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Bokmakierie
Diamond & Bearded Vulture
Awards 2018
Derek van der Merwe of the
Endangered Wildlife Trust
receiving the 2018 Beaded
Bearded Vulture Award at this
year’s AGM on Saturday 17th
March 2018. Derek received
the award for his work on the
Lifestock Guard Dog pro-
gramme. (see article page 9).
- photo by Lance Robinson
Lester Niss being pre-
sented with the 2018
Diamond Award at this
year’s AGM on Saturday
17th March 2018. Lester
received the award for his
highly entertaining quizes
that he prepares and
hosts on an annual basis.
- photo Lance Robinson
Bokmakierie
Newsletter of the Witwatersrand Bird Club
April 2018 No 251
Witwatersrand Bird Club Inside this issue:
P O Box 641 Cresta 2118 2 Letter from the Chair
Tel: 011 782 7267
Fax: 086 512 7696 3 The smaller wildlife in Kruger Park by
Email: witsbc@mweb.co.za Anthony Cavanagh
Web: www.witsbirdclub.org.za
6 A Stork-out at Pilanesberg by Lesley
Cornish
2018 Committee:
9 Update on EWT Livestock Guardian
HON. PRESIDENT: Lance Robinson Dog Project by Derek van Der Merwe
CHAIRMAN: Andy Featherstone 13 African Black Oystercatcher - 2018 Bird
VICE-CHAIRMAN: Awie Coetzee Of The Year
TREASURER: Sandy Goodall 14 Driving Across the Roof of Africa by
COURSES: Janice Isom Anthony Cavanagh
CONSERVATION: Lance Robinson 18 Breaking News: Second Global
EVENING MEETINGS: Lia Steen Breeding Locality Discovered For
Critically Endangered Flufftail
PROGRAMME: Fiona van Zyl
EAST RAND CHAIR: Awie Coetzee 21 Birdlife South Africa - Call For Action:
Expansion Of Camera Traps Surveys
HENLEY-ON-KLIP CHAIR: Ben Botha
To Capture The Secret Life Of Critically
WEST RAND CHAIR: Koos van Dÿk Endangered White-Winged Flufftails
23 Trip Reports
CLUB SECRETARY: Lauraine Leigh
27 Southern African Bird Atlas Project
NOTICE TO CONTRIBUTORS (SABAP): The Protocol Explained
Bokmakierie 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
30 Kruger’s Yellow-Billed Oxpeckers In
not necessarily those of the Editor, Club, the Committee, Focus by Arnold Ras
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 33 Rarities and unusual sightings report:
by Andy Featherstone and Lance Robinson. 15 March 2018 by André Marx
COVER PHOTO: Bird of the Year 2018 African Oyster-
catcher by Mark Anderson
MAGAZINE LAYOUT: Andy Featherstone
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 1
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Letter from the Chair
left for warmer climes. How- local specials.
ever, winter can still be an
Later in August, we will be
interesting time to go birding
holding our annual quiz with
as other altitudinal migrants
Lester Niss as our excellent
arrive to fill the gap. One of
quizmaster and awardee of
my favourite winter sights is
the 2018 Diamond Award.
to see a Marsh Owl quar-
At these quiz events, the
tering the fields in search
emphasis is on fun, therefore
of prey or to chance upon
Dear Members, anyone is welcome to attend
a dainty Fairy Flycatcher
and we will be serving
I start this communication on working its way through a
warming refreshments too.
a sombre note. Some of you bush in search of insects. We
may have read in the Sunday will endeavour to bring you a September is always a busy
papers about the recent bit of warmth and cheer with month and this year is no
fraud perpetrated against on some of the activities that exception. On Saturday the
the Cape Bird Club where- we have organised for the 15th we will combine our
by emails were hacked winter months. Look out for annual Arbour Day at Delta
and over R500, 000 was our ‘Christmas in July’ Satur- Park with a talk by Linda
stolen from their investment day afternoon gathering and de Luca on gardening for
account. Regrettably, and in our long weekend outing to birds. Trees for the Arbour
the spirit of transparency, I Witsand, for example. day event can be booked in
have to advise that the Wits advance through Lauraine.
Finding suitable venues for
Bird Club has also been Prior to Arbour Day, there
our outings is not always
subject to similar computer will be the annual African
an easy task, particularly
spyware attacks and, to date, Bird Fair at Walter Sisulu
for the longer trips to areas
we have uncovered that an Botanical Gardens on the 8th
further afield. We accept that
amount of nearly R60, 000 and 9th September. This is
we can please some of the
that has been fraudulently always a great weekend with
people some of the time but
intercepted using bogus all sorts of events and bird-
not all of the people all of
emails and invoices. More ing goods for sale. We need
the time. The recent outing
substantial feedback will be your help to man our stand,
to the Soutpansberg in Lim-
provided in due course but so if you can spare a couple
popo province did, however,
be assured that the treasurer of hours to assist then
demonstrate that we got it
and finance committee have please let Lauraine know so
right on this occasion as the
reported this matter to the that she can add your name
seventeen participants had a
authorities and introduced to the roster. It’s not difficult
memorable trip, an excellent
measures to prevent further work, there will always be an
local bird guide, Samson
activities of this nature. experienced member there
Mulaudzi, and with many
to guide you, and it provides
To more pleasant matters lifers, all at a very reason-
yet another good excuse to
and to use the oft-repeat- able price. Judging by the
visit the Fair
ed phrase in the TV series, favourable comments from
Game of Thrones, that the weekend participants As always, I look forward to
“winter is coming”, you will we will repeat this trip again seeing you all iat one of our
have noticed that most of during the spring or summer future talks or outings.
our summer migrants have months to look for the many
Andy Featherstone
2 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251
The Smaller Wildlife in Kruger Park
Text and Photos by Anthony Cavanagh
Kruger Park is famous around the
world for the Big 5 and for its numer-
ous other large game animals and an-
telope species. Last December Sue
and I spent nine days in Kruger, hop-
ing to see many of the smaller animals
and birdlife that are often overlooked
by most tourists. We entered at the
Phalaborwa gate and continued along
the H9 road heading towards Leta-
ba. The temperature on that first day
reached 41C, consequently, there was
very little activity as like us the birds
and animals were staying undercover
trying to keep as cool as possible. We
met up with our good friends John and
Marleen Broli and booked in at Letaba,
African Barred Owlet
glad to finally be in an air-conditioned
chalet.
