Helen and I visited Marievale Bird Sanctuary in late August last year. This wetland is a RAMSAR site and is therefore judged to be of International importance because of its uniqueness and biodiversity. The water levels in the wetland have a strong influence on what birds you are likely to see. The time of year also dictates whether you will see migrants or not. Being the end of Southern African winter only the very early migrants were seen. In the southern African winter many of the grassland birds lose their colourful breeding plumage and the grass and reeds in the wetland turn to yellows and browns.

“The changing of the seasons marks our journey through life, embracing and learning from each experience.” ~ Anonymous

We have seen many Purple swamphens during our wanderings around Marievale Bird Sanctuary. This is a big bird around 43cm in height, the size of a chicken. When the sun is out it shows a spectacular purple, green and blue colouration. It has a bronze green back and wing coverts. Its underparts and head are a royal blue. The throat and ear coverts are a light blue and it has a red beak and frontal shield. Its legs are red and and it has white undertail which it flicks up and down as it walks along the bank of a waterway.

This species of swamphen is an omnivore and feeds mostly on soft shoots of reeds and rushes and small animals, such as frogs and snails. It is also known to feed on eggs and other bird’s chicks. The Purple swamphen is often heard and tends to hide in the reeds along the bank. It is not often seen out in the open, much like a Black crake.

A Black-winged stilt is wader recognised by its very long pink legs, black back and wings and white underparts, neck and head. It has an untidy black crown and a long thin beak, red eye which is black when immature. Marievale is ideal for this wader as it prefers marshes and wetlands. With its long thin beak it picks edibles such as insects and crustaceans from the sand and surface of the water.

A pair of Avocets. These waders are easily identified by their upcurved black beak, black and white colouration and ruby red eyes. Their head nape and back is black as are their upperparts. The primary feathers on the wings are black as are the coverts with the greater coverts mainly white forming a white shoulder patch. They have long blue-grey legs suited to wading in shallow water.

The Pied Avocet feeds by swishing its beak back and forth in the shallow water to catch insects, worms and crustaceans. Their short rounded wings are suited to short quick flights. Pied avocets have been a great conservation success story globally and especially in the UK.

A Hottentot teal foraging as it is swimming in the shallow waters of the Marievale waterways. This is a small dabbling duck with a black head and nape and buff-colored cheeks and throat. Its bill is an unusual blue colour with a black stripe on the upper mandible. Its back is blackish-brown edged with buff, the breast is brown spotted with black, and the belly is mottled buff. As with all teals, its has a green wing speculum, a distinctly coloured patch on the secondary wing feathers.

A female ruff in non-breeding plumage foraging for insects, worms and crustaceans in the mud. This migrant must have been one of the early arrivals. Ruffs undertake the longest migration of any terrestrial bird, as they first leave their Siberian breeding colonies in July before heading west to the Black and Caspian Seas, then on down south to southern Africa, a journey of approximately 16 000km.

A lone Kittlitz plover foraging for insects in the mud among the dead reed stems. There is a difference between plovers and lapwings. Plovers are much smaller than lapwings and the latter has broad, rounded wings. Lapwings also have long legs and carpal spurs on their wings.

This Little stint is a tiny wader and was seen foraging along the water edge. This migrant was also an early arrival. It breeds in arctic Europe and Asia and migrates down to South Africa in the late winter, early spring.

A pair of Red-billed teal sunning themselves and preening on a small island in one of the large open waterways in Marievale.

A pair of Red-billed teal and Yellow-billed ducks flushed by our approach. Interestingly, the popularity of Marievale with birders has not had much effect habituating these waterfowl to humans. The duck species are still wary of humans.

“Tame birds sing of freedom. Wild birds fly.” ~ John Lennon

A male Long-tailed widowbird in non breeding plumage. Non-breeding males lose their long tails and become streaky and brown but keep the distinctive wing pattern.

A Cape wagtail singing to its heart’s content from a fallen tree trunk mostly submerged in the water. This a long-tailed insect eater with a brownish back, pale underparts, and a black chest band. White outer tail rectrices are conspicuous in flight. Found in most open habitats, especially those near water. Like all wagtails it has a distinctive way of walking, bobbing its tail constantly.

“A heart without dreams is like a bird without feathers.” ~ Suzy Kassem

A male Stonechat singing away from its dead tree stump perch. Stonechats are abundant in Marievale.

A White-throated swallow. Like most swallows it has a blue back, nape and crown. Its forehead is a chestnut brown. Its throat is white and it has a blue horizontal breast band. Its belly, undertail coverts are white. It also has two long thin tail streamers which are characteristic of this species.

A Black crake out in the open but surprised by a noise on the other side of the stream. It immediately dashed for the cover of the reeds next to the stream. This species of crake is secretive and is usually only seen sulking on the edge of a reed bed. This is a small black wader with a vivid yellow beak, red eyes and pink legs. This species prefers freshwater marshes.

An African snipe. This is a stocky short legged, long billed wader. It has cryptically coloured plumage which provides effective camouflage making it difficult to see amongst the vegetation at the edge of the waterway.

This species of snipe is active at night, especially in moonlight. It uses its long beak to probe the mud for invertebrate organisms, especially earthworms. These were collected while the bird walks on soft mud and sandy edges of streams and in short grasslands.

We never got to see these African snipe winnowing with its associated unusual flight pattern and sound. We did see another of this snipe’s unique features which was the bending of the ends of its long beak. This snipe eats with its bill closed. It has a long, sensitive, flexible beak used to probe loose soil and mud for food. Without removing its bill from the mud, the snipe flexes the tip of its upper mandible like a pincer to grab and consume food. Serrations on the bill and spikes on the tongue help it to move food from the bill-tip to the throat

A Red-knobbed coot chasing another coot away from where it was feeding on submerged plant matter. This species of coot is a charcoal black waterbird with a white frontal shield, white beak, red eyes and two red knobs on its forehead. It has yellow legs and webbed feet. The red-knobs are only evident in the breeding season. This is a highly territorial species and can often be seen bullying larger birds by running across the water at them with open wings.

We were lucky enough to see several large flocks of flamingos. The flock in the next image was of Lesser flamingos.

“No human ever lived in a birdless world.” ~ Richard Smyth

An adult Lesser flamingo in flight with its legs and neck extended for longitudinal balance. This species is smaller than the Greater flamingo but has the same slender build. It has a dark pink beak and pink legs. The wings are narrow and the primary and secondary flight feathers are black, and their wing coverts are red. Their eyes are orange to yellow, surrounded by a ring of maroon.

The Lesser flamingo feeds on various types of algae. When feeding it submerges its head in the water with its beak upside down and uses its legs to stir up the water to release the algae and other organisms, which are filtered through the beak. The Lesser flamingo has an upper mandible which is triangular in cross-section, and narrower than the lower mandible, so acts like a lid for the lower mandible. Both the upper and lower mandibles contain two rows of a bristled, comb-like or hair-like structure called lamellae. When the mandibles come together, the lamellae of the upper and lower mandibles mesh forming a filter. The flamingo’s large, fleshy tongue is covered with bristle-like projections which help filter water and food particles through the lamellae.

A Lesser flamingo coming into land. Flamingos are strong fliers capable of both short-distance and long-haul flights, often traveling in V-shaped formations for energy conservation and safety during migrations. All species of flamingos demonstrate remarkable takeoff and landing skills, using water surfaces to gain momentum for takeoff, and gracefully touching down with their webbed feet acting as natural landing gear. At a point they appear to skip along the surface of the water.

A Marsh harrier quartering the grasslands and edge of the reed beds for prey. Quartering is slow flight over open areas in search of prey. When prey is spotted the raptor will often hover for a short while to pinpoint the prey’s location before diving down to grab it.

“Wild beasts and birds are by right not the property merely of the people today, but the property of the unborn generations, whose belongings we have no right to squander.” ~ Theodore Roosevelt

An African rail. This is a mid-sized rail. Its back and nape are brown and its head and chest are grey. Its belly, flanks and undertail have a barred pattern of black and white. It has a long red beak and red legs. Both male and female have similar colouring.

Like most rails this species is secretive though less so than other rail species. It prefers reedbeds and dense vegetation along the edges of wetlands in which to feed and bred. It feeds by probing the mud and shallow waters along the bank with its long red beak. It eats insects, earthworms, spiders, small frogs, small fish and soft plant matter such as seeds.

You never know what you are going to see when wandering around Marievale Bird Sanctuary. There are the perennials like stonehats, moorhens and coots but what you see and where you see it is dependent on the level of water in the wetland and its open waterways. If you are lucky you may even see a spotted-necked otter, water mongoose or a yellow mongoose and a variety of interesting birds.

“Not just symbolic representations, birds bring forth a myriad of life lessons, inspirations, and vibrant imagery that imprint themselves on our creative and philosophical landscapes.”~ Isabella Sedano

Marievale is a wonderful place to reinforce your bird identification skills and keep photographically fit.

