Lingering migrants at Northern Farm

29 March 2024 - Northern Farm

I had a quick early morning visit to the Farm, arriving at the gate just as the sun was rising. This morning, I tried a different route to the usual one I take, as I wanted to check if there were any Owls out in the open grasslands. On the way to the main dam, I picked up a cracking Red-backed Shrike on the fence as the mist was slowly rising

Red-backed Shrike (Lanius collurio)

On the exposed bank of the dam, a single Black-winged Stilt which is an uncommon record

Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus)

I checked some marshy area in one of the cattle pens and flushed an African Snipe

African Snipe (Gallinago nigripennis)

Whilst a Levaillant's Cisticola serenaded from the top of it's perch

Levaillant's Cisticola (Cisticola tinniens)

Of course I checked the overhead wires for the soon to be departing Amur's and found a few - there numbers have certainly diminished

Male Amur Falcon (Falco amurensis)

Further along, a Lesser Grey Shrike

Lesser Grey Shrike (Lanius minor)

and a juvenile Diederik Cuckoo also on the overhead lines

Diederik Cuckoo (Chrysococcyx caprius)

Down at the quarry, I was alerted by their call and then found a pair of White-fronted Bee-eater's that posed nicely for me

White-fronted Bee-eater (Merops bullockoides)

A few Black-throated Canary's were present along the road

Black-throated Canary (Crithagra atrogularis)

In the grasslands adjacent to the quarry, a small flock of Pied Starling's which are recent additions to the farm's checklist

Pied Starling (Lamprotornis bicolor)

I found the resident Long-crested Eagle who was struggling to get a feather off it's eye, much to my amusement

Long-crested Eagle (Lophaetus occipitalis)

At one of the other dams, there were a few Spur-winged Geese with one showing it's formidable carpal spur after a stretch

Spur-winged Goose (Plectropterus gambensis)

It was great to catch-up with a few migrants, as it will not be long now before they will have all departed north.

A wedding under the thermals

29 - 31 March 2024 - Magaliesberg

We spent a most enjoyable weekend in the Magaliesberg to celebrate the wedding of Shannon Fraser (daughter of our good friends Gary and Brenda) to Marius van Vuuren at Leopard Lodge.

We stayed in a quaint cottage around 15-minutes away from the wedding venue. There weren't too many birds on offer in the grounds of the cottage, but I managed to photograph a few species on some early morning walks. A pair of Crowned Lapwing in the grassland between the Pecan Trees

Crowned Lapwing (Vanellus coronatus)

Along with a Black-headed Heron

Black-headed Heron (Ardea melanocephala)

However, there was a lot more invertebrate action and I managed to find butterflies, like Eastern Dotted Border backlit which I really like

Eastern Dotted Border (Mylothris a. agathina)

A Marsh Patroller along a small stream leading into the property. I have tried long and hard to get the image of a Damselfly with the eyes on either side of the stalk it is perching on - finally I managed on this weekend and was thrilled with the result

Marsh Patroller (Brakefieldia p. perspicua)

This stream was a magnet for a number of Damselflies which I find fun to photograph - I still battle to ID these buggers, but will endeavor to do so. There are probably two species below and a mixture of male and females.

Damselfly sp.

I have tried a long time for this image

Only one Dragonfly - but one I had not seen before

Dragonfly sp.

These interesting spiders had made their web across the stream and quite close to the water's surface

Spider sp

The wedding venue at Leopard Lodge was at the base of the Skeerpoort Cape Vulture breeding colony. This colony supports 71% of the breeding population for the 3 Magaliesberg colonies. The other 2 are Nooitgedacht (28%) and Roberts Farm (1%). I managed to photograph these magnificent endangered and endemic vultures from our cottage 

Skeerport Cape Vulture Colony

And later in the afternoon, just before the wedding festivities started.

Cape Vulture (Gyps coprotheres)

It was a great wedding, in a stunning setting that was thoroughly enjoyed by all who attended. Wishing Marius and Shannon all the very best as they embark on this new chapter in their lives!