Can any of you cast your minds back to Doris Day singing Please don’t eat the daisies? The opening lines of the song came to mind when I saw this Zebra enjoying the newly green growth after a very dry winter:
Please, please don’t eat the daisies,
Don’t eat the daisies, please, please.
Please, please don’t eat the daisies,
Don’t eat the daisies, please, please.
Then:
Too late!
Love is in the air, in the rising of the sun
Love is in the air, when the day is nearly done
Cape Turtle Doves catching the sun on a branch.
Warthogs getting to know each other
Affectionate zebras
The urban lifestyle is so far removed from the natural order of things: eat and be eaten. While some may have fruit and vegetables growing in their gardens or on their balconies, the majority of urbanites rely on supermarkets, butchers, bakeries and the like for their daily food. Meat comes wrapped in styrofoam and plastic, bread is pre-sliced in plastic bags, vegetables are ready picked and washed on the shelves – perhaps even pre-chopped / sliced / mixed all ready for roasting or stir-frying …
That is not the case in nature, where the eat and be eaten order applies.
This is what remains of a Mountain Tortoise:
A Zebra munches the dry winter grass:
What is left of a Kudu:
The grisly end of a Cape Buffalo that had been a meal for many:
This is a Warthog grazing – note the way it rests on its front knees:
They also rest on their knees when drinking:
An elephant tucks into a nutritious meal:
What better place to celebrate Earth Day than to spend time away from a built-up environment: we chose to visit the nearby Addo Elephant National Park. Some visitors had close-up views of lions, spotted hyenas and even a black rhino. We didn’t draw that card, but observed a number of interesting things nonetheless.
It is the rutting season for kudu. Large herds of kudu does accompanied by one or two males appeared in several sections of the park we drove through, especially around Rooidam. Our attention was drawn to a loud hollow-sounding ‘thunking’ noise close to the road: two kudu bulls were sparring; kicking up dust as they locked horns and pushed each other this way and that.
What magnificent horns they sported. This is the victor of that encounter.
The heat drew herds of elephant to the bigger waterholes. We watched a group of four adults and two youngsters approach the small Marion Baree waterhole. They sprayed themselves with water on arrival.
They then moved to the mud hole next door, where the elephants scooped up balls of thick mud to throw over their backs.
By then the water in the concrete-lined dam had settled so a few drank before watching patiently as a youngster claimed the shallow dam for its own fun.
One has to watch out for dung beetles crossing the road at this time of the year.
Zebras with their painted faces did not disappoint.
Several came to quench their thirst at Domkrag.
A large flock of Pied Starlings came to join them.
A Karoo Scrub Robin came to investigate.
An inquisitive Egyptian Goose approached our vehicle at Hapoor.
Several Fork-tailed Drongos kept an eye on us at the Rest Camp water hole.
As did some Cape Glossy Starlings, looking magnificent in the late afternoon sunlight.
My bird list for the day:
Redwinged Starling
Barthroated Apalis
Fiscal Shrike
Speckled Mousebird
Southern Boubou
Common Moorhen
Redbilled Teal
Backsmith Plover
Redknobbed Coot
Spurwing Goose
Karoo Scrub Robin
Pied Crow
Common Ringed Plover
Egyptian Goose
South African Shelduck
Bokmakierie
Black Crow
Cape Sparrow
Greater Doublecollared Sunbird
Cape Turtle Dove
Cape Robin
Sombre Bulbul
Southern Black Korhaan
Helmeted Guineafowl
Crowned Plover
Pale Chanting Goshawk
Cape Wagtail
Grey heron
Forktailed Drongo
Cape Glossy Starling
Laughing Dove
I did not realise that yesterday was International Zebra Day, so am celebrating it today instead.
It is said that no zebra looks exctly like another – their stripe patterns are akin to our unique fingerprints. Look at these faces and you will easily note the differences:
