Bokmakierie Newsletter of the Witwatersrand Bird Club August 2019 No 255 Wits Bird Club Calendar 2020 Don’t forget to submit your entries for the 2020 Calendar. Below are a couple of excellent photos from last year’s competition that were not featured but are still worth showcasing to our members.

Cape Weaver - Photo by Rose Fowler

Pied Kingfisher - Photo by Lia Steen

Green-winged Pytilia - Photo by Lance Robinson Bokmakierie Newsletter of the Witwatersrand Bird Club August 2019 No 255

Witwatersrand Bird Club Inside this issue: P O Box 641 Cresta 2118 2 Letter from the Chair Tel: 011 782 7267 Fax: 086 512 7696 3 Skomer Island by Anthony Cavanagh Email: [email protected] Web: www.witsbirdclub.org.za 6 Catastrophic breaking news: 537 vul- tures found poisoned in dark day for 2019 Committee: Botswana conservation press release Africa Geographic HON. PRESIDENT: Lance Robinson 8 Waterfall Ringing 2015-2018 by Jim CHAIRMAN: Andy Featherstone McLuskie VICE-CHAIRMAN: Paige Simons 14 Tankwa by Jeanne Thomas TREASURER: Sandy Goodall 16 New Zealand: Land of the Long COURSES: Fiona van Zyl White Cloud by Anthony Cavanagh CONSERVATION: Lance Robinson 24 Tracking our 2019 Bird of the Year by EVENING MEETINGS: Dael Stojakovic Dr Melissa Whitecross WEBSITE Paige Simons 27 The SABAP2 Website, A Treasure Of PROGRAMME: Karin Mitton Information! by Ernst Retief EAST RAND CHAIR: Awie Coetzee 30 Birding in Central Asia 1: Kazakhstan HENLEY-ON-KLIP CHAIR: Ben Botha by Lesley Cornish WEST RAND CHAIR: Koos van Dÿk 34 Trip Reports CLUB SECRETARY: Lauraine Leigh 37 Birding Bonanza, Wakkerstroom NOTICE TO CONTRIBUTORS Bokmakierie is published three times annually. Contribu- 38 Rarities and unusual sightings report: tions may be in Afrikaans or English. English names of birds 30 June 2019 by André Marx should be those used in Roberts VII. Views expressed are not necessarily those of the Editor, Club, the Committee, Members or those of BirdLife South Africa. The Editors reserve the right to edit articles as necessary. This issue of Bokmakierie has been produced and edited by Andy Featherstone and Lance Robinson.

COVER PHOTO: Black-winged Kite by Andy Feather- stone MAGAZINE LAYOUT: Andy Featherstone

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 1 4 mm Body top Letter from the Chair with indigenous trees re- vious years, two independent placing the exotics that are judges will select 14 photos gradually being removed. to be showcased on our cal- Planting a tree is a nice way endar. to have a living memorial for Look out for this year’s prize a loved one who has passed, draw; we are raffling a long or to mark a special event weekend at Marrick Safari in one’s life. The weekend in Kimberley during Febru- thereafter will be the Afri- ary 2020. Marrick Safari is Dear Members, can Bird Fair at the Walter renowned for its nocturnal The period from May through Sisulu Botanical Garden, a wildlife such as Aardvark to July is always a quieter magnificent setting in which and Aardwolf. Details will be period for the birding world to display the local world of included in the Weekly Re- and this year has been no ex- birding. Wits Bird Club will be minder and entries can be ception. There has, however, present at the Fair and if you purchased from Lauraine at been a few exceptions. The can assist on one of the two the office or at any of our up- club outing to the Aloe Farm days, just for an hour or two, coming meetings and events. in June was one such event it would be greatly appreci- For those of you who would with the flowers in full bloom ated. It’s an excellent way to like to enhance your bird- in turn attracting quite a num- meet people from the birding ing skills, Lance and Les- ber of frenetic White-bellied community and to see what’s ley will be giving their bird and Amethyst Sunbirds that new in the birding scene. We sounds course at Sediba gave the photographers have scheduled a trip to the Game Lodge near Brits. This great opportunities to snap Soutpansberg over the Sep- is a very popular weekend a few closeups. White-front- tember public holiday long so book early to avoid disap- ed Bee-eaters and Ground- weekend. If you still need a pointment! scraper Thrushes posed on few of those elusive Afrom- the power lines and it was ontane forest specials; you Birding Big Day will be on an enjoyable morning’s walk. should consider joining us Saturday 30th November The Christmas in July after- for this trip. Samson Mulaudzi and we are investigating a noon was great fun, mem- will be our guide and he is an suitable venue for those who bers enjoyed a glass or two expert at finding local rarities. are keen to participate with of glühwein to keep out the On our previous trip, within other members of the club. chill whilst braaing, followed the first half-hour he pointed This year, in addition to a by a few raucous games of out Half-collared Kingfisher, countrywide challenge, there Bird Bingo. African Finfoot and White- will be a provincial challenge to make it fairer for all who With spring looming, we backed Night Heron, all those who are competitive have several events planned along just one short stretch by nature but are not want- to kick-start the new sea- of a river. ing to travel to distant birding son. Saturday 7th will be our The 2020 Bird Photograph hotspots. annual Arbor Day followed competition for next year’s by a talk by Craig Nattrass calendar has opened so we Whatever you decide to take on Bird Ringing. The trees invite you to go through your part in, make sure you enjoy planted on Arbor Day con- photographs, select the best the experience, we try our tribute to the regeneration and send them through to best to please! of a mini forest at Delta Park Lauraine or myself. As in pre- Andy Featherstone

2 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 Skomer Island Text and Photos by Anthony Cavanagh Skomer Island lies about a kilo- metre off the south west coast of Pembrokeshire in Wales and is one of the most important and accessible seabird breed- ing sites in Europe. Skomer supports over half of the world’s breeding population of Manx Shearwaters as well some 25,000 breeding Puffins and many other seabirds. Sue and I had booked a time- share in Wales where we Embarking at Martin’s Haven planned to spend five days be- fore meeting up with family to celebrate a milestone birthday, and while in Wales, visiting Skomer Island was a must for us. Sailings to Skomer are limited to the period 1st April to 30th September and as advance bookings cannot be made; those wishing to sail to Skomer have to join the queue to be among the 250 visitors allowed daily on the island. Clear weather was forecast for the following day but inclement weather was expected for the rest of the week and so early the next morning we set off on what was to be a three-hour drive to Martin’s Haven, and we hoped, to be two of the 250 people allowed daily on the island. Martin’s Haven is not on the GPS and after stopping to confirm that we were on the right road we continued along the extremely narrow lanes for another few kms and arrived at the ticket office at Locksley Lodge. To our great relief we purchased tickets and found that we were on the third boat, which sailed at 11a.m. Martin’s Haven can be described as no more than a small cove in the coastline and a few steps lead- ing to the tiny jetty indicated where one boarded the boat. At the designated hour, we duly embarked on the 50-seater boat and during the 12-minute crossing of the choppy waters, we observed Gannets, cormo- rants and grey seals. After dis- Atlantic Puffin

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 3 4 mm Body top

Common Guillemots

quick look round and then dart back un- derground. Some of the Puffins obligingly appeared from their burrows very close to the path and posed sportingly for the camera. On the Wick cliffs hundreds of embarking members of the Wildlife Trust seabirds could be seen on the narrowest of South and West Wales welcomed us of ledges with Guillemots gathered on and gave a brief overview of the island. A the lower levels, Kittiwakes midway up few Razorbills sat just above the landing the cliff face and Fulmars sitting slightly dock and afforded a first close up photo higher up. opportunity. Manx Shearwaters were conspicuous by There are some 6.5km of trails along their absence, as when not incubating the high cliffs and across the centre of in their underground burrows, they re- Skomer and one is instructed not to devi- turn to the island only under the cover of ate from the path, as there are thousands darkness. Flocks of Great Black-backed of rabbit and seabird burrows all over the Gulls seen all over the island prey on the island. We headed off on the trail leading to “The Wick” from where we had excel- lent sightings of Guillemot and Razorbills on the rock outcrops. Puffins would sud- denly appear from their burrows, have a

Northern Fulmars Razorbills

4 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 Black-legged Kittiwakes Meadow Pipit shearwaters and evidence of this pre- that Skomer Island could offer, Sue and dation could be seen in the remains of I agreed that the 300km round trip from mutilated shearwaters scattered around our timeshare near the Snowdonia Na- in many places. Other birds often seen tional Park in North Wales to see the Puf- included Eurasian Oystercatcher, Herring fins and other seabirds was well worth the Gull, Shag, Carrion Crow and Jackdaw, effort. while at the hide in the centre of the is- land overlooking the north pond, we not- ed Meadow Pipit, Canada Goose, Curlew, Shelduck, Pheasant and Northern Whea- tear. Raptors included a female Hen Har- rier that flew low over the grasslands and a Common (Steppe) Buzzard. A 19th century farm building has been rebuilt on Skomer and now houses a vis- itors centre and half a dozen self catering rooms for those guests wishing to stay overnight. Alas, time did not allow us to stay over for a chance to see the Manx Wick Cliffs Shearwaters and Short-eared Owls that make their appearance during the hours of darkness, and after 5 hours on the is- Skomer Island is land, we walked back to the landing administered by place to catch our designated 4p.m. boat the The Wildlife back to the mainland. Trust of South & West Wales Having seen some of the best birding

