A pair of Golden-tailed Woodpeckers took it in turns to carry out some excavation work on a nest hole on the underside of this dead branch of a Weeping Boerbean tree Here the female takes a shift Now the male steps up to the plate Whilst they were busy this female Bearded Woodpecker was drilling small holes to get at juicy grubs in a nearby tree Gotcha! Bearded Woodpecker male Bearded Woodpecker male And for comparison a recent image of a female Cardinal Woodpecker
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Green Sandpiper. Despite the damaged leg it was managing to feed successfully Not the best images but I will take it them as this is a new species for my RGR list Woodland Kingfisher with catch Cardinal Woodpecker female Rattling Cisticola Red-billed Oxpecker African Harrier-Hawk juvenile Chinspot Batis male
My only sighting of this spectacular and unmistakable male bird was in a previous life whilst on a fishing trip on the mighty Zambezi River, where we observed it one evening as we were enjoying sundowners. It has now been recorded on Rietspruit Game Reserve. The adrenaline rush was massive as I watched it flying around with the pennants trailing behind, captured briefly in the spotlight beam on a bright moonlit evening. Its insect like call was being emitted both in flight and whilst it had landed on the ground. I was also fortunate to briefly observe a female bird flying in tandem with the male. Without a shadow of doubt the highlight of the five years of birding I have had since moving here Yellow Spotlight beam White Spotlight beam
I have discovered a nest hole of these very colourful common breeding migrants. It would seem that the chicks must have already hatched as food is being ferried back to the nest site. I will observe with interest
Now that the Cape Glossy Starling family have vacated the nest hole a pair of Woodland Kingfishers (I presume the same pair that used it last year) have been inspecting it over the last couple of days. I am holding thumbs they will use the site again this season
I had been busy making a video of the action of Grey Foam-nest frogs. When I returned to my vehicle I noticed a Yellow-billed Kite drinking at the waters edge on the other side of the dam. Shortly afterwards it flew across and landed in the tree where all the nest activity was taking place. I quickly realized that it intended to try and feed on some frogs. After inspecting the nests it unfortunately decided to depart so I missed out on the possibility of some action images Lift off after having had a drink Landing at the nest site Departure
Juvenile Black-headed Oriole Klaas's Cuckoo with catch Male Red-backed Shrike Woodland Kingfisher in full cry Striped Kingfisher Hooded Vulture Red-billed Oxpecker Wahlberg's Eagle pale form Male Violet-backed Starling arriving at nest hole with food departing with faecal sac Female arriving with food
Last Summer we had good numbers of Dwarf Bitterns and even a few Lesser Moorhens pop up at some of our small pans and dams. I have now recorded the first of the Dwarf Bitterns of this season at Lodge Pan. In stealth stalking mode Dragonfly on the menu A brief pause before it disappeared into the thick weed carpet I went back the next day and was fortunate enough to record it catching a frog Down the hatch Nice and full
Mullet chilling early one evening Open wide! Having just had a drink at a dam this female Cheetah glances over at me before setting off On the move A fine specimen of a male Warthog with some impressive tusks enjoying a mud bath Catnapping in the Penthouse Suite Lovely view from up here Female Leopard About to commence feeding I came across another female Leopard on her way to drink at a nearby dam one afternoon A pair of Giant Plated Lizards sunning themselves on a rock face near to the Owl nest site Collar giving me a lazy look Collar enjoying a siesta Collar waiting for his brothers to arrive A young Giraffe with a cool hairstyle
A week or so has passed so I decided to go and check as to how things are progressing at the rock wall nest site As before the male was keeping a watching brief from a nearby tree When I arrived all I could find was the two now rapidly growing chicks on a ledge above the original nest site This chicks feather development looks slightly more advanced than its sibling The other chick stares at me intently as I observe it from a position above their ledge When the chicks hissed at me the female bird appeared from nearby where she had obviously been sitting quietly A view from below their ledge. As the chicks focus on me the female scans the sky above as she tracks a raptor calling as it flies past overhead Another close-up of the female showing her left pupil damage. Compared to last weeks image this one looks slightly improved
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April 2024
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