Peter Connan's small-to-medium year 2015

[Peter Connan]

Well, I guess with half the year gone, it's time somebody kick-started this topic.

 

As with last year, please feel free to correct any ID mistakes I may have made. Also, I apologise in advance that there will be many birds that also featured in last year's topic.

 

2nd January:

 

Diderick's Cuckoo:

 

 

Kempton Park, Gauteng, South africa

Edited June 29, 2015 by Peter Connan

[michael-ibk]

Love the second picture, outstanding. Never seen those, very beautiful birds.

[Peter Connan]

11January:

 

Common Fiscal:

 

 

Immature:

 

 

Both seen in Kempton Park, Gauteng.

 

23 Jan:

Thick-billed Weaver:

 

Seen in Durban, KZN

[Peter Connan]

Thank you @@michael-ibk

 

Red-billed Stork

Swartkops, Gauteng

8 February

 

 

 

Red-eyed Dove

Kempton Park, Gauteng

22 February

 

 

 

Grey go-away bird

Kempton Park, Gauteng

22 February

 

 

And it's smaller cousin, the Speckled Mousebird

Same day, same place:

 

 

[Peter Connan]

28 February

All seen inKempton Park, Gauteng.

 

Glossy Starling.

 

How to eat a grape:

1) Pick

 

 

2) Peel:

 

3) Swallow:

 

Crested Barbet:

 

 

And another Speckled Mousebird:

 

 

[Tdgraves]

Well, I guess with half the year gone, it's time somebody kick-started this topic.

 

As with last year, please feel free to correct any ID mistakes I may have made. Also, I apologise in advance that there will be many birds that also featured in last year's topic.

@@Peter Connan I was wondering about this topic a while ago, but figured that I ought to finish my TR first. Well done!

[Peter Connan]

15 March

 

Kempton Park, Gauteng

 

Dark-capped Bulbul and Cape Sparrow:

 

 

Dark-capped Bulbul:

 

 

Masked Weaver:

 

 

 

21 March

Bonaero Park, Gauteng

 

Grey-headed Gull

 

 

 

 

Blacksmith Plover:

 

 

White-faced Whistling Duck:

 

 

 

Helmeted Guineafowl:

 

 

Black-headed Heron:

 

 

Stonechat:

[Tdgraves]

The stonechat portrait is beautiful Peter

[Peter Connan]

27-29 March

Kaapshehoop, Mpumalanga

 

Amathyst Sunbird:

 

 

 

Greater double-collared Sunbird:

 

 

White-fronted Bee-eater:

 

 

Speckled Pigeon:

 

 

 

Buff-steeaked Chat:

 

 

 

Dark-capped Bulbul:

 

 

African Hoopoe:

 

 

Red-winged Starling:

 

 

With a bit of imagination, a Knysna Turaco:

 

Rock Thrush:

 

 

And a Woodland Kingfisher:

[Peter Connan]

The stonechat portrait is beautiful Peter

 

Thank you!

[Safaridude]

@@Peter Connan

 

Some fantastic photos! May you have a medium-big rest of the year!

[Tdgraves]

Your turaco shot is one step better than mine -I didn't even get a chance to lift the camera up before it flew off....

[Peter Connan]

4 April

 

Marievale, Gauteng

 

Three-banded Plover:

 

 

Greater-striped Swallow:

 

 

White-throated Swallow:

 

 

Reed Cormorant:

 

 

 

Black-shouldered Kite:

 

 

Dabchick 9Little Grebe):

 

 

 

Red-knobbed Coot:

 

 

Black Heron:

 

 

 

Common Moorhen:

 

 

Goliath Heron:

 

 

Hottentot Teal:

 

[Peter Connan]

Same place, same day:

 

Long-tailed Widowbird:

 

 

Cape Wagtail:

 

 

Malachite Kingfisher:

 

 

Pied Kingfisher:

 

 

African Rail:

 

 

Cape Shoveller:

 

 

African Snipe:

 

 

Spurwing Goose:

 

 

Purple Swamphen:

 

 

Squacco Heron:

 

 

Wood Sandpiper:

 

 

Yellow-billed Duck:

 

[Peter Connan]

Thank you @@Safaridude

 

I think I may have spotted a new species this year: Canis e Fune:

 

Edited June 29, 2015 by Peter Connan

[Peter Connan]

1-3 May

 

Klaserie Private Nature Reserve, North-westprovince.

