Drakensberg Apr 2013

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• List of birds

Brian, Rhona and Tamsyn spent the night at our place and just after 8am on Friday morning we left, driving to first to Harrismith via Bethal and Standerton. In Harrismith we had Nando’s for lunch before spending 2 hours to get to Bergville on the road past Sterkfontein dam. The road is in horrendous condition and although there’s some pretense in fixing it (chevrons in the middle of the road with an occasional Stop/Go section that’s universally ignored), there are actually kosmos growing through the middle of the road in places. What a disgrace – it’s going to be a very long time before I’ll attempt driving this particular route again. Despite the road, we arrived in the Cathkin area in good time and it was a glorious afternoon as we pulled into our accommodation at the Bergview estate just outside Drakensberg Sun hotel. After unpacking the cars and getting settled, we started a fire and soon after Rhona and Nicola’s cousin Richard and his friend Andrew showed up. Our firewood turned out to be miserable braai wood and after getting a smoky flavour we had to stick all our meat in the oven to get cooked. After a great dinner we played 30 Seconds until past midnight, wished Brian a very happy birthday and turned in.

Tentative plans to go for an early morning birding walk evaporated quickly in the morning as we lazed around the house at breakfast and later strolled down to the hotel and its lake. Around 11:30 we drove to the Waffle hut outside Winterton to celebrate Brian’s birthday and then visited several craft and souvenir shops on the R600, eventually getting back home around 3pm. Another lazy afternoon was followed by an excellent dinner. While Andrew and Richard went to watch a local comedian at the hotel, the rest of us had our own comedy session while playing three rounds of 30 Seconds. It was another late night but after 12, not even the coffee could keep us awake anymore and off to bed we went.

Sunday morning was definitely going to see some birding getting done. Rhona, Brian and Tamsyn left to spend the day at Cathedral Peak while Nicola and I took the trail up to the Grotto birding in the forest along the way. Initially we struggled a little finding the path but when we did it was nice and easy walking. Apart from a few common birds on the way into the forest, we picked up Brown-throated martin, White-rumped swift and Southern boubou. The forest itself had many parties of Cape white-eyes that seemed to follow us because around every corner was a group of four or more feeding in the low and mid stratums. On several occasions these were joined by Yellow-throated woodland warblers and even two Forest canaries that made a quick appearance. A strange looking bird had us perplexed for a short while but after browsing the field guide we discovered it was a ruddy form Olive bush-shrike. We had great views of this pretty bird sitting at times only 2 metres from us. Bar-throated apalis and Cape batis were also common but our sighting of day was certainly a short but cracking view of a Bush blackcap – our first for KZN! Higher up in the forest we also heard Sombre greenbuls before we arrived at the Grotto around 11am and sat down for a quick bite to eat and some water. Then we proceeded up the trail, quickly climbing out of the forest where the Canopy Tour starts. From here it was just a matter of walking down the dirt road back to the hotel and we reached the house some time after mid-day. A shower and lunch was followed by a lazy afternoon before getting another braai fire ready for dinner. Brian, Rhona and Tamsyn arrived around 5pm and we spent the rest of the evening chatting about all the fun we had during the day.

With plans of doing some birding along the way back home, we had to get an early start. At 7am, Nicola, Tamsyn and I were ready to go and after a tearful goodbye, we were on our way. Our first stop was Spioenkop dam Nature Reserve. A few distinctive calls like that from Golden-tailed woodpecker and Chinspot batis greeted us as we entered the reserve and while still on the tarred section we got a nice surprise: Brown-backed honeybird. In the thornveld we added a number of typical bushveld species but nothing of particular interest. The dam itself had very little to offer but as the tracks in the reserve seemed to be much more extensive than indicated on the map, we thought it a good idea to return to the reserve on a future trip. At 10am we turned around and paid a visit to Ladysmith's sewerage works. This was unfortunately quite a let-down. Despite a very helpful lady pointing out where we could watch birds, the place is unsafe, completely overgrown and has zero facilities for birders. After picking up Yellow-billed egret, African purple swamphen, a few White-faced ducks and an African pied wagtail, we left. It was now already almost noon and with a long way ahead of us, we got onto the N11 back home. Between Ladysmith and Newcastle we ran into a 15km section of road works where they forced you to drive 40km/h on average by putting up speedbumps every few 100m. Having bounced over 57 of these in more than 30 minutes it took us to drive this section, we had little pleasant to say about the current condition of SA roads. This was not helped by another stretch of 43km of horrendous road between Amersfoort and Morgenzon. For the past 5 years we have not been able to drive anywhere in the country without running into major road works, pathetic roads or countless Stop/Go sections. We wonder if it will ever end... But there's no point about complaining about this as we had a fantastic time in the 'Berg with friends and family and we look forward to seeing them again, hopefully in the not-too-distant future.

