Bokmakieriewitsbirdclub.org.za/wp-content/uploads/2016/09/... · poort by Jacobus van Dÿk &...

Newsletter of the Witwatersrand Bird ClubAugust 2016 No 246

Bokmakierie

BirdLifeS O U T H A F R I C A

Giving Conservation Wings

WIT

WA

TERS

RAND

BIRD

CLU

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Sediba and Borakalalo Outing Weekend

Lance Robinson collating the Sediba & Borakalalo bird list

Felicity Kanichowsky, Fiona Butchart & Christo Venter (with Malcom Henderson in the background)

Jenny Fullerton, Diana Cowen & Christine le Brocq

Christine le Brocq, Charlotte Mathews and Lester Ness

Birders at Sediba Game Lodge, May 2016.

Photos by Jan van Heerden

Bokmakierie August 2016 No 246 | 1

Witwatersrand Bird ClubP O Box 641 Cresta 2118Tel: 011 782 7267Fax: 086 512 7696Email: [email protected]: www.witsbirdclub.org.za

Inside this issue:

NOTICE TO CONTRIBUTORSBokmakierie is published three times annually. Contribu-tions may be in Afrikaans or English. English names of birds should be those used in Roberts VII. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the Editor, Club, the Committee, Members or those of BirdLife South Africa. The Editors reserve the right to edit articles as necessary.

This issue of Bokmakierie has been produced and edited by Andy Featherstone and Lance Robinson.

2016 Committee:HON. PRESIDENT: Lance Robinson

CHAIRMAN: Andy Featherstone

VICE-CHAIRMAN: Koos van Dÿk

TREASURER: Sandy Goodall

COURSES: Janice Isom

CONSERVATION: Lance Robinson

EVENING MEETINGS: Lia Steen

WEBSITE: Thinie vd Merwe

YOUTH: Grant Morrison

SALES & MARKETING: Dael Stojakovic

PROGRAMME: Fiona van Zyl

EAST RAND CHAIR: Awie Coetzee

HENLEY-ON-KLIP CHAIR: David Ludlow

WEST RAND CHAIR: Koos van Dÿk

CLUB SECRETARY: Lauraine Leigh

COVER PHOTO: Verreaux’s Eagle by Warwick Tarboton

MAGAZINE LAYOUT: Philip Tarboton

Bokmakierie

2 Letter from the Chair3 Advanced photography with peanut

butter by Lesley Cornish6 Moscow calling - a rehab European

Honey Buzzard heads north by Prof. Craig Symes

8 Bon voyage Ginny Mes 23rd July 2016 by Andy Featherstone

9 Vergelegen partners in bird of prey rescue: press release by Meropa Communications

12 Notes on a nesting pair of Short-toed Rock Thrushes (Monticola brevipes) in Kloofendaal Nature Reserve, Roode-poort by Jacobus van Dÿk & Anthony van Zyl

16 Short-toed Rock Thrush (Monticola brevipes) field notes by J D van Dÿk

20 A winter visit ro the Pilanesberg by An-thony Cavanagh

23 Mount Elgon: part one: highlands and caves by Lesley Cornish

26 Klipriversberg Verreaux's Eagles - the story of "Witsie" by Lance Robinson

27 Vulpro, Eskom and the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) save our vultures!: press release by Vulpro

29 Long lived Cape Robin-chat (Cossypha caffra) by Dane Paijmans, SAFRING

30 Oldest Southern Masked Weaver by H. Dieter Oschadleus, SAFRING

31 African Goshawk (Accipter tachiro) makes a reappearance in Johannesburg by Lance Robinson

33 Rarities and unusual sightings report: 31 July 2016 by André Marx

Newsletter of the Witwatersrand Bird ClubAugust 2016 No 246

2 | Bokmakierie August 2016 No 246

Dear Members,

It’s hard to believe but winter is nearly over and the first day of spring is approaching fast. The first of our intra African migrants have already started to arrive with White-throated Swallows and African Palm Swifts making their ap-pearance. Waders are also turning up on what is left of our pans and migration will soon be in full swing. Let us hope that this year the drought will end and that we have the summer rains that we desperately need.

I had the pleasure of re-cently migrating to Europe for the holiday of a life time with my wife Gail. In sixteen days we visited seven countries in the Nordic and Baltic areas. The scenery crossing the mountains of Norway by train and in the fjords from various boats was breath-taking. Whilst I was not able to birdwatch in a conventional sense my binoculars and camera were always to hand so I enjoyed many European birds that I

have not seen for a number of years. There were plenty of migrants enjoying the summer with in particular, large number of White Storks in the agricultural areas of the Baltic countries. I would love to go back to do some serious birding but the cost of living in these countries is truly frightening!

Back to local matters, as September heralds the start of spring, there are several events that are important in our calendar. The first week-end of September is the African Bird Fair which will be held at Walter Sisulu Bo-tanical Gardens on the 3rd and 4th. Wits Bird Club will be having a stand at the Fair and Lauraine is keeping a roster of members willing to assist in manning the stand. If you can help for a couple of hours please let her know. Fresh off the press and on sale at the Fair will be our stunning 2017 Calendar, the photographs submitted get better and better every year. Congratulations to those lucky few whose photo-graphs were selected by our judges, Albert Froneman and Mark Anderson, and commiserations to those who did not quite make it this year. Keep trying!

Since our April edition of Bokmakierie we have un-dergone a few changes on

the Committee. Ginny Mes has left the Gauteng region to live and work in Cape Town with her family and we wish her well. Joining the Committee in her place, Fiona van Zyl has under-taken the onerous portfolio of programme planning, please give her your support and help. Dael Stojakovic has also joined the Com-mittee to head up sales & marketing, an area which has needed input for some time. Dael has already made an impressive start in selling some of our old clothing stock, even offering to adjust the size of items which are too large for the purchasers. So if you still want a fleece jacket, see Dael and she will tailor one to suit!

Lastly next year the Club will be celebrating its 70th Anniversary and we will be having a number of special events to mark the occasion. This will range from talks by Trevor Hardaker in February and Faansie Peacock provi-sionally set for March, to a birthday bash at Delta Park in June and an exciting trip to Mozambique in Decem-ber to look for the fabled African Pitta ….

Andy Featherstone

Letter from the Chair


Errol and I were among the lucky four to go on Albert and Marietjie Froneman’s Advanced Forest Bird Photography Workshop at Kurisa Moya in Magoeber-skloof in June 2016. Initially, I was put off by the “advanced” bit, but Janice Isom persuaded me otherwise, and although our photographic equipment was the least of the people on the workshop, it was enough! Albert told us the “ad-vanced” was to ensure that people had reasonable capability, but mostly to en-sure that they had the necessary equip-ment, because they would have been

really frustrated if they did not have it.

After taking a day’s leave on Friday, and going to a meeting at Midrand at 7.30 a.m. en route (am I nuts, this was sup-posed to be leave!?), we were there just after 14.00. We settled into a fantastic old farmhouse, then had our first lecture. It did not seem too traumatic, and was followed by a short practical session setting up the cameras and trying out fill-in flash photography. That went OK, so we had drinks and a wonderful dinner (all part of the full board).

Advanced photography with peanut butterBy Lesley Cornish | Photographs by Leslie Cornish and Errol Bleksley

Cape White-eyes - do they love peanut butter!


Green Twinspot

Cape Robin-Chat

Cape White-eyes

Next morning, we had coffee and rusks at 6.30 a.m., then moved down to the feeding stations. We went in two little bird hides (actually, they were camouflaged little tents for sitting up in, with many zipped windows), Lisa put out the food: seeds and peanut butter, and then it started!

