Tag: branch

Timid

The bushbuck is closely related to the nyala and the kudu. Rams are graceful in appearance with a dark greyish-brown fur, white spots on the flanks and white socks. Ewes are smaller and lighter in colour than the rams, with more distinct stripes and spots. On the ears, legs, tail, chin and neck, both sexes have geometrically shaped white patches and a white band at the base of the neck. The markings on rams become prominent in their displays of arching their backs, slowly circling one another in a tense, high-stepping gait. This is done in order to maintain the strict age-based hierarchy of dominance amongst the rams, showing that fighting would be unnecessary. Bushbucks are most active during the early morning and part of the night. In the case of being alarmed, they can react by sinking to the ground and lying flat, may leap away or bark hoarsely. When surprised in the open, they stand dead still or slowly walk to the nearest cover. Most of their day is spent grazing and standing. They are the only non-territorial and solitary African antelope. Ewes prefer to limit engagement with their young to no more than a few hours a day, and adult rams actively avoid eye contact with one another. Neither rams nor ewes defend their home ranges, often overlapping with the home ranges of other bushbuck.
Info source: http://southafrica.co.za/bushbuck.html
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The photo was taken during September 2017 at Tshokwane Picnic Spot, Kruger National Park Mpumalanga, South Africa.

Timid

Picture of the day, Wildlife

Flaming

The Southern Red Bishop is 10–11 centimetres long and has a thick, conical bill. The breeding males are brightly coloured with red (occasionally orange) and black plumage. The forehead, face and throat are black and the rest of the head is red. The upperparts are red apart from the brown wings and tail. The upper breast and under tail coverts are red while the lower breast and belly are black. The non-breeding male and female have streaky brown plumage, paler below. The females are smaller than the males, the bill, legs and feet are pale pinkish. The eyes are dark brown. Southern Red Bishops have various twittering calls and a nasal contact call; the male has a buzzing song.
Info source: https://www.sanbi.org/animal-of-the-week/southern-red-bishop/
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The photo was taken during November 2017 at Rietvlei Nature Reserve, Pretoria, Gauteng, South Africa.

Flaming

Picture of the day, Wildlife

Dense

Described best by local author Dalene Matthee in her series of books set in the forest, Knysna Forest is beautiful, bestrewn with forest walks and hiking trails that allow visitors to explore its perimeters. Knysna Forest, in some places so dense it borders on impenetrable, is a marvellous mix of ancient trees, both local and exotic. Tree ferns, creepers, flowers and the elusive Knysna lourie, its call heard more often than it is seen, are also part of the forest. The thick canopy of ironwood, stinkwood, Outeniqua yellowwood, real yellowwood, Cape holly, white pear, wild fig, milkwood, Cape beech, bastard saffron, assegai and kamassi trees covers 568 square kilometres between the Krom River and Mossel Bay, sprawling across the southern slopes of the Outeniqua Mountains. Together with the Amatole forests, further inland, it makes up Africa’s southernmost Afromontane forest. Today this thick, sweeping forest rich with birdlife and a collection of animals that include the endemic Knysna dwarf chameleon is protected.
Info source: https://www.sa-venues.com/attractionsgr/knysna-forest.php
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The photo was taken during October 2016 at Garden of Eden, Knysna, Western Cape, South Africa.

Dense

Landscape, Picture of the day