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 5 4 mm Body top Catastrophic breaking news: 537 vultures found poisoned in dark day for Botswana conservation Press Release Africa Geographic

elephant carcasses were laced with poi- son, which led to the vulture deaths. The 537 dead vultures comprised 468 White-backed Vultures, 28 Hooded Vul- tures, 17 White-headed Vultures, 14 Lap- pet-faced Vultures and 10 Cape Vultures. The DWNP law enforcement team at- tending the scene is working around the clock to decontaminate the area, and sampling of carcasses and the environ- ment was done for further laboratory analysis. Members of the public in the vicinity of CT1 have been requested to re- port any further wildlife mortalities in their White-backed Vulture - photo by Warwick area, and to report any suspicious activ- Tarboton ities which may suggest environmental poisoning to the nearest wildlife office or Botswana’s Department of Wildlife and the police. National Parks (DWNP) has announced Populations of White-backed, today that they have recently identified White-headed and Hooded Vultures are a poisoning site with 537 dead vultures ‘Critically endangered’ according to the (comprising five species) and two Tawny IUCN Red List, which means that they Eagles. have an extremely high risk of extinction The site of the mass poisoning was iden- in the wild. Lappet-faced and Cape vul- tified as Wildlife Management Area CT 1 tures are classified as ‘Endangered’, which in the Central District. This former trophy means that they are in danger of extinc- hunting area is close to the Botswana tion through all or a significant portion of and Zimbabwe border, near Zimbabwe’s their ranges. Vultures face many threats Hwange National Park. Three poached to their ongoing survival, including mass

6 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 The site of this mass vulture poisoning was at CT1, seen in the centre of this map poisoning incidents such as this, habitat dent would have eggs or chicks, which and nesting site loss, collisions with pow- will in all likelihood die. er lines and pylons and poaching for the Vultures provide an invaluable ‘clean-up’ traditional medicine trade. service to the ecosystem, due to their Compounding the loss to already threat- unique digestive ability, and without them ened vulture populations is that this is the spread of disease from rotting car- the breeding season, and so many of the casses would be rife. adult victims in this mass poisoning inci-

Lappet-faced (left), White-backed (centre) and Cape (right) Vultures - photo by Warwick Tarboton

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 7 4 mm Body top Waterfall Ringing 2015-2018 Text by Jim McLuskie

Introduction 3. Two sites at Waterfall Country Estate

This short paper describes the results of The Jukskei River flows through the es- bird ringing carried out by Karen Dixon tates from southeast to northwest. and Jim McLuskie at the Waterfall area from early 2015 until the end of 2018. The paper, written by Jim McLuskie, is not a statistically scientific one done by trained scientists. It is, instead, a note prepared for the interest of fellow birders by ama- teur scientists. It is to be hoped also that, since the Waterfall estates are new de- velopments, these records can be useful in terms of an environmental baseline. For readers who are unfamiliar with bird ringing, the birds are trapped in mist nets, and are held there for the minimum amount of time. The birds are then re- moved from the nets by trained ringers Malachite Kingfisher - photo by Ron Searle who attach a numbered ring to one leg of Habitats each bird before releasing. The details on the rings are recorded and include date, The two gardens, although only a few locality and species. The birds are not years old, are quite well established with harmed in any way. Kikuyu lawn, bushes, flowering shrubs Locality and small trees. Most of the vegetation is indigenous to the South African High- The Waterfall estates lie north of Johan- veld. The gardens are well watered and nesburg, between the suburbs of Wood- equipped with bird feeders for seed and mead and Kyalami. The land, originally fruit; the use of seed has to be careful- owned by the Mia family, was donated ly controlled to avoid encouraging Rock to the Waterfall Islamic Institute which Doves [feral pigeons]. is governed in terms of Islamic law. The ringing was conducted at five different The Waterfall Country Village site is adja- sites: cent to a dam, surrounded by reeds, and a stream with a bit of a wetland. There is 1. Two private gardens at Waterfall Val- also a large expanse of lawn in front of ley. the adjacent clubhouse. The only trees are weeping willows and a single euca- 2. One at Waterfall Country Village lypt.

8 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 Site number 1 at Waterfall Country Estate, ing mist nets, 12 metres in length. Flap- is close to the river, where it enters in the traps with mealworms were occasionally southeast of the property. The area is de- used, particularly on lawns or cleared ar- graded grassland with patches of Acacia eas. Perhaps the most interesting meth- karoo and a single Acacia caffra. There od was one developed by Craig Nattrass is also a small stream flowing through it and used by Karen in her back yard. It from Halfway House with reeds, wetland consists of a drop-net fixed above a bird and small numbers of weeping willows. feeding table. When Karen sees 20 to The site includes a playground for chil- 40 Red-headed Finches at the table she dren which is popular with thrushes, star- presses a remote button while standing lings, fiscals and flycatchers. in her kitchen, the net falls and 20 plus finches are available for ringing while she Site number 2 is at Country Estate, next drinks a cup of tea! to Reddam House School. It is located in a section of greenbelt, a development requirement created to conserve a wa- tercourse in a shallow valley with 8 small man-made dams, some of which have reed beds. There are occasional acacias as well as a patch of indigenous wood- land near to the ringing site.

Procedures

Before starting ringing, permission was sought, and obtained, from the man- agement of each estate as well as from the Waterfall Bird Club. Printed notices were put on show at every site where we ringed, explaining what was taking place, Levaillant’s Cisticola - photo by Ron Searle mentioning the permission, asking pas- sers-by not to interfere and giving a cell Results And Analysis phone number in case of queries. In fact most passers-by were interested in stop- Table 1 [in excel] shows a summary of the ping to learn more. On only one occasion ringing of over 4000 new birds and some did a small group of walkers interfere with 200 re-traps. Altogether 71 species were a net and express annoyance about the ringed, which represents approximately procedure. They would not listen to any 30% of the species on the Waterfall bird explanation, so soon afterwards, an ar- list. Of the total ringed, 25% of the spe- ticle about ringing was published in the cies were represented by only one bird Waterfall magazine. There have been no caught and fully 70% of the species were recurrences of such interference. represented by fewer than 11 birds each. Three species, Southern Masked Weaver, Most of the trapping was conducted us- Southern Red Bishop and Red-headed

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 9 4 mm Body top Finch, accounted for only 4% of the num- stakes, however, goes to the Fiscal Fly- ber of species but 73% of the number of catchers. The seven of them were re- birds ringed! trapped on several occasions, always in the same net locality. It seemed as if the It is worth noting the number of Mountain two adults had five offspring over two Wheatears caught, 19. They are ubiq- seasons. Surprisingly though, they have uitous in the Waterfall Valley estate, on not been caught again after the first two the roads and in the gardens and they years. They seem to have moved only show all the plumage variations of the a short distance away but too far to be species. Other species of note are the caught again. various warblers, most of which were caught in the small wetland at Waterfall Conclusions Country Village. Species that excited us were the Common Whitethroat [palearc- Ringing within a large area walled off and tic migrant], the Orange-breasted Wax- very secure makes for easy ringing. It is bill, a Malachite Kingfisher caught in my possible to set up the nets the day before garden, the Violet-eared Waxbill and the and leave them furled for an early start Dark-capped Yellow Warbler. The latter next morning without fumbling about two were new for the Waterfall bird list. erecting nets in the dark. It is also possible to monitor some of the local movements of birds; Southern Red Bishops, for exam- ple, roost and breed in the reeds at Wa- terfall Country Village but migrate daily to eat at the feeders in my garden.

The information gained from this exercise is not only interesting to birdwatchers, but a valuable insight into what happens in a limited geographical area. Especially the differences in extent of movements between species. A few of the birds that were trapped are the only records that Common Whitethroat - photo by Ron Searle we have of those species on the estates and illustrate that the birds are probably The overall percentage re-trapped [5%] is present more often than realised, but not out of the ordinary but some of the their secretive nature makes them difficult individual species numbers are worth to observe. The continuing development mentioning. The African Stonechat and around the estates make it important to the Southern Grey-headed Sparrow maintain the ringing effort in order to ob- were higher than one might expect and serve differences in movement, numbers, the warblers, prinias and cisticolas were locality and habits of the birds. This can caught surprisingly frequently. That sug- be a useful adjunct to environmental gests that they are very static and have knowledge and management. small territories. First prize in the re-trap

10 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 Acknowledgements

My thanks to the managements of the estates for permission to carry out the ringing.

I am also grateful for the assistance of Karen Dixon, Digby Eagle and Ron Searle in the preparation of this note, to Ron for photographs and for the encouragement of the Waterfall Bird Club.

