• Menu
  • Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar

Before Header

  • About Us
  • Lexicon
  • Contact Us
  • Our Store
  • ↑
  • ↓
  • ←
  • →

Balloon Juice

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

fuckem (in honor of the late great efgoldman)

My right to basic bodily autonomy is not on the table. that’s the new deal.

“Can i answer the question? No you can not!”

Beware of advice from anyone for whom Democrats are “they” and not “we.”

They are not red states to be hated; they are voter suppression states to be fixed.

Fundamental belief of white supremacy: white people are presumed innocent, minorities are presumed guilty.

One way or another, he’s a liar.

JFC, are there no editors left at that goddamn rag?

“When somebody takes the time to draw up a playbook, they’re gonna use it.”

Shallow, uninformed, and lacking identity

The rest of the comments were smacking Boebert like she was a piñata.

Following reporting rules is only for the little people, apparently.

Black Jesus loves a paper trail.

Wake up. Grow up. Get in the fight.

The worst democrat is better than the best republican.

Republicans got rid of McCarthy. Democrats chose not to save him.

Too often we hand the biggest microphones to the cynics and the critics who delight in declaring failure.

Hi god, it’s us. Thanks a heap, you’re having a great week and it’s only Thursday!

Is it negotiation when the other party actually wants to shoot the hostage?

One of our two political parties is a cult whose leader admires Vladimir Putin.

We’re watching the self-immolation of the leading world power on a level unprecedented in human history.

When do we start airlifting the women and children out of Texas?

I might just take the rest of the day off and do even more nothing than usual.

You know it’s bad when the Project 2025 people have to create training videos on “How To Be Normal”.

Mobile Menu

  • Seattle Meet-up Post
  • 2025 Activism
  • Targeted Political Fundraising
  • Donate with Venmo, Zelle & PayPal
  • Site Feedback
  • War in Ukraine
  • Submit Photos to On the Road
  • Politics
  • On The Road
  • Open Threads
  • Topics
  • COVID-19
  • Authors
  • About Us
  • Contact Us
  • Lexicon
  • Our Store
  • Politics
  • Open Threads
  • 2025 Activism
  • Garden Chats
  • On The Road
  • Targeted Fundraising!
You are here: Home / Photo Blogging / On The Road / Albatrossity / On The Road – Albatrossity – Tarangire National Park – 5

On The Road – Albatrossity – Tarangire National Park – 5

by WaterGirl|  January 30, 20235:00 am| 15 Comments

This post is in: Albatrossity, On The Road, Photo Blogging, Tarangire National Park

FacebookTweetEmail

On the Road is a weekday feature spotlighting reader photo submissions.

From the exotic to the familiar, whether you’re traveling or in your own backyard, we would love to see the world through your eyes.

Submit Your Photos

It’s Albatrossity Monday!  Get out your hiking shoes – for the rest of the week we will be in the Alps With BigJimSlade!

Albatrossity

Our last day in Tarangire before heading to Lake Manyara National Park and then on to the Ngorongoro Crater brought parrots, sandgrouse, gnus and warthogs in front of the camera. A good day!

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 9
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

This is a Yellow-collared Lovebird (Agapornis personatus), a bird that is endemic to Tanzania. Some field guides treat this as a subspecies of Fischer’s Lovebird (A. fischeri), which is a more colorful bird, but recent observations indicate that these two species do not interbreed in parts of the range where they both occur. These cuties were abundant at the park HQ area, where this one was preparing to nest in a man-made site that seems just about perfect for it. Click here for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 6
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

Although we had sighted warthogs (Phacochoerus africanus) the previous day, we had much better looks at them on day 2. This one has a wee Red-billed Oxpecker (Buphagus erythrorynchus) hiding on its back; you can just see the eye and the eponymous beak in this picture. The warthog saw us and startled, wheeling away from our vehicle, while the oxpecker was flung off and flew in the opposite direction. I hope that they were reunited later! Click here for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 7
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

