Zambia!

 

Myself and 33 other environment volunteers have just completed 11 weeks of training in Zambia, and have sworn in as Peace Corps volunteers.  During the majority of those 11 weeks, each volunteer stayed with a host family.  This picture is of my host parents Peter and Liah, my nieces Anita and Winnie Frieda, my sister, and my nephews Freddy and Kiko.  They were amazing.  I was very lucky to have such a great host family.  I will miss them in my new village.

This picture was from another day when some of my young neighbors were over to visit.  Zambian villagers are absolutely amazing.  Most are incredibly kind, hospitable, and friendly.  The children (iwes) here are at least as impressive.  They are sweet and happy and fun.  These children in particular, are just perfect.

I thought this was a great photo of Ba Freddy with one of his home-made footballs.

This is another picture of mostly the same kids.  They would all run to greet me everyday, every time I would come and go from my home-stay.  Although some of the kids may not look ecstatic, they are actually all very smiley and gentle.  They were smiling just before and after this picture, but it is sometimes hard to communicate to children in the village, the concept of all getting together and smiling at the same time.  These kiddos are very bright, but the language and cultural barrier makes it challenging.

This was a funny and unfortunate misunderstanding.  My host family knows that I enjoy looking at birds.  So they caught me one.  I don't know how exactly, that was lost in translation, but this poor little sunbird is alive and apparently well.  When they fist showed me the bird, I showed what I thought was the appropriate amount of gratitude, and then asked them to let it go.  They said I had to hold it first though, and I obliged and snapped this picture.  I also took a funny shot of holding this bird up in front of the sunbird page in my field guide.  This is one of many amazing birds there are to see in Zambia, and I hope to post pictures of some others once I start using my other camera for birding.

Amazing Galveston and Humble, TX Birds

If you ever have a chance to go birding on the Texas coast, I would absolutely recommend it.

This is one of the handful of Little Blue Herons I saw with in Galveston.

This is a little blue heron in it's white juvenile plumage.

We spotted two Yellow-crowned Night-Herons when a Tricolored heron walked in front of them.

Here is a picture of the two Night-Herons together.

We also saw White Ibis.

These are Black-bellied Whistling-Ducks walking next to a Canada Goose.

More Black-bellies..

The Tricolored Heron was one of my favorite birds of the whole trip. 

I don't even mind that I didn't get good pictures.

This Roseate Spoonbill was quite pale, but still amazing and beautiful.

We saw one later that was fantastically brighlty colored, but got no pictures.

We saw over 500 Black Skimmers resting on the beach.

Here are some landing..

Resting.. (and yawning?)

Flying..

This is one of several Royal Terns we saw near the Skimmers.

Reddish Egrets are quite large and really just amazing.

See?

Bittern!

Pictures I could upload without cropping.

A cool frog at Tommy's house in VA.

Yellow headed blackbird amongst..?  (Oklahoma)

Harris's Sparrow.  (Oklahoma)

Scissor Tailed Flycatcher. 

Can you believe how gorgeous this bird is?

It is one of my favorite all time birds

 since seeing it in Oklahoma on my road trip to Oregon.

Violet Green Swallows.

(Malheur Lake N.W.R.,

near Burns, OR)

Coyote.

(Malhuer Lakes N.W.R.)

Clark's Grebe.

(Malhuer Lakes N.W.R.)

Pine Siskin.

(My Backyard at the Bunkhouse,

Ochoco National Forest, OR)

White Pelicans.

(Ochoco Resevoir,

Prineville, OR.)

THIS IS NOT A STUFFED ANIMAL.

THIS IS A REAL GREAT HORNED OWL FLEDGLING.

And she or he is learning to fly.

(Ochoco National Forest, OR)

Shorebirds

Long Billed Curlews were like mythical creatures to me when I was living in Massachusetts.

Oh, how I longed to see one.

Luckily I've been able to see Wonderful Whimbrels, as Curlews have eluded me.

Until now! 

I saw about six or seven of these near Malheur National Wildlife Refuge in Princeton, OR.

Curlews are even bigger than Whimbrels, and have longer bills.

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Here are some other neat shorebirds for your enjoyment:

American Avocet.  Blue Legs!

Least Sandpiper.  Tiny.  Green Legs.

Western Sandpiper.  Tiny.  Black Legs.

Black Neck Stilt.  Awesome.

Solitary Sandpiper.  Understated.  Very pretty.

"Pil-Wil-Western-Willet!"



- - -

Stilt, Avocet and Curlew are the three shorebirds I was dying to see in Oregon. 

I guess I can go home now!