Birds

Chorister Robin-Chat at De Vasselot Rest Camp, Nature's Valley

Birds encountered on Table Mountain and in the Western Cape in general. I am not much of a “twitcher”, and you can well imagine I do not like to remain still for long. But sometimes curiosity gets the better of me, and I need to put a name to a LBJ.

  • African Black Oystercatcher
  • African Hoopoe
  • African spoonbill
  • Black Eagle
  • Blue Crane
  • Cape Francolin
  • Cape Rock Thrush
  • Cape Sugarbird
  • Cardinal Woodpecker
  • Chorister Robin-Chat
  • Common Fiscal Shrike
  • Jackal Buzzard
  • Kelp Gull
  • Knysna Loerie
  • Orange-breasted Sunbird
  • Ostrich
  • Red-winged Starling
  • Southern Boubou Shrike
  • Speckled Pigeon
  • Verreaux’s Eagle
  • Whitebreasted Cormorant
  • Yellow-billed Kite
African Black Oystercatcher pair, Robberg Peninsula.

African Black Oystercatcher

Haematopus moquini

Oystercatchers mate for life, and can usually be seen in pairs. They are endangered, and care should be taken not to disturb them, or trample their nests which are usually found in dunes (one of the reasons vehicles are not permitted on most beaches in South Africa).

They occur quite commonly on both beaches and rocky stretches of the South African coastline.

Sightings: Robberg [March]; Nature’s Valley Beach [September]; Jongensfontein [March]

African Hoopoe

Upupa africana

I remember seeing Hoopoes in the garden when I was very young and I am equally nostalgic and delighted in having a family of Hoopoes regularly feeding on our lawn.

These unmistakable birds are fairly rare. The distinctive orange-coloured head and crest and the long slender bill make these birds easy to identify.

We have a resident pair on the farm in Knysna.

Sighting: Rondeberg [March]; Knysna [April – May]

African hoopoe, Upupa africana
African spoonbill, Platalea alba, Knysna Estuary

African spoonbill

Platalea alba

I spotted this guy shuffling along in the Knysna Estuary near the Leisure Isle causeway. They can be seen in numbers on the salt marshes on the left of George Rex Drive nearby.

Sighting: Knysna Estuary [May]

Black Eagle

See Verreaux’s Eagle

Black Eagle at Radical Raptors, Garden Route.
Blue Crane near Greyton.

Blue Crane

Anthropoides paradisea

This elegant bird is the national bird of South Africa. I spotted a flock in some farmlands near Greyton. They were incredibly skittish, and I couldn’t get within 100m of them.

Sightings: Greyton

Cape Francolin

Francolinus capensis

Spotted this one on the beach at Kraalbaai in the West Coast National Park where he seemed quite out of place!

Sightings: West Coast National Park

Cape Francolin, <em>Francolinus capensis</em>, in the West Coast Park.
Male Cape Rock Thrush, Die Hoek Farm, Genadendal Hiking Trail

Cape Rock Thrush

Monticola rupestris

Sightings: Genadendal Hiking Trail [June]

Cape Sugarbird

Promerops cafer

You will see these little guys flitting from protea to protea using their long curved beaks to get to the nectar. The tail of the male bird can reach 3 times its body length, and the tail of the female is shorter.

Cape Sugarbird perched on proteas at Silvermine.
Cape sugarbird, Greyton Nature Reserve.
Cape sugarbird, Greyton Nature Reserve.

Sightings: Silvermine; Pipe-track; Greyton Nature Reserve

Cardinal Woodpecker, Mount Ceder

Cardinal Woodpecker

Dendropicos fuscescens

As I guess should be expected, we heard this little guy before we saw him! We followed the incessant tapping and found him drilling away at a tree outside the reception building at Mount Ceder in the southern Cederberg.

He was not timid at all and continued pecking at the wood despite all the noisy activity on the ground below (including people, horses and vehicles).

His bright red crest looked surprisingly spiky when raised.

Sighting: Mount Ceder [June]

Chorister Robin-Chat

Cossypha dichroa

This gorgeous guy came to visit us on the deck of our Forest Hut at De Vasselot Rest Camp in Nature’s Valley.

Sighting: De Vasselot Rest Camp, Nature’s Valley [September]

Chorister Robin-Chat at De Vasselot Rest Camp, Nature's Valley

Common Fiscal Shrike

Lanius collaris

The Common Fiscal Shrike is a member of the shrike family found throughout most of Sub-Saharan Africa. I remember these birds visiting my grandparent’s garden, and then calling them Butcher Birds.

We came across one that we assume had found a dead rodent that it was trying to carry across the dirt road, despite it being many times larger than itself. I have since identified the mouse as a Striped Mouse.

Sighting: Matjiesfontein, Cederberg

Jackal Buzzard

Buteo rufofuscus

We regularly see a Jackal Buzzard in the area. They often interact with the Yellow-billed Kites in dramatic aerial displays. We also spotted one whilst horse riding at Mount Ceder.

Unfortunately, I do not have a camera capable of taking a shot of one…

Kelp Gull

Kelp Gull

Larus dominicanus

Common scavengers on the coast of South Africa.