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

Have fun, Mike

The Pafuri area of the Kruger National Park is located in the northern region of the park. It has Zimbabwe as its northern border and Mozambique as its eastern border. The Limpopo and Luvuvhu Rivers converge in this birder’s paradise, where over 400 species have been recorded.

“We should preserve every scrap of biodiversity as priceless while we learn to use it and come to understand what it means to humanity.” ~ E. O. Wilson

We were based in the Pafuri Tented camp in the Maluleki Concession which is a 24 000 hectare concession situated between the Limpopo and Luvuvhu rivers. From here we traversed the whole Pafuri region. This area offers interesting species ranging from Black Eagles and African Hawk eagles to Pels fishing owls and Bat hawks, from a Racket-tailed to a Broad-billed rollers, and Retz Helmeted shrikes to Mottled Spinetails and Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters.

“Biodiversity starts in the distant past and it points toward the future.” ~Frans Lanting

In this post I have shown a few of the birds I photographed but there were many more which I could not photograph. Early in the morning we found a pair of Burnt-necked Eremomelas. These small warblers are ash-gray above and a pale buff below. They have a whitish throat and a distinctive pale-lemon eye. A diagnostic feature is the horizontal brown patch on their throat which gives them their name. According to the Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, the Burnt-necked Eremomela is also known as the Brown-throated Eremomela. This is a highly active species, continually on the move in the tree canopy. Its preferred habitat is mixed and savannah woodlands.

The Ashy Flycatcher is a common resident in the Kruger National Park. The male and female of this species have the same coloured plumage. Their head and upperparts are a bluish grey. Their underparts are a light grey, and their legs and beak are black. Their eyes are brown. This species of flycatcher prefers the upper canopy of woodlands and catches much of its food on the wing, but it will also glean insects from the foliage and bark.

Arnot’s chat, also known as the White-headed black-chat, is found from Rwanda and Angola to South Africa. It is a chunky black chat with a large white wing patch. The male has a white cap, and the female a messy white throat patch. This chat prefers in miombo and mopane woodlands.

One of three Brown-headed parrots in a combretum near Lanner gorge in Pafuri. This species of parrot is often found in small groups at the top of the canopy. It has a brown head and throat, and its upper parts are an emerald green and its underparts are green with a yellowish tinge. The top of its upper mandible is white the lower part black. This parrot feeds on a variety of seeds, nuts, berries, flowers, fruits and nectar.

A female Giant kingfisher preening herself in the afternoon sun on a fallen tree trunk at the edge of the Luvuvhu river. This is the largest of the kingfisher species in southern Africa. Both sexes have a large shaggy crest and a large black bill. It has fine white spots on its black head and upperparts. The female has a rufous belly while the male has a rufous chest and white throat. The Giant kingfisher feeds on crabs, fish, and frogs, caught by diving from a perch.

“Biodiversity can’t be maintained by protecting a few species in a zoo, or by preserving greenbelts or national parks. To function properly, nature needs more room than that. It can maintain itself, however, without human expense, without zookeepers, park rangers, foresters or gene banks. All it needs is to be left alone.” ~ Donella Meadows

A male Chin-spotted batis. This small stout looking batis has a black mask on its face, with a short white eye stripe, a grey cap and a white throat. Its upperparts are grey, and it has a prominent white wing stripe. The eyes are a distinctive yellow, and its legs and bill are black. The underparts are white with a black breast band in the males. The female’s underparts are also white, but she has a chestnut breast band and a chestnut spot on the throat.

The Chin-spotted batis is found in savannah woodland and feeds on prey foraged from the trees, either by hawking or gleaned from foliage. The prey mostly comprises insects and insect larvae.

The Marico flycatcher has a light brown head and upperparts, and white throat and underparts. Both sexes have the same colouring. Marico Flycatchers are usually found in arid acacia savannah or mixed woodland if it has acacia trees. This bird is often seen perched on the outer branches of shrubs or fence posts looking for termites, caterpillars and grasshoppers. It occasionally hawks insects from the air.

A Little bee-eater, the smallest of the bee-eaters found in southern Africa. This wonderfully coloured bee-eater has green upperparts, a black eye band with a pale blue eyebrow. It has a yellow throat and a black/dark brown gorget and its belly and flanks are a yellow/buff colour. The Little bee-eater hawks insects in flight. It prefers insects such as bees and wasps. Once it has caught the insect in flight it will return to its perch and kill the insect and remove its sting by repeatedly hitting it against its perch.

“The diversity of the phenomena of nature is so great, and the treasures hidden in the heavens so rich, precisely in order that the human mind shall never be lacking in fresh nourishment.” ~ Johannes Kepler

I am not sure, but I think this is a Rattling cisticola given its rufous wings and cap, and black streaks on its back. This insect eater prefers open woodlands and can usually be seen singing in open perches. This bird was seen away from the Luvuvhu river in a dry section of Pafuri.

A male Green-winged pytilia foraging for seeds on the ground. This colourful seedeater has a grey head and lores with the male having a crimson-red forehead and throat. Its chest and back are an olive-green and its belly has black and white bars which fade to white towards its vent. Its tail feathers are crimson changing to black at the leading edges. The female looks similar but does not have the crimson-red forehead and throat.

A Bronze-winged courser in a dry section of mopane woodland. This species is named for its characteristic bronze-tipped feathers that are visible during flight. The underwing coverts are white, contrasting with the dark black primaries which are tipped with iridescent copper to violet colouration. This courser is usually seen on the ground and can be identified by its light grey-brown upperparts. Its head has a distinct cream-white supercilium, forecrown, and posterior eyeline, as well as buffy upper neck and throat. The facial lores and ear-coverts are darker brown-black. It has a red eye ring and base of its lower mandible is red converging to black at its tip. This species of courser has long reddish pink legs.

This is a nocturnal species which mainly feeds on ground-dwelling insects and is usually solitary unless seen in the breeding season, which is in the dry season.

Many long-legged birds look like they are kneeling, from ostriches to storks and from lapwings to coursers. In fact, they are not kneeling as humans do but rather bend the joint that links the tibia to the tarsus.

A White-browed robin-chat foraging on the ground in the thickets along the Luvuvhu river. This species used to be called the Heuglin’s robin. It has a black cap, broad white supercilium and a black eye band which covers the eye from the lores to the ear patch. It has a grey-brown back and a bright fiery orange underparts and collar. The female is a little smaller than the male but their colouring is similar. A pair of robin-chats have the most beautiful duet which we usually hear early in the morning.

A White-fronted bee-eater hawking insects in the afternoon heat from a stick perch. This colourful bee-eater has a red throat and a white line above the red patch below the black eye band. It has a white forehead and its nape, and underparts are an orange-beige colour. Its upperparts are emerald green and its undertail coverts are a powder blue colour. This is a common resident bee-eater usually found in groups in woodland areas close to water courses.

A pair of Green pigeons appeared to be eating minerals from a large sand bank in the Luvuvhu river. There are many green pigeons along the Luvuvhu river attracted by the numerous fig trees growing along the banks of the river.

“If we pollute the air, water and soil that keep us alive and well, and destroy the biodiversity that allows natural systems to function, no amount of money will save us.” ~ David Suzuki

A solitary female Saddle-billed stork fishing along a sand bank in the Luvuvhu river. The female looks similar to the male but has a yellow eye and does not have a yellow wattle under its chin. The female shows more extensive white in her primaries which can be seen in flight. The head, neck, back, wings, and tail are iridescent black, with the rest of the body and the primary flight feathers being white.

Both sexes have a large red beak with a black band across the centre of the beak. They also have black legs with a pinkish-red joint between the tibia and tarsus. The Saddle-billed stork forages for prey by stabbing its beak into the water, and if it feels something it will snap its beak closed. In the water it usually hunts fish but will opportunistically catch other prey such as frogs, snails, small mammals, birds, snakes, and insects such as grasshoppers, termites, and water beetles. When small fish are caught, they are swallowed whole headfirst. If a large fish is caught it is usually taken to the bank where it may be dropped many times and often the pectoral fins will be removed to aid the swallowing.

I have shown a small number of the birds you are likely to see in the Pafuri area. In the summer months the residents and migrants can be seen. In winter the birding is still excellent, and the going is easier from a game vehicle point of view.

“Look closely at nature. Every species is a masterpiece, exquisitely adapted to the particular environment in which it has survived. Who are we to destroy or even diminish biodiversity?” ~ EO Wilson

The Pafuri area is exceptional for its diversity of landscapes, where baobab forests can be found close to fever tree forests in the inland areas which are crisscrossed by rivers. The floodplain of the Limpopo river offers a quite different experience with open grasslands, pans and thick riverine and palm groves. The so-called Pafuri Triangle is considered the most diverse part of the Kruger Park where around 1% of the land accounts for and estimated 75% of the park’s biodiversity.

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

Have fun, Mike

In July 2023 we stayed at Pafuri Tented Camp. This has become one of our special places in South Africa. The camp is located on the banks of the Luvuvhu river in the Makuleki Concession. The 24 000-ha private concession is located between the Luvuvhu River to the south and the Limpopo to the north.

