Natural beauty
Sometimes we are big
sometimes we are small
It’s a matter of scale
Nature in all her glory
I have always been fascinated by everything in nature, and it soothes me when my world is filled with the sights, sounds and feel of Nature’s gifts.
My family have always been around animals and nature. We had a farm filled with horses and cattle when I was growing up. My uncle and aunt were part of the Leaky groups studying The Great Apes. They studied Dwarf Chimps, or Bonobos, in the jungles of the Congo, in the 1970’s. Hubby and I have taken our sons on many, many weekends and holidays in South Africa’s various National Reserves and Parks.
Now, I am so lucky to live on a farm, and able to interact with everything from orphaned babies to eating hailstones, and seeing the world change through the eyes of little children!
I am part of a few conservation groups recording the appearance and habits of many creatures on the farm.
I’d like to share some of these with you.
Weekly Photo Challenge: Depth 2
He ain’t heavy;
He’s my brother
Look into an Elephants’ eyes;
a depth of intelligence,
understanding.
compassion,
questioning
We can’t lose them!
Weekly Photo Challenge: Shadowed
Blue Moon
16 March 2010
Shadowed
Weekly Photo Challenge is here: https://dailypost.wordpress.com/dp_photo_challenge/shadowed/
The 4 Elements – Earth, Fire, Air, Water
We’ve experienced them all in the past few months, here on our farm! Here are some of the photos, there are captions to explain some, so hover over the photo.
5 August 2014 Earth: We had an earthquake, rare down here in South Africa; at least of this magnitude! Scared us all! It was felt over most of the country. We live about 80km away from the epicentre. We had a fair amount of damage.
outside the kitchen door
Bathroom
passage
Lounge
passage wall and ceiling
Link: Earth: http://mg.co.za/article/2014-08-05-sa-earthquake-big-but-not-uncommon
25 August 2014: Fire! I was 50km away when we heard there was fire on the farm. Dreadful news; coming out of winter, the new grazing hasn’t come yet; no rains have come or are being forecast yet; everything is dry, dry, dry. Thankfully the harvest is in for the most part, at least on our farm. But the cattle and sheep are out in the fields. Our son was on his motorbike, and suddenly the wind turned; he was trapped in a corner of fenced field with fire on the other two sides, racing towards him. He was engulfed in smoke and flames. My husband saw it happening, helpless. Suddenly the motorbike burst through the flames and smoke at a mad speed. He is safe! The fires went on for 3 days
from about 40km away
wall of fire
mini tornado to add to the drama
grazing devastated
the trees burned for days
16 October 2014 Air: Sandstorms hit 4 Provinces of South Africa: Bloemfontein, Johannesburg, Pretoria all had amazing photos. We had a huge sandstorm at the farm too!
Here you can see distinct levels of the storm: The heavy dark rain filled clouds, rain coming down, but being blown away by the strong winds, which at the same time is whipping the sand and dust into the air.
At about mid right is a slightly green area, next to the pole. Those are 10-12m high Bluegum trees surrounding the homestead. They’re almost obliterated by the height of the sandstorm.
Driving through the storm
Visibilty just a few metres
Wind: http://www.sabc.co.za/news/a/ccb2158045dc96309258f29709b21094/Sandstorm-experienced-in-four-provinces-20141710
30 November 2014 Water: We had bright, hot sunshine in the morning. Then thunderclouds rolled in. The power went out, rain and hail pelted down for about 30 minutes, and it was a different world!
hail in the garden
raging waters
floods
hail damage
a river runs through it
Yes, dramatic, scary, challenging and financially horrible!
Africa makes you strong!!!
This is a photo of the homestead at almost the same angle as the sandstorm photo
Sunset over the lands
A Pixie came to say hello
Giant African Bullfrog, Pyxicephalus adspersus
Photos taken at Pretoria in December 2010
We had days of heavy rains,
and it resulted in a visit from a wonderfully impressive fellow!
That’s my son and grandson kissing the bullfrog,
NOT to be recommended,
very silly daddy, these frogs can bite really, really badly!
But he was a sweet old thing.
They had a 15 minute visit and it was back to where we found him.
Absolutely wonderful!!!!
