetland is less than 1/100 th of the area of the Cuito peatland but plays an important role in the urban highveld environment and is a wonderful place for avian enthusiasts to enjoy a large variety of species up close.

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

This post shows a small selection of the piscivorous (fish eating) birds that you can see travelling up the Chobe River along Botswana’s northern border with Namibia. The Chobe River is perennial and flows past the main town Kasane on its way to join the mighty Zambezi River at Kazungula. The level of the Chobe river varies significantly according to the season with the highest water level usually seen in March to June period each year.

“In all things of nature there is something of the marvelous.” ~ Aristotle

Many piscivorous birds are nomadic moving according to the level of the water and abundance of food. I have seen African darters every time I have visited the Chobe river regardless of the level of water. The African darter is affectionately called the “snake bird” because of the way it swims through the water with just its head and long thin ‘snake-like’ neck above the water. The darter is a spear fisherman. It uses its large webbed feet feet to dive underwater before stabbing its targeted fish with its beak. It swims more slowly than a cormorant, but compensates by being more stealthy. The next image shows an adult darter throwing a Blackspotted squeaker up in the air to reorient it to be able to swallow it.

Unlike many other waterbirds, the feathers of the African darter do not contain any oil and are therefore not waterproof. This feature makes the bird less positively buoyant which enhances its diving ability. After diving for fish, the feathers become waterlogged reducing its ability to fly and maintain heat insulation. Its need to dry its feathers dictates that we regularly see the African darter sitting along the waterside wings spread, drying its feathers in the wind and the sun.

Reed cormorants share their watery habitat with African darters and I have never seen the two species fighting over territory. Both species are nomadic according the availability of food. Reed cormorants are diurnal and inhabit most freshwater rivers, where it is quiet, relatively shallow and well vegetated. This species mainly hunts fish but will feed on frogs, crustaceans and molluscs, when available. Reed cormorants can feed on fish up to 20 centimetres in length. In the next image, a Reed cormorant had caught a Blackspotted squeaker among the water lilies.

This species of cormorant feeds mainly on fish which it catches by diving under the water and chasing them. It is quick and lithe and can stay submerged for up to 40 seconds. To reduce its buoyancy, this species and African darters are known to swallow a few small stones or pebbles to increase its weight so it can dive faster. The larger fish caught are brought back to the surface to kill by biting them and suffocating them out of the water. Similar to many fish eating waterbirds, the Reed cormorant throws its catch into the air to reposition so it can swallow it head first. This manoeuver is needed to prevent the spines on the fish’s dorsal fin from getting caught in its throat while swallowing.

Faansie Peacock’s excellent app, Firefinch, notes that cormorants lack a preening gland, making them less waterproof and less buoyant, which enhances their underwater hunting capability, similar to African darters. This also explains why they spend much of their time out of the water with wings spread to dry.

“The soul never thinks without a picture.” ~ Aristotle

In a fascinating article on “Why do birds have different eye colours?” by Eamon Corbett, on the British Ornithologist’s Union (BOU’s) website, notes that cormorants are not the most colourful bird family – until you look at their eyes. When considering this incredible variation, the obvious question to ask is “why?” Explanations focus on a different levels of causation: from mechanistic, to genetic, to evolutionary. In bird feathers, the predominant pigments are melanins (black, brown, grey, rufous), and carotenoids (red, yellow, orange). Both are also present in bird eyes, but two other types of pigments – pteridines and purines – account for many brightly coloured bird eyes. Other contributing factors beyond pigments, include blood vessels, collagen fibres, cholesterol crystals, lipid droplets, and structural elements. What advantages do colourful eyes provide? One possibility is that they affect birds’ survival, through effects on their vision or camouflage. The idea that eye colour could influence visual acuity, perhaps by reducing glare, has yet to be tested. In many birds, signalling may play a greater role in the evolution of eye colour. This is a fascinating but still not well understood feature of birds.

The ability of a piscivorous bird to cope with light refraction at the air/water interface is intriguing, especially as light bends down when entering water from air. The capture rate of small stationary underwater prey by both egrets and herons is high from a variety of angles, implying a well honed ability to correct for refraction. Herons and egrets employ various methods to hunt fish. Some stand and wait for prey to come within striking distance, some walk very slowly towards their prey. Others use their feet, head, wings or full body in various ways to access particular prey opportunities. Herons and egrets usually catch their prey with a “beak stab”.

“Nearness to nature… keeps the spirit sensitive to impressions not commonly felt and in touch with the unseen powers.” ~ Charles Eastman

Head posture is an important component of egret and heron feeding behaviour. Egrets and herons hold their head in one of several ways, usually to make optimal use of its narrow binocular field of vision. It may extend its neck and tip its head so that its beak points straight down towards the prey. This ‘peering over’ head posture reduces glare and distortion. It also provides a binocular view of a potential prey item by looking down the tip of the beak rather than beneath it. When ‘neck swaying’, the neck and sometimes the body is moved from side to side, the head tending to be almost stationary. Neck swaying while feeding may be a method of enticing small movements of prey, while the bird’s head remains ready to strike.

