🐾 Maybe the reason I love animals so much, is because the only time they have broken my heart is when theirs has stopped beating.

Tuesday 21 September 2010

Gemsbuck in the Kalahari desert

I know no subject more elevating, more amazing, more ready to the poetical enthusiasm, the philosophical reflection, and the moral sentiment than the works of nature. Where can we meet such variety, such beauty, such magnificence?
- James Thomson



The gemsbok or gemsbuck (Oryx gazella) is a large African antelope, of the Oryx genus. The name is derived from the Dutch name of the male chamois, gemsbok. Although there are some superficial similarities in appearance (especially in the colour of the face area), the chamois and the oryx are not closely related.

Gemsbok are light brownish-grey to tan in colour, with lighter patches to the bottom rear of the rump. Their tails are long and black in colour. A dark brown stripe extends from the chin down the bottom edge of the neck through the join of the shoulder and leg along the lower flank of each side to the brown section of the rear leg. They have muscular necks and shoulders and their legs have white 'socks' with a black patch on the front of both the front legs and both genders have long straight horns.

This is a watercolour painting I did as I imagined them trudging through the desert on their way to find water.

Wednesday 21 July 2010

Mai, the Mynah


This is Mai after her bath, a young Mynah I was very privileged to have in my life for almost 6 months. Here she enjoys a bit of sun before following me back to my studio.

I found her on the pavement in town, where she had probably fallen out of the nest, and she was just a little bundle of quills, no feathers yet, and after looking around if I could see the nest and not finding it, I took her home with me.

The intelligence and loving spirit of these amazing birds is beyond description - she was not caged and had free range of the house and garden, and one of her favourite past-times was her early-morning bath in the bird bath in the garden, after which she would fly into my studio, roosting on top of the computer screen, preening herself until she was all sparkling and shiny.

(The Common Myna or Indian Myna (Acridotheres tristis) also sometimes spelled Mynah, is a member of the starling family. It is a species of bird native to Asia with its initial home range spanning from Iran, Pakistan, India and Kazakhstan to Malaysia and China. An omnivorous open woodland bird with a strong territorial instinct, the Myna has adapted extremely well to urban environments.

The Myna has been introduced in many other parts of the world and its distribution range is on the increase to an extent that, in 2000, the IUCN Species Survival Commission (IUCN) declared it among the World's 100 worst invasive species. The Myna is one of only three birds in this list of invasive species. It is a serious threat to the ecosystems of Australia and South Africa.)

Camera : FujiFinepix 2800Zoom Digital - normal settings

♥¸.•¨*•♪♫•¨•.¸¸♥♥¸.•¨•♪♫•¨•.¸¸♥♥¸.•¨•♪♫•¨•.¸¸♥♥¸.•¨•♪♫•¨•.¸¸♥


Mai taking off to dry off after sharing my bath with me.


Mai, roosting on my PC speaker, enjoying some music


The beauty of an adult Mynah
Pic from Wikipedia


Adult Mynah

Monday 12 July 2010

Hummingbird Migration



This was sent to me by e-mail and I thought it so beautiful and decided to share it!

"Abigail Alfano of Pine, Louisiana lives in a Hummingbird fly zone. As they migrated, about 20 of them were in her garden. She took the little red dish, filled it with sugar water and this is the result.

She has been studying them daily and then one morning put the cup from the feeder (with water in it) into her hand. After they got used to her standing by the feeder they eventually came over to her hand.

She says they are as light as a feather. Abagail says if she had known her husband was taking pictures she would have put on makeup!







It NEVER fails to amaze me how trusting these little birds are!

Saturday 3 July 2010

Life at my pond


"Little froglet in the water,
don’tcha think you really aughta
save that croaking for tonight
when you’re safely outta sight?

Though I love your creaky chorus
pulsing through the springtime forest,
how I hope a hovering hawk
will not end your earnest grok!

Soon, I hope, a loving mate will
come to join you. I can’t wait till
all your fertile eggs are spread,
safely in their waterbed."
- Irene Brady, Nature Works

Well, Winter is in full swing here in South Africa now, and the songs of the frogs have been quietened by the chill and the frost. But I know they're still there, some buried deep under-ground, ready to fill the night with song once again as they sense the first Spring rains. I can virtually set my clock by their song, knowing that Spring and rain is in the air as soon as I hear their chorus.

In the meantime, life carries on at the pond. This water scorpion was sunning itself on the rocks on the end of the pond, and soon after he returned to the water, I was lucky enough to see him dragging an insect under-water for a quick feast.

These fascinating insects are commonly called water scorpions for their superficial resemblance to a scorpion, which is due to the raptorial forelegs and the presence of a long slender process at the posterior end of the abdomen, simulating a tail, which is actually a breathing tube - the tip of the tube is thrust above the surface of the water and air is conducted to the tracheae at the apex of the abdomen

They feed primarily on invertebrates, but occasionally take small fish or tadpoles.

The water scorpion emerging from the pond

The Water scorpion dragging an insect into his 'lair' under-water

The dragonflies are also still around, and I managed to get a shot of this fella sunning himself on the rocks.

A scarlet Dragonfly resting on a rock at the pond

A very welcome visitor to my garden is Molly, the Mole snake. She manages very nicely to keep the rat population at bay (they come for all the corn and sunflower seeds which I put out for the ducks and chickens) and, at 1.7m, she makes a formidable sight when upset. Mole snakes are completely harmless and non-venomous, but are fairly aggressive when threatened, even rearing up slightly, ready to strike if necessary. Here she surfaced from her hiding place one morning to see what all the raucous was about - we were busy cleaning out the pond and the workers were making quite a racket, chatting and clanging buckets as they emptied the water.

