Zambia, new birds and animals

Can't figure out what kind this is?



African Finfoot

African Wild Cat

Red-throated Twinspot

Shikra

Deffasa Waterbuck

Red-throated Spurfowl

Scarlet-chested Sunbird

White-crested Helmet Shrike

Greater Honeyguide

Red-crested Turaco

Red-crested Turaco in flight

Western Banded Snake Eagle

Bohms's Bee-eater

Water Thick-knee in flight

Water Thick-knee

Civet

3 Cheetahs!

I saw many new things in Zambia, the best was finally seeing cheetah in the wild. It was at night so the pictures aren't good. I also saw a few things that I couldn't get a pic of, oribi's, white tailed mongeese and an african harrier hawk. Seeing the finfoot and the turaco took some hunting, thanks to David I finally got to see them!

Zambia

I am so excited, I am leaving for Zambia in the morning. I have wanted to go to Zambia for the last 2 years but nobody else wanted to go. Miya was up for it so we are going to Kafue National Park for 4 nights. We are staying at a lodge, no camping this time! Here is a link to the place we will be: http://www.leopard-lodge.com/ I will post pics when I get back.

No.1 Lady's Dectective Agency

I got Miya hooked on the No. 1 Lady Dectective Agency books. She got the 1st few books and now she can't stop listening to them. I finally have someone that will go around and see the sights from the book. Mma Ramotswe always talks about the Presidents hotel and having tea looking over the mall. I wanted to go the last 2 years but didn't have anyone that knew what I was talking about. When I told her they have a sign that say Mma Ramotswe's Tea Corner, she was in. Derek, Miya and I had breakfast at the hotel and drank bush tea just like Mma Ramotswe. We were going to have Pie City too but it was closed.

Gaborone Game Reserve

I took Miya and Derek to the Gaborone Game Reserve. Miya hadn't been there yet and it was Dereks 1st weekend. We drove around for awhile. The wholeplace is torn up. they are putting in sewer pipes I think. It is just a mess. There are dead ends everywhere. Actually the water levels is pretty high so you can't get around the one pond anyway. It was very cloudy so the colors are really good. It was a good first drive for Derek.

Road trip to Nata Bird Sanctuary

Miya, Pollen Amos and I took a road trip to Nata to go to the bird sanctuary. I had wanted to go there the last 2 years but never made it. We left very early, it was suprising we got Miya up that early but she slept most of the way to Francistown. We stopped in FT for lunch, Pie City...yum. They had peri peri chicken pies, I was so excited. There was a post office next door and Miya and I got some nice stamps, well I got a few bird 1st day covers she bought just about every stamp they had. After lunch we made the 2nd half of the journey to Nata. It was a long drive but we made really good time. Nata wasnt at all what i had pictured in my mind. I was thinking there was going to be a lot of water and it would be more like the Delta with a lot of birds. It was more like the Kalahari, dry and desert like with lots of pans. I had a great time, I guess it is better to go during the rainy season to see more birds though. I was hoping to see flamingos but they had already migrated out. We had a fun time and neither Amos or Pollen had ever been there before so that was another plus for them.