Long-tailed Widowbird in transitional plumage

Like many places around the globe, South Africa is experiencing “season creep”, where our winters – and summers – are arriving slightly later than usual.  So, while we are still having relativly the relatively warm temperatures of late summer, not to mention summer rains, most of the signs of winter’s approach are yet to come.  The birds, however, know it’s autumn.

We have seen several birds in transitional plumage including the Long-tailed Widow Birds, which are loosing the long tails and black plumage of the breeding season.  They will retain the orange-and-white flash on the wing, however, making it possible to identify them even when they have joined the ranks of the LBJs (Little Brown Jobs/birds).  We have also seen Southern Masked Weavers loosing their black face masks and bright yellow colours, exhibiting an oddly mottled appearance.  Red Bishops, too, are sporting odd orange and grey mottled plumage as they morph into their winter colours where they will resemble the brown females. 

Barn Swallows are lining up on powerlines, signalling their interest in migration to the Northern Hemisphere and White Storks are gathering in large congregations.  However, many migrants including European Bee-eaters, Lesser Moorhen, the endangered Blue Swallow and numerous others are still here – although they will very likely be gone by the end of April.  We have not seen very many cuckoos recently; they are certainly far less conspicuous than they were indicating that their breeding season is very likely over.  Most cuckoos found in South Africa are intra-African migrants, which go as far a central or north Africa with very few going the long haul to Europe.

Grey-winged Francolin - Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve "special"

Visiting Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve recently, we noticed that the Red-collared Widowbirds are still in summer plumage, despite the changes exhibited by their Long-tailed Widowbird cousins.  We saw an Eastern Paradise Wydah, also still in full breeding plumage.  A “special” sighting were the Grey-winged Francolins, where we saw a flock of about four birds disappearing rapidly into the long grass, which they use as cover and a retreat when threatened.  We also saw Black-throated and Lemon-breasted Canaries, as well as Black-collared Barbets, a juvenile Red-throated Wryneck, Cape Robin, Mountain Wheat-ear and Ant-eating Chat.  We were seeing several Amur, Peregrine and Western Red-footed Falcons (all of which have ranges which overlap in the former Transvaal region) at Suikerbosrand but these seem to have dispersed, possibly a pre-migratory congregation.

At Rietvlei Dam, we spotted a Black-breasted Snake Eagle, African Fish Eagle and several White-fronted Bee-eaters, which are resident in South Africa and not migratory.  At a small bird hide, we saw three Lesser Moorhens, an uncommon summer visitor, together with African Darter, White-breasted Cormorant and the more frequently seen Common Moorhen.  

Lesser Moorhen - unusual summer visitor (and still here!)

We have seen several juvenile birds this autumn, which is rather unusual but the breeding season was excellent due to the good summer rains and conditions this year have been optimal – every animal and bird seems to have bred successfully.   A juvenile Malachite Kingfisher was spotted at Rietvlei Dam in a similar place to where we saw this bird before.  At a small bird hide, we saw several White-breasted Cormorants, which were still on nests, as well as juvenile African Darters and Reed Cormorants.  One Reed Cormorant was feeding a young bird – they literally put almost their entire heads inside the other bird’s bill!  We have not seen this behaviour before and found it interesting. 

This is also the season when Egyptian Geese encourage their young to move on and form their own territories – a necessary step as food and other resources will become scarce during the winter and the young adults need to disperse.  We observed a male Egyptian Goose chasing off  a young adult repeatedly at Mankwe Dam in Pilanesberg National Park.

White Rhino with Red-billed Oxpeckers

Also at Pilanesberg National Park, where we were running a day trip for UK visitors to South Africa, we saw several Red-billed Oxpeckers adoring the heads of two white rhino’s, which was rather interesting to see.  Other birds spotted included Pied, Giant and Malachite Kingfishers, African Fish Eagle and Giant Egret at Mankwe Dam, together with European Roller, Cape Glossy Starling, Fork-tailed Drongo and the colourful Crimson-breasted Shrike to name but a few.

Due to the good rains throughout much of the summer rainfall region of South Africa, birding is still good – we suspect that is why the migrants are hanging on!  Autumn is an excellent time to visit South Africa to bird; the weather is still warm in cooler areas and there  is a good chance of seeing the migrants before they leave as well as the unusual sight of birds in transitional plumage.