Animal pictures
Catherine Milton
I've done (!) and I know that there are some people who like to see the
animal pics, so here's the new page: www.africanbush.co.za/Ryan.htm
Catherine--
==Not nuts, just a little eccentric==
www.africanbush.co.za
African Bush Tours and Safaris
P O Box 232, Rouxville, 9958, South Africa
Tel (+27) 051 663-0170 or Mobile (+27) 082 490-5485
Annette
and tree of what it is, may enhance your site.
--
Groetnis
Annette
"Catherine Milton" <pecan....@iafrica.com> wrote in message
news:dn5mfs$8lm$1...@ctb-nnrp2.saix.net...
Denis
--
Denis
Hard work never killed anyone...but why take a chance?
Catherine Milton
Did you go into each pic, or just look at the thumbnails? I do have
captions.
Catherine
"Annette" <ann...@ctnet.co.za> wrote in message
news:7o-dnSMzibZO_gve...@is.co.za...
Joan
Catherine Milton wrote:
> I know that there are some people who like to see the
> animal pics, so here's the new page: www.africanbush.co.za/Ryan.htm
*Lovely* pics, Catherine! Wish I had the money to go all the way to
Africa and see these up-close in the wild like that! sigh. North
Dakota's just tooooooo far away!
Thanks for posting them.
Joan
Joyce
Joyce in RSA.
"Annette" <ann...@ctnet.co.za> wrote in message
news:7o-dnSMzibZO_gve...@is.co.za...
Trish Brown
Wow! I loved the pics, Catherine! Is the Black Crake a secretive bird
(ours are)? He seems so bold, wading in open water like that!
I love the pic of the tree-on-a-rock! Is it some kind of fig?
We often get Moreton Bay figtrees growing out of the fronts of buildings
here in N'cle. The Figbirds excrete the seeds in some unusual places and
the little trees will take advantage of the tiniest cranny to get a
roothold. The best one of these I've seen is one that took root on the
facade of the old Castlemaine Brewery in the west-end of town. The
tree's about eight feet tall now and is probably over a hundred years
old. The building is no longer a brewery but is the Regional Museum, so
it's sort of fitting to have a tree growing out of the brick wall (about
three storeys up). It gets you thinking...
The Hornbill is a stately-looking fellow! How tall is he? Does he bite?
I've read that Hornbills eat fruit, but this one looks as though a drop
of flesh wouldn't pain him too much?
I *love* the hippobottomusses! How sweet! (Yeah, I know they have a
record for killing people, but seeing them wallowing there in tons of
fat just makes me feel positively at home!) Do they often go for people?
(ie. how close is 'too close' for an intrepid photographer?)
Thanks for posting the link again - I'd lost it and love to keep up with
goings-on over your way. ;-D
--
Trish {|:-} Newcastle, NSW, Australia
Trish Brown
Ppppbbblllfffttt! I forgot to ask: is the Honey Badger the same animal
as the Ratel? (Mongoosey-looking creature with an evil disposition...?)
Catherine Milton
>
> Wow! I loved the pics, Catherine! Is the Black Crake a secretive bird
> (ours are)? He seems so bold, wading in open water like that!
>
I don't think it's a particularly secretive bird, but I must admit it's the
first time I've seen one that I can photgraph. When I'm touring I need to
go at the pace of my tourists, and if they are not interested in birds, then
they will only resent me for stopping for birds which may have caused them
to miss the leopard! :-) With these people I was very fortunate, as the
husband was a photography freak, and it was rather comical, as we'd stop at
a sighting, both take identical pictures (almost) (of course, mine were
better) and then sit and compare them before moving on. lol
> I love the pic of the tree-on-a-rock! Is it some kind of fig?
I was hoping nobody would ask that question. In fact I was hoping someone
would volunteer the information! Judging from the root structure it looks
like a fig, but the shape of the tree belies that fact. My photograph is
just not clear enough to enlarge it enough to see the leaves properly, but
it did look as if it may be bipinnate (? - like the pea family), so I really
can't be certain. Trees are something tourists are even less likely to
want to stop for, and we couldn't get very close to that one anyway. I did
get a close-up of some droppings which I wanted to identify later, but
decided not to put that up on the site.
> We often get Moreton Bay figtrees growing out of the fronts of buildings
> here in N'cle.
If you ever come to South Africa and go to Cape Town to the Krstenbosch
Botanical Gardens, you'll see a row of Moreton Bay figs growing next to the
old road to Hout Bay. These were planted by Cecil John Rhodes well over a
hundred years ago to commemorate the visit of Queen Victoria. They are
huge, and when they and the Camphor trees became too big for the traffic to
pass, instead of cutting them down, they built another road.
