Houston Arboretum and Nature Center, Houston, Texas

“The thing about football -

the important thing about football -

is that it is not just about football”

(Terry Pratchett, Unseen Academicals, 2009)

I have been seeing so few birds of late (and photographing even fewer), that my “Birding” classification on “Blogger” is about to be withdrawn. The powers that be have decided that I would be best placed in “Outdoors (general)” section.

Loblolly Pines at Houston Arboretum

To a pedantic birder who can’t tick without proof positive and who prefers to reduce to sub-specific level where possible, the word “general” in a classification, even when bracketed, causes me some distress.

But I don’t go birding to feed neuroses; I feed my spirit from the woods and swamps though my wife has suggested more vegetables. I spend huge amounts of time away from my home and family as part of my employment with an airline. My choices while down-route are to sit in a homogenous room in a hotel, go shopping, or find a small patch of green on a map to explore and hopefully experience something of the local natural character.

When I don’t find birds there is always something in their place to make up for it. In Houston yesterday, for example, I found a delightful Ribbon Snake. Usually there is something exciting if not always welcomed; previously, I have been arrested, seduced, mistaken for a vagrant (twice) and nearly drowned.

Each time I go out, I am looking for a photograph that will take my breath away, a new red crayon bird or a natural event to rival the Serengeti migration. Realistically I am going to find a few local common birds and sometimes, just maybe, get a glimpse of something rare and wonderful that my well practiced, yet strangely still inadequate, skills will fail to capture with the camera.

Sometimes I meet people. Occasionally I even talk to them, although this is not one of my great talents. But then I will bump into someone inspirational and my faith in human nature will be restored.

Paraphrasing Terry Pratchett,

"The thing about birding -

the important thing about birding -

is that it is not just about birds."

And so to Houston, Texas.

A new hotel means approaching Memorial park from a different angle and in doing so I discovered the little Eden that is Houston Arboretum and Nature Center. It is in the western part of the park with the entrance on the southern side of Woodway Drive, close to the Interstate 610 . A brisk walk will bring you there in 30 mins. (Google Earth ref; 29* 45’ 56”N 95* 25’ 07”W)

For an official website try;

http://www.houstonarboretum.org/

Here you will find details of owl and bat walks enhanced with cheese and beer!

There is a visitor and nature centre with interpretative displays and limited refreshments.

Today was a Thursday in mid-September. It was still very warm and the birds were not very active. Very few of them strayed far from the visitor centre and almost every bird in the list below was seen there.

A party were working through the trees surrounding the building. It was made up with Downy Woodpecker, Red-bellied Woodpecker, Tufted Titmouse, Northern Cardinal and a Carolina Wren. While I was trying to get a picture of a Ruby-throated Hummingbird that was coming to a feeder, I noticed a Green Tree Frog clinging to the feeder support.

Suddenly a Cooper’s Hawk plunged into the trees and chased the birds back and forth through the upper storey. It was very persistent and kept the chase going for some time before following a Blue Jay over the building and out of sight.

Throughout the arboretum, American Beauty Berries were plump and purple. They look too vivid to be edible for humans, but if the birds like them, they are in for a bountiful autumn.A plant that visitors to the USA may not be familiar with is the Poison Ivy. If it comes into contact with the skin, the oil from this plant can produce nasty skin rashes and swelling. Rabbits however find it quite tasty.

Remember; "Leaves of Three, Let me be".

Much of the arboretum and surrounding Memorial Park is dominated by the Loblolly Pine. They are the dominant and emergent specie with smaller bushes and trees creating a mid and lower structure to the forest. A couple of notable exceptions were the wet area and the meadow.

The wet area was home to duelling Carolina Wrens. Perhaps three or four were singing at one time, competing to be the loudest, but only one showed itself.

There were dragonflies around, enjoying the heat. I wondered if it would be possible to catch one on the wing and surprised myself with this Common Green Darner.