The next day we drove north to Nshawu no 3 waterhole where, being very keen bird-
ers, we hoped to catch sight of the extremely rare Egyptian Vulture that had been
seen there. Regrettably, only the Lappet-faced and White-backed vultures were still
at the kill site although our patience here was rewarded with excellent sightings of the
Red-footed Falcon, another one of our target birds. We then moved on to Tsendze rus-
tic camp where we knew a African Barred Owlet was seen. One of the staff at the camp
very kindly took us to campsite no 12 where the Barred owl posed very still, enabling
us to take some really close up photos. Other interesting sitings in this area included
a giant African land snail, the normally nocturnal scrub hare and a chameleon walking
slowly across the road.
On our drive south we stopped at Tshokwane, which is a popular picnic spot although
spoiled somewhat by the presence of troops of vervet monkeys that will steal food
from any unwary tourist.
Crocodile Bridge is in the southernmost part of Kruger but is arguably the best place
in the park to see the big 5. Indeed four of the big 5 could be seen within just a few km
from the camp on any of the three days that we were there. Nevertheless, our main
focus on this trip were birds and the smaller creatures, and Crocodile Bridge didn’t
disappoint here either. In camp, we noted Epauletted Fruit Bats hanging upside down
from rafters in one of the buildings and a number of tree frogs made themselves at
home on top of the outside light fittings on the verandah of our chalet. These frogs had
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 3
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Sabie where we stopped at Sunset dam
one kilometre outside the camp. On the
shoreline Little Stints seemed like wind
up clockwork toys with their very rapid
feeding action and numerous egrets and
herons could be seen as well as Knob-
billed (Comb) Ducks in the distance. Not
far from the Nkuhlu picnic spot we were
very surprised to see the normally incon-
spicuous Common (Kurrichane) Button-
quail sitting quietly on the side of the road
where it stayed long enough for me to
photograph.
North of Skukuza along the S36 and S34
roads we had good sightings of Klip-
springer, Common Duiker, Dwarf Mon-
goose, Senegal Lapwing and Southern
Sue admiring the Giant African Land Snail
a fine time catching insects attracted by
the light. I picked up one of these frogs
and noticed immediately how cold it was
to the touch. Its sucker like feet stuck firm-
ly to my hand and when I placed it next
to the wall it immediately started to climb
the vertical wall and resumed its place on
top of the light fitting.
At the hippo pools a few km from camp Epauletted Fruit Bats
we had fine sightings of Half-collared
Kingfisher, White-crowned Lapwing, Af-
rican Openbill, Collared Pratincole and
Saddle-billed Stork. The ungainly gait of
a monitor lizard drew our attention as it
walked towards the water and a Water
Thick-knee wisely moved quickly out of
its path.
Our final stop was a three-night stay
at Skukuza and on leaving Crocodile
Bridge we headed up towards Lower
Nile Monitor Lizard
4 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251
Common (Kurrichane) Buttonquail European Roller
Ground Hornbill. At Lake Panic just west
of Skukuza, Lizard Buzzards were seen
on two occasions and on chatting to oth-
er keen birders at Skukuza they informed
us that they had seen the Egyptian vul-
ture near Satara only a few days before.
The lure of the bush will ensure that it is
not long before we return once again to
experience the magnificent wildlife of the
Kruger Park.
Senegal Lapwing
Klipspringer
Common Duiker
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 5
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A stork-out at Pilanesberg!
Text and Photos by Lesley Cornish
At our Christmas Duty in Pilanesberg, I
was happy to see Yellow-billed Storks
at Mankwe Dam, with over 40 Marabou
Storks at Lengau Dam, and these are fair-
ly common sightings. I was even happi-
er to see at least 50 White Storks also at
Lengau Dam because these are Palearc-
tic migrants, and we do not often see
large numbers in Pilanesberg.
However, this was hugely surpassed by
the sightings in early January. A lightning A first sighting of the flock
strike had started a fire in the west of the
park, and the fire was left to burn naturally.
There are good reasons for this: the roads
usually act as firebreaks and fire is a nec-
essary part of the environment, and helps
promote diversity of plant species, which
then helps to preserve the biodiversity in
total. It’s important to have random burn-
ing, and there’s no better random burn
than a lightning strike! Also, at the time
of year, the grass is not too dry and so a
fire is unlikely to burn too hot, which only
burns off the older grass and does not The mixed flock gets closer….
damage the trees too much. Grass stores
its nutrients underground, so it can grow
again after the fire.
On Sunday morning, we were patrolling
that area, and Errol noticed the huge flock
of large birds. There were White Storks
and the smaller Abdim’s Storks, and well
over a hundred of each, circling near the
fire. Later, we saw White Storks in front
of the fire, waiting for anything trying to
escape it. The storks must have fed well
because later still, we saw them loafing at A close-up of the mixed stork flock
Batlhako Dam, where they also preened
and drank. Initially, they were mainly a
6 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251
mixed flock, but the lat-
er arriving White Storks
kept separate. It was a
fairly warm day (large
birds tend to wait for
thermals to make flying
easier), and the stork’s
way of cooling down:
they defecate on their
legs so that as the liq-
uid evaporates, it cools
the legs down. As well
as this, I was amazed to
see the backs of two
The mixed flock resting, with some birds showing “white legs” as a Abdim’s Storks which
cooling mechanism had been defecated on.
It made me think of the “management tree cartoon” where the top birds roost at the top,
and everyone else roosts below… but presumably this happened while it was flying in
the flock. Surprisingly, they did not attempt to preen or bathe, perhaps they were just
too inexperienced, or had not yet got around to it? Similarly, they might have been too
inexperienced to avoid being defecated on while flying.
Other reports of smaller numbers of the storks were made, and so there were probably
around 150 Abdim’s Storks in Pilanesberg that weekend, and a similar number of White
Storks. Although the White Storks are fairly common in our summer, there are not usu-
ally that many, and this was the first time I had seen more than a few Abdim’s Storks in
Pilanesberg. In our summer, they are not breeding (they do that further north, in our
winter), and so they can
be much more oppor-
tunistic and free. They
were probably attract-
ed by the fire, which
had been burning since
the Friday because the
smaller creatures either
try to escape in front of
the fire or get caught
and can be “collected”
later on. Secretarybirds
often are attracted to
fires too, but usually
after the fire has burnt
through, and then they
pick up the casualties. Two soiled Abdim’s Storks in the foreground
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 7
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An Abdim’s Stork
coming in to land
What a treat! I wonder what else Pilanesberg has in store for us in 2018. Two weeks later,
while on a CWAC at Borakalalo, we saw six Abdim’s stork loafing and preening by the
lakeside. We disturbed them as we got closer, and unlike all the other birds, which flew
along the shore, these flew higher and higher until they were out of sight, and were not
reported later.
