Weekend Birding Mwadui

As promised earlier this week, I'm putting up the birds we saw this weekend. Although there were no lifers, I managed to get a really clear photo for the first time of a cuckoo that's been eluding me for months here in Mwadui. 

We saw several sunbirds (different ones co-existing and flitting between the Wild Dagga blooms together) and I photographed a pair of LBJ's but these are all pending the kind identification by birder friend, Jez who hasn't sent replies yet.

Meanwhile, I asked Grant to stop just into the bush where we saw a Little Bee-Eater. Although I have posted about this bird before today, I was just so thrilled at the clear photo I'd taken that I wanted to post it  here.

Little Bee - Eater

Another common bird which we come across regularly on our bird outings, is the Fork-tailed Drongo. Last week I focused on one sitting on a branch with its characteristic feature, a forked tail, beautifully displayed.

Fork-tailed Drongo

Although I've posted about this cuckoo before here as well, this day, I zoomed in on one sitting quite a fair distance away on the top of a tree.

 Diderick Cuckoo

We spotted a largish bird on the top of a tree, also quite a fair distance from the road. Thinking it might be a raptor (they have the habit of being F A R away when you want to photograph them) I zoomed in and saw that it was a Red-eyed Dove. I took the photo but when I downloaded it, I was thrilled to see that I had captured it in full cry. 

A Red-eyed Dove with its pouting breast which shows that it is calling

When I bought my new camera in South Africa in January, it came with a Canon rechargeable battery. The retailer didn't have stock of genuine batteries and as I don't like to use generic parts in my camera, I didn't buy a spare. We'd already turned around to come home, when I noticed the red warning light for the battery beginning to flicker on my LED screen. I turned the camera off quickly and quipped that I hoped I would not see a "special" on the way home. 

As we rode along the haul road, Grant's phone rang and he stopped to answer it. As I always do when he is busy with office business, I wound down the window and stared into the bush nearby. While doing this,  I noticed a largish black-and-white bird sitting in a shrub. We have many crows here, but because they're often seen on tree tops or on power lines, I gingerly turned on my camera and zoomed in on the subject.  I was greatly excited to see that I was focusing on a cuckoo that I'd been trying to photograph this whole summer in Tanzania. Every time I did, the bird was too far away and the images were fuzzy. Today I snapped away quickly, praying that my battery would hold out just for me to get these images. Fortunately it did and I got them.

 

 Jacobin Cuckoo

So this was technically a lifer which I'd seen before but not managed to record! 

For more beautiful bird posts around the world, please click here

I hope you're all having a wonderful week.  

Sad World News

It was a very sad evening last night when Grant and I watched SkyNews Breaking News. The Malaysian Airline, MH370, which has been missing for more than two weeks has, according to new satellite data, crashed in a remote area in the South Indian Ocean. There is doubt of any survivors. Our thoughts and prayers go out to the families of all the passengers aboard this flight.

Back here in Mwadui, I wrote about our Sunday outing to nearby Shinyanga on Sunday. While the men waited at the Butiama, our driver, William took me around town where I did a little shopping. We also stopped at Amazing Grace shop which sells household appliances and many kitchen items such as crockery, cutlery, plasticware, ornaments, bathroom and kitchen linen and much more. 

It's also at this shop where I adopted a cat in April 2012. I named the cat Joy.  I've been taking (or sending with Chef Paulo) canned food and kitty kibbles once a week for the past two years and will continue to do this for as long as we live in Mwadui. Grant and I also arranged for our vet from Mwanza to administer the necessary annual inoculations and of course, my kind husband foots the bill. 

Sunday I was thrilled to see that Joy, who only lives indoors, never venturing out, looking very healthy. Of course, she always hears my voice as I greet the proprietor, Jackson and his staff at the front of the shop. Joy comes running from the back of the shop and rubs against my ankles until I walk to the back to feed her. On Sunday I added a worm tablet to her food so she'll be fine for another while. 

The funniest thing is that because I always refer to Amazing Grace as the Paka Shop, every expat and every driver calls this shop by that name! 

   Joy looks up and meows as I call her for a photo

 Joy digs in and unknowingly ingests the deworming meds I  mixed into her food

 Jackson, prorietor of the Paka Shop (aka Amazing Grace) poses proudly with his daughter who has just joined his company

I always leave extra cat food and kibbles which last for the week until Paulo or I return.

I'm linking my post to Our World Tuesday which you can access by clicking here

 

Weekend 22 23 March 2014

As usual on Saturday morning we went out for an hour's birding. More about this late this week.

On Saturday night we watched rugby at the club with the other South Africans. It was the Vodacom Super Rugby with the South African Lions versus the Queensland Reds. After a nail biting and exciting second half, the Lions managed to beat the Reds 23 - 20.

On Sunday morning Grant and I popped out for a quick birding trip. At 11 we collected Steve, the British workshop foreman and drove to Shinyanga. We were going out to Butiama Hotel for delicious Indian bitings.

Grant, Steve and Minas, owner of Butiama Hotel

I hope you all have a wonderful week ahead.