Still searching and then there it was - the SHOEBILL - not a beauty in bird terms by any means but a very big box to tick.
We return to shore after a once in a life time experience - seeing the elusive Shoebill was indeed a bonus. The magnificent Wattled Cranes were present on the swamps in their hundreds. The magnificent sunset was a perfect end to a perfect day.
We were up early and anxious in our search for the Shoebill. A member of the Nsobe Community camp was our guide and we set off at 8 am and an 8km drive found us at the swamps proper where we would take boats to Shoebill Island. En route we passed a host of Wattled Cranes and masses of Lechwe. We went in two boats with two oarsmen each. At Shoebill camp we were met by the warden and after obtaining his permission went in search of the Shoebill. Finally after our two oarsmen had waded through the swamps and returned not having sighted the elusive bird we proceeded further and then saw one fly off and our disappointment grew. Then as we rounded a bend there was one amongst the reeds but very close to a pod of hippo preventing us from getting too close. Something disturbed the hippo and they lumbered off into the reeds and the Shoebill then flew across to an open area where we were able to have a much closer look at him - a rather ugly bird who does not sport any special plumage but a real box to tick. Some avid birders can spend weeks in the swamps and still the Shoebill evades them so we felt very privileged having only spent three hours on the swamps before sighting him/her. The swamps are a birders' paradise and we saw countless birds of every shape and size - I recall Johanta saying that we saw over 60 different species.
Rex's dream now becomes a reality
We returned to the camp in the early afternoon and were not up too late after our exciting day.
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