Gaz is fascinated with frogs and toads, indeed all live things, and is always bringing them in to show us. We allow him to do so, encouraging his interest, and educating him about them at the same time. However, he knows that though they may be brought in, it is only to watch for some minutes. Then they have to be returned to where they came from, to allow them to return to their lives.
These are the Granddaddies of all frogs! I am not afraid of these creatures, but I prefer not to touch them. They are enormous and soft and bulbous and wet and I don’t find these particular ones ‘pretty’.
Description & Life History
The Giant African Bullfrog, Pyxicephalus adspersus, is the second largest frog in the world, the largest being the Goliath Frog, Conraua goliath. Vendors in the pet trade often use distortions of the African Bullfrog’s scientific name, such as “pixie frog” and “pyxie”, to refer to the young froglets that often surprise new pet owners by growing into monsters. Adult males can weigh well over a kilo (over 2.2 lbs) and males typically reach a snout-to-vent length of 17.5 cm (7 inches); specimens over 20 cm (8 inches) have been recorded (Passmore and Carruthers).
Females rarely exceed 12.5 cm (5 inches). Most anurans exhibit sexual dimorphism in size, generally the female being larger than the male. The African Bullfrog exhibits extreme size differences between the sexes, but the male is the larger animal. Males also have more powerful limbs and larger skulls. In the wild, some larger male African Bullfrogs in a population will demonstrate parental care by guarding their tadpoles against predators and, when necessary, insuring sufficient water is accessible to their brood by digging channels between pools (Balinsky and Balinsky; Kok and Du Preez; Cook, Ferguson and Telford). These guardian males have been known to attack animals much larger than themselves in defense of their offspring.
The size differences between the sexes are probably due to this parental behavior and the violent fighting that occurs between males at breeding time. Fighting takes the form of grasping an opponent in an attempt to flip or throw him (Passmore and Carruthers). These frogs are equipped with bony tooth-like projections called odontoids, located in the center of the lower jaw, which can deliver a very painful and bloody bite to an opponent or the finger of a human being. When forced on the defensive, these frogs will puff up with air to appear as large as they can, and in the case of guardian males they will lunge at the attacker with jaws open in an attempt to deliver a discouraging bite.
Adult frogs are generally green to dark green above, and pale cream or white below, with grayish blotches/spots. The pupils are horizontal, and while the fingers lack webbing, the toes have fleshy webbing. Both sexes have deep orange markings where the limbs meet the body.
Males tend to have a large amount of yellow coloration along the flanks and sometimes onto the throat; females have little yellow coloration beyond the base of the limbs. This bright coloration on males appears to play a display role during breeding (Channing, Du Preez and Passmore).
Adult males have proportionally larger heads, particularly where the head meets the body.
Sexing of these frogs is most difficult before their gonads develop but sex differences are usually quite apparent by a length of 10 cm (4 inches). Both sexes may grunt or force air through their airways to produce a dull hiss when grasped around the midriff, but females do not call.
Metamorphs are distinctly different in appearance to adults (so much so that lay men frequently don’t realize they are the same species). Metamorph froglets have black and various shades of green on their body, and three lines of bright green color, one running along the back from the nose to the vent, and one on either side of the body from the nose to the eye and from the eye along the side. These lines fade with age and this fading varies from individual to individual.
In countries where these frogs live, like South Africa, the climate is dry for much of the year. In Gauteng, South Africa, certainly the origin of most of the scientific studies of this species, the winter months of June, July and August see virtually no rain and temperatures are relatively cool (average temperatures for these 3 months: 5-17 °C/41-63 °F) (South African Weather Service). Significant rains are generally confined to the period of September to January and these wetter times correspond to the above ground activity of these frogs.
African Bullfrogs can spend as much as 10 months of the year aestivating to conserve water and to wait out conditions of drought and extreme temperatures. This aestivation involves burrowing into soft earth using the frog’s massive, flanged inner metatarsal tubercle (a projection found on each rear foot). When buried, the frog sheds many layers of skin which harden into a paper-like cocoon with only the frog’s nostrils exposed. The frog enters into a state of low metabolic activity and water retention.
