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Wednesday, March 17, 2010 Orono Weekly Times - 5 Out of Africa: Jim and Sherri Richards return from safari by Sue Weigand Imagine what it would be like to stand in the middle of the Serengeti, with nothing but wildlife surrounding you as far as the eye can see. Jim and Sherri Richards of Orono don't need to imagine, they experienced it, as part of an African safari tour they took together last month. For the Richardses, who spent a month touring Tanzania and Kenya, living out the classic African adventure, the safari was "a trip of a lifetime." Well-seasoned travellers, the couple says the expedition was "life changing." "It absolutely blew us away," says Jim. "We have friends who've been to Africa four or five times. We talked to them about what shoes to wear, what to bring. Sherri read all kinds of books on Kenya. We thought we were prepared, mentally prepared, for everything Africa had to throw at us. But we weren't." Not that they ran into problems, rather, just the opposite. The pair could not believe what an incredible time they had. Using words like "awesome," "amazing," and "exhilarating," to describe the journey, Sherri notes, "Jim and I have travelled a fair amount, but without a doubt this was a new experience. Every day, we kept saying, 'It can't get any better,' and it would." The couple, married for 48 years, have taken a number of vacation cruises, but many of their travels have been related to the fact that Jim is a naturalist and wildlife photographer, with a special interest in birds. While Sherri still works, Jim, 67, has been retired from General Motors for 13 years, but he continues his lifelong career as an ornithologist. "My thing is birds' eggs," he explains. "It started as a schoolboy hobby, and I've never grown up. I like going out and finding birds' nests. You've got to know all about their habits, their peculiar movements. I've spent so much time out in the woods, I'm selftaught." Jim's study, in the couple's Orono home, is chock-full of natural history books, journals, and a large collection of his slides and photos, covering birds, birds' nests, birds' eggs, mammals, insects, and plant life, all ordered by scientific species. "And then I've got some bird books," he jokes, acknowledging it's his obsession. Once dubbed "the human cowbird" by a curator at the Royal Ontario Museum, Jim's ability to find birds' nests has kept him in demand in Canada and the U.S., doing field work to track down nests other researchers have trouble locating. Previously licens-ed to collect birds' eggs, Jim says he has donated his large collection to the R.O.M. and a few other museums. Nowadays, he does his collecting on film, occasionally selling his photos to scientific journals and calendar companies. He says he was looking forward to seeing famous African birds, such as the Crowned Crane, for the first time, but the trip exceeded all his expectations. "I've travelled quite a bit here in Canada," he says, "to photo supplied Orono naturalist Jim Richards (right) participated in a safari tour of Tanzania and Kenya last month. He is pictured here with Canadian wildlife painter Robert Bateman. reliable · responsible · recyclable YOUR OFFICE SUPPLY STORE INKJETS · LASER · RIBBON CARTRIDGES COPY & PRINT CENTER 410 TORONTO ST., NEWCASTLE · 905-987-4781 the East Coast and to the Arctic a number of times. And in the U.S., I've taken photo tours to Texas, Florida, Utah, and Arizona - all the good spots for birds. I relish every one of those trips, but nothing can compare to this trip to Africa. The people were fantastic and the scenery was just unbelievable." The Richardses were part of a 23-person private tour group on a general nature tour designed for photography, with an emphasis on mammals, according to Jim. The group was comprised of naturalists, scientists and photographers. "We were almost all published authors, or published photographers," he explains. "Everyone had a bit of a background." Once each morning, and again each afternoon, the group would go out on "game drives" in safari vans (Land Rovers with pop-up roofs), travelling through a string of national parks as they photographed the various mammals of the alternating terrain -- from a cheetah in an acacia tree on the grassy plains of the Serengeti, to a Colobus monkey found in the forested region of the volcanic highlands of the Ngorongoro Crater. Along the way, they stayed in lodges, surrounded by electric fences to keep out lions and cheetahs. But, according to Jim, antelopes simply jumped over the fences, joining baboons and monkeys, butterflies and "scores of birds," to create great opportunities for photographers even inside the compound of the lodges. In between the game drives, the group spent leisure time at the lodges, where they could do such things as enjoy the swimming pool, or get a massage. Free painting lessons were also available due to the fact that one of Canada's most noted naturalists, Canadian wildlife painter Robert Bateman and his wife Birgit, also happened to be in the group. "Bob gave art lessons to everyone who wanted them," says Jim, noting that this was the highlight of the tour for some. "I enjoyed spending time with Bob," he says. "He knows a lot about nature, about the AFRICA see page 7 Loyal Printing Ltd. "Everything with the printed word" 5310 Main St., Orono 905-983-5301