The four species of kingfisher found along the Chobe river are piscivores (fish-eaters), the Malachite, Pied, Half-collared and Giant. The Striped, Woodlands, Brown-hooded and Pygmy kingfishers eat invertebrates such as insects, lizards, frogs and even small snakes and scorpions. The Malachite kingfisher is the second smallest kingfisher in southern Africa after the Pygmy kingfisher. The Malachite is like a brightly collared jewel which is normally seen perched on a reed or stem of grass. The Malachite, Pied and Giant kingfishers are residents but can be nomadic if water conditions change. These are diurnal fishermen relying on sight to find prey. The Giant and Pied kingfishers are dimorphic, meaning that the male and female have different plumage colouring, while both sexes of the Malachite have the same coloured and patterned plumage.

Several piscivorous raptors can be seen when travelling along the Chobe river. These are the African fish eagle which is resident and territorial. Migratory piscivorous raptors include the Yellow-billed and Black kite and I am told that there are Ospreys along the Chobe river, but have never seen one. Fish eagles hunt from a perch high in a large tree overlooking the river and also from a sandbank which gives an elevated view of the adjacent water.

“Nature is not a place to visit, it is home.” ~ Gary Snyder

I am always intrigued by how African fish eagles can see fish below the water’s surface. In Timoty Cornwell’s Blog, ‘quailandaardvark.workpress.com’, he explains several of the unique features of birds in general and raptors eyes in particular. The adaptations that make avian eyes so remarkable are more impressive when you understand how they are are different from the human eye. There is a small depression in the retina called the fovea which is more densely packed with colour detecting cone cells than other parts of the retina. This is where most of our sharply focused highly detailed vision occurs. Raptors have a second fovea which makes for a larger field of sharp focus. Avian eyes have evolved a structure called the pecten which resides in the vitreous humour (inner eye fluid) of the eye and bathes the tissues in nutrients allowing for fewer blood vessels across the surface of the retina resulting in higher visual resolution. Birds also have far more photoreceptor cells than other animals. The sclerotic ring is a series of small bone plates encircling the eyes of birds and reptiles. This ring provides protection and support for the large eyes most birds have and creates additional anchors for muscles that help with focusing and blinking. Raptors have lenses which can see extremely far and use unique Crampton’s muscles to apply pressure to reshape the cornea and aid in close up vision. These muscles allow them to have a much deeper field of sharp focus than we do.

How do birds of prey see fish in the water? They use all of aforementioned adaptive advantages to hunt for distant prey but birds hunting for fish have one other behaviour that is important when catching prey that is underwater and it is to attack from a steeper angle than they would when hunting prey on land. This is vitally important because it cuts down on the refraction caused by the water and means the fish they see are closer than where they appear to be. The Pied kingfisher is a master hoverer and uses this steep angle of attack to dive for its underwater prey.

“Fresh air is good for the mind as for the body. Nature always seems to be trying to talk to us as if she had some great secret to tell. And so she has.” John Lubbock

Like many birds, kingfishers have two foveae in their eyes. Kingfishers are able to switch from the main central fovea to the auxiliary fovea as they enter the water, so they can maintain visual acuity, or sharpness of vision. The kingfisher has monocular vision in the air and binocular vision underwater, which helps it overcome the challenges of the change in refraction between air and water.

After a successful catch the kingfisher emerges beak first and flies back to its perch. It will then wriggle the fish about until it is held by its tail, before bashing it against the perch several times to kill it. This makes the fish easier to swallow and relaxes the fish’s dorsal fin spines to stop it become trapped in the kingfisher’s throat. Several times a day kingfishers will regurgitate small pellets of fish bones and other indigestible remains.

Once I have taken a photograph of a wild animal or bird and begin to edit the image I get to see the subject close up which, more often than not, pricks my curiosity as to why it’s beak or wing is structured in a particular way, what role does the colour of the eye play and so on. Birds have some remarkable adapted features. Increasingly scientist and engineers are using nature’s best ideas and imitating natural designs and processes to solve human problems in a discipline called biomimicry. One example pertaining to kingfishers is in the aerodynamics of the nose of bullet trains.

“Biomimicry is the conscious emulation of life’s genius.” ~ Janine Benyus

In the 1990s, train engineers in Japan built bullet trains able to travel over 300 kilometres per hour. They used the shape of a bullet to make the nose of the train more aerodynamically efficient. The problem was that when the train exited a tunnel, the air in front of their bullet-shaped nose expanded rapidly, creating a loud “tunnel boom.” Looking for a solution, engineers began studying why kingfishers diving into the water at high speed did so with almost no splash. Analysis revealed the linear flow of water past a kingfisher’s beak which reduced the splash when entering the water at speed. The nose cone of the bullet train was changed to the shape of a kingfisher’s beak and the train moved through the tunnel at high speed without a boom and was 10% to 15% more energy efficient.

When Albert Einstein was five, his father gave him a compass. He noticed that the needle always pointed north. This was his first encounter with the idea that something invisible underlies our reality. This is the sense I get when I look more closely at my wildlife photographs. The closer I look at them the more my curiosity is pricked. The more I look, the more curious I become, the more I see and the better I understand.

