Weekly Reports 21st - 25th May 2007

21st May

Weather - Sunny but windy

Temp Max 21*C / Min 07*C


8.00

Took Richard to see Colenso School. Videoed school and new fencing

Near the house - 1 Group of Impalas

At Rye fields - 5 Blesbok, 45 Impalas and a little way on 3 Impala Bachelors

Rye fields - 1 Warthog near road and 2 Warthog Boars fighting in middle of field

Near 2 ponds house - Slender Mongoose running across road

Near show lodge - A Secretary bird was feeding in the grass

Fields near house - Group of Impalas

15.00

Noticed smoke over mountain - turned out to be a big veld fire, luckily it was on other side on N3 and far from UmPhafa


22nd May

Weather - Sunny but cold

Temp max - 17*C min - 11*C


Dee spent most of the day getting Richards’s video footage ready and on CD

8.30

Rye fields - 6 Blue Cranes and 9 Hadeda Ibis and 40 Impalas on other side of field

Big stream leading to Tugela - Eagle Owl

Tugela River - 2 Nile Monitors

Big stream - Unidentified toad near the area where we saw the Owl

Big stream towards mountain - Walked about 400 m up and found snake shedding in a hole in the dry bed. Fierynecked Nightjar. We walked to the end of the dry stream near the foot of the mountain and then walked back through the bushveld to the Gameviewer. On our way back we came across an old Zulu hut. It had no roof but the walls were still standing


Night Drive

Weather - cold

19.00

Field near house - 2 Duikers and big herd of Impala on field

Rye Fields - 5 Blesbok then 4 more few minutes later


We did not see anything else for rest of the trip


23rd May

Weather - Sunny but cold

Temp Max 16*C / Min 2*C


8.30

Walked down mountain on N3 Highway side - nice dense rocky areas, signs of Kudu, Mountain Reedbuck and Scrubhares. Took us about 1.5 hours to walk half way down mountain because of the rocky dense conditions

Dry Stream bed - Chinspot Batis and Greater Double Collard Sunbird

Got to a nice rock face on side of mountain - expect will be a nice waterfall come the rainy season. Signs of Porcupine and a Porcupine den. Found pottery shards between the rock crevices, may be clay pots of earlier settlers or Zulu pottery. Sent them away for dating. Took some nice photos and video footage

Hiked back to game viewer on a different route - 2 Kudu bulls

On way back - Lots of Pied Crows and a Longcrested Eagle

Ryegrass field - group of Impala and Bachelor Impala, 6 Blue Cranes, 1 Warthog

2Ponds near main gate - 6 Giraffes (baby looks wonderfully healthy), 5 Zebra stallions


24th May

Weather - Sunny but cold

Temp Max 15*C / Min 2*C


Meeting from 8.00 in regards to releasing Elang, Zebra on Elworthy farm on Wednesday

12.00

Ryegrass - 15 Blue Cranes, 5 Blesbok, 45 Impalas

Geluk Farm - 3 Kudu's. Kudu cow chewing on a bone, probably looking for some trace element out of the bone. That is called Osteophagy - the practice of eating bones by an animal in who the behaviour is not common, for example, an antelope


Walked up the mountain on Geluk farm for any rock paintings, saw Blackeyed Bulbulls and loads of Hoopoe, Duiker and Kudu tracks

No rock paintings so far

Geluk Farm - 4 Red billed Oxpeckers on a cow, 4 Impala rams, 2 Greenspotted Wood Dove, 1 male Warthog

Ryegrass field - 2 Warthogs males, 15 Blue Cranes, Heron, 1Blackheaded and juvenile Impalas, 11 Impala rams

Foot of mountain - 7 Giraffes


25th May

Weather - Sunny but cold

Temp Max 17*C / Min 4*C


8.00

Foot of mountain - 7 Red Hartebeest
Stream that leads to Tugela - 1 Duiker male
Pond at foot of mountain - Brownhooded Kingfisher, Malachite Kingfisher
Road back from pond - Neddicky, Fiscal Flycatcher, Blackeyed Bulbulls
Near house - 11 Impala females, 3 x Impala juvenile both males
Road leading to Rye field - 6 Giraffes 2 males, 2 females, & two young ones. 1 Zebra follows the Young Giraffe around. Can hear Blue Cranes n the rye field, very vocal today
Rye fields - 31 Blue Cranes, one badly broken leg, 36 Impalas
2 Ponds near gate - 1 Warthog
Near main gate on road - 4 Kudu females
Went home to get Richard ready for trip home, and write report, it was a pleasure to have Richard here and we hope to see him again someday

FACT OF THEWEEK: the Blackheaded Centipede-eater feeds exclusively on centipedes, occasionally centipedes manage to kill and eat the snake instead.

Q. Is the Blackheaded Centipede-eater venomous or not?
A. Yes, but only mildly venomous, and no danger to man.