This was a poor picture of a Blue Dasher, but I put it in to show how much is missed when a chap is hot and bothered in the full sun. Behind the branch is a Preying Mantis which I didn’t notice until I was looking at the picture at home on my computer.

The forest was very quiet except for a few hawks riding a thermal (Red-shouldered and Red-tailed) spotted through the gaps in the trees and a damselfly that I am struggling with.

The meadow in the south east part of the arboretum was a delight with wildflowers, butterflies, dragonflies and a small lake. I did encounter a party of birds just before I emerged from the forest, but it was at the same time as I encountered the only other visitors to the park with their two dogs. The birds dispersed quickly from the path as they passed, but I was able to get fleeting glimpses of Red-bellied Woodpecker, Downy Woodpecker, Tufted Titmouse, Northern Cardinal and Carolina Chickadee.

It was on the way back that I noticed something as it slid gently through the low weeds. All I could see was a striped tail, but it was too long for a lizard and had to be a snake. I scoured the vegetation beyond the tail and suddenly noticed the tiny movement of a tongue as it flicked in and out of a miniscule head with huge eyes. I later found that it was a Ribbon Snake.

Another delight was meeting my colleague, AP in the visitor centre where I called in for a drink. We stopped for a while to watch the hummingbirds before returning to the hotel, noting a White-winged Dove and a Red-headed Woodpecker flying across our path on the way.

Well watered lawns along the road were attracting tiny midgy flies which in turn attracted dragonflies. Black Saddlebags were common and were complimented by a few red saddlebags (which could have been Carolina, I have not yet mastered telling them apart inflight). A broadwinged damselfly flushed from the sidewalk rail on the off-ramp. I had to look it up when I got home and I suspect that it was a Smoky Rubyspot. I hope to colour it in red when I get confirmation.

Bird Species; 19

Turkey Vulture 3, Cooper’s Hawk 2, Red-shouldered Hawk 4, Red-tailed Hawk 6, Mourning Dove 6, White-winged Dove 4, Ruby-throated Hummingbird 6, Red-headed Woodpecker 1, Red-bellied Woodpecker 3, Downy Woodpecker 6, Carolina Wren 5, Blue-grey Gnatcatcher 8, Carolina Chickadee 8, Tufted Titmouse 4, Blue Jay 4, American Crow 6, Common Yellow-throat 2, Northern Cardinal 4, Common Grackle 6.

Common Whitetail Libellula Lydia, female

Odonata species;

Common Green Darner, Anax junius 25, Black Saddlebags Tramea lacerata 12, Common Whitetail Libellula Lydia 1, Blue Dasher Pachydiplex longipennis 6, Eastern Pondhawk Erithemis simplicicollis 4

Eastern Pondhawk Erithemis simplicicollis, female

Powai Lake, Mumbai, India

This is an addendum post for Powai Lake in Mumbai (Bombay), India. My time was severely limited in that I had over-indulged myself in curry and lager the night before and couldn’t get up. This itinerary also had an early pick-up for the return flight, so time was crimped from both sides.

To add to my haste, we started at the wrong place. Vihar Lake is a dam and as such is a target for extremist activists. Therefore it is vigilantly guarded by a man with a stick and crooked teeth who protects the dam from terrorists and tourists alike.

The effects of the Monsoon are still being felt and an overnight downpour had left Mumbai dripping. My spirits were further dampened by another sharp shower as I sat in the traffic with Daljeet Singh Mann, but it didn’t last long and a misty sunshine shared the rest of the morning with the cloud.

Arriving at last at Powai Lake, I noticed that the water level was much higher than my visit in February and that the floating islands of weed which had previously held so many birds were gone.

Given the day all over again, I would have asked Daljeet to drop me further along the road to the east and had him return to the west end. This way, I could have walked towards him with the sun behind me and had a better view of the birds. Note to self; the sun rises in the east and sets in the west. This holds true every day, all around the world.

