bird list – Bewilderbeast Droppings

After two years and nine months of sad stoeplessness, order has at last been restored. I have a stoep, a LaZboy, my coffee and my binoculars in place again as they should be.

Aaah

~~oo0oo~~

stoep – porch, patio, deck, veranda

And: My coffee got an upgrade – and a Narina Trogon is hooting as I sip n scribble.

And now a Bronze Caco is going creep and a Bush Squeaker is going sweep. Paradise.

And now even guest beds! OK, now it’s getting a bit worrying ..

Nearly three weeks on my stoep and here’s the birdlist:

Eastern Golden Weaver, Dark-backed Weaver, White-eared Barbet, Dark-capped Bulbul, Hadeda, Hamerkop, Yellow-rumped Tinker, Palm Swift, European Bee-eater, Puffback, Red-eyed Dove, Yellow-bellied Greenbul, Redcapped Robin-chat, Purple-crested Turaco, Purple-banded (or Marico) Sunbird, Olive Sunbird, Emerald Cuckoo, Klaas’ Cuckoo, Trumpeter Hornbill, Gorgeous Bush-shrike, Narina Trogon, Yellow-billed Kite, Burchell’s Coucal, Golden-tailed Woodpecker, Woolly-necked Stork, Sombre Greenbul, Amethyst Sunbird, Bronze Mannikin, Green-backed Camaroptera, Crowned Eagle, Speckled Mousebird, Southern Boubou, Red-backed Mannikin, Tambourine Dove, Green Malkoha, Diederik Cuckoo, Spectacled Weaver, Crested Barbet, Violet-backed Starling, Black-bellied Starling, African Goshawk, Scaly-throated Honeyguide, Lesser Honeyguide, White-faced Owl?, Black-collared Barbet, Cape White-eye, [Scaly-throat HG being fed by GT Woodpeck!], Fiery-necked Night jar, Scarlet-chested Sunbird, Wood Owl, Grey Waxbill, Collared Sunbird, African Fish Eagle, White-faced Whistling Duck, Brown-hooded Kingfisher, Palm Nut Vulture, Crested Barbet (heard), Lipstick (don’t call me common) Waxbill, Yellow-streaked Greenbul,

At the lagoon: Common Ringed Plover

Now we can explore

It’s been a long time since I last heard the plaintive, mournful-sounding hoot of the Buff-spotted Flufftail, Sarothrura elegans, while lying in my own bed. But the last few nights he has been hooting gently outside my window in Westville above the Palmiet River:

– sound from xeno-canto.org – thank you –

Hope they stay awhile . . .

– crispin hemson pic from pigeon valley durban – thank you –

I heard it for fifteen years at 7 River Drive on the Mkombaan River in Westville, but although I searched and stalked and lay in wait at all hours, the only one I saw was one the bloody next door cat killed! Something like this:

~~~oo0oo~~~

And then at last I saw one of Crispin Hemson’s tame*** flufftails at Pigeon Valley in Durban. One lone male. And just for a few seconds before he ducked into the undergrowth. I was pleased to see one of Crispin’s pictures has been used in wikipedia.

*** not really tame – just on his famous patch!

~~~oo0oo~~~

Friend Rob Davey is a security camera boffin. He aimed one at his birdbath out north of Durban:

https://videopress.com/v/6lXU0LZV?resizeToParent=true&cover=true&preloadContent=metadata

List of Birds of 7 River Drive – my patch

Mkombaan River valley, Westville KZN – Jan 1989 – Dec 2003

Breeds – Y means we have seen an active nest or young fledglings being fed here.

