SA Rare Bird News - 10 September 2009
Trevor Hardaker
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S O U T H E R N A F R I C A N R A R E B I R D N E W S R E P O R T |
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This is the Southern African Rare Bird News Report issued at 22h00 on Thursday, 10 September 2009. 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 |
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There is no doubt that the most exciting news received in the last few days comes hot off the back of a 36 day fishing trip which spent most of its time just inside the 200 nautical mile EEZ (therefore countable on SA lists) and returned back to Cape Town on Tuesday. The trip worked the area from Cape Town to east of PE with most of the exciting birds turning up within Western Cape waters.
With the top day on the trip producing no fewer than 10 species of albatross, it was bound to be an exciting trip!! Birds like WANDERING and NORTHERN and SOUTHERN ROYAL ALBATROSSES were seen almost daily and were considered “trash birds” whilst no fewer than 20 GREY-HEADED ALBATROSSES were also recorded on the trip! Add to that about 10 SOOTY ALBATROSSES and as many as 4 LIGHT-MANTLED ALBATROSSES and it doesn’t get much better than that! |
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Sooty Albatross on pelagic © Barrie Rose |
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The action didn’t stop there either with the trip also delivering about 50 GREY PETRELS and as many as 20 BLUE PETRELS along with a few LITTLE SHEARWATERS (with representatives of the races tunneyi and elegans – potential future splits in their own right!). Prions also put in a good showing with reasonable numbers of SLENDER-BILLEDS as well as a few probable SALVIN’S, but these waned by comparison to the records of FAIRY PRION, a species last reliably reported in the subregion probably some 20 years ago or so! This list of mouth-watering species is enough to make just about any Southern African lister’s knees tremble and most of the highest listers in the country would have certainly been able to add at least a few to their local lists on this trip! |
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Grey-headed Albatross on pelagic © Barrie Rose |
Light-mantled Albatross on pelagic © Troy Guy |
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Blue Petrel on pelagic © Barrie Rose |
Grey Petrel on pelagic © Barrie Rose |
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Continuing in the Western Cape, the COMMON REDSHANK reported from the bird hide on the Berg River at Velddrif a few weeks ago was still present on Tuesday whilst a BROWN-BACKED HONEYBIRD was located in the Tokai Plantation on the same day. Yesterday produced a record of a female BLACK CUCKOO-SHRIKE at Harold Porter Botanical Gardens in Betty’s Bay whilst a KORI BUSTARD reported yesterday from Cape Agulhas must surely rate as one of the more bizarre records of the week!
Another rather interesting record has also been received from a non-birder of a “blue-grey egret with light grey bill and legs” which was seen on Sunday in the area directly opposite the Friendly Grocer near the BP garage in Noordhoek. Whilst this person did not claim to have any expertise in bird id, they certainly knew enough to realize that this was something different to what they are used to seeing and made the effort to report it. One subsequent search was unable to relocate the bird in question, but if you are in this area, please keep your eyes peeled for this bird as it sounds potentially rather interesting.
No reports from any other part of the subregion were received. |
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For those of you that have seen in excess of 700 species in Southern Africa, please register your details so that they can be included on the “SA 700 Club” list and, for those of you that have seen between 500 and 699 species in Southern Africa, please also submit your details to be added to the “SA heading for 700 Club”. You can do this by simply sending me an email with your name, bird list total as well as where you are from and I will then add you to the list. Both listing clubs are hosted at www.zestforbirds.co.za where you will also find additional photos of a number of rarities in the rarities gallery. |
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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. |
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Kind regards Trevor |
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TREVOR HARDAKER Cape Town, South Africa
See my wildlife photos at www.hardaker.co.za
ZEST for BIRDS Trevor Hardaker and John Graham Pelagics, rarity photos, listing clubs and more
SA RARE BIRD NEWS Get the latest rarity news by joining at: http://groups.google.co.za/group/sa-rarebirdnews
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