More storks ! Mar-
abou and White
Storks at Lengau
Dam
8 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251Update on EWT Livestock Guardian
Dog Project
Text and Photos by Derek van der Merwe
We have managed to place eight new
LGD puppies over the last two months.
Five of these puppies were placed in the
Soutpansberg to alleviate human-carni-
vore conflict as a result of losses of live-
stock to leopard. There has been a 66%
decline in the leopard population in the
Soutpansberg over the last decade. It is
very important to secure this area as safe
for leopard as it is an important corridor
that links various populations of leopard
within Limpopo. The decline is therefore
Anatolian bonding with calf
very worrying and we need to start se-
curing safe space for these cats to survive
going forward.
Joseph Hlako has also been working in
the communities in the North of the Wa-
terberg. We are noticing similar trends
and he has uncovered a total of 7 leopard
that have been poisoned in two commu-
nities over the last two years. This is un-
sustainable and it we don’t act now the
Waterberg leopard population will also
decline. Joseph have therefore working
with these communities to alleviate carni- Joseph with Meisie fully bonded with cattle
vore conflict as well as educate them re-
garding the role that top order predators
play in the environment. Joseph has also
placed 4 LGD’s in these communities with
rural farmers that have experienced high
losses over the last year. These commu-
nity members are very positive about the
dogs and we look forward to determine
whet her they are a viable non-lethal al-
ternative to address carnivore conflict in
these areas.
Modisha in the field
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 9p
The five puppies placed in the Soutpansberg were all doing well. Unfortunately we lost
one, it was killed by a large male baboon. This is the first LGD puppy that I have lost to
baboon and I was very upset about it. None the less, the farmer made a lot of effort with
the puppy and we will place another puppy on his farm, but this time we will keep it
closer to the farm house until the puppy is big enough to defend itself against baboons.
• Savimbi’s is still afraid of the cattle in particular one female Nguni which had hurt
him. He is however sleeping with the goats, we have therefore decided to bond him
with the goats instead of the cattle.
• Koa is progressing so well and already going into the field. This dog has taken so
Anatolian in the Soutpansberg Anatolian pup bonding with cattle
well into guarding his herd and his herder and owner are very impressed with him.
• Zeus was progressing so well until he was unfortunately killed by a baboon. The
landowner had put so much effort into him and we will hopefully be placing another
LGD on his farm. We will keep him closer to the farm house in the future.
• Buffy has shown significant improvement and is now bonded with some goats he is
starting to go out into the field. He is no longer biting the goat’s ears.
• Shadow is a very playful dog with lots of energy and is in the second phase of bond-
10 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251Whitey in her bonding phase with calves Jane bonding with her new cattle herd
ing. He has been a challenge to bond to the cattle. We therefore made a walking line
for him and he seems to be progressing better.
The three new puppies in the Waterberg are progressing very well. We also ran into
some issues with one puppy. It was suffering from an intestinal tract infection and lost
a lot of weight. We have therefore under the Vets instructions taken it out the field
and placed it at Josephs house until it regains some weight and strength. Once it has
recovered we will take it back into the field.
• Jane has settled onto her new property. She has been on a walking line until the
cattle have gotten used to her presence. She will be integrated into the herd over the
next month.
• Alice is working very well, she continues to guard her cattle and has sustained no
losses over the last month. The farmer has requested to buy another LGD from the
same line as Alice as he is very impressed with her on his farm.
• Dianna continues to work well. She has sustained no losses to her livestock in 6
months. She is developing into a very successful LGD.
Happy farmer with Anatolian pup Placing Anatolian in the Masebe Community
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 11p
• Snowy has developed into working LGD. Her stomach injury has completely healed
and she has now been fully integrated into her herd. There has been a leopard pres-
ent on the farm however she has had no losses to her herd.
• Unnamed male: placement is progressing well. He is still in the bonding phase but
the calves and he has bonded very well. Unfortunately the landowner lost another
calf to a leopard predation this month. We are working with LEDET to try alleviate the
problem as the community are up in arms.
• We were not happy with Jumbo’s condition and took him to the Vet. He had an upset
stomach and was very week and thin. He has been moved to Joseph Hlako’s house
to regain strength and put on some weight. Jumbo already seems a different dog and
his condition is improving every day.
• Modisha’s kraal was completed, however there has been a problem with getting
water to the kraal. The herder placed some young calves with the puppy and took the
herd elsewhere. Mothers are very protective of their calves and have let the puppy
know that. It has developed a fear for the cows. We are monitoring the situation close-
ly to try give the young puppy some more confidence around the cows.
All in all its been a very busy and successful time with a few ups and downs. Unfortu-
nately I also crashed my work vehicle. I hit a cow up in the Soutpansberg. Fortunately
Insurance is going to repair it but I was very lucky to walk away from the accident un-
hurt.
Work vehicle damage after colliding with a cow Anatolian pup bonding with cattle
in the Soutpansberg
12 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251African Black Oystercatcher - 2018
Bird Of The Year
Mark Anderson CEO of BirdLife SA has sent the follow-
ing message to Bird Clubs:
Dear colleagues
Bird of the Year in 2018 is the African Black Oystercatch-
er and, with generous funding from the Hans Hoheisen
Charitable Trust and the Hawarden family, and in partnership with the Nature’s Valley
Trust, we were able to produce posters, buffs, t-shirts, pin badges and plush toys. In
order to make this important annual initiative financially sustainable, we need to sell the
cute oystercatcher plush toys. Please contact Bianca at shopforthebirsds@birdlife.org.
za to order the merchandise. We also have impressive lesson plans (produced by the
talented Chrissie Cloete), and these can be downloaded at http://www.birdlife.org.za/
events/bird-of-the-year
We’d be grateful for assistance from our affiliated bird clubs to, in particular, spread the
word about the lesson plans and help promote/sell the plush toys.
Thanks
Mark D. Anderson
Chief Executive Officer
African Black Oystercatcher plush toys and t-shirts
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 13Su
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Driving Across the Roof of Africa
Text and Photos by Anthony Cavanagh
Lesotho is aptly named
the mountain king-
dom as it lies entirely
above 1400m in eleva-
tion and indeed some
80% of the country lies
above 1800m. Sue and
I together with good
friends David and Mar-
gie Taylor decided to
drive across Lesotho
from the KZN border
in the south to the Free
State border in the
north.
