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Day Trips
Eastern Endemics Circuit with the Northern Kruger National Park
3-11 December, 2005
3 Places available on this tour
Summary
This tour is a variation of our popular eastern endemics circuit which combines the best of classic african woodland and savannah birding, with a variety of endemic-rich habitats, including the steenkampsberg highlands, eastern dinokeng grasslands, north-west arid thornveld and afro-temperate escarpement forest at Magoebaskloof. The tour takes place in early summer - one of the very best times to be birding in Southern Africa!
Expectations for this 9-day trip are 300-370 species with 70+ regional endemics.
Saturday 3 December: Suikerbosrand and Highveld birding
An early start from your hotel/lodging will see us heading south of Johannesburg to the Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve. This 22 000 HA reserve protects a variety of highveld and sub-montane species.
Birding in Suikerbosrand will concentrate on the variety of endemic larks, francolins and chats, which occur. Specials include Eastern Long-billed and Spike-heeled Lark, Jackall Buzzard and Yellow Canary. Francolins are particularly well represented and one may encounter Orange-river, Redwinged, Grey-winged Francolin or Swainson's Spurfowl. Other specials include, Grass Owl, African Red-eyed Bulbul, Cape Rock Thrush, Cape Grassbird, Wing-snapping Cisticola, African Rock Pipit and African Pied Starling. The reserve also offers an excellent diversity of mammals, including the endemic Black Wildebeest, Suricate and Red Hartebeest.
In the afternoon we will head northwards for Bronkhorstspruit and will do some wetland birding at the Elandsvlei Wetland, situated on private land. This natural pan often often provided a superb array of waterbirds, including Cape Shoveller, Hottentot Teal, Yellow-billed Egret, Whiskered Tern and many others.
We stay at a lodge north-east of Bronkhorstspruit, ideally situated for grassland birding the next morning.
Sunday 4 December: Eastern Dinokeng - Dullstroom
Most of the day is spent exploring the diverse Dinokeng area. We will spend some time in the excellent grasslands nearby, where we hope to see Melodious, Fawn-coloured, Eastern Clapper and Rufous-naped Lark. Cisticolas include Cloud and Wing-snapping and raptors are usually well represented in December and include Pallid Harrier, Greater Kestrel, Black Sparrowhawk and flocks of Amur Falcon. This area also holds the possibility of White-bellied Korhaan, Denham's Bustard and Cuckoo-finch
Nearby rocky ridges and gorges provide habitat for a host of different birds including Mocking Cliff-chat, Lazy Cisticola, Striped Pipit and Freckled Nightjar. Rivers may hold African Finfoot, Half-collared Kingfisher and African Black-Duck. Later on we pop into the Seringveld Conservancy which offers a variety of woodland birds, including unusual "specials" such as Tinkling Cisticola, Green-capped Eremomela, Flappet Lark and Bushveld Pipit.
In the afternoon we travel eastwards towards Dullstroom, and stay at a beautiful Trout Fishing Lodge, close to pristine highland habitat.
Monday 5 December: Dullstroom to Blydepoort Resort
The Dullstroom area has some of the most pristine high altitude grassland anywhere in Southern Africa. A host of endemics are on offer, including the wonderfully incongruous Ground Woodpecker and the fascinating Southern Bald Ibis. Specials include Yellow-breasted Pipit and Wattled Crane. Other highland birds we are likely to see include Sentinel Rock Thrush, Rufous-chested Sparrowhawk Gurney's Sugarbird, Blue Crane, Denham's Bustard, Pale-crowned Cisticola, Black-winged Plover, and Buff-streaked Chat.
In the afternoon we travel down to the escarpment, and stay in the Aventura Forever Resort at Blydepoort - at the base of the Spectacular Blyde River Canyon.
Tuesday 6 December: Blydepoort to the Kruger National Park
Morning birding in the Blydepoort area, where habitats here include sheer cliffs, rocky outcrops, broad-leaved woodland, dense bushveld, riverine thicket, tall riparian forest, the Blyde river and the ever-productive resort gardens. Birds on offer in this area include the rare Taita Falcon, Red-necked Francolin, African Finfoot, Half-collared Kingfisher Mocking Cliff-Chat, Mountain Wagtail, African Crowned Eagle and Striped Pipit. The area is particularly noted for it's good raptors.