<snip>
> The Hornbill is a stately-looking fellow! How tall is he? Does he bite?
> I've read that Hornbills eat fruit, but this one looks as though a drop
> of flesh wouldn't pain him too much?
Well now. They're the size of turkeys, more or less. My book doesn;t give
the hight, but the length is up to 130cms, and the weight is up to 4kgs.
They are carnivorous, eating insects, reptiles, frogs, snails, and small
mammals. I think that answers the biting question too.
> I *love* the hippobottomusses! How sweet! (Yeah, I know they have a
> record for killing people, but seeing them wallowing there in tons of
> fat just makes me feel positively at home!) Do they often go for people?
> (ie. how close is 'too close' for an intrepid photographer?)
According to Smithers hippos are the most dangerous animals in Africa. They
are very aggressive, especially when they have babies. As long as you don't
get between the hippo and the water, you should not be in too much danger,
as long as you keep a respectable distance. In Kruger, we may not get out
of the car, so I've never had to test this theory.
> Thanks for posting the link again - I'd lost it and love to keep up with
> goings-on over your way. ;-D
I have now uploaded another set of pictures, but I'll add that in another
post.
Catherine
Joyce
tortoise in its beak. It was holding it by the edges of the shell, and the
little legs and head were waving around.
Joyce in RSA.
"Trish Brown" <kawb...@ozemail.com.au> wrote in message
news:4398c5c1$0$22278$5a62...@per-qv1-newsreader-01.iinet.net.au...
Trish Brown
<snip>
>>I love the pic of the tree-on-a-rock! Is it some kind of fig?
>
>
> I was hoping nobody would ask that question. In fact I was hoping someone
> would volunteer the information! Judging from the root structure it looks
> like a fig, but the shape of the tree belies that fact. My photograph is
> just not clear enough to enlarge it enough to see the leaves properly, but
> it did look as if it may be bipinnate (? - like the pea family), so I really
> can't be certain. Trees are something tourists are even less likely to
> want to stop for, and we couldn't get very close to that one anyway.
Yeah, y'get that! It took me *years* to teach DH to stop for birds. Then
for trees. Then for pasture grasses and weeds on the roadside verge.
He's well-trained now and usually stops when I bellow 'Loogathat!'
'Cept in the middle of the freeway, of course. Although...
I reckon your tree could be a pea-plant at that (especially if, as you
say, the leaves are bipinnate). I'm trying to recall the Oz genus I'm
thinking of, but of course I'm having a Senior Moment and can't remember
it. It's smooth-barked, shows a figlike spreading root structure if
stressed and has flowers not unlike a Cassia... Psilotum? Psoralea? No!
Silly me! I'm going bonkers (pay no attention).
Nope. It's gone! I'll let you know if it comes to me.
>
> I did get a close-up of some droppings which I wanted to identify later, but
> decided not to put that up on the site.
Ooooh! I *love* droppings! I mean, they're really interesting and tell
you so much about the creature that deposited them, don't they? Why
didn't you post the poo-pics???
>
> > We often get Moreton Bay figtrees growing out of the fronts of buildings
>
>>here in N'cle.
>
>
> If you ever come to South Africa and go to Cape Town to the Krstenbosch
> Botanical Gardens, you'll see a row of Moreton Bay figs growing next to the
> old road to Hout Bay. These were planted by Cecil John Rhodes well over a
> hundred years ago to commemorate the visit of Queen Victoria. They are
> huge, and when they and the Camphor trees became too big for the traffic to
> pass, instead of cutting them down, they built another road.
Oh! Fancy that! Good old Cec! He had more imagination than the Wallsend
Town Council!
We had Moreton Bay figs over a hundred and fifty years old in our
suburb. The 'Progress' Society had them all choppped down, saying they
were a hazard because of dropping branches. (Have you ever known a fig
tree to drop branches? I haven't!!!) Miraculously, once the figs were
all taken away, the town carpark expanded to nearly double its size!
Bl**dy h*ll! What a sad, sad day that was! Of course, all the Figbirds
are gone now and they've replaced the trees with #)(%*%^& Bull Bay
Magnolias, which will grow almost as big and drop their spent petals and
squishy fruits all over people's cars! Hope they make a huge mess!
> Well now. They're the size of turkeys, more or less. My book doesn;t give
> the height, but the length is up to 130cms, and the weight is up to 4kgs.
> They are carnivorous, eating insects, reptiles, frogs, snails, and small
> mammals. I think that answers the biting question too.
