Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019 www.tropicalbirding.com +1-409-515-9110 [email protected]s Northern Cape of South Africa: Rare mammals & birds 7 th –14 th October, 2019 Tour leader: Charley Hesse Report by Charley Hesse. Photos by Charley Hesse (unless otherwise stated) Our sightings of Aardvarks were one of the highlights of this trip. Anybody that has been on a night drive in Africa will know that from the long and mouth-watering list of nocturnal mammals, you tend to see very few. Veterans from dozens of night drives would still probably be missing many of the rarer species. In the Northern Cape of South Africa, many of these species are not only present but common and readily seen. Indeed, mammals like Black-footed Cat, Aardvark & Aardwolf are seen on most night drives. In addition to the nocturnal mammals, many diurnal mammals add appeal to this area, such as Meercat, Karoo Rock Sengi, Black & White Rhinos, Black Wildebeest, Tsesebbe, Roan and Sable. This area marks the southern extent of the Kalahari and many of the bird species seen here are similar to those one would expect to see in Namibia or Botswana. Some of our avian highlights included, White-quilled, Red-crested & Ludwig’s Bustards, Double-banded Courser, Greater Kestrel, Pygmy Falcon, Crimson-breasted Gonolek and Orange River White-eye. This spread of amazing wildlife in easily accessible parks, with decent accommodation and home-cooked traditional food make this a very attractive alternative to the more regularly visited South African parks.
21
Embed
Northern Cape of South Africa: Rare mammals & birds...Northern Cape of South Africa: Rare mammals & birds 7th–14th October, 2019 Tour leader: Charley Hesse Report by Charley Hesse.
This document is posted to help you gain knowledge. Please leave a comment to let me know what you think about it! Share it to your friends and learn new things together.
Transcript
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
Northern Cape of South Africa: Rare mammals & birds 7th–14th October, 2019
Tour leader: Charley Hesse
Report by Charley Hesse. Photos by Charley Hesse (unless otherwise stated)
Our sightings of Aardvarks were one of the highlights of this trip.
Anybody that has been on a night drive in Africa will know that from the long and mouth-watering list of nocturnal mammals, you tend to see very few. Veterans from dozens of night drives would still probably be missing many of the rarer species. In the Northern Cape of South Africa, many of these species are not only present but common and readily seen. Indeed, mammals like Black-footed Cat, Aardvark & Aardwolf are seen on most night drives. In addition to the nocturnal mammals, many diurnal mammals add appeal to this area, such as Meercat, Karoo Rock Sengi, Black & White Rhinos, Black Wildebeest, Tsesebbe, Roan and Sable. This area marks the southern extent of the Kalahari and many of the bird species seen here are similar to those one would expect to see in Namibia or Botswana. Some of our avian highlights included, White-quilled, Red-crested & Ludwig’s Bustards, Double-banded Courser, Greater Kestrel, Pygmy Falcon, Crimson-breasted Gonolek and Orange River White-eye. This spread of amazing wildlife in easily accessible parks, with decent accommodation and home-cooked traditional food make this a very attractive alternative to the more regularly visited South African parks.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
8th October – Johannesburg to Mokhala NP After our night’s stay at a Johannesburg airport hotel we enjoyed an early breakfast looking out over a small garden. There was a surprising number of birds out the window, many of which we wouldn’t see again on the tour, including Grey Go-away Bird, Speckled Mousebird, Karoo Thrush and Cape Robin-Chat. We took the hotel shuttle back to the terminal and checked in for our flights to Kimberley just an hour away. It was a fairly small plane, and coming in we enjoyed aerial views of the surrounding habitat as well as the famous ‘Big Hole’. After picking up our rental vehicle, we went shopping for supplies for the next 3 days at the local mall. Mokhala NP restaurant had been closed for refurbishment so I would be catering for the group. Shopping done, we had a quick lunch before driving to Mokhala. We got there in under an hour, signed in at the gate, then drove to Mosu Camp, where we would be staying. There was a pair of Pygmy Falcons nesting in a Social Weaver colony next in the parking lot and the male was perched on top of a tree, keeping watch. After we checked in, we had a rest before taking a short afternoon drive on the Tsesebbe Loop. We did actually see a Tsesebbe, as well as a pair of Spotted Thickknees, a juvenile Brown Snake-Eagle and Swallow-tailed Bee-eater.
