Chirpy guests at breakfast at the start of the day.
Some of the birds you might get to see
The Grey Loerie (the go-away bird)
The grey go-away-bird, also known as grey lourie, grey loerie, or kwêvoël, is a bold and common bird of the southern Afrotropics. When disturbed, they make their presence known by their characteristically loud and nasal “kweh” or “go-way” calls, with the last syllable typically a descending drawl.
Hadedas
A visit from a hadeda is a sign of a healthy garden, teeming with smaller wildlife species. Despite their notorious racket, they are generally only vocal at dawn or when disturbed.
Piet-my-vrou (Red-chested cuckoo)
The familiar call of Piet-my vrou is associated with summer as the Red-chested cuckoo returns from central Africa to southern Africa around September and flies north again in April.
Red Bishop
Red Bishop is found through the country and is usually found close to water. The male is dimorphic, that is it changes the colour of its plumage when breeding from the drab brown of the juvenile and female to the striking red back and head, and black face and breast. Males may breed with up to seven females in a season.
Burchell’s Coucal
Burchell’s Coucal is nicknamed “the rain bird” as its descending bubbling call is said to be a harbinger of rain. This heavy bird is a clumsy flyer and it prefers to skulk in long grass, woodland and suburban gardens. It is a cousin of the cuckoo but does not parasitize other bird’s nests.
Glossy Starling
Easily identified by its iridescent bluish green plumage and yellow eye. Starlings are gregarious and garrulous and are a familiar sight in suburbia. They can be very territorial and aggressive to other birds especially around their nest which they make in a hole in a tree that has usually been made by a barbet or woodpecker.
The Laughing Dove
The Laughing Doves are small African pigeons that were named for their distinctive coo vocalizations that are reminiscent of human laughter. One of the most common birds in the country. It has adapted well to gardens and city centres and may be distinguished from other doves by not having a black collar. Its call is a distinctive rising and falling coo-coo-coo-coo-coo.
Rose-ringed parakeets
Rose Ringed Parakeets – escaped from aviaries initially but now breeding in the wild. Scientists often see these birds as an Invasive Species to be controlled. Many people, however, see them as lovely creatures and they welcome them into their gardens.
Photos by Anthony Cavanagh.