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I posted some of this already under a different subject title, but my photo-file sizes were too big. So I reckon some members have opened the thread and got fed up with waiting for the photos to load. Sorry about this and I hope I can now share a great trip with you.

ITINERARY:

3rd Arrived Johannesburg on overnight flight from London, internal flight to Phalaborwa, overnight at Shimuwini Bush-camp
4th Shimuwini
5th Shimuwini area - Letaba River, various loops
6th Shimuwini - Shingwedzi
7th Shingwedzi area; night-drive
8th Shingwedzi - Punda Maria via Babalele picnic area
9th Punda Maria
10th Punda Maria - Pafuri
11th Punda Maria, Mahonie Loop
12th Punda Maria - Pafuri
13th Klopperfontein; night-drive from Punda Maria
14th Punda Maria - Shingwedzi - Mopani
15th Mopani - Letaba - Olifants
16th Olifants, Balule
17th Olifants, Bangu
18th Olifants, Letaba
19th Olifants - Satara along H1-4 and return along S60; night-drive from Olifants
20th Olifants
21st Olifants - Phalaborwa via Letaba, flight to Johannesburg, evening flight to London

Now I'll divide the bird-list up into chunks and post them separately. The figure in brackets is the number of days, out of 19, that we saw each species. I've added a few brief remarks alongside any species I regarded as particularly noteworthy. If anyone wants any further details just let me know. Here's the first batch:

White-breasted Cormorant 1
Reed Cormorant 3
African Darter 1


Goliath Heron 6
Purple Heron 1
Grey Heron 7
Great Egret 12
Little Egret 2
Green-backed Heron 1
Yellow-billed Stork 3


Marabou Stork 6
Saddle-billed Stork 7
African Openbill 1
Woolly-necked Stork 1
African Spoonbill 3
Greater Flamingo 1 (on river near Shingwedzi)
Hamerkop 2
Hadeda Ibis 5
African Sacred Ibis 1
Egyptian Goose 15
Spur-winged Goose 1
White-faced Duck 1


Secretarybird 1 (two along main road between Olifants and Satara)
White-headed Vulture 4
White-backed Vulture 9


Hooded Vulture 3


African Fish-eagle 12


Bateleur 17
Brown Snake-eagle 1
Black-chested Snake-eagle 1 (H1-4 south of Olifants)
Tawny Eagle 5


Martial Eagle 5

More soon.
Andy

Great set of pictures bird man
My fav is the Goliath

Thanks Bert!

Next part:


African Hawk-eagle 2
African Harrier-hawk 1 (one rose up from trees along Nyala Drive)


Yellow-billed Kite 1


Lizard Buzzard 1 (in tree over road near Pafuri)
Gabar Goshawk 1 (S90 Olifants-Satara)
Little Sparrowhawk 1 (Babalala picnic site)
African Goshawk 2


Dickinson's Kestrel 1 (two birds together along S61 at Klopperfontein)


Swainson's Spurfowl 3
Natal Francolin 19
Crested Francolin 6
Helmeted Guineafowl 4
Black Crake 7
African Jacana 6


Painted Snipe 1 (one in Ngwenyeni river-bed just south of Letaba River crossing on H14)


Red-crested Korhaan 4
Black-winged Stilt 5
Three-banded Plover 8
White-fronted Plover 1


Crowned Lapwing 10
White-crowned Lapwing 3


Blacksmith Lapwing 13
Common Sandpiper 1
Wood Sandpiper 2
Common Greenshank 8

To be continued.....

Thanks! Yes we were really lucky that those kestrels chose to come and hunt right alongside the road.

Next batch (just a reminder: figures are the number of days out of 19 that we saw each species):

Water Thick-knee 6
Double-banded Sandgrouse 1 (along S141 near Shimuwini)


African Mourning Dove 5
Red-eyed Dove 2
Cape Turtle-dove 19
Laughing Dove 13
African Green-pigeon 3
Emerald-spotted Wood-dove 12
Namaqua Dove 3
Brown-headed Parrot 5
Grey Go-away-bird 18


Burchell's Coucal 6


Pearl-spotted Owlet 7
African Scops-owl 4


Southern White-faced Scops-owl 1 (on night-drive from Olifants)
Square-tailed Nightjar 4 (regular at dusk from Olifants watch-point)
African Black Swift 1 (several with Little Swifts over pool along H-9)


Little Swift 11
Alpine Swift 2
African Palm-swift 11


Bohm's Spinetail 1 (one over Pafuri picnic-site - sorry for the horrible photo!)
Red-faced Mousebird 2
Speckled Mousebird 5
Giant Kingfisher 3


Pied Kingfisher 11
Malachite Kingfisher 1
Brown-hooded Kingfisher 11


White-fronted Bee-eater 7


Little Bee-eater 2


Lilac-breasted Roller 19
Purple Roller 5
Southern Ground-hornbill 2


Crowned Hornbill 1
African Grey Hornbill 4
Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill 19
Red-billed Hornbill 9
Green Wood-hoopoe 3
Common Scimitarbill 1


African Hoopoe 3

More tomorrow...