“If you look at nature carefully, and really pay attention and you are lucky, you will catch a glimpse of something deeply hidden.” ~ Albert Einstein

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

About ten to eleven kilometres up river from Kasane on Botswana’s northern border with Namibia flows the Chobe River on its way from Angola to meet the Zambezi at Kazungula. A favourite place to watch wildlife come down to drink water along the river is the Kalwisi Nkanga viewpoint which we fondly referred to as Elephant Valley. This is a place where you are likely to see family herds of elephants streaming down the shallow valley to the Chobe River water’s edge.

“I appreciate these moments where I can get away from life and focus on living” ~ TJ Thorne

The impala seemed to feel safer when one or two family herds of elephant were drinking at the water’s edge. If too many elephants come down to drink they are too disruptive and scare the impala away.

Along the river from Chobe Game lodge to Puku Flats there is a ridge with a steep bank down to the river. Elephant valley has a corridor which cuts through that ridge and opens up to a wide sand beach front. This is an ideal place for wildlife to come down to drink.

“In the presence of elephants, one cannot help but feel awe and wonder, a reminder of the beauty of creation.” ~ Lawrence Anthony

On the Chobe River, we photograph wildlife from CNP Safari’s specialised photographic boat. It is a boat with a shallow draft for access to shallow areas and is fitted with specialised rotating seats that have attached gimbal-fitted camera supports. This boat allows us to get close without disturbing the wildlife. It also means that we get to view the wildlife at eye level which is ideal. In general, wildlife seems more relaxed with boats than road vehicles. The exception is with hippos which readily show their displeasure if the boat get too close to their pod.

Elephant Valley attracts a variety of wildlife from herds of elephant to pods of hippos and many species of antelope including Sable antelope, Kudu and impala. Giraffe, buffalo, and antelope like Lechwe and Puku prefer the open flat grass lands on the river’s flood plain. The antelope are very wary when coming down into Elephant Valley to drink because there are ideal ambush positions on either side of the entrance and corridor, provided by large bushes. I have never seen lions or leopards at Elephant valley but this may be because of the time we arrive in the morning and leave in late afternoon. These predators probably come down to drink and hunt at night.

The youngsters are always kept in the middle of the herd for protection.

The red dust on their backs mixed with the white chalk from the cliff behind them and with their dark colour, once these elephants get wet, provides some wonderful shapes and colours to photograph.

“It is my intention to present -through the medium of photography- intuitive observations of the natural world which may have meaning to the spectators “ ~ Ansel Adams

We often see troops of Chacma baboons on the beach at Elephant valley. They drink from the river but also forage through the elephant dung for seeds and berries. There is a white cliff on the left-hand side of Elephant Valley when looking from the water towards the land. The young baboons love play fighting on this steep cliff.

The white chalk-like soil attract elephants and antelope alike who seek the minerals provided by this soil and so doing exhibit behaviour called geophagy. Elephants engage in a form of geophagy to acquire essential minerals. These large mammals rely on the minerals from the soil as much as they depend on vegetation. The elephants actively dig into the white cliff with their tusks to break off smaller pieces. Soil analysis would probably reveal that these areas comprise significantly higher quantities of vital minerals, including sodium, potassium, calcium, magnesium, phosphorus, manganese, and clay, compared to other soils in the area. The knowledge of these mineral rich locations is passed down through the generations and each “lick” is visited by many elephant herds. We have also regularly seen kudu and impala licking the lower section of the white cliff.

In the process of digging for minerals, the elephants have also dug holes at the base of the white cliff big enough for an adult elephant or two to three hippo. Inevitably, elephant and hippos cover themselves in white dust and mud which can provide interesting photographic opportunities.

“The more time you spend quietly watching wildlife, the more become aware of the subtle dynamics and influences that dictate mammals’ and birds’ behaviour. Understanding behaviour is fundamental to anticipation. Preparation and anticipation together create potential for unique wildlife images.” ~ Mike Haworth

When antelope such as Sable come down to drink, they prefer not to drink directly from the river because of the threat from crocodiles, but rather from small pools a metre or so from the water’s edge. The small pools are created by elephants’ footprints which are replenished by the lapping waves from the passing boats.

“Where your passion meets your talent, that’s the place you want to be.” ~ Roie Galitz

Nile crocodiles of all sizes lie in wait for unsuspecting prey coming down to drink at Elephant Valley. These reptiles reveal fascinating hunting behaviour. Small crocodiles lie in wait submerged at the water’s edge ready to launch themselves at guineafowl and doves which come down to drink. The larger crocodiles watch the water’s edge from a few metres out with only their eyes and nostrils above water. As soon as they see potential prey they submerge and move closer to the bank in an attempt to ambush prey like baboons and smaller antelope such as impala.

The light changes significantly at Elephant Valley because it is north facing. So early in the morning the white cliff is in shadow and the western side is illuminated with sunshine from the eastern morning sun. In the afternoon the white cliff is illuminated. This is the time when we photograph young baboons playing on the white cliff and white fronted bee-eaters nesting in the higher section.

Elephant Valley attracts a variety of birds. Helmeted guineafowl come down to drink in flocks. The whole flock does not drink at the same time but small groups drink from the river while one member of the group stands guard keeping an eye on the surrounds for any threat. This would be an ideal place for a Martial eagle to attack the flock, but I have never seen this at Elephant Valley.