First in were hordes of Cape White-eyes and boy, do they love peanut butter! There were also Forest Canaries going for the seeds, together with Swee Waxbills, a family of Red-backed Mannikins and African Firefinches. More reluctant were the Cape Robin-chats, Chorister Robin-chats and one Southern Boubou. There were also Southern Double-collared Sunbirds feeding on the aloes. Lisa had put water into the leaves of the aloes, so we had the pleasure of watching (and photographing) Cape White-eyes, Red-backed Mannikins, Forest Canaries and the Southern Double-collared Sunbirds bathing. My favourites were the Three-striped Mice who live in the rocks!

In the afternoon, we went to the Green Twinspot


Hide, a short walk away. It was well-named, and the grain put out attracted not only the Green Twinspots (both sexes at different times), but at least five Lemon Doves (what a silly name – how did they come up with that?), a Tambourine Dove (which kept getting chased off by a male Lemon Dove), Forest Canaries and a Natal Spurfowl. Later, back at the farm-house, we downloaded the photographs, discussed where we went wrong, and Albert demonstrated the processing of the images.

Sunday morning saw Errol and I at a different feeding station from everyone else, and we had the usual squadrons of Cape White-eyes, shy robin-chats and the mice! I discovered that mice like peanut butter too! An African Goshawk came in and caught a mouse from the other hide, which quietened things down for a bit. It was a short morning and we had our wonderful brunch earlier, then packed up and left. While we were pho-tographing, Marietjie trapped a Common Molerat which was digging up Lisa’s lawn, and we all had a look at it before it was released. As we were taking the last bags to the cars, we saw a small Night Adder crossing the lawn. But what a super experience! We saw some super birds (quality, not quantity!), learned so much, met super people, ate wonderful food and took some nice photographs. I never thought that Errol and I would have so much fun sitting on rickety chairs for hours in a tiny hide with our cameras on tripods! (However, it did feel good to ditch the tripod, put my camera back on its strap, sling it over my shoulder and walk into the bush a couple of weekends later…)

Swee Waxbill

Tambourine Dove

Three-striped Mice


This remarkable journey of a rehabilitated bird forms part of a collaborative study with Dr Patrik Byholm (Novia University of Applied Sciences, Finland). We hope to find out more about this elusive species, and why it appears to be more common (relatively speaking) in South Africa in recent decades.

On 17 December 2015, a European Honey Buzzard was found, near death (and weighing only about 750 g), in a garden in Bela-Bela. It was fortunate to have landed up in rehabilitation and, after immediate treatment for trichomoniasis, began to recover. On 13 January we attached a solar-charged satellite tracking backpack to her and, over the next few days, monitored her recovery in captivity. On 1 February 2016 she was released (weighing 885 g) near Bela-Bela. Over the next few weeks she moved around the area, often in close proximity to human settlements (e.g. Modimolle suburbs).

On 12 April she (named

Moscow Calling – A Rehab European Honey Buzzard heads northBy Prof. Craig Symes

Musikana just before being released

Musikana by this time) began her migration north and as she moved we “watched” in anticipation that she would arrive at her “breeding” ground. She crossed the Congo basin, veering east,


and on 5 May she crossed the Suez. By this time the first birds were already recorded in Finland.

Paivi, another satellite tracked bird that has spent the past three years in Reitz, was still over central Africa. She went east of the Black Sea, passed over Ba-tumi and then north into Russia. In c. 36 days she covered over 8,500 km, an av-erage of at least 235 km a day. On 18 May she was “on route” to Moscow, but then changed direction slightly to pass east of the city. With the birds arrival in the northern hemisphere we are now only getting updates every 5 days. Hopefully the bird will settle down at a breeding site.

Thanks to Dr. Brett Gardner & Nicci Wright for their help with this project. Path taken by Musikana

Path taken by Paivi in 2015 Path taken by Paivi in 2016


Bon Voyage Ginny Mes / 23 July 2016Message read at farewell arranged by Henly-on-Klip Satellite

I am unable to attend today’s farewell as I am currently overseas. I have therefore asked Koos, as vice-chairman, to convey the Wits Bird Club’s heartfelt thanks for all that Ginny has done, both as the past Chairperson of Birds of a Feather Satellite and as a Committee Member of the Wits Bird Club. Ginny championed the establishment of Birds of a Feather for which we are all, little more than ten years later, truly grateful for. Ginny took on the some-what onerous but all-important portfolio of Programme Planning and has truly excelled in this role, organising a mix of outings and weekends that appealed to so many members, including myself.

Ginny’s presence at these outings always ensured that everyone enjoyed themselves as she has the wonderful personal attribute of going out of her way to ensure that everyone is fully involved and enjoying their birdwatching. We will miss her abundant enthusiasm and really want to wish her well with her new adventures in Cape Town.

Bon Voyage Ginny, thank you again for all that you have done, please don’t forget us and let us know how you are faring in the fairest Cape!

Andy FeatherstoneWBC Chairman

Photos by Lance Robinson


Vergelegen partners in bird of prey rescue1 June 2016

Staff at Vergelegen, the 316-year-old wine estate in Somerset West, were involved in an unexpected rescue operation last month (May) when a concussed Jackal Buzzard was discovered in the pastures.

The large bird of prey, estimated to be five to seven years old, was spotted by Vergelegen staff. They im-mediately alerted the environmental project manager,

Jacques van Rensburg. Hank Chalmers, a director of Eagle Encounters (a wildlife rehabilitation and education organisation in Stellenbosch) then collected the Jackal Buzzard for treatment.

“The bird was slightly thin, but nothing was broken,”

said Chalmers. “We fed it, checked it could fly, and released it after about two weeks in the vicinity of the farm. It’s probably sitting in a tree there now.”

The buzzard is just one of numerous feathered friends of the world-re-nowned estate, which has won awards not only for its superb wines, but also its pioneering conserva-tion projects.

Vergelegen was the first local wine farm to receive championship status in the Biodiversity and Wine Initiative, in recognition of its commitment to con-serving Cape’s biodiversi-ty for future generations. It is also the site of probably the largest private con-servation project in South Africa. Some 2000 hec-tares of land, previously covered in dense alien vegetation, have been restored to their natural habitat.

As alien vegetation uses up to 60% more water than fynbos, its clearing has boosted water flow. The farm’s environmental

Vergelegen environmental project manager Jacques van Rens-burg with an injured jackal buzzard, rescued on the estate and then rehabilitated and released by Eagle Encounters. (Pic credit: Maritza van Rensburg.)


treasures now include 80 hectares of rehabilitated wetlands, a popular habitat for numerous bird species such as ducks and herons.

Van Rensburg says the estate has re-corded 145 bird species in total, with new discoveries still being added. Bird lovers have also noted more regular sightings of fynbos-loving species such as Cape Sugarbirds and Orange-breasted Sunbirds.

A team of volunteers has been conduct-ing a monthly count of the birds since 2000, when the estate’s former conser-vationist, Gerald Wright, introduced bird ringer Gordon Scholtz to the beautiful property.

Scholtz’s widow Marilyn continues to coordinate recording activities on the farm. “We use an App to identify the GPS point where we see a bird, so we can record where they are spotted,” she said. “Vergelegen has diverse habitats so it is a very rewarding place for us to visit - we see a wide variety of birds.”

The volunteers’ meticulous records shed light on the seasonal movement of birds in and out of the 3200 hectare estate. The total monthly counts vary from around 45 species in winter, up to 65 species during spring. The Grey-backed Cisticola, for example, has only been recorded on the estate in winter, says Marilyn Scholtz.

