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Wednesday, March 4, 2015

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! 



10 comments:

  1. Beautiful birds and great captures as always, Jo! Glad things are settling down!! Moves are never easy!! Enjoy the remainder of your week!!

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  2. I think the colour in that Black-collared Barbet is just lovely.

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  3. Superb images of these birds and I loved the short video. Good to see you are now looking at birds in S.A.

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  4. What a great collection of birds. Love the Cape Robin-chat.

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  5. Hello Jo, beautiful captures of the birds.. The Black Collared Barbet is a gorgeous bird.. Thanks for sharing the video. Have a great day!

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  6. I love the barbet with the red face, so pretty and I am happy you are finding birds to photograph... our Cardinals are chatting now.. a lot. today the air if full of bird song, all calling their mates

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  7. handsome birds, every one of them. i especially like the robin-chat!

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  8. They are all wonderful birds! Nice shots and video!

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  9. I love seeing your yard birds and knowing what they are.

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  10. I just love the Cape Robbin Chat. We have a nest in a pot plant at out from door. Three eggs hatched yesterday. Now the stress starts.

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Thank you for visiting my blog and taking the time to leave a comment. I appreciate your feedback. Jo