South African Photographs

Birds of Pilansberg - Part 5

2009-11-08T00:02:00.000-08:00

Dotted all about the park are these small hilly outcrops which are the perfect places to look for Hyrax.
In the early morning light, these weeds made a pretty picture.

The ROck Pigeon is one of the biggest of out doves/pigeons. They sometimes are found in flocks of hundreds of birds together in city parks and was intoduced to SA from the Netherlands.

In flight the red can clearly be seen in Redwinged Starlings. A very vocal birds, larger than the Glossy Starling. Included in their diet are fruit, insects millipedes and lizards.

Gloosy Starlings are found all over SA and come very easily to feeders. They usually sit in the higest branch of a tree and sings it little heart out. Their eggs are light greenish blue speckled with rusty red.

Crimsonbreasted Shriks are common only in certain areas of SA and has a very distinctive call. They only eat insects and will also search the bark of trees for them.

The tiny Dabckick babies are so small they could almost fit into your pocket and can be found in any pool of permanent water. Mostly they are seen as a family group and when startled, flap their wings and seem to run on water.

Cars in the park - Part 6

2009-11-07T00:02:00.000-08:00

Just look what I was given....

2009-11-06T00:02:00.000-08:00

On of our workers brought me this baby Bronze Mannikin. It had flown into the kitchen and was trying to get out but they know by now I first want pictures of everything.
They are very small, about the size of finches. It has two patches of bronze on its wings as can be seen in the picture below and if you enlarge the bottom one, its head has the same color when the sun catches it.

They are usually found in pairs or as a family group but can flock together. They come easily to feeders with wild birdseed in them but also eat insects and grren algae material.

This poor little thing was so scared, I could feel its little heat pumping in my hand and let him go as soon as I could. Generally they are very difficult to get pictures of without a long lens as they fly off as soon as you come near so I was very pleased to have this opportunity to get pictures.

Wild flowers

2009-11-05T00:02:00.000-08:00

A few wild flower pictures taken during a walk on the farm.

Is the no place without ants?

Large Brown Longhorn Beetle

2009-11-04T00:02:00.001-08:00

These beetles are amazin with their long horns. They are mainly nocturnal.
The larvae possess and enzyme for digesting cellulose. They are borers prefering the Acacia trees.

Giant tree fern

2009-11-03T00:02:00.000-08:00

Oh dear!! I thought everyone would recognize this as a fern frond...... but this week has been fun. Thank you everyone for taking part.

Giant tree ferns flourished when dinosaurs still roamed the planet while others are more modern, undergoing active adaptation to specific environments. They mostly have a distinctly primeval appearance with a tall rhizome/trunk holding a palm-like group of fronds, the fern's leaves. Much of what we know about their origins is based on an extensive fossil record, with the earliest fossils dating back some 385 million years.
There are about 600 different species of tree fern around the world. Most of the ones here grow to a height of at least 12 feet (4 meters).

Tree ferns often have toxic as well as therapeutic properties, some of which have been explored for antiviral and medicinal uses. Oil extracted from ferns was a popular cure for internal parasites in Ancient Greece; in Fiji, infusions made from frond material of Cyathea lunulata were used to treat headaches or to shorten labour, and in Micronesia, fronds of Cyathea nigricans were used as a contraceptive.

Tree ferns have also long been associated with mystical animals. The tree fern Cibotium barometz, from China and Malaysia, is a short fern with a distinctive furry trunk. The rhizome, which is turned upside down, was mistaken early on as the "vegetable lamb", a strange beast that was thought to be half animal and half plant. Stories of a vegetable lamb, or organism sharing both plant and animal characteristics, date back to the time of Christ.

Mystery Monday - Part 26

2009-11-02T00:05:00.000-08:00

Back by popular demand...... an easy one to start off with...

Farm

2009-11-01T00:02:00.000-07:00

I went to spend a day on a small farm and took a pic of this lovely Impala lily which grows wild there.
As soon as the sun started to set the frogs and crickets came out and it felt like I was back in the bush again.

This handsome fellow came calling. :)

Soon it was dark and time to make dinner and eat outside on the veranda and with the last rays of sunlight fading fast, the outline of a tree against it.

A smile to brighten your day

2009-10-31T00:02:00.000-07:00

The nursery had these and I thought them quite amusing so I took photographs to share with you.

After the rain

2009-10-30T00:02:00.001-07:00

Now that we have had some rain it seems like the insects are popping out all over.
This interesting ladybug / ladybird larvae was crawling around the paved driveway for two days trying to find a plant until I picked it up and put it on a nearby bush.

These spiders, Flatties, are quite vicious and extremely difficult to get photographs of.

They do no stay still or let you come near them. I caught this one in a container and managed to sneak a peek at him with my camera by moving extremely slowly.

