The weather urges the birds to grab a spot of sunshine at every opportunity.
A blue sky only appears occasionally, and they know that it will not last, before the rain appears again. I was happy to get this peaceful photo above.
The Western Cape is known for its debilitating winter storms that can arrive within a blink of an eye, and therefore the bird populations have become used to the quick changes in the weather. But I think it's only natural for birds to appear when the sun is shining on a clear winter morning. The difference, in our case is that one has to watch what the strong winds will bring.
I will give you a demonstration in here of what I am talking about.
Suddenly the sky color started to change in a very strong wind.
Then the mousebirds pop down into the bushes.
But when the sky is blue, then the birds will play. This Fiscal sat on the top of a high tree across the road, and he was watching me, as they pop into the front garden where I was standing, to catch the small geckos.
This below was his target, a baby dwarf gecko, but not today as I watched him fly away.
A little Southern Double-collared sunbird was happily singing in the sun.
Now watch this synchronized move below by a pair of speckled pigeons.
Perfect sync, as they turned back to preen in unison.
And finally, I leave you with a ring-necked dove and the moon in the background.
We had to stay at home for two days, as our car was in for some body work repairs, and so I took all of the photos from our front garden. Fortunately, we have abundant birdlife and other wildlife here that can keep my camera busy. I rarely concentrate on a single bird species only, except for the sunbirds and the sugarbirds as they are my top favorites. Mind you, since the severe wildfires, the sugarbirds have disappeared, as all of their wild protea bushes were burned down. But the land is slowly recovering and after a few more years the bushes will be back, and the sugarbirds will return. This is just the way of nature, as it has seen many fires over the centuries, and nature always recovers itself.
An amazing finding is that the protea bushes depend on the fires, in order to recharge their growth along the lower mountain slopes. It is reckoned that they need a fire every 4 to 7 years. One of nature's habits.
I hope you have enjoyed the pictures and the story.
Photos by Zac Smith-All Rights Reserved.
Camera: Canon PowershotSX70HS Bridge camera.
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