The geese arrived two days ago. I have been so pre-occupied with orphaned warthoglets, drought and workers that were dragging their feet in preparation for the Christmas/New Year period, that I hadnt realised that the geese werent here yet! They have a remarkable ability to predict the filling of the dam behind the house...and stay here most of summer..raising their goslings...then disappearing in the Autumn. I had noticed some enthusiastic splashing going on in one of the eland water troughs and wondered when the guinea fowl had started to swim...then realised it was the geese! Rain must be coming......very welcome, in our critical state of drought. Late yesterday afternoon, I went and opened the tap in the ground, in the now empty eland camp, to fill the shallow hollow that the eland had landscaped themselves. It becomes a micro oasis...instantly turning the grass bordering the tiny waterhole, emerald green...and many species gather there to drink and bathe and just catch up on the daily news that animals seem to share with one another. It was so quiet at that little hole in the ground... The sound of the clear water gushing out of the pipe was broken by the call of a mother cow, trying to find her disobedient child. Resident plovers made mock charges at my old Colt bakkie, as I sat there...in their territory...in the violet hue of the fading light. They noisily voiced their disapproval at my presence...running here and there on toothpick legs. Picking up my binoculars...a constant companion for a stud game breeder...I focussed them on the young black impala ram, Niggerball. He was grazing alongside his single ewe..flicking his large ear tags back and forth...his slick, dark coat testimony to his value. Suddenly, young Ramses came into view! His beautiful rack of horns were in velvet and he carried them with the majestic attitude of one who knows he is special. In the steadily fading light I could make out the rest of the Axis deer grazing in the far corner of their camp...ever alert. Just then...obscuring my vision, Niggy ran...chasing his ewe. As I adjusted the sights...they came back! Running across my field of vision... this handsome young, black ram...and his red ewe. Sighing..and trying to find the Axis deer again....I had to laugh as Niggerball and his ewe ran, once again, across my line of sight! This time they were doing the impala dance...huge bouncy leaps...front end then back end ...in giant rocking strides! It was almost as if they knew that they were disrupting my view of the stately Axis deer...and were having fun doing it! As darkness settled over Livingstone...I drove over to the tiny waterhole...and turned off the tap. Now, at least, the Egyptian geese could wade in the muddy pool until the dam was full and they could swim properly. It rained last night.....
Posted on: Sun, 14 Dec 2014 06:53:32 +0000
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