For the identification of insects and other fauna and flora of South Africa.

Monday, February 22, 2010

Pilansberg - Wild flowers - Part 3

Okay so these are not flowers either but as we are heading for winter, all the grasses are starting to seed and some of them are so pretty.






This very young little bird sat dead still for me for a change. It is probably on of the Cisticola family but they all look the same and are very difficult to tell apart.

43 comments:

Wendy said...

Ooooooo, I really like the picture before the one of the bird, it's so pretty!!

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

That is a pretty one Leeloo. :)

Mary said...

A nice variety of grasses! I love those pink fuzzy ones. That little bird is very cute, whatever he is!

Birdy Official said...

Do you have any idea about the name of plant in picture #6? It's looking very beautiful.

This Is My Blog - fishing guy said...

Joan: Nice captures of the flowers and the bird. It looks like our sparrows and even though I know they are different they are all sparrows to me.

Anonymous said...

what a nice series of shots! i love that birdie, so cute!

Craver Vii said...

That bird looks like a marshmallow peep, though I confess that I have not seen any of the famous candies with that coloring... until now. =P

troutbirder said...

Some of our native grasses are still holding their heads up thru the snow. The bird is definitely what is known in this area as a LBJ. That's a Little Brown Job!

Craig Glenn said...

Great captures Joan! love that bird!

Craig

Unknown said...

No matter if it is wild. It looks awesome. Keep on posting some more pictures of beautiful wild flowers. Iflorist.co.uk

Gaelyn said...

These beautiful seeds are the future. Do you gather any to plant in the yard?

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7 days left!!!! :-)))

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

I am glad I do not have to buy shoes for all those feet Mary. :)

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Birdy. Nice to hear from you again. No, I am sorry I do not know the name of it. It grows as a short stubby bush maybe 1' in height and is very pretty to see.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Tom. One thing I am sure of is that it is not a sparrow but the Cisticola family are very difficult to tell apart.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Tricia. I took three shots of the bird and if I have them on the screen of my PC and scrll through them it looks like he is moving his head. :) Pretty neat.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Maybe I dyed this one Craver. You know anything is possible with me. :)

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Some of these last through tough storms too TB.

If you know LBJ's it means that someone n your neighborhood has been to Africa. :) Strangely enough the Cisticola family from which this bird comes from is in the LBJ family as it is almost impossible to tell them apart. They have no specific markings.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Craig. Those hawk shots of yours are fantastic. What a great capture.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks for visiting and commenting Beth. I love the wild flowers and grasses and have posted quite a lot of pictures on them already with more coming up.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

My neighbors will shoot me if I plant more of these in the garden Gaelyn. They are trying their hardest to get rid of them. :)

Yes, I am counting the days too and really, really need to get out of here and find my soul again. Luckily I have a lot to do at work and at home to get ready for the trip so it soes not give me much time for contemplation. :(

Will check out your mail in a while and reply.

Firefly the Travel Guy said...

Fantastic collection of grasses. I haven't had much chance to take photos lately, but hopefully will get back into things again soon.
PS, just got back from your neck of the woods. I don't know how you Gautengers handle that traffic. Eish!!

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Jonker. Why did you not let me know so we could have got together for lunch?? Got to agree on the traffic. Luckily I stay 5 mins drive away from work. :)

Unknown said...

You've got some great photos here Joan - as usual! ;o) The macros are fantastic and the little bird is so cute!

Unknown said...

ps - I'm having a giveaway for my followers... you should stop by! :o)

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(I saw your Yellow Weevil shot on my google reader but it has disappeared from your blog??!! It was a cutie!)

Ken Mac said...

plants as poetry

Mary said...

I love your blog, Joan, and am sorry that I have been too busy in the last couple of weeks to keep up with it. These photos of grasses are terrific. And browsing back over posts I have missed, I was most struck by your account of how you took a risk on a new adventure and first visited the game reserve. You are so right that pushing ourselves to try new things pays off richly in life.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Krista. That give-away is a neat idea. I am always a bit behind with post because of the time difference. When you get home from work, I have tucked myself into bed for the night so by the time I wake up I am about 8 hours behind everyone else. :)

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Krista: That weevil will be coming up soon. He is a cutie. Smetimes blogger post the stuff I schedule instead of saving it as a draught so then it appears in Reader. So sorry about that.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Ken. There is such simple beauty in these plants which most people call weeds.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Mary. I am just as guilty in that I do not have more time to go to peoples blogs. There are just not enough hours in my day especially at this time of year when it is our financial year end and I bring so much work home. This is besides the fact that I am trying to get thre weeks work done in one so I can go on vacation. :)

Sometimes we have to take a chance in life as I have discovered. Right now I am back in my old rut again and need to make another change in my life. I just cant decide in what direction and will leave the decision until I get back.

Becky said...

What ever they are, they are beautiful Joan!
I love pictures of grasses. They have so much character.
B.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

They sure are pretty Becky. This time of year they are all going to seed and that makes them more interesting.

Life in Egypt said...

You are almost 3 months after us with the grass seeds I too Had great pleasure in photographing the many varieties we have here in Luxor.
love the little fan tail not an easy bird to photograph always on the move or hiding behind a grass. your query !
The photo of the Kestrel was taken at sundown hence the colouration but the male is darker than the female.the male has a darker head plumage.

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Hello Tony. SA is always behind on everything. LOL!!

I was very happy to get this pic of the bird as you say, they are not easy to get and even more so, birds are not usually mu "thing" as as I really do not have a proper lens for them.

Thanks for the infor on the Kestrel. Great shots of them you posted.

Rambling Woods said...

I love grasses and the 4th one looks like the kind we have near the pond. Cute birdie too.....Michelle

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

I am sure you have a lot which are the same as ours Michelle. We just never take much notice of them. :)

myonlyphoto said...

Joan, I like grass or dry stuff too. Nice collection, and love the little bird. Anna :)

SAPhotographs (Joan) said...

Thanks Anna. I love the grasses. They make such interesting subjects for me.

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Your captivating photos of Pilansberg wildflowers in "Pilansberg Wild Flowers - Part 3" transported me to a world of natural beauty and serenity. It's amazing how nature can inspire and uplift our spirits.
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