I walked up the adder track this morning in the vague hope that one of these rare beasts might be out sunning itself but realistically this seemed unlikely as the temperature was struggling to reach 16C and, to our considerable relief, we have had some rain in the last few days - though the total was a disappointing 7mm.
However, there were some insects to enjoy, including three fritillaries feeding on the ragwort, a dragonfly which refused to settle for a picture, and a scattering of bees, flies and hoverflies.
A family of warblers - I have no idea which variety - has taken up residence in the undergrowth along the edge of the fields and seem to enjoy scolding me each time I pass, fields....
....in which the sheep seem quite certain, from the way they were all lying down, that more rain was approaching.
However the main recollection I hold of this gentle walk into the hills was when, on my way home, a deer suddenly crossed the road about fifty metres in front of me - sadly, far too quickly for me to take its picture but slow enough for me to think it was a red deer; and red deer are supposed to have been shot out of this area.
That momentary sighting transported me back to Tanzania, to the small game reserve of Saadani, a reserve which is unusual in that it is on the coast, and of seeing....
....a single antelope running across the road in front of our vehicle.
I was fortunate to get this picture, particularly as the animal here is one that is fairly common in Saadani but less so elsewhere in Tanzania. It's a kongoni, also known as a hartebeest, a largish antelope with an unusual arrangement of horns.
A kongoni hasn't come to mind in years. It was a good memory.
No comments:
Post a Comment