Bronze-winged Jacanas and Indian Pond Herons flushed as I walked into the low sun, but I had a much better view (and a slightly clearer head) as I returned.

I noted a parakeet on top of a distant blasted palm and would have dismissed it as one of the abundant Rose-ringed Parakeet were is not for the size and the broadness of the pink collar. Closer inspection showed a blue/grey cheek and a gust of wind ruffled the upper coverts as I watched, to reveal a red shoulder.

It was an Alexandrine Parakeet which is still a common bird, but less often seen in town where the Rose-ringed reigns.

The higher water had inundated the informal track that I had followed last time and birding had to be done from the lake-side promenade. The bank-side weeds grow up to the walls of the walkway and Bronze-winged Jacanas can be seen from fairly close quarters picking through them.

For other Powai Lake posts follow;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/02/powai-lake-in-mumbai.html

For other Mumbai posts, follow;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/03/sanjay-ghandi-national-park-is-obvious.html

For other India posts follow;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/02/tughluqabad-fort-new-delhi.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/08/tughlaqabad-fort-new-delhi-india.html

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2009/10/sultanpur-new-delhi-india.html 

http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/04/mercury-had-passed-40c-in-new-delhi.html

Bird species 14


Little Egret 4, Cattle Egret 5, Indian Pond Heron 10, Black Kite 30, Bronze-winged Jacana 5, Alexandrine Parakeet 1, Asian Palm Swift 7, White-throated Kingfisher 1, Red-vented Bulbul 1, Yellow-bellied Prinia 2, House Crow 40, Common Myna 10, Asian Pied Starling 2, House Sparrow 2.

Daljeet Singh Mann

Raglans Wood, Tyson's Corner, Fairfax, VA, USA.

During a trip to Washington DC, we stay at a hotel in Tyson's Corner, McClean Fairfax County, Va. A layover here would usually involve a walk around the local area which contains office blocks separated by wooded plots. The birding here can often be rewarding, but I was picked up by the police last time I tried.

OK, so I was in my camouflage gear, creeping furtively through the woods between the offices with my binoculars and a big paparazzi-style camera. How was I to know that these were government buildings? If I had known I might have thought twice about wearing the balaclava (it was very cold). Three squad cars and seven officers attended the scene. Two pulled their guns when I reached into my jacket to produce my hotel room key to prove that I was staying close by.

At Raglan Road Park, there was none of this excitement, although I did get a funny look from an elderly gent when I inadvertently found myself in his backyard.

I found Ragland Road Park as a green smudge on the map and had no idea what to expect when I set out. It is an easy 5 minute, one and a half kilometre, minute ride from The Crowne Plaza Hotel at Tysons Corner, in a shallow valley with a small stream running through it. Access is via a path at the end of Tyspring St. (Google Earth ref; 38 55' 24"N 77 14' 27"W).

The thick canopy made it very gloomy inside the deciduous wood. A White-tailed Deer stepped out onto the path ahead and stood stock-still, checking me out, while I got the camera attached to the tripod and prepared for the first shot of the day. She was accompanied by a young, spotted fawn and I was surprised at how close she allowed me to approach.

A little further along, another group of deer was browsing in a dappled glade (how come glades are always dappled?). They continued to feed even though the path passed within 10 meters of them. The adult females had a darker coat with whisps of the fawny brown hair on their flanks. I wonder if they are shedding into a darker winter coat?

Soon I came to the stream. It is rocky in places, but a muddy bank showed signs of Racoon activity. The path either went into a residential road, or by skipping the stream, into the back lots of some offices. There was a narrow margin of trees between the car park and the stream. As I walked along, I flushed a large brown bird which flew silently away and out of sight. I felt sure that it was an owl and tried to predict its trajectory to judge where it might have come to rest.

For the next forty minutes or so, I scoured the search-zone, then retreated and approached from another direction. I crossed the stream on precariously placed rocks and found another angle to search from. In the distance a Blue Jay was calling hysterically. It was beyond the search zone, so I ignored it for the moment.