A pretty moth

2009-10-29T00:02:00.000-07:00

This is another of our pretty moths.
After chasing it for a while and it not letting me get near to it......

I eventually stalked it throught the grass on my stomach. :)

It is about the size of a quarter.

Feeding sequence

2009-10-28T00:02:00.001-07:00

I found some nesting Starlings and was happy to get this sequence of the female being fed by the male. As usual, they are not the best quality pictures but they were no too bad so I thought I would post them. Their nest was in a hollow of a palm tree.

Unexpected guest

2009-10-27T00:02:00.000-07:00

It is that time of year again where I discover all kind of unexpected guests in my home.
This little caterpiller is only about and inch in length and I almost stepped on him as he was crawling across the carpet.

Maybe he was trying to get out of the rain. :) I do like his colors.

Incredible long legs - ants

2009-10-26T00:02:00.000-07:00

This species (first two pics) have the most incrdible long legs I have ever seen on any ants and I wonder why they have them?
Like all insects, ants have six legs. Each leg has three joints.

The legs of the ant are very strong so they can run very quickly.

If a man could run as fast for his size as an ant can, he could run as fast as a racehorse.

Birds of Pilansberg - Part 4

2009-10-25T00:02:00.000-07:00

The colors of the early morning light are beautiful........
and coming around a corner, I startled this tiny little Steenbok who promptly jumped up and ran away as I was too close for comfort.

A young Crested Francolin was marching down the road scratching in the sand for a early morning feast.

The following three species of Hornbill are the most common in the park and are found all over. They loose their fear of humans very fast and love to be food at the picnic sites. The Grey Hornbill below was fast asleep on a branch.......

while the Red Hornbill look to see if I had brought something tasty along.

All of these are mainly insect eaters and will eat anything which crawls or flies. The Yellow Hornbill decided he was not going to be like the others and go begging for a morsel. Too much below his dignity.

Do you think this one was trying to tell me something? LOL!!

At one of the pools this Hadeda Ibis came in to land much to the disgust of the Egyptian Geese.

Cars in the Park - Part 5

2009-10-24T00:02:00.000-07:00

An incredible experience - baby Owl Fly

2009-10-23T00:02:00.000-07:00

Correction: Adrian has so kindly pointed out to me that this is actually an Owl Fly. You are quite correct. Thanks for the correction. I had quite forgotten about them.Thats what happens when one gets behind on posts and does one too quickly. :)

I have been lucky to have some incredible (for me) experiences with insects since I have been photographing them.
One morning I got up at 3am to go and take some pictures of moths which were flying around a nearby outside light. The next thing I knew this newly hatched Owl fly landed on my finger.

Adults in this family are from medium to large size. They have the very long and clubbed antenna. When rest, their abdomen is extended above the stem that they are sitting on while their wings hanging downwards. Adults are predator, hunting insects in flight. Usually they are active during the day.

Owl-fly lays eggs on grass seed stem. Their eggs are hard and oval, laid in masses around twigs or grass-stalk, number in about 50 to 100.

Incredible eyes

2009-10-22T00:02:00.000-07:00

The grasshopper uses its two pair of eyes (the simple and compound) to see, the tympanum to hear sounds, palps to taste, the antennae for feeling and smelling. The five senses are sight, hearing, taste, touch, and scent.

Parts:
Antennae- detect odour and touch
Simple eyes- sense changes in light brightness
Compound eyes- sense movement and crude images
Mouth parts- designed for chewing
Palps- used for tasting
Wings- thin but rigid and veined
Tympanum- a round membrane designed for the grasshopper to detect sound waves
Spiracles- tiny holes that allows air to enter the trachea
Protection:
The grasshopper has a hard outer shell called an exoskeleton made of chitin, to protect it. It also preserves moisture.

I found this cocoon.....

2009-10-21T00:02:00.000-07:00

and took it home to see if anything would hatch from it. After a couple of days, I woke up one morning to find a hole in the one end.....
and this moth climbing around the container in which I was keeping it. This is his back....
and his stomach....
These cocoon spinning moths are sometimes farmed and the silk is used to spin yarn from. When dyed, this makes the most beautiful clothes and scarves.

Chameleon

2009-10-20T00:02:00.000-07:00

Before I get to my usual post today I would like to wish two VERY special people a HAPPY BIRTHDAY!! These miniture roses are as perfect as you. With love, hugs and best wishes always. Have a wonderful day.
If I had seen this picture without knowing the size, I would have thought it to be a dragon from days gone by. Did they really exist? Are they a myth? Maybe they did live and only the size has been exaggerated?

I am not going to add information on chameleons as I have already given you most of their interesting information in:

Flapped-necked Chameleon and Dwarf Chameleon to which you can click these links if you want to read more about them.

I have never seen one with these yellow markings and by the picture above, you can see just how small she actually is.

She kept on wanting to climb onto my camera. :)

"So, what ya lookin' at? Take that thing outta my face will ya!! What's a gal gotta do to get some peace around here?"

Rhino Beetle

2009-10-19T00:02:00.000-07:00

Life has a way of sometimes smacking you in the mouth to keep you in line. It always reminds me of the lines from the film “Man of La Mancha” (Peter O’Toole and Sophie Loren) when he speaks about “life as it is, and not as it should be”. How sad, cold and cruel life can be! One of the small pleasures (for me) is being able to get into the bush and find peace and quiet again no matter what life throws at me.

Have you thought you were being stalked? That was how I felt when I saw this Rhino Beetle. Thank goodness he is still a young one and only about half an inch in length.
The rhinoceros beetles or rhino beetle are a subfamily (Dynastinae) of beetles in the family of scarab beetles (Scarabaeidae). They are among the largest of beetles, and their common name refers to the characteristic horns borne by the males of most species in the group. The male beetles use their horns in mating battles against other males.
Their larval stage is long, several years in some species. The larvae feed on rotten wood while the adults feed on nectar, plant sap and fruit. Rhinoceros beetle larvae are sometimes fried and eaten as a bush delicacy. Rhinoceros beetles are popular pets in Asia. They are clean, easy to maintain, and safe to handle. In Asian countries, male beetles are also used for gambling fights. Insect fighting is a blood sport involving insects. It is practised in areas in China, Japan, and Thailand. There are people who train and fight their insects against other insects in underground fighting arenas.... since they naturally compete for female beetles with the winner knocking the other off a log.

Rhinoceros beetles are also the strongest animals on the planet in relation to their own size. They can lift up to 850 times their own weight. To put this into perspective, if a human of average height and weight had the strength of the rhinoceros beetle, he would likely be able to lift a 65 ton object (e.g. an M1 Abrams tank).

Saturday's walk around the nursery - Part 5 final

2009-10-18T00:02:00.000-07:00

Calceolaria come in all colors. They are a small indoor plant.
Some of the plants like this had the most interesting leaves and are ones I have never seen before so I am not sure if they are hybrids or mported plants.

The daylilies were particularly beautiful this year.

This shady spot had a lovely little waterfall hidden away amongst the plants so all you hear is the tinkling of water when you come near.

A most unusual orchid.

This Bromelaid is a new one to me too.

These are also Bromeliads but have interesting leaves.

Jacaranda City

2009-10-17T00:02:00.000-07:00

The Jacaranda is one of South Africa's best known trees, but it is an invasive exotic that was originally introduced from Brazil and Argentina.
Pretoria is also known as the 'Jacaranda City' because of the prevalence of these trees on the city's streets and parklands. The jacaranda is most noticeable in spring when it flowers in bright displays of purple-blue.

The name jacaranda is derived from Portuguese meaning "to have a hard core, hard branch".

Although the purple-blue is the most well know, Jacarandas are found in 4 different colours, including white, yellow and pink. Pink Jacarandas are found further north in Zimbabwe.

They are also a popular tree in Florida, California and Australia.

These are some of the formal gardens from which I took some of the above photographs.

Even here in the distance are Jacaranda trees.

Irises

2009-10-16T00:02:00.000-07:00

A co-worked got married last weekend and asked me to take some pictures of the wedding party in a nearby park. Naturally I went early and browsed around to see what pictures I could get for my blog and the variety of Irises caught my eye.
With hundreds of varieties in several different colors and combinations, Irises are popular and easy to grow perennial. The most common larger varieties are great at the back of the flower bed or as a cutting. For flower growers, there is a place in your garden for one, or several groups. But, be careful, as they spread quickly and can overcome other flowers.

Irises are grown from both seed and root separation. The roots, or Rhizomes, are easily separated and replanted. The Rhizome looks like a long, thin potato with roots underneath. When transplanting, separate the Rhizome. Make sure to have some root and a leaf or two in each section. Plant the Rhizomes near the surface with the roots below. Space them a foot or so apart . They will fill in the spaces quickly.

If you want a low maintenance, easy to grow flower, you have come to the right plant. Irises like full sun, but tolerate partial shade well. Their only demand is well draining soil to avoid root rot. The soil does not need to be the richest in your yard. Nor, does it demand heavy fertilizer feeding. Once established, you will need to water them only in the driest part of the year. Fertilize occasionally. Do not apply heavy doses of Nitrogen.

Being a hardy plant, Irises are not often bothered by insects. They can suffer from occasional root borers.

Irises seldom are affected by disease. The most common problem is root rot, which is caused by poorly draining soils. In preparing beds, make sure soil is light and well draining. Raise the soil level if need be. Also add sand, and compost if you have clay soil.

Here is a funny!!

2009-10-15T00:02:00.000-07:00

I was out at the local airport and saw these doves building their nest on this car. I wonder how long it had been parked there? It was a nice Landrover too!!