Sani Pass
The four of us met at
Himeville where we stayed overnight in a very comfortable local B&B and then set off
the next day heading for the road up Sani Pass. As we came to the end of the tar road
and drove onto the dirt the damage done by the recent heavy rains was immediately
noticeable. Parts of the road had been washed away and some of the tour operators
had undertaken emergency repairs in order to keep the road open. We bounced slowly
along over rocks and boulders avoiding the worst of the deep furrows gauged out by
the stormwater and eventually reached the SA border post where we passed through
passport control with no problem.
We continued up the pass in first and second gear trying to take the best line on the
road and occasionally having to stop to allow passage of a vehicle descending down
the pass. The cliff face of the escarpment loomed larger in front of us and as we gained
altitude we had superb views of the surrounding mountainous terrain. Water on the
mountain slopes glistened in the sunlight, and in many places formed narrow trails
down the steep gullies. Prinias, white-eyes and sunbirds flitted among the vegetation
and the occasional dassie scampered over the rocky outcrops. We cautiously made
our way up the last few very tight hairpin bends and arrived at the Lesotho border post
on top of the escarpment at an altitude of just over 2800m.
Sani Mountain Lodge has stunning views looking down Sani pass and here one can
observe some of the birdlife that frequents the higher altitudes. We had excellent
sightings of Drakensberg Siskin, Drakensberg Rockjumper, Malachite Sunbird and Sick-
le-winged Chat to name just a few. The Sani Mountain Lodge boasts the highest pub
in Africa and is well stocked. We sampled the local Maluti beer, which is excellent, as
14 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251Sue admiring the Giant African Land Snail
Sampling the local brew at the highest pub in Africa
well as the lodge’s gluhwein and one of their fine wines at dinner. Lesotho Tourism now
runs the lodge and notable improvements include refurbished chalets, a much cleaner
lounge and dining area, and little touches like a welcoming glass of sherry, and morning
tea and coffee served on the verandah.
After breakfast, we drove on the new Chinese built tar road that runs some 50km from
Sani top to Makhotlong. This road is superb and cuts a path through the Kotsisephola
pass where at one point it reaches 3240 m above sea level making it the highest road
in Southern Africa. Thabana Ntlenyana, the highest peak stands at 3482m and is vis-
ible from the road. At the Makhotlong intersection, we continued in a northwesterly
direction on an older section of the A1 road and dropped in altitude to around 2000m.
The road winds its way through a number of villages before rising again through the
Tlaeeng pass at an altitude of 3225m and then continues to the third highest pass, the
Mahlasela pass with a highest point only 3m lower.
Our next port of call was Afriski Lodge at Mahlasela pass, which, as the name of the
Afriski Lodge alpine ski chalets Lesotho farmers travelling traditional style
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 15p
lodge suggests, is a popular winter ski re-
sort. The lodge is a favourite stopover of
the biker community, who enter Lesotho
from the Free State side and ride the tor-
tuous road through the various passes to
the lodge. There is only one ski slope with
a ski lift running parallel with the slope.
The chalets at Afriski are similar in design
to the typical European alpine ski cha-
let and are constructed of timber inside
and out. Ice rats which are endemic to
high altitude areas of Lesotho and South
Africa could occasionally be seen in the
surrounding grass slopes but then bolted
down into their burrows when one walked
too close to them. They are a preferred Drakensberg Siskin
prey of the Jackal Buzzard, many of which
flew above the high ground of Lesotho.
Other birds often seen included White-
necked Raven, Sentinel Rock-thrush,
Cape Bunting, White Stork, Rock Kestrel
and the rare Mountain Pipit which is found
only at very high altitude and which we
managed to photograph at 3250m.
After leaving Afriski the next morning, we
continued along the A1 road and soon
came to the Moteng pass which is only
the eighth highest pass in Lesotho at just
over 2800m but which drops 1000m in
just a few kilometres. The frequent and
very tight hairpin bends demand close
attention to one’s driving and at one par-
ticularly tight bend a tanker and trailer
coming up the pass needed both sides Malachite Sunbird
of the road to negotiate the bend and we
had to back up a little to allow it room to Basuto blanket.
manoeuvre. On the high ground in Leso- As we approached the town of Bu-
tho, we noticed a complete absence of tha-Buthe the familiar cream tinted sand-
trees and it was only at around 1800m stone rock, which is also found on the
that trees flourished again. One has to be Free State side of the border, could be
careful too of sheep and goats that wan- seen in the surrounding hills. The border
der across the road and which are herded post at Caledonspoort is 11km north of
by young lads dressed in the traditional Butha-Buthe and passing through pass-
16 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251port control was fast and efficient on both
sides of the border.
The numerous mountain passes in Le-
sotho make for an interesting and very
different driving experience, which is no
doubt much more difficult in winter when
snow and ice make conditions far more
dangerous.
Mountain Pipit
Drakensberg Rockjumper
Cape Bunting
Thank You for Your Donation
Brian Bayne Joan Jacobs
Hennie Bornman Howard Rayner
Lesley Cornish Kim Roberts
Mark Daynes Koos van Dÿk
Alison Hanson Fiona van Zyl
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 17p
Breaking News: Second Global
Breeding Locality Discovered For
Critically Endangered Flufftail
Text by The White-winged Flufftail is one of the
Dr Hanneline Smit-Robinson world’s rarest birds. Destruction and
degradation of the species’ high altitude
grassland habitat have resulted in a situa-
tion where its survival in the wild is uncer-
tain. There is a race against time to ensure
that it does not become the first African
bird to go extinct, following the same fate
as North America’s Passenger Pigeon
and Mauritius’ Dodo. Through the use of
a novel survey method, BirdLife South
Africa’s research team has this month discovered the first breeding of the threatened
White-winged Flufftail in South Africa, contradicting prior thought that this flufftail is a
non-breeding visitor to South African wetlands.
The White-winged Flufftail is only known to occur with any regularity in Ethiopia and
South Africa, more than 4000 km apart. The species is found in high altitude wetlands
in the eastern parts of South Africa from November to March. It then breeds in Ethiopia,
in the northern hemisphere, during July and August. Prior to the recent discovery, the
only known breeding site was Berga wetland in Ethiopia.
The implementation of a conservation plan (International White-winged Flufftail Single
Species Action Plan) through the collaborative efforts of BirdLife South Africa, Mid-
delpunt Wetland Trust and the Ethiopian Wildlife and Natural History Society (The
BirdLife Partner in Ethiopia) is being undertaken under the auspices of the White-
winged Flufftail International Working Group, African Eurasian Waterbird Agreement
(AEWA). However, the successful conservation of this species is dependent on a better
understanding of the birds’ biology and movements.