Emergence is triggered by the first significant rains of summer, and breeding begins during the first daylight following the rains (if the rains occur at night, otherwise breeding activity is immediate). African bullfrogs are largely diurnal and this also applies to their breeding behavior. Adults congregate in ponds where the males call with a low, 1 second long whoop that resonates in the region of 100-300 Hz, sometimes likened to the sound of a cow. The call isn’t very loud and it doesn’t carry far. Males form groups; males fight and larger males may exclude the smaller males from the center of the group. Males assert dominance over others by lunging at, chasing and/or throwing their opponents, and the bites from these attacks can result in the death of smaller males and the loss of eyes. Females remain outside the group of males, at a distance, and when ready to breed they dive under the perimeter males to reach the central males. Amplexus, the grasping of the female behind the forearms by the male, occurs and the pair will spawn within a few hours in water approximately 7.5 cm (3 inches) deep. When ready to spawn, the pair lifts their hindquarters clear of the water and the female stimulates the male with her legs to trigger his release of sperm over her eggs. These are produced in midair and spread around the hindquarters to distribute the sperm, after which the eggs fall into the water. A total of 1600-4000 eggs are laid. The female signals her dismissal of the male by a prolonged arching of the back or by a tonic stretching of her body, whereupon the male releases his grasp and the pair separates. The male will attempt to breed with other females if possible but at this point the spawned female’s role ends.
After the flurry of breeding ends, many males and all females leave the spawning area. Larger dominant males may remain with their eggs (it is not clear if all of the eggs they guard are their own, though it seems unlikely). The tadpoles hatch within 48 hours at about 29 °C (84 °F) (van Wyk and Kok) and they have been observed to form a swarm/school around the guardian male (if he is present) 24 hours later. The tadpoles are omnivorous and detritivorous (cf. the Horned Frogs/Pacman Frogs, Ceratophrys, of South America, whose tadpoles are carnivorous but whose adults are very similar in behavior and habit to African Bullfrogs). The male will guard the tadpoles against predation, and males may be killed by predators in the process of defending their tadpoles. It was once thought that males may also eat some of their tadpoles, but this seems unlikely. Tadpoles may reach a total length of 6.4 cm (2.5 inches) at metamorphosis, and this can occur in as little as 17 days at 29 °C (84 °F). Pre-metamorphic tadpoles already exhibit the dorsal ridges of metamorphosed frogs. Metamorph froglet size is in the region of 2.2-3.6 cm (0.87-1.4 inches).
Metamorphosis is followed by rapid growth because these frogs must build reserves in preparation for the next drought.
Natural Range & Habitat
Pyxicephalus adspersus is recorded in much of sub-Saharan Africa. Many records exist from before the splitting of P. adspersus and P. edulis (Dwarf or Lowveld African Bullfrog). The map below is based on data from before the split and it is likely not 100% accurate. Some sources list Nigeria as part of the species’ natural range but this seems highly unlikely. It is interesting to note that this species ranges from temperate (the very southern extent of its range in South Africa), through sub-tropical and into equatorial regions, and at its greatest dimension the range is about 3,000 miles; truly massive for any species. Most of the published studies of P. adspersus have been carried out in South Africa, and this has implications: it is unlikely that the species’ behavior is the same across the entire range given the difference in climates.
The habitat of this species is the dryer savanna of southern Africa. Frogs typically live in and around large pans that fill with water after rains and frogs can be found in the surrounding bush land while moisture persists in the area.
With the appearance of so many variations of this frog which are obviously not the stereotypical Giant African Bullfrog (many do not grow larger than Lowveld African Bullfrogs, and colours vary greatly), it has become more and more apparent that the genus Pyxicephalus requires considerable attention from taxonomy scientists. It is a safe bet that what we refer to as the Giant African Bullfrog is largely confined to South Africa and neighboring countries.
African Bullfrogs are voracious eaters. The size of their mouth, their powerful jaws and the damage they can inflict with their odontoids mean that almost any animal that will fit in their mouths is a potential menu item. Dangling a finger in front of a frog’s head is not a great idea; these frogs can deliver very painful and deep bites that bleed copiously.
Food:
Crickets: Locusts:
Cockroaches:
Silkworms & Hornworms:
Waxworms:
PhoenixWorms (Soldier fly larvae):
Mealworms & Superworms: relatively high in fat and they have a particularly bad calcium: phosphorous ratio. Shouldn’t be used as a staple.
Earthworms, Night crawlers, sometimes called Lobworms or Canadian Earthworms are the large earthworm, Lumbricus terrestris
Mice & Rats:
Amphibians:
Reptiles:
Birds: chicks/chickens and quail.