Fiscal Flycatcher - photo by Ron Searle

A bird ringer’s tools: rings, calipers, scales, pli- ers, soft cloth bag for trapped birds, and a data sheet. - photo by Norman Baines

Eastern Grey Kangaroo with joey Crimson Rosella Welcome New Members Sandy Francis Lanseria Fanie Nel Kempton Park Tamsyn Postma Alistair Routledge Erasmia Kathleen Satchwell Parkhurst Heila and Ebby Schubert Cresta Fatima and Casper Visser Glenvista Gillian Williams Bromhof Priscilla and Mark Winkler Rynfield

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 11 4 mm Body top Waterfall, Johannesburg, Ringing Analysis 2015-2018 as at 31 December 2018 SAFRING Roberts English name [Roberts 7] Scientific name Number Number Retrapped No No ringed retrapped %

192 203 Helmeted Guineafowl Numida melagris 1

247 260 African Wattled Lapwing Vanellus senegallus 3

317 355 Laughing Dove Spilopelia senegalensis 92 5 5

352 386 Diederik Cuckoo Chrysococcyx caprius 1

383 415 White-rumped Swift Apus caffer 3

385 417 Little Swift Apus affinis 4

390 424 Speckled Mousebird Colius striatus 5

392 426 Red-faced Mousebird Urocolis indicus 1

397 431 Malachite Kingfisher Alcedo cristata 4

399 433 Woodland Kingfisher Halcyon senegalensis 1

402 435 Brown-hooded Kingfisher Halcyon albiventris 1

409 443 White-fronted Bee-eater Merops bullockoides 2

431 464 Black-collared Barbet Lybius torquatus 7

439 473 Crested Barbet Trachyphonus vaillanti 5

442 476 Lesser Honeyguide Indicator minor 1

493 518 Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica 1

503 527 Lesser Striped Swallow Cecropis abyssinica 2

506 529 Rock Martin Ptynoprogne fuligula 1

509 533 Brown-throated Martin Ruparia paludicola 2

545 568 Dark-capped Bulbul Pycnonoyus tricolor 63 1 2

564 586 Mountain Wheatear Oenanthe monticola 19

606 631 African Reed-warbler Acrocephalus baeticatus 54 19 35

607 633 Marsh Warbler Acrocephalus palustris 4 1 25

608 634 Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus schoenobaenus 1

609 638 Little Rush Warbler Bradypterus baboecala 4

637 681 Neddicky Cisticola fulvicappila 3

646 677 Levaillants Cisticola Cisticola tinniens 17 7 41

649 683 Tawny-flanked Prinia Prinia subflava 44 16 36

650 685 Black-chested Prinia Prinia flavicans 12 1 8

658 621 Chestnut-vented Tit-babbler Sylvia subcaerulea 1

665 698 Fiscal Flycatcher Sigelus silens 7 7 100

666 637 Dark-capped Yellow Warbler Chloropeta natalensis 1

686 713 Cape Wagtail Motacilla capensis 4

692 716 African Pipit Anthus cinnamomeus 3

703 727 Cape Longclaw Macronyx capensis 2

12 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 707 732 Common Fiscal Lanius collaris 9

708 733 Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio 3

734 758 Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 6

737 764 Glossy Starling Lamprotornis nitens 14

745 769 Red-winged Starling Onychognathus morio 3

763 787 White-bellied Sunbird Cinnyris talatala 3

772 792 Amethyst Sunbird Chalcomitra amethystina 4

784 801 House Sparrow Passer domesticus 24 1 4

786 803 Cape Sparrow Passer melanurus 321 19 6

787 804 Southern Grey-headed Spar- Passer diffusus 46 6 13 row

803 814 Southern Masked Weaver Ploceus velatus 733 29 4

804 807 Thick-billed Weaver Amblyospiza albifrons 26

805 821 Red-billed Quelea Quelea quelea 231 1

808 824 Southern Red Bishop Euplectes orix 1 263 84 7

812 826 Yellow-crowned Bishop Euplectes afer 48

820 856 Redheaded Finch Amadina erythrocephala 932 5 1

823 857 Bronze Mannikin Lonchura cucullata 12

835 841 Jamiesons Firefinch Lagonostica rhodopareia 1

838 854 Orange-breasted Waxbill Amandava subflava 1

840 845 Violet-eared Waxbill Uraeginthus granatinus 1

843 846 Common Waxbill Estrilda astrild 4

846 860 Pin-tailed Whydah Vidua macroura 1

859 869 Yellow-fronted Canary Crithagra mozambica 1

860 870 Black-throated Canary Crithagra atrogularis 6

867 881 Streaky-headed Seedeater Crithagra gularis 3

940 349 Rock Dove Columba livia 10

1104 577.1 Karoo Thrush Turdus smithii 5

1172 796 Cape White-eye Zosterops capensis 36 1 3

TOTAL 4 209 207 5

No of species: 71

No of species only 1 bird ringed: 18

No of species 2-10 birds ringed: 32

No of species 11-100 birds ringed: 16

No of species 101-500 birds ringed: 2

No of species >500 birds ringed: 3

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 13 4 mm Body top Tankwa Text & Photos by Jeanne Thomas

In October 2018 I enjoyed a star-gaz- ing trip to the Tankwa and other parts with good friends. We set off on a Sunday which I really enjoyed as it gave a day to get the cat to the kennels, shop and pack without the usual Friday rush and chaos. Staying off the highways, our first night on the trip was spent in De Aar – a town never before visited by me. Quite dry, clean and tidy. Tak- ing back roads was also a great idea and much more interesting than the highway. The back roads were in good condition and nice and quiet. After breakfast at our BnB we set off for Tankwa detouring to refuel at Calvinia which was just as well as I think we would have got lost if we had tried the Middelpos route. Through the Tankwa gate and at reception about 40ks in we met up with our Cape Town contingent who were busy getting a flat tyre fixed. Tankwa Lodge The very sharp shale pieces on the Tankwa roads had taken their first victim! We stayed at Tankwa lodge a further 40ks into the park. The lodge is near to the Oudebaaskraal dam which allowed us to add some water birds to our list. There were a lot of SA Shelducks on this dam and Greater Flamingo. Also a lot of Pale Chant- ing Goshawks on available poles. The day we arrived and the following day were very hot; 40 degrees+ so we chilled mostly and came alive for sundowners, braais, a bit of wine and stargazing (which was after all the reason for the trip) seeing the October New Moon and the rings of Sat- urn amongst other wonders. Rock Martins nesting under the covered patios of took advantage the wind free courtyard of the lodge. On our last full day at the lodge we took the Gannaga Pass road to the Gannaga Lodge at the top of the spectacular pass

14 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 bed early for an early start to Mountain Zebra Park via the Swartberg Pass. It was quite a long way through some beautiful countryside. Mountain Zebra is a lovely park with quite a concentrated animal population includ- ing Bat-eared Foxes. A birding highlight was a wonderful display by an inexhaust- ible Eastern Clapper Lark. We spent two nights here and could easily have made Typical Karoo shale terrain it longer. The food at the restaurant was good and the accommodation quite ad- where we found a cell signal! Fantastic equate. Our chalets had not been reno- views and some birds en route - Yellow vated but the powers that be are working Canary, Sickle-winged Chat, Red-capped their renovation way through the camp. Lark and Verreaux’s Eagle. There is a 2.5k walk from the beautiful, large, clean camp pool which turned into Once back down the pass we decid- a 2.5k mountain climb not yielding much ed to take the road less travelled (and in the way birds. The walk/climb was more corrugated) back to the lodge and however a good excuse to be able to eat the shale struck again resulting in a de- again later. Then the long ride home. All stroyed tyre. With only a biscuit spare it roads other than one or two short stretch- was a slow (perfect for birding) trip home es of tar were good but the roads in Tank- to the lodge. wa were horribly corrugated which did The next day still on the biscuit meant a not prevent us from enjoying our visit to slow trip to Sutherland where we spent this wonderfully wide-horizoned area on the next night. We added Black-headed our too short 10 day trip. Canary and Grey-backed Sparrow-Lark on this stretch. After many phone calls with not much success a tyre was tracked down in Oudtshoorn. We had planned to spend the evening stargazing with a lo- cal expert in Sutherland but clouds came over and we were forced to eat and drink wine instead. Still on the biscuit we head- ed for Prince Albert (Namaqua Dove and Gabar Goshawk) and a very comfortable BnB called De Bergkant Lodge. The next day the men headed for Oudtshoorn and the tyre while the girls went sight-seeing and gin tasting. That night we had a re- Sunset over the Karoo markably good and well-priced meal at the Real Food Kitchen before getting to

Bokmakierie Apugust 2019 No 255 | 15 4 mm Body top New Zealand: Land of the Long White Cloud Text & Photos By Anthony Cavanagh

Visiting New Zealand was always on Sue’s bucket list and it seemed appropriate to celebrate our 40th anniversary by touring both North and South islands of New Zealand. Our long-standing friends Jean and Dennis McCormack, who moved to NZ three years ago, met us at Auckland airport and drove us to their house in the Auckland suburb of Half Moon Bay. Auckland is NZ’s largest city and main business hub. The central part of the city is on an isthmus only 2km wide at its narrow- est point and has two main harbours Sue & Anthony celebrating their 40th anniversary at the i.e. Waitemata harbour on the Pacific Bay of Islands Ocean and Manukau harbour on the Tasman Sea. Jean and Dennis had planned a few sight seeing trips for us, and the next day we set off for the Coromandel peninsular. Once we left the highway around Auckland, we trav- elled on single carriageway roads and indeed single carriageway roads are the norm throughout the rest of North Island and the whole of South Island. The road followed the coast and birds seen en route included Pukeko, Swamp Harrier, Variable Oyster- catcher, Silvereye, Red-billed and South- ern Black-backed Gulls. New Zealanders are very innovative engineers and one such innovative engineer, Barry Bricknell, constructed a narrow gauge railway on ex- tremely hilly terrain just north of Coroman- del town. The tunnels, bridges, viaducts and switchbacks on the 2600m main line are engineering marvels and, furthermore, the hillside had been reforested with native forest vegetation. We came across many similar efforts to restore the indigenous fauna and flora on our travels around NZ. At Pukeko