Typical rocky scenery at Mokhala (Mikiko Hashiba) Pygmy Falcon nesting at Mosu Camp.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
9th October – Mokhala NP We had set up tables and chairs outside one of the bungalows and enjoyed an outdoor ‘birding breakfast’ with a number of remarkably tame birds hopping round us. The ‘friendliest’ of all was a Chestnut-vented Warbler which we had to be careful not to step on. We set off on a morning drive on a different route from yesterday. We saw several good birds, including Short-toed Rock-Thrush, Kalahari Scrub-Robin, Brown-crowned Tchagra, Rufous-eared Warbler and Piping Cisticola. We also saw plenty of mammals, including Meercats, Yellow Mongoose and a wide variety of antelopes. We arrived at the Stofdam Hide where the waterhole had shrunk to a small muddy puddle but there were still Warthogs and Blue Wildebeest coming in to drink. It was also good for small birds and we saw Violet-eared Waxbill, Green-winged Pytilia, Red-billed Firefinch, Shaft-tailed & Eastern Paradise Whydahs. On the way back to Mosu camp, we stopped in at the interpretive Centre where we enjoyed the displays, and especially the stuffed Aardvark.
This Chestnut-vented Warbler was our constant companion at meal times.
After a delicious lunch (I’m just saying) and a rest, we did a short afternoon drive, this time picking up Mountain Wheatear, Long-billed Pipit, Crowned Lapwing, White-quilled Bustard, Golden-breasted Bunting and Fawn-colured & Sabota Larks. For mammals, we had the usual array of antelopes, like Kudu, Gemsbok and Springbok, plus the less common Tsesebbe and a couple of large male African Buffalo stolling by. Tonight, we would take the first of 5 night drives which were the main focus of this tour. After an early dinner, we met our driver and boarded the open safari vehicle making sure we were wrapped up warm. It was a little cold and windy tonight but we still managed to see Rufous-cheeked Nightjar and Spotted Eagle-Owl, plus many Springhare, Scrub Hare and 2 African Wildcats.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
10th October – Mokhala NP This morning after another early breakfast, we started our morning drive, heading up towards the northern area of the park. This was a more typical savanna habitat and we picked up some nice new birds, like Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, Red-crested Bustard and Crimson-breasted Shrike. After a couple of hours, we stopped at the Kameldoring picnic site where we were allowed to alight the vehicle and use the bathroom. We used the opportunity to take advantage of the improved visibility and look at a few birds. Here we saw Common Scimitarbill and Brubru. On the way back to camp, we passed a waterhole where we saw our first South African Shelduck. After a nice lunch and a rest, we took our afternoon drive, and had some nice sightings like Ashy Tit, African Cuckoo, Pale Chanting Goshawk, Swallow-tailed Bee-eater and Red-crested Bustard. We never tired of seeing Meercats, and we had an individual climbing up on a fallen tree to scan the area. It was a little warmer tonight on the night drive and wind much lower. We saw a lot more tonight, and in addition to the numerous Springhares and Scrub Hares, we added Eland, Waterbuck, both Black & White Rhinos plus our much hoped for Aardvark; a lifer for everybody.
Typical savanna habitats in the north of Mokhala (Mikiko Hashiba). Crimson-breasted Gonolek.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
11th October – Mokhala NP to Marrick Game Farm It was time to move on to our next site. After breakfast, we packed up, checked out and set off for the north of the park that we would be exploring on the way to the northern exit. We took a bathroom break part way up and again, found Common Scimitarbill and Red-billed Oxpecker. Other nice birds seen on our drive through this section included Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, European Bee-eater and Crimson-breasted Shrike. There is an open grassy plain near the Lilydale campground, which was quite a different habitat to the rocky or wooded savanna areas we had seen up until this point. In the middle of the grassland was a viewing platform where we were able to get out of the vehicle and scan the surroundings. It looked over a waterhole where there was a pair of South African Shelducks plus Egyptian Geese and Blacksmith’s Lapwings. The highlight though, were the Black Wildebeest and large herd of Roan coming in to drink. Further exploration of the grassland produced Spike-heeled & Eastern Clapper Larks.
The rare Roan Antelope.
