Bonamanzi bird bonanza

 There are two main rivers in Bonamanzi of which the Mzinene is the smaller and is flanked at one point by an extensive fever tree forest that is a magnet to a lot of the local bird species including......

...........yellow-rumped tinkerbirds with their distinctive humbug heads and a call consisting of 4 or 5 ponks.....

.....and their very similar cousins, red-fronted tinkerbirds that sound similar but don't stop after 4 or 5.

In the sand forest areas kooboo berry trees Mystroxylon aethiopicum were doing a fair impersonation of holly.

Though not much to look at, petronias have recently been gifted with a mouthful of a name, which I think is totally ridiculous - yellow-throated bush sparrow my ass.

While probably not really suitable for a salad, these horned cucumbers Cucumis metuliferous are edible when they turn this colour and have jelly-like flesh.

While on a laundry run to nearby St Lucia, I took a stroll in the esturine forest and came across this wondrous structure.  About the size of a rugby ball, it consists of live leaves woven together with silk-like thread and provides a home to arboreal ants - a few of whom may be seen working on the outside.  Talk about a greenhouse!

I was actually looking to get photos of Livingstone's turaco, which were making a lot of noise but being elusive, however this gorgeous little red-capped robin-chat decided it really wanted to be the star of the show. And no it doesn't have a red cap so I prefer it's previous moniker of Natal robin.

While driving in the reserve one morning I happened upon a flycatcher fest, with a mouse-coloured, sorry pallid, sorry pale flycatcher leading off.  Why they insist of continual changes of name is beyond me.

And also in the mix a southern black flycatcher......

................and a dead cute ashy flycatcher - all catching anything but flies!

My cousin Sue and husband Giles were visiting Tembe Elephant Reserve which wasn't too far up the road so I joined them on a drive around a park that really requires a 4x4.  With the amount of rain that the area had just received a visit to one of the hides was more of a break than a chance to see anything.  However.......

...................just before entering the hide, I heard a pink-throated twinspot calling and a short blast of it's call from Giles' phone had the little beauty right out in the open, singing his heart out.  As there was no female present I assume he was intent on attracting one and I felt quite guilty about fooling him, but what a stunning creature.

A packed lunch supplied by the lodge was enjoyed at a remote picnic site nestled under a grove of splendid pod mahoganies Afzelia quarzensis.  The morning produced very little in the way of mammals with only a single elephant and the usual herbivores, but there were some amazing sections of forest.

Back at Bonamanzi some unseasonable rain created a few puddles and in one of these I found a rather bewildered looking African goshawk, that didn't seem to know whether it wanted a bath or a drink.  About 10 minutes later it flew off having done neither.

Further down the road was a whole squadron of butterflies dancing in the sunlight and when this majestic orange-tip landed, it actually stayed put long enough to get a reasonable picture.

I've been walking every day in various parts of the forest trying to locate more berchemia specimens and have come across a number of impressive Zulu podberry trees Dialium schlecterii, but this one took first prize. To try and give an idea of it's size I balanced my backpack on a branch which was at least 2 m off the ground.  The fruit is tasty, rather like sherbet and may be added to water to make a refreshing drink.

A short way further on, a flash of blue caught the eye and a very obliging brown-hooded kingfisher condescended to having his portrait done.

A series of grunts, squeaks and snarls announced the arrival of a gang of banded mongoose who then decided that my "porch" was a rather good place for a snooze.  Wasn't too happy when they all left calling cards upon departure!

The Hluhluwe River forms the eastern boundary of the reserve and features a whole suite of different species.

A graceful great egret was spear fishing from a convenient perch,....................

................wattled lapwings patrolled the neighbouring grassland,................

.............a white-breasted cormorant performed a delicate balancing act whilst preening,...............

..............and a Burchell's coucal settled down for the night in a thicket.

The view from the Bundu Bush Camp explains the name of the reserve - Bonamanzi, see water in Zulu.  The distant water is an arm of the St Lucia lake called False Bay.

Hluhluwe Game Reserve is only 30 km away and worth a visit but the normally abundant elephants were absent with only this small herd to be seen in the far distance.

Fortunately birds were plentiful as usual with a smart yellow-throated longclaw serenading the world from atop a bush.

An immaculate Cape starling showing off in shimmering blue....................

..................and a black-crowned tchagra hawking insects beside the road.

Yet another section of Bonamanzi features Dinizulu Dam that is ringed by towering sycamore figs.

Found this little fellow foraging on the dam wall, an emerald-spotted wood-dove showing exactly how it got it's name.

Close by a small flock of grey waxbills were so intent on feeding they appeared oblivious to my presence.  Not sure why but I think birds with predominantly grey plumage very appealing.

A trip into the village for supplies turned out to be quite productive, initially with a giant kingfisher perched above a small pond.  In this family the male has a brown waistcoat while the female wears the "trousers", with brown on the lower abdomen.

A short distance away a very smart fiscal flycatcher was also making use of a power line......

................while this minute zitting cisticola found the camera irresistible.  This group of birds are some of the hardest to identify but their unique calls are generally the way to go.  This one gets it name from the sound it makes as it flies a large, circular route while dipping and climbing.  At the apex of each upstroke it emits a loud zitt.

Finally on one of my many forest perambulations I happened upon this magical, miniature orchid, the veined mystacidium or Mystacidium venosum, apologies for the finger but it needed a comparison.