Text and Pictures by Peter Chadwick
Source: This article is taken from the July 2011 issue of Country Life
Gauteng is the undisputed heavyweight champion of South Africa when it comes to the economic driving force of the country, and this brings with it a fast-paced lifestyle – which has me as a small town dorpenaar cringing in the corner and looking for slower, more peaceful spots.
Fortunately one does not have to look far from the shopping malls and speeding highways to find a whole suite of wild islands where birdlife is still plentiful. Unfortunately though, many of these spots are becoming smaller and smaller islands, separated from one another as development creeps ever closer and gobbles ever more of the wild spaces. We as a society should be stopping this encroachment, protecting these special spots for perpetuity so that we have the opportunity to escape to gather food for the soul and to appreciate our own space and need for nature.
One of these special spots that I recently discovered is Maropeng. It is part of the larger Cradle of Humankind that also includes the Sterkfontein Caves amongst its lush grasslands and wooded copses and can easily keep one occupied for a good morning’s birding, followed by a tour through the Tumulus Dome where mankind’s path to becoming an upright-walking homo sapien is well laid out.
My welcome to the small reserve was rows and rows of Amur Falcons sitting on the powerlines, the males and females contrasting against one another with their differing plumages. As the day warmed they all flew off to hawk and drop onto small insects. Flocks of Greater Striped Swallow and Little, Black and White-rumped Swifts weaved in and out with high-speed precision between the larger falcons, also scooping insects from the air in a woodland patch a Crested Barbet was giving its rather grating call, and a Cardinal Woodpecker was located by its continual tapping against a dead branch.
On the ground below, a pair of Groundscraper Thrushes flicked leaves and small twigs to reveal tasty morsels that were quickly snatched up. In patches where the grass was short or had been mowed for upcoming heritage events, Blacksmith, Crowned and African Wattled Lapwings walked with jerky stop-starts to pluck at a food item while more boisterous flocks of Helmeted Guineafowl chased one another in flurries of feathers and scratched enthusiastically in the dirt, sprouting dust in every direction. Shy Swainson’s Spurfowl dashed across these openings to disappear again into the safety of the longer grass. Also amongst the short grasses, African and Buffy Pipits were regular sightings and had me checking the differences between these rather difficult to identify – for me anyway – drab, brown birds.
On driving further around the area I found a pair of Bokmakieries sitting on a shrub, calling in perfect duet. Nearby, raucous Pied Starlings, a pair of Ant-eating Chats and a Cape Longclaw were searching for food alongside one another and between a spread-out flock of African Quailfinches. Over the long grasses themselves, male Long-tailed and Red-collared Widowbird displayed with long, draping tails and a male Pin-tailed Whydah harassed a flock of female whydahs. A flash of golden colour drew my attention to a Yellow-crowned Bishop, a small bird I have not seen for many years and was particularly pleased to see once again.
After this initial flurry of birding I took a break to do the tour through the Tumulus Dome and then have a bite to eat at the small boutique hotel. On the drive out of the reserve I was rewarded with European Bee-eater calling distinctively in the skies above as a Black-shouldered Kite hovered and then swooped down on a hapless rodent. By now, Rufous-naped Larks were displaying on every available raised point and I spent an enjoyable ten minutes watching as they called and then hopped and flittered their wings rapidly in display, a small flock of White-fronted Bee-eaters feeding nearby giving me an intermittent distraction.
En route back towards Randpark Ridge where I was staying, the signs to the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden caught my attention and I was reminded of the pair of Verreauxs’ Eagles that is known to reside there, and also of recent and unusual sightings of a Grey Wagtail. This quickly made up my mind and I was soon wandering in the extensive gardens in search of additional feathered delights, past picnicking families and a large group learning the basics of photography. Viewed from the Sasol Bird Hide on the edge of the dam, male Southern Red Bishops swayed on the wind-blown reed stems and Lesser Swamp-Warblers flittered in and out of cover: A lone Malachite Kingfisher sat briefly before taking off in a flash of vibrant colour to a quieter spot on the dam’s edge. Pairs of African Black Duck and Yellow-billed Duck preened contentedly on the far side as a Little Egret waded slowly and patiently in the shallows.
