First Birding in South Africa

Hi everyone. Finally I get to post about the birds in and around my home in South Africa. While on a bike tour to the Cape last week, I also photographed several birds which I'll post about next week. 

At the moment the Black-collared Barbets are in full swing with their strident duet. Their call is an iconic mid-summer sound in the Free State.  Two birds call in such harmony that it sounds like a single call. I'll try to record it and play it here in the near future. 

Black-collared Barbet in my garden

Another resident in my garden is the Cape Robin-chat. I've posted before of a parent feeding its young just below my bedroom window. So they breed and grow around our property. 

Cape Robin-chat

The Cape Robin-chat is less robust than the White-browed Robin-chat which used to occur in my garden in Kenya

The Red-eyed Bulbul also breeds and frequents my garden. Last weekend,  Rina pointed to the bird which had just swooped onto my glass front door. I grabbed up my camera and began to snap away. The following images and video clip are rather graphic and not for the faint-hearted. As a human observer I feel saddened when a creature is devoured while I watch, but the law of nature is, it's the "survival of the fittest" 

Red-eyed Bulbul eating its midday meal

I took these photos through my entertainment area windows, so they're not all that clear

I'm linking to Wild Bird Wednesday which you can visit here

Happy Wednesday to you all!