Southern African 500 reached !!!!!!!!!

At the beginning of this year (2006), my Southern African life list was around 440, and I set myself the target to reach 500 before the end of the year. During June/July a trip to Botswana/Caprivi brought me into the 490s. Last week I was on 494, and hoped that a weekend to Wakkerstroom would be enough to reach my target. In my wildest dreams I would not have thought that I would come back with 15 (!!!) lifers for the weekend, pushing my list up to 509!

So my target for the year has been reached with about 3 months to spare! Now for 550 before end 2007...

A special word of thanks to my birding "mentors", Derick & Charmaine Oosthuizen who introduced me to this wonderful interest, followed my progress with enthusiasm, and went out of their way to help me reach this milestone. A toast to you!