It was recently South African National Parks
(
SANParks) week, and there was an expo at Wilderness Ebb-and-Flow Rest Camp where various
organisations affiliated with SANParks had an information stand, including
Nature’s Valley Trust (
NVT). On top of this, Mark was asked to do a ringing
demonstration and that’s where Shirley and I come in. When we arrived I was
slightly concerned as to where we were going to put the nets, but we managed to
find a spot beside some reeds to put up 4 nets, and a 5
th on a
little pond island near a few weaver nests. I was dubious as to how many birds
we would catch as it was already 2 in the afternoon and a school group was
expected at 3. The first 15 minutes those nets were up we caught quite a few
Cape Weavers, and a Malachite Kingfisher which was a treat! After that we had a
steady flow of weavers until we started packing up to go home. Unfortunately
the school group was not very interested in the ringing which is a shame, but
we had a variety of people from the organisations present very interested. The
Malachite Kingfisher was especially popular!
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Matome, Mula and Babalwa at the NVT stand. Photo by Mark Brown. |
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Members from the Lakes birdclub watching as I ring the Malachite Kingfisher. Photo by Mark Brown. |
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The kingfisher pales in comparison to my bright colours! Photo by Mark Brown. |
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A group of school kids watching a ringing demonstration. |
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It really is a beautiful place! |
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