16 | Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 the end of the line was the aptly named village, and some fun interactive experi- Eyefull Tower from which one had excel- ences. lent views of the Hauraki Gulf and some Ferries run frequently from Half Moon of the many small islands off the coast. Bay into Auckland and are used by com- Another interesting place in the Coroman- muters and tourists alike to avoid traf- del peninsular is Hot Water Beach, where fic congestion in the city. The half hour at low tide, one can dig in the sand and ferry ride took us into Auckland just two soon a pool of very hot water will form. blocks from the Skycity Skytower that, at New Zealand is situated on the volcanic 328m, is the tallest building in the south- Pacific Rim and the scalding hot water un- ern hemisphere. The viewing deck offers der the sands of this beach is a result of 360-degree views of the city. The two underground hot springs. main harbours stretched for miles and hundreds of yachts and other pleasure Back in Auckland, we were treated to craft were moored in the small craft har- some of the local sights including Bas- bours. We were reliably informed that one tion Point overlooking the vast expanse in four New Zealanders owns a boat and of Waitemata harbour, Tamaki Drive, the indeed, we saw vast numbers of sailing small craft harbour, and the Motat mu- and powerboats off NZ’s shores. Every seum of Transport and Technology. The few minutes a brave soul could be seen Motat museum has a fine collection of outside the tower harnessed to two lines aeroplanes, including a Hawker Hurricane and dropping vertically at great speed Lancaster bomber, and Sunderland Fly- from above the Skytower viewing deck ing Boat used by the NZ airforce during and down to the ground. I was nervous the Second World War, also a historical

Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 | 17 4 mm Body top birds that we identified in the Cook Strait included Sooty Shearwater, Fairy Prion, Australasian Gannet and Grey Petrel. We collected our hired car at Picton and then commenced a 350 km drive to our first overnight stop at Greymouth on the west coast. The next day we continued south along the only major road on the west coast to the Franz Josef Glacier, one of over 3000 glaciers in the Southern Alps, Waitemata Harbour, Auckland the mountain range that runs the length enough just standing on the glass floor of South Island. Situated in the Westland panel in the viewing deck and seeing the Tai Poutini National Park, the Franz Josef ground hundreds of metres below my Glacier is only a short walk from the road, feet. Outside the Skytower, one can catch but regrettably shows very visible signs the hop-on hop-off bus, always the best of retreat up the valley slope, leaving just way to see a city in a short period. We wide bare stony ground along its former stopped off at the Aquarium, the Auck- path. land Museum and the Wintergardens. Continuing south the road twisted and Many European bird species were intro- turned as it followed the contours around duced to NZ in the second half of the the foothills of the Southern Alps. Dense 19th century and have spread all over forests lined the road for over 150 km and the country. The Song Thrush, Black- giant ferns grew among the trees giving bird, Chaffinch, House Sparrow, Redpoll, a strange netherworld appearance that Greenfinch, Yellowhammer and Starling provided an ideal film backdrop to scenes have thrived in NZ, as have the Australian shot in New Zealand for ‘Lord of the Rings’ Magpie and the ubiquitous Indian Mynah. and other similar films. After some 9 hours We heard the indigenous Morepork Owl of driving we arrived in Queenstown and but regrettably did not see it. Dennis dropped us off at Strand railway station where we caught the Northern Explorer train down to Wellington, from Thank You for where we had booked a passage on the inter island ferry the next day to South Is- Your Donation land. Roger Baldwin The inter island ferry takes 3 hours to Lesley Cornish cross the Cook Strait from Wellington on David Fig North island to Picton on South Island. Costa Kapetanopoulos New Zealand was living up to its local Lance Robinson name of “land of the long white cloud” as clouds stretched unbroken across Kathleen Satchwell the strait and far into South Island. Sea Amelia Vermaak

18 | Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 the top we had outstanding views of the lake and the town. Milford Sound is a fiord within Fiordland National Park in the southwest of South Island. It is New Zealand’s most visited tourist attraction in spite of its remote lo- cation. From Queenstown one can opt to fly direct over the Southern Alps or take a four-hour drive via the small town of Te Anthony at the Franz Josef Glacier Anau. We had booked a tour bus, which departed from Queenstown at 7h30. The booked into our motel overlooking Lake driver of the bus gave a very informa- Wakatipu and the ever -present Southern tive commentary on New Zealand and Alps. The Queenstown Botanical Gar- stopped en route at scenic spots to en- dens were established in 1867 and lie on able photos to be taken. Interesting NZ a headland jutting out into the lake. The birds seen en route were Black-fronted gardens are extremely popular with both Tern, South Island Robin and South Is- visitors and locals as apart from the very land Tomtit. For the past few years, there diverse flora; they cater for sports enthu- has been a concerted effort to eradicate siasts in the form of tennis courts, bowl- certain introduced mammals that have ing green, a roller skate park and Frisbee decimated indigenous bird populations. course. Birds that we saw included Silver- Hundred of traps have been set in forest eye, NZ Scaup, NZ Grey Fantail as well as areas to catch stoats and ferrets originally many of the introduced species. Queen- imported to catch rats. Possums import- stown is home to adventure sports and ed for their fur were let loose when the on Lake Wakapitu we watched as a high- fur trade collapsed and added to the car- speed jet boat powered its way across nage of local birds. Often we came across the lake then performed tight turns at dead possums killed on the roads and speed, showering the raincoat clad oc- were advised that they are considered fair cupants with a heavy spray. Further, out game. At Milford Sound, we boarded the on the lake, para-sails a few hundred “Milford Mariner” which then set off slowly metres up and towed by speedboats af- forded the highflying occupants a bird’s eye view of Queenstown and surrounds. Bungee jumps, zip lines and winter skiing are some of the other activities available to the adventurous. A more sedate ac- tivity is a ride up the cableway that takes one some 500m up one of the mountains overlooking Queenstown where a fine restaurant awaits. Sue and I decided to hike the steep 1,5 km trail up Queenstown hill that ascends over 500m but once at Milford Sound Fiord

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South Island Robin New Regent Street, Christchurch down the fiord. Sheer walls of rock rising to the clear blue ice-cold waters of the 1200m surrounded us, sometimes on one lake. Christchurch suffered major earth- side only and further along on both sides, quake damage in 2011, signs of which are and numerous waterfalls cascaded down still visible today. An easy way to see the the almost vertical cliff faces. NZ fur seals city is to take the hop-on hop-off tram, lay on rocky outcrops and Sue spotted a which takes about an hour to complete group of Little Blue penguins which, un- a full circuit. Sue and I visited the Bridge fortunately, for me dived into the water of Remembrance, dedicated to the New before I saw them. The boat continued Zealanders who died in war, the “card- to the mouth of the fiord before turning board” cathedral built out of recycled around and stopping on the return leg at materials from buildings damaged in the a few of the more spectacular waterfalls. earthquake, Hagley Park, the Canterbury Museum and Cathedral junction. Con- The next day we left Queenstown and struction of many new building was un- headed for Christchurch the largest city der way and foundations go down 30m to on South Island. The road wound its way bedrock to prevent during future earth- through spectacular mountain scenery quakes, the effects of liquefaction of the especially near Lake Pukaki where the sandy ground on which Christchurch is Southern Alps, with a blanket of cumu- built. lus cloud, provided a stunning backdrop

Lake Pukaki Flying over the Southern Alps

20 | Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 Paradise Shelduck Humpback Whale Bird life around Canterbury is plentiful took a boat trip to explore the islands. The and at Brooklands Lagoon and the Avon tour company guarantees that one will Estuary we noted among others, Bar- see Bottlenosed Dolphins and indeed, tailed Godwit, Pied Stilt, Royal Spoonbill, we saw plenty surfing in the wake of the Paradise Shelduck, Indian Peafowl, South boat and occasionally leaping out of the Island Pied Oystercatcher and both Black water. We were fortunate to see a Hump- and Mute Swans. From Christchurch, we backed Whale very close to the boat as flew on Air NZ back to Auckland and en well as numerous bird species including route had splendid views of the snow Buller’s Shearwater, Australasian Gan- capped Southern Alps, the Cook Strait, net, and Black, Pied and Little Shags. The and the harbours of Auckland. cruise took us to the island called “Hole in the Rock” which as the name suggests, At Auckland, we picked up a hired car has a large hole that boats often venture and drove 4 hours north to Paihia on the through, and then on to Otehei Bay on Bay of Islands where we checked into a Urupukapuka Island where we disem- pre-booked timeshare unit at Club Pai- barked and were served a late lunch at hia. The Bay of Islands is an archipelago the licensed café. We again enjoyed the of 144 islands off the north east coast of company of dolphins as we sped back to North Island and is a popular holiday des- Paihia. tination. Our 40th anniversary fell during our week in Paihia and on that day, we Just across the bay from Paihia lies the