“You have to leave the city of your comfort and go into the wilderness of your intuition. What you’ll discover will be wonderful. What you’ll discover is yourself.” ~ Alan Alda

The next image (taken with a iphone) shows the scenery looking south down onto the Luvuvhu river as it flows through Lanner gorge on its way to the Limpopo river. The vista is spectacular and for me represents quintessential Africa. It is one of the most diverse and scenically attractive areas in the Kruger National Park. The walls of Lanner Gorge in the Makuleke are made of ancient sandstones and the Luvuvhu River has over the millenia carved a deep canyon into these rocks.

The concession area is primarily a sandveld environment, distinguished by its Baobabs, Fever tree forests, large alluvial flood plains and probably more animal and plant species diversity than anywhere else in Kruger. This is one of the few places where Fever tree forests grow side by side with forests of giant Baobabs. In the flood plain and lower lying parts, the vegetation is verdant, but the higher lying areas are quite arid similar to that found in Mashatu further up the Limpopo river.

The Pafuri area is a favourite winter grazing ground for elephant from Mozambique, Zimbabwe and the more southerly sections of Kruger. There is plenty to eat with abundant acacia and mopani vegetation and perennial water flowing in the Luvuvhu river. This river, and some of its tributaries (including the Mutshindudi and Mutale rivers), rises in the Soutpansberg Mountains. It then flows for about 200 km through a diverse range of landscapes before it joins the Limpopo River at the bottom end of Pafuri in the Kruger National Park.

“Like music and art, love of nature is a common language that can transcend political or social boundaries.”
~ Jimmy Carter

Two young bulls were sparring with each other in front of our tented room. The one on the right had a shortened trunk possibly cut off by a snare or perhaps even a crocodile when he was young. Thankfully, the young bull’s trunk was not shortened too much and the end had healed with the openings intact. He looked to be perfectly healthy despite his feeding handicap.

Most mammals cannot sweat. Each species has developed effective and unique mechanisms to cool themselves. Elephants have wrinkled skin. The wrinkles act as a cooling mechanism by increasing the skin’s surface area. The additional skin and wrinkles trap moisture, which then takes longer to evaporate.

The quickest way for elephants to cool down is to bathe in the river. Elephants need water every day and they love playing in it. The Luvuvhu river is full of large Nile crocodiles but the adult elephants do not seem too concerned about them. There are rare occasions when a large crocodile has locked onto the trunk of an adult elephant but if that happens the crocodile is in for the thrashing of its life. The adults are very protective of their calves which on their own would be vulnerable to crocodile attacks.

Elephants’ large bodies need a lot of water and can’t afford to lose any via sweating. They use vasodilation to dissipate heat through their skin. Elephant ears provide wide platforms of relatively thin skin filled with blood vessels. When elephants get too hot, they flood their ears with blood to dissipate body heat. They also can fan their ears to increase airflow over their skin to lose heat faster.

Once the Luvuvhu river emerges from Lanner gorge the terrain starts to flatten out but is still rugged. The river twists and turns through the sandstone hills creating wonderful African bush scenes. You can’t but wonder what is just around that bend in the river.

In the winter months, elephant herds and larger bulls progressively push up into the Pafuri region to utilise the Mopani thickets as a source of nutrients as the palatability of other grazing opportunities decreases with less rain.

In winter, when the Limpopo is dry, wildlife, and elephants in particular, can easily move from one country to another. This migratory movement adds to the size of elephant herds in winter in the concession. Winter is also a good time to visit this area as it can get extremely hot in mid-summer before the rains.

“We cannot navigate and place ourselves only with maps that make the landscape dream-proof, impervious to the imagination. Such maps – and the road-map is first among them – encourage the elimination of wonder from our relationship with the world. And once wonder has been chased from our thinking about the land, then we are lost.”
~ Robert Macfarlane

Plenty of the elephant activity can be seen from the comfort of the Pafuri Tented Camp which is positioned on the northern bank of the Luvuvhu river. The river bank is sheltered on both sides by enormous Jackalberry, Nyalaberry and African Mahoganies which provide a wonderful backdrop for the elephants feeding playing and bathing in the river.

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

Have fun, Mike

In May this year Helen and I visited Bushwa Game Lodge. For a long time we wanted to stay in the Waterberg as we drove through it every time we travelled to Mashatu and it always looked diverse and fascinating. Bushwa is located about 15 kilometres north east of the town, Vaalwater in the Limpopo province of South Africa. The main lodge is positioned on top of a koppie which creates a wonderful vista across the Waterberg plains. Bushwa is located in a massive basin with the Waterberg mountains to the south and a mountainous and hilly region in front of Lephalale about 60 kilometres north west of Bushwa.

“We travel not to escape life, but for life not to escape us” ~ Anonymous

Bushwa was a farm which is in the process of being rewilded into a private game reserve. It has some unusual species such as Sable and Roan antelope. It is also home to buffalo, giraffe, wildebeest and zebra and the smaller antelope like nyala, impala, reedbuck and duikers. This male Roan antelope was in great condition. This species is named for its roan coloured (a reddish brown) neck, back and sides. It has a white underbelly, a black face and cheeks with white eyebrows which spread half way down its nose. It also has a short, erect mane and a light beard.

This striking male Sable antelope was grazing in an open grass area. He is still a relatively young bull as the sweep of his scimitar shaped horns had not fully curved back yet. The herbivores have a relatively peaceful time as Bushwa does not have lions. It does have smaller predators such as Black-backed jackal, Brown hyaena, Caracal, Civet, Genet and it must have leopards though the bush was thick so the chances of seeing one was low.

The couple of days we spent at Bushwa were mainly overcast, cold and the wind was blowing. That said there is always that break in the clouds that allows the sunshine to pour in over the plains adding splashes of brightness and warmth to the skies.

“Time spent outdoors reminds us that we’re part of something larger: a beautiful universe brimming with endless possibilities” ~ Unknown Author

The bush is thick in many areas and there was quite a lot of water around even in May. The buffaloes seemed to enjoy the thick bush. There were a few buffalo bulls with huge bosses.

The Waterberg is known for its biodiversity both in terms of flora and fauna. There was plenty of birdlife though the cold weather and wind kept most of them sheltered of the thick bush. This male Cocqui francolin stopped in the middle of the track to have a good look at us while we were travelling on one of the dirt tracks one overcast morning.

A petite and beautiful Marico flycatcher hawking insects one afternoon when it had cleared and warmed up a bit.

Bushwa appeared to have a thriving herd of Roan antelope. The next image shows one family herd comprising a bull, two adult females, an adolescent and a newly born calf. These Roan were accompanied by Oxpeckers, Glossy starlings and Blacksmith lapwings all of which were benefiting from the antelopes disturbing insects as they moved through the grasses.

“The greatest adventure is what lies ahead. Each day brings new possibilities for exploration and discovery.” ~ J.R.R. Tolkien

Judging from the small piece of umbilical cord under its belly, this Roan calf must have been one or two weeks old. When the calf is born, its mother usually conceals it in tall grass and does not wander too far from it but the protective environment in Bushwa allowed a change in behaviour. Roan are primarily grazers, preferring to crop the top portions of grasses, especially stands of medium to tall grass stands in open savannas.

The Roan bull was protective of his offspring and did not let his new born wander too far from the family. The male Roan antelope is large and usually only Eland and Buffalo can exceed it in weight. The Roan antelope stands 135–160 centimetres at the shoulder, and weighs 230–320 kilograms.

The Waterberg Biosphere Reserve is home to many endemic and insects, reptiles and fish species, making it an extremely important conservation area. The birding too in this area is excellent. This Southern black tit was very busy feeding on the fruit of a tree outside our bedroom.

The Waterberg savanna consists of rolling grasslands and a semi-deciduous forest, with trees such as Mountain syringa, Silver cluster-leaf and Lavender tree. The canopy is mostly leafless during the dry winter. Native grasses include signal grass, goose grass and heather-topped grass.

““When the sun is setting, leave whatever you are doing and watch it.” ~ Mehmet Murat İldan

The view from Bushwa’s main lodge looking across the swimming pool deck onto the plain below at sunset. As is so often the case the clouds cleared on our last evening.

The UNESCO Waterberg Biosphere Reserve was designated in 2001 and comprises a total area of just over 654 000 hectares. It is situated in the Bushveld district in the Limpopo Province of South Africa. The Waterberg, is a water catchment area for this arid region. The area consists of low mountain ranges and escarpments with poor soils and a relatively low level of economic activity, much of which is now eco-tourism oriented.

“The living environment is the biosphere, the thin layer around the world of living organisms. We’re part of that. Our existence is dependent on it in ways that people haven’t even begun to appreciate. Our existence depends not just on its existence, but its stability and its richness.” ~ E. O. Wilson

The vegetation is dominated by different veld types characteristic of mountainous savannah areas which creates a rich biodiversity with more than 5,500 species of plants, 129 mammals, and 350 bird species. It is also home to at least 18 threatened or scarce plants species, 11 bird species, 4 reptile species, 4 species of fish, one butterfly species and 18 endangered mammals. All are deemed of the utmost importance for biodiversity conservation.

