Limpopo Weekend 3rd
to 5th August 2012
Michael Parker and
Malcolm Wilson
We set off from Johannesburg at 0430hrs and were at daybreak
just south of the Waterberg Biosphere reserve. We found a pair of Jackal
Buzzards and a Lanner in one field and got a trap down for the JB, but not
interested. The Lanner took off before we could get to it.
A bit later we found another JB which too was not
interested. In the fields here we counted 7 Denham’s Bustards and 30 Blue
Cranes. |
| 2nd yr Male Shikra |
We spotted a few distant Brown Snake Eagles and one
Black-chested but conditions this time of year were always going to be a
challenge and many areas had not had rain for six months and many birds would
move north to better hunting grounds.
Got up into the Limpopo valley and tried out a new
spring-trap method on a Purple Roller which worked very well and then caught an
adult male Shikra a little later. Found the camp on the river and set a net up
for owls but got a Southern Pied Babbler just before dark.
Saturday
Having tea with the sun coming up, we were rewarded by the
sight of a huge juvenile Martial Eagle flying through the tall riverine forest
to land in a dead tree in front of us. The Egyptian Geese were making a royal
racket and wondered about them as a potentially easy prey item for this
magnificent Eagle.Set off in the morning and found a Gabar Goshawk which came into the trap but got off. Dropped for a Tawny Eagle which was some distance from the road but we pulled it in with a ‘distressed mouse call’ on the ipod, but the bird was only mildly curious and took off after circling over a couple of times.
Had another Gabar get off the trap and no luck with a few
Pale Chanting Goshawks also set back just too far from the track.
Finally our bad luck turned and seemed to lead up to the
next encounter when we came across a huge Tawny Eagle on a pole looking at the
remains of a dead Steenbok. We got a large trap down for it and it came in in
seconds and onto the trap. Giving it a while we saw it was caught and went in,
the bird literally dragged a 2.6 kg trap 10m with comparative ease before
Michael caught up to it and we had a fantastic looking second year Tawny Eagle
of 2.8kgs.
Much flushed with this turn of fortunes we got 2
Black-chested Snake Eagles and a Brown Snake Eagle in the space of an hour! The
next bird was a real surprise, thinking a straightforward Pale Chanting Goshawk,
turned out to be a Pale-chanting / Dark-chanting Goshawk Hybrid! Very unusual
to see or even catch and the first time I have come across it. We caught
another adult female PCG back at the bush camp.
That evening just before dark we found a pair of Verreaux’s
Eagle Owls in the tall riparian forest but we were too close and they took off
before we could get a trap down. After dark we got a pair of beautiful African
Scops Owls with the ipod and dazzled a Fiery-necked Nightjar, catching it by
hand (who needs a net!?).
Sunday
We set off back to Johannesburg, getting another PCG on the
way out of the camp, this time the male of the pair. We dropped for a Brown Snake Eagle and got two
Lizard Buzzards and a Rock Kestrel on the journey south.
My prediction about the abundance of some species during the
winter hunting season seemed to ring true. Normally a rare bird in the
province, seing two Tawny Eagles and catching one was good. Also saw 6 Bateleur
Eagles including 2 juveniles. I would imagine these birds had come in from the
greater Kalahari area to take advantage of the kills and subsequent abundance of
offal from game shot on hunts.
Altogether 16 birds of 11 species were ringed on the weekend,
could have had a few more, but conditions as they were, I think we did very
well.