Over the past two years BirdLife South Africa’s Robin Colyn and ecologist Alastair
Campbell have developed an innovative method to survey this cryptic and elusive spe-
cies. Dubbed the BirdLife South Africa Rallid Survey Method (Colyn et al. 2017, Ostrich
88: 235-245), it uses a cleverly designed camera trap system to record the secret life
of the White-winged Flufftail. Working at Middelpunt Wetland near Belfast, in 2016/17
they recorded interesting wing-flapping behaviour during which both males and fe-
males display their white wing feathers. In 2017/18, the survey technique was further
refined. The most exciting discovery was photographing recently hatched chicks and
juvenile White-winged Flufftails. At least two breeding attempts were recorded, with
chicks ranging from only a couple of days old to juvenile birds which were about four
18 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251weeks old. This confirms that the White-winged Flufftail is not a “non-breeding visitor”
to South Africa, says Robin Colyn, one of BirdLife South Africa’s ornithologists and lead
on the development of the novel survey method.
A scientific study, published a week ago, authored by BirdLife South Africa and National
Zoological Gardens geneticists has showed that South African and Ethiopian birds are
genetically similar, with only three minor sequence variations between the two popula-
tions (Dalton et al. 2018, African Journal of Ecology 56: 28-37).
We are still unsure what our findings mean for White-winged Flufftail conservation.
Our survey method did however confirm a low abundance and, therefore, until further
knowledge, our assumption holds that this species is extremely rare and it remains on
the brink of extinction, says Dr Hanneline Smit-Robinson, BirdLife South Africa’s Terres-
trial Bird Conservation Programme Manager. She adds that BirdLife South Africa would
like to expand its use of the newly developed Rallid Survey Method to at least another
three wetlands in South Africa to confirm the presence of, and hopefully breeding by,
White-winged Flufftails at these sites. A donation of R4000 for each camera would
help us to reach our target of buying another 60 camera traps for use in the 2018/19
breeding seasons. A further call by BirdLife South Africa is to raise funds to support
the conservation initiatives that would ultimately protect the important habitats used
by this wetland specialist. Please visit the BirdLife South Africa website (www.birdlife.
org.za) or email conservation@birdlife.org.za for further information. Anyone wishing to
donate towards this important conservation work can either deposit funds directly to
BirdLife South Africa (FNB, Acc. No.: 62067506281, Branch: 250655) using the refer-
ence WWF_YourInitials&Surname, or can use the online payment platform accessed
via www.birdlife.org.za/support-us/donate where the White-winged Flufftail tab can
be selected as the chosen cause.
Full references:
1. Colyn R, Campbell A, Smit-Robinson HA. 2017. The application of camera trapping
to assess rallidae species richness within wetland habitat types, eastern Free State,
South Africa. Ostrich 88: 235-245.
2. Dalton DL, Smit-Robinson HA, Vermaak E, Jarvis E, Kotzé A. 2017. Is there genet-
ic connectivity among the Critically Endangered Whited-winged Flufftail (Sarothrura
ayresi) populations from South Africa and Ethiopia? African Journal of Ecology 56:
28-37.
For more information contact:
Dr Hanneline Smit-Robinson, Manager: Terrestrial Bird Conservation Programme/
Oppenheimer Fellow of Conservation, BirdLife South Africa
Email: conservation@birdlife.org.za
Phone: 011 789 1122/082 4534714
or
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 19p
Robin Colyn
KEM-JV Fellow of Conservation, BirdLife South Africa
Email: robin.colyn@birdlife.org.za
Phone: 076 833 8454
Website:- www.birdlife.org.za/conservation/terrestrial-bird-conservation/threat-
ened-species/white-winged-flufftail
More on Ethiopia
Few bird species breed at only one locality, which puts the White-winged Flufftail at
significant extinction risk. For the past 14 years, the Ethiopian BirdLife partner, the Ethio-
pian Wildlife and Natural History Society, together with Middelpunt Wetland Trust and
Rockjumper Worldwide Birding Adventures, have worked with the community at Berga
to ensure that the wetland is protected from grazing by cattle, horses and sheep during
the flufftail breeding season in the boreal summer. At the same time, initiatives led by
BirdLife South Africa have attempted to conserve high altitude wetland sites known to
host this species in South Africa.
BirdLife South Africa
BirdLife South Africa is the country partner of BirdLife International, a global partnership
of conservation organisations that strives to conserve birds, their habitats and global bi-
odiversity, by working with people towards sustainability in the use of natural resources.
BirdLife International partners operate in more than 125 countries and territories world-
wide. BirdLife South Africa relies on donor funding and financial support from the public
to carry out its critical conservation work.
BirdLife South Africa’s Terrestrial Bird Conservation Programme
BirdLife South Africa’s Terrestrial Bird Conservation Programme aims to conserve di-
verse and sustainable bird populations, recognising their crucial role in maintaining
balanced terrestrial ecosystems. Our mission is to identify, prevent and/or reverse
negative trends in terrestrial birds through scientifically-based conservation initiatives.
BirdLife South Africa’s novel rallid survey method research is supported by Department
of Environmental Affairs, Airports Company South Africa and Eskom (Ingula Partner-
ship), whilst the KEM-JV Fellow of Conservation is supported by funding from Kimber-
ley Ekapa Mining Joint Venture.
Collaboration between BirdLife South Africa, Middelpunt Wetland Trust, AEWA and
EWNHS
The implementation of a conservation plan through the collaborative efforts of BirdLife
South Africa, Middelpunt Wetland Trust and the Ethiopian Wildlife and Natural History
Society (EWNHS - The BirdLife Partner in Ethiopia) is being undertaken under the aus-
pices of the African Eurasian Waterbird Agreement (AEWA). More information is availa-
ble on the BirdLife South Africa website.
20 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251Birdlife South Africa - Call For Action:
Expansion Of Camera Traps Surveys To Capture The Secret Life Of
Critically Endangered White-Winged Flufftails
The White-winged Flufftail is one of the
world’s rarest birds. Destruction and
degradation of the species’ high alti-
tude grassland habitat have resulted in
a situation where its survival in the wild
is uncertain. Through the use of a novel
survey method, BirdLife South Africa’s
research team recently discovered the
first breeding of the Critically Endangered
White-winged Flufftail in South Africa, contradicting prior thought that this flufftail is a
non-breeding visitor to South African wetlands.
