Outing report: River Valley Nature Reserve - 27 January 2019

African Crake (photo Hazel van Rooyen)

Species Identified: 51                                                                     Text: Hazel van Rooyen

Attending: Stan & Val Culley, Danie & Bella du Toit, Doug & Angie Butcher, Margie Cowan, Margaret Jones, Hester & Babs Pieterse, Rooksane Gangat & Rouida Kathrada, Graham & Sue Salthouse, Bob & Hazel van Rooyen

The day started off well for Bob and Hazel with a sighting of the out-of-range African Crake just outside the gates of River Valley.  Unfortunately, everyone arrived all at once and frightened it back into the long reeds.  Andrew Lewis, the owner, had been seeing it with a single chick but we didn’t get a sighting of the chick.

African Crake (photo HvR)

The cavalcade drove down to the Vungu river, en route setting in motion lots of Yellow-fronted Canaries and Fan-tailed Widowbirds in the grassland.  Lesser-striped Swallows and Barn Swallows swooped about, drawing circles in the air.  Down by the river a Pied Wagtail foraged while male and female Thick-billed Weavers chased each other around in the never-ending pursuit of procreation. 

Thick-billed Weaver (photo Sue Salthouse)

A very well camouflaged Jackal Buzzard looked over its domain from a Euphorbia tree high up on the opposite hillside.  Walking through the undergrowth all was still and quiet except for the pop-pop-popping of the Yellow-rumped Tinkerbirds and kwit-kwit-kwit of the Green-backed Cameroptera.  Out in the open a Common Buzzard perched on a tall tree accompanied by African Green Pigeons.  In the grassland a Croaking Cisticola was identified while a Tambourine Dove called softly in the distance.  Re-tracing our steps Olive Sunbirds were spotted in the shrubbery and Sombre Greenbulls called.  Back at the vehicles coffee and breakfast was the order of the day and we all tucked in.

Olive Sunbird (photo HvR)

Having re-fuelled our bodies we set off in the opposite direction through rippling grassland on the right and woods on the left.  A Golden-tailed Woodpecker screeched to the left and a Yellow-throated Longclaw flapped over the grass-tops.  Further along, the pathway led down to a lovely viewpoint overlooking the river.  

Doug, the photographer (photo HvR)

Crowned Hornbill (photo HvR)

Tawny-flanked Prinia (photo: HvR)

Back at the picnic area we sat for a while watching Crowned and Trumpeter Hornbills criss-crossing the valley while Crowned Eagles called from on High whilst a Tawny-flanked Prinia hopped amongst the reeds at the edge of the river. After a relaxing braai we packed up and made our way home, just in time as the promised rain arrived soon after.

Thanks to everyone who came and special thanks to Andrew Lewis for letting us visit his beautiful verdant valley.  We must not forget to mention the many buck on his farm – impala, duiker, nyala amongst others.

Village Weaver nests on fever trees 
but many more on the ground,
 blown off by our recent strong winds.
 (photo HvR)

Along our walks we noticed several of these frogs which were well camouflaged against the leaf matter on the forest floor, even to the yellow stripe down its back.

Apalis, Bar-throated

Barbet, Black-collared

Boubou, Southern-capped

Bulbul, Dark-capped

Buzzard, Jackal

Buzzard, Steppe (Common)

Cameroptera, Green-backed

Canary, Yellow-fronted

Cisticola, Croaking

Crake, African

Dove, Red-eyed

Dove, Tambourine

Drongo, Fork-tailed

Eagle, African Fish

Eagle, Crowned

Fiscal, Common

Goose, Egyptian

Greenbul, Sombre

Hornbill, Crowned

Hornbill, Trumpeter

Ibis, Hadedah

Kingfisher, Brown-hooded

Kite, Yellow-billed

Longclaw, Yellow-throated

Mousebird, Speckled

Oriole, Black-headed

 Pigeon, African Green

Prinia, Tawny-flanked

Raven, White-necked

Robin, Brown Scrub

Robin-chat, Red-capped

Sawwing, Black

Spurfowl, Natal

Starling, Black-bellied

Sunbird, Olive

Swallow, Barn

Swallow, Lesser-striped

Swift, African Palm

Swift, White-rumped

Tinkerbird, Yellow-rumped

Turaco, Knysna

Turaco, Purple-crested

Wagtail, Mountain

Wagtail, Pied

Weaver, Dark-backed

Weaver, Spectacled

Weaver, Thick-billed

Weaver, Village

Weaver, Yellow

Widowbird, Fantailed

Woodpecker, Golden-tailed