By a small ornamental pond, I found what looked like an owl pellet. It was on top of a light post (regurgitated there or found and placed, I do not know) and contained a lot of beetle casings, crustacian shell fragments, fish (could they be frog?) scales and thin rib bones. This might suggest a diet for an Eastern Screech Owl, but my elusive owl had been much bigger.

I was distracted by the outfall from the pond by a variable Dancer.

There had been no sign of the owl, but there is a lot of dead wood and it could easily have found somewhere to hide. A crow had now joined the jay and both were calling strongly a little way off, so I decided that it might be worth a try. As it turned out, it was not an hysterical jay, but a Red-shouldered Hawk that flew off as soon as it saw me. I reckon that it was the hawk that I flushed earlier and mistook it for an owl, although the bars on the hawk’s tail are very obvious inflight. I wonder how I might have missed them? The birding had been very slow today and the owl would have added a bit of glamour to an otherwise unimpressive list. A more practiced ear than mine may have noted the difference between the hawk and the jay’s calls, but after playing back my Peterson’s tapes, I still would not care to put money on it.

Beyond the ornamental pond and nursery school the path had a tarmac surface. Someone had tried to install a trim track, but it had been washed away. Apart from that and a couple of picnic tables for local smokers, the wood seemed unmanaged. There was a lot of dead wood and it was riddled with woodpecker activity.

On my return, I encountered the deer again, close to the path.

As a bird watching exercise, my visit to Raglan Road Park was very unproductive with only 5 species seen and none photographed. But as a relaxing walk it was very pleasant and being able to get so close to the deer was a real treat. I suspect that the woods may have more to offer and will try them again.

Hurricane Earl was due to pass through today. It was downgraded last night to a storm, category 2 and grazed the coast about 200 miles away.

Bird species; 5

Red-shouldered Hawk 2, Northern Mockingbird 1, Song Sparrow 2, American Goldfinch 2, Northern Cardinal 3.

Mammal species; 2

Grey Squirrel 8, White-tailed Deer 9.

Odonata species;

Variable Dancer Argia fumipennis 5, Eastern Pondhawk Erythemis simplicicollis 4.

Follow the links below for other posts from Washington;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2011/03/great-falls-park-virginia.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2011/05/great-falls-park-virginia-april.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2011/03/tysons-corner-virginia-iad.html

Visit the dedicated USA and Canada page for other posts from the region

Raglan's Wood, Tyson's Corner, IAD, USA

Boston, Back Bay Fens and Mount Auburn, Mass., BOS, USA

The Victory Gardens at Boston Back Bay Fens were originally used to grow vegetables to help with the war effort. Small plots, similar to allotments in the UK, they are now more commonly used as little gardens where flowers and gazebos replace cabbages and bean cages.

Seed flowers such as daisies and sunflowers are popular and these attract American Goldfinches. I could only see one bright yellow male today and he was beginning to lose his breeding finery in favour of his winter coat.

A Baltimore Oriole sat in a shaft of early sunlight and burned a vivid (albeit somewhat blurred) image on to my memory card. I think it is a trumpet vine that has the large orange flowers. (The PS by the copyright reservation indicates a bit of PhotoShop jiggery pokery)

One garden in particular was full of birds. The seed-laden flower-heads were a big draw as was the little pond with some bathing bricks in it. Northern Mockingbirds were abundant here and perched up on the gate.

Grey Catbirds were very common too and liked to perch on the chair in the shade of a small bush. In the undergrowth a couple of Common Yellow-throats skulked quietly.

Muddy River is lined with tall rushes and flows sluggishly through Back Bay Fens. I made my way back and forth across the bridges but here was not much action beyond the allotments. Near the Korea Memorial, a few Blue Jays and American Robins chased each other through the trees. Beyond the Rose Garden, a flock of Canada Geese grazed on the open area.

