Sad news from South Africa
We were very sad to hear from our friend Keith at Tropical Birding who told us of the very untimely death of Ben de Boer of Kurisa Moya Nature Lodge in the northern Limpopo Province, South Africa.
Ben and his wife Lisa had helped us during The Biggest Twitch and it was almost a year ago on 4th September 2008 that we enjoyed their wonderful hospitality. We had enjoyed a wonderful morning’s birding with Ben around Kurisa Moya, and he was able to show us some of the highlights of the year, including Black-fronted Bush-shrike and a pair of charismatic Bat Hawks near their nest, both new birds not only for the year but for our life lists too.
But there was much more to Ben than his amazing ability to find rare and scarce birds. He was a passionate and committed conservationist and his legacy will live on in the numerous South African bird guides that he mentored and enthused with his boundless energy for conservation projects. He will be sadly missed by all who were lucky enough to meet this inspiring conservationist. Our condolences go to Lisa. We don’t know as yet what the future will hold for Kurisa Moya, but if you would like to learn more about this fascinating and wonderful part of South Africa, please visit www.krm.co.za.
Ben was so young and seemed so full of life that his early and untimely death is a poignant reminder to us all that if we can, we should live our dreams today and not put them off until tomorrow, as none of us knows what the future may hold. We know for sure that Ben lived his all-too-short life to the full and his achievements will live on as a tribute to this wonderful man.