We have seen Gabar goshawks hunting smaller birds foraging for seeds amongst the elephant dung. We have seen Red-billed spurfowl coming down to drink but usually only one or a pair at a time. Little egrets are often seen hunting along the water’s edge.

The elephant dung attracts insects, so we see wagtails, lapwings and plovers foraging at the water’s edge and amongst the dung. A variety of sandpipers, Pied wagtails and diminutive White-fronted plovers patrol the water’s edge for insects. Blacksmith and White-crowned lapwings forage through the dried elephant dung across the beach for insects.

“You learn to see by practice. It’s just like playing tennis, you get better the more you play. The more you look around at things, the more you see. The more you photograph, the more you realise what can be photographed and what can’t be photographed. You just have to keep doing it “ ~ Eliot Porter

An adult Wattled lapwing stretching its wings as it forages along the water’s edge for insects and molluscs. The Wattled and White crowned lapwings both have vivid yellow facial wattles. The Wattled lapwing also has a white forehead but no white crown and the base of its forehead has exposed red skin just above the beak. This lapwing is a light brown in colour and has a white neck with fine brown streaks.

A pair of Fish eagles are resident at Elephant valley. We usually see at least one Fish eagle watching the activity in Elephant Valley from the large trees at the top of the ridge. The Chobe river has many pairs of Fish eagles territorially spaced along the river from Kasane to Serondela.

As the name suggests, Elephant Valley is a perfect place to watch elephants drinking and swimming.

It was remarkable to see a family herd wait patiently for one and other to finish drinking. Their behaviour is orderly and respectful of each other. This says alot about the sentience of elephants and the respect they have for each others’ young which could get injured by the much larger adults and teenagers if there was too much jostling at the water’s edge.

On our last morning we went down to Elephant Valley which was quiet, so we travelled further up river towards Puku Flats. The ridge through which Elephant Valley cuts progressively flattens towards Puku Flats. We were privileged to see several family herds drinking together. The larger elephants walk deeper to access cleaner water. It was an impressive and serene sight. Once they had sated their thirst they all walked back over the ridge to continue foraging inland. We watched this scene for a magical fifteen minutes..

We traverse the Chobe river from the rapids next to Impalila Island which are about two kilometres down river from Kasane to Serondela which is about 20 kilometres up river. We do not go further than Serondela because of the time and fuel it takes to get there and back. It is not so much the distance but more that there is so much to see and photograph from wildlife to the scenery on the way .

“Travel is the best investment you can make in yourself. It teaches you that there are many ways to live a good, fulfilled life. It broadens your world’s view, yet makes you appreciate home all the more” ~ Joel Sartore

The level of the water in the Chobe river changes according to the time of the year. It is usually at peak flow in May-June and at its lowest around November. The changing level of the river means completely different areas are accessible by boat. When the river is in full flood we can cross Sedudu island by boat and see bird activity which do we would not see in summer. When the river is high we can get closer to the ridge on the southern bank which increases the potential for predator sightings. When the river level falls, islands reappear and with them new birds appear such as the endangered African Skimmers. I have been on the Chobe river many times and every time has been different.

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

Helen and I travelled to Chobe River with CNP Safaris in March this year. That time of the year is fondly called ”the Jacana season” because African Jacanas were normally in the midst of their breeding season. This was the time when wildlife photographers would be able to see and photograph Jacana chicks with their fathers and all the fascinating behaviour that entailed.

“The river has great wisdom and whispers its secrets to the hearts of men.” ~ Mark Twain

During this trip, the Chobe River levels were considerably lower than average. Measurements of the water level of the Zambezi River at Katima Mulilo (which usually pushes water into the Chobe) were approximately four metres lower than last year. While of concern, there was some relief for the Chobe Riverfront from late rains in the latter part of May.

The level of water in the Chobe river has a distinct effect on the breeding behaviour of the African Jacanas. We saw very few adult Jacanas and even fewer chicks. A favourite place to see and photograph Jacanas, and many other species of water birds, is “Jacana alley”, a small inlet west of the Jackalberry trio (three large Jackalberry trees growing on the sandbank at the very northern edge of Sedudu Island).

We did not find any chicks in the usual places in “Jacana alley”. It looked as if the breeding had not begun in earnest delayed by the low water levels. African jacanas are not migratory, but are nomadic, driven along the river by the changing water levels.

Interestingly, there was not the usual plethora of water lilies in the inlets where we usually found the Jacanas. Water lily plant growth is known to be distinctly seasonal with plants at all water levels producing more and larger leaves and more flowers in the warmer months. Plants in deeper water have significantly greater biomass allocated to leaves and roots, while plants in shallow water around 30 cm deep have significantly greater biomass allocated to their rhizomes.

“Rivers flow not past, but through us; tingling, vibrating, exciting every cell and fiber in our bodies, making them sing and glide.“ ~ John Muir

This water lily was surrounded by what I think were water chestnut plants but I cannot find any definitive descriptive articles on it. This trip revealed a relative dearth of water lilies and a plethora of water chestnut plants with their serrated triangular leaves green above and red below.

