I tried to read the Good News book but it wasn’t my kind of thing. It’s frequent, flippant, smart-alecky asides put my teeth on edge. The ‘feel good’ case-studies too much of one-off esoteric examples.
Then I started King Sequoia which turned out to be the ‘much needed tonic’ the other book had promised to be. A history of how one tree species enchanted people so much, it actually became a reason for the founding of national parks and forest conservations. (I’ve been lucky to stand under a King Sequoia. It’s an experience I’ll always remember with wonder.)
A recommendation for all history buffs, non-fiction readers who like nature and trees.
I finally made it to South Africa. A country I knew very little about apart from the ‘A’ word and Nelson Mandela.
On the wildlife front, spoilt me after the abundance of Kenya, was expecting to be disappointed. Much to the amusement of my husband who kept reminding me that no where, other than Kenya, were Big Five sightings practically guaranteed in every outing and in huge numbers.
Ho Hum I thought, What charm a safari without a big cat? Well the closest we got to a big cat in South Africa, was a distant lion roar in the dark on our way back from Pilanesberg National Park on our first evening.
BUT, back home, looking at the photographs…
oh Deer! The Antelopes we saw!
Up really close.
In a variety unbelievable.
The almost constant rain, that flooded the parks and made the grass high, added another unusual charm to the photographs. One that’s impossible to capture on bright sunlit days.
You tell me what do you think about them. I’m fully amazed 🙂
Trying now to identify the various species, Google keeps taking me to hunting websites. Websites full of photographs of smug trophy hunters. While I understand and accept being part of the food chain, the desire in some people to kill for sport makes my stomach churn.
All in all, South Africa is beautiful and I had a really nice time there but from humans to wildlife, it’s a difficult country to come to terms with.
Oh yes there they were! On my sister’s patio, some very special visitors. Visitors I spend many hours watching, as they buzz in and out at 15 minute intervals through the day.
Anna’s Hummingbirds.
The most common hummingbirds along the Pacific Coast of North America. Little jewel like creatures. Shinning brilliant reds and greens. Buzzing – humming with great ferocity as they fly in for their quick energy top-up from the bottle of sugar syrup hanging out for them.
I don’t know if they recognise me from my biennium trips to California, but they definitely gave me a close scrutiny as I set up camera and tripod and sat quietly waiting for them.
In total there are over 330 different species of hummingbirds, all living in the Western Hemisphere. Though small and delicate, awakening every protective instinct in all who encounter them, don’t take their ferocity lightly. Less than 5 inches in size and weighting about under 5 grams, they have no fear.
One bird came close and closer still. Checking me and my camera out. It’s big eyes staring directly into mine, long beak pointing straight at me and wings whirling loudly like motorblades 50 flaps per second. A couple of seconds of that look, I felt quite ready to duck back indoors!
Checking me and my camera out.
Not just their extreme territorial aggression (smaller, weaker hummingbirds can die of starvation not being able to feed from a feeder guarded by a stronger one), hummingbirds are superlative in many ways…
hummingbirds can fly faster than a fighter jet, relative to size. Reaching approximately 90 feet per second. 30 to 40 kilometers per hour is quite average!
as it pulls up from a dive, with wings spread, a hummingbird experiences centripetal accelerations nearly nine times greater than gravitational acceleration. Humans would black-out under this pressure!
they can fly backward and at times even upside down!
their heart beats about 250 times per minute while at rest. About 1,220 per minute while flying!
they takes about 250 breaths per minute while at rest!
they need to feed on almost half their body weight everyday to keep up with all the energy they spend!
a hummingbird’s brain makes up 4.2 percent of its weight; proportionally, the largest of any bird’s! (Human brains are about 2% of our weight)
Sitting quietly, they are so tiny. Every protective, nurturing instinct is awakened.
Then there are these absolutely enchanting facts. They make their nests of spider web (imagine how delicate that is!), along with lichens and moss, and their brilliant colours are not from pigmentation but how their feathers reflect light. 🙂
As you can see they have me spellbound, so to continue the magic once I was back home I got myself Sy Montgomery’s book recent book The Hummingbird’s Gift.
Sy Montgomery has a powerful writing style. Her book The Soul of the Octopus converted me into a confirmed Octopus crazy-person (woe befall anyone who orders an Octopus for a meal in my presence! )
The Hummingbirds’ Gift is a quick read. Though some sentences get repeated verbatim a couple of times, the editorial oversight doesn’t distract from the sweet charm of the story.
Thinking back on my encounters with the little hummers, I’ll sign-off with a smile and a very happy hummm….
I'm addicted to light.
To colours and sounds.
The magic they play
Within and without.
I'm addicted to sunrises
Peaches and pinks
From snowy mountain tops
And deep quiet lakes.
When outdoors in nature,
and sunset light slants down.
Between trees so straight
Growing up tall.
Or in big cities between buildings,
this golden light falls.
Makes magic one moment,
then fades and is gone.
Mighty tall buildings
With glass windows that shine
To the light of the sun
and the street lamps at night.
The sounds of flowing water,
birds twittering loud.
Hearing people’s laughter and talk.
It’s good to be alive
To experience this all.
Walking amidst people
or on forest paths alone.
Immersed in the moment,
it’s sights, smells and sounds.
Addicted and lost
It's me that I found.
Anuradha Sarup 