“There is no glory in star or blossom till looked upon by a loving eye; There is no fragrance in April breezes till breathed with joy as they wander by.” ~ William Cullen Bryant

Our Bushwa trip has whetted our appetite to explore this part of South Africa more extensively, perhaps in 2024.

We hope you had a wonderful festive holiday and wish you an inspired 2024.

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

Have fun, Mike

The Chobe river is the east section of the northern border between Botswana and Namibia. The Chobe river starts at the south east section of Lake Liambezi flows to Ngoma and on to Kasane. The so-called “Chobe riverfront” spans from Ngoma in the west to the rapids below Kasane town. From the rapids, the Chobe river flows a further eight kilometres past Impalila island before it joins the mighty Zambezi river at Kazungula. We normally only venture higher up river from Kasane to Serondela because of time and fuel limitations. Up river from Kasane, the Chobe splits into two channels one on each side of Sedudu island. We usually travel up river in the southern channel and return via the northern channel. We travel up river along the southern channel for about two kilometres to Pygmy Geese bend after which the river joins and we travel for about five or six kilometres up to Elephant Valley and then on to Puku flats. Serondela is another seven to eight kilometres further up river. The amount and variety of wildlife along this stretch of river is astounding and keeps us occupied with our cameras for hours and days.

“Shallow ecology is anthropocentric, or human-centred. It views humans as above or outside nature, as the source of all value, and ascribes only instrumental, or ‘use’, value to nature. Deep ecology does not separate humans – or anything else – from the natural environment. It does see the world not as a collection of isolated objects but as a network of phenomena that are fundamentally interconnected and interdependent. Deep ecology recognizes the intrinsic value of all human beings and views humans as just one particular strand in the web of life.” ~ Fritjof Capra

I have been fortunate enough to have photographed with CNP Safaris on the Chobe river since 2009. I have only seen lions on three occasions. These two lionesses were just resting early in the morning on the river bank close to the water. We did not see any male lions or cubs.

One of the reasons for going to the Chobe in the summer is that it was hot. This caused major cumulus cloud build ups from early in the afternoon. The storm clouds provided wonderful moody backgrounds.

Jacana ally is one of our favourite spots to stop early in the morning because there is usually plenty of Jacana activity on the rafts of water lily and pond weed. This protected inlet is also home to many other waders such as herons, moorhens and the secretive Black crakes. There are also various ducks species and Pygmy geese in the ally.

“Look closely at nature. Every species is a masterpiece, exquisitely adapted to the particular environment in which it has survived. Who are we to destroy or even diminish biodiversity?” ~ EO Wilson

We usually find Pygmy geese at Pygmy Geese corner, hence the name. There are lots of reeds and water grass to feed on and they roost in the large Jackalberry trees on the river bank. The male Pygmy goose is more glamorously coloured that than female.

A white water lily flower which opens with the sunlight during the day and closes at night. When open it is a magnet for insects which attracts the Jacanas when there is a raft of water lily pads and flowers.

Afternoon skies over the Chobe river. This was the start of the Water cart river loop, a sand track along the river. We have seen everything from elephants and buffalo to lions at this bend in the river bank.

“A rainbow is the product of physics working for your appreciation of beauty.” ~ Kyle Hill

You have to be ready because when Pygmy geese take off from the water they are fast, so much so that we call them “pocket rockets”. Usually the female takes off first but in this instance the male was the “early riser”.

In the afternoons on the boat, the rain filled skies would darken the background while the sun illuminated the river in the foreground creating that mood of expectation.

A Little bee-eater warming itself in the early morning sun in Jacana ally.

This bull elephant is immersed in the reed beds foraging happily on his own. Although the Chobe is full of large Nile crocodiles they know better than to tangle with one of these giants. The White Cattle egrets benefit from all the insects which are disturbed by the elephant’s movement in the reeds.

Looking down river from just below Elephant Valley. A beautiful rainbow rising from the Kasane ridge.

“Be thou the rainbow in the storms of life. The evening beam that smiles the clouds away, and tints tomorrow with prophetic ray.” ~ Lord Byron

A pair of Wire-tailed swallows on a dead tree trunk at the entrance to the main channel leading up river. The male on the left of the image had been trying to mate with the female but she was having none of it.

A White-browed coucal in the Chobe Safari Lodge grounds at the water’s edge. The white eyebrow is distinctive. Its black head and nape are clearly marked with white streaks.

The reason for the presence of the adult White-browed coucal was this juvenile White-browed coucal in the thick vegetation next to the river.

An adult Fish eagle landed on the bank on Sedudu island and was calling its mate with the distinctive throwing back of its head while it was calling. It does this whether on the ground or flying. The African fish eagle is probably the most recognised and vocal eagle in Africa, with its evocative “weeah-kyow-koy-koy-koy” call.

The Chacma baboon troops are an endless source of entertainment and photographic opportunities. The youngsters are always playing and when one or two are being scolded they let the whole troop know with their screeches.

“The human family has invaluable friends and irreplaceable allies in the plant and animal worlds. We cannot continue to tug at the web of life without tearing a hole in the very fabric of our earthly existence – and eventually falling through that hole ourselves.” ~ Van Jones

A Pied kingfisher with its sizeable meal that it had just caught by diving into the water from above. This kingfisher will beat the fish to death on the dead tree trunk. Once dead it will manoeuvre the fish and swallow it whole and head first so that the sharp spines on its dorsal fin do not get caught in its throat.

We always make a point of stopping at the eastern most part of Sedudu island to photograph the iconic three Jackalberry trees at sunset. The colours and mood of the sunsets vary enormously and always create a sense of wonder and enormity.

“When we try to pick out anything by itself, we find it hitched to everything else in the universe.” ~ John Muir

Some of the sunsets looking west over Namibia were so vivid that the sky looked like it was on fire. We were on the Chobe in early April which is the end of the rainy season but there were still dramatic cloud formations.

I have been to the Chobe river to photograph wildlife more than twenty times. You might ask why the same place. The answer is that the mood of river, the skies and the wildlife we see have never been the same. We very seldom see the same thing in the same place. One afternoon we will see a herd of Sable antelope drinking at Elephant valley and then never see them there again on that trip. We could see many White-fronted bee-eaters along a particular section of the river one day and they will gone the next never to return to that spot.

“Perhaps the most poignant image of our time is that of Earth as seen by the space voyagers: a blue sphere, shimmering with life and light, alone and unique in the cosmos. From this perspective, the maps of geopolitics vanish, and the underlying interconnectedness of all the components of this extraordinary living system – animal, plant, water, land, and atmosphere – becomes strikingly evident.” ~ Richard Benedick

My photobuddy and long standing friend, Elana Erasmus, was our guide on the CNP photographic boat. Thank you Elana, your knowledge, patience and love of wildlife and photography added enormously to the enjoyment and productivity on the trip. I am looking forward to our next trip in March 2024.

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

Have fun, Mike

In April this year, Helen and I joined CNP Safaris on their photographic boat on the Chobe river. This has become a tradition which we have done since 2009. The Chobe river has a wonderful diversity of wildlife, both mammals, reptiles and birds. Photographing wildlife from a boat specially equipped for photography offers a unique shooting perspective. The wildlife is less intimidated by a nearby boat in the river than it is from a nearby safari vehicle on land.

Over the years, the guides and boatmen on the photographic boat have learnt to cope with the persistent water current and know where to find particular wildlife at particular times of the year. Jacana ally is one such understanding. Jacanas can breed all year round due to the permanent water but most of the breeding seems to occur between April and June of each year when the water level in the Chobe river is rising to peak around June/July.

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

Jacana ally is an inlet at the east end of the Sedudu island just upriver from the iconic three Jackalberry trees and upriver from Kasane on the northern Botswana border. The tall reeds around the inlet provide protection from the westerly winds and is home to rafts of waterlilies and pondweed. This protected inlet is preferred by the breeding African Jacanas.

The African jacana is one of two jacana species found in Africa, the other is the Lesser jacana, which is much less common but can be seen on the waterlily and reed beds along the Chobe river. A week old African jacana chick must weigh only a few grams and is probably just 60mm in height. The chicks are minute bundles of fluff with two disproportionately large grey legs and feet.

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

The chicks hatch from beautiful eggs which are a chocolate brown camouflaged with thick, wavy lines of dark brown and black. The chicks are precocial, meaning they are able to fend for themselves from the time they hatch. Given that the nest is so flimsy, it is easy to see why Jacana chicks need to be precocial.

When small chicks, these Jacanas hunt small insects on the surface of the lily pads and pond weeds.

Adult Jacanas have long and slender necks and their toes and claws are extremely long – up to 10.2 cm. The newly hatched chicks have legs and feet which appear to be nearly half their body length.

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

Despite their large feet and long thin toes, these Jacana chicks are able to swim surprisingly well. If there is immediate danger and their father is too far away to gather them under his wings, the chicks are able to dive into the water and remain submerged with just their beak and nostrils above the water until the danger has passed.