Finding African jacana nests is difficult because they are usually, along the Chobe River, made of loosely knitted water lily stems to form a platform for the eggs and the platform is well camouflaged. One of the unusual places we found African jacanas was in the western channel past Sedudu Island close to the Chobe Water Villas on the Namibian side of the Chobe river. This was unexpected because of the high density of boat traffic along this channel. There were more lily pads probably because level of the water was much deeper in the western channel than in the “Jacana alley” inlet.

We did not get to see the polyandrous behaviour of African Jacanas. In behavioural ecology, polyandry is a mating system where one female mates with several males in a breeding season. The male must compete for the female’s attentions which he does mainly with his nest-building skills. The male mates with only one female and then takes on sole responsibility for raising the chicks. He builds the nest and incubates the eggs with no help from the female. The male is also responsible for the parental care of the chicks for around three weeks after hatching.

Well-known ornithologist, Warwick Tarboton wrote in the Ostrich, Journal of African Ornithology Volume 66, 1995 – Issue 2-3 that in the flood year, the African jacana’s breeding season was 30% longer than in the drought year, more birds bred (27–29 vs 8), more clutches were laid (39 vs 16) and hatching success was much greater (36% vs 0%). In the flood year all breeding females (n = 7) had polyandrous matings (with between 2–7 males) whereas in the drought year only two of five breeding females were polyandrous. In a drought year, opportunities for females to mate polyandrously were minimal because of the rapid rate of clutch loss and the aggressive behaviour of dominant males which prevented access of lower ranked males to breeding females.

Although we found fewer African Jacanas, we saw large flocks of Collared pratincoles. These summer migrants feed mainly in flight, catching prey aerially like swallows sweeping back and forth. The Collared pratincoles do most of its foraging in the evening or on moonlight nights. During the day they catch invertebrates on the ground such as grasshoppers, dragonflies, spiders and small molluscs. Collared pratincoles put wonderful murmuration displays which are mesmerising.

Although we saw very few African jacanas in “Jacana alley” we saw many other birds in the reeds around the inlet. We always see Malachite kingfishers hunting from the overhanging reeds. These minute fishermen look like colourful gems gleaming in the sunlight.

A Tawny flanked prinia building its nest on reeds overhanging “Jacana alley” waters. It was building a typical prinia-type pear shaped ball nest with its entrance on the one side near the top. The nest was finely knitted from lengths of grass and reed leaf strips.

“Rivers have what man most respects and longs for in his own life and thought-a capacity for renewal and replenishment, continual energy, creativity, cleansing.” ~ John M. Kauffmann

We saw many Squacco herons which were very busy in the reeds along the river’s channels. They feed in one section for a period and move frequently so as to not over work a particular area.

Squacco herons feed mainly on fish, frogs and insects which are in abundance among the reeds and grasses growing in the water.

Although, we saw many Squacco herons, we never saw any fighting like you could see when Great White egrets and other herons when they get too close to each other. Squaccos appeared to hunt in well spaced sections of the reed and grass beds.

Purple herons are secretive, spending less time out in the open than the Grey heron and tend to skulk in reed beds. Their long toes enable them to walk on floating vegetation and bushes, while not making any attempt to grip the branches. Purple herons always nest over water usually deep inside reed beds. The nest is a platform of reeds or rushes in the reedbed or papyrus, and sometimes in a tree lined with reed leaves and small water plants. Differences in habitat preference reduce competition with the reed-bed dwelling Purple heron, the dryland feeding Black-headed heron and the water’s-edge feeding Grey heron.

The Chobe River in northeast Botswana is part of the vast and interconnected Okavango-Kwando-Zambezi catchment system covering approximately 693,000 square kilometres, with its headwaters in the highlands of Angola. This region has highly variable seasonal rainfall with nearly all the annual rainfall, averaging 604 mm, occurring during the summer wet season (December–April), and minimal precipitation during the dry season (May–November).

“Life is like a river, it is always flowing, it can flow slowly or it can flow quickly, it can change course but nothing can stop the river from flowing. The same happens with life, there are no external circumstances that can stop it from flowing. One thing is sure: Life always goes on.” ~ Vasanth Pai

The Chobe River flows into the Zambezi river at the Kazungula quadripoint (where the borders of four countries meet: Botswana, Namibia, Zambia, and Zimbabwe). The combined flow cascades over the Victoria Falls about 80 kilometres down river from the Chobe-Zambezi confluence. To underline the seasonality, the peak flow over the iconic Victoria Falls is experienced between March and May. Thereafter its flow progressively drops until November when the cycle starts again. Interestingly, daily flow hydrographs, where measurements were taken at Victoria Falls, show peak flow over the Falls has been getting progressively earlier shifting from late April in 1990s to early and mid-March in recent years and the flow rate peaks have declined from over 6000 m3/sec in 1978 to just above 4000 m3/sec recently and 3600 m3/sec in 2021. The highest ever recorded flow rate over Victoria Falls was in March 1958 at 10 000 m3/sec which must have been spectacular, and somewhat frightening. Compare this to the Congo river which has an average discharge or flow rate of around 41 000 m³/sec with a peak of 73 000 m³/sec during the exceptional flood in 1962.

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

The weather was variable in the week we visited Kruger at the end of February this year. It was overcast and raining for periods on most days and very windy on some days. Both mammals and birds do not like the windy conditions because it disrupts the hearing and smelling senses making them more vulnerable to predators.

