Elusive Natal robins can be seen in gardens
Although Natal robins mainly feed on insects and fruit, they are known to glean scraps and bones from the braai.
THE Natal robin, now called the Red Capped Robin Chat, is a common resident found from East London northwards along the east coast, lowlands of KwaZulu-Natal and north eastern South Africa.
In KwaZulu-Natal this is a common species in gardens where it lives in shrubberies.
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They are usually solitary or in pairs, being elusive they keep mostly to the undergrowth of evergreen forests and thickets in parks and gardens where they forage on the ground, especially at dusk for insects, spiders and centipedes.
They also feed on fruit and around human settlements these Robins will glean scraps and bones from the braai.
They sing from a low perch, sometimes with slightly raised quivering wings. They have a soft thrilled “seee saw” call, but can imitate over 30 species of other birds with rich melodious whistled songs and will also test humans, urging them to call back their songs.
Breeding takes place from September to December. The nest is a cup of dead leaves, twigs and moss, lined with fine roots and plant fibres. Usually three heavily mottled chocolate brown or olive green eggs are laid.
Incubation takes 13 to 15 days and the nestling period is 12 to 17 days during which the chicks are fed by both parents.
The isiZulu name is obomvu umBheckle and in Afrikaans Nataljanfrederik.
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