Other Than the Star

So while the Falcated Duck was stealing the show, I managed a few other images from that trip to Colusa. There were plenty os Snow Geese, Greater White-fronted Geese, American and Eurasian Wigeon, Green-winged Teal, Northern Shovelers, Coots, Harriers, Egrets, etc... but for some reason I spent more time watching than clicking. Here is a Cinnamon Teal Hideout.

A young Red-tailed Hawk explored areas near the water's edge.

I like the lovely extension, wings to feet, head to tail.

Leafless trees make for easier bird watching... but they can watch you just as easliy.

Falcated Duck or not, the Northern Pintail is a sharp dresser.

Here is an extra view that I can't stand to leave out of this post.

Tomorrow we'll get back to Tanzania.

Augur Delight

This is the superb Augur Buzzard. Tanzania's Red-tailed Hawk if you will. It was even used in a hollywood movie in place of a Redtail presumably because it could be called a "red tailed hawk" without it being a lie. At any rate, it is a fairly common bird although close encounters like this one in the Serengeti are less common.

Most are lighter birds like this one, but in the highlands you'll find beautiful dark morphs floating about.

Time to depart. Acacia trees don't seem like ideal perches but they have to do in the endless plain of the Serengeti.

They make a point of clearing the thorns with the first jump.

This one is for my friend Siobhan who is a molt connoisseur. This bird was in the middle of its transition to adulthood and the retained juvenal plumage stands in lovely contrast to the new adult feathers with heavy black sub-terminal bands.

Vervet Monkey

Vervets are charismatic and eminently watchable as groups of them interact and forage. This one couldn't be bothered to move and sat right outside the car window.

This pair seemed to be involved in a one-sided discussion. Eventually they both ended up preening in exactly the same position.

Above and Below

I'd never seen anything like this. High above Ngorongoro Crater the clouds were splitting the sunlight into rainbows that didn't follow normal rainbow logic.

It only appeared for a few minutes but what a sight. I'm ok with the mystery. Yes I could suss it out and talk about refraction and light splitting into its constituent colors but I'd rather just sit quietly in my amazement.

From the crater rim the morning fog drifts in and out giving fleeting glimpses of Lake Magadi far below.

The King of Sleeps

Twenty hours of the day are spent resting or asleep. Another two hours dozing... and, oh yes, time to get up and preserve my reputation as an unfathomably powerful predator.

But first... just a little more sleep. Sorry if I'm shattering your notions of Lion behaviour. They do earn their prodigious rest with amazing displays of predatory prowess and general carnivorous intensity. It's just that seeing those moments takes tremendous luck and once-in-a-lifetime timing. Most of the time they lay prone, breathing heavily, waiting out the heat, and biding their time.

Don't think you should get out of the car though. It would be the equivalent of a warm blueberry muffin magically appearing next to you first thing in the morning... it wouldn't stand a chance. The lions ignore the cars, basically treating them like big moving rocks, but a person hopping out of one would likely cause some excitement.

In the video below, you see that they often get up just to find a better place to get back down.

[vimeo http://www.vimeo.com/35615892 w=590&h=332]

When the resting is over it is time for the hunt. Night is falling and these two lionesses and a young male are preparing to ruin a wildebeest's night.

Stretching out those sleepy muscles in preparation.

The male stays behind to continue his rest but keeps a close eye on things.

Another preparation for hunting involves shedding excess weight. Not the sort of thing you normally see on nature shows but that's exactly why I include it here. Ladies and Gentlemen, pooping lions.