Our time was up in the park, and after a short search of our vehicle by the security guard on the gate, we drove out. The road outside still passed through some nice habitat and we added our first Double-banded Courser and a small flock of Red-faced Mousebirds. We drove back to Kimberley where we had lunch and did a bit of shopping, then drove out on a different road to Marrick Game Farm. After settling in, we took a late afternoon walk around the lodge, picking up a few nice birds, including Golden-tailed Woodpecker, some Southern Masked Weavers displaying and a Eurasian Hoopoe. There were also some South African Ground Squirrels scurrying across the ground. After dinner, we took our first of 3 night drives here. We weren’t disappointed, and in 2 and a half hours, we saw 2 Cape Porcupines, 7 Bat-eared Foxes, 5 Aardwolves and a distant Black-footed Cat. It looked like we were going to miss Aardvark, but just before we got back we came across a pair. Birdwise, we also found Double-banded Courser and a Spotted Eagle-Owl.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
12th October – Marrick Game Farm After some coffee and a snack, we took our morning game drive in the same open safari vehicle as last night. We would return for a late breakfast. We had an excellent drive with our local guide ‘Jonny Boy’ who was as knowledgeable about birds as he was the nocturnal animals. We had some good sightings in the morning, including Greater Kestrel, a pair of the rare Ludwig’s Bustard, Cape Griffon, lots of Grey-backed Sparrow-Larks, Eastern Clapper Lark, Cloud Cisticola (which had just started singing today) and some Quailfinches coming in to drink at a waterhole. We were also shown some of the reserve prize Sable including a stunning male with its long curved horns. We had a wonderful cooked breakfast followed by a well-deserved rest. Looking out of the lodge window at lunch time we saw a Golden-tailed Woodpecker sticking its head out of a nest hole.
Sable is arguably the most beautiful antelope in the world.
After another rest, we took a short afternoon drive to the nearby bird hide, where we had lots of birds coming in to drink, including Lark-like & Cinnamon-breasted Buntings and Pin-tailed Whydah along with a pair of Three-banded Plovers feeding on the muddy edges. Exploration of the grasslands produced Plain-backed Pipit, Southern Anteater Chats and Spike-heeled Lark which posed nicely for photos. After dinner, it was time for our second night drive, which was just as good as last night’s. Tonight, we had a whopping 4 Aardvarks, 5 Bat-eared Foxes, 1 Aardwolf and 2 Black-footed Cats. One cat was distant, but one close enough to see the spotted fur. The Aardvarks were also much closer, and we got some nice photos. Birds seen tonight, included several Double-banded Coursers, including a small chick, Barn Owls and White-quilled Bustards.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
13th October – Marrick Game Farm We took another morning drive with Jonny Boy, on which we saw Common Ostrich, Namaqua Sandgrouse, Spotted Thick-knee and great views of the beautiful Crimson-breasted Gonolek, we also had some nice mammals, like Eland, Blesbok, Roan and Sable. The last species is particularly valuable and is one of the ways this place makes its money. We explored the further reaches of this large private reserve before coming back for a late breakfast. After breakfast we were shown a habituated group of Meercats that comes in every few days to feed on chicken hearts fed to them by the owners. They were remarkably tame and posed nicely for photos. In the mid-afternoon, we took another walk around the lodge grounds and photographed some more nice birds, including Eurasian Hoopoe, Cardinal Woodpecker, Pririt Batis, Black-chested Prinia and our first Karoo Scrub-Robin.
Karoo Rock Sengi was an unexpected bonus at Marrick.
In the late afternoon, Jonny Boy took us on a short drive to a small, rocky koppie to look for Karoo Rock Sengi. Until recently, it was thought to have been the Western Rock Sengi but a university professors had figured out it was this more restricted species. Jonny Boy and I scoured the rocks while the clients remained in the back of the safari vehicle just at the base of the koppie. With some elderly clients, the idea was to encourage the sengi to hop across in from of them. I finally found the litter critter sandwiched between rocks, but it moved closer to the clients and eventually showed itself nicely. These unusual animals look like a large rat or shrew but are not related. After dinner, we boarded our final night drive. We only saw 1 Aardvark tonight bringing our total for the trip to 8! We had more good views of Aardwolf, and our very best views and photos of Bat-eared Foxes and Black-baked Jackal. It had been a privilege to have seen so many difficult rare nocturnal mammals in this special place. We actually had seen an amazing 45 species of mammals in a single week!
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
Bird list Taxonomy follows ebird/Clements online checklist. Updated Aug 2019
STRUTHIONIFORMES: Struthionidae
Common Ostrich Struthio camelus Seen at Mokhala & Marrick.
ANSERIFORMES: Anatidae
Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca Seen at Mokhala & Marrick.
South African Shelduck Tadorna cana Seen at Mokhala. GALLIFORMES: Numididae
Helmeted Guineafowl Numida Meleagris Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. PHOENICOPTERIFORMES: Phoenicopteridae Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus Seen from the plane near Kimberley. Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor Near-threatened Seen from the plane near Kimberley.
