ShowMe South Africa

Text and pictures: Peter Chadwick. Article from the January 2013 issue of Country Life 2013.

Peter Chadwick heads for central KwaZulu-Natal in the hope of finding his ‘lifer’
A Mangrove Kingfisher perches among the mangroves at Umlalazi Nature Reserve.

These days its not often I get the opportunity to go off in search of a new species of bird, this ‘lifer’ I had tried so hard to add to my list, and I jumped at the chance to do so in one of my favourite parts of the country. My destination, the Dlinza and Ongoye forests at Eshowe in KwaZulu-Natal. My prize, the endemic and extremely localised Green Barbet that, for all my searching over the years, I had yet to find.

At the tranquil Birds of Paradise guest lodge on the edge of Dlinza Forest I was greeted by the incessant calling of Red-fronted Tinkerbirds and occasional calls from Purple-crested Turacos. Local bird guide Joatham Maduna, who is passionate about birds and has guided in the area since 2000, met me at the entrance to the forest.

Local guide Joatham Maduna scouring the treetops from the aerial boardwalk for the elusive Green Barbet.

Joatham knows this forest intimately and, within minutes on the short circuit trail, he was calling up Green Malkhoa, Chorister Robin-Chat (2 on checklist), Red-capped Robin-Chat, Narina Trogon (10) and Spotted Ground-Thrush. Blue duikers broke cover occasionally to dash further into the dense undergrowth, as Joatham showed me kite and bark spiders, giant earthworm castes and where bush pig had snouted among the roots of huge trees.

On the aerial boardwalk we saw White-eared Barbets.Yellow-rumped Barbets, Bar-throated Apalis, Black Cuckooshrikes, Sombre Greenbuls, Square-tailed Drongos and countless varieties of butterfly. A highlight was a birding party of Collared (8) and Olive Sunbirds, Grey Cuckooshrikes, Dark-backed Weavers, Olive and Cardinal Woodpeckers and a pair of Olive Shrikes.

Sadly, but not for lack of trying, we failed to spot the Eastern Bronze-naped Pigeon that has eluded me on every visit to this forest. But we made up for our disappointment by climbing to the highest point of the boardwalk at sunset, in time to watch Trumpeter and Crowned Hornbills flying to their night-time roosts. Flocks of Red-backed Mannikins and Thick-billed Weavers (6) followed them, and a magnificent Crowned Eagle called loudly as he circled the forest.

Guides Sakhamuzi Mhlongo and Junior Gabela are determined to find the Green Barbet.

After a scrumptious breakfast at the lodge the next morning, I headed out with Sakhamuzi Mhlongo and Junior Gabela, who had promised me the chance of at last seeing my ‘lifer’, the Green Barbet. As we set off for Ongoye Forest there was friendly banter and competition between the two as to who would be the first to spot this prized bird. Sakhamuzi works for WESSA (Wildlife and Environment Society of SA) and is involved in many community-based conservation projects, while Junior assists WESSA but is based at the Amatikulu Nature Reserve where his specialty is finding the elusive Swamp Nightjar. I had never visited this forest and was thrilled at the prospect, especially knowing it held a number of species not found anywhere else.

On the grassland plateau of the reserve, Junior was brilliant at pointing out Pale-crowned, Rattling and Cloud Cisticolas, Neddickys, Striped Pipits, Red-collared Widowbirds and Fan-tailed Widowbirds (1) and the displaying Rufous-naped Larks (5).

Not to be outdone, Sakhamuzi quickly found a birding party at the first forest patch and smiled broadly as he pointed out African Paradise-Flycatchers, a Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher; Grey Cuckooshrikes, Square-tailed Drongos, Olive Shrikes and Dark-backed Weavers.The masses of butterflies dancing in the canopy seemed to sense that the challenge was on between the two expert guides, who separated a distance from each another and began calling repeatedly, in their search for my prize.

The White-eared Barbet is usually found in small family groups.

In the meantime, I wandered into the forest and a bushbuck ram dashed off as samango monkeys alarm called at my presence. After ten minutes, the guides joined me, both looking slightly worried. I pointed out an endemic Ongoye red squirrel, a Red-fronted Tinkerbird and a family of White-eared Barbets, and the guides looked even more perturbed by my joy at seeing species that clearly were not the great Green Barbet.

On they went with their search and their efforts eventually paid off. Finally, there it was, the bird we had come in search of. Sakhamuzi slowly guided us towards a large dead tree that had numerous flew the Green Barbet, a rather nondescript little bird that had us craning our necks to peer through the canopy as it fed on ripening fruit, and occasionally called to a mate somewhere far off in the forest.

