Monday, 19 December 2022
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9-12-2022 GAMBIA, AFRICA - YELLOW CROWNED BISHOP (Euplectes afer)
The yellow-crowned bishop (Euplectes afer) is a species of passerine bird in the family Ploceidae native to Africa south of the Sahara. It is highly sexually dimorphic in its breeding season, during which the male adopts a distinctive yellow and black plumage, contrasting with the female's predominantly brown coloration. Four subspecies are recognised.
The yellow-crowned bishop is native to the African countries of: Angola, Benin, Botswana, Burkina Faso, Cameroon, Central African Republic, Chad, RCongo, DRCongo, Ivory Coast, Ethiopia, Gabon, Gambia, Ghana, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Kenya, Lesotho, Liberia, Mali, Mauritania, Mozambique, Namibia, Niger, Nigeria, Senegal, Sierra Leone, South Africa, Sudan, Tanzania, Togo, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. It has been introduced in the following countries: Jamaica, Japan, Puerto Rico, Portugal, Spain, and Venezuela. Escaped males have been noted in southern California, where they defended territories. It prefers habitats such as grasslands, vleis, and pans. It likes wheat and sorghum fields, and weedy vegetation along wetlands.
Sunday, 18 December 2022
16-12-2022 CALYPSO BAR, GAMBIA - AFRICAN DARTER (Anhinga rufa)
This species builds a stick nest in a tree and lays 3–6 eggs. It often nests with herons, egrets and cormorants.
It often swims with only the neck above water, hence the common name snakebird. This, too, is a habit shared with the other anhingas. It feeds on fish, which it catches by diving.
Unlike many other waterbirds the feathers of the African darter do not contain any oil and are therefore not waterproof. Because of this, the bird is less positively buoyant and its diving capabilities are enhanced. After diving for fish, the feathers can become waterlogged. In order to be able to fly and maintain heat insulation, it needs to dry its feathers. Thus the African darter is often seen sitting along the waterside spreading its wings and drying its feathers in the wind and the sun along with cormorants, which may share its habitat.
Saturday, 17 December 2022
Friday, 16 December 2022
15-12-2022 NGALA LODGE, GAMBIA - LEAF FOOTED BUG (Family Coreidae)
https://www.inaturalist.org/taxa/658003-Clavigralla-horrida
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Thursday, 15 December 2022
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