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Peter Hawrylyshyn returns to present his program “Birding Exotic Southern Africa”. Peter will guide us on a trip through this dramatic region using his amazing photos of its many unique bird species. He will also elaborate on some of the remarkable avian bio-adaptation and evolution which has occurred in southern Africa. Join Peter at 7 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 13, at the Sanibel Community House, 2173 Periwinkle Way, for the sixth presentation of the 2020 San-Cap Audubon lecture series.
For many North American birders southern Africa remains a once in a life-time trip. However, the amazing diversity of wild-life makes it a must-see. The Fynbos ecoregion around Cape Town SA is the smallest global biome (about the size of Maryland) , and is yet home to over 8700 plant species (of which 2/3 are found nowhere else) and hosts dazzling birds such as the Double-collared and Malachite Sunbirds, Weavers and Waxbills. Penguins and pelagic species abound off-shore. Further north at Walvis Bay, Namibia – over 500,000 flamingos reside in the IBA estuary. Immediately inland is some of the world’s oldest desert and highest sand dunes. Here, where there has been no rainfall for over a decade, 15-20 species of remarkable birds (Larks, Chats, Sand grouses) somehow manage to survive. In northern Namibia, the Etosha pan is one of Africa’s premier game reserves. The dry savannah is home to such unique bird species as Francolins, Bustards, Coursers, Hornbills, and a variety of raptors. Further east, the tropical forests of the Caprivi strip lead to the Okavango Delta, a massive oasis of papyrus lined channels and forest covered islands. Bee-eaters and Rollers add unbelievable splashes of rainbow colors, while mystical owls hide in the Baobab trees.
Peter Hawrylyshyn has been a long-time winter visitor to Sanibel. He has always had a love of the outdoors and birds. The advent of digital imaging allowed Peter to focus his interests on bird photography. His award-winning work has appeared on BBC Nature and Cornell’s Living Bird, and been published in numerous reference texts. He also hosts his own photo websites at https://www.pahphoto.com and https://www.flickr.com/photos/pahyyz/.
This is the sixth of eight Sanibel-Captiva Audubon Society lectures to be held in 2020. As always, all are welcome to attend. Doors open at 6:15 PM, and parking is available at the Community House as well as across Periwinkle Way in the Herb Strauss Theater parking area. A $10.00 donation per attendee is appreciated with proceeds after costs being used to promote conservation on Sanibel and in Florida. For additional information, call Bill Jacobson at (239) 395-1878 or visit the San-Cap Audubon Web site at www.san-capaudubon.org.
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