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A few Barbets

10,000 Birds

Might have something to do with the fact that they were hunted here until quite recently). The Crested Barbet (Kruger Park, South Africa) looks a bit like a pointillist painting gone wrong. Lucia, South Africa) will be your favorite. On the other hand, by now he would surely be dead anyway.

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The Little Big Year 2018: Best Birds of the Year!

10,000 Birds

Our first Day In South Africa, I spotted the Burchell’s Courcal, as it flew across the road in front of us we entered Kruger National Park. The birds are now breeding in the area, but are quite happy to keep coming to the daily feeding station in groups of over 100 birds. I present to you, my favorite birds of 2018.

2018 171
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Birding the Kruger Park (4): Letaba area

10,000 Birds

So, it sometimes comes to South Africa to relax and enjoy relative anonymity. Interestingly, the HBW gives different contact calls depending on the country in which the flycatcher lives: “Contact call a simple ‘zeet, zwayt’ (South Africa), ‘ti-twit tee-twit’ (Gabon), ‘zi’zk’zk’ (Tanzania).”

Zimbabwe 147
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The Storks of Africa

10,000 Birds

Marabous occur throughout tropical and subtropical Africa from Zululand in northern South Africa right up to the arid Sahel region fringing the Sahara Desert, avoiding the closed canopy rainforest zones of central and west Africa. The Saddle-billed Stork has a similar Africa-wide distribution as the Marabou.

Africa 246
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Best Bird of the Year 2014

10,000 Birds

I got to see a beautiful female and owlet on a trip to a secret nest location near Howard Prairie Lake (human-made nest structures have enhanced local breeding for these huge owls whose nest success is boosted to 83% on artificial platforms vs. 66% at natural sites). Larry’s BBOTY – Great Gray Owl.

2014 197
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The Crocodile Safari (Botswana)

10,000 Birds

Before it joins waters with the Matabele’s iliMphopho, the river of rapid rising and falling, known to the rest of the world as the ‘great, grey, green, greasy Limpopo’ of Rudyard Kipling’s writings, the Ngotwane River marks the boundary line between Botswana and South Africa. Andrew’s laconic answer was ‘No, I don’t think so.

Botswana 200
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Andalucia’s City-Slicker Falcons

10,000 Birds

If you see a flock of kestrels in southern Europe, then the chances are that they will be Lessers, for the Common Kestrel never flocks, though occasionally in summer you will see a family hunting together. On their breeding grounds in Spain, Lesser Kestrels are very much city birds, for 95% of the population nests in towns.

Falcons 210