“Wherever you go, no matter what the weather, always bring your own sunshine.” ~ Anthony J. D’Angelo

The vegetation was very thick in mid-summer making mammal sightings more difficult. The area from the Numbi gate to Skukuza had very thick bush. This meant that sightings of mammals was restricted, in large part, to the sides of the roads.

“It is a wholesome and necessary thing for us to turn again to the earth and in the contemplation of her beauties to know the sense of wonder and humility. ” ~ Rachel Carson

There was good grazing on the sides of the roads which attracted Burchell’s zebra. The southern Burchell’s Zebra has a distinctive shadow brown stripe in the white stripe, a characteristic which diminishes the further north they occur.

Zebras have a dark circular patch on the inner forelegs which is designed to accommodate the sharp end of the hoof when lying down. The white fur represents an absence of melanin; white is not its own pigment. Since white stripes only exist because pigment is denied, black is understood to be the “default” colour of a zebra.

One of the most productive drives during our week in Kruger was along the H3 from Skukuza to Malelane. The bush was more open so the mammals were more visible. Near Renoster Pan we saw a large bull elephant walking towards the road. As soon as he saw the cars on the road he walked parallel to the road until he found a quieter place to cross. He was clearly avoiding unnecessary conflict with humans.

“The human race is challenged more than ever before to demonstrate our mastery, not over nature but of ourselves.” ~ Rachel Carson

Further down the H1 towards Malelane we found a large herd of buffalo spread out either side of the road. The buffalo were grazing and wandering through the mopani bush making it difficult to photograph them as a herd so I picked out one of the larger bulls at the back of the herd. You can see how smooth the top of his boss was indicating he had done his fair share of head butting and fighting over the years.

We travelled down to the Berg-en-dal camp to have a look around. I was surprised to see the dam in front of the camp was empty which meant there was no game close to the camp. There were a few Vervet monkeys hanging around probably waiting to try and steal food from visitors sitting having a meal on the camp’s restaurant deck.

After a brief look around Berg-en-dal camp, which looked in need of maintenance, we decided to drive on the Matjulu loop which took us through the mountainous south western section of the park. We found quite a lot of mammal and bird life on this loop. Close to the road we found three adult giraffes sitting in the grass chewing their cud. Giraffes actually have four stomachs, similar to cows so have to regurgitate the grass and leaves and rechew them. Giraffes occasionally sit or lie down, but not for long. They fold their legs under their bodies when sitting down, but they maintain their necks lifted high. They are very vulnerable to predators when sitting down.

Further along the Matjulu loop we found a pride of lions lying next to the waterhole where they had killed a buffalo. This lioness had a dirty face after feeding on the several day old carcass.

“Nature has introduced great variety into the landscape, but man has displayed a passion for simplifying it. Thus he undoes the built-in checks and balances by which nature holds the species within bounds.” ~ Rachel Carson

The pride at the Matjulu waterhole was large with two fully grown males and a large young male with a mohican style mane. According to the informative Londolozi Blog, humans have around 10,000 taste buds on average, while most carnivores have far fewer, being around 470. Carnivores are responsive to bitter flavours but cannot taste sweetness. Bitterness enables carnivores to distinguish between meat that is spoiled and meat that is still safe to eat. Their digestive system is far better at processing meats and can tolerate bacteria that would cause immediate and severe stomach issues in humans.

The males had already fed well from the carcass leaving the lionesses to pick over the remains. The carcass stunk to “high heaven” so we positioned ourselves upwind to be able to spend some time watching the lions interacting. The smell was strong enough to make us nauseous. It was still early and cool enough for them to be out in the open.

The next day we visited Lake Panic which is close to Skukuza camp. There is a bird hide at the south-west end of Lake Panic. There are several fallen dead tree trunks in the section of the lake in front of the hide. A few Serrated hinged terrapins climbed onto the fallen tree trunk to warm up. This species is the largest hinged terrapin. To protect themselves Serrated Hinged Terrapins secrete a very foul smelling odour when threatened. This did not seem to worry an African darter that pecked at one terrapin’s legs to get it off the fallen tree trunk.

As has often been the case, on the second last day in Kruger the sun came out. We stopped at Shitlhave dam for a cup of early morning coffee. The resident pod of hippo which had been very docile when the weather was overcast were now more playful in the sun. Two young hippos were sparring and testing each other’s strength.

Hippo bulls are territorial in water but not at night on land. Bulls defend territories for mating rights not food. Play fighting among young hippos can be fun to water and photographically productive. When a bull hippo is threatening others, the display is much more obvious with yawning, water scooping and head shaking combined with rearing and lunging.

“We don’t stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.” ~ George Bernard Shaw

Our mammal sighting were limited by the cool, rainy and windy weather. A long time ago, I learnt that the weather can be a photographer’s friend. Overcast skies filter the harsh sunlight. Rain-filled cloud formations can provide wonderful backgrounds. Often the cooler weather allows predators to be more active later in the morning. I would never stay indoors in a game reserve because of overcast rainy weather.