I was hoping to find some warblers passing through at the head of the migration. I returned to the Victory Gardens and was just in time to see a Black and White Warbler “nuthatching” on the big tree in the same birdy garden I had been watching before.

A mourning dove was showing off by raising a wing as if trying to impress his companion. Mostly he was trying to attract her attention with the right wing, occasionally both.

Bird species; 19

Double-crested Cormorant 11, Canada Goose 80, Mallard 10, American Herring Gull 18, Mourning Dove 35, Downy Woodpecker 1, Northern Flicker 1, Grey Catbird 30, Northern Mockingbird 30, American Robin 15, Blue Jay 10, American Crow 1, American Goldfinch 20, Black and white Warbler 1, Common Yellowthroat 2, Song Sparrow 2, Northern Cardinal 2, Common Grackle 30, Baltimore Oriole 3.

Odonata species; 2
Common Green Darner Anax junius 5, Blue Dasher Pachydiplax longipennis 3

My visit this morning was a brief one; just enough time to take advantage of the golden hours between sunrise and 09.00. I had wanted to go to Mount Auburn, but my information was that the gates did not open before 08.00 and that photography was not allowed.

So I cycled the 6 blocks, cutting across the Christian science Plaza, to the fens for an early start and then made a fact-finding mission to Mt Auburn later in the day. I didn’t bring my camera as it was a very hot day at the end of August and I didn’t want to have to carry it around without being allowed to use it. However a gallery may be found at the cemetery’s website www.mountauburn.org

The lady at reception told me that I may in fact use my camera , discretely (to take pictures for private use only, but no photos of headstones) and that it might be possible to gain earlier entry if a work party starts before 08.00. It would be courteous to ask permission to use cameras and obtain a letter from the receptionist to avoid confrontation. The same lady will know about work parties and early workers arriving to open the gates. info@mountauburn.org Tel; 617-547-7105

The cemetery is 175 acres of mature trees in a stunningly scenic sculpted garden. Ground cover is scant as much of the ground area is taken up with well-tended memorials. The lakes used to have granite banks with promenades around them. These have been removed and bank-side vegetation has been allowed to grow. I surprised a Great Blue Heron in the reeds. He was obviously unused to seeing people here.

I felt as though I had the place to myself; it was as quiet as….. well, the grave, except of course for the coarse screeching of the Blue-Jays. A big party of jays, Northern Flickers and American Robins joined forces with the Grey Squirrels and Eastern Chipmunks to raise a riot in a tree near Memorial Lake. Surely it was a predator that was upsetting them, but I couldn’t see one. A while later, I heard the whinnying of a Red-tailed Hawk, but I couldn’t find that either. Having heard the Blue Jays imitating a red-tail in Central Park, it has not been included in the list below.

Bird species;

Great Blue Heron1, Mallard 2, Belted Kingfisher 2, Downy Woodpecker 1, Northern Flicker 15, Northern Mockingbird 2, American Robin 15, White-breasted Nuthatch 2, Blue Jay 20

Mammal species2

Eastern Gray Squirrel 30, Eastern Chipmunk 1

Odonata species; 2
Common White-tail Lybellula lydia 3, 12-spot Skimmer Libellula pulchella 2

Other posts for Boston can be found at the links below;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2011/05/back-bay-fens-in-boston-april-2011.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/09/boston-back-bay-fens-and-mount-auburn.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/10/operation-autumn-colour.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2011/05/mount-auburn-cemetery-boston-april-2011.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2011/06/mount-auburn-cemetery-boston-june-2011.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/07/boston-whale-watch.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2011/06/whale-watching-boston-june-2011.html

Visit the dedicated page for posts from various locations in USA and Canada

Boston, Back Bay Fens and Mount Auburn, Mass., BOS, USA

Pilanesberg, Johannesburg, JNB, South Africa

I had company with me this morning in the shape of my colleague, HG. We had come to Pilanesberg NP and arrived just before 07.00.

