Birding Soutpansberg and Venda Tours: SA Rare Bird News Report

Getaway to Punda Maria and Pafuri Gate

GETAWAY TO KRUGER PARK FROM PUNDA MARIA AND PAFURI GATE

Central Soutpansberg is close to Kruger National Park especially Punda Maria and Pafuri.Enough habitat types within a short distance of each other.Birders can stop to do some birding on their way to Kruger Park and in the Central Soutpansberg sites like Hanglip Forest,Roodewal Forest,Muirhead Dams,Entabeni Forest and Thohoyandou Botanical Garden.Birders can be rewarded with birds like African Finfoot,White Backed Night-Heron,Blue Spotted Wood-Dove,African Broadbill,Mottled Spinetail,Bat Hawk,Scaly Throated Honeyguide,Narina Trogon,Pink Throated Twinspot,African Wood Owl.etc
Birders can stop for whole day before leaving to Punda and explore one of the sites in the Soutpansberg or Venda.

We can plan a day outing to Pafuri Picnic site or Punda Maria which can be a full day outing around the park.

Birding Trips and Tours

BIRDING TOURS

Morning birding walk.

A morning birding walk can be arranged from where you will be staying for about 2 and half hours.Birds you will likely to see include special birds Gorgeous Bushshrike,Crested Guineafowl,Olive Bushshrike,Red Faced Cisticola,Cape Grassbird and the resident African Wood Owl.

Half Day Birding Tour

Time is about 5-6 hours in the escarpment of Soutpansberg mountains.I can lead you to Roodewal Nature Reserve which is best done early morning,and then to Muirhead Dams.Roodewal Nature Reserve the only place to see the African Broadbill in the Central Soutpansberg.other birds common are Eastern Nicator,Narina Trogon,Scaly Throated Honeyguide,Green Twinspot and the resident African Crowned Eagle.

Full Day Birding Tour

Time 8-9 hours of birding under toe canopy of Afro-Montane Forest.Entabeni Forets and Hanglip Forest is an ideal sites for full day.Entabeni Forest birds that are common are Bat Hawk,Orange Ground Thrush,Yellow Streaked Greenbul.Other places we can visit for the day include Thohoyandou Botanical Garden and birds easily located is Blue Spotted Wood-Dove.This is the only reliable place to get the Blue Spotted Wood-Dove in South Africa.Other resident birds are Pink Throated Twinspot,Green Twinspot,Gorgeous Bushshrike,Red-Capped Robin-Chat and Eastern Nicator.

Weekend Birding Tour.

We can organise a birding weekend tour to various camp sites around Venda.Gundani Camp site,the only patch of Miombo woodland in South Africa.Two tent that can accomodate 4 people and a camping site is available for extra people.Birds that we are likely to see are White Breasted Cuckooshrike,Pink Throated Twinspot,Southern Hyliota,Narina Trogon,Scaly Throated Honeyguide.While staying at Gundani camp we can also visit Sagole Big tree a 25 minutes drive from the camp.Birds to see there include Mottled Spinetail that roosts in the cave inside the biggest Baobab tree in South Africa.

A day or weekend birding at Punda Maria or Pafuri Picnic Site.I can accompany you for a day visit to either Punda Maria or Pafuri Picnic Sites to look for birds like Pel's Fishing Owl,Black-Throated Wattle-Eye,Arnot's Chat,Southern Hyliota,Grey-Headed Parrot,Senegal Coucal,Tropical Boubou etc

RECENT SIGHTINGS AND TOP BIRDS SEEN IN THE CENTRAL SOUTPANSBERG & VENDA

Friday, October 15, 2010

SA Rare Bird News Report - 30 September 2010

SAMSON MULAUDZI
LIMPOPO BIRDGUIDE SPECIALIST FOR SOUTPANSBERG AND VENDA
CELL:O83 662 9960
EMAIL:samson.birdguide@webmail.co.za
WEB:www.birdlife.org.za
My Blog:www.samsonbirding.blogspot.com

-----Original Message-----
From: Trevor Hardaker
Sent: 30/09/2010 21.51.11
Subject: SA Rare Bird News Report - 30 September 2010

