orange Archives - Page 18 of 29

Perched

The African stonechat is a species of the Old World flycatcher family. The males have a black head, a white half-collar, a black back, a white rump, and a black tail; the wings are black with a large white patch on the top side of the inner wing. The upper breast is usually dark orange-red, with a sharp or gradual transition to white or pale orange on the lower breast and belly depending on subspecies. In a few, black replaces the orange breast feathers in part or entirely. Its scientific name refers to its appearance and habitat and means “collared rock-dweller”.
PS: First time I’ve seen a tick on a bird?

11 July 2018Picture of the day, Wildlife

Strider

African Jacanas are equipped with long, gangly legs and clawed toes, making it possible for them to walk over floating hydrophytes – usually water lilies – with impressive agility. Female African Jacanas (which are larger than their mates) defend territories, which include multiple males in adjacent areas. Females lily-hop from male to male, laying about four eggs, marbled with light brown and black for camouflage. She then moves on, leaving the male to do all the dirty work. He sits on the eggs and, after they hatch, dedicates himself to rearing the chicks. This stay-at-home dad even carries his young ones under his wings to keep them safe and warm until they are about two or three weeks old.

4 July 2018Picture of the day, Wildlife

Trotter

The handsome slate-brown shaggy coat of the Nyala is marked with white vertical stripes and spots on the flanks. Rams appear more charcoal-grey in colour. The rams have long inward curved horns and a white chevroned face. They have a ridge of long hairs along the underparts, from behind the chin to between the hind legs, they also have a mane of thick, black hair from the head along the spine to the rump. The nyala is used as a marker to distinguish between the names given to the males and females of other antelope species. This is because of the drastic difference in size between the male and female nyala. The male nyala is classified as a bull, while the female is classified as a ewe. Any male antelope smaller than the nyala bull is classified as a ram, and any female antelope bigger than the nyala female is classified as a cow.

2 July 2018Picture of the day, Wildlife