Topic: birds

When you think of birds and love, a pair of doves are probably the most likely image that springs to mind. Many a wedding celebration has seen the release of a couple of doves. And while the typical symbolic white doves are mostly bred in captivity, their greyer cousins are just as striking and just as good at showing a connection, although seemingly less symbolic.  White doves are clear symbols of love, and they are a symbol of peace for many. These albino doves are often woven into rituals,...

  Did you know there are over 320 species of hummingbirds? These tiny birds are considered a great prize among many birders, both for their beauty and because of how difficult they can be to photograph! Identifying a hummingbird to the unpracticed eye can also be tricky. Knowing where the bird was seen will give more context in helping to identify these birds. The most well-known species found in the USA is the ruby-throated hummingbird (Archilochus colubris).  Ruby-throated Hummingbird...

What land animal has the largest eyes? With a diameter of 5cm (2 inches), the Common Ostrich (Struthio camelus) is said to have the largest eyes of any land animal. They are about the size of a billiard ball and five times larger than the human eye! You can see when you look closely that their eyes are quite beautiful with long eyelashes to protect them. However, they take up so much room in their head that their brain is actually smaller than either one of its eyeballs. With such impressive ...

Bingo or “Beano” as it was originally called in the United States, is a hugely popular numbers game that dates back to the mid-1500’s. It started in Italy as the Italian Lottery or "Lo Giuoco del Lotto D'Italia", where players had cards with numbers in rows, winning numbers were drawn from a sack and players competed to match their numbers first. The game became so popular in Italy that it crossed borders to France in the late-1700’s where it was known as “Le Lotto”. The French altered the game ...

When looking at the heaviest bird in the world, there are two distinct categories. The first is the outright heaviest bird in the world and the second is the heaviest flying bird in the world. The heaviest bird in the world is the Common Ostrich (Struthio camelus) with an average weight of 104kg. Most subspecies of the Common Ostrich weigh between 63kg and 145kg. The North African subspecies of the Common Ostrich (Struthio camelus camelus) is however the heaviest with a maximum weight of up t...

There is nothing like relaxing in a nice bird hide and settling in for a good days birding. If you are living in or visiting Cape Town, there are myriad beautiful places to visit for some great birding. Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens, Table Mountain and Cape Point are all spectacular and well-known locations to spot our feathered friends. There are, however, some other dedicated spaces with the opportunity to see fantastic water birds. These are the top 4 nature reserves with bird hides around C...

The rare birds of Kruger National Park is a list of South African species that are generally only seen in Kruger National Park. For example, 2,956 of the 2,981 (99%) of Yellow-billed Oxpecker sightings were seen in Kruger National Park. So, it’s safe to say that Kruger is the place to visit if you want a good chance to tick the Yellow-billed Oxpecker on your life list. Although some of these species may be commonly seen in Kruger National Park, all of them will not be commonly seen anywhere else...