Bottlenose Dolphin Buller’s Shearwater

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Western Weka small town of Russell, which was the first permanent European settlement in NZ. Ferries run every half hour crossing the 2,3km stretch of water between Paihia Barbary Dove and Russell. The town has many historical farms. The Puketi forest is a remnant of buildings and the streets retain their his- the Kauri tree forests that once covered torical layout. We hiked up Flagstaff Hill, much of North Island. A boardwalk al- which was the scene of much conflict in lows for easy access through the forest, the 1840’s between the early settlers and notices remind visitors that possums, and the Maori. The flagstaff that now stands other undesirable mammals are still be- on the hill was erected in 1858 and is the ing trapped. Indigenous birds are slowly fifth such flagstaff, the four previous -hav returning to the forest and we saw the ing been cut down by the Maori. We had North Island Tomtit, the North Island Rob- a superb sighting on Flagstaff Hill of the in, NZ Kingfisher, Barbary Dove and Ker- Western Weka, one of NZ’s many flight- eru (NZ pigeon). less birds that calmly strolled around, un- concerned of our presence. Grape vines were first planted in the Keri Keri area in 1819 and now NZ has over Other interesting places we visited in the 2000 registered wine farms ranging from Northland region of North Island included the Northland area to as far south as the Puketi forest, Keri Keri and three wine Otago on South Island. Sauvignon Blanc dominates NZ’s wine industry account- ing for over 80% of NZ’s wine exports. We visited Cottle Hill Winery, Marsden Estate and Kainui Road Vineyard, all near Keri Keri. After departing Pahia our next stop was Orewa some 35 km north of Auck- land, where we met up with old Durban friends, Michael and Sharon Potgieter, who moved there a few years ago. Ore- New Zealand Quail wa is a popular holiday destination with

22 | Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 vegetation have flourished. The endemic NZ Dotterel an endangered species can now be seen on the brilliant white sands of the sanctuary. Other birds seen includ- ed Bellbird, Tui Grey Warbler, and Eastern Rosella. Michael and Sharon also took us to Shakespeare Regional Park on the Whangaparaoa peninsula just south of Orewa where we had good sightings of Brown and California Quail, Pied Oyster- Eastern Rosella catcher and Spur-winged Plover. Our sin- cere thanks once again to Jean and Den- nis and to Michael and Sharon for their hospitality. Alas after almost a month, our NZ holiday ended. New Zealand offers something for every visitor, from tranquil wine farms and quaint towns to adventure sports for the adrenalin junkies. With its 15,000km coastline and hundreds of bays and in- lets, it is a paradise for water sports en- New Zealand Dotterel thusiasts. NZ separated from Australia some 80 million years ago and conse- quently has a unique flora and fauna and was the last major landmass to be inhab- ited by humans.

California Quail one of the longest and safest beaches in NZ. Michael and Sharon invited Jean and Dennis from Auckland to join us on a trip to Tawharanui Sanctuary about Hole in the Wall, Bay of Islands an hour north of Orewa. In 2004, a pest proof fence was erected on the Tawha- ranui peninsula and all mammal preda- tors were removed. As a result birds and

Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 | 23 4 mm Body top first line base Tracking our 2019 Bird of the Year 4 mm rule Text By Dr Melissa Whitecross, Threatened Species Project Manager: 5 mm Body top Raptors & Large Terrestrial Birds

The charismatic Sec- retarybird has the auspicious honour of being BirdLife South Africa’s Bird of the Year 2019. As part of its campaign to focus at- tention on this Vulner- able species, BirdLife South Africa, with the support of the Hans Hoheisen Charitable Trust, has teamed up with Chrissie Cloete Chrissie Cloete’s latest Bird of the Year Comic of ChrissieCanDraw to produce a series of incredible fact sheets, is our partnership with BirdLasser through lesson plans, colouring pages and com- the Bird of the Year 2019 Challenge. Using ics. These materials are designed to en- this app-based platform, which is avail- gage young people and educate them able on both iStore and Google Play, we about Secretarybird biology and con- are encouraging the public to log any servation in a fun and interactive manner. sightings of Secretarybirds throughout All these materials are free to download the year. The challenge thus far has re- from the BirdLife South Africa website corded 266 records from 75 observers and we encourage all our members to and you can follow its prgoress at www. take a look at them and share them with birdlasser.com/events/secretaryb2019. any family, friends or teachers you may If you would like to join the challenge and know who could use them. We are proud have your 2019 BirdLasser records added, to have partnered with WESSA’s educa- please e-mail [email protected]. tion team to assist us with distributing the Every sighting helps the BirdLife South educational materials to their network of Africa team to understand where our schools and educators. Secretarybirds are still being observed. A new aspect to the Bird of the Year fun BirdLife South Africa’s Ernst Retief start-

24 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 The nest sites where BirdLife South Africa has tracked Secretarybirds across South Africa ed tracking Secretarybird chicks back entific article on the movements of juve- in 2012 and fitted 10 birds with teleme- nile Secretarybirds published in Ostrich try devices that provided a steady flow (Whitecross MA, Retief EF, Smit-Robinson of movement data until 2017. I took over HA. 2019. Dispersal dynamics of juvenile the Secretarybird project in 2018 when I Secretarybirds Sagittarius serpentarius joined the Terrestrial Bird Conservation in southern Africa. Ostrich 90(2)). This is Programme as the Raptors & Large Ter- the first detailed analysis of the develop- restrial Birds Project Manager. Together ment of Secretarybird chicks around their Ernst and I, with input from Dr Hanneline nests and will help us take conservation Smit-Robinson, have just had our first sci- of these threatened birds further.

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 25 4 mm Body top that she fledged success- fully and is now showing the typical exploratory behaviour seen in our oth- er young Secretarybirds. We predict that Kwezi will disperse from her nest site within the next two months. Our most recent addition to the team of tracked Secretarybirds is Setomi, meaning ‘hunter’ in So- tho. Setomi is a juvenile Secretarybird that SPCA officials in Springs, -Gaut eng, confiscated from in- dividuals who were trying to sell it. Setomi was reha- Kwezi’s early movements around the nest show a similar pattern to bilitated at the Johannes- those of other tracked Secretarybirds burg Wildlife Veterinary Hospital and fitted with We have begun to fit telemetry devic- a tracker before being released at Tel- es to new chicks in areas not previously perion Nature Reserve. We hope that the covered by the original 10. A young Sec- pristine grasslands in the area will provide retarybird we called Tambo was rescued Setomi with a safe environment to grow from the OR Tambo Airport in May 2018 and live in. To watch a video of this Sec- with a severe foot infection. After several retarybird’s release, visit https://www. months of intensive rehabilitation at the facebook.com/BirdLifeSouthAfrica/ Johannesburg Wildlife Veterinary Hospi- videos/718373091898626/ tal, it was released on a farm in the grass- Follow the ‘Secretarybird’ Facebook page lands of Devon, Gauteng, on 11 Septem- for more information about the project or ber 2018. Unfortunately, on 3 October we visit the new BirdLife South Africa web- discovered that Tambo had been killed site to learn more about our conservation after colliding with a high-voltage pow- work on these wonderful raptors. er line. Despite its short life, we learned a lot from this young bird and were able to recover its tracking unit. Refurbished, the unit was fitted to another young Sec- retarybird near Besters, KwaZulu-Natal, in February this year. The local landown- er named the bird Kwezi, which means ‘morning star’, and we are happy to report

26 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 The Sabap2 Website, A Treasure Of Information! By Ernst Retief, BirdLife South Africa and SABAP2 Co-ordinator

A new website for the Southern African Bird Atlas Project was launched in February 2019 that boasts a much more modern look and functionality. The website is a treasure trove of information for atlasers and non-atlasers alike. This article describes some of the useful information available on the website. Species Maps Do you want to know if a species occurs in an area you will be visiting? SABAP2 maps can assist you! Visit http://sabap2.adu.org.za/species and search for a species in the search box. You can either scroll down the species list or simply type “kingfisher” to see a list of all the kingfishers in Africa. If you scroll down to African Pygmy Kingfisher and click on the name, a map is displayed with the pentads where the species has been recorded (Figure 1).

Figure 1: Map of African Pygmy Kingfisher. Click on the square in the top right corner to go to full screen view

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 27 4 mm Body top You can zoom into the map, and if you select the square box on the top right hand side of the map, it will open the map in full screen view. By zooming into the area of interest you can see exactly where the species was recorded. Below the map are graphs of seasonal changes in reporting rate (the proportion of cards that contain the species), which gives some idea of the relative abundance of the species and is especially valu- able for migratory species. By selecting the download tab, you can download the data for this species in different formats. Pentad species lists Do you want to obtain a species list for a site you plan to visit? Easy to do on the SA- BAP2 website. Visit http://sabap2.adu.org.za/coverage/country/southafrica and zoom into the area of interest (Figure 2). Double click on one of the pentads and a new page will open for the pentad. On the new page, click on the “species” tab below the map.

Figure 2: Click on the pentad for which you would like a species list

This generates a large table listing all the species recorded in this pentad (Figure 3). Do you want to know which is the most commonly recorded species? Click twice on the “Full ((RR%)” column heading. The table will be sorted according to reporting rate with the species with the highest reporting rate at the top. These tend to be the most com- mon species in the atlas block and should be easy to find. As you go down the list, the reporting rate decreases, indicating that species are increasingly less likely to be seen.

28 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 Figure 3: Click on the heading “Full (RR%)” to change the sort order so that the birds with the highest reporting rate is at the top.