The Scratching Post – Minx
If there were to be a universal sound denoting peace,
I would vote for the purr
We had 6 dogs, including the most beautiful, 3 year old Great Dane lady. Hayley was gentle, playful, protective, a clown, adoring, curious, runner, and darling of the family. 28th September 2009 the dogs killed a little kitten and brought its body to the house! Poor little baby. The Jack Russell Terriers kill cats, squirrels, birds, etc – if it moves and is smaller than them; it’s dead!
Marge and her two “heinz 57” offspring, mongrels with hearts of gold, have been seen to kill and eat chickens and birds, and they chase feral cats. Hayley, got very excited, but never killed anything, or ate it.
Then Hayley brought a tiny little kitten to the house, without hurting it at all. Samuel took it from her and placed it in a hollow tree trunk. A little later that day, Samuel brought me the wet, cold, mewling little kitten with ears and eyes tightly closed. Hayley rushed over and as the kitten mewed, she whined and licked it gently. He was only days old; eyes and ears still closed up. Too sweet. He lives!
I took this little raggamuffin from my beautiful girl and fell in love. I’ve never had a cat before, but we’d always had feral cats around that enchanted me. I named my little bundle Minx, since I didn’t know what to make of its nether-regions! I’ve had lots of baby orphans and knew that it needed help to eliminate waste. We got baby-cat milk from the vet along with a tiny teated bottle and we started our journey. It was the last present my beautiful girl gave me, she died just 4 days later!
Munchkin, has adopted him. She is besotted, and cries outside my window to be let in. She does toilet duty like a good mommy, and plays with the kitten, with a look of utter amazement on her face. My heart melts at the two of them! I introduced Marge to the kitten with Munchy in attendance. Right decision. Marge was fascinated and relatively gentle. Margie and Jackie both invite him to play and yelp at him, bums in the air! However, I’ll not trust them with him yet, I think ‘play’ may turn into something more sinister if unsupervised!
This is going to be a bit of a challenge! Chloe, the fat Jack Russel, is baffled and just rolls over, silly grin on her face and wags from head to tail! Molly, the tree-climber stays far away, and glares suspiciously!
Minx also loves to bring us presents, birds, bats, mice, baby rats, almost always appearing to be uninjured but sometimes terrified and screaming! They need rescuing, for he only brings them as a token, or to boast! Tables, chairs and all sorts go flying as doors are slammed, to contain him and we start the bribery to get the poor little thing away. It is not a quiet or dignified scene!
My kitten has been well-documented photographically, and has many doting “aunts” among my facebook friends. Minx is just beautiful and sweet, is a clown, has charmed his way into all our hearts, has unbelievable privileges, and completely rules the roost! What a joy!
Matt kidnapped him when I was away for a bit, and then proceeded to keep him captive for weeks! Minx has turned his back on his mum, and is now Matthew’s baby. Minx attacks me, soft-paws, every time he sees me. Silly boy! I’m dreadfully hurt!
Elephant road rage!
How terrifying! I hope the elephant is ok, and remains so!
http://blog.getaway.co.za/wildlife/elephant-overturns-car-kruger/
Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.
Hurricane Sandy
May the Lord bless and keep you and yours safely in the palm of His hand. All those facing the superstorm, may it be a little storm in a teacup. Be safe x
Posted with WordPress for BlackBerry.
A-Z Archive: X-Rated
Err, Ahem I’m a little leery of this one. But it was not anything we did, or didn’t do. This was Nature at her Naughtiest!
I present: The (not so humble) Aubergine, Eggplant, Brinjal, Eggfruit, whatever you want to call it…
3 of the best
And, the Winner is …
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Travel Challenge: Ocean
These photos were all taken at Club Mykonos, Langebaan, Western Cape, South Africa.
This is the Atlantic Ocean.
My 3 boys and I spent a week together, just hanging out.
It was just 8 months after my accident, and it was very special.
The Ocean is my “happy place”,
Going there refreshes, rejuvenates, renews, repletes, re-energises, recreates me.
I miss not living there any more really badly.
These photos are really my simplest, greatest treasures:
my sons, the ocean and a sunset.
I love you guys so very much
Thank you for this time we had together
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