The highlight of this weekend was the return of the Fiery-necked Nightjar. It’s long been on the Cavern list without a single appearance in at least 15 years. Arguably it has the finest call of any bird in the world, a clear rippled whistle that carries for miles. In mid evening it struck up, for […]
It’s not always what you see that is interesting – sometimes it’s what you don’t see, or don’t hear in this case! Up at the Cavern last weekend the Red-chested Cuckoo (Piet-my-vrou) was so conspicuous by its absence (if that makes sense?); not a peep out of it, not a single glimpse of it among
We don’t look just at birds. All sorts of little creatures lurk underfoot. Bibron’s Blind Snake is one such. It’s quite common, but lives almost entirely underground, in burrows searching for small prey – especially termites. It’s completely blind, the greatly reduced eyes being covered with scales. The head is virtually identical to the tail,
A visit to the Silent Woman is always interesting, recounting the story of Willie Chalmers to newcomers. But today there was an added attraction. A small tree on the edge of the picnic site clearing was covered in bunches of white flowers. The display can be so profuse as to lead to the common name
Lots of action in the insect world in the Drakesberg. While looking at flowers we noticed that nearly every Haplocarpha scaposa had beetles, sometimes a dozen or more, heads down, munching at pollen and nectar. The few flowers without beetles showed signs of their ravages. These beetles are scarabs, related to dung beetles and the
The high spot was finding a new bird for the Cavern list. Not so easy with such a well-watched place thronged for some years now by keen birders. The “first” was a Black-crowned Night Heron perched right out in the open in the gums overlooking the lower pond. It’s actually one of the most widespread
This is the time of year when swifts and swallows are most busy. As a generalisation, swifts fly high and faster, swallows lower, slower, and are more manoeuvrable. This is very obvious at The Cavern. First thing in the morning – first light on sunny days – both the White-rumped Swifts and Greater Striped Swallows
It’s a quiet time of year for birds. The aloes are still flowering, but the main flush is past. Gurney’s Sugarbirds were still present, but no longer jousting over prime spots. But every change sees something happening. The trees and bushes that produce small fruits do so most abundantly now. There’s a very good reason.
It’s Aloe time, and this year the Aloe arborescens around the balcony are better than ever. This has to be the place to see Gurney’s Sugarbird in their dozens, some of them at arm’s length, and singing a lovely rippling song. Lots of aerial dogfights, one wonders why in the midst of plenty. Just as
While searching for the elusive and uncommon Half-collared Kingfisher (we found not one, but two!) we flushed a little heron. As it flew determinedly past us, a greeny-grey blob with dangling legs, it was those bright orange, dangling legs and big feet that immediately identified it as a Green-backed Heron. A real WOW as this
