Introduction to nature's Plumbers and Builders!

I heard a strange tap, tap ,tap sound this morning and decided to go and investigate! Oh my, look! We have a Plumber cleaning a gutter downpipe outlet! From the mess at his feet, this guy has been very busy cleaning out the pipe after last nights rain!
But why is he doing this?

Ah! As you see above, he is gathering mud and leaves to waterproof the nest! What a great Plumber this is and taught by nature! Mud, once baked dry by the sun and mixed with leaves makes an excellent waterproofing material. We have many mud huts in Africa!

Now for a builder of a different kind!

Look at the rows of mud globules placed in exact rows to form a nest!
The nest is halfway done as the builder will take the wall higher and then slope it back to form a roof!
But who is the builder?

Ah! The builder is a Swallow and nature has issued him with a Master Builder's license!
Of course in nature, the wife is the Inspector and Safety Officer and if anything is not to her liking, she simply condemns the new house and the poor guy has to demolish and build again.

It is said that early man learn't his home building craft from nature and we can understand why!
Their mud-huts were erected in a similar building style and the walls were built with a mixture of mud and fodder to protect them against the elements!
Of course man seeks constant improvement and a "new" thing was to use cow dung for the floors! Once a floor was laid and dried, it could even be polished and it also acted as a good insulator and water proofer against the elements!

Of course nowadays it's all glass, cement, bricks and steel, but there is a strong return to what they call "Green", or "Eco" building materials. Let's hope that we return to the lessons of nature!

Thank you for visiting a post by @papilloncharity

Team South Africa banner designed by @bearone