Although the chicks are able to leave the nest and feed themselves very soon after hatching, their father plays a shepherding and protection role in the early weeks after hatching. The chicks are looked after by their father for between 40 and 70 days and reach adult plumage around one year of age.

The adult African jacana has striking plumage. It has a black crown, nape and eyestripe. Its cheek patches and neck are white and it has a golden necklace in the front of its neck between its white neck plumage and the rich chestnut brown upper and lower parts. The adult African jacana also has a sky blue frontal shield above its upper mandible which is thought to protect it when foraging among reeds with sharp leaves, and mate identification, sexual selection, and territorial defense.

The responsibility of caring for the chicks falls solely on the Jacana father, who incubates and raises the chicks. The male will protect the chicks and has also developed the ability to lift and carry the chicks under his wings.

“I cannot think of any need in childhood as strong as the need for a father’s protection.”  ~ Sigmund Freud

These huge feet enable them to occupy a very specialised ecological niche. They can walk right into the heart of the lily field and avoid ground predators. In the face of danger from above, they dive into the water and use their beak as a snorkel to stay underwater until the danger passes.

The male’s ability to carry his chicks under his wings helps him run across the lily pads to escape danger with all of his chicks at once. He is capable of carrying four small chicks under his wings.

Most species of jacanas are polyandrous, meaning that a single female will mate with several males and then lay eggs in each of their nests. Typically, a female will mate with two to four males. The female defends the territories of the males while incubation is occurring but abandons the nest and territory once the young hatch. The females are noticeably larger than the males but the plumage of both sexes is similar.

The male walks across the lily pads standing just long enough for the lily pad to support him. The adult’s feet are unique and the toes are around one third of the length of the body and distribute the weight of the bird over a wide area which substantially slows the sink rate on top of the lily pad.

When foraging the adult Africa jacana has a high stepping gait, primarily to lift its toes clear of the lily pad.

The preferred diet of an African jacana is freshwater insects and larvae, spiders, crustaceans and molluscs, even small fish if they can catch them. The adults are not bound by one lily pad patch and do fly from one floating lily pad raft to another. Both the male and female African jacanas are territorial so they often noisily tangle with newcomers which can makes wonderful photographic opportunities for wildlife interaction. African jacanas are non migratory but relatively nomadic driven by droughts and flooding which forces them to seek new habitats.

“Everything is unusual about it. Colours, breeding behaviour and parenting. It calls water lilies home and has feet large enough to trot on water lilies. The more you look at it, the stranger it seems and the more bewitched by the wonder of it you become.” ~ Mike Haworth

The female African jacana is around twice as big as the male, averaging 260 grams compared to 140 grams of the male. Jacanas average 240 mm in length and have a wingspan averaging 510 mm. The adult has a short tail adapted for its short flight behaviour.

African jacanas have short rounded wings which enable them to fly short distances from one lily pad raft to another, but usually not more than 100 metres. When flying their necks and legs are outstretched much like stork, a configuration suited for longitudinal balance. They normally have to run across lily pads to take off mainly because the lily pad floats and is not stable.

African Jacanas are fascinating waders by virtue of their breeding behaviour, role play, morphology and their preferred habitat. They are diurnal feeders and are found along most river banks and on floating vegetation in rivers and dams.

“Living is like tearing through a museum. Not until later do you really start absorbing what you saw, thinking about it, looking it up in a book, and remembering – because you can’t take it in all at once.” ~ Audrey Hepburn

Inevitably, when quietly drifting among the water lilies we see many more species of birds such as Little and Blue-cheeked bee-eaters, many species of heron, Brown-throated weavers, coucals, and Black crakes to name just a few. When watching African jacanas there is always something happening. These unique waders are photogenic, very active and get involved in numerous interactions with competing jacanas, ideal for bird photography.

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

Have fun, Mike

On the fourth morning of our surprise trip to Mashatu in February this year, we were fortunate enough to see a Secretarybird on two separate occasions. The first was fleeting but the second gave us an opportunity to watch an adult Secretarybird hunting for about 45 minutes and it was fascinating to watch. As good as any mammal sighting.

“You never know what may cross your path and fuel the wildness of your soul.” ~ Robbie George

The Secretarybird is instantly recognisable as a very large terrestrial bird with an eagle-like head and body on crane-like legs. This raptor stands as much as 130 cm high. It is usually seen singly wandering across its hunting ground.

Unlike most aerial hunting raptors which catch their prey in mid-air, Secretarybirds are almost strictly terrestrial hunters and are diurnal (daytime) raptors. They often begin hunting and foraging for food before dawn returning to their resting area in the late afternoon. The high kicking stomp is regularly used to disable its prey.

We first saw this Secretarybird walking below a rocky ridge looking for grasshoppers, lizards and snakes and perhaps even small birds. Having little luck it crested the ridge to get a better view of the surroundings. Secretarybirds prefer savannas, scrub, and grasslands with scattered small thorn trees, and open patches in forests and woodlands, so Mashatu is an ideal habitat.

“If you eyes are opened, you’ll see the things worth seeing.” ~ Rumi

Being mainly terrestrial, Secretarybirds take to flight only to traverse difficult terrain or when threatened. The Secretarybird is a strong flyer. It can soar to great heights and cover long distances using its long wings with slotted primaries. Its preference is for prey that typically follows local cycles which dictates that it is quite nomadic in its habits, especially in drier regions.

This Secretarybird flew to a group of decent sized bushes further and lower down the rocky ridge. Balance becomes an issue for a tall raptor trying to land on flimsy branches. Its long wings helped but this individual struggled to stay balanced.

The plumage of this unique raptor’s crown, upperparts, and lesser and median wing coverts is blue-grey, and the underparts and underwing coverts are lighter grey to grey-white. The crest is made up of 20 long black feathers, resembling quills, growing from the nape. The scapulars, primary and secondary flight feathers, rump and thighs are black, while the uppertail coverts are white. It has grey rectrices which have a trailing black edge and in the centre of the tail two streamer feathers, which project around 50 per cent beyond the longest of the other rectrices.

“Balance is not something you find, it’s something you create.” ~ Jana Kingsford

After a minute of so of struggling to find a stable footing, this Secretarybird flew further down the ridge to more prominent bushes. Its short toes reduce its ability to grasp objects with its feet, especially thin branches.

It landed on top of a reasonable sized Shepherd tree and again struggled to find purchase and its balance. Although unmistakably raptorial there are several other aspects of its morphology which differ markedly from those of any other living bird of prey. Its long pink stilt-like legs are well protected from snake or lizard bites by a layer of thick scales. The toes are short with the hind toe being particularly reduced, and the talons blunt. Both features adapted to the terrestrial lifestyle of this ‘marching eagle’, and make effective stomping weapons.

There is a degree of sexual dimorphism in Secretarybirds with males being slightly larger than females and having longer wings and longer central streamer tail feathers. The male has a shorter more rounded head and more blue-grey upperparts plumage. Both adults have bare facial skin around the beak and eyes. The facial skin is yellow around the gape and cere, and red-orange around the eye. The eyes have unusually long eyelashes. The male has less extensive bare facial skin behind his eyes. So this wanderer looked to be a male.

“Glittering eyes in the wilderness is the poetry of nature in motion.” ~ Robbie George

When hunting, the Secretarybird strides across the landscape, arching its head back and forward like a metronome, in an immediately recognisable gait. Secretarybirds are estimated to walk at an pace of around 2.5 to 3.0 km per hour so can cover up between 20 and 30 kilometres a day.

This raptor species captures small prey, like insects, by simply bending forward and grabbing them with its beak before swallowing them whole. When the Secretarybird encounters larger prey, it compensates for the loss of grasping toes and sharp talons by stamping powerfully and accurately with its feet to dispatch its quarry.

These raptors are known to stomp on the ground close to shrubs where animals may hide to flush prey out into the open where they are more easily caught. The taxonomic name for the Secretarybird, Sagittarius serpentarius, translates as ‘the archer of snakes’ and reflects this bird’s ability to kill even dangerous venomous species of snake using its characteristic stomping technique.

When hunting, Secretarybirds stride across the ground looking for something edible. Once found, they stomp on it until it is dead or knock it down with a speedy kick. This method of hunting is commonly applied to lizards or snakes. It has a quick, powerful kick equivalent to a force equal to five times its own body weight. This hunter also uses its wings for balance in the attack. Although the Secretarybird has a reputation for killing snakes, including venomous ones, it seldom finds and targets them.

“Nature is the candle of inspiration that ignites the wildness of your soul.” ~ Robbie George

Secretarybirds can chase after their prey at high speeds, using their wings to boost speed and give added balance while running to catch its quarry.

Quite a lot of effort for a medium-sized grasshopper. With very short toes and limited grasping ability, rather than carrying prey away with its feet like other birds of prey, the Secretarybird tends to eat it immediately or carry it away in its beak. Secretarybirds normally eat their prey whole, although if too big they will hold it down with their feet whilst tearing it apart, similar to other birds of prey.

