December 18, 2009 | Africa,Birds,Botswana,Mala Mala,Mashatu,South Africa

One of the prettiest birds we saw during our trip was the national bird of Botswana, the Lilac Breasted Roller.  In fact, I could not stop taking pictures of it.

Mashatu:

Mala Mala:

This pair of Lilac Breasted Rollers was clearly nesting in this tree on the lawn at Mala Mala.

On our very last day, as we were waiting to leave for the airstrip, I managed to get a photo of one in flight.

November 17, 2009 | Africa,Birds,Botswana,Mashatu,Victoria Falls,Zambia

Followers of my personal blog know how much I enjoy watching birds. Not in a compulsive “must complete the list” way. I just like birds. I also enjoy knowing what I’ve seen, so one of my investments prior to the African trip was a bird book. Funnily enough, it was probably the guidebook we referred to the most on the trip. Mum had a really good handle on all the animals and most of the birds we saw due to her time spent at Pete’s Pond online, but there were some birds that she’d never seen before.

So we’d try to get a good picture and then check out  Birds of Southern Africa (affiliate link) when we got back to our room.

Here are some of my favorites from the first few days of the trip:

African Pied Wagtail, Zambia

Dark Capped Bulbul, Victoria Falls, Zambia

Blue Waxbill, Zambia

Grey Headed Bush Shrike, Mashatu, Botswana

Burchell's Coucal, Mashatu, Botswana

Tawny Eagle, Mashatu