Black Eagle GeoArt BE 52 - Alex's 9th - Rusty Car Mystery Cache
Hidden : 7/12/2018
Difficulty:
3 out of 5
Terrain:
1.5 out of 5

Size: Size: micro (micro)

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Geocache Description:


Gauteng West Rand Black Eagle GeoArt Series

Welcome to the West Rand, Gauteng! The West Rand Geocaching Community is very proud to present BLACK EAGLE GEOART, the only GeoArt to date in South Africa depicting the rare Black Eagle! Apart from its rich cultural history, the West Rand in Gauteng, South Africa is also home to an extremely active Geocaching community. The West Rand Geocachers are a social bunch and meet at least once every month to share stories, swap experiences and trackables and enjoy each others company.  We hope you will enjoy exploring the beauty of the West Rand, Gauteng!

PLEASE NOTE: THE CACHE IS NOT AT THE POSTED COORDINATES. YOU NEED TO SOLVE A PUZZLE FROM THE INFORMATION BELOW TO GET THE FINAL COORDINATES. The Verraux's Eagle or Black Eagle Verreaux's eagle is a very large eagle. It measures 75 to 96 cm (30 to 38 in) long from the bill to the tip of the tail, making it the sixth longest eagle in the world. Males can weigh 3 to 4.2 kg (6.6 to 9.3 lb) and the larger females weigh 3.1 to 7 kg (6.8 to 15.4 lb). The average weight is approximately 4.19 kg (9.2 lb), based on the weights of 21 eagles of both sexes. It is the seventh or eighth heaviest living eagle in the world. In average mass and overall weight range, if not linear measurements, the Verreaux's is very similar in size to its occasional competitor, the martial eagle, which is regularly titled the largest of the African eagles. Among other standard measurements in the Verreaux's eagles, both sexes measure 27.2 to 36 cm (10.7 to 14.2 in) in tail length and 9.5 to 11 cm (3.7 to 4.3 in) in tarsus length. Other than the female’s slight size advantage, adult males and females are physically indistinguishable from each other.Adult Verreaux's eagles are mostly jet-black in colour. The yellow coloration of the cere (the bill is gun-metal grey), eye-ring and “eye-brows”, all stand out in contrast to the black plumage. Even more prominent on flying birds when seen from above is the white on the back, rump and upper-tail coverts and part of the scapulars, which forms a V-shaped patch, although this feature is partially obscured in perched birds.Adults also have conspicuous white windows on the wing quills at the carpal joint (at the base of the primaries) when seen flying both from above and below. The bill is stout, the head is prominent on the relatively long neck and the legs are fully feathered. Juvenile and immature plumages differ markedly from the plumage of adults. They are overall a dark brown colour. Immatures have a strongly contrasting golden crown and a rufous or ginger nape and mantle. They have small white streaks on the forehead and black on their cheeks. The throat is dark streaked, the lower throat is pale brown and the upper-chest is brown. The rest of the underside is brown but for a blackish-blotched rufous to cream-colored abdomen and lightly marked creamy thighs and legs. The feathers of the upper-tail and upper-wing coverts are brown with white streaks in young birds, while the other tail and wing quills are nearly black. The wing quills when seen from below in flight show considerable whitish mottling, with more extensive white than is typically seen in adult plumages. The immature has a dark brown iris and yellowish feet. Black feathers increase from 2 to 5 years of age amongst a scattering of brown-tipped feathers, though the contrasting creamy trousers are maintained through the 3rd year. By the 4th year, they look dark grey-brown with a buff-patch on the nape and mottling of retained brownish feathers. At the end of the subadult phase at around 5 years of age, the plumage is practically indistinguishable from the adult. Full adult plumage is probably attained in 5 to 6 years. The Verreaux's eagle is essentially unmistakable, especially in adulthood. No other black-colored raptor in its range approaches this species’ large size, nor possesses its distinctive patterns of white. The golden eagle is of similar size or marginally larger size and the two species are the heaviest living Aquila species and measure only marginally less than the slightly lighter-weight Australasian wedge-tailed eagle in total wing and bill-to-tail length. While the juvenile Verreaux's eagle is quite different from the adult's, its plumage is no less distinctive. No other accipitrid shares the mottled brownish body, blackish wings with large white patches or contrasting whitish, rufous and golden color around the head and neck as that of an immature eagle. The flight profile of Verreaux's eagle is also distinctive, as it is the only Aquila species other than the golden eagle to soar in a pronounced dihedral, with the wings held slightly above the back and primaries upturned at the tip to make a V shape. Source: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Verreaux%27s_eagle From the Black Eagle Project Roodekrans: (See their Facebook page for more info) There are currently a pair of nesting Black Eagles in the Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens. The male's name is Thulani and female's name is Makatsa. Together they hatched a single chick on 19 June 2018. Using the information above solve the following puzzle to get the final coordinates. The final co-ordinates are: S 26 0, ABC and E 027 40, DEF A = the first digit of the longest measurement (in cm) of the Black Eagle from Bill to tip of the tail. B = the lowest weight of both male and female black eagles to the closest kilogram. C = The number of other black raptors in its range that approaches this species' large size or matches its distinctive white patterns. D = By what age do they look dark grey-brown with a buff-patch on the nape and mottling of retained brownish feathers? E = The first digit of the day on which the chick in Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens was hatched. F = The only digit that appears in the longest measurement (in cm) of the tarsus for both males and females. Geocache container: small spray painted container - please exercise stealth and a great deal of caution with the amount of spider webs in there. Please return to the same place you found it.

Additional Hints (Decrypt)

Sraqre (pybfrfg gb ebnq) ybj qbja. Or pnershy bs fcvqref.

Decryption Key

A|B|C|D|E|F|G|H|I|J|K|L|M
-------------------------
N|O|P|Q|R|S|T|U|V|W|X|Y|Z

(letter above equals below, and vice versa)


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