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Ken Borland



Marakele National Park 0

Posted on December 23, 2021 by Ken

The spectacular Kransberg towers over the Marakele plains

The amazing thing about the Marakele National Park is you drive through the entrance gate into the Acacia bushveld – areas of dense dry thornbush interspersed with more open grassy or shrubby areas – just over a thousand metres above sea level, seeing arid country specials like Pied Babbler and Great Sparrow; and less than 20 kilometres away you can be in the mountainous vegetation, reminiscent of the Drakensberg, of Lenong Peak, at an altitude of more than 2000 metres.

From the arid woodlands of the western parts of the park, one is transported into a different world of low cloud and windswept grassland with almost alpine vegetation and four different species of Proteas.

There is a viewpoint at the end of the Lenong Drive, making the daunting single-lane mountain pass along a concrete track all the more worthwhile.

We had already seen Cape Vulture, soaring high overhead, the third bird we saw driving through the entrance gate earlier that morning, after bushveld regulars Chinspot Batis and Southern Black Tit.

But apart from stunning scenery, the Lenong viewpoint, at an altitude of 2039m, also provides the most convenient view of the Cape Vulture breeding colony: at about 800 breeding pairs it is one of the largest in the world for this threatened raptor.

It is both a serene and exhilarating sight to see these large scavengers floating and wheeling around the cliffs across a valley to the south-west of the viewpoint.

Just as thrilling was to discover an inquisitive pair of Buffstreaked Chat hopping around the small rocks at our feet. This striking bird is a familiar resident of the more moist Drakensberg grasslands and this population in the Waterberg is isolated.

They were joined by a male Mocking Chat, standing proud with his glossy black plumage glistening in the sun, Cape Rock Thrush and busy Cape and Cinnamonbreasted Rock Buntings on the ground.

But it was the Chats that stole the show and my wife Lauren gave the spot the entirely fitting name of ‘Chatty Corner’.

Mocking Chat

Descending down the mountain, there was still another high-altitude specialist waiting for us in the form of a Striped Pipit, at 1791m above sea level (a.s.l.), which flew off the road and into the grass and rocks alongside.

Red Hartebeest were also enjoying the lengthy highveld grasslands close to the road.

Descending still further down the hairpin bends of Lenong Drive, at 1375m a.s.l., the rocky outcrops and shrubby grassland is ideal habitat for rock thrushes, but it was still unexpected to come across the Short-Toed Rock Thrush, which is apparently only sporadically found in the Waterberg. But there it was with just a hint of white flecking on the forehead and, of course, the blue-grey mask stopping at the throat rather than on the breast as in Sentinel Rock Thrush.

I was relieved to only come across our first Elephant once we had returned to the plains, with their open tree savanna and rich grassland around the wetlands, along with patches of thicker woodland. I have had the misfortune of having to reverse down the steep narrow pass at pace while being chased by one of those behemoths, which is far from a peaceful experience.

Heading back to our rustic but very comfortable thatched chalet at Griffons Bush Camp, one heads back along the base of the very mountains that not so long ago we were summiting.

The thornbush shrubland and deciduous forest, which is rather dry in May, starts to give way to more moist savanna in the shade of the cliffs. Passing through areas with more substantial understorey, I was delighted to see the secretive Coqui Francolin, South Africa’s smallest francolin.

Back at Griffons, we were given a warm welcome by Foxy the tame Meerkat, who doesn’t mind a scratch but does have quite a nip on him!

The broadleaved woodland around Griffons is a good place for bird parties foraging through the canopy and lower down, and seeing White Helmetshrike and Greyheaded Bush Shrike clicking and working their way up from the ground to the crowns of the trees, was a highlight, as was the presence of a Striped Kingfisher.

