a couple of roads in Ethiopia.
Both are in the Bale Mountains south of Addis Ababa. I was doing research at the National Museum of Ethiopia, but I'm a birder, and the Bale Mountains are a hotspot of biodiversity. They're also a part of East Africa I hadn't seen before.
This one at mid-elevation, close to where I saw Bale Mountains monkeys - a species found nowhere else.
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And this one is at much higher elevation. My guide told me it's the highest road in Africa, and I believe him, though I've forgotten the elevation. Saw a lot of endemic birds and plants there. (The unpaved road itself can be seen to the lower left.)
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and just to make it complete, here's one of the endemic birds I saw - a blue-winged goose:
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(These were all taken in June of 2019.)
Not sure if these are good or not, but I enjoyed taking them.
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I've never seen photos from Ethiopia before. Wow. Wonderful landscapes! I love the mist and the fog and all the scenery.
The blue-winged goose is just fantastic! The markings are very striking. And the way the bird's looking around is stunning.
Thank you for sharing!
Hope we'll see more from you, and it can be anything you want.
The Bale Mountains aren't really representative of Ethiopia. The country is mountainous, but most of it is at a lower elevation.
Here's a female kori bustard from Awash National Park northeast of the capital. This part of the country is just as lovely - just drier.
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(FWIW - the kori bustard is the largest living flying bird by mass. Andean condors and a couple of albatross species have bigger wingspans, but male kori bustards weigh more. This was a female; males are about a third again larger. And unlike other really big volant birds, they don't need a running start - they just jump up and fly.)
We're taking submissions now for our Winter contest. I would encourage you to submit a winter photo!
We're halfway to getting our goal of 30 photos. It would be great to have you participate!
Here's the link to the Submissions File: https://www.democraticunderground.com/1036128208
The easiest way to find out about the contest of any particular month is to subscribe to the Photo Group. There's a button at the top of the page that says SUBSCRIBE. When you click that, you will automatically get any new post that's in this group.
It's right next to the blue button that says Start discussion.
Also - here's the best shot I could get of a Bale Mountains monkey.
I'm a vertebrate paleontologist/herpetologist whose research camera is optimized for photographing objects that are (a) right in front of me and (b) not moving. I also work on animals that eat monkeys, not the monkeys themselves. This particular monkey chose not to remain still, and he/she was at some distance, so it's not a great shot. But it's at least monkey-shaped.
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I spent a few years in Asmara Eritrea. I was on an 8,600 ft mountain. I loved it there. I have many fond memories of the people, and Massawa rd. Axum was a magical place.
Axum
