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| A very glitzy fly lazing in the afternoon sun. Click on the photo to see more detail |
@maggiezlenz - a photo journal of wild and wonderful thingz...
Sunday 31 July 2011
Saturday 30 July 2011
July 30, 2011
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| My friend's Australorp Rooster joined our company on the porch today. He is very tame and when spoken to, backchats quietly in Chicken! |
Friday 29 July 2011
July 29, 2011
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| Hairy legs, Woollen mittens, a colourful sweater & a Russian Ushanka? Wrapped up in a leafy nest, this little Striped Garden Spider must be expecting cold weather. |
Thursday 28 July 2011
Wednesday 27 July 2011
July 27, 2011
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| A container on the patio filled up with water during the lovely rain we had over the last few days. This little wild flower caught my eye - it was lying on the surface of the water appearing to 'dent' the surface with its weight. The shadows accentuate the 'dented' surface. |
Tuesday 26 July 2011
July 26, 2011
An Umbrella Tree Plant/Schefflera from a different angle. There is a leaf on each of the red 'stems'.
No wonder some folks refer to them 'Wagon Wheel' plants.
This one grows in a pot on the front steps. It is too cold and wet to venture any further.
(an afterthought: @maggiezlenz is 4 months old today!)
Monday 25 July 2011
July 25, 2011
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| One of our teachers keeps the main entrance at school looking great with beautiful potplants. (and food for thought!) Even old shoes get a second chance! |
Sunday 24 July 2011
July 24, 2011
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| This photo would probably do very well in a "Guess What" game!! When I look at it I see sugary, caramel, honeycomb, home-made, yummy sweet stuff! Actually..... while I decided to answer a few e-mails, I forgot that I had milk on the stove! Fortunately it was on very low heat. Once I poured off the milk, this is what remained in the bottom of the pot. Don't be fooled by looks - the dog would'nt even eat it! (The milk was thick and creamy though & made a delicious mug of rich, frothy coffee) |
Saturday 23 July 2011
July 23, 2011
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| Not a large Mosquito, but a Crane Fly. (Diptera) The internet tells me that the 'handle bars' behind the wings are known as halteres. Halteres function as balancing gyroscopes, or so they say. I think they are for fairies to hold on to .... |
Friday 22 July 2011
July 22, 2011
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| Another dig in the archives today - this photo was taken last Sunday It is said that Mousebirds make very good pets. They are very amusing birds. |
Thursday 21 July 2011
July 21, 2011
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| These little frogs are known as "Banded Rubber Frogs" They are very shiny and I find them difficult to photograph. They burrow and live on termites and other insects. This chap was inside the compost drum when I lifted the lid today. The comical threatening stance led to my decision to post the photos even though I was not happy with the quality. It lifted its behind and puffed itself up trying to look beeeeg and dangerous - it was quite hilarious. Worried that it might explode, I closed the lid - I certainly did not want to be in the line of fire! |
Wednesday 20 July 2011
July 20, 2011
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| Maybe it was threatening me or maybe it was just having a snack. The black object could be a limb of an insect but it is hard to tell because the spider as you see it, from 'knee to knee' is max 5mm wide! The 'nest' is the size of the tip of my pinky finger. This is the same spider nest that I photographed and posted on 10 July. I have been monitoring the 'nest' every day and also moved the plant out of the rain this past weekend. The spider is quite used to me and the camera lens now & no longer shifting around uneasily when I approach. I would love to know what is behind it in that nest!! Could it be eggs?? Patience, Maggie.... I only hope that a bird does not find my spider and eat it for breakfast. Hopefully we will witness a whole brood of little Crab Spiders Love the lacy bits - it has to be a girl spider! |
Tuesday 19 July 2011
July 19, 2011
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| A Death's Head Hawk Moth (Acherontia atropos) Amazing skull on back of it's thorax! I have never seen one of these before and had to Google it to get the name. Also found out that "when threatened, they make a squealing sound, like a mouse. The moths have a 5 inch wingspan and are fond of honey and invade beehives." Google also showed that the beautiful Caterpillars that I photographed on 28 October last year, are of this moth. |
Monday 18 July 2011
July 18, 2011