Find gaps in the 2019 Coverage Map Lastly, for the atlasers. Earlier this year we set atlasers a challenge to atlas 5 300 pen- tads in 2019. The reason for this request is that in order to monitor changes in bird distri- bution we need data for as many pentads as possible each year. So how do you know if a pentad has been atlased in 2019? Easy. Visit http://sabap2.adu.org.za/ and then select the menu item “Coverage”, then “South Africa” and then the province you want to atlas. A map with all the pentads at- lased since 2007 will be displayed. To the right of the map select “2019” in the “Select Year” drop down box. This restricts the map to pentads atlased in 2019. By zooming into the area, it is easy to identify pentads that have not been atlased in 2019. Summary There is lots more you can do on the SABAP2 website. Spend some time on the web- site, try out the different menu items and search for the hidden treasures. The data shown on these maps were collected by dedicated atlasers and we thank them for their contribution. If you keen to become an atlaser, write to [email protected] and we will try our best to assist you.

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 29 4 mm Body top Birding in Central Asia 1: Kazakhstan Text & Photos By Lesley Cornish

Kazakhstan is huge, over twice the area of South Africa, so any trip would only enable parts of it to be seen. It has many different habitats, because of the different elevations (from below sea level to 7,010 m for the highest peak in the Tien Shan mountains). It used to be part of the So- viet Bloc and in earlier times, the north was used a testing ground for nuclear bombs. Most people know if for having steppe and the drying Aral Sea (more Red-headed Bunting than 60% has gone). As well as the many Whitethroat, Black-eared Kite (likely to be different types of steppe (which are differ- split from Black Kite), Oriental Turtle Dove, entiated by elevation and rainfall) there Grey-headed Goldfinch and Ring-necked are mountains, meadows, cold deserts Pheasant. The latter was the real thing, and wetlands, which gives it around 500 and not the many-years feral birds that birds. Some of these birds are specials: were introduced into Britain. becoming endangered, or have restrict- ed distributions. I wanted a change from The next day was our first expedition forest and savannah birding, so opted for away, heading east about 200 km, to a birding trip there. After an inauspicious Sogety Valley and Kokpek Pass. On the start with my flight being cancelled and way we initially had flat scenery with me fighting to get another flight, without mountains in the background. In fact, al- paying the full cost, things got better. most anywhere we were in Kazakhstan had mountains in the background (often We used Almaty, the old capital, as our with snow on top), and sometimes we base, and then headed out to different were in the mountains. We had several regions from there (often leaving laundry short stops to check out any birds, seeing behind). Almaty is a beautiful city (and Long-tailed Shrike, Red-headed Bunting good for Red-rumped Swallow) with a and Corn Bunting. We watched a flock of combination of old and new buildings. Jackdaws and Carrion Crows following a Our local guide was Arend Wassink, one tractor across a field, and when I look at of the authors of “The Birds of Kazakh- the photographs later, one Jackdaw was stan”, and he was marvellous! The ini- flying upside down! This is why I love tial outing was a day trip into the nearby crows – they are always there to surprise Kaskelen Ili-Ala-Tau National Park, which you! is in the foothills of the mountains, and even though it rained most of the time, we Before climbing into the mountains, we saw some interesting birds: Masked Wag- stopped at a Moslem cemetery, and tail, Brown Dipper, Mistle Thrush, Hume’s found a pair of Lesser Kestrels, Crag

30 | Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 sert Warbler, Horned Lark, (Central Asian) Lesser Whitethroat, Caspian Plovers and Greater-sand Plovers with youngsters. We also saw some Great Gerbils, and our first nearby Demoiselle Crane, but unfor- tunately this one has a damaged leg, so might not have survived. Later, we went to the spectacular Charyn River Gorge, where the stars of the show were the ro- dents! They were collecting vegetation, Pied Wheatear often stealing it from each other, and were Sparrows sheltering in holes in the wall great fun to watch as they scurried along (or nesting?), and far away a pair of Dem- their well-worn trails. The birdlife included oiselle Cranes. Next, we saw feral horses Pied and Desert Wheatears, and a Barba- and a Sakar Falcon. Back near the road, ry (Peregrine, if re-lumped) Falcon. In the and while having our picnic lunch, we mountains, we headed for Kokpek Pass, were entertained by a group of Rosy Star- and stopped to walk up a stream-bed lings, which reminded me of the pink and (which was quite hard work, even though black liquorice allsorts! They were feed- there was a path), finding a small group of ing some youngsters, and it seemed to Chukar Partridge (the REAL ones, not the be a communal effort. feral ones as on Robben Island!). We also The valley where we stayed was fairly found a nesting Booted Eagle, and after a level, with a gravel river bed, and pristine lot of work, White-capped Buntings, one woods. Here we found Azure Tit, which of the specials for the area. looks like a leucistic Blue Tit! We ex- The next outing was to Taukum Desert. plored that area, and found Desert Whea- En route west, we went to the amaz- tear, Pied Wheatear, Nightingale, Steppe ing Sorbulak Lake, where we found (Turkestan) Shrike, Tawny Pipit and White-headed Ducks (which are becom- Long-legged Buzzards. On one evening, ing rare because of hybridisation with the highlight of the day was sitting by an Ruddy Ducks), Dalmatian Pelicans, Fer- artesian well, and waiting for the birds to ruginous Ducks, Red-chested Pochards, arrive. At first they were shy, but even- tually they came in, and we had good looks of Rock Sparrows, Grey-necked (or –hooded) Bunting, Mongolian Finch- es and Asian Crimson-winged Finches. Back at out lodge, we found a Eurasian Scops Owl by searching that night. After the second night, we returned to Almaty, our base. But first, we had a wonderful morning looking for sandgrouse, and found Pallas’s Sandgrouse, Black-bellied Sandgrouse, Sykes’s Warbler, Asian De- Asian Desert Warbler

Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 | 31 4 mm Body top woodland, where there was Turkestan Tit (sometimes counted as a subspecies of Great Tit), White-winged Woodpeck- er, and eventually, Pale-backed Pigeon (aka Eversmann’s or Yellow-eyed Dove – don’t you love alternative names?). This we only saw as a flock flew away from us, but at least we could see the pale backs. We eventually tracked down the Saxaul Sparrows in a bus stop, where they were Crested Lark nesting! Clamorous Warbler, Great Crested and Black-necked Grebes. Eventually, head- After our second night in the yurt (with ing off to our desert camp, we saw many attendant mouse), we had a long drive larks: Calandra, Lesser Short-toed, Crest- to some petroglyphs (on our way back to ed and Bimaculated Larks, and stopped Almaty), which were interesting in them- off at a waterhole watching them, un- selves. However, there were also some til all the birds were chased off by the good birds: Eastern Rock Nuthatch, goats and the sheep which were brought Red-headed Buntings and Sykes’s War- down to drink. There were also Isabelline bler. We also found a Marsh Frog! Wheatears and Isabelline (Rufous-tailed) Leaving Almaty, we drove up into to the Shrikes, and just before the turn off to the Tien Shan Mountains. Driving along the camp, we found a Little Owl in a desert- river, we found Brown Dippers, and Blue ed building. We were camping in a yurt Whistling-thrushes. There were mixed (a large round tent with an internal frame, deciduous-coniferous forests, where we which is the traditional nomad accom- found many Greenish and Hume’s War- modation in that part of the world), and blers. We also found Rufous-backed we were invited to a mock wedding feast (Eversmann’s) and Blue-capped Red- (complete with a “bride” in her wedding starts, and I heard, but could not see a dress) to show us some of the culture, and Grasshopper Warbler in some scrub. the food was marvellous! I was woken up On the way, we stopped by the Big Al- each night by a mouse, probably because maty Lake, where eventually, after much the yurt had been pitched over its run. scanning, we found an Ibisbill! It was far The first early start sent us into the de- away, but tickable. Nearby, we found a sert to look for McQueen’s Bustards, and Red-fronted Serin. A little higher up, we we also came across Caspian Plovers, saw some Plain Mountain-finches. Driving Short-toed Eagle, and very shy Goitered much higher, we reached the observatory, (Turkemen) Gazelles (because they are which was built in Soviet times. The main hunted). We found more larks, includ- attraction was the bird-life in the alpine ing White-winged Lark. After breakfast, meadows (including the Pasque flower) we went back out and found Brown- and especially the juniper slopes, which necked Ravens and Montagu’s Harrier. supported White-tailed Rubythroats, Later, we went to a remnant of Turanga Red-mantled Rosefinch, White-winged

32 | Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 Black-throated Accentor Great Black-headed (Pallas’s) Gull Grosbeak and White-browed (Severtz- grounds. We spent ages scanning differ- ov’s) Tit-warbler (which reminded me of ent areas for them, driving on each time, a miniature Lilac-breasted Roller). At the and eventually many appeared behind us! highest altitudes, we found Black-throat- There were hundreds of them. We also ed, Altai and Brown Accentors, and much found Black-winged Pratincoles, North- scanning after we heard their calls, gave ern Shovellers, Greylag Geese, Mute us Himalayan Snowcocks! There were Swans (real ones, not the feral, introduced also ravens, Carrion Crows, Lammergeier birds of Britain), White-winged Black (called that on the list), Himalayan Grif- Terns, Redshank and Pallid Harrier. We fon and Red-billed Choughs. On the way went to another location, and found Great down, we tried again for a Songar Tit, and Black-headed (Pallas’s) Gulls, Steppe and it flew over us and disappeared in a bush, Slender-billed Gulls. These were great, never to come out again. There were also because although they were loafing on some Common Buzzards. a shore on the other side of their lake, some would fly over us to check us out, After a night back in Almaty, we flew north so we had really good views. The Great to Astana, then drove to Korgalzhyn State Black-headed (Pallas’s) Gulls are stun- Nature Reserve, where we were looking ning birds, and really attractive for gulls, for the birds on the wetlands. The main with their black heads, and white-rimmed quarry here was the Sociable Lapwing, eyes. Another good find was the local which is endangered, because of habitat special, Black Lark. We passed by a colo- loss on both its breeding and wintering ny of nesting Red-footed Falcons, mixed in with some Rooks, and I was surprised at how many dead Rooks there were. There were also Tree Sparrows cheekily nesting in the other birds’ nests. After the birding, we finished off with an afternoon in Astana, which was surre- al because it is a very modern city, with many extravagant buildings, and gave us a feel of Dubai. That was the first part of the Central Asia trip. The next stop was Sociable Lapwings Uzbekistan and the Silk Road.