Both Diederick and Klaas’s Cuckoos were sighted, and in the woodlands along the river Red-chested Cuckoos burst from cover as I approached too closely. Kurrichane and Olive Thrushes moved slowly on the ground in amongst the shadows of the woodlands, and in the branches above Cape Glossy Starling, Bar-throated Apalis, Cape White-eye, African Paradise-Flycatcher; Brubru, Black-backed Puffback and Southern Masked Weaver moved together in a birding party. Wandering along the river’s edge, I passed numerous other birders with cameras at the ready, all in search of the elusive Grey Wagtail.
As I walked, Giant Kingfishers flew nosily up and down the river as Hadeda Ibis erupted from the sodden edges of the riverbank African Olive Pigeons fed in the crowns of the fruiting trees and Amethyst Sunbirds plucked at spider’s webs. Nearing the large fast-flowing waterfall, I slowed down and watched patiently in hope of viewing the gardens most famous residents.
It was not long before the calls of a Jackal Buzzard attracted my gaze to the west where I not only saw the calling bird, but watched as it dive-bombed the Verreauxs’ Eagles. As if this was not enough, a Steppe Buzzard joined in and an African Harrier-Hawk also flew past with an African Goshawk close on its tail.
On the cliffs next to the waterfall, Red-winged Starlings flew in and out of the cracks and a male Cape Rock Thrush sat on a pinnacle. The large trees at the base of the waterfall were in full fruit and Grey Go-away-birds gorged themselves alongside Black-collared Barbet, Dark-capped Bulbul and Sombre Greenbul.
Before I even realized it, the lengthening shadows of dusk were soon falling and I had enjoyed an exciting day’s relaxing and rewarding birding within the close confines of South Africa’s fastest-paced city.
As for the ‘mega-tick’ sighting of the Grey Wagtail, it eluded all of us crazy birdwatchers and photographers that day, but I was to catch up with it at another, equally special birding destination in the very near future.
Footnotes
Season and Weather The two sites mentioned have a typical highveld climate with approximately 700m of rain falling per annum, mainly during the summer months. Frost occurs regularly during winter.
Habitats At Maropeng, open grassveld dominates on undulating hillside with occasional granitic koppies and woodland patches. The Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden has a variety of scrublands, riverine woodlands, wetlands and open areas.
Specials Verreauxs’ Eagle, Half-collared Kingfisher; Grey Wagtail, Striped Pipit, Yellow-crowned Bishop.
Accommodation & Activities Within the Cradle of Humankind is the Maropeng Hotel, a four-star 24-bed boutique hotel. Apart from the birdwatching, it is well worth visiting the Tumulus Building at Maropeng. Occasional other activities such as photographic and bird identification skills are regularly held.
Getting there the Walter Sisulu National Botanical Garden is located towards Roodepoort. From the western bypass, follow Hendrick Potgieter Road towards Tarlton. The gardens are well signposted from here on. Maropeng is situated on the R400 just off the R563 Hekpoort road.
Checklists
10 specials to try to spot away from the rat race on BirdLife South Africa’s Johannesburg West Birding Route.
- The Amur Falcon is a common summer visitor to the Highveld grasslands and roosts communally in large stands of trees.
- Male Long-tailed Widowbirds are a distinctive sight in the summer Highveld grasslands, where they display with long tails, hovering or perched in prominent positions to attract female widowbirds.
- The Levaillant’s Cisticola is a common resident of reedbeds and grasslands adjacent to rivers and other bodies of water.
- The African Wattled Lapwing is found throughout the Highveld grasslands, preferring open areas where it can search for insect prey.
- A common resident of most water bodies, the colourful Malachite Kingfisher perches on low overhangs where it can launch after small fish.
- The male Diederick Cuckoo is easily distinguished from the similar Klaas’s Cuckoo by its red eye and broad white stripe behind the eye.
- The African Black Duck is found throughout most of South Africa where it prefers fast-flowing streams.The female pictured here is drabber in colour than the darker male.
- The male Yellow-crowned Bishop is easily distinguished by its small size, yellow crown and yellow back. This plumage is held only during the breeding season. During the rest of the year the plumage reverts to a drab brown.
- The Rufous-naped Lark is easily located during the breeding season through its repetitive calling and habit of flapping its wings in a small hover as it calls.
- The Pied Starling is a large, dark- brownish starling with a prominent white vent. It occurs in small flocks and forages mainly on the ground for food.
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