Vagrant species (seldom seen, or unu-sual in the area) include Secretary Birds, Lesser Honeyguides and Burchell’s Coucals.

The records also reveal the arrival and departure of migratory birds such as the Yellow-billed Kite, Steppe (Common) Buzzard, African Paradise Flycatcher and cuckoos. Certain intra-African migrants such as the Black Saw-wing, winter in the area too.

The counting team has also noted an increase in populations of certain species such as the Swee Waxbill and African Olive Pigeon. The latter fly in large flocks

Run-off areas and surrounding wetlands are home to many Weavers, Waxbills, Warblers and Bishop birds. (Supplied Marilyn Scholtz)


over the farm, but are not readily viewed elsewhere in the Helderberg, said Scholtz.

Van Rensburg said the bird data, which spans 16 years, could provide interesting scientific research material. He noted that several pioneering scientific studies have already taken place on the farm, covering subjects as diverse as bontebok social interaction and water quality.

Vergelegen MD Don Tooth said the estate works closely with conservation bodies and universities. Local and international scientific research is coordinated under Vergelegen’s Centre of Learning Excellence.

“Our achievements have been a team effort and we are happy to share our conservation research and learnings with other interested parties that could benefit.”

For more information:

www.vergelegen.co.za

Vergelegen environ-mental project manager Jacques van Rensburg, [email protected].

Issued by: Meropa Communications

On behalf of: Vergelegen Estate (www.vergelegen.co.za)

Contact: Judy Bryant 021-6836464 x 207 083 2867168 [email protected]

Rehabilitated areas where fynbos is blooming provide food sources for Sunbird species, Neddicky, African Stonechat and various Flycatchers and Shrikes. (Supplied Marilyn Scholtz)

(L to R) Francis Hannay and John Clements, members of the bird species counting team at Vergelegen. (Supplied Marilyn Scholtz)


The Short-toed Rock Thrush has a wide distribution in southern Africa from the north-western Namibia, through the Northern Cape to the Northern Province (Harrison, et al. 1997). Two subspecies have been described, M. b. brevipes, from Namibia and northern Cape and M. b. pretoriae from Botswana and Transvaal. The pretoriae subspecies is particularly interesting as it was originally collected and classified as a new species by Gunning and Roberts in 1911. C.M.N. White confirmed this in 1967 but then P.A. Clancy refuted it in 1968. Subsequent to that, several authors have noted that they felt it should be split (e.g. Farkas in 1979). Recently, Terblanche (1996) reviewed the literature but did not come to any conclusions on the species validity. He believes, however, that there has been confusion

in identity in the past and that there were definite seasonal movements (most records were in winter) in the Pretoria area. The new atlas seems to substantiate these ideas. Monroe and Sibley’s Distribution and Taxonomy of Birds of the World (1990) classify the pretoriae subspecies as a valid species and call it the Transvaal Rock Thrush (Monticola pretoriae). Harrison (1997) further speculated that the atlas data suggested that the integration of the two subspecies was not in Griqualand West as Clancey stated but further west. The Short-toed Rock Thrush shows definite seasonal altitudinal movements and disperses widely when at lower altitudes during winter. Our current lack of

Notes on a nesting pair of Short-toed Rock Thrushes (Monticola brevipes) in Kloofendal Nature Reserve, RoodepoortJacobus van Dÿk & Anthony J. van Zyl

Short-toed Rock Thrush (Monticola b. pretoriae) - photo: Warwick Tarboton


knowledge of the Short-toed Rock Thrush raises many questions concerning its taxonomy, distribution and movements. However, even basic natural history information on this bird is lacking (Urban ET al. 1997, Maclean, 1993). Few breeding records have been published and Tarboton et al. (1987) reported two breeding records for the old Transvaal region, a nest of eggs in Pretoria in 1904 and recently fledged chicks near the Union Buildings in Pretoria on 30 October 1960. This article provides additional information on the breeding biology of the Short-toed Rock Thrush in the Kloofendal Nature Reserve, Roodepoort.

Jacobus van Dÿk (JvD) first discovered a pair of Short-toed Rock Thrush in November 1997 in the Kloofendal Nature Reserve. This pair remained in the rocky areas of the reserve for the next three months but then disappeared for the autumn and winter period. They reappeared during the summer of 1998 to haunt the same area. During a Witwatersrand Bird Club outing led by JvD on 6 December 1998, the male was seen singing from a vantage point on a rocky slope in the southern section of the reserve. After watching the male for about 15 minutes, the female was seen disappearing into a rock crevice. It was suspected that there was possibly a nest there.

On 17 December 1998, JvD visited the spot again and found the nest under a steeply angled overhanging rock. The nest was a neatly constructed grass cup with the inside diameter of the cup 73 mm wide and 52 mm deep (nest measured on 24 December 1998). While the nest was on the ground, some long

tufts of grass obscured it. The nest contained three downy chicks, which were estimated to be approximately one week old. The chicks were covered by a purple-coloured down.

On 20 December 1998, observations were done between 10h30 and 13h00 at the nest site to record the breeding behaviour of the birds; the food brought to the nestlings and feeding frequency. Observations were made from an unobtrusive vantage point 20m from the nest using a 20X Kowa telescope. Feeding was shared between the two sexes with the male feeding on average once every 13 minutes and the female once every 12 minutes. The longest interval between feeds was 23 minutes and the combined effort of male and female provisioning resulted in feeds on average every 6 minutes. Behaviour of the sexes differed when approaching the nest site. The female normally took a few minutes to enter the nest with food and perched in the vicinity with the food. The male, however, normally landed at the nest and entered it straight away. The female also tended to bring multiple items per load to the nest. Of the 19 prey items observed, one was unidentified and the rest were identified as 12 worms or caterpillars, 1 moth, 3 possible wasps, one grasshopper and one small lizard or gecko. In one case, the female caught a black caterpillar near the nest and then killed it by bashing it in her beak against a rock.

A faecal sac was removed from the nest on five occasions after feeding the chicks. Nest sanitation was performed by both sexes and the parents tended


to dump the sacs in the same area approximately 15 – 20 meters from the nest. Nest sanitation is important in nidicolous birds with vulnerable nests such as the Short-toed Rock-Thrush because any strong smell or visible faeces could attract predators. Thus, it is not surprising that faecal sacs were removed on a regular basis from the nest.

Kloofendal Nature Reserve does have predators and at 10h43 the female joined the male at the top of the rocky outcrop calling excitedly. A Yellow Mongoose (Cynictis penicillata) was then observed approaching the nest site from the west. It sniffed around in the area of the nest but did not find it. On several occasions, the parents arrived at the nest within the same minute although more observations are needed to confirm this. However, it may be a strategy that the parents use to reduce nest detection as it effectively reduces the number of individual times that the nest is visited.

The nest was checked on

Nest found under a steeply angled overhanging rock.

Nest was a neatly constructed grass cup

Female seen disappearing into a rock crevice.


20 December 1998 and the chicks were markedly larger and were a dark navy blue-black with orange blotching. However, the nest was empty on 22 December 1998 and the adults were not seen in the vicinity of the nest on that day or on a subsequent visit on 24 December 1998. It is possible that a Yellow Mongoose found the nest and it once again raises the question if human observations of nests possibly aid predators in detecting nests as has been found for pheasants in England (reference).

References:Farkas, T. 1979. A further note on the status of Monticola pretoriae Gunning & Roberts, 1911. Bull. BOC 99:20-21.

Clancey, P.A. 1968. The status of Monticola pretoriae Gunning and Roberts, 1911. Bull. BOC 88:126-127.

