Fauna, Flora and Climate

As I post this blog (Monday, Nov. 11) the daily high was 25 degrees below normal..  Added on to  abnormal extreme low temperatures last week one gets the idea something is cooking in the atmosphere--like a polar vortex.  The area in which I am located had over 8 inches of snow the last week of October, crushing the old record for the month and by November 10 we have had almost 13" and today we had a few inches more.  The oddities of weather, over the long term, can influence climate.  Weather and climate are interrelated, but different.  Weather is often described as the day-to-day state of the atmosphere, whereas climate is a long term effect of weather.  Having studied weather and climate while a college student, I can more easily discern the varied nature of each and how they interact.  For some reasons I liked the climate part of my courses more than the weather part. I think I disliked the weather part because of the math.  Often it is hard to figure out what is going on with climate.  If weather over the long term change is causing issues in our environment there will be effects on flora and fauna.

Zebras in Tarangerie

Flora and Fauna are usually manifested by their local environment, and the local climate.  This was evident in Africa.  For example, the day we toured the Ngorongoro Crater, which was our best chance to see a black rhinoceros, it was very windy.  Rhinos are hard to see to begin with, but the wind made them hunker down, so to speak, in the vegetation to protect their horn from the wind. Hence we did not see a rhino.  Not all animals and insects in one climate zone will live in another. That is a good thing.  A good World Atlas will provide general climate zone regions.  The climate zones can give a general expectation of weather in a region.  At a world wide level they are often generalized.  The US Department of Agriculture has their planting zones for the United States, which provide information on type of plants can be grown in what location.

Lion in Tarangerie

While on safari a few weeks ago our safari guide made note of a few things, which he said are thought to be affected by a warming climate.  First, that the manes of male Lions in some areas are not as large as they had been in the past.  He made this comment while we were in Tarangerie National Park.  He went on to explain that the gland that produces the mane of the male lion requires some cooler temperatures.  In a sense, it is almost like hair, head hair loss aside, on persons of European descent being, in part, an adaption to cooler climate conditions.  As a previous post noted a Maasi Warrior comment, while looking at my arm hair, that I am like a lion.  Tarangerie National Park in Tanzania is about 3.9 degrees south latitude, so quite close to the equator, and has an elevation that varies from  3,232 to 5,013 feet.  Temperatures in this park are said to change by 3.5 degrees (F) for every thousand feet change in elevation, so this temperate near equator climate can have varied temperatures due solely to topography.

Detail of Giraffe 

The change in temperature over the long term is also affecting the color of some animals, like Wildebeest and the colors of spots on some animals. In other words, the melanin, which produces skin color in some East African animals, is thought to be affected by the warmer temperatures.  They are getting darker in color.

Male and female Lions in Serengeti

In the Ngorongoro Crater National Park, which has a crater top edge of about 7,500 feet sees the crater floor about 2,000 feet below, so the base, the caldera, is higher in elevation than the highest point in Tarangerie National Park.  The crater is so high that when we saw it from a distance it seemed to be stuck in the clouds.  To relate it to the United States, the top of the crater is above the elevation of Mount Washington in New Hampshire, and a few hundred feet higher than Harney Peak in South Dakota.  Harney Peak is the highest elevation in the US east of the Rocky Mountains.  Due to its elevation, and cooler temperatures the lions in the crater have larger manes than those in Tarangerie. The Wildebeest in the crater are more grey than black in color.  These Wildebeest do not participate in the major Wildebeest migration which we saw occurring in the Serengeti.  Temperature is only one aspect of climate, another aspect is precipitation.

Male Lion in Ngorongoro Crater

The crater, so it seemed, was somewhat drier than usual at the time of our visit.  The salt lake/marsh part of the crater, which is home to flamingos was fully dry so the flamingos had fled.  Our visit to the crater was at the end of the dry season and the guide said such dryness as we saw is not necessarily unusual.  Because of the variation in elevation, the crater can see variation in weather patterns.

