Stranded ram's horn shell covered in small goose barnacles. Found on the beach in Port Alfred (Eastern Cape, South Africa), 2024. Shell cylindrical, forming a loose, flat spire, and made up of a series of chambers.Rarely seen, the animal is squid-like, with eight short arms and two long tentacles. About 25 mm. The live animal… Continue reading Ram’s horn shell (Spirula spirula)
Tag: Eastern Cape
Southern rock agama (Agama atra)
Southern rock agama chilling on a rock along a hiking trail. Baviaanskloopf, Eastern Cape, South Africa (2020). Called the ' dark agama' in French. Short, plump body, with a thin dorsal crest, a thin tail and a triangular head.During the breeding season, the heads of males become bright blue. Males take to sitting on top… Continue reading Southern rock agama (Agama atra)
Banded goby (Caffrogobius caffer)
Dorsal view of a banded goby in a rockpool. Port Alfred, Eastern Cape, South Africa (2024). Small dusky, mottled fish, with 8-12 vertical bars on the sides and 13-14 dorsal rays in the second dorsal fin. Rounded head. Pelvic fin disc-like. About 14 cm. A common endemic permanently resident in tidal pools. Breeds year-round and… Continue reading Banded goby (Caffrogobius caffer)
Spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare)
Young tubular flower of the spear thistle. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape, South Africa (2024). Also called Scottish thistle or bull thistle. A spiny, herbaceous, biennial plant, with a large basal rosette of leaves, a deep taproot, and a flowering stem growing from the center of the rosette up to 1.5 m high.… Continue reading Spear thistle (Cirsium vulgare)
Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)
Painted Lady feeding on a nodding thistle on the farm. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape, South Africa (2024). Formerly known as Acraea acara subsp. acara but revised by Williams & Henning (2023). Male and female. Upperside. Ground-colour reddish-ochreous, basal areas olivescent-ochreous-brown. Cilia black, alternated with white. Forewing with an outwardly-oblique black irregular-shaped broken… Continue reading Painted Lady (Vanessa cardui)
African sacred ibis (Threskiornis aethiopicus)
African sacred ibis visiting a dam on the farm. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape, South Africa (2024). Adult with all-white body plumage, apart from dark plumes on the rump. Bald head and neck, thick curved bill and legs black. Wings white, showing a black rear border in flight. Eyes brown with a dark… Continue reading African sacred ibis (Threskiornis aethiopicus)
Cape glossy starling (Lamprotornis nitens)
Cape glossy starling perched on the rails of a cattle kraal. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape, South Africa (2024). A fairly large, short-tailed, uniformly glossy starling. Green head, with bright orange-yellow eyes but without darker ear coverts. Reddish-bronze shoulder patch, and glossy green belly and flanks. Larger than the arboreal black-bellied starling (Notopholia… Continue reading Cape glossy starling (Lamprotornis nitens)
Spotted sea hare (Aplysia oculifera)
Spotted sea hare oozing purplish chemical deterrent ink in a rock pool. Eastern Cape, South Africa (2021). A typical smooth-skinned sea hare with prominent tentacles and ear-like rhinophores. Green-brown, speckled with small, white-centred black spots. Up to 150 mm in length. Common in shallow bays and estuaries. Hides by day and emerges at night to… Continue reading Spotted sea hare (Aplysia oculifera)
Purple predatory chafer (Campsiura cognata)
Purple predatory chafer on a small tree in front of the farm house. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape (2024). A member of the predatory chafers, in the tribe Cremastocheilini. General body obovate, slightly convex, darkly blood-red or chestnut, shiny. Antennae cadaneous.Head black with yellow triangular pattern on the clypeus and frons. Pro-thorax sub-smooth,… Continue reading Purple predatory chafer (Campsiura cognata)
Fork-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis)
African drongo hanging on a tree branch, close to the farm house. The Walsingham Farm, Port Alfred, Eastern Cape (2024). Black body with a blue-green iridescence in specific regions. Underside and belly uniformly black, contrasting with the glossy black-blue upper body. Robust black beak. Red eyes. Deeply forked lengthy tail. Males and females alike, with… Continue reading Fork-tailed drongo (Dicrurus adsimilis)
F*CK FISH 