We need to expand the work through the use of the BirdLife South Africa Rallid Sur-
vey Method in order to determine where else this elusive bird occurs and, importantly,
whether there are other breeding sites.A donation of R4000 for each camera would
help us to reach our target of buying another 60 camera traps for use in the 2018/19
breeding seasons. Anyone wishing to donate towards this important conservation work
can either deposit funds directly to BirdLife South Africa (FNB, Acc. No.: 62067506281,
Branch: 250655) using the reference WWF_YourInitials&Surname, or can use the on-
line payment platform accessed via www.birdlife.org.za/support-us/donate where the
White-winged Flufftail tab can be selected as the chosen cause.
For more information contact:
Dr Hanneline Smit-Robinson, Manager: Terrestrial Bird Conservation Programme/Op-
penheimer Fellow of Conservation,
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 21p
BirdLife South Africa conservation@birdlife.org.za BirdLife South Africa and Middelpunt
Wetland Trust would like to acknowledge The Ingula Partnership (Eskom), Department
of Environmental Affairs, Airports Company South Africa and other partners/donors
who made this discovery possible.
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22 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251Trip Reports
A celebration of World Wetland Day at Vaalkop Dam - Report By
Christo Venter
On Saturday 3rd of February, we went to us to really study them and hopefully, in
Vaalkop Dam to celebrate World Wet- future, it will be easier to identify them.
land Day. The original plan was to visit Volker Fisher saw a Long-tailed Widow-
Mkhombo Dam but due to circumstance, bird and according to SABAP2 for pentad
the plan was altered due to the fact that 2515_2725 there are only 2 records for
on the previous Sunday 4 vehicles, as this species to date, wow! I believe to
well as the tractor to rescue them, got explore Vaalkop to its fullest you require
stuck in the mud at Mkhombo. 2 days birding.
Five members attended the outing. We According to the gatekeeper at Bush-
met 07h00 at Magalies Water and we willow Estate, the entrance permit for
saw a total of 129 species of which 32 Vaalkop Dam Nature Reserve allows
species are associated with water, or 25% you one entry per day to travel through
of the birds seen/heard. We missed out Bushwillow to the North West Parks Bird
on about 40 “common” species that are
Sanctuary. This seems really odd to me.
recorded on a regular basis according to
Birding this section of the dam is really
the data from SABAP2.
excellent.
The previous night, 15mm of rain fell, with
the result that we started in wet condi- Ed: The restriction on entry to the bird
tions. By 09h00 we had recorded 53% of sanctuary is a North West Parks and
the birds seen for the day. The White-
Tourism Board ruling.
winged and Whiskered Terns allowed
Devon Outing 24 February 2018 - Report By Awie Coetzee
It was a cool and cloudy early morning
start for the group of 9 Birders that took
part in the outing to the grasslands of
Devon. However, by mid-morning, it
warmed up considerably and the clouds
mostly disappeared.
Several water birds and waders were
encountered on the dams and pans
along the way to the turn-off to the first
dirt road. These included: Hottentot Teal,
Yellow-billed Duck, Red-knobbed Coot,
Pallid Harrier - Photo by Lance Robinson Little Grebe, Cape Shoveler, Little Stint,
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 23p
White-winged and Whiskered Terns, Snipe, Mountain Wheatear, Yellow-front-
Ruff, Wood Sandpiper, Three-banded ed Canary, African Spoonbill, White-
Plover, Black-headed and Grey Herons faced Whistling Duck and lots of South
and White Storks. African Cliff Swallows.
Along the dirt roads, there were great The sighting of the morning was, without
numbers of Amur Falcons, Southern a doubt, that of a Pallid Harrier (Near
Red- and Yellow-crowned Bishops, Threatened). It flew passed lazily and
Red-billed Queleas, Fan-tailed, Long- disappeared over the hill, not to be seen
tailed and White-winged Widowbirds, again.
Barn Swallows, Africa Stonechats, Cape
At the end of the trip, the birders had a
Longclaw, Cloud, Levaillant’s and Zitting
picnic on the farm near Devon where
Cisticolas and many other species.
White-breasted Cormorant, African Dart-
Some of the other special sightings were er, Red-capped Lark and Red-backed
three Blue Korhaan flying off, a Greater Shrike were amongst the birds seen.
Kestrel on the ground, Common Quail
By all accounts, a very enjoyable morn-
(flushed up from the grass verge of
ing spent on the grasslands of Devon.
the road), Pink-billed Lark (in the road),
The total species count for the morning
Red-capped Lark, Cuckoo Finch, African
was an impressive 84.
Quailfinch, Diederik Cuckoo, African
Meyers Farm Outing 8 April 2018 - Report By Lance Robinson
We were still in the parking lot at the sped in from the East and began skirt-
Waltermeyer Stables when the first ing the ridges near the ANP. When the
Verreaux’s Eagle took flight and we were Verreaux’s Eagles took flight, the falcon
alerted to one on the artificial nesting would harass them. More raptor excite-
platform (ANP) and the other in a nearby ment came with a Black Sparrowhawk
tree on the hill. A short walk around the in flight, followed a little while later by an
stables and paddocks produced both
Speckled and Red-faced Mousebirds,
sunning their bellies in the morning sun.
A Black-chested Prinia gave protracted
views while Bar-throated Apalis was
only heard from the surrounding bush-
es. A pair of African Black Duck flew in
onto the dam where we also encoun-
tered a pair of Three-banded Plover,
Little Grebe, Reed and White-breast-
ed Cormorant and an African Darter.
Bokmakierie called from the slopes but
remained hidden from view, even when
we got fairly close. A Peregrine Falcon Juvenile female Peregrine Falcon- Photo by
Lance Robinson
24 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251Ovambo Sparrowhawk which flew in the Peregrine and Verreaux’s Eagles contin-
opposite direction. There were a number ued, especially when the eagles brought
of migrant hirundine species still about in nesting material. The Peregrine was
including Barn Swallows, White-throat- confirmed from photos taken as juvenile
ed Swallow, Greater Striped Swallow female by renowned raptor biologist,
and Common House Martin. Back at the Dr Andrew Jenkins. Our bird list was 61
parking lot, the interaction between the species.
Marievale Bird Sanctuary Out-
ing 24Th April 2018 - Report And
Photos By Werner Van Goethem
There was a good turnout for the Ma-
rievale outing, despite the heavy rains
on the days leading up to the weekend;
12 birders in total. Lia and Fiona started
at the picnic spot before everyone else,
only meeting the rest of the group later,
and did not sign the register (attached)
Red-knobbed Coot
We saw 90 species, as per the attached
checklist; no Marsh-Harriers were seen.
