Grey Crowned Crane

The town of Wakkerstroom lies close to the border of  South Africa’s Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal provinces/states.  It lies within the Highveld grassland biome and is a verdant area of rolling hills and endless grasslands and wetlands.  Apparently the grassland species here are generally rare and unusual.  Moves are presently afoot to give the area formal protected status and also have the wetlands declared a RAMSAR site (wetland of international importance).

Wakkerstroom in summer is glorious as colourful wildflowers star grasses ranging in colour from tawny gold to purple.  Green hills form a backdrop to the surrounding countryside and the wetland and grassland areas reflect the blue of the sky.  Birdlife abounds and you’ll start seeing birds the minute you enter this avian paradise.  The combination of biomes ensure a wide variety of species – almost 300 species have been recorded here.

White-throated Swallow

On a recent visit, we recorded over 85 species in about two days in the greater Wakkerstroom area.  Along the road into town, we saw a pair of Didericks Cuckoos flying around and eating their favourite food (hairy caterpillars), together with Longtailed Widowbirds, Golden Bishops, Red Bishops and White-throated Swallows.  We drove on into town and stopped to view the wetlands on either side of a bridge, where we saw Yellow-billed Ducks, Yellow-billed and Great Egrets and Spurwing Geese (these are the largest species of goose in South Africa).  A visit to a nearby farm revealed the Drakensberg Prinia (a lifer for me, even after 20 years of birding!) and Cape Rock Thrush.  The countryside was filled with larks at this time of year and we identified Spike-heeled, Fawncoloured and Monotonous Larks as well as Botha’s Lark, one of the regions “specials” – a highly endangered Highveld grassland species.  We also saw several Cape (Orange-throated) Longclaws, some feasing on the butterflies that were everywhere.

Another flooded wetland area revealed a large population of breeding Whiskered Terns, one of three species that occur in inland water bodies.  A tree in the water was proving an ideal nesting site for Black-headed Heron, Reed Cormorant and several Cattle Egrets, which were also flocking in the surrounding countryside.  This is the only egret that favours grasslands as opposed to wetlands so seeing them near the water was quite unusual.  The surrounding grasslands revealed Southern Bald Ibis (near threatened), Hadedah Ibis and Sacred Ibis.  We also heard Crowned Cranes – one of Wakkerstroom’s finest birds – but it was some time before we saw them due to the height and density of the grasslands and reedbeds after good summer rains.  We drove some distance into the hills until a mist belt halted our progress; grassland species encountered included Ant-eating Chat, Mocking Cliff-chat, Common Stone Chat and (in wetland areas) Malachite Kingfishers as well as various egrets and ibses along with Black-headed Herons, Red-shouldered Widowbirds, Longtailed Widowbirds, Red and Golden Bishops and Pin-tailed Wydahs.

Peregrine Falcons

It is breeding season for certain raptors now (December) and we saw both juvenile and adult Amur Falcons as well as Peregrine Falcons.  Other raptor sightings included Greater Kestrel, Steppe Buzzard and Jackal Buzzard.  In a field with herds of cows and sheep, we saw White Storks.  These are non-breeding migrants and, in one case, we saw a fairly large flock scattered over the farm. 

We finally saw the Grey Crowned Cranes on our last day – these majestic birds breed in a band stretching from Wakkerstroom to the town of Dullstroom in Mpumalanga.  We saw several pairs flying together in the grasslands.  One was even perched, somewhat unusually, in a tree!  A nearby wetland area revealed Pied Kingfishers fishing, Greater Marsh Warbler, Rufous-backed Warbler, Barn (European) Swallows and White-throated Swallows along with flocks of Red-knobbed Coots.  We searched for the Wood Owl, which we were told roosts in the area, but were unable to find it.

Nearby Martins Dam revealed Egyptian Goose, more Red-knobbed Coots and Yellow-billed Ducks and Whiskered Terns in breeding plumage.  Having obtained permission to birdwatch on a neighbouring property, we were pleased to find Dark-capped Bulbul, Giant Kingfisher, Paradise Flycatcher, Mountain Wagtail (another lifer for me!), Common Waxbill, Cape Robin-Chat, Southern Masked Weaver, Cape Weaver and several other species, while Goliath Herons were seen flying overyead.

It was easy to see why Wakkerstroom is an international and local birding mecca – there are birds everywhere and the scenery is spectacular.  We spend two-and-a-half days watching birds in and around Wakkerstroom on our Birding Hotspots Tour.