This Rose-ringed Parakeet keeps visiting the African Tulip tree (Spathodea campanulata) near my house. It's also known as the Ringnecked Parakeet. It hardly stays in one place for a few minutes. Luckily this one which looks like a male was too engrossed in munching away and I just couldn't help clicking away!!
Incidentally, two of these huge trees, which have stood tall for years (they can grow upto 82ft) , right across my house find their homeland in West Africa which also used to be my second home quite sometime back. Having spent a major part of my childhood in the port city of Lagos, Nigeria...I never knew, until now that these trees which I have always admired, especially for their dashing tulip shaped reddish orange flowers and long green pods filled with seeds having transparent wings are native to the tropics of West Africa. Looks like the world is a small place after all!
So why do the parakeets come here?..It's for the seeds in the green pods which turn brown when ripe. Hundreds of pods containing millions of seeds which fly all over the place giving the street sweepers a field time. They are also known as Fountain Tree or Flame-of-the-forest which suits because if you look at it during sunset when they are in full bloom, it actually looks like there are hundreds of bunches of small bright orange flames all over, lit by African tree pixies or something. Right now they've just begun to bloom....will put up pics once the pixies have lit all the fires!
I've sat in the terrace and stared at these trees for long hours especially during early mornings and felt totally at peace.You could call it our karmic connection- we both have our roots in the same place after all. I have observed two crows build their nest in one of them, feed their babies and watched the chicks hopping from one branch to another trying to fly and eventually fly away. It currently plays host to a pair of Black Kites (Milvus migrans) which have a huge nest, bang in the middle of the tree made of dried twigs, branches, grass, wires and what not. In fact the nest has been there for ages and the kites use the same nest every year improvising on it. The chicks have hatched, looks like there are two of them and are growing up fast thanks to mama and papa's tireless hunting day in and day out and their constant high pitched calls that go something like ewee-wir-wir-wir...eweeee-wir-wir-wir...eweeeeeeeee-wir-wir-wir which also doubles up as my wake up call every morning! Am so used to that sound, that those days I don't hear them, it feels like something is wrong.
This was one of the closest shots I managed to take of one of the kites in it's nest . Couldn't get a pic of the chicks but am sure they are in there. Really need to get that DSLR and good pair of lenses to go with soon!
Black Kite in it's nest
Well it was one of those staring sessions that led to spotting this parakeet which had stopped by for it's evening snack...Hope you enjoy it's different moods I was lucky enough to capture!
Incidentally, two of these huge trees, which have stood tall for years (they can grow upto 82ft) , right across my house find their homeland in West Africa which also used to be my second home quite sometime back. Having spent a major part of my childhood in the port city of Lagos, Nigeria...I never knew, until now that these trees which I have always admired, especially for their dashing tulip shaped reddish orange flowers and long green pods filled with seeds having transparent wings are native to the tropics of West Africa. Looks like the world is a small place after all!
So why do the parakeets come here?..It's for the seeds in the green pods which turn brown when ripe. Hundreds of pods containing millions of seeds which fly all over the place giving the street sweepers a field time. They are also known as Fountain Tree or Flame-of-the-forest which suits because if you look at it during sunset when they are in full bloom, it actually looks like there are hundreds of bunches of small bright orange flames all over, lit by African tree pixies or something. Right now they've just begun to bloom....will put up pics once the pixies have lit all the fires!
I've sat in the terrace and stared at these trees for long hours especially during early mornings and felt totally at peace.You could call it our karmic connection- we both have our roots in the same place after all. I have observed two crows build their nest in one of them, feed their babies and watched the chicks hopping from one branch to another trying to fly and eventually fly away. It currently plays host to a pair of Black Kites (Milvus migrans) which have a huge nest, bang in the middle of the tree made of dried twigs, branches, grass, wires and what not. In fact the nest has been there for ages and the kites use the same nest every year improvising on it. The chicks have hatched, looks like there are two of them and are growing up fast thanks to mama and papa's tireless hunting day in and day out and their constant high pitched calls that go something like ewee-wir-wir-wir...eweeee-wir-wir-wir...eweeeeeeeee-wir-wir-wir which also doubles up as my wake up call every morning! Am so used to that sound, that those days I don't hear them, it feels like something is wrong.
This was one of the closest shots I managed to take of one of the kites in it's nest . Couldn't get a pic of the chicks but am sure they are in there. Really need to get that DSLR and good pair of lenses to go with soon!
Well it was one of those staring sessions that led to spotting this parakeet which had stopped by for it's evening snack...Hope you enjoy it's different moods I was lucky enough to capture!
Inquisitive..Should I or should I not?
A small jump...
Are you looking at me?..
Aah..This tastes good..
Munching away..
I even managed to get a goodbye wave...:)
And he flew away.....
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