Yesterday Ark at A Tale Untold posted a striking sundowner photo of Hadeda ibis over Johannesburg. You can see it at the link. And I told him I missed their mournful call heard at dawn and dusk over our Nairobi garden. He said he was sure I still had it in my memory. And I said yes, I’d written an ode commemorating same. He suggested I post it, and then generously said if I needed photos to borrow his. So here we are: photos by Ark, words by Tish:
Ibis [Hagedashia hagedash]At dusk, at dawn
the flatlands waul
of roving Hadedas;
tawny fowl
that shy by day
on tropic lawns,
probe skinflint soils
with sickle bills
that wink out grubs.
You think:
dull, shifty types.
But then –
a sift of light –
dun coverts cast
for glancing green.
It’s hkaa-a hkaa –
Hadedas take flight.
Ibis [Hagedashia hagedash] Copyright 2018 Tish Farrell
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Tish Farrell 