. On safari : big game hunting in British East Africa, with studies in bird-life . : yetall belong to but one species, Plotus rufus. These birdspossessed a joint breeding-colony a mile or two furtheru]D the river, their nests being massed on low willowsand overhanoiuof bush ; while the tall overarchino- treesabove were occupied by a heronry. The latter com-munity included both purple, black-headed and night-herons ; while a big separate single nest belonged, Ifancy, to a pair of wood-ibis that were always seen hardby. The buff-backed herons maintained a separateestablishment of their own—among
. On safari : big game hunting in British East Africa, with studies in bird-life . : yetall belong to but one species, Plotus rufus. These birdspossessed a joint breeding-colony a mile or two furtheru]D the river, their nests being massed on low willowsand overhanoiuof bush ; while the tall overarchino- treesabove were occupied by a heronry. The latter com-munity included both purple, black-headed and night-herons ; while a big separate single nest belonged, Ifancy, to a pair of wood-ibis that were always seen hardby. The buff-backed herons maintained a separateestablishment of their own—among thorn-trees, in a 220 ON SAFARI rocky ravine near Lone-Tree. At tliis date, of course,none of these birds were actually nesting. Our pachydermatous friend beat us (though hisstronghold was but 250 yards long) by never showingabove water save beneath the dense fringe of over-hanging jungle that projected far beyond either are crocodiles easy to detect, so little do theyexpose above water, and so absolutely does theirslimy armour assimilate in hue with the slimy rocks. HAMMER-HEAD [Sro/iKS umhrcttd).A monotone in browns, without a touch of contrast or relief. on which they lie. One that we surprised asleep,though fully 12 ft. long, disappeared without leavinga ripple behind, so gently did he slide off his croc, on receiving a bullet, disgorged dozensof small silvery fish. Watching silently by these eerie ^^ools, we noticedhuge water-turtles emerge from sullen depths and withungainl}?- wriggle seek to gain the bank. There werealso great land-tortoises ; two that we brought homemeasure 24 ins. over the carapace, by IQh ins. along thefiat belly-plate. THE ATHI RIVER 221 In another forest-girt pool, overarclied with broad-topped fever-trees, Mabrukis wondrous instinct de-tected a hippo where none save savage eye coukl surelyhave espied it. A big leafy tree had fallen half acrossthe river, and it w-as beneath the sunken boughs of this,all laden with drift gra
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Keywords: ., bookauthorchapmana, bookcentury1900, bookdecade1900, bookyear1908