Harrison, J.A. 1997. Shorttoed Rock Thrush Monticola brevipes. In: The atlas of southern African birds. Vol 2: Passerines. Harrison, J.A., Allan, D.G., Underhill, L.G., Herremans, M., Tree, A.J., Parker, V. & Brown, C.J. (eds), pp. 165-167. Birdlife South Africa, Johannesburg.

Maclean, G.L. 1993. Robert’s Birds of Southern Africa. 6th Edition. Trustees of the John Voelcker Bird Book Fund, Cape Town.

Tarboton, W.R., Kemp, M.I. & Kemp, A.C. 1987. Birds of the Transvaal. Transvaal Museum, Pretoria.

Terblanche, S. 1996. Korttoonkliplysters (Monticola brevipes). Laniarius 63:11-13.

Urban, E.K., Fry, C.H. & Keith, S. 1997. The Birds of Africa. Vol. 5. Academic Press, San Diego.

White, C.M.N. 1967. Taxonomic notes on African Turdidae. Bull. BOC 87:150-152.

Nest was found empty on 22 December

Welcome New MembersShelagh Jenkinson - Jukskei Park

Ainsley Hay - Bryanston

Attie Lombard - Glenvista

Joan Maddern - Jukskei Park

Sue Temple - Fourways East

Larry Thompson - Bedfordview

Thank You forYour DonationLesley Cornish

Barbi Forsyth

Sue Goodman

Megan Kew

Jake Mulvaney

Lesley Rae

Koos van Dÿk

Jan van Heerden


Short-toed Rock Thrush (Monticola brevipes)Field Notes (by J D van Dÿk).

Nest located (during a Witwatersrand Bird Club outing) on 05 December 1998 in the Kloofendal Nature Reserve in Roodepoort, Gauteng. (Nest coordinate S26.13668° & E27.87682° at an altitude of 1 748m).

First nest visit on 17 December 1998.

The nest is a neatly constructed grass cup with a top inside diameter of 7,3cm x 5,2cm deep, located under a steeply angled overhanging rock. The front of the nest is protected / hidden by some long grass tufts. The nest is located on the ground on a north-facing ridge approximately 100m from the southern border of the reserve. Inside the nest I found three downy chicks ± one week old. My first impression was that they were covered with a “purple haze”, which was in fact their down covering which looked like it filled the nest.

Note:- Nest dimensions were only taken on 24 December 1998.

Second nest visit was on 20 December 1998. Two and a half hours observation was done from 10:30 to 13:00. (See attached observation notes).

The chicks were markedly bigger and they now appeared a very dark navy blue / black with orange blotching all over.

Third nest visit on 22 December (17:00) to photograph nest and chicks.

Empty nest found on arrival (chicks possibly taken by Mongoose). No sign of adult birds in vicinity of nest.

Fourth nest visit on 24 December (14:00) to measure nest.

No sign of adult birds in vicinity of nest.

General Notes.1. Both male and female feeds chicks.2. Female does not go to nest straight away when feeding chicks. Will first land

in the vicinity of the nest, wait ± 5 minutes, then go to the nest to feed.3. Male lands straight at nest and hops in to feed.4. Prey is killed by vigorously hitting on rock.5. Female regularly brings in more than one food item.6. Birds regularly goes in together to feed chicks.7. Both male and female keeps nest clean i.e. removes fecal sacks.8. Fecal sacks are always removed to the same area. (Saw male putting it down

on a rock).

Other mammals / reptiles observed near nest.

Yellow Mongoose (Cynictis penicillata).Spiny Agama (Agama aculeata distanti).Gecko.


Time of Day

Male (M) / Female (F)

Time Between Feeds (M)

Time Between Feeds for Individual (M)

Food Item Behavioural Notes

10:38 F - - Black worm / caterpillar

Sits on rocky outcrop nearby before perching at nest and going in.

10:43 F 5 5 Yellow worm ± 20mm L

Sits nearby on rocky outcrop. Suddenly flies away from nest site and joins male on the koppie behind me where they started calling excitedly. At first I thought that they were not happy with my presence, but then I saw what was bothering them. A Yellow Mongoose (Cynictis penicillata) was approaching the nest area from the west. It spent a few minutes in the nest area, sniffing around, before it was on it’s way again. (If it could locate the nest, it would most certainly have eaten the chicks since it forms part of it’s diet).

11:06 M 23 - Black worm / caterpillar

Male not shy to perch at nest straight away. Perches outside nest for a short while before hopping in to feed.

11:07 F 1 24 Yellow worm

11:08 M 1 2 Small white moth

11:17 F 9 10 Grey worm

Sits around for ± 5 minutes before going in at 11:17.

11:21 M 4 13 Did not see

Brings out fecal sack and discards in a north-western direction.

11:40 F 19 23 Wasp ? (Thin long body / wings).

11:42 M 2 21 Very thick green worm

Worm so thick, cannot see how a chick is going to swallow that!

Observation Notes / Chick Feeding Behaviour ( 20 December 1998).Observations were made from an unobtrusive vantage point between some rocks across a small valley, some 20m from the nest, using a telescope with 20X magnification.

Continued next page


11:50 F 8 10 Wasp ? Arrives with wasp. Hops down near nest and adds a worm to her beak i.e. more than one food item at the same time in the bill. ( Bill looks like a Christmas tree ☺). Brings out fecal sack when leaving nest.

11:50 M 0 8 Thin green worm

Enters nest while female is still inside.

11:57 F 7 7 Grey/black barred worm

Catches black caterpillar below nest when she came out. Flies to nearby rocks and kills prey by hitting vigorously on rock.

11:58 F 1 1 Black caterpillar

11:59 M 1 9 Small lizard / gecko

Removes fecal sack from nest. (Fecal sack is a white slimy blob with the black excretion contained inside in the form of a worm). ± 10 - 12mm diameter.


Removes another fecal sack.


Brings out fecal sack and discards in a north-western direction.

11:40 F 19 23 Wasp ? (Thin long body / wings).

11:42 M 2 21 Very thick green worm

Worm so thick, cannot see how a chick is going to swallow thatz!

****

12:34 F - - White caterpillar plus another food item

Arrives with one food item and adds an-other before entering.

12:35 M 1 - White worm

12:43 M 8 8 Small brown grasshop-per

When he leaves the nest, he catches a real big insect of some kind near the nest and flies off, probably to feed itself.

12:48 F 5 14 Wasp ? Removes fecal sack when leaving nest. As she leaves the nest with the sack, she makes a chuk - chuk - chuk - chuk call as she flies off to dump the load.

**** During this period I left the nest observation point to try and determine where the birds discard the fecal sacks.


Otters’ Haunt is a rustic country retreat with a good variety of birds on the island trails and bushveld walk. More than 60 species have been seen over a weekend. We have maintained a peaceful and secluded ambience in spite of the tourism developments that have gone on in Parys and surroundings.

There’s plenty to do at Otters’ Haunt! We are the adven-ture centre of the area. In addition to birdwatching, there are walks & hikes, mountain biking, kayaking and even rafting. We are Lonely Planet’s “Pick” of the Northern Free State. Out of hundreds of lodges, hotels and guest houses in this area, we came out tops for adventure and hospitality.

For more information contact Graeme & Karen Addison

082 475 8767 / 056 8181814 or 0842452490 [email protected]

Grace Country Retreat is situated in the quaint farming community village of Memel, nestled at the foothills of the Maluti Mountains in the North Eastern Free State.

The Retreat consists of 8 fully furnished, self-catering units. On site is a Coffee / Gift Shop providing breakfasts and light meals, as well as a library and various arts and

crafting opportunities.

