I grew up with raucous calling of the Hadeda Ibis. When at dusk they call in unison as they fly back to their roosts, when at dawn they call seemingly to advertise their presence to their neighbours, and even the frequent callouts during the day to keep in touch with family members or to warn of dangers from predators; I love the sound.
Continue reading “Suburban soundtrack: Call of the Hadeda Ibis”
Raindrops strung like pearls on a spider’s web after light spring rains in our suburban garden in South Africa. This has been such welcome rain during these years of drought. Continue reading “Strings of raindrop pearls”
Not all Kingfishers catch fish, as can be seen in this photo of a Brownhooded Kingfisher. Rather than a fish, he has just caught a cricket. This Kingfisher hunts by sitting on a low perch, in this case our garden fence, watching the ground for potential prey. Continue reading “Brownhooded Kingfisher: The art of hunting by sitting still”
Having burst out of its seed sheath and pushed up through the surface of the soil, this bean starts its long and arduous journey to maturity – to grow tall and produce flowers that turn to pods bearing seeds. Continue reading “Bean on a quest”
The name “Laughing Dove” derives from its bubbling call that is said to have a gentle laughing quality. Laughing Doves are thought to be monogamous, with birds pairing for life. Continue reading “Favourite Garden Birds: Laughing Doves”
Capturing the beauty of a single bloom is the theme for the Garden Photography Challenge for September. In response to the request from Jude to showcase a flower that you are particularly fond of or one that is unusual, here is my photo of a single flower of the Barringtonia racemosa, often referred to as the Powderpuff tree, for obvious reasons. In South Africa, this tree occurs naturally along the edges of coastal swamps, estuaries and rivers on the eastern seaboard of KwaZulu-Natal and north into Mozambique. Continue reading “September: Flower Portrait”
Not all cuckoos are brood parasites, but the cuckoos in our area all lay eggs in the nests of other birds and leave the hosts to raise the young. The female cuckoo surreptitiously approaches a host nest and rapidly lays a single egg and also removes another egg from the nest. She will lay 4 to 5 eggs on successive or alternate days in different nests, and most will lay about 20 eggs in total over one breeding season. Continue reading “The cuckoo has landed”
Almost the point of no return over this sharp edge for this caterpillar. No it did not plummet into the abyss. After a rather hairy moment wavering over the edge, it had enough legs to hang on as it turned around to safety. I don’t know the ID of this extravagantly hairy little guy, so if anyone does, I’d be glad to know what it is.
Posted by Carol at letting nature back in
Not only do the male and female in each mating pair of guttural toads mirror each other, but the two couples are mirrored “in reverse”. Spring and a welcome shower of rain triggered spawning by guttural toads in our garden pond, despite the water level being low. The deeper areas of the pond are now coiled with long ropes of spawn. ★
Posted by Carol at letting nature back in