Accommodation at the Birds of Paradise lodge overlooks extensive gardens. Dlinza and Ongoye forests are good locations for the Square-tailed Drongo.

 

Obviously relieved, Junior mentioned to me that, with the aid of either one of them, visitors stood a 90 per cent chance of seeing the Green Barbet, while on their own the chance was 30 per cent. Given our difficulty in finding this bird, the use of these experts comes highly recommended.

The peaceful and well-treed grounds of the lodge. □ A green-veined charaxes lands in an open patch of the forest floor and moves to a small pool of water to drink.

On our way out of the reserve, we stopped at the small campsite on the edge of the forest. Visitors can camp here or make use of the small house, which can sleep six. Amur Falcons and a Yellow-billed Kite flew overhead and Yellow-streaked Greenbuls and Tambourine Doves fed nearby. With time on our side, we drove the short distance to the mangroves in Umlalazi Nature Reserve, where a Goliath Heron (9) stood motionless on the riverbank. A juvenile Palm-nut Vulture took off from within the mangrove trees to join a circling Southern Banded Snake-Eagle. A pair of African Fish Eagles (3) sat in the upper branches of a dead fig tree and a Woolly-necked Stork (4) wandered across the mud flats.

Sakhamuzi led us a short distance on foot to a patch of trees and, sure enough, there it was, an extremely relaxed Mangrove Kingfisher (7). Sakhamuzi explained that birds had only recently returned from their local migration and that he had known this particular bird for a number of years. He said it had become very relaxed in his presence.

As I left the reserve the appearance of Green Twinspot, Green-backed Camaroptera and Orange-breasted Bushshrike were a fitting end to an excellent trip.

Red-capped Robin Chats are found in dense thicket and forest. □ A samango monkey feeds on ripening fruit in the Ongoye Forest. □ An African monarch at Umlalazi Nature Reserve.
Footnotes

Season and Weather Summer months are extremely hot and humid and afternoon thundershowers can be expected. Note that this is a malaria area. Winter weather is pleasant with cool temperatures and more stable weather.

Habitats A mosaic of forest and grassland with small papyrus and grassed wetlands and a large river with mangroves.The diverse forests support a wide variety of communities or species.

Specials Narina Trogon, Green Barbet, Spotted Ground-Thrush, Mangrove Kingfisher Palm-nut Vulture, Southern Banded Snake-Eagle.

GettingThere Dlinza Forest lies within the town of Eshowe and is well signposted. To reach Umlalazi Nature Reserve, follow the N2 freeway to the Mtunzini turn-off, 132km north of Durban. The reserve is well signposted, about 4km after Mtunzini village.

Checklist

10 specials to try and spot in Dlinza and Ongoye forests

10 Specials to try and spot in Dlinza and Ongoye forests

1. The Fan-tailed Widowbird (Kortstertflap) is a common resident of reedbeds and moist grassland where the males can be seen displaying to the drab females.

2. Most active at dawn and dusk, the Chorister Robin-Chat (Lawaaimakerjanfrederick) is an excellent mimic and copies the sounds of insects and birds, and some of ours.

3. Probably one of the most characteristic birds of African waterways, the African Fish Eagle (Visarend) is found throughout South Africa except in the dry west.

4. A pair of Woolly-necked Storks (Wolnekooievaar) is regularly encountered on the open mud flats at Umlalazi Nature Reserve, where they feed on a variety of crabs, shellfish, amphibians and fish,

5. The Rufous-naped Lark (Rooineklewerik) displays from a perch where it utters a repetitive call and rapidy flaps its wings.

6. The female Thick-billed Weaver (Dikbekwewer) is heavily streaked underneath, while the male is a uniform chocolate brown with white forehead and wing patch.

7. The Mangrove Kingfisher (Manglietvisvanger) is uncommon in wooded coastal rivers and mangroves and is differentiated from the similar looking Woodland Kingfisher by its red bill.

8. The Collared Sunbird (Kortbeksuikerbekkie) is common in dense woodland and coastal and riverine forests.

9. The aptly named Goliath Heron (Reusereier) is the largest of the heron species, standing 1,5m in height.

10. The male and female NarinaTrogon (Bosloerie) may be differentiated by the male’s brighter coloration and emerald head.

To reach Ongoye, it is best to make use of Sakhamuzi or Junior to guide you there from Mtunzini.

Accommodation

Birds of Paradise B&B 035 474 7738 or 082 532 4627

Bird Guides

Sakhamuzi Mhlongo 083 436 2252

Junior Gabela 082 667 3704

Zululand Birding Route 035 753 5644 or email

More info on the town of Eshowe | More info on the Zululand area

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