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A Day for the Birds (and Birders!)

16/1/2016

2 Comments

 
Well, it's nice to have our sunshine back after a few days of drizzle and grey skies (and yesterday's blustery wind).  From the moment the first rays of the rising sun streamed into the bedroom early this morning, I knew it was going to be good one.  All right, time to put irksome injuries aside (it's been a week of X-Rays and MRI's - don't ask!), quit moping around and get out there.

Aussie Eybers and the rest of his intrepid Great Brak Birding Group provided the perfect excuse for me to, well, stretch my wings and try something new.  Today's mission:  heading over to the Mossel Bay Wastewater Reclamation Plant opposite Hartenbos where they would contribute to South Africa's bi-annual Coordinated Waterbird Count.

I am not much of a birder - oh sure, I know the important ones like "Big Bird", "Tweety", "Woody Woodpecker" and "Huey, Dewey and Louie" (though I admit I can't tell who is who...), and even exotic ones like "Emu", but that's really about it.  

So I really didn't have any idea what to expect with this "Coordinated Waterbirds" business.  Flamingos, maybe?  They've got to be pretty coordinated given they stand around on one leg all day, right?

Turns out it there weren't any flamingos, but we did see quite a few other birds - a lot of Egyptian geese (including goslings), yellow-billed ducks, and various sized/shaped gull-like creatures (I told you I wasn't much of a birder - apparently I also don't have much of a memory for their names, either...).  Oh, and we saw the omni-present wagtails, maybe a weaver or two (I saw a fresh nest - the grass was still green), a couple of varieties of herons, a darter (which I mistook for a cormorant), 3-ringed plovers, white egrets, thick-kneed dikops, coots - I even got a pat on the back for identifying a moor hen (surprising even myself with that one).  Overhead there was an African Fish Eagle with its tell-tale white head, as well as some sort of buzzard.  

​Did I manage to take any photos of the birds?  No, of course not.  But I did get some photos of the birders!  Thanks for the outing, Aussie!

Incidentally, if you are more serious about your birds than I am, and want to find out more about birds and birding around The Island, then you'll find more in the Birdwatching section of this website, including a list of birds that have been spotted here.
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Everyone assembled before Aussie gives us our briefing
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We had folks with apps on their phones, as well as those with the original "app", the good ol' bird book (and you don't have to worry about the sun's glare on your screen)!
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I am told that Dawid Rossouw is a serious birder, having spotted 750+ different varieties. Wow!
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Hey, look at those two down there!
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Hey, look at those four up there!
2 Comments

We're Going to the Birds [Corrected]!

27/2/2015

1 Comment

 
Yesterday there was a sole Greater Flamingo in the shallows between The Island and Southern Cross.  Later in the day, an Osprey came and perched on the roof of one of the houses [which I erroneously posted was an African Fish Eagle - apologies and thanks to the birders out there!].  Though he flew off eventually, he was back here this morning.
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A Greater Flamingo in the shallows between The Island and Southern Cross
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An osprey does a fly-by...
There's a much better photo of the Osprey on this Facebook page.
1 Comment

Birders Take Note - Flight for Birders Course at Sedgefield

18/8/2014

0 Comments

 
I received the following from the Great Brak River Tourism Initiative earlier today - previous accounts of courses taught by Western Cape Birding have been very good...

Dear Tourism Initiative member

Hope this finds you all well.

Western Cape Birding  presented courses at George and Plett during January and have been requested to do one somewhere between George and Knysna. Details of the course to be presented at Sedgefield on 28 and 29 August can be found at the following link:

http://www.westerncapebirding.co.za/events/438/flight_for_birders_course_at_sedgefield%2C_garden_route

Participants in this course roughly represent three groupings:

  • Novice birders wanting to become involved in the hobby
  • People from nature conservation agencies wanting to improve career possibilities, or sent on the course by their employers
  • People from the tourism industry and these include general tour guides, employees from local and regional tourism offices and product owners of lodges, B&B's, game farms, etc. Most of the latter group attend the course to gain better insight into the growing importance of birding tourism
Please also visit our own website: www.greatbrak.com

Regards
Ina

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0 Comments

A Sole Flamingo in the Great Brak River This Morning...

16/3/2014

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Years ago I saw a flock of about 70 previously, but none recently.  For a list of the birds seen on and around The Island, check out the Birdwatching section of the website.
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0 Comments

Mysterious Chick Hanging Around My Place...

7/3/2014

0 Comments

 
Found this little fellow (gal?) on the back deck this morning.  S/he appeared to be in distress and was still there at 4:20 p.m. today.  Not sure what kind of bird it is (I am sure the beak/bill offer some sort of clue).
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Hopefully mom came along earlier this evening, as the chick was nowhere in sight when I went out again around 9:30 p.m. tonight with a little shelter and some food....
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    TheIsland@GreatBrak features the occasional blogpost in between braaiing and beach walks - stay tuned or drop me a line.

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