Beyond the beach

20 December 2024 - Plett; Day 8

I departed from the apartment before sunrise and drove to Gris Nez Avenue for a walk along the heavily reeded wetland. It was pretty cool to hear Buff- spotted Flufftail calling from the habitat near the side of the road - no chance at all for any visuals.

There was a juv/imm Jackal Buzzard catching the early morning rays in the valley

Jackal Buzzard (Buteo rufofuscus)

An all too brief sighting of Cape Siskin, unfortunately against the light

Cape Siskin (Crithagra totta)

A little further on, a pair of Southern Grey-headed Sparrows

Southern Grey-headed Sparrow (Passer diffusus)

I heard the Turaco's and whilst looking for them this female Southern Boubou made a quick appearance

Southern Boubou (Laniarius ferrugineus)

I then got onto a pair of Knysna Turaco's that were fairly static while they caught the first rays of the early morning sun - they really are spectacular and I was pretty happy with the images I captured

Knysna Turaco (Tauraco corythaix)

A flash of red as they fly across the forest

I then drove out of Plett and took the Bitou River R340 road, stopping on the road to watch a family of Blue Cranes in the Bitou Wetland Reserve, this our National Bird. The chick was almost the size of the adult, but I enjoyed the antics of the male as he tried to impress the female with some of his moves - not sure of his intention, unless it was just early morning warm-up's

Blue Crane (Grus paradiseus)

From there a short drive toward Emily Moon on the opposite side of the Bitou River where I had calling Levaillant's Cisticola

Levaillant's Cisticola (Cisticola tinniens)

And a Forest Buzzard with record pics against the light, which was a little irritating.

Forest Buzzard (Buteo trizonatus)

Last stop for the morning was Kwendalo, where I met Mike Bridgeford, the Chairman of Plett Bird Club and a few other members. It was a little gloomy when I arrived but had a Peregrine Falcon flyover against a dark sky. Mike confirmed this was one of the local residents

Peregrine Falcon (Falco peregrinus)

Mike had assured me, this was one of the better sites for the Woodpecker, so fingers crossed. I met Mike in one of the hides on the property, where we enjoyed a family of Night Herons that still had young in the nest

Black-crowned Night Heron (Nycticorax nycticorax)

Walking around the property, we found Black Crake in one of the smaller ponds. I was just a little slow to react and missed getting it completely in the open

Black Crake (Zapornia flavirostra)

Mike showed me the area where the Woodpeckers are normally seen, but no luck at all today. But, at least I had an idea of where to look, as the Stud Road Farm hadnt produced either. Will have to come back another day and try again