Monday 22 July 2019
25-5-2019 MANA POOLS, ZIMBABWE - YELLOW PANSY BUTTERFLY (Junonia hierta)
Junonia hierta, the yellow pansy, is a species of nymphalid butterfly found in the Palaeotropics. It is usually seen in open scrub and grassland habitats.
The male upper side is bright yellow. The costa of the forewing has a broad triangular jet-black projection downwards at the discocellulars, and the dorsum has a triangular projection upwards near the tornus; this black margin narrows near the middle of the termen and bears on the apex two short transverse preapical white streaks crossed by the black veins. Below these is an obscure ocellus that is sometimes absent. The anterior half and the terminal margin of the hindwing is black, and the dorsum is broadly shaded with brown while the anterior black area has a large brilliant blue spot. The cilia of both forewings and hindwings are white alternated with brown.
The underside of the forewing is pale yellow. The cell is crossed by three laterally black-margined orange-yellow bars, beyond that is a short, broad, irregular jet-black oblique band from costa to base of vein 4. The hindwing is greyish yellow, and in the dry season its form is strongly irrorated (sprinkled) with dusky scales. With a prominent transverse brown discal fascia, its margins are highly sinuous. There is a brownish broad shade on the middle of the termen and some obscure lunular marks on the basal area. The antennae is pale, and the head, thorax and abdomen are dark brownish black; beneath that is a dull ochraceous white.
The female is similar, although the colours are duller. The cell of the upper side forewing has a more or less complete transverse black fascia and another at the discocellulars. A blue-centered well-marked ocelli is in interspaces 2 and 5 on the disc of the forewing, and smaller ocelli in interspaces 2 and 5 on the disc of the hindwing. The forewings and hindwings have a fairly well-defined pale subterminal line, though the blue spot on the anterior black area on the hindwing is small and ill-defined; the rest is as the male. The underside is also as the male, but generally has heavier and more clearly defined markings.
Sunday 21 July 2019
25-5-2019 MANA POOLS, ZIMBABWE - AFRICAN GREAT EGRET (Ardea alba ssp. melanorhynchos)
The African Great Egret (Ardea alba melanorhynchos or Casmerodius albus melanorhynchos) is found in the wetlands of tropical Africa.
The African Great Egret has all white feathers, and a long, thin, yellow beak, which may become darker in the breeding season. It has a fine black line from its beak to beyond its eye (like eye-liner underneath the eye). It has black legs and feet.
It grows to 100 centimetres (39 inches) tall, with a wingspan up to 170 centimetres (67 inches).
It flys slowly, with its neck retracted into an S-shape (not out-stretched). Storks, cranes, spoonbills, and ibises fly with their necks out-stretched, but egrets, herons, and bitterns fly with their heads retracted into their neck.
It is a wetland bird. It is a wading bird.
The African Great Egret feeds in shallow water on fish, frogs, insects, and small reptiles. It spears its prey with its long beak when they come near to it. It can stand still in the water, or wade slowly in the water, silently looking for its prey.
The African Great Egret lives in colonies. Pairs mate for life. Females lay 2-6 blue-green eggs in a stick nest made by the male. Both parents sit on the eggs for 23-26 days before they hatch. Both parents feed the chicks. The chicks can fly after about 6-7 weeks.
25-5-2019 MANA POOLS, ZIMBABWE - BENNETT'S WOODPECKER (Campethera bennettii ssp. bennettii)
Bennett's woodpecker (Campethera bennettii) is a species of bird in the family Picidae. It is found in woodlands and bushes in Africa. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) has assessed it as a least-concern species.
This species was described by Andrew Smith in 1836. Two subspecies are recognised: Campethera bennettii bennettii and C. b. capricorni. The common name and Latin binomial commemorate the British naturalist Edward Turner Bennett. Bennett's woodpecker, the fine-spotted woodpecker, the Nubian woodpecker and the speckle-throated woodpecker form a superspecies.
Bennett's woodpecker is about 24 cm (9.4 in) long and weighs 61–84 g (2.2–3.0 oz). The male's forehead, crown and nape are red. The chin and throat are white. The upperparts are brown, yellow and white. The underparts are pale yellow, and there are dark spots on the breast and flanks. The eyes are red, the beak is grey, and the legs are bluish-green or grey-green. The female has a black forehead with white spots, and its ear coverts and throat are brown or blackish-brown. The juvenile bird has a black forehead and crown and darker upperparts. The subspecies capricorni is slightly larger, and its underparts have a deeper colour and fewer spots.
This woodpecker is found in Angola, Botswana, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, Namibia, Rwanda, South Africa, Tanzania, Zambia, and Zimbabwe, and it has a patchy distribution. Its habitat is woodlands and bushes, including miombo, Baikiaea, Acacia and mopane woodlands.
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