COLUMBIFORMES: Columbidae
Rock Pigeon Columba livia Seen at Marrick.
Speckled Pigeon Columba guinea Seen at Mokhala & Marrick.
Red-eyed Dove Streptopelia semitorquata Seen at Marrick.
Ring-necked Dove Streptopelia capicola Seen at Mokhala & Marrick.
Laughing Dove Streptopelia senegalensis Seen at Mokhala & Marrick.
Namaqua Dove Oena capensis Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. PTEROCLIFORMES: Pteroclidae
Namaqua Sandgrouse Pterocles Namaqua Seen at Marrick. OTIDIFORMES: Otididae
Ludwig's Bustard Neotis ludwigii Endangered Seen at Marrick.
Red-crested Bustard Eupodotis ruficrista Seen at Mokhala.
White-quilled Bustard Eupodotis afraoides Seen at Mokhala & Marrick.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
Lark-like Bunting Emberiza impetuani Seen at Mokhala & Marrick.
Cinnamon-breasted Bunting Emberiza tahapisi Seen at Marrick.
MAMMAL LIST (Mammal taxonomy follows IUCN) Macroscelidea (Elephant shrews) Karoo Rock Elephant Shrew Elephantulus pilicaudus Data deficient Seen at Marrick. Cercopithecidae (Old World Monkeys) Chacma Baboon Papio ursinus Seen at Mokhala. Vervet Monkey Cercopithecus aethiops Seen at Mokhala. Leporidae (Rabbits) Cape Hare Lepus capensis Seen at Marrick. Scrub Hare Lepus saxatilis Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Smith’s Red Rock Hare Pronolagus rupestris Seen at Marrick. Sciuridae (Squirrels) South African Ground Squirrel Geosciurus inauris Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Pedetidae (Springhares) South African Springhare Pedetes capensis Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Hystricidae (Porcupines) Cape Porcupine Hystrix africaeaustralis Seen at Marrick. Muridae (Mice) Cape Short-tailed Gerbil Desmodillus auricularis Seen at Marrick. Four-striped Grass Mouse Rhabdomys pumilio Seen at Marrick. Pygmy Mouse Mus minutoides Seen at Marrick.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
Canidae (Dogs) Bat-eared Fox Otocyon megalotis Seen at Marrick. Black-backed Jackal Canis mesomelas Seen at Marrick. Heroestidae (Mongooses) Yellow Mongoose Cynictis penicillata Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Meercat Suricata suricatta Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Hyaenidae (Hyaenas) Aardwolf Proteles cristatus Seen at Marrick. Felidae (Cats) African Wild Cat Felis lybica Seen at Mokhala. Black-footed Cat Felis nigripes Vulnerable Seen at Marrick. Orycteropodidae (Aardvark) Aardvark Orycteropus afer Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Equidae (Horses) Plains Zebra Equus quagga Near-threatened Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Rhinocerotidae (Rhinoceroses) White Rhino Ceratotherium simum Near-threatened Seen at Mokhala. Black Rhino Diceros bicornis Critically endangered Seen at Mokhala. Suidae (Pigs) Common Warthog Phacochoerus africanus Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Giraffidae (Giraffe) Giraffe Giraffa camelopardalis Vulnerable Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Bovidae (Bovids) African Buffalo Syncerus caffer Near threatened Seen at Mokhala. Eland Taurotragus oryx Seen at Mokhala & Marrick.
Tropical Birding Trip Report SOUTH AFRICA OCTOBER 2019
Greater Kudu Tragelaphus strepsiceros Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Nyala Tragelaphus angasii Seen at Marrick. Out of its natural range. Sable Hippotragus niger Seen at Marrick. Roan Hippotragus equinus Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Gemsbok Oryx gazella Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Waterbuck Kobus ellipsiprymnus Seen at Mokhala. Black Wildebeest Connochaetes gnou Seen at Mokhala. Blue Wildebeest Connochaetes taurinus Seen at Mokhala. Tsessebe Damaliscus lunatus Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Bontebok Damaliscus pygargus pygargus Seen at Marrick. Out of their natural range. Blesbok Damaliscus pygargus phillipsi Seen at Marrick. Red Hartebeest Alcelaphus buselaphus Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Impala Aepyceros melampus Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Springbok Antidorcas marsupialis Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Steenbok Raphicerus campestris Seen at Mokhala & Marrick. Common Duiker Sylvicapra grimmia Seen at Mokhala.