“You will enrich your life immeasurably if you approach it with a sense of wonder and discovery, and always challenge yourself to try new things.” ~ Nate Berkus

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike

We visited Kruger National Park in February this year. Our focus was in the southern western section of Kruger including Pretoriuskop, Berg-en-dal and Skukuza camps. That time was late summer in southern Africa and the migrant birds were enjoying the warmth and abundance of food that summer conditions brought.

Kruger Parks’ slogan – Custos Naturae which means Guardian of Nature

Our base was Pinelake Resort next to Lake Longmere just outside White River and we travelled into Kruger through the Numbi gate. After looking around Pretoriuskop camp we drove to Shitlhave dam. The area around the dam is open grassland which attracts rollers and a variety of avian insect and seed eaters. There are normally a selection of waders, ducks and storks which remain around the dam.

“Nothing but breathing the air of Africa, and actually walking through it, can communicate the indescribable sensations.” ~ William Burchell

One of the more colourful migrants see at the dam was the European roller. This is the only member of the roller family which breeds in Europe. This species is usually seen perched on top of a prominent bush or tree. It prefers woodlands, bushveld and grasslands, and avoids open dry areas in the west of southern Africa. Its food comprises of insects, small mammals, reptiles and frogs.

While sitting quietly with a cup of coffee and a rusk watching all the avian activity around the dam, this Marsh sandpiper strolled along the edge of the water in front of us. It was foraging in the grass for edibles.

While gazing over the Shitlhave dam we suddenly heard the cackle from Hammerkops. To our left on a rock next to the water edge were a pair Hammerkops mating. Both male and female birds have a specialised opening at the base of their tail feathers known as an avian vent, or cloaca. This opening connects to a chamber where the sex organs lie – testes in males, ovaries in females. The act of passing sperm from male to female is known as the “cloacal kiss”. The males does not have a penis. The male and female press their cloaca’s together for a few seconds to transfer sperm to the female.

An adult Southern Carmine bee-eater perched on a dead branch in the heat of the morning facing Transport dam. This species is an intra-African migrant visiting in summer from Equatorial Africa. In summer, we have always found Southern Carmines in this area. There is a plethora of flying insects from bees to wasps and dragonflies. Carmines hawk from a prominent perch and usually return to the perch with their prey which they proceed to beat to death against the perch.

“My wish is to stay always like this, living quietly in a corner of nature”. ~ Claude Monet

The lighter, faded coloured Southern Carmines are fledged juveniles. The juveniles were accomplished hawkers.

A Grey heron drying it wings after a early morning cloud burst. It was facing east directly into the morning sun. The weather was warm so it would have dried its wing feathers quite quickly.

“It’s not what you look at that matters, it’s what you see.” ~ Henry David Thoreau

A Rattling cisticola – although it was difficult to see the red panel on its primary wing feathers and pale tip on its tail feathers. Its rufous cap was evident. This is a common species in open savanna and scrubland habitats and likes to sing on open perches.

A Common sandpiper walking on a fallen log in front of the hide at Lake Panic near the Skukuza camp. This species has green-brown upper parts and a white throat which has light brown streaks. Its belly and undertail coverts are white. It has a short straight grey beak and green-yellow legs. Common sandpipers have white wing bars and white tips on the secondaries and inner primaries. They have a conspicuous white eyering and a dark eye stripe. A key diagnostic feature is the white section above its shoulder.

A pair of Malachite kingfishers were very busy fishing from the reeds in front of the hide at Lake Panic. This is the smallest fish eating kingfisher. The smallest kingfisher in southern Africa is the Pygmy kingfisher but it is insectivorous.

“Light is a thing that cannot be reproduced, but must be represented by something else – by color.” ~ Paul Cezanne

A Grey heron standing on the back of a hippo bull which was sleeping with his head in the shade in the pool in front of the hide at Lake Panic. The bull hippo seemed completely unfazed by the heron walking around on his back. The hippo gave the heron access deeper into the pond to hunt fish and frogs.

A pair of Pied kingfishers were successfully hunting from higher perches in front of the hide at Lake Panic. This species also beat their prey against their perch to kill it and then throw their prey up in the air to rearrange its position so it can be swallowed head first. This prevents the dorsal fin of the fish getting caught in its throat.

Tucked away inside the bush overhanging the pond in front of the hide at Lake Panic was a nest with two newly hatched Green-backed herons. We watched the Grey heron get closer and closer to the nest but nothing happened. The outcome could have be very different if it had been a Black-headed heron.

“Nature is ever at work building and pulling down, creating and destroying, keeping everything whirling and flowing, allowing no rest but in rhythmical motion, chasing everything in endless song out of one beautiful form into another.” ~ John Muir

There was a colony of Lesser masked weavers nesting in the large tree overhanging the pool in front of the hide at Lake Panic. The Lesser masked weaver has a black mask that extends halfway up the front of its crown and its eyes are whitish. All the bird activity caught the attention of Diederick’s cuckoos, Gabar Goshawks and Little sparrowhawks.

The next day we decided to travel down to Berg-en-dal camp from Pretoriuskop. We started down Voortrekker road but found it too rough and corrugated so we took the longer route on a tarred road using the HI-1 road and turned right onto the H3 tarred road. A few kilometres south of the Afsaal picnic site we found a family of Southern Ground hornbills foraging through the grass and over a rock outcrop next to a dry riverbed.

