Long-tailed Widowbird / Langstertflap – R832

Welcome to summer and all the birds in their colourful breeding plumage as sown by this bird recently photographed outside Smithfield.

While breeding, the male Long-tailed Widowbird’s plumage is basically black, with an extremely long tail (up to 50 cm). On his wings he wears stripes of red and white like badges of authority. His floppy, ungainly flight pattern makes this male stand out in the veld as he flaps off the road or across the grass.

Very visible in our area at the moment, the breeding male performs slow display flights low over his territory, wings flapping slowly and erratically, long tail depressed. Between flights you can see him perched on bushes, grass tufts, termite mounds or fences. Generally he is seen in flocks, especially in winter. During that season, the male looks more like the buff coloured female. Watch out for these birds as they forage on the ground next to the road for seeds and insects. As you approach they will flit away, males pumping their broad wings with long tails streaming out behind.

Usually silent, the male calls a sharp zik, zik, zik, zik in flight display and in alarm, and also sings a repeated phrase of 4 lower and 4 higher notes:- twi-twi-twi-twi-zizizizi.

Oh for enough time to “shoot” all the birds that can be seen at this time of year! Happy birding.

Due to unplanned circumstances, the Smithfield birders could not make what sounds to have been a wonderful weekend. Thank you to Louise Coetzee for her report and an amazing photo.

BirdLife Free State undertook a club outing to Tussen-die-Riviere on the weekend of 30 October to 1 November 2009.  The reserve looked extraordinarily beautiful and green due to the recent rain.  We arrived on Friday afternoon, entering through the eastern gate, as the bridge over the Caledon River was flooded, blocking off the main entrance.  On the way to the rest camp, we encountered Grey-winged Francolin and Eastern Long-billed Lark – already testing our “Little Brown Job” skills.

On Saturday morning we explored the interior of the reserve by visiting the Versterspos picnic site for breakfast and then went on to the “Klipstapels”.  Here we observed a pair of Pririt Batis at their nest and Layard’s Titbabbler.  During the morning the LBJs put up a good show, as we saw the Karoo Long-billed-, Largebilled-, Spikeheeled- and the ubiquitous Eastern Clapper Lark, as well as five species of pipits – African-, Long-billed, (what we thought was) Kimberley-, Buffy and African Rock Pipit.

After lunch at the easternmost picnic site, we returned to the rest camp via the Orange River route.  However, we had to turn back half way as the road was flooded.  The clouds built up heavily and later that afternoon we experienced a proper Free State thunderstorm.  Just before sunset the sun broke through the heavy clouds, treating us to a beautiful sighting of a double rainbow.

The thunderstorm put an end to the electricity, but luckily to braai electricity is not essential.  The power was restored some time during the night.

On Sunday morning we followed the Middelpunt route, but again could not complete the route due to muddy roads.  On the way out we had lovely sightings of Fairy Flycatcher, Red-throated Wryneck and African Rock Pipits – all close to the road.  We left the reserve about lunchtime, leaving us enough time to return to Bloemfontein before dark.

Tussen-die-Riviere remains a favourite birding destination, not only because of the challenges to identify the LBJs, but also the scenery and pleasant accommodation.

Louise Coetzee
BirdLife Free State

A family of more than 50 Blue Cranes were sighted near the road on the way from Norvals Pont to Oviston

The Lesser Kestrels are swarming in layers over Smithfield in preparation for their communial roost.

An awesome sight!

I am sure that is what this masked weaver is saying.

More later…..

Some of the Lesser Kestrels seen circling overhead.

The Bloemfontein Bird Club paid a visit to Tussen Die Rievier.

They passed through Smithfield, and we eagerly await their report on the weekend.

Acacia Pied Barbet R465 Bonthoutkapper

Seen and heard around Smithfield at the moment, the Acacia Pied Barbet is a medium to smallish bird with a bright red forehead, a black hindcrown, broad black stripe through the eye and broad black bib from chin to chest. The rest of the underparts are white. Its back is black, with narrow yellow streaks, and the eyebrow is also yellow. These, plus the dark eye, prominent blackish horn bill, blackish legs and feet, and white soles are all strong identifying features.

Even if you have not seen it, I am sure you have heard its distinctive call; either a loud tin trumpet-like pehp, pehp, pehp, repeated up to about 12 times, or a Hoopoe-like toop-toop-toop-toop, with bill pointed downwards, throat inflated, repeated up to 20 times in quick succession (not in short phrases like the Hoopoe), sometimes speeding up towards the end.

This striking little bird is usually seen alone or sometimes in pairs and its flight is fast and direct.

