...as I wanted to jump for joy when I saw this little fellow.
Yep, he is a very scarce Amethyst Sunbird (Chalcomitra amethystina), and you will see how lovely he is (5 shots). Then I have a Cape Sugarbird (Promerops cafer) (3 shots). And finally, I have the boss, a Malachite Sunbird (Nectarinia famosa) (2 shots).
We hope that everyone will have a peaceful and restful Sunday.
That is a brave little bee that came to sit at the bottom of the pincushion flower with an Amethyst Sunbird at the top. I don't think that the sunbirds eat bees, but I won't bet on it. My dream is to get an Amethyst nest, but they are so secretive that I will never get one. It is difficult to find the Malachite's nest in the bushes, so you can imagine how difficult it would be to find a secretive Amethyst nest.
This shot below was when I first saw him, and there was no way that I was not going to try my best to get him on camera. Sadly, the light was not so good as it was cloudy, but I am sure you can see the markings on him, a purple chest with a green cap all in iridescent colors with blue epaulets on the shoulders.
Yeah! He knew I was there, but I made sure that I don't present as a danger to him.
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Nevertheless, he continued to keep an eye on me.
In better light, this last shot of him would look so much better. I have a better full color shot of him that I took about three seasons ago, but for the life of him I cannot find him in my files.
When the cat is away the mice will play. I will explain this idiom below.
This is the Cape Sugarbird that I mentioned in the introduction.
It is a female, as the male has a very long tail, and I hope to see him sometime to show you how long his tail is.
I could only get the three shots as both the Amethyst and Sugarbird disappeared in a hurry. Why, you may ask?
Simply because the cat has arrived and the mice took flight. Lol.
Now please don't start looking for a cat, as I am just using a bit of nuanced language. He is not really a cat, as he is a Malachite Sunbird, and he will attack any bird in his territory.
But the birds know it, and they sit in hiding places in the trees to watch when the Malachite goes away, and then they sneak in to grab some nectar from the pincushions. So strange that the Harrier Hawk also has the same habit of hiding until his prey reveals itself for him to grab. Many other birds also follow the same process. The sparrows, for instance, will sit between the leaves of a tree or a grapevine and wait for the lizards to come out and sit in the sun, and then they will grab them.
Such is life.
I hope you enjoyed the pictures and the story.
Photos and words by Zac Smith. No AI and no Photoshop. All-Rights-Reserved.
Camera: Canon PowershotSX70HS Bridge camera.
Until next time. Shalom!