Knysna Loerie

Tauraco corythaix

We were welcomed to our Forest Hut at De Vasselot Rest Camp, Nature’s Valley by a couple of Loeries. Unfortunately, they would not play along, and I only managed a shot of one of them hiding in the upper branches of the tree next to the hut.

More recently we had a lovely sighting at the Harkerville Forest during the Hi-Tec Forest Family Hike: we had just headed into the forest when I heard the alarm call and there must have been at least 4 in the tall trees directly above us.

These beautiful birds are most striking in flight when the crimson outer primary feathers under their wings catch the sunlight. They make a surprisingly loud and not particularly beautiful “ko-ko-ko-ko” sound when they are alarmed. They are often seen running along branches from tree to tree in the dense forest canopy.

To really get to see these beautiful birds we recommend a trip to the spectacular Birds of Eden near Plettenberg Bay: whilst seeing them in their natural habitat is a magical experience, getting up close to them is equally amazing!

Sightings: De Vasselot Rest Camp, Nature’s Valley [September]; Harkerville Forest [July]; Goukamma Nature Reserve [January]

Orange-breasted Sunbird

Anthobaphes violacea

These colourful little guys can be seen sipping nectar from proteas and pincushions with their delicate, curved bills. Their wings make a distinctive “whirring” sound, and you will often hear them in the fynbos before you see them.

I hope I have identified the juvenile in the photo correctly: I saw her in the company of some adults, and the description matches that given in my bird guide.

Sightings: Silvermine East; Pipe-track; Kalk Bay Mountains.

Ostrich

Struthio australis

Commercially farmed in South Africa, originally for their plumage but now more importantly for their healthy meat, the ostrich is a fairly common feature of the South African landscape.

As is often the case with birds, the male has showy plumage of black and white which was responsible for a boom in the ostrich industry of Oudtshoorn in a bygone era.

Sighting: West Coast National Park; Cape Point Nature Reserve

Red-winged Starling

Onychognathus morio

Red-winged Starlings are to be found everywhere on the Peninsula. They are noisy, cheeky birds. They are almost entirely glossy black, with the exception of the chestnut flight feathers.

Southern Boubou Shrike (Laniarius ferrugineus) in the Bontebok National Park

Southern Boubou Shrike

Laniarius ferrugineus

Sighting: Bontebok National Park

Speckled Pigeon

Columba guinea

These large pigeons are a common sight in suburban areas. I had a pair nest on my balcony and before I knew it I was host to a messy, noisy family of four.

Sightings: Cape Peninsula suburbia [October]

Speckled Pigeon, Guinea columbia, on nest with chick,

Verreaux’s Eagle

Aquila verreauxii

The information below is from the fascinating presentation I attended by  Megan Murgatroyd on her Black Eagle Project.

The Black Eagle is now correctly known as Verreaux’s Eagle.

Prey:

  • Rock hyrax (the Rock hyrax is common prey, and the eagles’ habitat coincides largely with that of the dassie.)
  • Tortoise (Sandveld)
  • Mongoose
  • Mole rats

Breeding habits:

  • 10-month process, meaning they can breed every year in good habitat
  • nest-building can start in early February
  • can build more than 1 nest a year
  • 2 eggs are laid in a clutch from mid-May to Mid-July
  • 40 – 45 days incubation period
  • male and female incubate
  • they are used to hunting in pairs, so must adapt to hunting alone while their partner incubates
  • also hatch 2 days apart: this results in a Cain / Abel scenario, where Cain will usually kill Abel (this is some kind of insurance policy ensuring the survival of at least one chick)
  • chick = 100 grams
  • 90-95 days before flight
  • after 2 or 3 months the young eagle is forced to leave the area by its parents

There is a long history of breeding pairs on the Peninsula. Currently, there is one successful pair in the Silvermine area, using the same nest since 2005.

Whitebreasted Cormorant

Whitebreasted Cormorant

Phalacrocorax africanus

Spotted this fellow alongside the walkway between Muizenberg and St. James.

Yellow-billed Kite

Milvus aegyptius

We see lots of these beautiful birds on the farm up the West Coast. At first, I battled to identify them as from a distance I could not see the fork in the tail. The kite flies with a distinctive loose tail movement — the tail swivels quite freely and quickly — but the identification was only confirmed when I got to see a bird a bit closer and finally saw the fork in the tail.

Its bill is entirely yellow, it has yellow legs and chocolate-brown feathers.

One of the dogs caught a small mouse, but because he had most of his teeth kicked out by a horse, he had no real way of killing it, so I despatched the little guy and threw his body into the paddock. We then noticed a kite zoning in on the paddock, so I got my camera out and tried to take some shots.

Sightings: Philadelphia area

Unidentified

More often than not I am unable to name the birds I see. I recently purchased a copy of the Complete Photographic Field Guide: Birds of Southern Africa and will have to try to educate myself!

Here is a photo of a raptor that I saw on the dunes near the parking lot at Noordhoek Beach. The bird seemed a bit out of place, and I would love to know what it is.

Raptor, Noordhoek Beach
Raptor, Noordhoek Beach
Complete Photographic Field Guide: Birds of Southern Africa

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