OF THE YEAR 2018 AFRICAN BLACK

KEY FEATURES Hi, my name is Rocky. I am an African . There are 12 oystercatcher species worldwide. African Black Oystercatcher Two species can be found in South , the visiting and the near-endemic African Black Oystercatcher. The African Black Oystercatcher is the only one that breeds in South Africa. I am AKA Rocky described as a very distinctive and charismatic bird with bright, contrasting colours which makes me easy to Haematopus moquini identify. The name, Haematopus, means legs and feet red like blood, which is exactly what I look like! EYES RED EYES WITH ORANGE EYE RING. WINGS 80 TO 88 CM SIZE 42 - 45 CM BILL LONG FLATTENED, CHISEL-SHAPED TO JAB AT PARTIALLY OPEN VALVES WEIGHT ♂ 665 G ♀ 730 G OF AND SCISSOR OUT THE FLESH. MALE BILL IS SHORTER AND BLUNTER THAN THAT OF THE FEMALE BIRD. SEXUAL MATURITY ♀ 3 YRS ♂ 4 YRS LIFESPAN UP TO 29 YRS

BODY BLACK PLUMAGE IN ADULTS. NECK POWERFUL NECK MUSCLES Hi my name is Sandy, the TO JAB AT AND BREAK GREY PLUMAGE IN JUVENILES. White-fronted . Rocky and I CHICKS ARE GREY WITH BLACK STRIPES OPEN MUSSELS. are best of friends as we have a lot in BEHIND THE EYES AND CROWN. common. Just like Rocky, I wil stay with one LEGS AND FEET mate my whole life and lay my in scrapes in CALL LOUD KLEEP, KLEE-A OR KLEE-EEP SOUND. PINK/REDDISH LEGS the sand. I also feed night and day in the upper WHEN IN DANGER – SHARP REPEATED PIC OR AND FEET. intertidal zone. Both of us PIC-PIC ALARM CALL. lay camouflaged eggs and will try our best to divert Habitat and Distribution attention away from our I only breed on the coastlines of South Africa and Namibia. In Mozambique nests with distraction and Angola you will find some of my non-breeding friends. I prefer rocky, displays. Unlike rocky, I live on the coastline sandy and mixed substrate coastlines along the mainland and islands. When I’m as well as inland around lakes and not breeding, I love to join large flocks of to roost on high vantage points. rivers. I’m aslo a lot smaller. Food and Feeding Unlike my name ‘oystercatcher’, I do not eat ! I prefer bivalves (mussels), , (worms), whelks and crustaceans. On sandy shores, I mainly eat sand mussles whereas on rocky shores my diet is more varied. I only feed during low tide in the zone between the low-water mark and high-water mark. This requires me to feed day and night to take advantage of both low tides.

Rocky’s Life Cycle BREEDING MONOGOMOUS - WILL STAY TOGETHER FLEDGE CHICKS FLEDGE AT 35 - 40 DAYS AND FOR UP TO 20 YEARS. BUTTERFLY FLIGHTS - SLOW LEAVE PARENTS’ TERRITORY AFTER 2 - 6 MONTHS. FLIGHT WITH DEEP WING-BEATS - ARE PERFORMED JUVENILES MIGRATE TO NURSERY AREAS IN NAMIBIA IN PRE-BREEDING AND BREEDING PERIODS. AND ANGOLA FOR 2-3 YEARS BEFORE RETURNING.

TERRITORIAL ESTABLISH TERRITORY FIRST BEFORE BREEDING. PIPING DISPLAYS GIVEN IN TERRITORY DEFENCE WITH BILLS HELD DOWNWARDS FOOD PREY CARRIED WHOLE TO CHICKS, FLESH AND SHOULDERS HUNCHED OR WINGS SLIGHTLY RAISED WHILE CALLING LOUDLY. THEN REMOVED AND SHELL DISCARDED TO FORM RETURN TO THE SAME SIGHT TO BUILD THEIR NEST YEAR AFTER YEAR. SHELL MIDDEN CLOSE TO NEST.

NEST BREEDING SEASON BET WEEN OCTOBER AND APRIL. CARE OF CHICKS CHICKS BORN WITH EYES OPEN, NEST BARE SCRAPE IN SAND OR SHALLOW INDENTATION IN ROCK, COVERED IN DOWN, MOBILE, BUT STILL DEPENDENT SURROUNDED BY A RING OF SHELLS AND ROCKS ABOVE THE HIGH WATER ON ADULTS FOR FOOD. FED BY BOTH ADULTS; ONE MARK. LAY 1 - 2 WELL CAMOUFLAGED EGGS. BOTH PARENTS INCUBATE FORAGES WHILE OTHER CLOSELY GUARDS CHICKS. EGGS FOR 27 - 39 DAYS. ADULTS PERFORM FALSE BROODING DISPLAY FUN FACT - CHICKS CAN SWIM TO AVOID PREDATORS! WHEN THREATENED TO DIVERT ATTENTION AWAY FROM REAL NEST.

Content and Illustrations: Chrissie Cloete trading as ChrissieCanDraw CHICKS IN RESPONSE TO PARENTS’ ALARM CALL, HIDES UNDER BUSH, Sources: Carnaby, T. 2010. Beat about the bush – birds. Jacana, ROCKS, CRACKS, OR FREEZES IN OPEN WHEN THERE IS NO COVER. Johannesburg, pp 764.Hockey, P.A.R., I Dean, W.R.J. & Ryan, P.G. (Eds). 2005. Roberts – Birds of Southern Africa 7th ed. The Trustees of the ADULTS PERFORM DISTRACTION-LURE DISPLAY WITH NO VOCALIZATION John Voelcker Bird Book Fund, Cape Town. I Ginn, P., McIlleron, G. TO DIVERT ATTENTION AWAY FROM THEIR CHICKS. 2014. The Ultimate Companion for Birding in Southern Africa, Volume 1. The Unlimited, Cape Town.