Birds and Birding

South Africa offers some of the best birding on the continent. While it may not have the most number of species, it does have the most endemics. South Africa has 18 birds that are only found within her borders, but that figure jumps to 38 endemics and 30 near-endemics if you include Lesotho and eSwatini, two small nations within South Africa. In this Blog Post we look at 10 of the Best Birds to see in South Africa.

If you are coming on a South African birdwatching trip, be prepared to see a lot of Larks!

Larks have featured in the writings of playwrights and philosophers throughout written history. And while they are generally not much to look at (for the average person that is), their beautiful calls are perhaps what has given them a place in the mind of man. Southern Africa is generously endowed with Larks (Family Alaudidae), sporting no fewer than 31 species, with 16 of them endemic to the region and 10 near-endemic (Chamberlain's Guide to LBJ's by Faansie Peacock). Now for beginners especially, and those on their first African birding trip, Larks can be a bit of a daunting group to get to grips with, though in reality they aren't too challenging (or at least not as challenging as the Pipits and Cisticolas!). So let's take a look at some of the Larks one may see on a typical birding tour to South Africa.

Raptors of Kruger.

What raptors can you see on a Kruger National Park Birding Safari?

For many a birder, the raptors are a firm favorite, embodying power, grace and beauty, and seeing a new species of raptor is sure to get the pulse rate up for a few minutes. They make great photographic subjects and, when on an African birding safari, new species of raptor are bound to be seen pretty regularly, adding up to an exciting experience indeed...

With an abundance of food, there are few places that offer such a number and variety of birds of prey as the savannas of Africa. And there are few large, savanna-dominated parks that are as affordable and easily accessible as the Kruger National Park of South Africa, which offers some superb raptor viewing indeed...

Southern Africa has an amazing number and variety of birds. From the biggest living bird to ocean-going pelagic species, an array of raptors and a plethora of tiny Passerines, the 971 recorded species are enough to keep any birder busy for a lifetime. And, while some are rare or require tremendous effort to see, there are plenty of common birds that are pretty spectacular, or at least very interesting in their biology and behavior. So, rather than examine the rare birds of Southern Africa, in this blog we're going to look at five common (or relatively common, at least) species that are actually pretty amazing for some or other reason. And the stipulation for inclusion is that they can't just be awesome to look at, such as the Turacos and Rollers, but that they actually need to do something awesome, or exhibit some kind of awesome behavior...

The idea for a blog on the birds of Nelspruit gardens and parks came when I needed to add in a day in Nairobi to our Birds & Wildlife of Kenya itinerary, as the clients wanted to come in a day early and relax at the hotel. So I wanted to mention some of the birds they may see in the hotel grounds. I did a Google search, consulted eBird, and did some digging on the internet, and in the end it wasn't too hard to thrown in a few common species that one could find in gardens in Nairobi, with the caveat that I didn't want to mention very common species such as Dark-capped Bulbul and Speckled Mousebird that are common garden birds here in eastern South Africa (which the clients would already have seen). And then I had the thought that there may be birders out there searching for common garden birds of my town (for some reason!), which is Nelspruit (also known as Mbombela), in Mpumalanga, South Africa....