This is the Southern African Rare Bird News Report issued at 21h45 on
Thursday, 30 September 2010. Information has been gleaned from various
websites, email groups as well as from individual observers who have passed
on their sightings. This report cannot be taken as being totally
comprehensive as it is based only on information made available at the time
of writing. All bird sightings reported here are reported in good faith
based on information as provided by the observers. Any inaccuracies are
totally unintentional and the writer cannot be held liable for these. For
those who may have only joined the group recently and are interested in
finding out what has been seen in the past, previous reports can be viewed
at <http://groups.google.co.za/group/sa-rarebirdnews>
http://groups.google.co.za/group/sa-rarebirdnews

Starting in the Western Cape, there certainly seems to be a fair bit of
excitement in terms of regional oddities at the moment, not least of which
is the GREEN-BACKED HERON at Paarl Bird Sanctuary. The bird was still on
view today although, like previous days, sightings were erratic. The
favoured spot at the first pond on the Berg River side of the sanctuary
seems to mostly deliver the goods and the bird has drawn a regular crowd
every day since it was first discovered on Monday afternoon with most of the
keenest Western Cape provincial listers having already made the pilgrimage
to add this to their provincial lists. One assumes that the weekend is going
to see a dramatic increase in local twitcher numbers at the sanctuary
comprising those that have not yet managed to steal away from the office or
have dipped the bird and need to try again!

WHITE-FACED DUCKS are also showing up in fair numbers around Cape Town at
the moment with 2 birds seen at Rondevlei Nature Reserve on Tuesday, 2 birds
along the Black River between Mowbray and Rondebosch Golf Course yesterday
as well as another 2 birds present at Paarl Bird Sanctuary yesterday as
well.

Tuesday also produced a male COMMON CHAFFINCH seen at Helderberg Nature
Reserve in Somerset West - with other recent records in this area, perhaps a
small population is going to form here? Other "out of place" birds include a
GREEN WOOD-HOOPOE seen in Beaufort West yesterday whilst the possible
irruption of LUDWIG'S BUSTARDS south and west of where they normally occur
also continues with 13 birds reported just north of Dwarskersbos on the west
coast on Monday whilst a group of between 30 and 40 individuals have been
reported along the N9 between George and Uniondale.

Green-backed Heron at Paarl Bird Sanctuary

C Penny Childs

White-faced Ducks at Rondevlei NR

C Peter Oosthuizen

White-faced Ducks on the Black River

C Matthew Wridgway

Moving into the Eastern Cape, the male MACCOA DUCK was still present at
Butterworth Sewage Works on Tuesday whilst, yesterday, a pair of KAROO
SCRUB-ROBINS were located near the Mtentu Cuttings about 30km south of
Mthatha. This latter record is a lot further east than any SABAP1 or SABAP2
data shows.

In Limpopo Province, there is some excitement with the discovery of a new
site for BLUE-SPOTTED WOOD DOVE. Individuals have been showing well at the
Thohoyandu Botanical Gardens in the last couple of weeks, so well done to
the locals who managed to locate these.

Lastly, of unknown origin and presumed to be escapees, 2 BLACK SWANS were
still present at Milnerton Lagoon in the Western Cape earlier today.

Black Swans at Milnerton Lagoon

C Debbie Derman

Don't forget to send through your details to be included on the various
listing clubs that are hosted at <http://www.zestforbirds.co.za/>
www.zestforbirds.co.za. This website also has an extensive rarities gallery
that has many additional photos of a number of rarities that are mentioned
in these reports.

Thank you to all observers who have contributed their records. Please
continue to send through any reports of odd birds as well as continued
updates on the presence of rarities already previously reported, no matter
how mundane you think they may be. Even if you think someone else has
probably sent in a report, rather send the report yourself as well. The only
way to improve this service and to make it as useful as possible to everyone
is if it can be as comprehensive as possible.

Kind regards

Trevor

------------------------------------------------------------------------

TREVOR HARDAKER

Cape Town, South Africa

MY WILDLIFE PHOTOS

See my photographic attempts at:

<http://www.hardaker.co.za> www.hardaker.co.za

ZEST for BIRDS

Trevor Hardaker and John Graham

Pelagics, rarity photos, listing clubs and more:

<http://www.zestforbirds.co.za> www.zestforbirds.co.za