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What is a Palm-thrush?

10,000 Birds

It all comes back to a split in one of the great bird families, the Turdidae, or thrushes. Once upon a time, when I started birding, this great family included a wide range of species collectively known as the robins and chats. The family reunited in safety. Collared Palm-thrush with no collar visible. They remain little know.

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Birding the Kruger Park (5): Pafuri area part 1

10,000 Birds

One study found that birds living in Botswana had elevated levels of lead in their bloodstreams during hunting season, presumably coming from lead bullets used on animals killed by hunters. ” (HBW). Other – sadly rather common – reasons are habitat loss due to agricultural expansion and the use of some veterinary drugs.

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Introducing the African Birding Beat

10,000 Birds

Birding here is a joy, further augmented by the world’s most intact mammalian megafuana, fascinating tribal cultures, breath-taking scenery and the cradle of human history. And Africa is the ONLY continent without an extinct bird to boot! If you’ve never been to this part of the world, what would be the best way of tackling the continent?

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Africa’s Big Five and Little Five

10,000 Birds

Prime destinations for seeing African Elephant in the wild include Botswana, Namibia, South Africa, Kenya, Tanzania, Zimbabwe, Zambia and Uganda. They are harmless to humans and their horns are used for wrestling other males for mating rights. to the far reaches of freezing Siberia.

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The Storks of Africa

10,000 Birds

Furthermore we have another very special stork-like bird, the regal Shoebill , previously known as the Whale-headed Stork but now placed in its own family. The elegant White Stork is the species that fable has decided is the deliverer of human babies, a belief that dates back to ancient northern European folklore.

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KwaZulu-Natal

10,000 Birds

The famous Verreaux family who made several expeditions into the province through the 1820’s and 1830’s procuring specimens for rich collectors. After one 3 year stint, they left with 131,405 specimens including birds, mammals, reptiles, plants and even human remains (which were only recently repatriated for burial in Africa!)