Bokmakierie April 2019 No 254 | 33 4 mm Body top first line base Trip Reports 4 mm rule Outing to Vulpro Vulture Rehabilitation Centre: 22 June 2019 - Report 5 mm Body top And Photos By Riana Naven The morning of Saturday, 22 June, saw 21 birding enthusiasts arriving at Vulpro Vulture Rehabilitation Centre in the Hart- beespoort area. Obert Phiri, a well-ex- perienced guide at Vulpro, escorted the group to view all the different enclosures where different vultures are being kept. Mostly two of the southern African spe- cies are being rehabilitated – Cape and White-backed Vultures. Birds that can- not be released again remain at the cen- tre for breeding purposes. As the Cape Vultures were actively incubating eggs on Lappet-faced Vultures the nests against the artificial cliff, people the carcasses. Unfortunately, at the time were not allowed to visit that enclosure. of the visit, the vultures did not descend A few White-backed vultures were also on the carcasses at all. They were all sit- breeding and are very sensitive to dis- ting around the area but for some reason turbance around their enclosures. Obert did not join the feasting crows and Sacred mentioned that vultures are very good Ibises. parents and compete amongst each oth- er to feed the chicks. The centre also plays a role in rehabili- tating exotic vultures whenever the need The centre has a vulture restaurant with a arises. At the moment, they have a Black hide where one can view and photograph Vulture from the USA as well as three An- free flying vultures and other birds visiting dean Condors on the premises. The An-

Obert Phiri giving a guided tour of the Vulpro premises

34 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 dean Condor is arguably the largest flying Grey Go-away-bird bird in the world by combined measure- Rock Dove ment of weight and wingspan. Cape Sparrow The Centre relies heavily on donations to continue the essential work they do Dark-capped Bulbul to save our vultures. Visit their website Blacksmith Lapwing for more information http://www.vulpro. com/rehabilitation-center/. Cape Glossy Starling Werner van Goethem and Awie Coetzee Crowned Lapwing kept a list of all the free-flying birds they Pied Crow identified on and around the premises: African Sacred Ibis Laughing Dove Chestnut-vented Tit-babbler Helmeted Guineafowl Bronze Mannikin Black-headed Heron White-browed Scrub-robin Sediba Game & Conference Lodge North West Province Sediba Lodge offers comfortable accommodation in 10 serviced chalets for up to 32 guests, with linen and towels provided. The communal lapa and braai area are situated next to a sparkling swimming pool. Kitchen facilities include all crockery and cutlery and a communal lounge and reading room offers DStv. Sediba is only an hour and 40 minute drive from Randburg and is close to the town of Brits. Situated on 500 hectares of pristine bushveld the Lodge has recorded over 180 species of birds and contains a selection of large game including giraffe, wildebeest, zebra and kudu. Normal rate R400 per person per night. Special rates are offered for birders: - R600 per person per weekend for groups of ten or more with a single supplement of R750 Enquiries: - Kim Burton-Durham [email protected]

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 35 4 mm Body top White-bellied Sunbird African Palm-swift Black-collared Barbet Cattle Egret Red-faced Mousebird House Sparrow Hadeda Ibis Cape Vulture Common Myna Crimson-breasted Shrike White-browed Sparrow-weaver Speckled Pigeon Crested Barbet Southern Masked-weaver

Juvenile Cape Vulture Andean Condor

Feeding Cape Vultures American Black Vulture

36 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 Book your place on this exciting weekend 11-13th October 2019 Join us in Wakkerstroom for the first Birding Bonanza – a weekend with talks, practicals and something only Wakkerstroom can offer, country living at its best.

R800 per person includes a goodie bag with ‘Wakkerstroomian’ goodies, an opening dinner (entertainment and talks), early morning ringing sessions, a day with fabulous speakers, sundowner cocktails and snacks, a closing dinner (entertainment and a talk) and a free kiddies programme.

Presenters include: Fa a n s i e Pe a co c k , P ro fe s s o rs B o b a n d M a r y S c h o l e s , Dr Hanneline Smit-Robinson, Bradley Gibbons, Richard and Candice McKibbin, Ernst Retief, Steve Davis, Dr Melissa Whitecross, Rina Pretorius and Carina Coetzer

From Secretarybirds to Sungazers and everything in between. Explore charming Wakkerstroom with our very special guest speakers.

For further information or to book your place please contact Claudine on [email protected] or visit www. wakkerstroombirdclub.org.za

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 37 4 mm Body top Rarities And Unusual Sightings Report: 30 June 2019 Compiled by André Marx

This report covers the eight months end- Egret, Slaty. Rooikeelreier ing 30 June 2019 and is a double report One bird was found at Walkhaven in the as time constraints meant I was not able Muldersdrift area of Johannesburg, 2 to produce one earlier this year. It con- Dec 2018 (T&RvW), reported until at least tains many sightings from around the re- 5 Feb 2019. Interestingly, this species gion with several very interesting Nation- has been found at this locality on a few al and Regional Rarity records. Marievale occasions in recent years. Bird Sanctuary produced some cracking rarities this past summer and it is inter- Godwit, Black-tailed. Swartstertgriet esting to see that atlasing efforts are still After a long absence one bird was turning up some very interesting sight- recorded at Marievale Bird Sanctuary, ings; read about the Short-clawed Lark 15 Dec 2018 (WS), (photo DB). In the late record below. The National and Regional 1980s and early 1990s this species was Rarity lists have been updated and any recorded almost annually at Marievale. person interested in a copy can contact me directly; my e-mail address appears below. Due to space constraints, the en- tire list cannot be published here. Thank you for the reports received. Please send any interesting and out of range records together with a photo where possible to the address given below.

National Rarities/Nasionalerariteite

Crake, Spotted. Gevlekte Riethaan A single bird was seen at Marievale Bird Black-tailed Godwit. Swartstertgriet - photo by Dave Bentley Sanctuary, 1 Feb 2019 (KO). Eagle, Lesser Spotted. Gevlekte Arend Harrier, Western Marsh. Europese Vleivalk Several birders reported one being present at Marievale Bird Sanctuary on At least one bird was at Marievale Bird 24 Dec 2018 (GBird), with reports still Sanctuary on 20 Dec 2018 (JD), and at received up to 30 Jan 2019. A somewhat least two, a male and female, out of range record for this species as were present in the following days when it is seldom seen on the highveld in our a number of observers reported seeing region.

38 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 Regional Rarities/Streeksrariteite Brownbul, Terrestrial. Boskrapper A sighting of one bird in Moreleta Kloof NR in Pretoria is a new locality for this species, 11 Mar 2019 (RvT, PL). This spe- cies is not known to occur within the city limits of Pretoria so this is a significant record.

Western Marsh Harrier, Europese Vleivalk - Crake, African. Afrikaanse Riethaan photo by Estelle Smalberger One bird was flushed from a patch of the birds, with occasional reports until at grassland adjacent to a wetland at Abe least 3 Mar 2019 (photo ES). Marievale is Bailey NR near Carletonville, in pentad the only locality in our region where this 2615_2720, 7 Dec 2018 (CWT). species is recorded on an annual basis. Two birds were at a wetland south of Wagtail, Grey. Gryskwikkie Fochville in pentad 2630_2725 on 31 Jan 2019 (JR), a new locality for this species. A single bird was found at Walter Sisulu Botanical Gardens, 22 Nov 2018 (JR, DH). In the following weeks, the bird remained at the site and was reported by a number of observers, erratically being presented until at least 20 Apr 2019 (photo AP). This is the third occasion in the last 25 years that this species has been reported at this locality.

African Crake, Afrikaanse Riethaan - photo by John Randall

Crake, Baillon’s. Kleinriethaan One bird was present at Marievale Bird Sanctuary, 21 Feb 2019 (MJ). Crake, Corn. Kwartelkoning One bird was in an area of grassland at Marievale Bird Sanctuary, 12 Feb 2019 Grey Wagtail, Gryskwikkie - photo by Anthony Paton (RF).