Dar es Salaam birding, Mar 2013

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• List of birds

After a business visit to Tanga on Tanzania’s north coast, I was able to add 2 days at the end of the trip to do some birding around Dar es Salaam. I made contact with a local bird guide, Andrew Majembe, but unfortunately he was not available and passed me on to two of his friends, Salvatore and Filbert. On Friday morning, 29 March, disaster struck Dar es Salaam when a multi-storey building in the same block where my hotel stood, collapsed, killing at least 34 people. During my entire stay there was the constant noise of heavy machinery and ambulances, trying to get to trapped survivors. It also made it getting into and out of the area problematic and traffic was an absolute mess. But when the two guides came to pick me up very early on Saturday morning, at least the crowds of people have dissipated somewhat and we were able to get out of the area quickly. We started birding north of the harbour on the beach road but as the tide was in, there were no sea- or shore birds around. The only interesting things we saw were Yellow-throated longclaw and African pipit. We got on the harbour ferry and made our way to Kibugumo where we walked around some woodland patches in between cultivated land. Sombre greenbul, Emerald-spotted wood dove, White-browed coucal, Klaas’s cuckoo, Water thick-knee and Black-collared barbet were all calling in the morning heat and it was not long before I added my first lifer for the day: Zanzibar red bishop. Little bee-eaters were quite common and after we also heard Tropical boubou, Green-backed camaroptera and Black-crowned tchagra, we had fantastic views of Collared palm-thrush. As we strolled across a soccer field I noticed something sitting on a telephone wire that didn’t quite look like the omnipresent House crows. We strolled a little closer until I could definitely see that it was some kind of goshawk. Treading softly to not scare it, we crept even closer and then finally we were able to distinguish clearly the yellow facial markings – it was my second lifer for the trip, an Eastern chanting goshawk. It was an hour and a half's drive from here to Dondwe forest where we parked and had a bite to eat before starting a walk. We had to use one of the local village boys as a guide but the chosen path soon disappeared into heavy tangles and we had to turn around. Choosing a different path we skirted the edge of what turned out to be more slash-and-burn cultivation than actual forest. Even so, birds heard or seen included Gorgeous and Orange-breasted bush-shrikes, my first Broad-tailed paradise whydah and Grey tit-flycatcher. It was a long drive back to Dar es Salaam and the idea of making a quick pass at the woodcarver's market in Mwengi was a bad one as the traffic was horrendous. It took us over 3 hours to get back to Dar, quickly buy a mask at the market and return to my hotel. With only 46 birds ID'd for the morning the birding was not particularly great but considering that we were mostly still within Dar es Salaam and I did add 3 lifers, it was OK. Hopefully next I'd be able to head out a bit further into some proper forest.

Zululand forest birding, Mar 2013

Links

• List of birds

At 4pm I picked Nicola up from work and we left immediately, driving down first the N11 to Ermelo, getting stuck behind endless numbers of trucks and then onto the N2, past Piet Retief and then south to Paulpietersburg, arriving at our farm accommodation outside Vryheid just after 8pm. We had the old farmhouse all to ourselves and had an easy evening before going to bed.

On Thursday morning we were up before sunrise and headed for Vryheid Hill Nature Reserve. Despite being managed by KZN Ezemvelo, the tracks inside the reserve does not seem to be maintained and on top of the hill it’s so washed away that we eventually had to turn around. But the drive through the forest is nice and apart from Broad-tailed warbler (lifer) calling in the grassland below, we also added Red-fronted tinkerbird, Tambourine dove, Sombre greenbul and African paradise flycatcher. On top of the hill it was cold, windy and misty but we did spot a female Buff-streaked chat before we headed back to town again. The Klipfontein Bird Sanctuary was rather disappointing – very overgrown and the hide locked with no explanation of where to obtain the lock combination. We left Vryheid around 10am and made our way slowly to Melmoth, arriving in Eshowe around lunch time. At Bishop’s Seat inside Dlinza forest we had lunch but spotted nothing until we drove back out and Nicola spotted a Narina trogon, low down in the forest, barely 3 meters from the car. We checked into Dlinza Forest Accommodation, a mere 100m from the Aerial Boardwalk and after taking a bit of a rest, spent the last hour of daylight on the boardwalk picking up Cape batis, Trumpeter hornbill, Cape white-eye and Knysna turacos.

Waking up to thick mist and a chilly wind, we were not very hopeful as we walked back to the Aerial boardwalk but our guide for the morning, Sbu, managed to find a whole bunch of forest birds in the 3 hours we spent with him: Terrestrial brownbul, Chorister and Red-capped robin-chats, Eastern olive sunbird, Scaly-throated honeyguide, Square-tailed drongo, Olive woodpecker, Dark-backed weaver, African goshawk, Red-fronted and Yellow-rumped tinkerbirds and undoubtedly the prize of the day, Spotted ground thrush (lifer for Nicola). Having finished our walk in Dlinza forest we spent another hour at the hide and on the boardwalk before returning to the lodge, picking up lunch and driving out to Entumeni forest. The track into Entumeni was narrow and thickly overgrown; it took some careful driving to reach the picnic spot but it was quiet, secluded and absolutely beautiful. Not feeling like walking much, we just sat around the picnic table and ate lunch and in the process got Yellow-bellied greenbul responding to playback, heard a single Olive bush-shrike call and saw some chattering Collared sunbirds right above our table. Just after 1pm we left again, spotted a lone Red-backed mannikin on the way out before holing up for a rest in the heat of the day. Late afternoon we ventured back onto the boardwalk . Purple-crested turacos were calling raucously and even though a human family with a noisy toddler and baby scared some birds away, we still picked up two Grey cuckooshrikes, Bronze mannikins and a few Cape white-eyes. Back at the Forest Accommodation it was time for dinner and an early night.