The Baobab Trees in this park are massive, ancient, and quite scarred by elephant damage. Click here for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 8
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

Last week I included a picture of the Bare-faced Go-Away Bird (Corythaixoides personatus), an East African member of the turaco family, hanging out with some Gray Hornbills. We found this one by itself, and it didn’t tell us to go away! Click for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 5
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

Another member of the turaco family, as dull and gray as the Bare-faced Go-Away Bird, is the White-bellied Go-Away Bird (Corythaixoides leucogaster). It does, however, sport a much more stylish crest! Click here for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 4
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

There were other winged creatures besides the birds to photograph, although I did not have a field guide for non-avian creatures and so had to rely on the guides for IDing them. This butterfly is known as the Yellow Pansy (Hierta junonia), and is found throughout the Paleotropics (eastern & southern Africa, Arabia, and south Asia). Our guide simply called it a “Pansy”, but since I had a picture I could look it up later to get the complete name. According to what I learned later, this is a male, although he is somewhat the worse for wear. Click here for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 3
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

Wildebeests (aka Gnu) were something that we would see almost every day for the rest of the trip. I learned that there are two species of wildebeest, and this East African version is the Blue Wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus). The South African version (C. gnou) was the first to be discovered by European settlers, and its species name reflects the grunting sounds that these creatures (both species) emit while grazing. Apparently the two species do interbreed where their ranges overlap, and the offspring are fertile, so there may still be some taxonomic rearranging to do in this situation. Click here for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

An unexpected find was this pair of Black-faced Sandgrouse (Pterocles decoratus). The male has the black face, the female does not. But both of them have intricate patterns on the feathers, as seen in the next photo. Click here for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 1
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

Detail of feather patterns on the back of the female Black-faced Sandgrouse. Click here for larger image.

On The Road - Albatrossity - Tarangire National Park – 5 2
Tarangire National ParkMay 15, 2018

Our final bird for today is one that we would see in other parts of Tanzania, the Double-banded Courser (Smutsornis africanus). I was interested in the origin of that generic name, since the bird didn’t seem so smutty, and it turns out that it is in honor of Field-Marshal Jan Christiaan Smuts, a South African statesman, writer, philosopher, and Prime Minister of South Africa for several terms. This gracile bird, which evokes an image of a ballerina, deserves a better name, methinks. Click here for larger image.

FacebookTweetEmail
Previous Post: « Florida Man No More
Next Post: Monday Morning Open Thread: Rise and… Feed the Beast! »

Reader Interactions

15Comments

  1. 1.

    eclare

    January 30, 2023 at 5:49 am

    The Yellow-collared Lovebird is adorable!

  2. 2.

    tandem

    January 30, 2023 at 6:26 am

    What a treat to wake up to these photos! The sandgrouse plumage is amazing.

  3. 3.

    Rob

    January 30, 2023 at 7:29 am

    We love the lovebird and warthog/oxpecker photos!

  4. 4.

    KSinMA

    January 30, 2023 at 8:28 am

    The double-banded courser’s feathers are gorgeous too!

  5. 5.

    SteveinPHX

    January 30, 2023 at 8:41 am

    Thank you again! For the post & photos!

  6. 6.

    stinger

    January 30, 2023 at 9:02 am

    Great photos!

  7. 7.

    Denali5

    January 30, 2023 at 9:08 am

    Great photos! I still dream of going to Africa for these kind of views.

  8. 8.

    Albatrossity

    January 30, 2023 at 9:20 am

    @Denali5:

    I still dream of going to Africa for these kind of views

    Go! The longer you wait, the more expensive it gets, and the harder it becomes to see some of these magnificent places and critters.

  9. 9.

    mvr

    January 30, 2023 at 9:36 am

    That first image is striking, and I really like the sand grouse.

    Hadn’t really thought about going to Africa, but this makes me at least think about it.

    Thanks!

