SA Rare Bird News Report - 21 August 2017

137 views
Skip to first unread message

Trevor Hardaker

unread,
Aug 21, 2017, 2:00:44 PM8/21/17
to sa-rare...@googlegroups.com

 

SA Rare Bird News is proud to be associated with the following brands:

 

 

 

This is the Southern African Rare Bird News Report issued at 20h00 on Monday, 21 August 2017. Information has been gleaned from various websites, email groups as well as from individual observers who have passed on their sightings. This report cannot be taken as being totally comprehensive as it is based only on information made available at the time of writing. All bird sightings reported here are reported in good faith based on information as provided by the observers. Any inaccuracies are totally unintentional and the writer cannot be held liable for these. For those who may have only joined the group recently and are interested in finding out what has been seen in the past, previous reports can be viewed at http://groups.google.co.za/group/sa-rarebirdnews

 

 

Starting in the Western Cape, the group of BLACK-BELLIED STARLINGS were seen again in Stellenbosch at about lunch time on Friday, but were seen in a garden in Onderpapegaaiberg about 5km away from where they have previously been hanging out along Rustenburg Road. Other good local records included a GREAT EGRET found at a small wetland between Rooiels and Betty’s Bay on Friday afternoon (and still present there on Saturday), a single ROSEATE TERN located in the tern roost at Gearing Point in Hermanus yesterday and a KORI BUSTARD seen about 10km north-east of Lambert’s Bay along the gravel road to Vredendal this afternoon. Perhaps the most astonishing record from the province comes all the way in the east on the Garden Route where a GREY-HEADED BUSH-SHRIKE was seen earlier today in Plettenberg Bay in the Strandmeer Estate along Keurbooms River road. This is a first record for the province of a species that normally does not occur further west than Port Elizabeth!

 

In the Eastern Cape, a single AFRICAN OPENBILL was reported from Ugie on Friday morning, an unusual record for the area.

 

Moving up the coast into Kwazulu Natal, there was some surprize yesterday morning when a single calling KNYSNA WARBLER was located in Pigeon Valley in Durban, rather out of place in the city, while the SOOTY TERN was still holding on in the tern roost at the St Lucia estuary yesterday and a pelagic trip out of Durban yesterday also turned up a single SOUTHERN GIANT PETREL, still an unusual bird in KZN waters. Also of local interest, a LESSER MOORHEN was located this afternoon at Nsumo Pan in Mkuze Game Reserve at -27.664, 32.301.

 

 

Roseate Tern in Hermanus

© Chris Cheetham

Black-bellied Starling in Stellenbosch

© Albert van Reenen

 

 

Great Egret near Rooiels

© Bryn de Kocks

Grey-headed Bush-shrike in Plettenberg Bay

© Patrick Raymond

 

 

In Gauteng, yet another report of a calling AFRICAN GOSHAWK over Fairland spruit in Johannesburg was received on Friday morning while the popular SOUTHERN WHITE-FACED OWL was reported again at the Field and Study Centre on Sandton on Saturday.

 

Across in Mpumalanga, a PURPLE-BANDED SUNBIRD was seen again in Skukuza camp in the Kruger National Park on Saturday, this time at the Skukuza Science Centre about 1,2km south-east of where all the other recent sightings have been around the nursery. Also of local interest, although not actually a rarity per se, a xanthochroic CRIMSON-BREASTED SHRIKE was found on Saturday on the edge of Loding (west of Mkhombo Dam) around -25.106637, 28.774702 and was in association with 2 normally coloured birds (and was still present there this morning as well).

 

 

Purple-banded Sunbird in Skukuza

© Andrew de Blocq

Xanthochroic Crimson-breasted Shrike in Loding

© Corrie van Wyk

 

 

And finally, in Botswana, the ROSS’S TURACO continued to entertain onlookers in the Linyanti concession with the first dedicated twitchers making contact with it on the weekend with it still showing well until at least yesterday.

 

 

Ross’s Turaco in the Linyanti concession

© Robbie Engela

Ross’s Turaco in the Linyanti concession

© Jacques Fourie

 

 

Thank you to all observers who have contributed their records. Please continue to send through any reports of odd birds as well as continued updates on the presence of rarities already previously reported, no matter how mundane you think they may be. Even if you think someone else has probably sent in a report, rather send the report yourself as well. The only way to improve this service and to make it as useful as possible to everyone is if it can be as comprehensive as possible.

 

Kind regards

Trevor

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

 

TREVOR HARDAKER

Cape Town, South Africa

 

 

Follow our local exploits in the field at:

http://hardakerwildlife.wordpress.com/

 

See our photos and trip reports at:

www.hardaker.co.za

 

 

ZEST for BIRDS

Pelagics, rarity photos, listing clubs and more:

www.zestforbirds.co.za

 

 

SA RARE BIRD NEWS

Get the latest rarity news by joining at:

http://groups.google.co.za/group/sa-rarebirdnews

 

 

SOUTHERN AFRICAN RARITIES

Online database of all SA rarities

www.rarities.co.za

-------------------------------------------------------------

 

 

 

 

 

image001.png
image010.jpg
image011.jpg
image012.jpg
image013.jpg
image014.jpg
image015.jpg
image016.jpg
image017.jpg
image002.jpg
image003.jpg
image004.png
image005.png
image006.jpg
image007.jpg
image008.jpg
image009.jpg
Reply all
Reply to author
Forward
0 new messages