The Trekkie's Forum

Herewith a brief report (and a list especially for WTM ) on the birds seen on our visit to the Karoo NP.

First of all the wind was awful….it blew and blew and flippen blew.
Birding was the best in the campsite , along the boardwalk to the Interpretive Centre as well as in the little garden next to the Interpretive Centre. Birding on the game drives was very quiet.
Black eagles were soaring above the Klipspringer Pass. Palewinged starlings were very noticeable along this stretch as well.
We saw the sum total of 2 Pale Chanting Goshawks. I was also very disappointed in not seeing one bustard or korhaan of any description.

My birding highlight was this little Fairy Flycatcher in the garden next to the Interpretive Centre.



The campsite was alive with Malachite Sunbirds, Whitebacked Mousebirds, Southern Masked Weavers, Red-eyed Bulbuls , Cape Wagtails and Cape Sparrows.



White-backed Mousebird



Southern Masked Weaver.

Malachite Sunbird

All in all I ticked 30 species of which the Fairy Flycatcher was my only lifer.

Anteating Chat
Barthroated Apalis
Black Eagle
Bokmakierie
Cape Robin-chat
Cape Sparrow
Cape Turtle Dove
Cape Wagtail
Cape White-eye.
Chestnut-vented Titbabbler
Common Fiscal
Common Ostrich
Dusky sunbird
Fairy Flycatcher
Familiar Chat
Karoo Scrub-Robin
Karoo Thrush
Laughing Dove
Malachite Sunbird
Mountain Chat
Pale Chanting Goshawk
Palewinged Starling
Pririt Batis
Redeyed Bulbul
South African Shelduck
Southern Lesser Doublecollared Sunbird
Southern Masked Weaver
Speckled Dove
Whitebacked Mousebird
Whitethroated Canary



Karoo NP is a great park to visit and I cannot fault the park on anything…except the flippen wind !!!!!