Monkeys Wedding

Driving Mahonie (mahogany) Loop north of Punda Maria camp in June 2022, I heard parrots shrieking. Big old trees abound, including Mkuhlas – the Natal Mahogany Trichilia emetica. Scanning the trees I spotted them. Hey, they’re bigger! Those are Cape Parrots. A new species for my trip. Whoa, Wait. There’s been some splitting. These are now a new species: It’s a LIFER: Grey-headed Parrot (Poicephalus fuscicollis)!

And now I see it’s also called the Brown-necked Parrot, dunno why? The ones I saw had a grey heads and necks.

Up near Pafuri, soft rain fell in bright sunshine. A Monkey’s Wedding! This is baobab and mopane woodland country. The sunlight emphasised the ‘autumn’ colors of the mopani leaves. It was neat to see the dirt roads drizzled clean, with no vehicle tracks, making it easy to see if there were any new animal tracks.

At the bridge over the Luvhuvhu, another LIFER: a Mottled Spinetail (Telacanthura ussheri). Baobab trees hint at the possibility of their presence, but I’ve tried in vain for years to see them clearly enough to identify. Today they co-operated!

In Punda camp I got parked in by a German couple in a huge overland truck. To get out I nudged one of their huge spare tyres with my spare tyre so I could make my turn, causing the lady to rush out shouting blah blah like a Karen. I said relax, fraulein. Later they pulled into a site near mine and that was it, no door or window opened, they stayed inside. They had aircon running, and an onboard toilet, shower and kitchen. I didn’t see them stick a nose outside the whole time they were there! They must have though, as the next day there were two deck chairs outside. Touring in a hermetically sealed truck, keeping Africa at arms length! Different.

Not much accommodation north of Punda Maria. A couple of private lodges, and a camp near the Mocambique border which was full, but “Try River Camp,” the helpful fella at Pafuri gate suggested. I was glad he did. So Saturday and Sunday nights were outside the park at Pafuri Rivercamp, a lovely spot, I recommend it. It rained on the way there, ca.4pm and on & off to 7pm. The camper proved rainproof and cosy in my beautiful campsite under big shady trees. Each site has its own rustic shower and kitchen with gas geyser and paraffin lamps. As I fell asleep Eastern Olive Toad ‘ruarks’ from the nearby Mutale River filled the night. The Mutale flows into the famous-for-birders Luvhuvhu, which I finally got to see after reading about it for decades. The Luvhuvhu flows on into the more famous Limpopo where SA, Zimbabwe and Moçambique meet near ‘Crooks Corner,’ land of myths about crooks, rustlers, smugglers and fugitives.

Saddle-bill Stork

White-crowned Lapwing

Heuglins Robin-chat (white-browed)

Mosque Swallow

Magpie Shrike

Black-crowned Tchagra

Brown-crowned Tchagra

Burchells Coucal

White-crested Helmet-shrike

Tawny Eagle

Bateleur

Collared Sunbird

White-bellied Sunbird

Marico Sunbird

Terrestrial Brownbul

White-fronted Bee-eater

Fish Eagle

Red-bill Firefinch

Red-headed Weaver

Pin-tailed Whydah

Long-tailed Paradise whydah +○

Greater honeyguide calling

Wire-tailed swallow

Rock Martin

Dickinsons Kestrel

Cut-throat Finch

Red-billed Quelea

Terrestrial Brownbul

Black-headed Oriole

Red-capped Robin-chat

Yellow-bellied Greenbul

Yellow-breasted Apalis

Scimitarbill

Golden-tailed Woodpecker

Emerald-spotted Wood-dove

Verreaux’s eagle Owl heard

‘Pafuri picnic site is beautiful’ is an understatement. I have little doubt most places called ‘Eden’ are a pale shadow of Pafuri picnic site on the right bank of the Luvhuvhu. Bias, sure.

Notes for next time: Check out Kloppersfontein again. Spend a full day at Pafuri picnic site, a really a very special spot on the Luvhuvhu – see the insert pic in the collage above. Lots of birds; Big gang of Banded Mongooses; Big Nyala bulls soft-shoe stepping around each other in an elaborate polite-yet-wary macho display, vervets being chased by the camp superintendent. Nyala road nearby is beautiful.

~~oo0oo~~

Next – on to Mapungubwe.