Wildebeest with Zebra in Ngorongoro Crater

The penchant for rain following my wife and I was clearly on display while we were in Tanzania.  We had rain on all but one day of our two week excursion, and the day it did not rain was the day we had  to catch a 4 pm flight (after a four hour drive) only to find the flight was cancelled and they placed us on a flight that would leave at 8 pm.  Thus, we wasted a good part of the day at the small Mwanza airport.  While on Safari, our guide noted that the parks we visited were just entering what is called the short rain season, which follows the dry season, but before the heavy rain season.  The short rain season means a rain shower of about 10 to 20 minutes perhaps occurring a couple times a week. Locals tend to use the term shower and not rain to describe these rain events.  We had a heavy downpour for several hours while in the Serengeti;  the guide noted that the heavy rainfall was "not usual."  What I found amazing in this experience was something I had learned about in a hydrology class in college, but had never experienced first hand: Horton Overland Flow.  This theory shows how precipitation runs off soil that has been subject to dry conditions, due to ground hardness and compactness.  In this case the lack of infiltration is also due to a hard pan a few inches below the surface--hard rain and hard pan work to counter infiltration of rain water.  The underlying geology explains why some areas of the Serengeti Plain are, well, plain grassland as far as the eye can see.  If an area is need of precipitation, all one has to do is ask my wife and I to travel and (more often than not) the precipitation will follow.  I wonder how much more rainy the rainy season in the northern part of Tanzania would be if my wife and I were to visit at that time?

Wildebeest Migration in the Serengeti

What is interesting about Tanzania is that different climates are evident in not just the crater, but also on Zanzibar.  While on the island of Zanzibar, we visited the Jozani-Chwaka Reserve and saw Red Colobus monkeys, unique to that archipelago, and Mangrove swamps.  What is interesting is that this reserve is in the central part of the island of Zanzibar, but it is a temperate rain forest.  It was hot, and humid, and of course since we  were there it rained during our visit.  What is most interesting is that Chwaka Bay is over a mile away from the reserve, and salt water will come in at high tide inundating the mangrove forest.  This also shows how little topographic change exists in this area of the island. Mangroves are unique in the flora landscape as they handle both fresh and salt water.  What is also interesting is that a small crab sets up home at the base of the Mangrove roots and digs into the nutrient rich soil, allowing salt water to feed the root systems of the trees.  Each needs the other.

Wildebeest and Zebra in Ngorongoro Crater

The rain from Jozani also followed us several miles north and east to the historic Stonetown district of Zanzibar.  The rainfall was to the point our driver had to admit the rain was not usual.  That was two not usual rainfall.  We are the rainmakers.

Kudu in Tarangerie 

Whether it be precipitation, or temperatures, we humans, and our earthly companions of other fauna and flora can be affected by changes in weather which over time can change our climate.  Is something afoot in our climate?  Clearly, weather seems more variable than the more recent past, as can be seen by the increased frequency of  large storms and greater temperature variations.  The question is whether or not these form a long range pattern, to affect climate.  I don't think the color of a Wildebeest is subject to minor variations in temperature, I tend to think it is a long range reaction to changing climate. Wildebeest and lion manes and animal spots are just one indicator of how fauna are affected by changing patterns of weather and climate.

Images by author, October 2019

"We Kill Lions"

One thing about travelling is that something unexpected can arise.  The unexpected occurrences can be good, bad, or weird.  While on Safari at two lodges we needed to be escorted to our rooms from the main lodge.  At a third lodging location they used regular patrols.  The persons who provided the escort were generally Maasi Warriors.  In Zanzibar, some Maasi were used to patrol the beach, and provide guidance.  A weird unexpected occurrence was on the beach in Zanzibar when one Maasi said to me: "We kill lions."  There is more to the story.