Deefstes:
Thanks Mg

Part 4:

Black-collared Barbet 5
Acacia Pied Barbet 1 (one along S90 Olifants-Satara)
Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird 1 (one at Pafuri picnic-site)


Crested Barbet 13


Cardinal Woodpecker 1
Golden-tailed Woodpecker 3


Grey-backed Sparrowlark 3 (flocks at drinking-troughs along H1-6 north of Letaba and S90 Olifants-Satara)
Lesser Striped Swallow 13
Red-breasted Swallow 3


Wire-tailed Swallow 13
Grey-rumped Swallow 6
Brown-throated Martin 3


White-breasted Cuckoo-shrike 1 (a male by camp-site fence at Punda Maria)
Fork-tailed Drongo 18


Black-headed Oriole 7
Pied Crow 1
Southern Black Tit 5
Arrow-marked Babbler 8
Dark-capped Bulbul 18
Terrestrial Brownbul 2
Yellow-bellied Greenbul 4


Eastern Nicator 1 (by roadside near Pafuri)


Kurrichane Thrush 5
Groundscraper Thrush 2


Familiar Chat 1 (Mopani rest-camp)
African Stonechat 2
Mocking Cliff-chat 3
White-browed Robin-chat 3


White-throated Robin-chat 4


Bearded Scrub-robin 2


White-browed Scrub-robin 3
Collared Palm-thrush 1 (Shingwedzi rest-camp, by campsite gate)
Grey Penduline-tit 1 (one along S93 Olifants-Letaba)
Little Rush-warbler 1 (from Olifants high-water bridge)
Grey-backed Camaroptera 3
Long-billed Crombec 6
Green-capped Eremomela 2


Yellow-breasted Apalis 3

Nice photoshop job! What bird did you use for the source image?

Ah yes, of course - sorry (brain out of gear there!). It started off as a Black Stork

Here are the next lot:


Rattling Cisticola 7
Red-faced Cisticola 1 (Pafuri picnic-site)
Tawny-flanked Prinia 8


Ashy Flycatcher 1 (several at Punda Maria)
Grey Tit-flycatcher 1 (Olifants rest-camp)
Southern Black Flycatcher 5


Marico Flycatcher 3
Chinspot Batis 10
Black-throated Wattle-eye 1 (male and female Pafuri picnic-site)
African Paradise-flycatcher 2 (Olifants rest-camp)


African Pied Wagtail 10
African Pipit 3
Bushveld Pipit 4


Magpie Shrike 9


Tropical Boubou 1 (Pafuri picnic-site)
Black-crowned Tchagra 1 (Pafuri picnic-site)


Brown-crowned Tchagra 8
Grey-headed Bush-shrike 4


Orange-breasted Bush-shrike 4
Retz's Helmet-shrike 2 (small flocks near Pafuri and flycatcher trail at Punda Maria)
White-crested Helmet-shrike 2 (small flocks near Shimuwini and near Pafuri)


Brubru 2


Black-backed Puffback 13
Greater Blue-eared Starling 19
Meves's Starling 2 (near Pafuri)
Burchell's Starling 1 (Satara rest-camp)
Red-winged Starling 7
Common Myna 1 (Jo'burg airport!)


Wattled Starling 1 (single birds at Shingwedzi and Babalala picnic-site)
Red-billed Oxpecker 9

One more batch to come......

Last section (numbers refer to the days out of 19 that we saw each species):

Yellow-billed Oxpecker 1 (Shimuwini)


Scarlet-chested Sunbird 3


Collared Sunbird 9


White-bellied Sunbird 18
Marico Sunbird 3
House Sparrow 18
Yellow-throated Petronia 4
Southern Grey-headed Sparrow 13
Red-billed Buffalo-weaver 3
Village Weaver 2
Southern Masked Weaver 1
Lesser Masked-weaver 1
Spectacled Weaver 4
Red-headed Weaver 3
Red-billed Quelea 1 (one Babalala picnic-site and several at drinking-troughs along H1-6 north of Letaba)


White-winged Widowbird 5
Pin-tailed Whydah 1
Long-tailed Paradise-whydah 2
Village Indigobird 5


Jameson's Firefinch 4
Red-billed Firefinch 1


Common Waxbill 5


Blue Waxbill 15
Cut-throat Finch 1 (small flock by H14)
Green-winged Pytilia 2
African Quailfinch 1 (flocks along H1-4 and S90 Olifants-Satara)
Yellow-fronted Canary 10
Golden-breasted Bunting 5
Lark-like Bunting 2 (several with Grey-backed Sparrowlarks at drinking-troughs along H1-6 north of Letaba and S90 Olifants-Satara)

Total 193 species

What kind of magic did you use to get the birds to pose for you. I'm normally way to slow.

No special magic or skills, the vehicle is a great hide and the birds will usualy just get on with their business!