
The afternoon of day 2 is spent at a hide officially called Bhejane, but in practice known to everyone as "The Bird Bath", because it attracts a wide variety of small birds who come to both eat the bird seed, and bathe.
However it’s not without its larger visitors. As we arrive we notice a much a full sized bull elephant loitering behind the hide. We get a couple of shots on the way in, and he does eventually wander past the hide window, but doesn’t stop to drink or pause long enough for photos.
Later in the afternoon we’re visited by a small group of warthogs, who do stop for a quick drink.
The real attraction, however, is dozens of small birds, of numerous colorful species, feeding, drinking and bathing. They are endlessly entertaining, and very photogenic.
About halfway through our session the available bird seed starts to run dry, so Lee thinks it would be a good idea to spread some more. However he manages to overdo it, so the ground looks suspiciously like it has severe dandruff, and some emergency gardening is called for. Fortunately no-one records this embarrassing event. Oh wait, I did!
Back to the birds… I’ve found a brilliant little app called Merlin Bird ID. You simply select a picture of a bird with approximate location, and it tells you the species and some supporting info. Just in case you thought I had magically become an ornithologist!
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We head north to Zimanga, the first South African game reserve designed specifically for photographers. Located in KwaZulu Natal, not far south of the Mozambique border, this is a private game reserve of 7000 hectares (about 18000 acres), which is Continue reading →
Saturday, June 14, 2025 in
Travel,
Zimanga Travel Blog
After what seems like a long gap (including retirement and an operation) but was in fact only about 9 months, I’m back on my travels. This time I’m in South Africa, on safari. A group led by Lee Frost will Continue reading →
Tuesday, June 10, 2025 in
Travel,
Zimanga Travel Blog
One of the great things about watching a lot of cop shows on television is the endless variety of mechanisms used to set up key characters. Recently we’ve had… The Island: female detective born on Harris returns there after several Continue reading →
Tuesday, March 25, 2025 in
Thoughts on the World
I’ve been a bit delinquent regarding the blog, and I still have to write about the last couple of days in Tuscany. I’m working on a slightly more serious piece ruminating on the level of visible economic activity, but in Continue reading →
Monday, October 28, 2024 in
Italy 2024,
Travel
Here’s my traditional group panorama for the 2024 Cinque Terre and Tuscany trip. From the left: Yours Truly, Grant, Elizma, Hildige, John, Buzz and Lee. Remind me never to book any of my fellow travellers for a portrait shoot – Continue reading →
Thursday, October 10, 2024 in
Italy 2024,
Travel
With Apologies to My Photography Tutors First, I’d like to apologise to all the authors, tutors, mentors and tour leaders who have tried to instil in me “correct” tripod technique. As they say, it’s not you, it’s me.I don’t particularly Continue reading →
We took our leave of the Cinque Terre, and embarked on the long drive to Tuscany. This was punctuated by two interactions with our host at Cinque Terre, first when he discovered that one of the keys had not been Continue reading →
Wednesday, October 2, 2024 in
Italy 2024,
Travel
We started day 2 by getting a train. There are essentially four ways of getting between the five towns which make up the Cinque Terre: you can walk along the cliff paths, go by boat, or get the excellent trains Continue reading →
Sunday, September 29, 2024 in
Italy 2024,
Travel
The Italy 2024 Blog I’m not sure I believe in curses as a general rule but I am starting to think that I have inadvertently offended a very particular deity and invoked their wrath. Every time I go on one Continue reading →
Just how wrong can an AI get it? As part of my effort to profile the power consumption of GenAI, I decided to try and summarise one of my travel blogs using ChatGPT and the other big public models, plus Continue reading →
Tuesday, September 10, 2024 in
Thoughts on the World
Just how bleak can an AI’s world view become? One of my clients asked me to write an article on the environmental impact of generative AI. Like a lot of large corporations they are starting to embrace GenAI, but they Continue reading →