Molly, my resident Mole Snake, taking a peek at all the activity when we were cleaning out the pond.
(Click to enlarge for a better view of Molly)

Another welcome visitor to my garden is the Brown House Snake, also non-venomous and totally harmless and very soft-natured, trying to do a quick get-away when discovered, and also a great deterrent to rodents.

A not-so-welcome visitor is the Rinkhals (Spitting Cobra), who's venom is neurotoxic and partially cytotoxic. It is one of a group of cobras that has developed the ability to spit venom as a defense mechanism. It generally aims its venom at the face and if the venom enters the eyes, it causes great pain. Their average length is 90 - 110cm.

"Rinkhals" - watercolour on Moleskine 200gsm watercolour paper - Maree©

Nothing is ever killed or harmed in my garden, I don't even use insecticides (aphids on the roses are normally sprayed with a mean mixture of dishwashing liquid and tobacco, which seems to do the job, although I do make sure there are no lady bugs in the vicinity first). So, upon encountering this visitor, I normally don my glasses, race for a bucket and my snake hook and the unwelcome offender is duly captured, put in the bucket and then taken to an isolated dam some kilometers from us where he'll be safe against the threat of humans.

Roll on Spring, you make your own statement, so loud and clear that the gardener seems to be only one of the instruments, not the composer!

Thursday 13 May 2010

Wagtail - A Wader?

"All things bright and beautiful
All Creatures great and small,
All things wise and wonderful
The Lord made them all
Each little flower that opens
Each little bird that sings
He made their glowing colours
He made their tiny wings."


Wagtail {Motacilla capensis} - watercolour in Moleskine Folio 200gsm - 12" x 8.5" - Maree©

Gewone kwikkie [Afrikaans]; Umcelu, Umvemve, Umventshana (generic terms for wagtail - [Xhosa]; umVemve (generic term for wagtail - [Zulu]; Kamukombo (generic term for wagtails - [Kwangali]; Motjoli (generic term for wagtails - [South Sotho]; Moletašaka [North Sotho]; Mandzedzerekundze, Matsherhani, N'wapesupesu [Tsonga]; Mokgôrônyane [Tswana]; Kaapse kwikstaart [Dutch]; Bergeronnette du Cap [French]; Kapstelze [German]; Alvéola do Cabo [Portuguese]

Just outside my studio window, our resident Wagtail has been acting like a water bird - wading the soaking lawns, pulling out the insects and having a feast! She stayed, not minding the rain at all, except for the hardest down-pours, during which she disappeared for a while, but was back as soon as it cleared up a bit.

We've been having enormous amounts of rain, the garden is loving it as much as the Wagtail! They've built their nest in an Olive tree inside my bathroom court yard and it amazes me that it is very low and within reaching distance. Very trusting little creatures!



The Wagtail occupies Uganda, eastern DRC and Kenya, but the bulk of its population extends from southern DRC through Zambia and Angola to southern Africa. Here it is especially common across South Africa, Swaziland and Lesotho, while more scarce in Namibia, northern and south-eastern Botswana, Zimbabwe and southern Mozambique. It can occur almost anywhere that has open ground adjacent to water, also favouring the rocky coastline, farms, villages, cultivated land, parks, gardens and urban centres.

Thursday 29 April 2010

Verreaux’s (Black) Eagles family expands



Have you ever felt the thrill and absolute awe of watching a black eagle catching thermals – one minute savouring the currents on its 2.3 meter wingspan, the next minute with wings folded arrow like it plummets downwards - lost momentarily in swirling cloud – it appears again resolute and intent as it nears the earth – you wonder if it will be able to stop before it hits the ground - and to your amazement its large wings stretch out and it hurtles back up into the sky! It is a totally breathtaking sight, as the eagle climbs higher and higher - until it is not visible with the naked eye - and all of this in just a few minutes.

This is the world of the ‘Black Eagles of Roodekrans.’ Weighing up to 4.8 kg this is one of Africa’s largest and most spectacular eagles. - These are certainly the masters of the sky!



The Verreaux’s (Black) Eagles have laid two eggs following the preparations for the nesting season that started at the end of February 2010. During the nesting season both male and female refurbish their nest with sticks and leafy sprays.

The eagles laid their 1st egg on 9th April 2010 and the second one on 12th April.
Both Eagles take turns in incubating the eggs – one will stay on the nest while the other goes hunting. The eggs are expected to hatch after 45 days incubation. Two fluffy white eaglets will emerge from the eggs four days apart. Black eagles are birds of prey that hunt other animals for their food.

These birds can be viewed at the Botanical Garden (Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens, Malcolm Road, Poortview, Roodepoort, Gauteng, South Africa) in their natural world as they hover above the property or can be viewed through a webcam connected to a TV set at the Visitor Centre at the entrance to the Botanical Garden.

Visit www.blackeagles.co.za for more info and a map on how to get there.

GPS - X: 27°50`42`` Y:-26°5`15``


Come and browse art in the stunning outdoor setting of the Botanical Garden.
10% of sales go to the Botanical Society's Garden Development Fund.

Forthcoming dates -
Selected Sundays :
9th 23rd & 30th May and
20th & 27th June 2010

Monday 26 April 2010

Peeps, the Hummingbird baby

This is a stunning video of Peeps, the baby Hummingbird being fed by its mother out of Peter Tommerup's hand in Saratoga CA.

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