Immediately inside the gate we came across a small herd of Brindled Wildebeest, closely followed by our first B5 animals of the day.

A group of White Rhinoceros, made up with a mature female, two immatures and a small calf, were grazing right beside the road. The smallest calf was jealously guarding his mother and his milk supply. We surmised that the two immatures may have been his big sisters and that sibling rivalry was the cause of the calf’s boisterous behaviour. He was butting his big sister, who was being very indulgent and gently playing along.
Just beyond them, a lark took off from a raodside snag as we passed. The clapping sound it made as it flew left me with only one choice, an Eastern Clapper Lark. I would have loved to get a better look at a red crayon bird, but I am happy with the ID.

We followed the main road through the park, heading north from Bakubung Gate and soon found two young male giraffe vying for dominance over each other. They were swiping at each other, swinging their necks and trying to hit their opponent with their head. This was not a full-blooded fight for mating rights; these males were still fairly young. They were trying to establish their place in the pecking order for the future.

The expected animals were plentiful today. There were herds of Impala and Wildebeest with an occasional Hartebeest added in for good measure.

Birds were well represented (this is supposed to be a bird blog after all). Lesser Striped Swallows were slow to move from their roost this morning, which gave me a good opportunity. Actually, this picture may have been taken by H, who had a better angle from the passenger seat.

We headed for the hide at Mankwe Dam and spent a while there enjoying the Pied Kingfishers and a herd of Wildebeest that came down to drink.

The birds on the approach and around the car park were very confiding with a White-browed Scrub-Robin posing beautifully on a post and Natal Francolin calmly walking round the car.

We had noticed a few cars that had stopped on the other side of the dam and went to investigate. They were watching some Hippo that had hauled up and were huddled together in a big brown blob on the bank.

Another cluster of cars gave away the presence of six more White Rhino, while just a little further up the road towards Manyane, a waterhole held good numbers of Wildebeest and some Zebra. 

I wanted to try to find a different approach to taking Zebra pictures, but when three lined up at the water, I was willing a fourth to fill in the gap, which it obligingly did.

As we headed towards the Pilanesberg Centre for breakfast, we noticed a few Safari tour vehicles all heading in the same direction. This is usually a good sign that something interesting is going on. Thus we postponed breakfast and followed. Sure enough a herd of elephant were feeding at the roadside on the way to Mankorwe Dam. The matriarch seemed very calm and patient with the other vehicles, so we were able to make a very close approach. She had a small calf with her which seemed quite at home with the attention it was getting.

The Pilanesberg Centre was quiet for our late breakfast, but the view from the deck was as busy as I have ever seen it.

Wildebeest, Zebra, Impala and Giraffe were joined by Springbok and Black-faced Vervet Monkeys as we ate.The birds here were perfect models as they posed on a post in front of the veranda.

A Fork-tailed Drongo was keen to show off his elegant black plumage set off by his dramatic red eye, but was closely challenged by a Southern Masked Weaver, which preferred to complement his eye with a yellow outfit.  

Unable to compete with such stylish competition, the Common Bulbul resorted to a coquettish posture to attract attention.

Breakfast was good and we were reluctant to leave, but grapevine reports held news of lions along Dithabaneng.

As we neared Maletse Dam, a fine male Common Waterbuck showed on the rocky slopes to the south. H had dozed off in the back of the car and could not get enthused until we came across the lion hunkered down amongst the rocks, watching a group of Zebra. He stalked slowly towards them, but any action was likely to take place over the rise in front of him. We pulled forward to a point where we could see the Zebra, but not the lion. Here we waited for about 40 minutes before realising that the lion had lost interest and gone for a snooze in the shade. There were rumours of a kill closeby and the lions looked well fed. This may explain why Black-backed Jackals were hanging about.

I pulled back to the dam where some hippos were sunbathing on the far bank. About 30 meters to the left was an elephant carcass, on top of which sat an African White Ibis. We returned to this spot a short while later to watch 2 bull elephants as they came across the body.