It feeds on fruit, nectar, and certain seedpods, and is known to eat bone fat.

Breeding takes place from August to April. A nest hole is excavated in soft or dead wood, often of willows.
Roberts 6 identifies this bird as the Pied Barbet, and interestingly, the French name for it is “Barbican pie”.

The Swallows have returned and so have the Diedrick Cuckoos. They have both escaped my camera, so far!

This Sacred Ibis R91 spent more than 30 minutes unsuccessfully overturning stones looking for food.

Ons Smithfield Voëls Teks en foto deur Lynden Lund
Rooibekkakelaar  R452 – Green Wood-Hoopoe (Redbilled Woodhoopoe Roberts 6)

Cecil Webber het onlangs in Smiffie van hierdie voël geskryf. Ja, ek sien hom ook dikwels in ons tuin, en, het hy nie sy houding mooi ingeneem toe ek hierdie foto geneem het nie?

Hierdie swart en blink groen voël het ‘n lang helder afgeboë rooi snawel en voete. Die wit op sy vlerke en stert is duidelik sigbaar, veral as hy vlieg.

Sy sang, volgens die Xhosa en Zulu name, word vergelyk met die lag van vrouens, eers stadig en dan ‘n vinniger gekekkel. Hy eet graag insekte en songololas en gebruik sy lang snawel om onder los boom bas sy proei te soek.
Kyk gerus uit vir hierdie raserige voël .

Feeding next to the N6 on the way from Smithfield to Rouxville, or in other grassland areas and cultivated lands, or sometimes even proudly perched on the top of an anthill, you can easily identify these beautiful birds. They are medium to large sized with rich brown upperparts, entirely grey-blue underparts, and black head with large white facial patch.

Slow down, or stop near to them, and they will be gone in an instant. Flying quite a distance, or slinking away with head held low to the ground, they blend so cleverly into the surroundings that even the trained eye may miss them.

Their deep mellow 3-syllable croak kuk-ka-ROW, (sounding very much like “knock-me-down” or “vat-my-kierie”) repeated up to 15 times, usually in duet, always stops me in my tracks. Then I scan around avidly searching for the source of another beautiful melody of nature. Blue Korhaans spend most of the day searching for their favourite food consisting of insects, small lizards, seeds and other plant material.

This near-threatened bird is endemic to our area, and is included in the twice-a-year national count of the Korhaans, Secretary Birds, and other large birds, undertaken in this area by myself and other participating birders.

Do you regularly have interesting birds on your property that I can photograph and include in this column? Please contact me on cell 083 263 0613.

by Carmel Rickard

In some ways this is a sad time of year. The migrant birds that we have come to love have started their long trek to the other side of the world.

I’m thinking in particular of the kestrels, the Lesser Kestrel and the Amur or Eastern Red Footed Falcon. This has been one of the best kestrel summers since I moved to Smithfield – they have been everywhere. On the telephone lines, on the rocks – and, best of all, in the sky.

They moved into town this year, and have been occupying two clumps of trees, and we can watch them as they prepare for sleep. In fact it’s something worth waiting for every day and I find myself actually looking forward to the late afternoons when they begin to gather in their hundreds over the town. There are now just a couple of dozen, and every night I wonder if this will be the last time we see them.

Another bird I will miss is the Yellow Billed Stork. Once, about six years ago, while I was out walking in the veld I lay down on a large flat rock to enjoy the sun. Something made me open my eyes and there, directly above me, high in the sky, were dozens of storks, flying to their other home, somewhere in the northern hemisphere. Though there was some regret that they were leaving, it was still a magical moment.

But it’s not all sadness, for in the winter we can often see birds normally hidden by the long summer grass. In mid-winter as in mid-summer, there is a special day set aside to count the large birds that we find in this area. Counting the birds during the designated afternoon you find yourself noticing the different calls and sights of the winter veld.

There’s the near-threatened padda korhaan (Blue Korhaan) with its always evocative call, and its cousin the elegant Northern Black Korhaan; we see Spurwing Geese and, if we are really lucky, cranes and secretary birds.

Not so long ago during a count Lynden Lund and I spotted two adult Blue Cranes and their half-grown baby walking in the grass near a dam. We watched entranced – but they would have been invisible to us during the summer.

These are not the only birds that tourists (and locals of course) will find worthwhile here during winter. We have a host of grassveld pipits as well, among them a special new rarity called the Kimberley Pipit.

Website for picture: http://tripreports.cliftongrovebirds.com/myPictures/lesses%20kes.jpg