Spotted Thrush	Seen three separate winter-times in 15 years
Kurrichane Thrush		Y
Olive Thrush
Narina Trogon	Three times in 15 years, once stayed a week
Pigmy Kingfisher	Three times
Brown-hooded Kingfisher	Nests in a bank in Deon’s yard next door (no. 5)	Y
Malachite Kingfisher	Once
Olive Bush-shrike (ruddy form	Once – stayed about a week. Lovely song
Orange-breasted Bush-shrike	Heard quite often, seen about three times
Black Sparrowhawk	Raises a chick here most years	Y
Gymnogene	Raises a chick here most years	Y
Crowned Eagle	Flying & calling overhead
Fish Eagle	Flying & calling overhead
African Goshawk	Resident King of the woods	Y
Black-headed Heron	Flying overhead
Pied Crow	Flying overhead
Barn Swallow
Lesser Striped Swallow
Rock Martin
White-rumped Swift
Little Swift
Palm Swift
Reed Cormorant	Once, flying overhead, then circled and landed in the Mkombaan River!
Woolly-necked Stork	Perched on a garage roof at top of our valley!
Bush Blackcap	One winter, stayed ten days
Willow Warbler	Arrives every summer from frosty England
Red-backed Mannikin
Bronze Mannikin		Y
Bar-throated Apalis
Yellow-breasted Apalis
Rudd’s Apalis !!?	Unlikely, yet seen close-up by Trish and I on potplant on the driveway! Nov 2003; Needs verification!
Natal Francolin	Heard often, seen once
Buff-spotted Flufftail	Heard very often, never seen
Red-chested Cuckoo	Juvenile seen once in fig tree over pool
Emerald Cuckoo	Including a juv being fed by Olive sunbird	y
Klaas’ Cuckoo
Black Cuckoo
Diederik Cuckoo
Longbilled Crombec
Tambourine Dove	Often
Emerald-spotted Dove	Seldom
Red-eyed Dove	Most common dove	y
Laughing Dove		y
Ring-necked parakeet	Once, flying past into no. 14
Fiery-necked nightjar	Heard often, seen twice
Paradise flycatcher	Nests every year	y
Dusky Flycatcher	Nests every year	y
Blue-grey Flycatcher	Nests most years	y
Spotted Flycatcher	A few visits
Black Flycatcher		y
Purple-crested Lourie	Nested in Umdoni tree on River Drive	y
African Hoopoe	Once at top of River Drive
Red-billed Wood Hoopoe	Have nested in our nestboxes about 3 times	y
Lesser Honeyguide	Often
Greater Honeyguide	Seldom
Scaly-throated Honeyguide	Seldom
Sharp-billed Honeyguide	Twice
Blackbellied Glossy Starlings	Nest most years	y
Green Twinspot	Seen four times, heard more times
Long-tailed Wagtail	Up & down the river, occasionally next to pool	y
Cape Wagtail	Nests in Dracaena outside front door
Pied Wagtail	Next to pool	y
Southern Boubou	Heard all the time, seldom seen	y
Golden-tailed Woodpecker	Nests most years	y
Cardinal Woodpecker
Olive Sunbird	The Boss; Once raised an Emerald Cuckoo chick	y
White-bellied Sunbird	Usually behind house, seldom in front garden!
Collared Sunbird	Nests most years	y
Black Sunbird	Occasional
Grey Sunbird	Often
Black-collared Barbet	Always	y
Crested Barbet	Once
Golden-rumped Tinker	Always
Hamerkop	Often – heard more than seen
Yellow-billed Kite
Burchell’s Coucal
Grey-headed Sparrow	Seen twice
Streaky-headed Canary
Yellow-eyed Canary
Bully Canary
Tawny-flanked Prinia	Nests every year in long grass above washline	y
Natal Robin	Trish’s friend – also spotted chicks most years	y
White-browed Scrub-robin
Southern Black Tit
Terrestrial Bulbul	Outside bedroom window
Black-eyed Bulbul		y
Sombre Bulbul
Black-headed Oriole
Black Cuckoo-shrike	In fig tree most years
Fork-tailed Drongo		y
Puffback
White-faced Whistling Duck	Whistling high overhead at night
Cape White-eye		y
Bleating Bush Warbler
Neddicky
Indian Mynah
Cape Glossy Starling
Plum-coloured Starling
Thick-billed Weaver
Spotted-backed Weaver		y
Spectacled Weaver	Nests every year	y
Forest Weaver	Seldom
Blue-billed Firefinch
Common Waxbill
Grey Waxbill	Regular in early years, scarce lately
Swee Waxbill	Twice
Redwing Starling
Chin-spot Batis
Cape Batis
Hadeda Ibis		y
Sacred Ibis	Flying overhead
Speckled Mousebird		y

~~~oo0oo~~~

Tag Archives: bird list

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List of Birds of 7 River Drive – my patch

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List of Birds of 7 River Drive – my patch

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