Sightings List

Chinspot Batis
Southern Black Tit
Cape Vulture
Forktailed Drongo
Blackbacked Puffback
Warthog
Southern Boubou
Cardinal Woodpecker
Brubru
Great Sparrow
Crested Barbet
Pied Babbler
Blue Waxbill
Black Flycatcher
Southern Masked Weaver
Tsessebe
Blue Wildebeest
Plains Zebra
Yellowbilled Hornbill
Giraffe
Ostrich
Goldenbreasted Bunting
Arrowmarked Babbler
Blackeyed Bulbul
Grey Lourie
Rock Martin
Chacma Baboon
Cinnamonbreasted Rock Bunting
Buffstreaked Chat

Buffstreaked Chat
Cape Bunting
Cape Rock Thrush
Mocking Chat
Streakyheaded Canary
Striped Pipit
Red Hartebeest
Familiar Chat
Yellowfronted Canary
Short-Toed Rock Thrush
Elephant
Rattling Cisticola
Striped Kingfisher
Helmeted Guineafowl
Impala
Nyala
White Helmetshrike
African Hoopoe
Coqui Francolin
Greater Kudu
Speckled Mousebird
Yellowthroated Sparrow
Meerkat
Greyheaded Bush Shrike
Cape White-Eye
Redbilled Woodhoopoe
Glossy Starling

Ezemvelo Nature Reserve 0

Posted on August 02, 2012 by Ken

The lovely male Coqui Francolin at Ezemvelo

It’s a wonderfully counter-intuitive part of nature that fields that have been ravaged by fire are often vibrant oases of life … and my visit to Ezemvelo Nature Reserve once again proved this.

The reserve, situated 74km due east of Pretoria, just past Bronkhorstspruit, had obviously done their winter burning quite recently and stretching far to the right as you drive into Ezemvelo were burnt fields full of wildlife … and some interesting birds.

Without the new grass springing up, and the burnt seeds and carrion now exposed, I’ve no doubt that the area would have just looked like the old farmland around the reserve. But my eyes were inexporably drawn and kept busy by the cavalcade of life on the right, while the only thing of interest on the other, unburnt side of the road, was a treed ridge which didn’t hold anything.

Lovely Capped Wheatears were darting about the burnt fields like livewire sentinels, while the lack of trees didn’t bother the Fiscal Shrikes, who were using both high and low perches to hunt in areas where the visibility of their prey had greatly improved. The Forktailed Drongos were able to use telephone poles in the absence of trees.

Two Blackbacked Jackals were plodding along in mischievous fashion, obviously on the lookout for any bits of “braaied meat” left behind.

A stately Kudu emerged from some trees close to the road and there were no fewer than nine species of antelope present, as well as many Warthog (especially near the Wilge and Sterkfontein rivers), a Vervet Monkey, Plains Zebra and a Yellow Mongoose.

The overall colour was still the usual drab yellowish-grey of the Highveld winter, and some pink rondavels did break up the monotony, but the colour really wasn’t to my liking!

Fortunately, there was a wonderful splash of colour amongst all these muted tones with a Whitefronted Bee-Eater swooping into view.

The thicker grass down by the Wilge River produced a Spikeheeled Lark and a herd of Eland on the hillside above, while some female and young Waterbuck tried to hide themselves as well.

Then it was time to ascend back up the hill and through the old regenerating farmlands – now there were burnt fields on both sides of the road …

I was enjoying the whirring white wings of the Anteating Chats when there, right next to the road, appeared the cute little Coqui Francolin male with his orange head and striped belly. I’ve only seem them before in the Kruger National Park, maybe once or twice, so it was a marvellous, lengthy sighting.

Longbilled Pipit and a rambunctious Eastern Clapper Lark striding about were other good sightings before I departed.

A pair of Red Hartebeest in the burnt fields - note the fresh green grass coming up!

Sightings list

Crowned Plover

Capped Wheatear

Common Ostrich

Blesbok

Springbok

Blue Wildebeest

Fiscal Shrike

Forktailed Drongo

Blackbacked Jackal

Kudu

Red Hartebeest

Warthog

Vervet Monkey

African Stonechat

Blackeyed Bulbul

Rock Pigeon

Reed Cormorant

Helmeted Guineafowl

Black Wildebeest

Blackchested Prinia

Egyptian Goose

Cape Turtle Dove

Eland

Spikeheeled Lark

Southern Black Flycatcher

Waterbuck

Redeyed Dove

Cape Wagtail

Giant Kingfisher

Pied Crow

Plains Zebra

Fantailed Cisticola

Orangethroated Longclaw

Longtailed Widow

Gemsbok

Anteating Chat

Southern Masked Weaver

Arrowmarked Babbler

Whitefronted Bee-Eater

Brownhooded Kingfisher

Longbilled Pipit

Yellow Mongoose

Coqui Francolin

Rock Martin

Laughing Dove

Grassveld Pipit

Eastern Clapper Lark

Blacksmith Plover

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