Chatham Hall in South Africa

       We boarded the bus at 8 on Monday morning for the Rondevlei Nature Reserve not knowing what to expect.  When we got there, however, it was clear that we were in for an experience uniquely South African.  Our guide, Penny, was pleasantly eager to educate us about her career and the animals she worked with.  She showed us all of the different types of birds in South Africa and we discovered that we would be counting these birds for a good portion of our time at the reserve.  After a short presentation of the flora and fauna, we split up into two different groups and embarked upon different trails through the park. 

The paths wound through labyrinths of reeds and marsh to various bird “hides”.  These hides were set up like hunters’ camoflagued lookouts and were excellent for viewing birds in their natural habitat without disturbing their natural cycles.  Rondevlei is a park located in an area of wetlands in Cape Town making it the perfect ecosystem for water birds, small antelope, mongeese, and even a hippo population.  Birds of all shapes and hue perched, swooped and swam in the marshes as we watched in secret (or so it would seem, although the birds probably knew we were there) from the hides.  During one of the birding sprees, it was thought that hippos were spotted and excitement filled the air as they watched what appeared to be ears and nostrils rise and submerge.  This hippo sighting, however, was later retracted and relabeled as a sighting of spawning fish instead. 

After naming and counting all the birds we had encountered it was time for us to meet Pippa the porcupine.  Afrcian porcupines are large black and white nocturnal rodents with sharp spines on their backs.  Pippa, however, was quite friendly and came out for us during the day.  Being a genial porcupine she allowed students to pet and play with her and even licked some girls’ arms.  Other conservationists then taught us how to “ring” birds, which is basically tagging birds for identification and conservation purposes.  They showed us by ringing two magestic yellow-billed kites with metal rings so that they could be identified in the future. 

Everyone at the reserve was enthusiastic about their work and I was ecstatic to see this attitude.  At most reserves, conservationists and naturalists are downtrodden in their labor because it is so hard to convince citizens and politicians alike that nature is worth preserving.  For this reason not many people seem to stay at one reserve too long but at Rondevlei there was hope.  They showed us a comprehensive plan for the future and were excited about what they could do and didn’t foucus on what they couldn’t.  This was truly inspiring to me and I believe the whole group felt the same.

Emily