Banana Beer in cup, and Banana wine in bottle
Courtesy of Antoinette Hovel

The Maasi are one of 125 tribes that make their home in Tanzania (although some say it is 180 to 200, but I am going with the 125 number provided by our safari guide).  A consistent note was that the Maasi seldom marry out of their tribe, and tend to stick together.  The Maasi are native to the area of the Ngorongoro Crater, the Serengeti, and to around Arusha and Mount Kilimanjaro.  They have settlements in these national parks and raise cows and some goats and dab in other agricultural activities. Their settlement, at its peak, reached into most of the great rift valley.  As an aside the rift valley (in particular Olduvai Gorge which is part of the Serengeti) is important as the site of discovery of some of the earliest human remains--think of the early hominid bones referred to as Lucy discovered by Dr Richard Leaky and his wife Mary.  Perhaps the Maasi may have a connection to some of the earliest humans.  I noticed that the Maasi are generally tall and thin.  What is interesting is how far they walk--miles in a day.  As we drove to Tarangerie from Arusha I was struck by bus stops along the highway in the middle of no where.  You may see one or two small homes or villages, but there were people all around tending to the grazing cows.  I wondered from where they came.  I also concluded that since we were at the end of the dry season, and entering the short rain season, the road sides provided some green grass due to runoff from the road, and hence why many cows and goats were grazing along the road edge.  As we were driving up to the top of the crater all of a sudden a Maasi would appear out of the thick brush along the road with a herd of cattle, or firewood, or water.

Male Lion Ngorongoro Crater
Author Photo

The Maasi are well known for their instincts and ability to defend themselves against the "wild" animals.  I use the term "wild" in quotes as our guide properly pointed out that to the animals we are the wild ones.  The Maasi will regularly graze and lead their animals to water in areas abundant with the native animals so they need to know how to protect themselves. When we took a 1.5 hour walk along the part of the top of the Ngorogoro Crater the ranger with us was a Maasi, but he carried a rifle.  The Maasi that guided us at Kubu Kubu lodge in the Serengeti carried a simple poll or spear, I did not look at its tip.  I decided to not ask if they also had a firearm.  At Sopa Lodge on the top of the crater I think they carried a side fire arm.  The Ranger on our crater walk said that he would prefer to fire the weapon in the air to distract the animal.   They practice prudence to avoid killing or injuring an animal.  While the Maasi walk a great deal, when we started our crater hike a few of us got too far ahead of the ranger, and he said "poli, poli" which means slowly, slowly. I heard that more than once on our trip.   For our own safety he did not wish us to get too far ahead.  Of course, the ranger may simply have been keeping pace with those who tend to not walk as fast.  Perhaps that is the key to their capability to walk long distances--use a measured and even  pace. At each of the three lodges we stayed that was in or near a park we could hear animal activity, but at Kubu Kubu, in addition to other animals, we could hear lions. It was neat hearing the lions, but not so neat hearing the hyenas.   This made one understand the caution exercised for the  need to walk.  If we wanted to leave the room at night, the wireless phone was to be used to call the lodge for an escort. My wife asked one Maasi who guided us at Kubu Kubu what he had seen that night and he listed off about five different animals.

My wife talking to Joshua as they walk the Beach
Author photo

Tuesday, October 22 we arrived in Zanzibar, which is quite different from the game reserves we visited earlier.  We were supposed to have arrived Monday evening, but our 4:00 pm flight from Mwanza to Dar Es Salaam was cancelled so we were placed on an 8:00 pm flight and missed our connecting flight.  By the time our plane was leaving for Dar Es Salaam on  Monday night we should have been near or at our hotel on Zanzibar.  So this was a bad unexpected occurrence.  My weird unexpected occurrence was on a beach along the Indian Ocean.  I went down to the beach to go swimming in the ocean and a Maasi struck up a conversation with me. He wanted to know if I was going swimming and if I knew how to swim.  I said I do know how to swim.  He asked where I was from, what I was doing in Africa and if it was my first time.  The mention of having been on safari peaked his interest and he asked where we had been.  The warrior then asked what if I had seen lions, and I said yes we had seen several, and in all three parks we visited.  It seems the lion was one of his favorite animals. I also wondered what he thought of mainly overweight white guys swimming.  Although, I noticed most persons preferred to swim in the pool, at which you could swim right up to a bar.

Maasi singers and dancers
Courtesy of Antoinette Hovel

As we walked the beach down to the water discussing lions, he put his finger on my rather hairy forearm and said, "you like a lion," he then said "We kill lions."  I snickered at his remark and an ability of two persons from opposite sides of the world to poke fun at one another.  As I was swimming, however, it occurred to me that the remark and his touching my forearm was kind of weird. I had been told the Maasi like to keep to themselves, so this interruption of personal space was not expected.  I had never before thought of myself as lion like. I should have given him a roar.  However,  he could have compared me to a lesser-liked animal--the hyena for example.