As Secretarybirds stride through the grasslands they do not get it all their own way. They are dive bombed by starlings and lapwings all trying to chase them away from their nests and young.

“It seems to me that the natural world is the greatest source of excitement; the greatest source of visual beauty; the greatest source of intellectual interest.” ~ Sir David Attenborough.

Birdlife’s “Bird of the Year 2019” article highlighted that the Secretarybird was facing a bleak future. The Secretarybird’s global conservation status was last assessed in April 2020 and its status was elevated from vulnerable (in 2016) to Endangered. Unfortunately, the Secretarybird’s range is decreasing rapidly, especially in recent decades, from countries such as South Africa, Botswana and Tanzania. It has even dwindled dramatically in the Kruger National Park, one of Africa’s largest protected areas due to bush encroachment and an increase in the tall vegetation cover, resulting in loss of open habitat that the species prefers. Secretarybirds are intrinsically reliant on wide expanses of suitable habitat, so increasing human activities such as intensive crop farming, overgrazing, commercial afforestation and sprawling urban and rural human settlement are reducing, fragmenting and degrading the Secretarybird’s supporting landscapes at an accelerating rate.

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

Have fun, Mike

Mashatu is a private game reserve in the south eastern part of Botswana and is the largest part of the Northern Tuli Game Reserve (NOTUGRE). The wildlife is free to move in and out of the reserve. To the east is the Shashi river which demarcates the border with Zimbabwe and is an area of intensive poaching. On the northern side of the reserve is the Tuli Circle. The western border is the Tuli Safari reserve. The southern border is along the Motloutse river which flows into the Limpopo river. In the dry season there is minimal water in the rivers so the water does not limit the movement of game. The elephants, lions and cheetahs seem to move wherever they want to.

“…few can sojourn long within the unspoilt wilderness of a game 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

We visited Rock Camp in Mashatu in February this year which was mid summer and usually the period of highest rainfall. Mashatu is a reserve of massive seasonal contrasts. November to March is the highest rainfall period and the reserve transforms into what looks like the garden of Eden carpeted with yellow, mauve and pink flowers and the place is a verdant green. In winter, from June to August and early spring, there is no rain and it becomes very dry and barren away from the rivers. In particularly dry seasons it can look somewhat like a moonscape.

“One cannot resist the lure of Africa.” ~ Rudyard Kipling

We stayed at a syndicated camp called Rock Camp, so called because of the large outcrop of highly weathered rocks next to the camp, an unusual feature in Mashatu. The rock outcrop attracts a resident Klipspringer family, a leopard family with the cubs hidden in a cave, and a family of hyaenas which have made their den in other side of the rock outcrop. The klipspringers come into camp regularly and seem to prefer a section of the outcrop where there is a large fig tree growing out of the wall at one section of the outcrop.

The hyaena adults were returning from one of their nightly hunting forays. We usually get going by 6h00 in summer so we were lucky to see them. The clouds show how overcast some of the mornings were.

The returning adults make a low sounding contact call which brought the cubs out of their den. The den was a cave deep in the rocks which was home to two small cubs.

The eternal competition between cubs vying for attention when the adults return.

One of the older cubs found a large bone, possibly an Eland’s tibia. It walked away from all the others to gnaw on the bone in peace.

After a cool rainy evening, this colourful Common flat lizard was lying on top of the rocks trying to warm up and waiting for insects to appear on the rocks.

On a rare sunny early morning we found a family of Black backed jackals lying in the devil thorn flowers. The two pups were playing with each other while their mother rested.

The jackal pups were carefree in their play as the yellow devil thorn flowers had not yet turned into actual devil thorns so the yellow carpet of flowers was still soft underfoot.

On another morning we came across a family of Banded mongooses. There is one family that visits the camp each day but this one was was just beyond the rocks foraging next to the gravel road.

There were always some members of the family which were scouting for any danger. Close to where these mongooses were foraging was a grove of large Apple leaf trees which was home to a family of Verreaux’s eagle-owls so vigilance was necessary.

With the rain overnight, there were many puddles in the road which attracted the mongooses. Both the adults and youngsters played in the water.

“The eye never forgets what the heart has seen.” ~ African Proverb

Even though it was overcast most days it was still very warm. The mongooses seemed to really enjoy the shallow puddles of water in the gravel road.

There are many Steenbok in Mashatu. Away from the riverine areas it is more open countryside so these Steenbok were easier to see. This male Steenbok was resting amongst some bushes which the elephants had been feeding on.

A young male Steenbok, judging from the size of his horns, was lying under a young Shepherd tree partly for cover and perhaps some shade when the sun comes out.

There are many warthogs in Mashatu and they are prolific breeders. Warthogs live in small family groups called sounders. These consist of a male and female, along with one or more generations of their offspring. Sometimes sounders group together into larger groups, though each sounder keeps its identity.

Warthogs have litters of two to four piglets but their mortality rate is quite high due to predators such as lions, leopards and cheetahs. Two or three female warthogs form small sounders with their young as they look after the piglets.

A family herd of Plains zebra grazing amongst the mustard bushes west of the Majale river. In February, the heavy rain clouds always made a more interesting background. A sign of a health zebra is when its mane stands upright on its neck.

The Plains or Burchell’s zebra has black and white stripes which fade away under its belly and they have a shadow brown stripe on the sides and legs between its black stripes. This male zebra was full of the joys of summer and was playing around galloping and bucking all on his own.

A small herd of Wildebeest watching us drive by on our morning game drive. This herd was grazing on a low ridge close to the vlei area.

The Wildebeest and zebra were followed by flocks of Cattle egrets which were attracted by all the insects disturbed by the movement of grazing animals.

A Wildebeest calf’s attention was drawn to the Cattle egret next to it, but the egret seemed unconcerned.

“Animals try to live with nature. Man tries to change nature.” ~ Anthony Douglas Williams

Eland are always skittish in Mashatu and as a consequence are usually running away when you try to pass them. This female Eland was part of a larger herd, all running away from us. The female eland has longer wider horns and a small dewlap under her neck compared to the male.

Eland cows are usually shaded between ochre and tan, occasionally with faint white stripes running down the flanks. The bulls are darker in colour, and the dominant males take on deep blue-grey colour. Mature males carry a large dewlap under their necks which is thought to play a role in thermoregulation. While both sexes have a set of twisted horns. The bull’s horns are narrower and substantially more robust.

There are numerous giraffe in Mashatu. They are the Southern African species. This young giraffe was resting in the early morning.

Mashatu is also known for its numerous elephants which can be found all over the reserve. They need water every day so do not venture too far from water. During summer when there are abundant rains the elephants tend to be more spread throughout the reserve. The carpets of yellow devil thorn flowers brightened up the landscape.

“They say an elephant never forgets. What they don’t tell you is, you never forget an elephant.” ~ Bill Murray

Two young elephant bulls in the mobile herd were constantly playing and pushing each other around as they were walking.

We only saw this one young female leopard the whole week. This was partly because we could only go out on four of the 12 possible game drives in the six days because it was raining. The leopards are found along the rivers where the undergrowth is particularly thick in summer due to all the rain.

This female leopard was on morning territorial patrol and frequently sprayed her urine as she walked past croton bushes. When there is a lot of rain the cats have to mark their territory more often because the rains washes away their territorial scent markings.

The view from a ridge near the Majale river in Mashatu looking across a plain toward the red sandstone ridge on the other side of the Limpopo river. The rains transform this landscape into greens and yellows in summer which is in stark contrast to the browns of winter.

“The sky is an infinite movie to me. I never get tired of looking at what’s happening up there.” ~ K. D. Lang

We found this lone male also patrolling his territory in mid morning. He is one of a coalition of two males that have taken over the Mashatu territory in the last two years.

This male was cooling under the shade of a small Shepherd tree. He was not asleep around mid-morning probably because he was patrolling this territory after the rains.

This handsome male who did not look battle scarred so the territory take over must have been relatively easy as they took it from a large single male who was pushed out east onto the Charter reserve. Male lions are known to move between Mashatu, across the border into South Africa and Zimbabwe and back again.

Despite the fact we only got to do a third of the possible 12 game drives because of the rain, the drives we did go on were very productive with good sightings. Just to drive around when it was so green and verdant with carpets of yellow and pink colours made a superb visual spectacle.

“Wonder is the beginning of wisdom.” ~ Socrates

Mashatu Game Reserve does not have huge numbers of each species but it has a wide variety of species. Usually the leopard sightings along the Majale river are as good as you will see in any of the Greater Kruger private reserves. Being able to go off road is particularly valuable for photographers because it enables them to get into a better position and more often than not to get a lot closer to their subjects.

“The world is full of magic things, patiently waiting for our senses to grow sharper.” ~ W.B. Yeats

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

Have fun, Mike

By chance we were back in the “big smoke” for a week after our week at Giant’s Castle when my brother Jerry told me that his guest who was going to take the week in Mashatu could not make it. Helen and I jumped at the opportunity to return to Mashatu in February this year which was toward the end of the rainy season. We are members of a syndicate operating Rock Camp in Mashatu which is sited along the Limpopo river close to the Ponte Drift border post.