It was still dark when we left for Mtunzini and although the sky was clear, a strong wind was still blowing. Sakhamuzi Mhlongo, a Zululand Birding Route guide, was waiting for us at the BP station just outside Mtunzini; we picked him up and he guided us into Ongoye forest where we parked next to the Birding Camp in the eastern section of the forest. This was our first attempt at finding Green barbet. We took a walk down into the forest to where a small stream was running and got good views of Yellow-streaked greenbul, Square-tailed drongo and Collared sunbird but the wind was blowing strongly and made so much noise in the trees that we could not hear any responses to our Green barbet playback. After walking up and down for about half an hour we returned to the car and drove deeper into the forest. The faint track crossed waving grasslands where the car scared up Neddicky,  Croaking and Zitting cisticolas. We parked at the edge of the forest about 3km from where the Birding Camp is and started walking down. Although our Green barbet playback was still unsuccessful, there were plenty of other birds that kept us interested: Black-bellied starling, African paradise flycatcher, Narina trogon and Red-fronted tinkerbird made it onto the list. After walking for almost a kilometer, Sakhamuzi veered off onto a thin trail and a little deeper into the forest. We played the Green barbet call again and then suddenly we all three heard it – a faint response far off. We moved on a little onto a bare granite slab and played the call again – and almost immediately Sakhamuzi saw it fly in – we had it! A single Green barbet was sitting right above us in the tree and we had fantastic views of it as it turned this way and that and eventually called it’s soft chook chook call while we were watching. Nicola even managed to get a few pictures through the binoculars before it flew off. A few other birds also attracted our attention: a Dark-backed weaver made a brief appearance and then a Grey sunbird responded very well to playback. Happy with our success we made our way back to the car and picked up some more forest birds: Grey cuckooshrike, Cape batis and close-ups of Blue-mantled crested flycatcher. On the drive back to Mtunzini we also saw Dusky indigobird and then made a turn at the Umlalazi Nature Reserve where we had brief glimpses of another two lifers we were hoping to get: Palm-nut vulture and Mangrove kingfisher. A nice surprise came in the fly-by of two Broad-billed rollers – a very good record this far south. Just after 12:30 we finally said goodbye to Sakhamuzi who did a great job finding us four lifers for the day. Back in Eshowe it was time for a shower and a rest. Late afternoon we made another call to the boardwalk but the weather has changed: the wind was still blowing strongly but now from the south-west and heavy clouds were racing across the sky. We only stayed for about 10 minutes - it was obvious all the birds were hunkering down for the coming storm, so we followed suit.

It rained during the night and was cool as we packed up at 4am. But a few stars could be seen and it looked like we'd still have a last rain-free birding day. We headed for the N2 and then drove north to reach Bonamanzi Game Park just after 6am. We were hoping to get Lemon-breasted canary and if we we re able to get onto the Hluhluwe flood plain, Rosy-throated longclaw as well. Driving to Lalapanzi camp we heard Bearded scrub-robin, Yellow-bellied and Sombre greenbuls, Terrestrial brownbul and our first Gorgeous bush-shrike for the year. At Lalapanzi we learned that access to the Hluhluwe flood plain is only through a booking and costs R500 per person so we left the longclaw for next time. We had breakfast at one of the hides but this produced few birds and we soon left to drive the rest of the park. Approaching our turn-around time, we heard a strange call that left us baffled. Parking the car, we slowly walked towards the call, close to one of the isolated chalets. Whatever it was stopped calling when we got near but as I searched beyond the chalet I suddenly saw a medium-sized bird of prey take flight from a perch. It was obviously where the call came from and at least now we had an idea of what it could've been. Back in the car we played all the raptor calls and then suddenly we got it - it was a Southern banded snake-eagle! This was quite a surprise lifer and we had to listen to the playback several times to confirm the ID. Happy with a lifer, we left the reserve but just before we crossed the train tracks to get back to the highway, Nicola spotted a longclaw among some Crowned lapwings. Although it was just a Yellow-throated longclaw, we haven't seen this species in almost 3 years and Nicola made another discovery: a whole flock of Lemon-breasted canary feeding in longish grass next to the longclaw and lapwings! Fantastic! Vowing to return to Bonamanzi later in the year, we settled on the long drive home, getting back without incident at 4pm.