With the amount of rain we had, the
water levels were high (they got even
higher during the week after our visit).
We had a good look around the cottag-
es before starting into sanctuary and
added Malachite Kingfisher, Black Crake,
Common & Orange-breasted Waxbill
and Mountain Wheatear, amongst others.
A Black-shouldered Kite and Red-billed
Quelea along the road with Three-band- White-throated Swallow
ed Plovers in the road.
We checked for birdlife along the wa-
ter-logged service road under the pylons
(4x4 only) requiring a u-turn in the middle
of the marsh. Many doves and pigeons
just along the side of the road with
African Snipe on the “middel-mannekie”
and Cape Shoveler and Common Moor-
hen swimming in the wheel-ruts. Black
and Grey Herons were abundant and
a single Goliath Heron was seen as we Hottentot Teal
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 25p
approached the picnic spot. We added
another 7 birds at the picnic spot, includ-
ing Pied Kingfisher, European Bee-eater
and Spur-winged Goose. Approach-
ing the Hadeda Hide we spotted the
Spotted Eagle-Owl in a tree along the
road. Because of the high water levels,
nothing new was spotted from the hide.
Making our way slowly out of the reserve
we found Cloud and Zitting Cisticola,
Yellow-crowned Bishop, Black-chested
Prinia, Wood Sandpiper and Common
Ringed Plover.
Spotted Eagle Owl
26 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251Southern African Bird Atlas Project
(SABAP): The Protocol Explained
Introduction
The atlas protocol is a survey protocol, designed to record the presence of as many
bird species as possible within a defined area. The project allows for two types of sur-
veys (cards) to be submitted – Full Protocol and Ad-hoc Protocol.
• Full Protocol card: The atlaser fully complied with the protocol rules (set out below).
• Ad-hoc: The atlaser did not comply with all of the atlas rules.
Atlasers should always aim to submit Full Protocol cards, as they have far more value
for tracking changes in bird communities than Ad-hoc Protocol cards.
Atlasers can also submit incidental records of noteworthy sightings.
The Rules
1) The Area
SABAP uses a grid-based system based on earth’s latitudinal and longitudinal lines –
each 5 minute x 5 minute area (about 9 km north-south and 7 km east-west in South
Africa) is called a pentad.
• A map with pentads can be found here: http://sabap2.adu.org.za/coverage.
php#menu_top.
• The mobile app BirdLasser displays pentads on a map for easy reference, and gives
an audible warning if you cross a boundary between pentads.
An atlaser needs to visit as many different habitats as possible in the pentad. However,
if for some reason you cannot access all habitats, this should not stop you from submit-
ting a full protocol card.
2) The Time
A pentad can be atlased only once every 5-day period by the same atlaser. The pro-
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 27p
tocol requires at least 2 hours of dedicated atlasing during this period. The atlaser may
choose to continue atlasing whilst still in the 5-day period. Ideally, the initial two-hour
survey should happen in one continuous period, but it may be split up into multiple
smaller segments.
Other timing related factors to consider:
• When taking coffee breaks and you are not actively birding, you should exclude the
time from the first part of the survey.
• An example of a segmented intensive period would be if you spend a night out,
you can do the first hour in the evening you arrive and complete the second hour the
next day.
3) The Observations
• All bird species need to be recorded.
• Only the first observation of a species must be logged, i.e. no duplicates on a card.
• The atlaser needs to record each species in the order observed.
Sediba Game &
Conference Lodge
North West Province
Sediba Lodge offers comfortable accommodation in 10
serviced chalets for up to 32 guests, with linen and towels
provided. The communal lapa and braai area are situated
next to a sparkling swimming pool. Kitchen facilities include
all crockery and cutlery and a communal lounge and reading
room offers DStv.
Sediba is only an hour and 40 minute drive from Randburg
and is close to the town of Brits.
Situated on 500 hectares of pristine bushveld the Lodge has
recorded over 180 species of birds and contains a selection
of large game including giraffe, wildebeest, zebra and kudu.
Normal rate R400 per person per night.
Special rates are offered for birders: -
R600 per person per weekend for groups of ten or more with a
single supplement of R750
Enquiries: - Kim Burton-Durham
kim.sedibalodge@gmail.com
28 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251• Birds seen and/or heard, may be recorded.
• Photos or sound recordings of birds for later identification can be very helpful.
• You are responsible and accountable for each record on your card (and will get an
Out of Range query for rare or unusual species). When getting information from ad-
ditional observers, ensure the information is accurate and correct as any queries will
be sent to you and not the additional observer.
• When in doubt, leave it out.
• Atlasing should preferably be conducted during good birding conditions, for ex-
ample when there is little wind and no rain. If in your opinion bad weather has greatly
reduced the number of species recorded, rather submit the card as an Ad-hoc Pro-
tocol card.
• It is not necessary to record the number of individual birds seen (but BirdLasser
might prompt you for additional information such as numbers of individuals for some
threatened species).
Independence of atlas cards
• When two or more atlasers atlas the same pentad, at the same time, it is recom-
mended to submit the observations on a single Full Protocol card. It is up to the group
to decide who will “own” the card, i.e. submit to SABAP. The other atlasers may be
added as additional observers.
• Atlasers can atlas together, independently, if they can devise a system that will pro-
duce significantly different cards. As an example, if two atlasers travelling together,
walk in different directions each time they stop, it would result in different species and
orders on the cards.
General guidelines
• If you are new to birding and not able to identify most of the birds seen/heard whilst
atlasing, please submit all cards as Ad-hoc Protocol cards, even if you followed the
full protocol rules. You should only submit cards as Full Protocol cards once you can
identify at least 95% of all species you encounter.
• If you bird only at one spot every day, for a combined 2 hours or more in a 5-day peri-
od, rather submit an Ad-hoc card, because your coverage of the pentad is too limited.
• For cards with only a few records, only submit a Full Protocol card if all the rules
were obeyed, and there were no obvious reasons for the low species count (e.g. bad
weather) - suggesting that the area really is largely devoid of birds.
• If a noteworthy species (e.g. critically endangered/rarity/unusual behaviour) is seen,
then it is best to submit an Incidental record, with any additional information as notes.