Their reactions and behaviour was very touching and it is easy to see how they can be credited with emotions such as sadness and loss, that we humans usually use as a yardstick to separate ourselves from the animals.

As other vehicles arrived we pulled away to avoid the crush. We returned to the lion 200meters along the road. It was buried deep in the bushes and was hard to find. Once we had found it, I noticed a second lion alongside it.

H put forward a thought that when lions yawn, it is a sign that they are about to move. This was not something that I was aware of, but as we watched, one of the lions yawned, then stood up and began making his way towards us. I hoped that it was headed for the water, so I reversed the car to give it the opportunity to cross in front of us. Instead, it continued along the road and must have caused a few heart-stopping moments as it passed between the cars that had stopped to look at the elephants.

It skirted around the western end of the dam. After a brief confrontation with one of the elephants, it began feeding on the elephant carcass.

Unbeknown to most of the other cars in the watching scrum, a second young male lion was approaching from behind them and went to join his brother but did not feed. I did some searching on the internet and found that the carcass had been there since at least 29th June, nearly 2 months before.

A more detailed description of the above incident is written up on the previous post. Follow the link; http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/08/do-elephants-grieve.html

The journey out of the park could not live up to the excitement that we had already experienced through the day, but H managed to get this picture of a Warthog doing his "Best in Show" pose.

Bird species 61;

Little Grebe 6, White-breasted Cormorant 6,Long-tailed Cormorants 15, African Darter 3, Grey heron 2, Great Egret 1, Little Egret 1, Striated Heron 2, Sacred Ibis 1, Hadada Ibis 1, African Spoonbill 12, Egyptian Goose 5, Black-shouldered Kite 3, African Fish Eagle 1, Black-breasted Snake Eagle 1, Crested Francolin 5, Natal Francolin 15, Swainson’s Francolin 8, Helmeted Guineafowl 40, Blacksmith Lapwing 5, Crowned Lapwing 6, Caspian Tern 1, Speckled Pigeon 6, Red-eyed Dove 5, Ring-necked Dove 12, Laughing Dove 10, Grey Lourie 4, Burchell’s Coucal 1, African Palm Swift 10, Red-faced Mousebird 4, Brown-headed Kingfisher 2, Malachite Kingfisher 2, Pied Kingfisher 15, Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill 1, Crested Barbet 1, Black-collared Barbet 2,Rufous-naped Lark 1, Namaqua Clapper Lark 1, Pearl-breasted Swallow 1, Lesser-striped Swallow 25, Cape Wagtail 3, Common Bulbul 35, Olive Thrush 1, Groundscraper Thrush 1, Mocking Cliff-chat 1, White-throated Robin-chat 1, White-browed Scrub-robin 4, Familiar Chat 4, Capped Wheatear 5, Tawny-flanked Prinia 2, Mariqua Flycatcher 15, Chinspot Batis 1, Arrow-marked Babbler 4, Southern Boubou 1, Crimson-breasted Gonolek 3, Fork-tailed Drongo 20,Pied Crow 20, Cape Glossy Starling 10, Red-billed Ox-pecker 3, Southern Masked Weaver 6, Yellow-fronted Canary.

Mammal species; 19

Vervet Monkey 6, Baboon 35, Scrub Hare 1, Black-backed Jackal 3, Lion 2, Elephant 11, Zebra 100, White Rhinoceros 13, Warthog 12, Hippopotamus 18, Giraffe 30, Bushbuck 2, Greater Kudu 15, Waterbuck 20, Red Hartebeest 6, Gnu 800, Impala 250, Steenbuck 6, Springbuck 100.

