Tag: birds

poetry

a bower for Alex

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a bower for Alex

lined with alpaca
and table saw shavings
overlaid with fine mosquito-proof screen
arched across ultralight trekking poles

inside: a Will Shortz NYT Sunday crossword (blank)
and Dixon Ticonderoga #2 (sharp, with sharpener)
an Agatha Christie you’ve forgotten
and a phone with earbuds and economics podcasts
(esp. Freakanomics
esp. Marketplace
and anything Nate Silver)

leading to the door:
alternating chilled pint glasses
(the sweat beading up and rolling down their straight substantial sides
masking the flat amber of the 90 Shilling inside)
and rich brown drip coffee with real milk to take the edge off

what else?
some Trails Illustrated maps
Greg Brown on a radio
and a stone the blue of northern ice
under a clear night sky
at the foot of a snow-dusted mountain
by a tender talking stream

poetry

Opening Papua

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opening Papua

her reefs were hidden by azure skirts
bowerbirds dozed in the kinks of her hair
cuscus and cassowaries peeked out
from the folds of her emerald skin
her deep beauty concealed
from a stranger’s passing glance

until a sharp man
conversant with birds
traced a pig’s path
with his machete
learned a language
copying letters onto leaves
put down his bow for binoculars
and welcomed everyone:
neighbor stranger Java-man
alike saying
come to the Arfak
visit our village
meet our wonders
then please go home

poetry

mass migration

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Owen took these photos.

mass migration

a river of frigatebirds
overhead
all afternoon

we crane our necks
barely believing
such abundance still exists
in this beat-up old world

their angular bodies
hardly beat a wing
merely stream like
living contrails

on target
on task
their every gesture says
certain

poetry

knobbed hornbills overhead

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Owen took these photos.

knobbed hornbills overhead

like the thick whoosh
of hot air balloon flame
they lift off

you don’t need to
let your eyes leave the trail
to know they’re overlooking you –
you feel it in the helicopter pulse
their wings make

if you’re lucky you might catch
a long black cross sailing away
and be satisfied

imagine then
seeing the pair clearly
flying down the open valley
level with the canopy
black bodies bookended by
yellow red & blue noble heads
and trailing white tails

and the most amazing part is
there’s still a forest big enough
for their grand presence

poetry

Kokoro

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Owen took this photo. Kokoro is the local name for the Togian hawk-owl, which was first described in the scientific literature in 2004. We saw this little owl several times at Bahia Tomini. The staff called this individual owl Kokoro, which is also the sound this species makes.

Kokoro

little Kokoro
materializing from black sky and palm leaf
a tiny spirit
to watch over our evenings

he sits quietly
never even murmuring his name
watching us with
round golden rings of alert eyes
his blade of a beak
a still secret
in the middle of his sweet gentle face

tonight he appeared
close enough to touch
wanting to not be missed
inviting us to say hello
and when Cedar stood alone with him
and whispered a kind greeting
Kokoro cocked his little head
all attention and understanding
fully engaged in their
friendly tête-à-tête

photography

More Photos!!

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Due to WiFi issues, my posting plan has lost all semblance of reason. I am just posting any photos in no particular order. Here the photos are from Botswana and Victoria Falls. Additionally, thanks to Cedar CEDIE BOI for providing the photo of the Victoria Falls Bridge! 🙂

This is a Slaty Egret, one of the specialty birds of Botswana’s Okavango Delta. It is restricted in range and somewhat rare, so seeing it was a very good addition to our Moremi/Khwai birds.
Southern Ground Hornbills are some of the weirdest birds we saw on our trip. They can grow up to be over three feet long, and travel in packs, working their way across the ground searching for food.
The second-to-last of the Big Five for us to see. Despite their reputation, it is not the huge herds that are very dangerous, only the lone old males.
Almost immediately after seeing the buffalo we found this leopard. Apparently practically everybody else in the entire campground had also heard about it, so there was a huge group of safari vehicles clustered around this one forested area, with the leopard clearly visible among the trees.
Along with the Slaty Egret, Wattled Cranes are one of the Okavango Delta’s “Big Three” birds. They are classified by the IUCN Red List as globally Vulnerable with a population of 6,000-6,300 birds. We saw two on the ground, with one sitting on a potential nest.
Driving back from our day trip along the Khwai River we spotted this owl. At first we thought it was a Spotted Eagle-owl, but once it gave us a good view we identified it as a Verreaux’s Eagle-owl, one of the birds I most wanted to see.
Upon arriving in Victoria Falls we found this pair of White-fronted Bee-eaters, some of the most colorful birds in the region.
At the same place where we saw the bee-eaters I noticed this Red-winged Starling, drinking from the fountains near the pool where we were having lunch.
While going on a walk in Vic Falls I spotted a flock of White-crested Helmetshrikes, and got this photo.
One yard near our Air BnB had a tree that overhung the fence. In one tree I found this Black-collared Barbet along with Southern Masked-weavers, Scarlet-chested Sunbirds, Collared Sunbirds, and more.
This is a photo of the Victoria Falls Bridge. We were at the Victoria Falls Hotel when Cedar CEDIE BOI 🐓🐱🐈🐶🐕🐹 wanted to take a photo, so I let him take this one.
On the lawn of the Victoria Falls Hotel there was a large group of warthogs, letting people get close and letting me get this photo.
poetry

Jalak Bali

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Owen took these photos.

