2009/12/19

On Saturday morning, my mom and I had arrived in the Magaliesberg area. After a quick brunch, we headed off to Kgaswane Mountain Reserve. The tarred road in the reserve meanders steeply up a wooded valley and then flattens out with grasslands on either side. The mournful cries of Black Cuckoos dominated the slopes. Apart from the mourners, the reserve was fairly quiet and we saw more raptors than anything else.

We spent a few minutes watching a Jackal Buzzard whom (at first) was sitting on a dead tree. Shortly after it flew down to the ground, hopped around a bit and then spread its wings in a typical vulture pose. It was sunbathing. Our next sighting was that of a Wahlberg’s Eagle in a nest with its chick. Not long after, another Eagle was seen. This UFO had been flushed out of the grass before flying off.

During the return route, a single Admin’s Stork was seen soaring in the valley. We exited the reserve after 3hrs to settle down in our accommodation, Magalies Bush Lodge. After a hot day, the electrical storm that night was welcomed. The night was still and no owls or nightjars were heard. The rain coupled with a power cut made sure we were in bed early.

2009/12/20

The next day we left our lodging at 6am, our destination: Pilanesberg Nature Reserve. On arrival, we briefly entered Manyane’s campsite to scout the area for any birds. Our ‘brief’ visit was prolonged once my mom had found a Red-billed Hornbills’ nest, the hole in one.

The male made short visits to the hole, dropping off leaf litter, centipedes and other unrecognizable objects. My mom and I had a good giggle as (we presumed) the female didn’t take a liking to a leaf and rattled it outside of the nest with great agitation. It was both highly interesting and entertaining but we had to move onwards.



Once we officially entered the park, we headed towards Mankwe Dam. The hide is generally always fruitful. Yellow-billed Storks, a Little Egret, Great Egret, Grey Heron, Green-backed Heron, Red-billed Teals, Yellow-billed Ducks, White-faced Ducks, Pied Kingfishers, a Malachite Kingfisher, Tawny-flanked Prinias, Southern Masked-Weavers, Blacksmith Lapwings and Red-winged Starlings surrounded the hide. The latter gave a few tourists a heart attack as it swooped back and forth into the hide itself, sending the tourists diving for cover. The Malachite kept photographers busy as well as the Prinias as they were feeding a fledging.

Rattling Cisticolas took up refuge on top of trees lining the roads. Rufous-naped, Fawn-coloured and Sabota Larks as well as Neddickys were also in stiff competition to see who had the best vocals. Diderick, Black and Red-chested Cuckoos (only heard) added their voices to the chorus. The airways supported plenty of swifts and swallows, a Jackal Buzzard, a Secretarybird and Zitting Cisticolas.

Highlights for me included a female Black Cuckooshrike foraging near the road, accompanied by a female African Paradise-Flycatcher hawking insects and a single flock of Red-billed Oxpeckers south of Mankwe.

That night, back at Magalies Bush Lodge, the bush was alive with sounds. A Rufous-cheeked Nightjar sang a few meters from us (offering no visual) and a Barn Owl flew overhead followed by its demonic screeching.

2009/12/21

On our final day the weather took a turn for the worse. We had planned to go to Magaliesberg Nature Reserve but as we arrived we decided to retreat back to our lodging. As we were driving towards the highway on a dirt road, we crossed a bridge and a flash of electric blue caught my eye. It had darted from underneath the bridge to the other end of the stream and around the corner. A Half-collared Kingfisher. Straight away, another Kingfisher had flown next to the bridge before flying off in the same direction. I had finally seen my bogey bird!

The rest of the day saw my mom and me seeking refuge under the duvet coverts. Between the gentle patter of the falling rain and far away rumbling thunder, the melodious call of the resident Black-headed Oriole could be heard. The unexpected rain cloud that had rolled over the Magaliesberg in the morning had still lingered over us by late afternoon. It seemed as if the Rainbird, the Burchell’s Coucal, had announced the coming rain correctly once again. 

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