Kalahari Desert; Birds of the Dry Country 



The Kalahari Desert, in southern Africa, represents the extreme of desert condi- 

 tions. The scant vegetation, the Ijright but pale landscape, and the matching color of 

 many of the birds are characteristic of arid regions. 



Water, where it is present, is the center of attraction in arid country. The site of the 

 Kalahari group is the Gomodino Pan. A "'pan" in South African terminology is a 

 slight depression in the center of a plain. The depression fills with water in the 

 rainy season. The water evaporates in the dry season and may entirely disappear. 

 These "water holes," as they might be called elsewhere, are often brackish or even 

 saline, but over large areas in the Kalahari they are the only available water, and 

 around them bird life congregates. 



The vellow-throated sand-grouse, three of which are resting in the shade of a shrub 

 in the foreground, makes spectacular flights to water, sometimes at considerable inter- 

 vals. A big flock in such a flight is shown in the background. The birds alight and drink 

 quicklv and are then away into the desert, where they spend most of their lives. They 

 look like partridges but are most closely related to pigeons. 



In the center of the exhibit a pair of black-bellied bustards displays interest in a 

 small sand lizard, which has attracted the attention also of a pair of scarlet-breasted 

 bush shrikes. A two-banded courser is scooting away from the commotion. 



In the background to the right, stands a pair of giant bustards. This bird attains a 

 length of about 57 inches and a weight of 42 pounds. It runs with great speed, using 

 its wings to aid in balancing, like an ostrich, but it also flies, with a heavy but 

 rapid flight. The bird on the right is a male, inflating its throat in a courtship display 

 aimed at the female facing it. 



Another characteristic bird of the open country of Africa, the flightless ostrich, ap- 

 pears in the background. Ostriches eat plant material, and they are delicate feed- 

 ers, plucking a leaf here and another there: and though they drink when water is 

 available, they can go for long periods without water. 



The bateleur eagle shown in the background is considered one of the most striking 

 of ^African birds, because of its size, its color, and its flight. Its soaring has been 

 compared with that of an albatross, and its many fascinating antics in the air include 

 turning somersaults in flight, whence presumably its name of bateleur (''harlequin" 

 or "mountebank"). 



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