Sunday, February 14, 2010
Thursday, February 11, 2010
Warthogs
Warthogs can be very vicious and there is a case on record where one ripped a leopard open with its tusks in self-defence.
Both male and female have tusks and these are kept sharp as the bottom ones continually rub against the top ones.
In times of drought and in areas where food is scarce, warthogs will dig up roots and bulbs using their tusks and noses.
Because they are so small and the grass is normally higher than them, they erect their tails when running so that the others in the family can see where the leader is going and can follow.
The warts on their faces (females have two and the males have four) are in fact growths of skin and not actual warts.
From foraging around finding food, they will develop calluses on the joints of their front knee from kneeling on the ground.
When they are attacked, they will go hind first into an old antbear hole so that their tusks point towards the opening and can thus defend themselves.
Due to the fact that they are in such close contact with the grass, they are infested with ticks and in order to get rid of them, they will wallow in a mud pool and as the mud dries, the ticks become encased in it. The warthogs then rub against a tree or rock it break the mud off and the ticks with it.
Leopard and lion are their biggest enemies although when they are still very small, they also fall prey to eagles and jackal.
Both male and female have tusks and these are kept sharp as the bottom ones continually rub against the top ones.
In times of drought and in areas where food is scarce, warthogs will dig up roots and bulbs using their tusks and noses.
Because they are so small and the grass is normally higher than them, they erect their tails when running so that the others in the family can see where the leader is going and can follow.
The warts on their faces (females have two and the males have four) are in fact growths of skin and not actual warts.
From foraging around finding food, they will develop calluses on the joints of their front knee from kneeling on the ground.
When they are attacked, they will go hind first into an old antbear hole so that their tusks point towards the opening and can thus defend themselves.
Due to the fact that they are in such close contact with the grass, they are infested with ticks and in order to get rid of them, they will wallow in a mud pool and as the mud dries, the ticks become encased in it. The warthogs then rub against a tree or rock it break the mud off and the ticks with it.
Leopard and lion are their biggest enemies although when they are still very small, they also fall prey to eagles and jackal. 
Wednesday, February 10, 2010
Bonsai
I love to spend some time at the nurseries browsing around the bonsai. They are so beautiful!!
Why they had to spoil this one with the ugly blue pot, I don't know!!
Why they had to spoil this one with the ugly blue pot, I don't know!!
Sunday, February 7, 2010
What I do for fun
When and if I have the time, I like to play around with the photographs I have by combining two or three into a montage. I am not very good at it as I am not a graphics expert, but I do enjoy the results. Enjoy!!
Saturday, February 6, 2010
Pilansberg - Wild Flowers - Part 2
Most of the wild flowers are very small, some only a few mm in diameter and most around 1/2 an inch.
A flower? No I don't think so although this Guinea Flow might think she is one!! :) She was laying in the road just begging for her photo to be taken.
A flower? No I don't think so although this Guinea Flow might think she is one!! :) She was laying in the road just begging for her photo to be taken.
Thursday, February 4, 2010
Roses
We have a rose farm nearby and I go there at least once a month to smell the beautiful fragrances in the air and to wonder at the perfectness of the rose.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
Pilansberg - Wild Flowers - Part 1
I went to Pilansberg over the past weekend to do some bug hunting and everything is very lush and green.
They have had a lot of rain there with dams, stream and river overflowing. Because of the rain, there are ticks everywhere and so walking looking for bugs was out. I then decided to do the wild flowers, something I have been wanting to do for a long time but never seem to get around to.
Although I am calling this series "Flowers" I did run across a bug and animal or two and will insert them here too.
When the gates opened at 05:30 it was still fairly dark and at the first watering hole I saw these hippo out of the water, heading back down from where they had been grazing. It was too dark to see properly so I took a few pictures and this one came out good enough to post, the others are really AWFUL!! LOL!!
There was a mushroom with a pretty edge along the road and I could not resist a shot of it.
A baby Elegant Grasshopper. They get to be really beautiful and colorful when older, in about 6 weeks from this stage.
The young giraffe had an itch and was scratching his head against the tree. It must be awful trying to find the right size tree to rub it against. :)
In the distance was one of the dams I was heading for and the water was running over the sluice gates. It is the first time I have been there that I have seen this as it is actually quite a dry area.
They have had a lot of rain there with dams, stream and river overflowing. Because of the rain, there are ticks everywhere and so walking looking for bugs was out. I then decided to do the wild flowers, something I have been wanting to do for a long time but never seem to get around to.Although I am calling this series "Flowers" I did run across a bug and animal or two and will insert them here too.
When the gates opened at 05:30 it was still fairly dark and at the first watering hole I saw these hippo out of the water, heading back down from where they had been grazing. It was too dark to see properly so I took a few pictures and this one came out good enough to post, the others are really AWFUL!! LOL!!
There was a mushroom with a pretty edge along the road and I could not resist a shot of it.
A baby Elegant Grasshopper. They get to be really beautiful and colorful when older, in about 6 weeks from this stage.
The young giraffe had an itch and was scratching his head against the tree. It must be awful trying to find the right size tree to rub it against. :)
In the distance was one of the dams I was heading for and the water was running over the sluice gates. It is the first time I have been there that I have seen this as it is actually quite a dry area.
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