Banana beer brewing at a local Market
author photo

My wife went for a walk on the beach and struck up a conversation with a Maasi man named Joshua. Two days later, Joshua remembered her and joined us as we walked to a light house, which was about a 20 minute walk one way down the beach from where we stayed.  We had a nice conversation and he explained some things as we went along the beach.  I drew a map in the sand to show Joshua where we were from, and tried to explain the Great Lakes.  Joshua has a small shop  in the village next to where we stayed, and is earning money to buy 150 head of cattle as a dowry for his wife's family.    Our safari driver is of a tribe that makes banana beer and as part of his dowry his family needed to make 21 liters of banana beer, although part of that was used for the reception.

This video is part of the Maasi song and dance at Sopa Lodge.

Courtesy of Antoinette Hovel

The Maasi have a unique culture and we were pleased to able to see some present dance and song at the Sopa Lodge.  Really remarkable abilities of sound and dance.   They are not just good at walking, and song and dance, they kill lions too.

Circle of Life

From the day we arrive on the planet


And blinking, step into the sun


There's more to be seen than can ever be seen


More to do than can ever be done



There's far too much to take in here



More to find than can ever be found



But the sun rolling high

Through the sapphire sky



Keeps great and small on the endless round




It's the Circle of Life



And it moves us all


Through despair and hope


Through faith and love


Till we find our place


On the path unwinding


In the Circle


The Circle of Life



It's the Circle of Life

And it moves us all


Through despair and hope


Through faith and love


Till we find our place


On the path unwinding


In the Circle


The Circle of Life

Photos by author, October 2019

Lyrics to "Circle of Life" from movie "The Lion King"

Think the TSA is Bad

My spouse and I recently completed a two week trip out of the United States to Tanzania, which is in east central Africa.  There is often a good deal of griping about the Transportation Security Administration (TSA) here in the United States, but this process is rather easy compared to what we had in Tanzania. 

My wife and I at Madison Airport on October 11 for our flight to Minneapolis

During our two week trip we had nine, yes nine, air flights.  We were on the large Boeing 787 Dream Liner down to a small 15 passenger Cessna, and some in between.  That means we went through a great deal of security, and it was more challenging than I would have thought. The worst was probably in Tanzania.  All air travelers are well aware of the TSA guidelines regarding liquids in a quart bag, and taking off shoes and belts for entry security to the secure waiting area.  Tanzania (and Amsterdam ) did not seem to care about the liquids in a plastic bag.  However, Tanzania put us through two screenings for our three internal flights. 

Mwanza Airport

Our first internal Tanzanian flight was out of Mwanza, on the south shore of Lake Victoria, and a place I think we would all rather forget.  We arrived at 2 pm, after a four hour drive, for a 4 pm flight only to find our flight to the capital of Dar Es Salaam was canceled and we were bumped to a 7:45 pm flight.  This meant we missed our connecting flight to Zanzibar was canceled.  Instead of relaxing pool side for the evening we found ourselves on nighttime flight.  On our departing flight out of the Dar Es Salaam to Amsterdam a man next to me said they really never have the four pm flight. Hind sight. 

Mwanza Airport

What we quickly noticed was that before you enter they check you passport, they then check your passport again and you put all bags through the scanner and we take off coats, belts, shoes, and empty pockets to go through security.  We then had to yet again show our passport and check our bag.  Just when we thought we were done, we found another check point.  At this spot we once again had to show our passport, our carry-on was again scanned and we of course had again removing belts, shoes, clean out pockets, and whatever else.  I wondered what they thought we could add to our bags after the first scan, but I don't know.  Yet, what we found amazing is that the second scan station they often opened our carry on which had not been requested at the first scan station.  At Mwanza, for example, they pulled out my camera, a little box I had with battery charger, extra battery and questioned that purpose.  They never made a comment about the liquid bag, but they did not know what to make of my Kindle.  I tried to explain it was an electronic book.  However, unlike my wife, I had always been able to make it through the person scanner.  Twice she was not so lucky, and had to be patted. 

