Nothing is better than sitting in the shade of a big tree, down at the river on a very hot day.
All of the photos taken on the zoom, as there was no way that I would go and stand out under the blistering African sun. The day before, we had 31C, this day we have 33C, and the next day we will have 22C. What a mix in temperatures, and it's all due to the clouds and the wind directions. When the direction is from the inland and it flows down over the mountains, we can sweat buckets, but when the wind comes in from the Atlantic Ocean side, the temperatures take a sharp drop, and it is great to walk about outside.
Let me share some "finds" with you.
Do you see the lovely little bird in the photo below?
It was a Pin-tailed Whydah (Vidua macroura).
He had his mating suit on, and when the mating season is over, he loses the tail and the colors, to turn inro a drab grey until the next mating season.
We call him "Sixy", as he normally has many lazy wives that lays their eggs in other birds nests.
A line break here, as I saw this mating pair of dragonflies landing on a rock in the river.
Right, now let's have a look at a dainty Wagtail searching for swimming bugs in the river.
Carefully she inspected the water as she walked around in the shallow water.
Drat! I missed the previous movement, as she pecked a bug out of the water, and you can still see the rings on the water. So here she was swallowing it.
A little Swee Waxbill came close to have a look at us under the tree. Maybe it was his spot and he wanted us to leave.
And finally, a straight up look to show you the beauty of the tree that we were sitting under.
I find it so amazing to think how birds were designed, with their feathers warm in winter and cool in summer. Now we know that the birds can oil their wings, but still, we as humans have to snuggle up in extra warm clothing during winter, and strip down during the heat of summer. Birds don't have to do that. So, imagine the fun if we were also clothed naturally in feathers. For one, we would have to sit and sleep, and we would all walk around lifting our tail feathers and pooping outside, as a toilet bowl would damage our tail feathers. They would have to build cars with the steering and the controls on the roof, as we would not be able to sit inside. We will all wear the same feathers every day, no ironing or laundries and no fashions. A worry is that like "Sixy" above, every guy would also have 6 wives and they will all look the same.
See the wisdom why we don't have feathers?
I hope that you enjoyed the story and the pictures.
Photos by Zac Smith-All Rights Reserved.
Camera: Canon PowershotSX70HS Bridge camera.
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