Oo, I'd like to see him! We have nothing remotely resembling a hornbill
over here. I know there's all sorts of them (hornbills), but you rarely
ever get to see much about them on docos on the telly. Same with a lot
of North American species too. I wish me hero, Sir David Attenborough,
would do another series on Birds of the World. It would be *so* excellent!
I had a nice little brush with wildlife this morning! I took DD to a
birthday party and was just leaving when I spotted what looked like a
twig on the road. It was a Jacky Lizard! Even though they're recorded as
being 'common', I've never seen one in all me fifty years. Well this
morning, I got to hold this little dear and delight in his lovely grey,
spotty, spiny camouflagerie! I was stoked! He looked just like a slender
miniature Bearded Dragon (only smaller: about six inches long and
without the obvious 'beard'). LOL! I was tempted to bring him home and
keep him, he was so cute.
Then, as if on cue, the most annoying bird in the firmament flew
overhead. It was a pair of Koel Cuckoos (coincidental to your Coucal
photo). These birds make an infuriating noise that goes 'Ooooo-Oo!' and
they do it round the clock during the breeding season (Oz spring and
summer). Fortunately, the wretched things are migratory, so they'll
disappear. Eventually. Not soon enough for my liking: the neighbours'
Cocky has learned to imitate them! Hnnnnnnhhh!!!!!
Buff
> Catherine Milton wrote:
>
> <snip>
>
>>> I love the pic of the tree-on-a-rock! Is it some kind of fig?
>
> We had Moreton Bay figs over a hundred and fifty years old in our
> suburb. The 'Progress' Society had them all choppped down, saying they
> were a hazard because of dropping branches. (Have you ever known a fig
> tree to drop branches? I haven't!!!) Miraculously, once the figs were
> all taken away, the town carpark expanded to nearly double its size!
> Bl**dy h*ll! What a sad, sad day that was! Of course, all the Figbirds
> are gone now and they've replaced the trees with #)(%*%^& Bull Bay
> Magnolias, which will grow almost as big and drop their spent petals
> and squishy fruits all over people's cars! Hope they make a huge mess!
There were some plans to remove the beautiful old Moreton Bay figs here in
Perth as well, but "Revolution of The People" changed their minds ... not
that Perth City Councillors really /have/ minds, but they think they do!
Right in the middle of the City is a beautiful old park, on Welllington
Street opposite the Royal Perth Hospital, and there are some really lovely
100 year old trees on it. Of course, they play havoc with the roads and
the twisty, turny roots pop up through the bitumin and wreck the kerbing.
So Council decided "They must GO!". But they didn't, thank goodness. And
now one of the main ones, planted waaaaay back in the early 1800's and still
growing strong, is on the National Heritage List and the buggers can't touch
it! And don't you think that irks them ... ohhhh, yeah, it surely does!
:-D Power to the People, I say. We managed to save our trees and the
gateway part of the Old Colonial Barrack's Building on St. George's Terrace,
although I must admit that does look a bit odd sitting in the middle of the
Freeway without its supporting accomodation wings :-( But we did save
the Gateway! And for Perth, which has this peculiar idea that any building
over 20 years old is no longer useful, that is a major win!
<snip>
> I had a nice little brush with wildlife this morning! I took DD to a
> birthday party and was just leaving when I spotted what looked like a
> twig on the road. It was a Jacky Lizard! Even though they're recorded
> as being 'common', I've never seen one in all me fifty years. Well
> this
> morning, I got to hold this little dear and delight in his lovely
> grey, spotty, spiny camouflagerie! I was stoked! He looked just like
> a slender miniature Bearded Dragon (only smaller: about six inches
> long and
> without the obvious 'beard'). LOL! I was tempted to bring him home and
> keep him, he was so cute.
Ærchie has pictures of his little "finds" from the Great Sandy, especially
one of my favourites ... a Thorny Devil. They're cute little beings too.
>
> Then, as if on cue, the most annoying bird in the firmament flew
> overhead. It was a pair of Koel Cuckoos (coincidental to your Coucal
> photo). These birds make an infuriating noise that goes 'Ooooo-Oo!'
> and
> they do it round the clock during the breeding season (Oz spring and
> summer). Fortunately, the wretched things are migratory, so they'll
> disappear. Eventually. Not soon enough for my liking: the neighbours'
> Cocky has learned to imitate them! Hnnnnnnhhh!!!!!
Oh boy! Nasty. Our really annoying ones are the Black Cockies ... which
/screech/! Especially when they fly inland to escape wet weather. They
fly in big flocks, and all of them have this ear-piercing screech as they
pass overhead.
--
Buff