Double Room R280.00 per person per night

sharing. Single Room R370.00 per night.

Contact Henry & Estelle Watermeyer

0832783666 / 08394168

[email protected]

www.Web26848.wix.com/gracecr


A Winter visit to the PilanesbergText and Photos by Anthony Cavanagh

The Pilanesberg National Park is proba-bly the closest reserve to Gauteng that supports the big five and consequently the park has plenty of visitors, both local and from overseas, hoping to see Africa’s finest. Winter is a great time for observing game animals as in the cooler weather they are generally more easily seen. Bird life too, is quite abun-dant during the winter months, as the en-demic species as well as many other resi-dent species remain throughout the year.

Sue and I spent a mid-week break recently at our timeshare at Bakubung lodge in the Pilanesberg and were very pleasantly surprised by the number of rhino that we saw in the reserve. At the timeshare owners meeting the head ranger advised that measures to prevent poaching have been quite successful and consequently only four rhino have been poached in the Pilanesberg this year. Elephant too are plentiful in the reserve and every day we had a visit from a large bull elephant that strolled up into the hippo pool area in front of the chalets.

Interesting raptor sightings included a pair of Gabar Goshawk, one of which had the melanistic black plumage, very close to the bridge over the stream a kilometre from the Pilanesberg Centre,

a Pale Chanting Goshawk not far from the Kwa Maritane complex and a Jackal Buzzard. The lack of good rains showed in the low level of the dams. nevertheless, African Fish Eagles, Spurwing Goose,

African Spoonbill, cormorants and African Darters were all seen in good numbers. Some uncommon sightings included a White Stork that had not flown north for the winter, a lone Marabou Stork and three quail that scuttled quickly across the road in front of us.

The Pilanesberg park is quite unique in that it lies across several dif-

ferent biomes and thus is able to support fauna from both the drier western and wetter eastern parts of the country. It is not uncommon therefore to see spring-bok that prefer a dry climate, grazing near impala that prefer a wetter climate. There are also large areas of open grassland where one can often see such bird species as Secretarybird, Capped Wheatear, Anteating Chat and numerous larks and pipits. The higher ground above 1200 meters is a good area to look for Temminck’s Courser and rock thrushes while the woodland areas support a vast array of bushveld species.

The undulating terrain is not ideal for cheetah, as they prefer wide-open plains where they can use their speed


seen recently at Makorwane dam but as usual we drew a blank trying to spot them. We did however have a great deal of luck in having a magnificent leopard appear in front of us about two kilom-eters from Malatse dam in the eastern section of park. At the time there was no other vehicle in sight and the leopard strolled nonchalantly towards us along the road and conveniently stopped at our car for a few seconds. It was so close I could have touched it but cautiously we kept the car windows up while taking as many photos as possible. Then quite unconcerned with our presence the leopard continued on its way down the road and into the surrounding bush with still no other car in sight to share in this remarkable sighting of one of Africa’s most fearsome and elusive predators.

to catch their prey. Consequently there are only six cheetahs in the Pilanesberg and sightings are few and far between. Last winter however we saw a female and three cubs in the flat area around Mankwe lake and I managed to take a few photos. The head ranger told us that the cubs are now fending for themselves and that mother has sauntered off to the remote northern areas for a well de-served bit of R and R.

Although the park has the big five of lion, leopard, buffalo, elephant and rhino the buffalo in particular are very difficult to spot. The reason for this is that the buffa-lo prefer grazing areas in the northwest of the park where there are no roads accessible to tourists. Buffalo have been

Impala female

Sue with our daily visitor

African Darter

A magnificent leopard appeared in front of us


It was one of my wishes for many years to go to Mount Elgon, partly for the forest and the highland, and partly to visit Kitum Cave, which is visited by elephants and buffaloes to obtain minerals. So after a workshop in Nairobi, I was collected by Jeff Mwok (who guided the WBC trip to Kenya in June 2007, in celebra-tion of 60 years of the WBC), at 4.30 am for a long drive, made longer by the traffic and the birding stops… Specials en route included Jack-son’s Golden-backed Weaver, White-bellied Go-away Bird, Superb Starling, Grey-backed Shrike, Speke’s Weaver, Dusky Turtle-dove and Pied Crows (hah! Snuck that one in…). We stopped at a wonderful view over the Rift Valley, and picked up Great Sparrow-hawk, Lanner Falcons hunting chickens (but they were scared off), Augur Buz-zards aplenty, some White-bellied Tits and a pair of vociferous Hunter’s Cisti-cola. We also saw our first White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher.

Despite the long drive, we did have time to go birding at Mount Elgon that day. As we drove towards the mountain, we could see that most of it was deforested, and the park was only a small part of the previous forest. We stayed in self-catering accommodation within the park, so we were ready to go birding. We did

not have to go far before seeing Zebra, Olive Baboons (keeping their posteriors warm by sitting on the building of the donkey boiler) and Defassa Waterbuck (the forest equivalent of the Common Waterbuck), as well as Black-and-White

Casqued Hornbills, Pale Flycatcher and Narina Trogon next to the house. On a short drive up the mountain, we soon found African Buffalo, Bushbuck, Weyns’s Duiker (a lifer!) and Side-striped Jackal (which are usually found in more moist environments than the Black-backed Jackal) and (of course) Black-and-white Colobus.

Inevitably, there were some birds too: Grey-headed Nigrita, Masked Apalis, White-headed Woodhoopoes, Brown Woodland Warbler, Yellow-whiskered Greenbuls (my favourite, because they are easy to distinguish), Chubb’s Cisticola, Slender-billed Bulbul and Abbot’s Starling. Once we were actually in the park, it was easy to forget that this was just a small proportion of the original forest, and it looked really pristine. I missed seeing a Giant River Hog which was in the ditch, but it faded into the forest before I could find it, and I had to make do with a Scrub Hare instead.

The next day was our assault on the summit, well not really, but we planned

Mount Elgon: Part One: Highlands and CavesBy Lesley Cornish

Brown Woodland Warbler


Doherty’s Bush-shrike

Black-fronted Duiker

Mountain Greenbul

to drive as far as we could, since a track goes nearly to the top, and the rest is a combination of staunch hiking and rock-climbing! We started off in the forest, seeing Red-capped Robin-chat, Baglafecht Weaver, Thick-billed Seedeater, Montane Oriole, Crowned Eagle, Tambourine Dove, Stuhlman’s Starling, Purple-throated Cuckoo-shrike, Hartlaub’s Tauraco, Peregrine Falcon, Cinnamon-breasted Bee-eater, Golden-winged Sunbird, Grey-throated Barbet and Black-throated Apalis. Many of these were seen in a gorgeous campsite, which was pretty sloped, so better for birding than pitching a tent! Higher up, but still in the forest, we had saw African Hill Babbler, Doherty’s Bush-shrike, Black-billed Weaver, Black-headed Waxbills, Chubb’s Cisticola and Brown-capped Weaver. The forest changed as we went higher, and at one stage, all the trees were Olives. Higher up, there was bamboo, and then bamboo with some more trees. Here there were different birds again: Cabanis Greenbul, Oriole Finch, Yellow-billed Barbet, Mountain


Spot-flanked Barbet

African Penduline-tit

Black-throated Wattle-eye

Yellow Warbler, Grey Apalis and Mountain Greenbul. Next, we were into a much more open area, with heathers, rosewoods and here we saw Stonechat, Forest Buzzard, Olive Pigeon, Alpine Chat and Jackson’s Francolin. We also saw a Black-fronted Duiker, and I missed a Grey Duiker. On the way back, but still fairly high, we saw Red-fronted Parrots, a Eurasian Hobby, Abyssinian Crimsonwing and lastly, an African Wood-owl. We heard elephants, but they were too far away for us to go after.