Boarding bush plane for flight from Dar Es Salaam to Zanzibar

The double scanning continued for all other internal flights.  Interestingly, there was only one scan and full security check at Dar Es Salaam for our flight to Amsterdam.  In Amsterdam we had to go through security before catching our flight to Detroit.  For some reason we did not have to do that for our flight change on our stop over in Amsterdam on the way to Kilimanjaro.  I had a small water bottle from the plane flight about half full of water and that went fine through the Amsterdam screening, but my wife, who was ahead of me, had the same partially full bottle, and they put it in front of some additional scanner. They then rifled through though her powder bag, and in the process they almost dumped all of its contents on the concrete floor.  We came to the conclusion that every other bag went through an more intense personal screening process.

Aboard Cessna Bush Plane

In Detroit we faced a long line at the immigration and customs gate.  Two international flights arrived at the same time and so a large number had to make their way through customs.  The line was extra long for us since our seats were only about five rows up from the back of the aircraft.  We waited about 35 or 40 minutes for our facial scans and a few questions.  After that we had to take our bags once again through security to find our flight gate for the last flight of our long trip to Madison. the nice thing was no hold up at security as it served only those needing to make a connecting flight after using customs.

Boeing 787 Dream Liner in Amsterdam
We are awaiting boarding to Kilimanjaro Airport

In retrospect, I think I should have figured something would be unique in Tanzania for when we arrived and exited at Kilimanjaro they had us place our bags through a scanner. Scanning our bags before we leave the airport was new to me.   In Tanzania, but for our exit flight from Dar to Amsterdam, all other flights were loaded and unloaded directly to the tarmac. No, I did not get down to kiss the ground.  The next time one wants to complain about TSA here in the United States, perhaps you can think of the blog post and what the experience is like elsewhere.  In the end it was nice to arrive home yesterday evening. 

Flight Statistics Just before Landing at Kilimanjaro Airport

Note: While waiting at Detroit we found out our niece was at the airport on her way to a conference in New Orleans.  We had a brief meeting as both flights boarded and were to pull from the gate about the same time. 

The Seasons

If you live in Wisconsin we have four seasons, although some years it seems as if we never have a spring.  This year seemed to be one of those years.  We have had a wet year.  Today,  I heard that we just completed our first four day stretch of not having rain since the latter part of August.  Year to date we have 12" more of precipitation than normal.  For the month of October, and we are not even to the middle of the month, the Madison area has nearly four inches (3.91" at the airport) compared to an average of .7" month-to-date. that is 3.2" more than normal.  Does the precipitation delay the colors?  Day light is pretty much the same every day of every year, but of course the amount of actual light is variable depending upon sunshine.

8 October 2013
Notice how upper Locust leaves are mostly gone

With all our wet weather sunshine seems to have been in short supply.  Monday, for example, was to be mostly sunny, but it turned out to be mostly cloudy.  The same with last week Saturday, but from what I heard just a few miles southeast, by Cambridge, it was mostly sunny.  A few miles make a difference.  One thing that struck me this year is I am usually starting to pick up leaves.  I noticed, however, that the Autumn Purple Ash tree in my front yard has now just started to turn color, but in past years it was at peak by this time, if not perhaps beyond peak. 

8 October 2013
Radiant and vibrant yellow looking up to tree canopy
from the ground

When the sun shines on the tree with its leaves at or near peak it is a radiant purple off set by a vibrant yellow on the lower side of interior leaves.  This contrast can make for same rather nice viewing.  The problem now is that fall rains, and/or wind can wreak havoc on the leaves and the ability to enjoy the fall colors can be rather fleeting. 

8 October 2016
Perhaps it is the lack of sun, but the tree does
not look as vibrant as in 2013

The locust street tree in my yard has a golden fall color and that tree is usually bare by the time the locust trees in my backyard starts to change.  The front locust is usually completely bare by now, but this year, like the other trees, there seems to be a delay. 

