The adventures of Bill and the birders ( or patterns in nature)
It's already February and I haven't written a newsletter for months. I apologise, but life has just been too exciting.Tonight as I was looking back on my adventures in order to choose a theme for a newsletter, I was flooded with wonderful recollections of times with friends and clients in Victoria Falls, Hwange, Cape Town, Uganda, Belgium, Singita, Table Mountain, Timbavati, The Succulent Karoo, Namibia, The winelands, The Cederberg . . . I hope to share all of these adventures with you but the one that is demanding to be heard...
After the fire – the first splashes of colour
The unique fynbos vegetation of The Cape is adapted to fire, however this is not to say that all species fare equally well after a fire. The recovery of the vegetation after a fire is not simple to predict. It is a chance occurrence and the recovery of each species is influenced by when the fire occurred, how hot it was, when the last fire occurred, how soon after the fire the first rains arrived and the quantity of rain in the following rainy season. Whatever the circumstances, the resprouters are...
FYNBOS FENIX AND THE ASHES
It is almost one month since the devastating Cape Town fire began and about three weeks since it ended. Although it is normal for our area to have fires at this time of year, this fire was particularly bad because of its extent (5,000 Ha burnt) and the damage it caused to property. In the immediate aftermath our beautiful mountain appeared destroyed and beyond recovery. [caption id="attachment_2765" align="aligncenter" width="300"] Three days after the fire[/caption] [caption id="attachment_2766" align="aligncenter" width="300"] The burnt mountain - three days after the fire.[/caption] In Greek mythology, the phoenix (also...