The Southern Ground hornbill is the size of a turkey, and is the largest species of hornbill. The species is immediately recognizable by its jet-black feathers, yellow eyes, and bright red throat and wide red eye ring. The male and female mostly look the same but the female has a purple-blue patch of skin on its throat. The male’s throat is uniformly red.

A Red-billed oxpecker preening itself while sitting on the back of an impala ewe. This species has dark brown upper parts and beige under parts. It has a red eye with a yellow eye ring and a vivid red beak. Oxpeckers have stiff tails feathers and sharp claws to be able to balance and hang on to their moving host. Red-billed Oxpeckers feed on ticks and clean up wounds in the tissue of the host’s hide.

The following day we drove along the Waterhole road between the H1-1 and S1 tarred roads. This is usually a productive drive from both a mammal and avian sighting perspective. We found a muddy Burchell’s Coucal skulking in the bushes along the gravel road. This species’ under parts are usually a light beige in colour. The barred upper tail coverts are a distinguishing feature. Coucals are a members of the cuckoo family but do not engage in parasitic breeding behaviour.

A Bronze mannikin looking after its hungry chicks. The adult Bronze mannikin has a grey beak and black-dark brown head. Its underparts are white and it has brown barring on its sides. Immature birds are a more plain buffy brown, with dark grey-brown upper parts and a black beak.

“This world is but a canvas for our imagination.” ~ Henry David Thoreau

A Jameson’s firefinch identified by its red plumage with a brown back and upper wing coverts, and blue-grey beak. This little finch was close to the Bronze mannikins in a bush along side a rivulet with water.

A Red-backed shrike. This is a beautiful small shrike. The male has a distinctive blue-grey head, black eye band and white underparts and fine scalloping on its breast. Its back is a rusty-red. It prefers thorny bushes which it uses as a larder to impale its prey on the thorns. This species is a Paleartic breeder and migrates to southern Africa during our summers.

A female Giant kingfisher perched on a fallen tree trunk in the pool in front of the hide at Lake Panic. The sexes can be distinguished by the position of their chestnut frontal plumage. The male has a chestnut breast band while the female a has a chestnut belly and undertail coverts. This is the largest kingfisher in Southern Africa and feeds on fish, frogs, insects and crabs.

A Woodland kingfisher with its bright red maxilla and black mandible. It has a white head, neck and underparts. Its shoulders are black and the back and flight feathers are a vivid cyan-blue colour. This kingfisher has a beautiful trilling call which is only heard in summer as it is an inter African migrant. It moves north during the winter months in southern Africa.

An interesting interaction between a large terrapin and an African darter on a fallen tree trunk in front of the hide at Lake Panic. The terrapin was quietly sunning itself and minding its own business when this darter flew in and landed on the fallen tree trunk. The darter waddled over to the terrapin and started to peck at its legs.

“Wealth is the ability to fully experience life”. ~ Henry David Thoreau

This large Serrated hinged terrapin stood its ground by retracting the legs being pecked at. Eventually the terrapin slid off the log to get some peace and the darter walked further along the log to sun itself.

The weather was variable in the week we spent driving around the southern section of Kruger. We found a small flock of Red-breasted swallows sitting on the ground with their breast feathers puffed up because it was quite cold. This looked to be a juvenile because its tail streamers were still quite short. This large swallow has a brick-red rump and underparts and dark blue upper parts and crown and face mask. This is an inter African summer visitor.

A Southern Black flycatcher is a slim glossy-black flycatcher. It can be mistaken for a Fork-tailed drongo but the former is smaller, has a square tail and a smaller beak. Its eyes are dark brown whereas the drongo has a deep red eye colour.

A fledged juvenile Brown snake-eagle. The adult has dark brown overall appearance but in flight the underwing is silver grey. The juvenile has paler brown feathers and the edges of the feathers are paler and white giving it a scaly look. The head and breast often show white feathers bases.

Late in the afternoon, we travelled on S118 loop down near Malelane. It has several waterholes adjacent to the road. We found this Dark Chanting goshawk perched on a dead tree trunk scouring the area for any prey. This species is a tall, long-tailed, slaty-gray hawk with pink-orange legs and beak and the tip of its beak is black. The flight feathers and wing tips are dark on both the upper and under wings, creating a uniformly dark wing pattern in flight. By contrast, the Pale Chanting-Goshawk has pale inner flight feathers and dark wing tips, which creates a strongly contrasting wing pattern.

The sightings of mammals can be variable but you are always likely to see a wide variety of birds in Kruger. The sightings are affected by the weather. The birds are less active in cold and windy weather, as are the mammals. The wind can be an advantage when taking images of birds in flight. A bird flying into the wind will always fly slower making the photography easier. The birds of prey also seem to be disturbed by too much road traffic and they usually fly deeper into the bush so I prefer to stay off the main roads. Long lenses ensure that I can give most birds enough ‘fight-flight’ space, usually around 30 metres.

“Few can sojourn long within the unspoilt wilderness of a gam sanctuary surrounded on all sides by its confiding animals, without absorbing its atmosphere; the spirit of the wild is quick to assert supremacy, and no man of any sensibility can resist her.” ~ James Stevenson Hamilton

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at it interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike