Home away from home - Final

My last morning here! I hate the though of going home again. But I feel very relaxed in the bush and wish I could stay forever. I am going to a small dam where we saw the rhino last night. I know a family of squirrel lives in a large hole in a tree and want to get some photos. I get there and open my door in order to lie flat on my stomach in the car. This way I can get lovely shots without only getting the tops of their heads. They are looking for food and I get some excellent footage. I am taking a side road which will eventually end up at the gate I am going out of so the road is fairly free of cars.

Just then I spot a tail hanging down from a tree. No, it can’t be! Yes, it is! A leopard! He is about twenty yards away and is looking around to see if there is prey in the area. I cannot believe my luck and grab my camera. He is so close and in the open I get some nice shots of him. He yawns and licks his coat. The camera is working overtime. I spend 45 minutes with him before another car arrives. He sits a few minutes more then jumps down and is gone. I cannot wait to get home now and have the slides developed to see how my shots came out. In each day I have at a game reserve, I have a highlight and this has to be the best sighting I will have today. It cannot get better. I move on to my favorite dam and get out the coffee and rusks (my staple diet while in a game park). The area is crowded with game and this early, before the heat, the animals are very active. Two waterbuck are sparing but not seriously. Tick birds sit on the backs of animals feeding. A fish eagle flies low over the water and goes to sit in a dry tree on the bank to look for food. This is the cycle and rhythm of the bush. Finding food (or being preyed upon) and sleeping. Living one day at a time. I sometimes feel us humans can learn a lot from the animals. We are always in too much of a rush, get stressed out at our hectic pace and always living by the clock. Here there is no time. Just feeding of stomachs when it is hungry.
Warthogs are rooting for food nearby and I take some pictures. Both male and female have tusks and these are kept sharp as the bottom ones continually rub against the top ones. They actually develop calluses on the joints of their front knees from foraging on them. I have not seen any wilddogs on this trip although I know there are some in this area and have been looking out for them. They usually hunt during the day, preferring early morning and late afternoon. I watch the running around of young wildebeest. A calf is able to stand within five minutes of being born and can run as fast as the herd within twenty minutes. Nature is wonderful and fascinating and I will never get tired of watching animals. Vervet monkeys are scurrying around searching for food. They are the only type of monkey found in the park. They have cheek pouches in which they store food and unlike most monkeys, cannot use their tails for swinging from branch to branch instead, they are able to jump long distances. They are very social and so the size of the troop can vary according to the area, but usually there are about twenty in a troop. I move on and find a small herd of elephant with a tiny baby amongst them. Baby elephants weigh about one hundred and twenty kilograms when born and are always wonderful to watch. I have seen fetuses of them and they are absolutely the perfect miniature of what they grow up to be. A few male buffalo cross the road and I spot a pair of Steenbok. Because of their coloring, they are often mistaken for young impala, but a closer look will show that they have only a short stump for a tail whereas impala tails are noticeable longer.

It is time to head out and I stop at a camp to have lunch before going home. This has been a fantastic trip, but then again, so are all of my trips here. I loved every minute of my many years working here, bringing visitors to the park and explaining to them the different habits of the animals. Each day was different even though we saw the same animals every day. What a wonderful place and a wonderful life I have lived and would gladly do it all again if I had to live my life over.

I would like to thank everyone for following my story. I tried to make it educational as well as giving everyone a hint of what my life was like or what to expect if visitors come to South Africa and visit Kruger National Park.

Green Crab Spider (Synema Sp) Thomisidae

I found this tiny little hunting spider on a rose. He is hardly bigger than two match-heads together.
He was busy spining a web for himself amongst the petals.....

and as I got near, he sent some onto the branch next to me. This is an awful photograph but if you enlarge it, you can see the silk coming out on the right.

Home away from home - Part 9

On the road again, I go and check on a tree I know where there are a lot of brown-headed parrots nesting. At this time of year, they are many small ones and I watch the activity. I have seen snakes in this tree going after the eggs and babies, but there are none now. It is amazing how much noise they can make. The road takes me partly along a river and at a lookout, I stop to watch the hippos. They have a very thick skin of about 5cm and this accounts for one third of their body weight. For their size, they are extremely fast runners and in Africa, cause more deaths to humans than any other animal. In some of the central African countries, their dung is used to bait fish traps. A hippo can remain submerged for about five or six minutes. There are baboons sitting in the shade. They have larger canine teeth than cheetah and are estimated to live about forty years. The youngsters chase each other around and others are busy feeding on the flowers of a bush and grass seeds, but I also see them looking under rocks for anything that might be hidden there.

There are a lot of kudu in this area. They have a distinctive hump on their backs and five or six vertical white stripes down their sides. In proportion to their heads, they have extremely large ears. I spot some female Nyala which do not look anything like the males. They are almost an orange colour, also have white stripes down their sides and are sometimes seen amongst the impala herds. The males are much larger and are seldom seen but look more like kudu. At a waterhole, I find a hyaena lying in the water to cool down. They are the largest of the three types of hyena found in South Africa, the other two being the brown and stripped hyaena.
Many giraffe around feeding on their favorite food which is Acacia trees. This is eaten thorns and all. They have the longest tongue of all mammals and use them to strip the ends off the branches. It is always easy to see if giraffe are in an area as the tree branches are bare at about the four / five meter height. It is estimated they can reach a speed of 55 km. Giraffe and rhino are not found in areas where there are Tsetse flies. There is a lovely bird hide overlooking a dam and I stop there to watch the Jacana, black Crakes, kingfishers, herons and Darters feeding. This is a wonderful place to spend a couple of hours. It is starting to get late and I head for the camp. I am looking for lion and leopard now and hope for a sighting of either before the day is out. But I reach camp not seeing either. I have decided to go on a night drive and hurry to get on the truck. We head out onto a side road not usually used by normal visitors to the park. We have spot lights and soon a Spotted Eagle owl is seen. He has pink eyelids and sits very quietly looking for prey. Next we stop to watch a Serval. They are large animals of the cat family with very long legs and big ears and strictly nocturnal. He is busily hunting for rats and guinea fowl. We come out behind a dam and see two white rhino feeding on the grass around it. Our light reflects in the eyes of impala, wildebeest and zebra and we see another hyaena slinking off somewhere. Suddenly there is a loud cry of “Lions!” It is a huge pride, one of the biggest I have ever seen and count 22 of them. There are three males, many full grown females with their adult daughters and cubs ranging from two years down to six months. Camera flashes are going off as we sit and watch them. They are not out hunting so I gather that they have eaten recently. Or maybe some of the pride is out hunting while these wait around looking after the cubs. They mostly hunt giraffe as this is large enough to feed the whole pride and they will not have to hunt again for a few days. The females do most of the hunting and then call the males to the kill. Males kick out of a pride because of old age or illness become man-eaters as they are unable to hunt successfully for themselves. One time when I had a group of people with me and we were at a small camp in a private game reserve, we had got back to camp and I dashed to shower and came out to go to the kitchen in order to see how supper was getting on. There coming through the gates was this lion. No knowing what else to do and not wanting my guest to get mauled by a lion, I started to stamp my feet and gesture with my hands and said “Shoo, shoo” Luckily he turned and walked back out the gate. Some of the guests came out and saw him disappearing, called the others, and we all piled back into the Kombi and followed him down the road. My camp attendants told me that this lion was shot by wardens two days later as he had become a man-eater and killed and eaten some people in the area. To this day I cannot believe that I had said “shoo” to him. I guess he could not stand the crazy woman making a noise and would not run from him and decided I would not be tasty anyway. Our night drive continued, but after spending so much time looking at the lions, we did not have any for other game viewing. I for one was satisfied with having seen the Serval.
I put some sausage on the braai (barbeque) and together with the fruit left over from last night, have a great meal outdoors. After a shower, I spend some time sitting on a bench watching the impala drinking at a waterhole just outside the fence. The young impala will reach there full height within three years, but I wonder how many will be killed by predators before then. A jackal comes down for a drink then I watch him disappear into the long grass. I head for bed and spend another peaceful night sleeping outdoors.
Part ten coming soon………

Black Moorii

I hate to admit this, but for once Craig was on the right track and came up with the first answer that it was a fin even though it was by sheer accident. :) Okay the wrong fish of course but I am happy with "fin". Congrats, at least there is one week you won now. :)
Thanks for playing everyone!!

The Tropheus Moorii (Kaiser II) Cichlid originates from the rocky coastal waters of Lake Tanganyika, Africa and is about 4 inches in body length. They are completely black except for a yellow vertical band that runs the entire width of the fish in the middle of their body.
These fish have the amazing ability to hide this band when stressed. Like other species in the Tropheus genus, they are extremely aggressive towards their own kind.

Clipper Butterfly

Parthenos sylvia was scientifically described in 1775 by Pieter Cramer, a Dutch merchant of Spanish wool with a great interest in butterflies. The common name, clipper, is an allusion to the species’ white wing patches that look like the multiple billowing sails on the mighty sailing trade ships of Cramer's day. The white patches are located on the clipper's forewings and stand out against a background that varies in color.
The appearance of this Indo-Australian butterfly fluctuates across its broad geographic distribution. The wings may change in size and be blue, green, orange or brown, but the white patches remain unchanged in all of the 26 subspecies.

The Clipper butterfly exhibits various modes of protection from predators during its many stages of life. The lives of larval clippers greatly depend upon their meal choices and they prefer to eat the leaves of passion vines and moonseeds. The brown and black striped caterpillars covered with rows of purple spines absorb some of the poisonous organic substances of the plants to make themselves noxious to predators. The chrysalides, however, try to avoid being seen by predators in the first place and appear green or brown, depending on the subspecies.

Closely resembling a folded leaf, a clipper chrysalis is extremely difficult to spot in the forests they prefer to inhabit. Clipper adults are so brightly colored that they are easy to see, but protect themselves through unpredictability. Flying in erratic patterns through the tree canopy, clipper adults are difficult to attack or catch unless they stop to feed or rest.

Once captured, the clipper butterfly is relatively easy to breed and rear in a tropical butterfly enclosure. Sufficient quantities of its preferred larval food plant must be available, however, in order to appease the voracious caterpillars. Clipper butterflies are valued by collectors and wild individuals are marketed alongside cultured specimens from tropical butterfly ranches.

Mystery Monday - Part 22

Home away from home -Part 8

Nearing camp, there are giraffe standing perfectly still and I know they have see a predator but the grass and the bushes make it impossible for me to catch a glimpse of what they are looking at. I switch off the engine and wait. Maybe it will come more into the open. Still I wait. Eventually the giraffe go back to eating and I do not find out what they were looking at. In camp, I set up my mattress and mosquito net in a corner and head for the showers. I take a stroll over to the shops and decide to have a healthy meal tonight and stock up on grapes, peaches, cucumber, tomatoes and a nice pineapple and cheese. The bats are coming out of an old building and I stop to watch them. It seems as if there are thousands. Later one when it is dark and there are lights on, I watch them making a meal of the insects flying around a light near to me. I am picking on my food while watching them and after a trip to the bathroom, curl up for the night. I smell elephant, but it is too dark to see them. Hyaenas are howling in the distance. I hear a rustling in the bushes nearby, but nothing is visible. It is good to relax after the hot day and I soon fall asleep only to awaken some time later by the sound of lions in the distance. Rising early to have my coffee and rusks, I decide to take a circular route which will put me at another camp by lunchtime. I wonder what the day will bring. There are small Steenbok. They stand as till as statues when danger threatens and hope that this will make predators miss them. They mate for life and will only take a new partner if one dies. They are small enough to be able to get all their moisture from the food they eat and so are found all over the park as they are not dependent on water. I watch the young impala again as they dash this way and that playing what seems to be a game of tag.

The male buffalo wallow in a small pool of water left over from the rain, and a herd of kudu graze peacefully on some bushes. The kudu have long twisted horns and there is a statue of two at one of the camps. They were found dead in the veld with their horns entwined. Probably during a fight for females, their horns got lock and they could not get them separated. There is very old male elephant, he is very thin and can hardly feed himself. I heard later that he died about three days after seeing him. In certain areas the elephants are prone to a disease which paralyses the muscles in their trunks, the common name being “floppy trunk disease” they then die of starvation as they are unable to feed themselves. A pride of lions are lying on the road but there are a lot of cars and I go past. People look at me as if I am mad. How can I possibly NOT stop for lions? Some people go there to see only lions and classify their day by this alone. Some will tell you that they saw nothing for the day, meaning “no lions” they do not take much interest in anything else. I stop to look at some spider webs which are highlighted against the background of the sun. It is fascinating to watch them spin these webs, each species of spider building theirs differently. They climb up a bush and let the wind carry them across an open space while dangling by a thread of silk. When the have built this first thread they can now complete their spinning. This one belongs to the beautiful Golden Orb spider which is black with yellow bands. There are huge balls of what looks like white cotton wool in some of the trees. They belong to a family of jumping spiders which the baboons are very fond of eating. There are thousands of eggs in each ball. Coffee time finds me at a water hole and I decide to spend some time here watching the coming and going of the animals. I set up my camera and wait to see if anything interesting might happen. There are all kinds of animals in the vicinity. One elephant seems to think that the water hole belongs to him and chases the impala away. They wander around and try to come back but he squirts them with water. It is the first time I have seen such behavior and wonder where he learnt that trick. It is amazing when you watch animals to see how many things they do are in some way related to human behavior. Nothing too exciting and I set off to my lunch destination. This camp is built high on a hill with an excellent look-out point overlooking the river. There are a lot of elephant plus all the usual species of animal. I get a Creamsoda float from the café and sit watching everything going on below. There are many eagles flying around. I spot the v-shaped tail of the yellow-billed kite and watch as it floats in the air not seeming to ever flap its wings. There are Weavers collecting scraps of bread that fall from people’s lunches, Buffalo weavers, Starlings and sparrows. The one thing in the bush is that there is always something to see. I watch some ants which are careful to avoid antlion traps. These small bugs make a cone type trap and if the ants fall in, they cannot get out. The swimming pool is calling me and I go for a dip to cool down. It is peaceful here and the though of work does not even cross my mind. But tomorrow at lunch time I must return to civilization.

Part nine coming soon…….

Sterkfontein Caves - Part 1

The Sterkfontein Caves - about 50 (30 miles) km from Johannesburg - is the site of some of the most important discoveries concerning the evolution of man and has been declared a World Heritage Site.

How do mangoes grow

For many people who live in colder climates, it is sometimes interesting to see where tropical fruits come from and how they grow.

The mango belongs to the family Anacardiaceae in the genus Mangifera. The family consists of 41 species of which the mango (Mangifera indica) is the most important. Compared to citrus and bananas, mangoes are the third most important crop in the tropics.

The mango tree is an evergreen medium to large (9 – 35 m) tree. The tree has a long tap-root up to 6 m in depth and dense mass of feeding roots just beneath the soil surface. Mango leaves are simple leaves that are entire, leathery, short, pointed and oblong to lanceolate. Crushed leaves of many cultivars emit a distinct turpentine odour. New leaves are formed in periodic flushes about two to three times a year. In mature trees the first flush during the dry season is usually transformed into a flower flush.

The mango is tolerant to a wide range of climatic conditions. It is successfully cultivated, under conditions which vary from very hot, very humid to cool and dry, to very hot and arid.
Mangoes are an excellent source of vitamins C and A, both important antioxidant nutrients. Vitamin C promotes healthy immune function and collagen formation. Vitamin A is important for vision and bone growth.

They are a good source of dietary fiber. Diets low in fat and high in fiber-containing grain products, fruits and vegetables are associated with a reduced risk of some types of cancer.

They contain over 20 different vitamins and minerals.

Question time

An update on the people interested in the owls: I am happy to say they are ready to be released and I will do so tonight. It has been a wonderful experience working with them and getting them back to this point. I have considered keeping them still a while but it would be for purely selfish reasons as I like watching them and being able to stroke them. They need to be free!! Thanks for the interest and kind words.

As you know by now, I like to throw a spanner in the works occasionally. I come across situations which puzzle me so today my question is:

Why are there people who are so afraid of living?

Maybe it is just that I have always gone out and made the most of my life that I do not understand people who are willing to sit at home and let the world pass them by. What are they afraid of? Why will they not allow themselves to be social, to see what is out there in the world. They will not allow themselves to get close to someone in case they get hurt. They will not travel or make anything of themselves. They come up with all kinds of excuses like “I like sleeping in my own bed” “I was hurt before” “I am studying” “I don’t e-mail because I have nothing to say” “I do not blog because everyone’s comments are mundane” “I do not comment because the subjects are boring” “I have nothing in common with other people” on and on and on. Surely there is more to life than sitting at home and growing old?
Isn’t it the greatest feeling in the world to find that someone cares for you, accepts you for who and what you are, wants to share things with you, has more in common with you than what you care to notice, that wants to be with you through thick and thin, plus life’s ups and downs.

Are they too afraid to take a chance in life? Are they too afraid to give themselves or part of themselves, to someone? Is that not what life is all about?

So take a chance. You might find a whole new world and a joy in life which you have never experienced before. Isn’t it worth a little something to find out and see what could lay ahead for you?

It seems that for these people the words of the Bette Midler song in the right hand column are very true.