Our last morning at Mount Elgon was Kitum Cave. It had to be booked, because no-one is allowed to leave the vehicles without game guards. We had two, which was useful, because when we came across a suspected poacher (he did not have a permit), he was driven back to the headquarters with one game guard, and I could carry on birding on foot with the other. Kitum Cave is wonderful, and we walked around inside it, spending more time there than planned. Part of the way around, the batteries in my torch nearly died, and I had already lent my other torch to Jeff, so I was now stumbling and cursing (and cursing even more when I slipped between rocks), but I dumped my camera on Jeff, so it did not feel so bad! We saw the holes where the elephants used their tusks to dig out the rock, and also there was fresh elephant and buffalo dung. There were also many bats! We were half-way in when the game guards told us about a rock-fall which had trapped an elephant… I was quite glad to get out of there! Just near our cottage we saw an immature Ayres Hawk-Eagle, which made us scratch our heads to identify it!


Report-back by Lance Robinson

Klipriversberg Verreaux’s Eagles - The story of “Witsie”

This year’s eaglet from Meyers Farm was given the name: “Witsie”. So named due to the as-sociation of the project with the Wits bird club and due to the number of observers and ringers from our ranks.

Bo van der Lecq, project coordinator, advised the eagle monitors in April that the second egg is expected to be laid four days after the first. The first egg was laid on Tuesday 12 April. With a 44-day incubation period one could, therefore, expect the hatching of the first egg on 22 May, with the second hatching on 25 May. Cainism (sibling aggression) occurs in Verreaux’s Ea-gles and may last up to 3 days, usually the first hatched is the sole survivor. The first egg was considered to have hatched on 24 May.

The banding /ringing of “Witsie” occurred at the artificial nesting platform (ANP) on the 7th July. Thanks must be extended primarily to Wits ringers, Brett Gardner and Craig Nattrass, who performed the somewhat onerous task of climb-ing the nesting platform and removing the bird for the banding, under the watchful eagle-eyes of the parents. They also took a blood and feather sample for sexing purposes. It was then later genetically determined that “Witsie” was a young male. A bright orange colour-coded ring, G23265, was fitted to “Witsie’s” right tarsi.

“Witsie” fledged, somewhat prematurely, in the early afternoon on 17 August, having spent 86 days on the nest. Males, being the smaller, may fledge in the region of 90-95 days whilst fe-males may fledge by about 95-100 days. On the 26th of August, now 96 days old, he was seen by Odette Campbell from the Meyersdal Eco Estate, in a tree near the nesting platform.

Banding “Witsie” - Photo Brian Reynolds

Retrieving “Witsie” - Photo by Hanneline Smit-Robinson

“Witsie” at 96 days old - Photo by Odette Campbell


VulPro, Eskom and the Endangered Wildlife Trust (EWT) save our vultures!VulPro Press Release 19th July 2016

South Africa’s vultures face the very real threat of extinction, from numerous threats mostly occurring from direct and indirect poisonings, new developments, poaching and human encroachment on their breeding and foraging ranges. One of the most prolific threats vultures face are power lines resulting in electrocutions and collisions. At best electrocutions result in burns and not immediate death, collisions result in wing fractures – if the injured vulture is not rescued and rehabilitated this ultimately leads to starvation and death. The best case scenario for the vultures who are rescued is wing rehab/therapy followed by living a life in captivity if not releasable, helping to save their species by being incorporated into programmes such as VulPro’s educational, research and captive breeding programmes for population supplementation and reintroduction purposes.

Founder and CEO of VulPro, Kerri Wolter has always had a dream of mitigating the power lines surrounding the Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve situated in the Cradle of Humankind on the West Rand of Gauteng. The first incident on this line was recorded as far back as 1996 and it has taken the dedicated teamwork of all parties to bring the dream of mitigation to fruition.

On the 15th of July 2016, Kerri’s dream came through. This initiative led by VulPro in collaboration with the EWT (Endangered Wildlife Trust) and Eskom, has seen bird spirals fitted to the power lines running through and next to the R&L Nature Reserve.

Kerri says, “One of my personal goals when I started VulPro was to have the power lines running through the Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve marked with spirals. Today through ongoing collabo-ration with Eskom and the EWT my goal is being achieved and the lines are finally being marked. This is a major milestone for all organisations involved trying to save our vultures. Thank you Eskom, I am so incredibly grateful. My persistence and nagging has finally paid off. Thanks to EWT for helping to drive this mitiga-tion.”

The thin earthing wire that are found above the power lines is invisible to birds, resulting in power line collisions being common and frequently resulting in death. Large birds of prey such as vul-tures have a wingspan wide enough to touch both terminals, resulting in electro-cution and horrific burns and / or death.

This mitigation is an incredibly exciting and positive step forward, towards saving vultures found foraging throughout South Africa. We not only saving South


Africa’s vultures but vultures from the entire southern African continent be-cause the Cape Vulture and other vulture species are known to range and forage throughout South Africa and as far as Angola, Botswana, Lesotho, Mozam-bique, Namibia, Swaziland, Zambia and Zimbabwe.

The Rhino and Lion Nature Reserve is a natural high traffic area for vultures with their active vulture restaurant supplying safe food for vultures for over 29 years now. It is important to note that vulture restaurants should not be placed in close proximity to power lines as this

increases the risk of the bird colliding and being electrocuted on lines and structures. If a new vulture restaurant is planned it would be wise to contact any of the collaborators, VulPro, Eskom or EWT, to conduct a risk assessment of the proposed area and receive ongoing support and information for the effective and healthy management of vulture res-taurants. VulPro is available to assist with the correct management of any feeding site given numerous important factors to take into consideration. Mitigation of these lines means increased safety for our vultures, reduced deaths, reduced need for rescue and costly rehabilitation and more stable breeding colonies – as colonies that become too small due to loss of vulture numbers will disband and become extinct as breeding sites. Whilst the mitigation of this line is exciting and hugely positive step in the right direction for our vultures, VulPro believes strongly in ongoing monitoring and assessment of the mitigated structures and power lines to ensure that mitigation is in fact effective and therefore justifiable and cost effective.

This is one giant step forward for vultures and other birds of prey and proof that collaborations in conservation are the way forward to save our wildlife.

For more information contact Ms Kerri Wolter at VulPro on email [email protected] or cellular – 082 808 5113, www.vulpro.com

Mr Constant Hoogstad at the Endangered Wildlife Trust on email [email protected] or cellular – 082 334 4176 or website: www.ewt.org.za

Mr Kishaylin Chetty at Eskom on email [email protected] or cellular -082 516 1046 or website: www.eskom.co.za

Power lines marked with spirals

Attaching spiral to power cable from helicopter


Long lived Cape Robin-chat (Cossypha caf fra)Dane Paijmans, SAFRING - [email protected]

An interesting record was identified when going over Gauteng’s retrap and recov-ery records for the first half of 2016. This record involved the Cape Robin-chat (seen in the photo) wearing the SAFRI-NG metal ring F68667 below a red leg ring. This individual was controlled by Mr Geoff Lockwood on the 14 June 2016 at Delta Park, Randburg. What makes her a special record is her age at retrap, as she was an impressive 16 years old. She was initially ringed in the same location on the 27 May 2000. Since being ringed she has been re-trapped on three other occasions; in 2000, 2010 and 2015. In all cases she was recorded at the same site by ringer Geoff Lockwood. Geoff fondly recounted these sightings in a facebook post from 14 June 2016;

“F68667 Red/Metal is getting old. On 27 May 2000, an adult female Cape Robin-Chat flew into the Del-ta Environmental Centre building and, before releasing her, I fitted ring number F68667 to her right tarsus. 21 days later (on my birthday) she was caught again in the building and I de-cided to add a red plastic colour ring. Since then she has been a feature around the Centre and I have sighted her numerous times. I also retrapped her on 30 June 2010 (Football World Cup) and again 12 October 2015. This season she is sporting a white outer rectrix (? going grey) - just visible in the photograph taken in the car park earlier today - over 16 years after she was first ringed . We have come a long way together!”

