BirdLife SA’s Birding Big Day a soaring success
501 bird species were recorded for Mpumalanga in the 24-hour period.
MBOMBELA – BirdLife SA’s (BLSA) annual Birding Big Day (BBB) on December 3 saw birdwatching teams from around the country competing for the accolade of most birds spotted within the
24-hour period.
As usual, an impressive turnout was only topped by the staggering diversity of our avian species.
This year, 285 teams took part across the whole country, including 60 teams from Mpumalanga and 51 from Limpopo.
A total of 680 species was recorded on the day across South Africa, well short of our national tick-list of 850 avian species.
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The overall winners for the day was Team E-birders, comprising Daniel, Derek and Selwyn Engelbrecht, who recorded an amazing 336 species in the Limpopo region.
A Bowl of Corncrakes, from Limpopo, came second, recording 332 species.
Hot on their heels, local Mbombela team Hamerkop saw Johan and Ehren Eksteen, Lourens Grobler and Duncan McKenzie finish in third place with a total of 323 species spotted during the 24-hour period.
In Mpumalanga, 501 species were recorded on the day, showing what amazing bird diversity we have on offer.
Some of the “special sightings” recorded in Mpumalanga included the bat hawk, black stork, crowned eagle, European nightjar, great spotted cuckoo, greater painted snipe, green twinspot, pink-throated twinspot, grey cuckooshrike, grey-headed kingfisher, southern ground hornbill, Gurney’s sugarbird, half-collared kingfisher, lemon dove, Narina trogon and orange ground thrush.
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All data collected will contribute to the Second South African Bird Atlas Project, significantly boosting knowledge about the conservation status of our avian diversity.
Summing up the day, BLSA’s Marc Cronjé said, “The whole point of the day is to enjoy, celebrate and protect the amazing bird diversity we have in our country.”
BLSA promotes SA as a top-class birdwatching destination, which is vital for the long-term conservation of the country’s wild birds and their habitats.
Its primary objectives are to save species from extinction, conserve sites and habitats, encourage ecological sustainability and enable positive change through people by integrating bird conservation into sustaining people’s livelihoods.
BLSA is supported by its four distinguished South African patrons, Gaynor Rupert, Dr Precious Moloi-Motsepe, Pamela Isdell and Mark Shuttleworth.
For more information on BLSA in the Lowveld, contact Duncan MacKenzie on 079 530 7873.