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| A female Spectacled Weaver giving me the evil eye . (The male wears a black bib) Such a beautiful bird. My bird book tells me that its habitat is 'wetlands' Considering the rain we had over the weekend it is probably a bit confused... |
Sunday 17 July 2011
July 17, 2011
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| Today I feel cheated by the pink sprinkle machine. and no, there were no pink sprinkles in the bottom of the bag.... (I hope it was the fault of the pink sprinkle machine and not a nibbler of sorts with a love for pink sprinkles!!) |
Saturday 16 July 2011
July 16, 2011
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| Yesterday I noticed two juvenile Black-collared Barbets in the dead Guava tree on the bank in front of my house. This must be the youngest bird because it was left alone for most of the day... a very rainy day. I felt so sorry for it, sitting there so wet & woolly and probably very hungry - I did not see mommy returning to feed it. There HAS to be some sort of social structure because various other birds stopped to check on it... (Luckily I could zoom in and take photos from the front door) |
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| A Hoopoe showed a lot of interest and seemed worried because it stopped by twice |
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| The Laughing Dove sat with it for a long time - clearly thinking that leaving a child out in the rain is no laughing matter |
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| The sun sort of showed its face for a while. A Mousebird seemed to try and demonstrate to the Barbet to 'hang in there' |
Friday 15 July 2011
July 15, 2011
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| Normally the egg case of a Praying Mantis is a neat structure. This one is intriguingly different and one can only wonder what went wrong... |
Thursday 14 July 2011
July 14, 2011
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| There has been much activity in the Sausage Tree (Kigelia Africana) over the last few days. The birds are probably after the new buds. This morning I was priveliged to see 4 different birds at one time - although not all were feeding. This Black Headed Oriole was the Master of Ceremonies - calling loudly, while the Hoepoe was preening it's feathers. The Redwinged Starlings were feasting on the buds & the Laughing Doves were getting romantic! Spring is in the air! (The weather turned very cold this afternoon and we had 10mm of rain - quite a relief from the wind and the dust.) |
Wednesday 13 July 2011
July 13, 2011
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| "SO - where is my fruit today??" The Bulbul was literally singing for it's breakfast. The sunlight had an amazing effect - it looks like a table lamp! |
Tuesday 12 July 2011
Monday 11 July 2011
July 11, 2011
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| A very cute Muscovy Duckling. There were 9 of them but this was the only one that kept still long enough for a photo! I love the patches of light and the hints of green reflections of the trees |
Sunday 10 July 2011
July 10, 2011
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| The Snowbush has started to drop its flowers. A closer look at this clump of dead flowers led to an interesting find. Perhaps there are eggs in there? |
Saturday 9 July 2011
Friday 8 July 2011
July 8, 2011
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| This little ? with the rainbow wings turned out to be quite a strange creature - see next photo: |
Thursday 7 July 2011
Wednesday 6 July 2011
July 6, 2011
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| This little Crab Spider was waiting patiently on the "Vygie" for an unsuspecting pollen collector. Loooove the face on it's behind - with the back legs forming perfect ears! |
Tuesday 5 July 2011
Monday 4 July 2011
Sunday 3 July 2011
July 3, 2011
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| Can't you see that I am busy eating.....? Get that camera out of my face!! After placing fruit on the patio, this Black-eyed Bulbul could not keep away. It was very aware of the camera and kept screaming at the photographer who was hiding behind the door... |
Saturday 2 July 2011
July 2, 2011
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| A Stinkbug from a different angle. It is very interesting to see the detail of the fold-away mouthpiece and how it is used! Here it is sucking sap from an immature flower bud. (Click on the photo to see more detail) |
Friday 1 July 2011
July 1, 2011
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| For those who do not know:- THIS is a Beehind!! The bee was adamant to collect pollen from an Aloe floret that had not yet opened. It tried from all sides - spinning from side to side until it managed to pry the petals apart. Breakfast served and pollen sacs filled! |
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