This record is certainly an impressive one, but falls short of being this spe-cies longevity record by only 185 days. Our current longevity record belongs to an individual (ring number: BB09460) initially ringed on 30 January 1978, at the Rondevlei Bird Sanctuary. This individual was ringed as an adult (similar to Geoffs bird) and only seen again on 20 August 1994 by Peggy Gobey, when it was hit by a car. Earning its longevity title it survived the ordeal and was released again on the 21st. After this release it was never seen again and no further sightings are likely. Geoffs’ record however appears to be very easily seen/ retrapped, and through email correspondence I have heard of yet another more recent sighting. If re-corded after the December 16th this year we will have our new Cape Robin-chat longevity record.

Of our 21549 national Cape Robin-chat records (17411 initial, 3960 retraps, 178 recoveries) 5754 come from Gauteng, and 567 records from Melville Koppies Nature Reserve (the top ringing site for Cape Robin-chat in South Africa). The top provincial ringer for this species is Kobie Raijmakers (Ringer 162) with a total of 428 Gauteng ringed (627 national) Cape Robin-chat records (297 initial and 131 retrap records). Following close behind is Shonie Raijmakers (ringer 140) with 393 Gauteng records (543 national) and Karin Dixon (ringer 1278) with 295 Gauteng records (543 national). The top Cape Robin-chat ringer in the country is Mr Jo Johnson with 916 records (657 initial, 256


Cape Robin-Chat - Photo by Geoff Lockwood

retraps and 3 recoveries).

We at SAFRING really appreciate all the effort of ringers and the general public (the latter in report-ing recoveries), and would like to thank everyone that has taken part in ringing and resighting in South-ern Africa. If you feel you know of an older record or have any unreported resightings/recoveries please contact us at SAF-RING with the details.

Oldest Southern Masked WeaverBy H. Dieter Oschadleus

In checking longevities of weavers in the SAFRING database, I realised that the details for the oldest Southern Masked Weaver have not been published yet.

On 9 August 1987, Mr ARF Williamson from Strubens Valley was ringing at Kloofendal Nature Reserve, Roodepoort, where he caught 30 birds. He ringed a Cape Grassbird, 4 Cape Weavers, 18 Southern Masked Weavers and 5 Southern Red Bishops. There were also two recaptures, a Cape Robin-chat and a Black-chested Prinia, both ringed at the same site 3 years previously. None of these birds were recaptured later, but two were found dead by the general public. Southern Masked Weaver BB75798 was found dead at the same site 1.5 years later.

But more interesting is Southern Masked Weaver with ring BB75791, an adult with mass 32g. This bird was found dead by Ken Stewart on 18 December 2002 at Wilropark, Roodepoort, 3 km from the ringing site. The cause of death was unknown, and the bird was freshly dead. Ken noted that it looked like a male. The elapsed time was 15 years 4 months 15 days, the greatest longevity for this species.

At least 11 Southern African weavers have longevity records over 10 years old in the wild (see http://weavers.adu.org.za/wow_age.php). Only three weaver species have longevity records of over 15 years in the wild: Seychelles Fody, Southern Masked Weaver, and Sociable Weaver.


African Goshawk (Accipter tachiro) makes a reappearance in JohannesburgText & photos by Lance Robinson

On Tuesday 17 May 2016 at 08h15, I heard a familiar call in unfamiliar surroundings. I immediately looked up and noticed a raptor soaring above our complex in Fairland, Johannesburg. The bird was circling in flight and uttering an unmistakable “whit…whit…whit”. A tad late for work, I dashed back into the house and I managed to get a few distant camera shots before the bird moved off. The photos weren’t that clear and, considering their known distri-bution, this record seemed somewhat incredulous. I was rather relieved when Trevor Hardaker issued a birding alert on Monday, 30 May, that Richard Montina-ro had photographed an African Goshawk in Delta Park, less than 10 kilometres away. I had no further sightings in our area until I heard the unmistakable call of an African Goshawk, again over our house in Fairland, and managed to record that through my cell phone on Friday, 5 August, at 08h20.

These sightings made me look into previous records for the region and specifically greater Johannesburg. I turned to the ‘Birds of the Transvaal’ by Warwick Tarboton and Alan Kemp where there are historical records for African Goshawk from the

Witwatersrand and Pretoria area. These records were all from previous reports in WBC newsletters (and a reminder how our newsletter observations are very useful). I was curious and wrote to the Niven library in Cape Town for copies of the WBC newsletter articles referenced.

Graham Patten recorded an African Goshawk at Power Park in the late afternoon of 16 October 1965 (a bird he reported killed and consumed a female (Common) Fiscal Shrike). Some time elapsed before Clive Hopcroft recorded an African Goshawk and an African Hawk Eagle in combat which he encountered at the Modderfontein Dynamite Factory on 27 February

1974. A later record of ‘good views’ from an unknown observer came from Lovers Rock, in the Magaliesberg, on 16 May 1976. Compared to my record, that was an uncanny thirty years and one day later! I was unable to trace reports in more recent years, although Marais and Peacock (2008) do allude to records from the Pretoria region.

Then in conversation with Gail Schaum who lives in Berario, an adjoining

African Goshawk - photo by Lance Robinson


for a while. So maybe the species is slowly colonising the province. It is very exciting! I think there are other surprises in store for us.”

I would welcome any reports from readers of any historical records, or of any new sightings in-and-around Johannesburg, or in Gauteng too.

References

Marais, E. and Peacock, F. 2008. The Chamberlain Guide to Birding Gauteng: Mirafra Publishing.

Tarboton, W.R., Kemp, M.I. & Kemp, A.C. 1987b. Birds of the Transvaal. Transvaal Museum, Pretoria.

Witwatersrand Bird Club Newsletters 85:17; 94:2 & 104:2.

suburb to Fairland, Gail mentioned that an African Goshawk landed in her garden ‘one day in June 2015’. This must have been the first, albeit unofficial, report in the well-wooded suburbs of Johannesburg in over three decades!

On submission of my Regional rarity Form, André Marx who is the regional atlas coordinator and collates the rarities report for the region wrote to me as follows: “Congratulations on finding this one and having the foresight to photograph it. I am sure there are a few more hanging around but given that we have some experienced birders in the province atlasing and birding all the time, I can’t help feeling that we should have recorded these birds earlier in the SABAP2 project if they had been around


The period from April to July is traditionally a quieter time for rarities as the migrants have departed and there is generally less birding activity. It was, therefore, a surprise that a few very significant firsts for the region came to light and this served to illustrate how important it is to carry out birding and atlasing in all areas throughout the year as resident bird species are also given to local movements and only by finding them and documenting their occurrence can we learn about this. African Goshawk sightings in Johannesburg were very significant as photos were obtained and confirmed the occurrence of this species in the province, a very exciting record indeed. Will we see this species expand its range and gradually colonise the province due to the habitat changes that have taken place over many decades much as other birds such as the Long-crested Eagle have done? It is a species that is at home in other urban locations such as Cape Town so this is entirely possible. A juvenile Palm-nut Vulture was found at Vulpro in Hartbeespoort; I cannot find any records for the greater Gauteng region for this species going back more than 30 years. A sighting of an Olive Woodpecker in the Wilge River Valley in the east of our region is also significant as it represents another first for the greater region. It will be interesting to see if this species is recorded throughout the year or if it is just a winter visitor. Other good records were Sickle-winged Chats popping up

again in winter, and a sighting of a pair of breeding Burchell’s Coursers on the southern edge of the region near Deneysville was also significant and was enjoyed by a number of birders.

