The Rookery

 On our last full day in Botswana we visited a rookery that was one of the most active I have ever seen in both the variety and the number of birds. It was truly one of the most spectacular outings of our trip, especially since I was able to move to the front of the boat and shoot right into the nests.

Most of the birds were yellow-billed storks. I have always had a fondness in my heart for storks of all types and these particular birds were certainly more colorful and attractive than the wood storks I am used to. The pink on the wings of the adults is present during the breeding period.

There were hundreds of birds in the nesting area. You can get an idea of the number of young when you look at the nests in the first photo above. They seemed to have one babysitter watching over them from the top edge.

Also present were numerous herons, egrets, cormorants, anhingas and others. To the right is a baby great egret.

Our guide was excited to see the great white pelican in the mix, above, even though it didn't hang around for long.

Another treat was seeing the sacred ibis. They were most impressive when they spread their wings and exposed the red trim underneath.  In the second shot, below, an African Darter sits behind the ibis.

The last shots are all of yellow-billed storks. They were amazing to watch as they interacted with other adults and babies.

I took at least a half dozen shots of this particular stork, above. It seemed determined to pose for me in a number of different ways, sometimes seeming to do yoga, other times dancing the electric slide!

Moving Day

 What a treat it has been to watch the activity in the kestrel nest this summer. For a long time we did not know if the pair had been successful; then, all of a sudden, it seemed that mama and papa had all they could do to supply food to the vocal youngsters. All along I thought there were twins in the box until last Thursday when the first chick braved the world outside and we realized there were still two heads peeking out the hole!

The problem with being first out of the nest is that mama still has two hungry mouths to feed, as the adventurer quickly realized.

 In the shots above he is doing his best to remind mama that he is hungry too. In the image below, she seems to acknowledge his presence.Eventually he found his way back into the nest where he spent the night with his less daring siblings.

 By the next morning however, all three chicks were testing their wings. In this shot below you can see them spread out diagonally across the tree.

When mama arrives with food (lower right corner) the chicks get so excited that the one in the middle falls off the branch and just catches himself with his chin!

 In the next shot you see the youngster trying out his various balance moves. He quickly got the hang of it.

 Papa showed up a few times with grasshoppers and seemed to be comfortable feeding the babies outside the nest. The middle chick does not want to share with his screeching siblings.

All three youngsters seemed to be doing well by the end of the day. They spent that night in the box and then moved out to more expansive digs the next day.

I hope the fact that three of them successfully fledged this year means that we will have more entertainment in the box next year!