“Opportunities do not come with their values stamped upon them. Everyone must be challenged. A day dawns, quite like other days; in it, a single hour comes, quite like other hours; but in that day and in that hour the chance of a lifetime faces us.” ~ Maltbie Davenport Babcock

There is prolific bird life in Mashatu when in and around the camp and when on game drives. Part of the beauty is that you often do not see the same species on consecutive game drives.

“Opportunities multiply as they are seized.” — Sun Tzu

A male Bearded woodpecker in a large tree in the front of Rock Camp’s patio. The top of the male’s crown is red while the female’s crown is black, otherwise they look similar. They use their beaks to search for grubs under the bark and to communicate by tapping on the trunks of trees.

This Blue waxbill waited for the activity around bird bath to quieten down and proceeded to have a proper bath. It was very hot so many of the birds that visited the bird bath also bathed to cool down.

A male Green-winged pytillia was also cooling down in the heat of the afternoon.

A Spotted flycatcher found a perfect perch from which to hawk insects in the heat of the afternoon behind the Rock Camp main lodge near the swimming pool. The Spotted flycatcher is a summer visitor and is identified by the light brown streaks on its buff coloured breast and belly.

“Most people miss great opportunities because of their misperception of time. Don’t wait! The time will never be just right.” ~ Stephen C. Hogan

Although there are many birds in the camp area, it was summer so the birdlife was more spread out and could find water everywhere. There are many Sabota larks in Mashatu. This lark is identified by the strong brown streaks on its chest and its distinctive white eyebrow. This species seems to prefer the Mopani woodland interspersed with rocky areas where the grass is sparse.

Southern African summer is a time when the palearctic and inter-Africa migrants arrive to feast on the profusion of insects that respond to the rains and warmth. Mashatu is well known for being a good area to see most of the species of cuckoo which visit in summer. The most common cuckoo was the Diedrick’s cuckoo. The male has barred flanks, white flecking on the wing, white patches in front of and behind the eye, and a distinctly red eye surrounded by a red eye-ring.

The bronze-green female has a diagnostic white patch in front of the eye, a plain back, and white patches in the wings and her eye ring is brown not red. Both images are of male Diederik’s cuckoo as the female has a more pronounced coppery sheen on her back. The name “diederik” is an approximate rendition of the loud, persistent “deed-deed-deed-er-ick” call of the territorial male.

At Rock Camp we often hear the distinctive call of a Black cuckoo along the Limpopo river but I have yet to see one. During this visit we saw many Jacobin cuckoos but very few Striped cuckoos. Usually it is the other way around.

The Jacobin is differentiated from the Striped or Levaillant’s cuckoo because the former does not have black stripes on its chest. Both the Jacobin and Striped cuckoos have black plumage on their head and a crest on the back of the head. Both species have black and white bars on their tail feathers.

We also regularly see the Great spotted cuckoo. This is the largest of the summer migrant cuckoos. The adult is grey above, it has a grey cap, grey wings, a yellowish face and upper breast, and white underparts. This species of cuckoo prefers warm open woodland savanna. It feeds on insects, spiders, small reptiles and hairy caterpillars, which are avoided by many birds. Like most cuckoo species, this is a brood parasite, but it targets larger species such as crows and starlings

Another summer migrant is the Carmine bee-eater. It has exquisite carmine red, blue and brown plumage with an aquamarine crown. It is an adept aerial hunter and is usually seen hawking flying insects in the afternoon when it is very hot.

We see Carmine bee-eaters – young and adult. The fledged juveniles are browner and have not yet developed that gorgeous carmine breast and throat plumage and its crown has not yet turned to a vivid aquamarine.

Several shrikes are also summer visitors such as the Lesser grey shrike and the Red-backed shrike. The Red-backed shrike is quite skittish and normally will not let you get close so a long focal length lens is needed. This shrike migrates from its breeding grounds in eastern Europe and Russia down to southern Africa.

The Fiscal, Southern White-crowned shrikes and Grey-headed bushshrike are common residents in Mashatu. Another migrant, the Lesser grey shrike has a full black facial mask with a grey crown and back. Its belly, chest and throat plumage are white. These shrikes hawk insects from a prominent perch. The Lesser grey shrike also migrates to southern Africa from its breeding grounds in southern Europe and western Asia.

The White-browed sparrow-weaver is a common resident. It has a distinctive white eyebrow, black cap and black malar stripe. This species is very talkative and seems to be constantly busy building its untidy nests on the west side of larger trees. Since breeding mainly occurs in the warmer months, it may be because easterly winds prevail during summer, thus the nests are more protected on the western side of the tree.

A male Chestnut-backed sparrow-lark. It has a distinctive chestnut coloured back and covert plumage. Its head is black and it has a white cheek and white stripe on its nape. These diminutive sparrow larks are found in the dry rocky areas of Mashatu. They are normally seen in small flocks.

A male Black-backed puffback shrike. This diminutive shrike is usually heard before it is seen. The male has a black crown and face mask and a bright red eye. The female differs in that it does not have a black face mask. This is a highly active shrike constantly moving around in the upper reaches of the tree canopy. The males puffout the loose white rump and lower back feathers in display.

The ubiquitous Lilac-breasted roller. A stunningly coloured roller which is common in Mashatu. It was usually seen hawking insects from a perch. In Mashatu during summer, we see very few European rollers and the odd Purple roller. By contrast, we saw many more European rollers further south in Zululand and very few Lilac-breasted roller in that region.

“We’ve moved from a small world on a big planet to a big world on a small planet.” ~ Johan Rockstrom

Another summer migrant, a Woodland kingfisher. Its trilling call can be heard in camp and along the Majale river. It is an insect eater with a vibrant turquoise blue back, wing and tail plumage.

A Barn swallow migrates to the southern Africa summer flying from across Eurasia. This annual migration has been recorded covering up to 11,660 km. The Barn swallow is distinguished by its brown forehead and throat and steel blue back and shoulder plumage and white breast with a steel blue collar.

“Taking an image, freezing a moment, reveals how rich reality truly is.” ~ Anonymous

A male Paradise whydah preening himself. Whydahs are distinguished from widow birds as the former has more colour on its body. Widow birds have all black plumage but for a flash of colour on their throat, rump or shoulders. The Paradise whydahs congregate in flocks and the females are parasitic breeders. The male Paradise whydah is all black except for a thick brown band across its chest to its shoulders and a yellow-buff coloured nape and belly.

A male Namaqua dove preening itself.

The bantam-like Crested francolin foraging in the underground. These francolin can be heard all over Mashatu and often gives away the presence of either a predator or snake.

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

The ever shy Kori bustard. This bird will always walk away from you in Mashatu and will not let you get close. Usually we see a single Kori but at times we are lucky enough to see the whole family which can comprise two adults and three juveniles. This is a ground-dwelling bird and an opportunistic omnivore. Male Kori bustards can be more than twice the weight of a female and will try to breed with as many females as possible and consequently takes little or no part in the raising of the young.

We invariably see a Secretary bird striding around the southern section of Mashatu near the vlei. It strides through the grasslands searching for anything from small birds to rodents, and grasshoppers to chameleons. The Secretary bird is a large bird standing up to 1.3 metres in height and is instantly recognisable because of its eagle-like body on crane-like legs which give this raptor its height.

“The value of biodiversity is that it makes our ecosystems more resilient, which is a prerequisite for stable societies; its wanton destruction is akin to setting fire to our lifeboat.” ~ Johan Rockstrom

The Secretary bird hunts and catches prey on the ground and is very nimble aided by its wings. Having caught its prey it usually stomps on its victim to kill it. Being a bird of prey it is carnivorous. The sexes resemble one another, although the male is larger and tends to have longer tail feathers, more black erectile crest plumes, a shorter head and more blue-grey upperparts and less extensive bare orange facial skin behind the eye.

One of my favourites, a Lanner falcon perched on top of a Shepherd tree scanning the surrounding area for potential prey which can include queleas, doves and sandgrouse. This falcon is larger than a Peregrine and usually hunts in a horizontal pursuit rather than a vertical dive. The Lanner has a brown crown and a buff coloured head with a black eye stripe and a black malar stripe. Its belly is buff coloured with brown blotches across its chest and belly. Watching this bird of prey hunt is a thrilling experience because of its sheer speed.

A beige morph Tawny eagle. This species of eagle has many colours from fawn to tawny, striped and even a dark morph.

Tawny Eagles are opportunistic hunters, meaning they will feed on just about anything they are able to catch or find. They will hunt mammals including hares and dikdiks, birds such as francolins, bustards, and even hornbills, and will also take reptiles, such as lizards,  fish, amphibians, and insects (including termites). They are not adverse to scavenging on a predator kill.

