Every time we see a mongoose I think “There goes Rikki-Tikki-Tavi.” We don’t have these cute little killers, and my own exposure was the many readings Mom made of Rudyard Kipling’s “Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” story. That tough little guy was the protector of the family from the neighborhood killer cobras.
Now let’s put aside just how awful that story is if retold from the cobras point of view. Rikki did, after all, basically wipe out their entire family, and the cobras were on the land before the humans. Actually, would somebody please just rewrite that story already? Use Kipling’s repetition and voice, but create it Gregory Maguire style, where the reader can empathize with the poor cobras against the mean humans and vicious mongoose. Hahaha. Yes.
Anyway, I love mongoose (is the plural also mongoose? or mongooses? mongeese? mongi?) and every time we see one here in our Africa travels, I think to myself “There goes Rikki-Tikki again!” It never mattered to me whether I was seeing a banded mongoose, slender mongoose or dwarf mongoose. They were all “Rikki.”
Rikki is hard to photograph, unless you happen to be sitting for awhile in one spot. Because when you come across a group of Rikkis while you’re driving, they scatter far and fast.On our recent Kruger trip, we startled an eagle into a tree branch and realized he had just killed a little mongoose and was taking him away to eat. I felt bad for the little guy, but also bad that we were interrupting the eagle’s lunch, so we took a quick snap and were careful not to run him over as we passed by. Bon Apetit, Mister Eagle. {Darn it, I’m singing Circle of Life again!}
“Rikki-Tikki-Tavi” is also the name of a song by a band named Fair to Midland. I just gave it a listen for the first time, and in the immortal words of George Takei, “Oh my…” Hahaha. This is a crazy, mixed-genre metal/folk(ish) song (audio below) and I love it. I don’t recommend it for traditional music lovers. I thought it a fitting tribute to the dead Rikki about to be eaten by the eagle.
RIP Rikki-Tikki Tavi.
Love, Marla
P.S. For the record, the plural of mongoose is either “mongooses”, “mongeese”, or “Rikki-Tikkis”. 😉
P.P.S Any amateur orno’s out there want to take a guess at the type of eagle this is?