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 29p
Kruger’s Yellow-Billed
e
Oxpeckers In Focus
Text By Arnold Ras
p
(Article Reproduced From Wildcard Newsletter Dated 6Th February 2018)
Yellow-billed Oxpeckers - Photo by Warwick Tarboton
By 1897, they were completely extinct in South Africa, but 82 years later yellow-billed
oxpeckers miraculously returned to the Kruger National Park. Although little is known
about these tick-loving birds, one researcher is determined to find out more.
In South Africa, yellow-billed oxpeckers (Buphagus africanus) are found only in the Kru-
ger National Park and adjoining private nature reserves. At the end of the 1800s, the
species had gone extinct in SA due to threats such as the rinderpest and toxic cattle
dips. Then in 1979 the birds re-appeared in Kruger’s Shingwedzi area – without any
human intervention. These days, there are more questions than answers when yel-
low-billed oxpeckers are the topic of discussion. But not for long…
Guy Hausler of SANParks’ Veterinary Wildlife Services in Skukuza is the primary investi-
gator of the Kruger National Park Yellow-billed Oxpecker Project. For Guy, yellow-billed
oxpeckers have always held a fascination and he is now collecting data for his master’s
degree in nature conservation.
30 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251“Yellow-billed oxpeckers have spread throughout the park over the last 30-odd years
and they are doing, we think, fairly well. The thing is, no one really knows. We see them
a lot, but nobody knows the exact extent of their distribution. Although they are current-
ly listed as least concern by the IUCN, they have experienced crazy range constrictions
elsewhere in Africa,” says Guy.
Because the birds are generally poorly studied, Guy’s research aims to discover more
about the species. Not only their current fine-scale distribution in the Kruger, but also
their nesting behaviour, ecology and host preferences.
“For example: if we remove all the rhinos or buffaloes, how will this impact the yel-
low-billed oxpeckers? This is the first research conducted with the bird in hand. We are
sampling the birds to try and find out exactly what they’re eating and whether there’s
a difference between the diets of yellow-billed and red-billed oxpeckers (Buphagus
erythrorynchus) – the two species often exist together. It’s very rare in nature that
you’ve got two such closely related species using the same hosts.”
Finding and monitoring yellow-billed oxpecker nests is also a priority. “The description
of nesting ecology of the species has never been done in southern Africa. This is part
of why visitor sightings are so important. For us to go and look for the nests takes a lot
of time. Almost all of the 12 nest sightings we received this summer were reported by
visitors. These sightings mean extra eyes on the ground and are invaluable.”
So far Guy’s research has unveiled some interesting findings. “Some very localised, but
very often seen small populations of birds occur at spots in the south of the park – at
a single pan on the S30 for example – where the birds are otherwise uncommon. They
were also spotted all the way down to the Malelane and Crocodile Bridge gates. Tra-
ditionally, many birders think yellow-billed oxpeckers are not found south of Satara.”
Red-billed or yellow-billed?
The yellow-billed oxpecker’s bill has a distinct yellow base.
Red-billed oxpeckers have a prominent yellow eye-ring.
Yellow-billed oxpeckers have a pale, beige-coloured rump.
Yellow-billed Oxpeckers - Photo by Warwick Red-billed Oxpecker - Photo by Warwick
Tarboton Tarboton
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 31p
Your sightings matter
Want to be a citizen scientist? When you spot a yellow-billed oxpecker during your next
Kruger visit, make sure to record the following data:
1. Date
2. GPS co-ordinates and an accurate description of the location
3. Host species
4. Take a photo of the bird
5. Look for any nesting activity
Submit the data, along with your personal details via email (knpoxpeckers@gmail.com),
WhatsApp (+27 (0)79 967 6109), or visit the Kruger National Park Yellow-billed Oxpecker
Project’s Facebook page.
Important: Don’t post any pictures of rhino on social media.
Submit and win
With every submission, you will be entered into a lucky draw to stand a chance to win
a R10,000 voucher for photographic equipment. The winner will be announced at the
end of 2018.
Welcome New Members
Graeme, Regan, Garyn, Jenna Dowerglen
and Josh Berry
Joan and Dennis Browne Blairgowrie
Debbie Hopewell Douglasdale
Linda Iaccheri Parkview
Justin Levin Victory Park
Brian Reynolds Mondeor
Marthie Roberts Noordheuwel
Janine Saker Bedfordview
Amelia Vermaak Hennopspark
Etienne Vlok Westgate
32 | Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251Rarities and Unusual Sightings
Report: 15 March 2018
Compiled by André Marx
This report covers the period from 10 Sandpiper, Green. Ruiter, Witgat-
Dec 2017 to 15 Mar 2018. Top sightings
Several observers reported this species
for the last period was a tricky Eurasian
Blackcap that frustrated many observ- from Rietvlei Dam NR in Centurion during
ers, several African Skimmers, and a the period 14 Nov 2017 until at least mid
Bateleur in the Wilge River valley, the Feb 2018.
latter a species that is not known for the One bird was at Waterfall Estate, Mid-
region. Some rare local birds such as
rand, 27 Jan 2018 (RS).
Rufous-bellied Heron, Yellow-breasted
Pipit, Broad-billed Roller and Whimbrel Sandpiper, Pectoral. Strandloper, Geel-
were encountered and are excellent poot-
records for the greater Gauteng region.
Thank you to all the regular contributors Two birds were present at a farm dam
of reports. Please send any interesting near Bapsfontein, 9 Jan 2018 (PC). In sub-
and out of range records together with sequent days several observers saw and
a photo if possible to the address given photographed these birds at this locality;
below. Members should note that these reported until at least mid Feb 2018.
regional reports are referenced and used
One bird was at Mkhombo Dam 27 Jan
in publications such as the Roberts Birds
2018 (EM).
of Southern Africa, which is currently be-
ing revised, so all properly documented
records are valuable.
National Rarities/Nasionalerariteite
Blackcap, Eurasian. Sanger, Swartkroon-
One bird was found in a thicket on the
Zaagkuildrift road in pentad 2505_2810
when first heard singing and then briefly
being observed; the bird was present for
a few days, 10 Mar 2018 (AM, GL). This is
Sandpiper, Pectoral. Strandloper, Geelpoot
an uncommon summer migrant and very - photo by Pieter Heslinga
few records have been confirmed for the
region.
Skimmer, African. Waterploeër
Phalarope, Red. Fraiingpoot, Grys-
Two birds were reported from Vaalkop
A single bird was at Mkhombo Dam, 3 Dam on 8 Jan 2018 (SvdW).
Mar 2018 (J&CH).
Bokmakierie April 2018 No 251 | 33You can also read