  10. 10.

    eclare

    January 30, 2023 at 9:41 am

    @Albatrossity:   Seconded!  I went in 1997.  We stayed mainly in Kenya, and it was just wonderful, the landscape, the sky, the animals.  Just heavenly.  And I think the flight routes are better now.

    Remember, countries overseas do not have the ADA.  Do your international travel while you can.

  11. 11.

    Steve from Mendocino

    January 30, 2023 at 10:38 am

    Love that first picture.  My kind of photo art.  The composition defines it, the colors work beautifully, and it all serves the subject (which happens to be a bird).

  12. 12.

    StringOnAStick

    January 30, 2023 at 10:55 am

    The white edges on the sandgrouse and courser are really striking, just gorgeous!

  13. 13.

    munira

    January 30, 2023 at 10:57 am

    The lovebird is so cute, and I think I definitely need some kind of go away bird. I’m sure I could find uses for it.

  14. 14.

    Yutsano

    January 30, 2023 at 11:44 am

    Lovebirds! Always so cute!

  15. 15.

    JanieM

    January 30, 2023 at 7:02 pm

    From the write-up to the first picture: “Fischer’s Lovebird (A. fischeri), which is a more colorful bird” — From here in the drabness of midwinter in Maine, it’s hard to imagine a *more* colorful bird than that one!  Thanks for another great chapter in your adventures.

Comments are closed.

Primary Sidebar

On The Road - Albatrossity - Flyover Country Spring 2
Image by Albatrossity (5/18/25)

Recent Comments

  • Jay on Sunday Diversion: ‘A Dumb New Way To Think About The Dismantling Of The Federal Government’ (May 18, 2025 @ 6:40pm)
  • Jackie on Sunday Diversion: ‘A Dumb New Way To Think About The Dismantling Of The Federal Government’ (May 18, 2025 @ 6:37pm)
  • zhena gogolia on Sunday Diversion: ‘A Dumb New Way To Think About The Dismantling Of The Federal Government’ (May 18, 2025 @ 6:35pm)
  • Princess on Sunday Diversion: ‘A Dumb New Way To Think About The Dismantling Of The Federal Government’ (May 18, 2025 @ 6:34pm)
  • They Call Me Noni on Sunday Morning Open Thread (May 18, 2025 @ 6:33pm)

PA Supreme Court At Risk

Donate

Balloon Juice Posts

View by Topic
View by Author
View by Month & Year
View by Past Author

Featuring

Medium Cool
Artists in Our Midst
Authors in Our Midst
War in Ukraine
Donate to Razom for Ukraine

🎈Keep Balloon Juice Ad Free

Become a Balloon Juice Patreon
Donate with Venmo, Zelle or PayPal

Meetups

Upcoming Ohio Meetup May 17
5/11 Post about the May 17 Ohio Meetup

Calling All Jackals

Site Feedback
Nominate a Rotating Tag
Submit Photos to On the Road
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Links)
Balloon Juice Anniversary (All Posts)
Fix Nyms with Apostrophes

Hands Off! – Denver, San Diego & Austin

Social Media

Balloon Juice
WaterGirl
TaMara
John Cole
DougJ (aka NYT Pitchbot)
Betty Cracker
Tom Levenson
David Anderson
Major Major Major Major
DougJ NYT Pitchbot
mistermix

Keeping Track

Legal Challenges (Lawfare)
Republicans Fleeing Town Halls (TPM)
21 Letters (to Borrow or Steal)
Search Donations from a Brand

PA Supreme Court At Risk

Donate

Site Footer

Come for the politics, stay for the snark.

  • Facebook
  • RSS
  • Twitter
  • YouTube
  • Comment Policy
  • Our Authors
  • Blogroll
  • Our Artists
  • Privacy Policy

Copyright © 2025 Dev Balloon Juice · All Rights Reserved · Powered by BizBudding Inc

Share this ArticleLike this article? Email it to a friend!

Email sent!