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Great news Joel I'm leaving for Kruger in a week and really need Temminck's Courser. The Red-capped Lark and Kittlit's Plover will also be nice additions to my Kruger list

Thanks Joel!

There's already a load of info here for most species, but every bit of info counts .

Keep your eyes open for Mottled Spinetail in Punda Maria Camp, I've picked them up there fairly regularly the last few years when they often mix with Little Swift, seems to be a bird that's not quite as easy to find as in the past.

White-breasted Cuckooshrike are best found on the Mahonie (but can be anywhere in the area), the area about half way around is fairly good for it, especially if you bump into a bird party, they typically join these in winter.

Ayres's is scarce everywhere, no specific spot but I've seen them near Punda and at Pafuri before, they really can pop up anywhere.

African Yellow White-eye are regular at Pafuri picnic spot, fairly straight forward to find.

Bohm's is best found either at the bridge, or preferably whilst making some egg and bacon sandwiches at Pafuri picnic site at a point where you can see the river, they basically hunt up and down the river and you just got to get your timing right by waiting for long enough that one can come past, usually every 30 minutes or so, but sometimes you also see them anywhere along the road skirting the river as they fly directly above the canopy.

African Barred Owl is often found in Letaba as mentioned earlier, great habitat there for them, but I've seen them in Tambotie camp also.

Racket-taileds are tough in the winter outside of the Makuleke concession, but the klopperfontein area is the most likely to produce one, they appear to be partial migrants in this region.

Miombo Blue-eared is damn tough! I've only had one that I was sure of as it was a juvenille, but in theory one could pitch up at Pafuri from time to time.

Dickinson's can also be throughout the area, but the best regions are around Klopperfontein, and then also along the main road south between Pafuri and Shingwedzi, they particularly like perching up on dead trees.

Good luck with all those Turkeys, looking forward to hearing how many you managed to pin down!

Excellent! Thanks John for taking the time to add your expert advice. Much appreciated.

I see that Plain-backed Sunbird is a possibility at Orpen camp. Has anyone see it there or anywhere else in the Park for that matter?

To the best of my knowledge it's only been recorded there once by Errol Pietersen, the Kingfisherspruit ranger at the time, so in terms of the odds of finding one in kruger...well there have been many more records of Sooty Tern!!!

Thanks John!

Yup, the odds are very small indeed.

Am heading to Satara and Mopani tomorrow and would welcome any news of interesting recent sightings .

Hi Highbury!

It is always difficult to predict what others will see as interesting

Check out the oxpeckers on any buffaloes you come across near Mopani, we saw yellow-billed oxpecker (usually only found much further north), south of Mopani about three weeks ago. A juvenile jackal buzzard was hanging around the dam close to the T-junction that goes up to Mopani camp. We found a lizard buzzard close to the t-junction of the Shingwedzi-Phalaborwa road with the Letaba-Phalaborwa road. Double-banded sand-grouse en-route to the bird hide (the one closest to the tar road) at Pioneer dam.

Didn't go near Satara unfortunately.

Jackal Buzzard?? Really? Wow.. that would be a real great find for KNP so far north. They tend to only be found around Berg n Dal every now and then..

Did you guys perhaps take a photo?

Hi DotDan,

I didn't get a pic as I was on the wrong side of the vehicle and my little Nikon P100 did not focus fast enough the one time I got it in frame ( ), but I think my friend (who has got much better camera equipment than I have) did (well, either a photo or two or a video). I'll bug her to have a look through her pics and send me whatever she has of the okie. I'll post it as soon as possible. (It would be nice to get confirmation of the ID - it being a juvenile ).

That would be great Dabchick. They are really scarce as far as Kruger is concerned, so if the sighting is confirmed it could very well be a special find.

Okay, it's not a jackal buzzard...



It is a much more common bird than that....(in the KNP)



I can't believe I got fooled like that!

It is a juvie though

I blame the fact that I never got a decent view around the huge camera lens in front of me!

Oh, for those who don't recognise the bird above right off, it's a juvenile African harrier hawk (gymnogene)...

Don't ever feel ashamed Dabchick.. it is all part and parcel of birding unfortunately.. Sometimes you get them right.. and now and then you get one wrong.

I have made hundreds of mistakes and them some. So don't feel bad.

All those mistakes have tought me one thing.. location, location, location. (Habitat, Habitat, Habitat)

I can assure you that you will never forget what a Harrier-Hawk looks like.

Thanks everyone for all the good advice! We had an awesome time in Kruger!

Some interesting sightings in the last week:
White-fronted Plover influx on the Letaba river.
Common Greenshank at Stapelkop dam.
Number of Open-billed Storks at Stapelkop and Sabie river from Lower Sabie camp.
Osprey at Sable dam.
African Yellow White-eye, Tropical Boubou, Black-throated White-eye, Bohm's Spinetail in Pafuri.
Crested Guineafowl in Punda Maria.
Temminck's Courser and good numbers of Kori Bustard at Tihongonyeni on the Capricorn loop.
African Goshawk at Shingwedzi low water bridge.
African Hawk-Eagle, Lizard Buzzard on Shongololo loop.
Little Sparrowhawk at Nkhulu.
Gabar Goshawk just north of Babalala.
Verreaux's Eagle-Owl on Shingwedzi main road and also just south of Satara just before the H6 junction.
2 Secretarybirds just south of Satara.
White-throated Robin-Chat in Tambotie.