Bonaparting!

Though I was mostly the sole occupant in the Oval Campsite, there was always something of interest going on such as regular visits from this merry bunch of banded mongoose only some of whom are in this clump.  I made the mistake of turning my back on them once and next thing there were about 20 in the van investigating!  I only realized they were there as I approached the door and heard all their chatter.  A couple of claps and a loud; "Out of there", created a major exodus that resembled the recent floods.

Most of the time the dustbin was the main focus but they also spent a lot of time digging little holes in the lawn in search of insects.  As with most animals the youngsters at play were a delight to watch particularly when they discovered they could "hide" under the ground sheet.

Of course there were many avian visitors as well including gorgeous little grey waxbills.......

...........a humbug headed yellow-rumped tinkerbird who practically begged me to take it's picture,,,,,,

...........and yellow-bellied greenbuls who nag almost continuously when you get too close.

With 4 000 ha to get lost in there are still places that pull like a magnet even after a month.  The fever tree forest bordering the Mzinene River is one such spot

There is always something happening birdwise like the male of a pair of chinspot batis sizing up his next item of prey.............

............while an elegant ashy flycatcher still hunts from a perch and and pronounces success with a loud beak snap as the prey is nabbed.  Have only just noticed that this one has a ring fitted!

On the way back from Hluhluwe village after a shopping excursion I couldn't miss this large patch of red in an otherwise dull brown background. A bank smothered in common soap aloes A. maculata.

Agreed it doesn't look like much but a) it was a new species for Bonamanzi and b) it had never before been atlassed in the area.  So meet what is now called a fan-tailed grassbird but was previously a far more likeable broad-tailed warbler.  Fortunately I was able to get some decent shots which convinced the rarities committee that I knew what I was on about.

It's was another of those moon phenomena that seem to be all the rage, this time a super moon though it looked pretty much the same to me! Was trying to get an unusual picture when I noticed a bat flying in front of it and in an effort to track the bat, I chopped the moon.  Ah well, you can still see the bat just below the equator to the right.

On a stroll around Lalapanzi Camp I noticed something large and white in a tree overlooking one of the dams.  A juvenile southern banded snake eagle imperiously surveying it's realm.  Think this one might have been trying it's hand at fishing as there are not many snakes around in winter.

As I've said before they can't all be colourful, but this one made the cut as it was new for my list in this area.  A flappet lark, who though not particularly smart has a rather interesting method of attracting a mate.  Though it is capable of song it's not very loud so it's draws attention to itself by snapping it's wings together under it's body while in flight, producing a loud prrrt prrrrt-rrrt sound.

I had a picture of a terrestrial brownbul in a recent blog but it wasn't showing it's one distinctive feature, the white throat patch!

So here's an "Ag shame" that ticks all the boxes, it's small, it's cute and it's a VERY blue waxbill.  

So it's 11 am on an overcast Sunday,,,,,,,why not have a lie in?

If however you are a tambourine dove who is still hungry!  Tried to find out why the name but all I could come up with was that it is part of the Tympanistra family, which is named after the repeated drum like calls but it certainly sounds nothing like a tambourine.

A house-sitting date in Riebeeck Kasteel was looming so put the Beast into storage and headed for the metropolis of Boksburg.  The jockey wheel, which was already bent out of shape by a previous attack of "oldtimers", finally expired.  So as there was quite a bit of PT involved in moving, I decided to overnight at a place I'd been meaning to visit for a while - Bivane Dam.  There was a 20 km stretch of dirt road that was actually in better shape than most of the other roads that needed to be traversed. After entering the gate of the surrounding nature reserve part of the dam soon comes into view.  Though I was hoping to make use of the caravan park the steep drop from here down to the wall is off-putting, I may get the Beast down but have my doubts about getting back up again!

I was booked into one of the two bed chalets which was luxuriously furnished and priced at a very modest winter rate of R450 pppn. The dam was completed in 2000 and is the largest privately owned dam in South Africa.  Built on the Bivane River, which is a tributary of the Phongola River it covers over 700 ha when full and supplies water to downstream farmers in the Pongola Valley.  This is because so much water is extracted from the Phongola River, that it regularly runs dry in winter.

The whole complex is a delight and includes and island for those fishermen who don't have boats.....

.......a massive pier for those who do.......

.......a couple of pools, a conference centre, restaurant and shop.

As mentioned the chalets are beautifully appointed and sleep either 2, 4 or 6 people in a wonderful setting.

After a few nights in the cottage I was on a plane to Cape Town and reunited with the lovely village of Riebeeck Kasteel - spelling optional.

My "duties" in the majestic Maison King include looking after my old friend, the very loving Leo.....

......a new acquaintance in the shape of Storm, who actually belongs to the neighbours but spends a lot of time here and is going to move in permanently when they move out.

Another old friend in the form of Shadow who is no longer as sprightly, but still goes walkabout regularly and his sidekick Beau, who also belongs next door, but is here a lot of the time.  Fortunately the chickens have departed so it's a bit of a doddle really.