 

Arrow-marked Babbler:

 

 

 

Bearded Woodpecker:

 

 

Blue Waxbil:

 

 

Red-billed Buffalo-weaver:

 

 

 

Orange-breasted Bushshrike:

 

 

 

Bronze-winged Courser:

 

 

Crested Francolin:

 

 

Swainson's Francolin:

 

 

Cuckoo-hawk:

 

 

 

Lilac-breasted Roller:

 

 

Fork-tailed Drongo:

 

 

Brown-headed Parrot:

 

 

Magpie Shrike:

 

 

Grey-billed Hornbil:

 

 

Red-billed Hornbil:

 

 

Yellow-billed Hornbil:

 

[twaffle]

My goodness, I enjoyed seeing this collection. Well done. My biggest problem with birds is taking the time to write down what I've seen at the time. I like Inyathi's method of printing out bird lists on a spreadsheet before travelling to a destination which would make it easier marking down what was seen when and where.

 

Some of your photos are spectacular.

[Peter Connan]

Thanks @@twaffle.

 

My approach is a bit more complicated, yet simpler. Because I am so notoriously bad at ID, a bird is not ticked off it is not photographed. So in effect I try to take a photo of each species I see, and then identify (and key-word) them once back at home.

 

I will seldom make mention of a bird seen if I do not have photographic evidence.

[michael-ibk]

Spectacular stuff, Peter, one hit after the other. Bravo!

[Kitsafari]

simply a great set of photos. my favourites - blue waxbil, the beautiful hoopoe, and we've seen the mysterious and fascinating "caped" black heron, and that 2nd photo of the diderick's cuckoos.

 

really brightened up my day sitting at the office desk. Thanks peter. More please!!

Edited June 30, 2015 by Kitsafari

[Zim Girl]

Lovely set of pictures - an inspiration to non-birders like me!

[Treepol]

@@Peter Connan a great selection of photos, Marievale delivers again. I particularly liked the reflections of the Black Heron and the Yellow-billed Duck.

[Peter Connan]

Thank you @@michael-ibk, @@Kitsafari, @@Zim Girl and @@Treepol

[Peter Connan]

12-16 May

iMfolozi Game Reserve, KZN

 

Wire-tailed Swallow:

 

 

Wooly-necked Stork:

 

 

Black Stork:

 

 

Water Thick-knee:

 

 

White-backed Vulture:

 

 

 

Lappet-faced Vulture:

 

 

Acacia Pied Barbet:

 

 

Brown-hooded Kingfisher:

 

Black-chested Snake-eagle:

 

 

Bataleur:

 

 

Mocking Chat:

 

 

White-fronted Bee-eater:

 

 

Pied Wagtail:

 

Edited June 30, 2015 by Peter Connan

[Peter Connan]

13-15 June

Nature's Valley (near Loskop Dam), Mpumalanga

 

Chinspot Batis:

 

 

 

Black Flycatcher:

 

 

Cape White-eye:

 

 

 

Arrow-marked Babbler:

 

 

Mocking Chat:

 

 

 

Cape Robin:

 

 

Thick-billed Weaver:

 

 

Red-fronted Tinkerbird:

 

 

 

Dark-capped Bulbul:

 

 

 

White-fronted Bee-eater:

 

 

 

That's 84 so far. Not many when certain other forumites have seen 190-odd species in a single safari, but as I said before, these represent only birds that I have actually managed, however poorly, to photograph, and excludes birds that were otherwise either seen or heard.

Edited June 30, 2015 by Peter Connan