Jalak Bali

until I saw it
against sky
I thought its whiteness a liability
its blue face gaudy

but up in the canopy
it dissolves into air
insubstantial as cloud
as embedded in the
broad blue canvas
as leafbird is to tree
disappearing like
siang supplants pagi
and sore whisks away siang

you never know
who beauty might save

poetry

paddy pop

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paddy pop

translucent spring green
pierced by a ripple of white
egret elegance

photography

Africa, Part Three!!!!!!!!!!!

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This is part three out of a now many part posting series about our safari in Botswana and our stay in Zimbabwe and Zambia, along with our safari in South Africa and our stay in Cape Town. The photos shown here are exclusively from Botswana.

This is a Greater Kestrel. It is related to the American Kestrel which we see commonly in the U.S. This is the second falcon species for us to have seen on this trip: The first one was a Eurasian Kestrel at the London Heathrow Airport.
Some of you may have seen the Lilac-breasted Roller of the first post. This is a Purple Roller, much rarer than the Lilac-breasted. This is the first of two we have seen.
Inside the Nxai Pan we came across this incredible watering hole. This photo only partially encompasses the scene: the hole was attended by Gray-backed Sparrow-larks, Ostriches, Bateleurs, Kudu, Springbok, Impala, Zebra, both oxpeckers, and Wildebeest, providing an incredible view.
In the center of this photo you can see a Bateleur, a type of colorful snake eagle, that we saw many of in the air. This is the only one we have seen perched. The word Bateleur means “tightrope walker” in French, referring to the rocking motion of the bird in flight.
This is an adult male kudu. You can see the incredibly long curly horns that are the indicator of the age: a young male would have much shorter horns.
Also at the watering hole we found this “unicorn”. Despite the disadvantage, this impala seemed to dominate over the others, a sign of obvious notoriety.
This is an adult male Kori Bustard, the heaviest flying bird in the world. We actually saw many of these, and our guide Kabelo had done his PhD dissertation on the Kori Bustard.
One of the most common raptors that we saw was this Southern Pale Chanting Goshawk, a bird that I think (and I may be wrong) holds the distinction of having the most words in its name without any hyphens.
This Steenbok is one of Cedar’s favorite animals. Unlike many others we saw, this one stayed lying down in the shade as we drove up to it, allowing a great photo.
This was my first Southern Red-billed Hornbill ever, and it stayed perched for a while, allowing me to get good pictures.
Red-billed Francolins, shown here, and Crested Francolins immediately became our alarm clock, bursting out every morning in an incredibly loud series of harsh calls.
These were some of our first elephants, and posed at this watering hole (actually an isolated puddle that is supposed to be a river) perfectly for us.
As can be clearly seen in this picture, the elephant on the left had some of the largest tusks we saw on both of our safaris.
We saw this snake on a hike at the Tsodilo Hills, in the process of swallowing a lizard. The snake was alive, because we saw it blink, and the lizard was alive, because we saw it move a foot. When the snake presumably finishes swallowing the lizard, you will probably be able to see the lizard inside the snake!
Due to the current drought in Botswana, a group of hippos and crocodiles have been trapped in an isolated pool of water in the town of Maun. We saw them (along with a Black Crake, Golden-tailed Woodpecker, African Fish Eagle, and Marabou Stork), and I was able to get good pictures.
On our first game drive in Moremi Game Reserve, we amazingly spotted this pair of Honey Badgers! The photo is not perfectly focused, but they left soon after, so I am glad I got it. Here is a link to a video (that has some inappropriate language) about how tough the honey badger is:https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4r7wHMg5Yjg
This is a Red Hartebeest, an animal that we proved to come by infrequently, but in Moremi we passed a herd of them, allowing this photo.
At a watering hole in Moremi we observed a large herd of elephants with several babies, and this pride of lions!
The lions were well concealed, and soon after we arrived a group of impala and kudu came up to drink. This female tried to catch the kudu, but was unsuccessful.
On her way back from the hunt, this female passed us in our car several feet away! We could have touched her if we wanted to, which, of course, we did not.
Near the end of our second Moremi game drive we spotted a troupe of baboons, each sitting in a pile of elephant dung, and eating the grass that the dung was composed of!
poetry

in the bird hide

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in the bird hide

in the bird hide
everything is simple
all we’re invited to do
is be:
come look notice appreciate praise

avocado green water laps
against deep brown stilts
a fresh breeze filters in
ruffles the novel pages
and scatters the Coke cans
nyala, impala sidle down to sip
and our eyelids droop
while nothing much transpires

until all in a moment
two wooly-necked storks
descend with a clatter
throw rainbows our way
then remind us
what love looks like –
gently plucking parasites
from the beloved’s trusting neck