National Rarities/Nasionalerariteite

Harrier, Western Marsh/Vleivalk, Eu-ropese

A male bird was seen at Marievale Bird Sanctuary during the club outing to this venue, 16 Mar 2016 (BLNG).

Regional Rarities/Streeksrariteite

Blackcap, Bush/Tiptol, Rooibek-

A single bird was found at Suikerbosrand, 8 May 2016 (TG), and possible the same bird was reported again on 5 Jun 2016 (GvZ & WJ).

Chat, Sickle-winged/Spekvreter, Vlakte-

One bird was located in the Devon area, 30 Apr 2016 (CM), with up to four birds being encountered in the weeks follow-ing, with birds still being reported into July.

One bird was in pentad 2700_2800 near Deneysville, Free State, 9 Jul 2016 (AM, GL & CC).

This species is a winter visitor to the region.

Courser, Burchell’s/Drawwertjie, Bloukop-

A pair of birds on a nest were located in a field near Deneysville, Free State, in pen-tad 2700_2755, 26 Jun 2016 (NP). Several

Rarities and Unusual Sightings Report: 31 July 2016Compiled by André Marx


Burchell’s Courser - photo by Niall Perrins

birders were able to see this pair of birds in the days following this discovery.

This is a very uncommon species for the

greater Gauteng region.

Crane, Wattled/Kraanvoël, Lel-

The long-staying bird in the Devon area was seen again amongst a group of Blue Cranes, 22 May 2016 (NP).

Goshawk, African. Sperwer, Afrikaanse

A remarkable sighting was of one bird at Delta Park, Johannesburg, on 30 May 2016 (RM).

Another record of this species came to light when one bird was photographed in Fairland, Johannesburg, 17 May 2016 (LR).

There have been reports of this species in recent years in both Johannesburg and Pretoria but they have not been con-firmed and these records may represent the first photographic evidence for the province. This is possibly a species that is colonising the region due to the chang-es that have taken place over many years where parts of the province have become more densely treed and now resemble a woodland.

Openbill, African/Ooievaar, Oopbek-

One bird was seen in pentad 2645_2805 at the Vaal Dam, 24 Mar 2016 (EdB); One bird was at Vaalkop Dam in pentad 2515_2720, 23 Apr 2016 (LR).

Vulture, Palm-nut/Aasvoël, Wit-

An immature bird appeared at Vulpro, Hartbeespoort, in pentad 2540_2755, on 19 May 2016 (KW). This bird is unknown for the Gauteng region and this is in all probability the first confirmed record for the region.

Vulture, Lappet-faced/Aasvoël, Swart-

A single bird was reported from Vulpro, near Hartbeespoort Dam, 21 May 2016 (JJ).

African Goshawk - photo by Lance Robinson

African Openbill - photo by Lance Robinson


Palm-nut Vulture - photo by Andrew Keys

This species is occasionally recorded in the region at vulture restaurants.

Wagtail, Mountain. Kwikkie, Berg-

One bird was located at Qodesh in the Wilge River Valley in north-eastern Gaut-eng, 13 Jul 2016 (R&KW). This bird was recorded by several birders in the weeks following this sighting.

Woodpecker, Olive. Speg, Gryskop-

A male bird was an exciting find at Amanzimtaba Resort in the Wilge River Valley, north-eastern Gauteng (pentad 2535_2900), 2 Jul 2016 (BF & TM).

This represents the first record of this species in the greater Gauteng region.

Other Interesting Observations/ Ander Interessante Waarnemings

Bustard, Denham’s/Pou, Veld-

A sighting of one birdsat Bushwillow Es-tate, Vaalkop Dam (pentad 2515_2725), is a first during the atlas period (2007-2016) and an unusual record for the locality, 23 Apr 2016 (LR).

Buzzard, European/Wespedief

One bird was sighted near Three Rivers in southern Gauteng, 30 Apr 2016 (DV).Hawk, African Cuckoo/Valk, Koekoek-One bird was found in a bluegum plan-tation in pentad 2545_2715, near Rusten-burg, an unusual location for the species (ER & NR).

Osprey/Valk, Vis-

One bird was at Roodeplaat Dam in pen-tad 2535_2820 on 22 Apr 2016, a fairly late record (NP).

Owl, Southern White-faced. Uil, Witwang-

A single bird was found to be roosting in a garden in Clubview, Centurion, 12 May

Mountain Wagtail - photo by Ben Fouche

Olive Woodpecker - photo by Ben Fouche


Marabou Storks, Kloppersbos - photo by Ben Fouche

Observers/ Waarnemers:

André Marx (AM)Ben Fouche (BF)BirdLife Northern Gauteng members (BLNG)Cameron Meyer (CM)Charles Coetzee (CC)Duard Teichert (DT)Dylan Vasapolli (DV)Ernst Retief (ER)Errol de Beer (EdB)Fransie O’Brien (FB)Gebre van Zyl (GvZ)

2016 (JM), an unusual record for the area.

Starling, Common/Spreeu, Europese

One bird was at Rietvlei NR, 16 Jun 2016, (FB & LR).

Two birds were at Northern Farm during the club outing there, 20 Jul 2016 (BLNG).

Stork, Marabou/Maraboe

Two birds were found in pentad 2625_2815 in the vicinity of Suikerbos-rand, a surprise sighting for the area, 23 Apr 2016 (DT).

Approximately 30 birds were found in a wetland at Kloppersbos in pentad 2525_2820, east of Hammanskraal, 11 Jun 2016 (RG, BF, TB, TM), an unusually large concentration for the area.

Greg Lock (GL)Jannie Jansen (JJ)Jason McCormick (JM)Karin Wiesler (KW)Kerri Wolter (KW)Lance Robinson (LR)Laura Jordaan (LJ)Natasja Retief (NR)Niall Perrins (NP)Richard Montinaro (RM)Rihann Geyser (RG)Rolf Wiesler (RW)Theuns Botha (TB)Tiaan Muller (TM) Toni Geddes (TG)Wesley Jarvis (WJ)

This column is mainly concerned with observations of rarities and interesting sightings made in the Greater Gauteng region, defined as being 100km from the centre of both Johannesburg and Pretoria, however observations made further afield are also welcome. While the majority of records are included it is sometimes necessary to exclude some depending on whether the subject mat-ter has already been well reported. Occasionally records are sourced from the Internet and from SABAP2 records.

Members are invited to submit details of sightings to André Marx at e-mail [email protected] or 083 4117674.

The winning team: Dael Stojakovic, Gail Schaum, Alison Hanson, Lance Robinson and Hanneline Smit-Robinson

Second place: Martin Rhodes, Charlotte Mathews, Adele Rhodes,

Brendan Ryan

Quiz Master Lester Niss and his assistant, Janice Isom

Third place: Andy Featherstone, Marion & Rob Hofmeyr, Ann and John Goatcher

WBC 2016 Quiz AfternoonPhotos by Andy Featherstone

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