Pilanesberg, Johannesberg, JNB, South Africa


For other Pilanesberg posts on Redgannet try the following;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/08/do-elephants-grieve.html
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2009/06/delicious-dilemma.html (Marievale, Pilanesberg NP and Rietvlei Nature Reserve)

For more posts from Johannesburg,try these links;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/08/moreletakloof-johannesburg-jnb.html (Moraletakloof)
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/08/tswaing-crater-johannesburg-jnb-south.html (Tswaing Crater)
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/03/zaagkuildrift-road-jnb-south-africa.html (Zaggkuildrift Road)
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2009/10/more-time-i-have-faster-it-goes.html ( Marievale, Dulstroom, Mount Sheba and Kruger NP)

There are other posts from South Africa here;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/01/cape-town-specials.html (Cape Town, Heldeberg, Paarl, Sir Lowry's Pass and Betty's Bay)

Other posts from the great continent of Africa;
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/04/to-pish-or-not-to-pish-dire-warnings.html (Lekki Conservation centre, Lagos, Nigeria)
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/05/sheraton-hotel-lagos.html (Lagos, Nigeria)
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/05/millenium-park-abuja-nigeria.html (Millenium Park, Abuja, Nigeria)
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2009/03/my-trip-this-weekend-is-scheduled-to-be.html (Nigeria)
http://redgannet.blogspot.com/2010/01/even-bad-days-are-good.html (Achimota Forest, Labadi Beach, and Aburi Botanical Gardens, Accra, Ghana)

Dragonfly posts are available at;
http://redgannetsdragonflies.blogspot.com/2010/01/cape-town-south-africa.html (Cape Town)
http://redgannetsdragonflies.blogspot.com/2010/01/i-have-been-languishing-in-temperate.html (Accra, Ghana)

Bird species 61;

Little Grebe 6, White-breasted Cormorant 6,Long-tailed Cormorants 15, African Darter 3, Grey heron 2, Great Egret 1, Little Egret 1, Striated Heron 2, Sacred Ibis 1, Hadada Ibis 1, African Spoonbill 12, Egyptian Goose 5, Black-shouldered Kite 3, African Fish Eagle 1, Black-breasted Snake Eagle 1, Crested Francolin 5, Natal Francolin 15, Swainson’s Francolin 8, Helmeted Guineafowl 40, Blacksmith Lapwing 5, Crowned Lapwing 6, Caspian Tern 1, Speckled Pigeon 6, Red-eyed Dove 5, Ring-necked Dove 12, Laughing Dove 10, Grey Lourie 4, Burchell’s Coucal 1, African Palm Swift 10, Red-faced Mousebird 4, Brown-headed Kingfisher 2, Malachite Kingfisher 2, Pied Kingfisher 15, Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill 1, Crested Barbet 1, Black-collared Barbet 2,Rufous-naped Lark 1, Namaqua Clapper Lark 1, Pearl-breasted Swallow 1, Lesser-striped Swallow 25, Cape Wagtail 3, Common Bulbul 35, Olive Thrush 1, Groundscraper Thrush 1, Mocking Cliff-chat 1, White-throated Robin-chat 1, White-browed Scrub-robin 4, Familiar Chat 4, Capped Wheatear 5, Tawny-flanked Prinia 2, Mariqua Flycatcher 15, Chinspot Batis 1, Arrow-marked Babbler 4, Southern Boubou 1, Crimson-breasted Gonolek 3, Fork-tailed Drongo 20,Pied Crow 20, Cape Glossy Starling 10, Red-billed Ox-pecker 3, Southern Masked Weaver 6, Yellow-fronted Canary.

Mammal species; 19

Vervet Monkey 6, Baboon 35, Scrub Hare 1, Black-backed Jackal 3, Lion 2, Elephant 11, Zebra 100, White Rhinoceros 13, Warthog 12, Hippopotamus 18, Giraffe 30, Bushbuck 2, Greater Kudu 15, Waterbuck 20, Red Hartebeest 6, Gnu 800, Impala 250, Steenbuck 6, Springbuck 100.

Pilanesberg, Johannesberg, JNB, South Africa