8 October 2019
Notice how little of the tree leaves have changed
Also notice leaves on Locust to right

I am not sure how much temperature affects leaf color.  While we have been above normal temperatures this week so far, we were below normal the prior week.  The colors of autumn can thrill most everyone, but yet they are fleeting with intensity and duration subject to the variability of the weather.  The leaves of the trees, flowers, vegetables and other plants all seem to have their own level of alteration as each plant gets ready for winter.  The shortening hours of day light inform us of the coming of our fourth season, winter. 

Photos by author

Frieda

Frieda is a name that has Scandinavian and Germanic roots.  It is also the name of a one of the Characters in the well known comic strip "Peanuts" by Charles Schultz.  The character Frieda was introduced to Charlie Brown by his friend Linus Van Pelt, and she was the eleventh character to appear in the comic strip.  Her role became less and less as time went on and new characters were introduced.  In the comic strip Frieda is best known for her naturally curly hair which she points out with regularity.  My wife has naturally curly hair and for a few months now, I had been trying to recall the girl in "Peanuts" that always commented on her "naturally curly hair."   On October 2 my wife somehow came up with her name.  My riddle was solved. 

Portion of  March 1961 Strip
in which Frieda First Appeared

Both Frieda and my wife are proud of their naturally curly hair, although my wife does not do that little hand thing at the back bob of the hair and go around commenting on her naturally curly hair.  Frieda came up again because on October 2 my wife got a haircut which brought out her curls even more. I still have a hard time wondering how her hair gets more curled when it is cut, but it may be due to the hairdresser wetting the hair.    In "Peanuts" Frieda's hair appears to be reddish in color, so my wife and her have that also in common.  Frieda should not, however, be confused with the Little Red Haired girl in the strip who is never seen, but on whom Charlie Brown has a crush.  I do not ever recall Frieda's hair color coming up, heck I did not even recall her name, but going with images I will go with red.

It is Always about the Curls

On the night that I found out the name of the girl with the naturally curly hair, I had my wife try to do the little hand bob movement up on the back corner of the head.  I think it took her about three times before she got it right.  She says she had it right from the beginning, but my angle of view was not correct.  I disagree, as she seemed to grab the hair slightly not just lift those natural curls up a little.  I suspect the reader is wondering how I got her to do such a thing, not once, or twice but three times?  I myself wonder how that happened to work.

Frieda "Bobbing" Her Hair, wich my Wife
has yet to Master

One time in her life my wife had long hair, starting, she thinks about age 13, when she entered high school.  With the long hair, however, she lost her natural curls, they were pulled down by the weight of the hair so during that phase she was a straight haired red head, and her naturally curly red hair was relegated to the past and the future.  I asked if she ever had long hair when she was young and she said, no, that she thought her mother liked her naturally curly hair.  I can see why her mother would like her curls.

I am glad that my farm girl is happy with her hair.  Unlike many men she has a full head at her age.  And unlike some women her age, her hair color is still natural.  I take a look at myself, and sticking with the Peanut theme, my head of hair reminds me of that of Linus: thinning out.  As much as I may now be Linus, I suspect I am on the way to the bald head of Charlie Brown.  Heck if Linus has such thin hair at whatever young age he is portrayed in the comic strip.   (In a 1950 strip Charlie Brown says he is four, and I see Linus' sister Lucy as about that age and Linus younger, so perhaps Linus is three.  None of them seemed to age.)  Poor Frieda does not even show in many of the images of the Charlie Brown gang.  Frieda is not considered a minor character, but a supporting character along with several others including Violet.  Yet, of the varied Peanut gang images googled, Frieda shows in only one, and Violet in a few.  I am not sure if Frieda would be happy about this, after all she certainly liked to flaunt her naturally curly hair.  In some regards, even though my wife is a type A personality, at times she likes to fly under the radar.

Merry Christmas Charlie Brown Special
Frieda in Center left of tree

Peanuts is obviously not as popular as it once was, although there still are some television shows, mainly at Christmas and Thanksgiving.  However, political correctness may take its toll on those shows as well.  In any event, the Frieda in my house has some really neat naturally curly hair, that is also cute. am not looking forward to having Charlie Brown hair.  And, while I may become Charlie Brown in lack of hair, I found something he did not find, a red-haired girl.

Images from Google