Back from SA

I am back from South Africa. I was unable to keep my blog going due to the lack of net access in the remote areas we visited and lack of time in the places where there was internet. It was a busy time, up at 4 - 5 am most days and shattered by nightfall. Amazing landscapes and habitats and loads and loads of birds, including some rarities and endemics, but too many to mention here... and, yes, great and multiple views of 6 out of 8 possible woodpeckers, including my number one target... Ground Woodpecker Geocolaptes olivaceus, a party of 4, including a male feeding a juvenile, calling, flying, sitting on rocks in the Swartberg Pass... fantastic. Oh, and by the way, we saw the BIG FIVE mammals, too... more on this later.