For the identification of insects and other fauna and flora of South Africa.

Friday, October 16, 2009

Kruger National Park - The other side - Part 6

More birds - Blacksmith Plover - their call is like a hammer on an anvil, hence the name and when they are not making that awful sound, they are screeching- I don't know which are more noisy, them or the Egyptian Geese!!
Little Bee-eater - flock together at night and often seen siting on telephone wires
Threebanded Plover - a small bird and very common where there is water
Redbilled Hornbill - the female is closed up in a hole in the tree where she will moult and the feathers are used to line the nest. The male feeds her through a narrow slit left in the mud he used to seal the nest (the slit is just to the right of the leaves in picture)
Helmeted Guineafowl - they can fly very well and are about the size of a chicken
Dark Chanting Goshawk - can catch prey in midflight but usually eat lizards, birds and small mammals
Yellowbilled Hornbill - (slightly larger than the Redbilled) 3-4 eggs are laid and incubate in about 24 days
Some birds build communul nest like these in a tree safe from predators, especially snakesThese in front are single nests belonging to the Lesser Masked Weaver...
while behind are the entrances to the Buffulo Weavers homes

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