I was confused as to whether this was a dark morph Booted eagle or a juvenile African hawk-eagle. A lifelong birder, Terence Archibald, thankfully corrected me indicating it was a juvenile African hawk-eagle highlighting it strong beak, powerful talons, narrow stovepipe like leg feathers and spots on the wing coverts. This is an aggressive aerial hunter, targeting mainly birds up to the size of francolin and small-sized mammals. It will also prey on rodents and lizards when it can find them. This raptor prefers miombo and especially Mopane woodland in southern Africa.

A Brown snake-eagle with its distinctive brown plumage and vivid yellow eye. Snake-eagles have a distinctive angular shape to their head, with a crest of sorts on the back of its head and a small very hooked beak. We see many Brown Snake-eagles in Mashatu but no Black-chested snake-eagles or Western banded snake-eagles.

The Limpopo river is the southern boundary of Mashatu. There are numerous pairs of Fish-eagles along the Limpopo but every now and then one or a pair venture along the Majale river when it is drying out hoping to find stranded fish. A juvenile fish eagle can take between four and five years to develop its adult plumage.

The bird photography in Mashatu is highly productive. Patience and guidance is always required. The guides know where resident species stay and when unique species are in a particular area, which is particularly helpful.

There is a big difference in the diversity of species seen between summer and winter due to the influx of migrants in summer. Mashatu is known for its diversity of species and not necessary the quantity of a particular species. This is mainly because of the six different ecosystems in Mashatu which attract very different species.

“The diversity of the phenomena of nature is so great, and the treasures hidden in the heavens so rich, precisely in order that the human mind shall never be lacking in fresh nourishment.” ~ Johannes Kepler

This post has shown is just a smattering of the diversity of avian species that you can see in Mashatu. In summer this dry part of Botswana transforms into the garden of Eden with its verdant greenery and carpets of yellow and pink flowers. Inevitably, the garden provides a wonderful background for bird and wild wild photography.

“When words become unclear, I shall focus with photographs. When images become inadequate, I shall be content with silence.” ~ Ansel Adams

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

Have fun, Mike

This is the last post from our six day sojourn at the Giant’s Castle vulture hide. Helen and I stayed for a longer than usual period hoping to see different behaviour that we had not seen during our previous one and two day visits.

We awoke on our last morning to heavily overcast weather with swirling mist. If there is one thing I have learnt over the years with wildlife photography, do not stay in bed when the weather is bad. We got up at 5h30 and picked up our allocated bucket of bones and then drove up to the vulture hide. It was deeply overcast, cool and wet with thick mist. The one thing you can never predict while driving up to the hide in heavily overcast weather with low visibility is when and the weather will break. It is very seldom once the summer temperatures warm up that the heavily overcast weather with thick mist persists.

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

In wildlife photography you need the overcast weather to lift and the light to brighten just as there is wildlife action. You only need a couple of seconds. More is just a bonus.

We settled into the hide at around 6h30. The mist was so thick that we could not see the end of the terrace where most of the raptors usually landed. Priorities, a cup of coffee and a rusk first, second setting up my cameras and third strategically placing the bones. Then we waited. Initially, there were several White-necked ravens and Red-winged starlings feeding on the bones. Eventually, the weather started to break around 10h30. It was interesting to note what the birds are doing, and what they are not doing, in front of the hide when the weather is poor. This all helps build an understanding of their behaviour which is so important in helping to know what to expect to capture that unique shot.

“If you want to see the sunshine, you have to weather the storm.” ~ Frank Lane

With the break in the weather there were patches of sunshine in an otherwise overcast vista. The Bearded vultures started to fly along the ridge at around 10h30.

We saw two Bearded vultures soaring at around 10h30. The young adult with the predominately white head and body plumage that we saw two days before and an older adult, over seven years in age, with a rust-orange stained neck and body plumage.

The young adult began flying closer past the hide and was having a good look at what was on the terrace in front of the hide.

Eventually, close to 11h00, the young adult turned and looked to be on “finals” and coming in to land at the far end of the terrace.

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

The young adult landed below the edge of the terrace and walked up onto the terrace. The heavily overcast weather cleared somewhat improving the illumination of the terrace. This vulture immediately marched over to the bones and started to collect a few and placed them next to each other.

The vulture’s hoarding behaviour did not go unnoticed by the White-necked ravens. One was bold enough to tug at the young adult Bearded vulture’s tail feathers. The vulture did not try to scare it away just turned around and fed on the bone facing the raven. This performance went on for a while before the raven gave up.

This young Bearded vulture was aware of all the White-necked ravens on the terrace and other Bearded vultures above the Bushman’s river valley and was frequently looking up and around.

As soon as another Bearded vulture appeared in the skies above the terrace this young adult began to duck down and squat next to the bones.

After the other Bearded vulture had flown past, the young adult stood up again to see where the former had flown.

The older Bearded vulture circled over the Bushman’s river valley and flew back towards the terrace. Again the younger adult crouched down hiding one or two of the bones. We had never seen this form of hiding behaviour before.

As the older adult got closer, the younger adult crouched even lower this time further hiding some of the bones under its breast.

The young adult realised it was going to have a visitor as the older adult flew close to the terrace and stood up with its red eye sclera clearly visible, signalling a potential threat.

The younger adult stood up to get a better look at what the other Bearded vulture was doing. The bright red scleral ring around its eye showed a threat display.

“We are not what we know but what we are willing to learn.”~ Mary Catherine Bateson

Sure enough the older adult landed close to the younger adult. The younger adult had about half an hour to itself on the terrace before the second older Bearded vulture landed.

The older Bearded vulture stayed a few minutes and never tried to feed on any of the bones.

It was not apparent what the older Bearded vulture was doing and it soon took off.

“By three methods we may learn wisdom: First, by reflection, which is noblest; Second, by imitation, which is easiest; and third by experience, which is the bitterest.” ~ Confucius

When an adult Bearded vulture is landing or taking off, it is a magnificent sight with its wings fully extended.

“Listen to the wind, it talks. Listen to the silence, it speaks. Listen to your heart, it knows.” ~ Ojibwe Prayer

The younger adult Bearded vulture swallowed six bones behind a large grass tuft so I could not get any reasonable images of it swallowing those bones. After another 15 minutes the younger vulture took off leaving the terrace open. Within 10 minutes the older Bearded vulture flew in to land at the far end of the terrace.

“True wisdom comes to each of us when we realise how little we understand about life, ourselves, and the world around us.” ~ Socrates

The older vulture walked up to where the younger adult had gathered some bones. The sclera eye ring was not bright red signalling it was relaxed.

It was only a few minutes later when a Cape vulture landed fairly close to the older Bearded vulture. The Cape vulture was after the meat and fat on the bones.

The older Bearded vulture immediately took off and flew closer to the Cape vulture in what looked to be an intimidating tactic.

The Cape vulture saw what was going on but did not seem to be too fazed.

“We are gifted with freedom, but with that freedom comes the reality of the unknown and the responsibility to be aware of our surroundings and on guard against those who would do us harm.” ~ Mike Crapo

The two species of threatened vultures remained close to each other with both constantly looking around.

For some inexplicable reason the older adult Bearded vulture stayed only a few minutes close to the Cape vulture before flying off.

The Cape and Bearded vultures are not direct competitors because the Bearded vultures are mainly after the bones and marrow.

Both the Cape and Bearded vultures are the subject of projects by the Maloti-Drakensberg Vulture Project to conserve the two species, both of which are threatened. The project researchers study the two species using satellite transmitters to observe their ranging behaviour. These projects also aim to dispel the myths associated with these birds and in the process reduce the threats they face from the farming communities in the region.

The behaviour of the Bearded vultures was fascinating. The younger one was clearly threatened by the older one. The Cape vulture seemed unconcerned by the close proximity of the older Bearded vulture.

The landings took place between 10h30 and 11h30 on our last morning. The weather opened up during that period and the level of light improved allowing me get some interesting images of the various vultures. It took six days and endless patience, and not being put off by the weather to get the images.

“What people call serendipity sometimes is just having your eyes open.” ~ Jose Manuel Barroso

By midday the clouds closed in again and the level of light fell. This gave the Black-backed jackals an opportunity to sneak up and steal some of the bones at the far end of the terrace.

The decline of vulture populations in southern Africa has been explained by decreased access to food due to changing farming practices, habitat loss due population growth and various sources of unnatural mortality such as poisonings, electrocutions and collisions.

“Look closely at nature. Every species is a masterpiece, exquisitely adapted to the particular environment in which it has survived. Who are we to destroy or even diminish biodiversity? ~ EO Wilson

Ongoing campaigning to reduce harmful anthropogenic effects such as the use of poisons and vulture-unfriendly utility structures have not reversed the decline in the vulture populations. The establishment of several vulture restaurants with their associated hides has slowed the population decline. In the case of the Maloti-Drakensberg region, the Giant’s Castle vulture hide plays a vital feeding role and has substantially increased the interest and awareness among nature lovers in these uniquely adapted raptors which play a vital role in the biodiversity of the region’s fauna.

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

Have fun, Mike