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 39 4 mm Body top

Allen’s Gallinule. Kleinkoningriethaan - photo by Arjen van Zwieten

Sanctuary, 11 May 2019 (RM). This is a very unusual locality for this species. Hawk Eagle, Ayres’s. Kleinjagarend One bird was photographed over North- Corn Crake. Kwartelkoning - photo by Richard cliff in Johannesburg, 3 Dec 2018 (LR). Flack Lark, Short-clawed. Kortkloulewerik Curlew, Eurasian. Grootwulp A significant record came from pen- A solitary bird at Bullfrog Pan on the East tad 2525_2715 on 9 Jan 2019 which lies Rand in pentad 2605_2815 was a surprise southeast of Sun City near Tsitsing, find, 1 Apr 2019 (FK). when a singing bird was discovered and Eagle, African Crowned. Kroonarend photographed in typical habitat for this species, (PdC). This is a new and isolat- A pair of adult birds were observed in the ed locality for the species, about 100km Wilge River valley, northeast of Bronk- east of the known distribution on the horstspruit, 15 Jun 2019 (MJ). Botswana border and south of the popu- Gallinule, Allen’s. Kleinkoningriethaan lation occurring in the Polokwane region, and may represent a relict population An adult female bird was ringed at Ma- that occurs in the area. It also falls within rievale Bird Sanctuary, 19 Jan 2019 (AvZ). the Greater Gauteng 100km radius and is This is a locality where this species is an important discovery. seldom recorded. Moorhen, Lesser. Kleinwaterhoender Goose, African Pygmy. Dwerggans A single bird was at Marievale Bird Sanc- A small number of birds were observed tuary on 1 Jan 2019 (MJ). at Rust de Winter Dam, 15 Dec 2018 (AH). 4 birds were at a small dam on the Sun A pair of birds were at Marievale Bird City road in pentad 2525_2715, 12 Jan

40 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 2019 (PH). A single bird was at Utopia NR near Rustenburg, 10 Mar 2019 (JB). This the Two birds were at the Kgomo-Kgomo first confirmed record, of a photographed bridge, 16 Jan 2019 (TvS). bird, for the Greater Gauteng region. Two birds were at a farm dam in the Pelican, Pink-backed. Kleinpelikaan Fochville area in pentad 2630_2730, 21 Feb 2019 (JR). One bird was at Borakalalo NR, 21 Jan 2019 (SM). Nightingale, Thrush. Lysternagtegaal Plover, Chestnut-banded. Rooiband- One bird was singing along the Zaagkuil- strandkiewiet drift Road, north of Pretoria, 12 Jan 2019 (EM); in the following days some observ- During a CWAC count at Mkhombo Dam, ers managed to obtain satisfactory views one bird was found on the dam shore- of the bird (photo PH). line, 8 Jun 2019 (LvD). Plover, Grey. Grysstrandkiewiet One bird was at Borakalalo NR on 10 Nov 2018 (LvD). Roller, Broad-billed. Geelbektroupant A single bird was a surprise find at Rietv- lei NR, 7 Dec 2018 (GF, IL).

Thrush Nightingale, Lysternagtegaal - photo by Pieter Heslinga

Osprey. Visvalk A brief sighting was enjoyed of one bird at Korsmans Pan on the East Rand on 11 Nov 2018 (CVW). Oxpecker, Yellow-billed Broad-billed Roller, Geelbektroupant - photo by Ian Louw

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 41 4 mm Body top Sandpiper, Green. Witgatruiter Waxbill, Swee. Suidelike Swie One bird was at Waterfall Estate, Mid- A small group of birds was at Hepzibah rand, on 9 Nov 2019 (RS), where it stayed in the Wilge River valley, northeast of for several weeks, being reported by Bronkhorstspruit, 15 Jun 2019 (MJ). An other birders in that time. uncommon and localised species in the Greater Gauteng region, found only at a Another bird was found at Rietvlei NR few localities in the western Magalies- on 20 Nov 2018 where it has reliably berg and at the locality described with occurred for a number of years now, (CB). this sighting. This bird was still being reported from this site in mid-January 2019. Woodpecker, Olive. Gryskopspeg Swallow, Wire-tailed. Draadstertswael One bird was in the Wilge River valley, 15 June 2019 (MJ). A very good record for 3 birds, 2 adults and an immature, were the region. at Rooiwal, north of Pretoria, 25 Nov 2018 (PV). This is an uncommon species in the Other Interesting Observations/An- region. der Interessants Waarnemings Wagtail, Mountain. Bergkwikkie Bustard, Denham’s. Veldpou A single bird was a surprise find on the A sighting of one bird in the Devon area Jukskei River in Waterfall Estate, Mid- in pentad 2625_2845 is very unusual as rand, 9 Feb 2019 (RS). it represents the first SABAP2 record for the grasslands in that region, 16 Feb 2019 One bird was at Qodesh, northeast of (CM). Bronkhorstspruit on the Wilge River, 6 Apr 2019 (MJ). Cuckoo, Great Spotted. Gevlekte Koe- A pair of birds was at Hepzibah in the koek Wilge River valley, 15 Jun 2019 (MJ). An interesting sighting is of one bird at the entrance to the Walter Sisulu Botan- ical Gardens in Roodepoort, 12 Dec 2018 (HB). Eagle, African Hawk. Grootjagarend A pair of birds in pentad 2625_2725 in the Fochville area represents a new record for the area during SABAP2, 24 Apr 2019 (JR). Eagle, Martial. Breëkoparend A young bird was at the Rhino and Lion Reserve, north-west of Johannesburg, 2 Feb 2019 (JS). This species has be- Mountain Wagtail, Bergkwikkie - photo by Ron Searle come increasingly scarce in the Greater

42 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 A single bird was in the fields to the north of Rooiwal Sewage Works, north of Pre- toria, 22 Nov 2018 (PV). Warbler, Dark-capped Yellow. Geel- sanger A sighting of one bird at Marievale Bird Sanctuary in pentad 2620_2830 near the entrance of the reserve represents an- other new locality for this species during SABAP2, 16 Feb 2019 (CM). Warbler, Sedge. Europese Vleisanger During the club visit to Northern Farm, African Hawk Eagle, Grootjagarend - photo by north-west of Johannesburg, good views Lance Robinson were had of one bird, 16 Jan 2019 (BLNG). Gauteng region in recent times, and One bird was well seen during another can probably now be reclassified as a club visit, to Rooiwal Sewage Works, Regional Rarity. north of Pretoria, 9 Feb 2019 (ND). Falcon, Red-footed. Westelike Roo- ipootvalk A female bird was found near Suikerbos- rand, 13 Jan 2019 (MvW), with a further sighting at this locality on 28 Jan 2019 (WS). Another bird was seen next to the N17 highway, near Springs, 13 Jan 2019 (MJ). One bird was at Leeukop Prison, Johan- nesburg, 31 Jan 2019 (AH). Wagtail, African Pied. Bontkwikkie A single bird was at Emmarentia Dam, Johannesburg, 17 Apr 2019 (SC). Sedge Warbler, Europese Vleisanger - photo Wagtail, Western Yellow. Geelkwikkie by Neithard Graf von Durckheim As many as five birds were present at Observers/ Waarnemers: various times at Marievale Bird Sanctu- ary, first reported on 18 Nov 2018 (GBird) Andrew Hester (AH) and seen again several times in the following weeks. Anthony Paton (AP)

Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 | 43 4 mm Body top Arjen van Zwieten (AvZ) Richard Flack (RF) BirdLife Northern Gauteng birders Roger Machin (RM) (BLNG) Rolf Wiesler (RW) Cameron Meyer (CM) Ron Searle (RS) Corrie Barnard (CB) Rowan van Tonder (RvT) Corrie Van Wyk (CVW) Shaun Chamberlain (SC) Craig Whittington-Jones (CWT) Shaun McGillewie (SM) Dave Bentley (DB) Thinus van Staden (TvS) Dion Hobcroft (DH) Tjaart and Rena van Wyk (T&RvW) Estelle Smalberger (ES) Wouter Spijker (WS) Etienne Marais (EM) This column is mainly concerned with Felicity Kanichowsky (FK) observations of rarities and interesting sightings made in the Greater Gauteng Gauteng Birders (GBird) region, defined as being 100km from Gary Freeman (GF) the centre of both Johannesburg and Pretoria. While the majority of records Helen Biram (HB) are included, it is sometimes necessary Ian Louw (IL) to exclude some depending on wheth- er the subject matter has already been John Drowley (JD) well reported. Occasionally records Jonathan Breytenbach (JB) are sourced from Internet reports and from SABAP2 records. Members are in- John Randall (JR) vited to submit details of sightings to Jonathan Sykes (JS) André Marx at e-mail turaco@telkom- sa.net or on cell number 083 411 7674. Jordan Ralph (JR) Krista Oswald (KO) Lance Robinson (LR) Lisl van Deventer (LvD) Michael Johnson (MJ) Myrna van Wyk (MvW) Neithard Graf von Durckheim (ND) Paul da Cruz (PdC) Peter Verster (PV) Pieter Heslinga (PH)

44 | Bokmakierie August 2019 No 255 Aloe Farm, Hartbeespoort - Wednesday 5 June 2019

White-bellied Sunbird enjoying the flowering aloes - Photo by Andy Featherstone

The outing to the Aloe Farm in Hartbeespoort in June was timed to perfec- tion with the aloes in full flower and sunbirds galore!

Amethyst Sunbird - Photo by Andy Featherstone WITWATERSRAND BIRD CLUB DELTA ENVIRONMENTAL CENTRE, ROAD NO 3, VICTORY PARK P O BOX 641, CRESTA, 2118 TEL NO: 011 782 7267 EMAIL: [email protected]