In the afternoon we head down the escarpment and enter the Kruger National Park at Orpen Gate. The drive into the Camp usually takes some time as we encounter many new birds along the way, including Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, Magpie Shrike and possibly Senegal Lapwing. Our accomodation is in Park Chalets at Letaba.
Wednesday 7 December Satara to Punda Maria
The central section of the park provides a wonderful mosaic of big rivers, riverine woodland and extensive areas more open plains. Here we expect to encounter a variety of storks, eagles, vultures and bustards. Typical African families like Hornbills, Barbets, Rollers and Starlings are all well-represented.
We spend the day traveling northwards, but there will be plenty to see along the way, and we will stop frequently to view the excellent variety of birds on offer. We stay in Park Chalets at Punda Maria - one of the most popular stop-overs for local birders.
Thursday 8 December: Punda Maria area
At first light, we head northwards to Pafuri which is one the most exciting birding areas in the region - on the way there, we may stop for Arnot's Chat, Dickinson's Kestrel, Mosque Swallow or African Hawk Eagle, or even a family group of African Wild Dog.
At the Pafuri river, a wide band of Riverine forest provides refuge for a large diversity of birds. We will scan the woodland for Yellowspotted Nicator, Tropical Boubou and Greencapped Eremomela. At the bridge and picnic site we will search for Mottled and Bohm's Spinetail. With a bit of luck we will see African Finfoot, and a host of river associated birds such as Saddlebilled, Openbilled and Black Stork as well as Whitecrowned Plover.
Other birds present include Longtailed Starling, White-browed Robin-chat, Wattle-eyed Flycatcher and Gorgeous Bush Shrike. We will scan large trees for Giant Eagle or Pel's Fishing Owl as well as Narina Trogon. Raptors are plentiful and may include White-backed, Lappet-faced and Hooded Vulture, Martial Eagle, Black Eagle, Bataleur, Gymnogene and Cuckoo Hawk.
Friday 9 December: Punda Maria to Magoebaskloof.
After a morning of birding in the park, we head southwards to Tzaneen and on to our accommodation at Kurisa Moya Nature Lodge.
En route we stop at the nest site of a pair of Bat Hawk, before heading onto our accommodation at Kurisa Moya Nature Lodge, where we stay in secluded log cabins, each with its own patch of forest.
Saturday 10 December: Magoebaskloof to Rust de Winter
Magoebaskloof is a fine tract of afro-temperate forest situated in the northern drakensburg. Dawn will find us in the forests around woodbush. Key target birds are Blackfronted Bush Shrike and Bat Hawk. Forest specials which we may have missed in KwaZulu Natal will be sought here, including Narina Trogon, Knysna Turaco, Orange Ground Thrush, Longtailed (Mountain) Wagtail, Cape Parrot, Buff-spotted Flufftail, Yellow-streaked Bulbul and Green Twinspot. We will also visit a stakeout for Bat Hawk, and may encounter a host of other forest birds such as Grey Cuckoo-shrike, Crowned Eagle, Cinnamon Dove, Starred and Chorister Robin, Scalythroated Honeyguide, Emerald Cuckoo, Forest Buzzard, Barratt's Warbler, Bluemantled Flycatcher and several sunbirds including Collared and both Lesser and Greater Doublecollared Sunbirds.
In the afternoon we leave Magoebaskloof and pausing briefly in the Polokwane area to look for Short-clawed Lark, head southwards back towards Gauteng. Our last stop is a little more than an hour from Johannesburg International, but offers possibly the highest bird diversity thusfar on this tour! We stay at a stylish small game lodge near Rust de Winter
Sunday 11 December: Zaagkuildrift & Kgomo-kgomo
An early start will see us west into acacia woodland habitat along the Zaagkuildrift Road. This area consists of prime acacia thornveld, and apart from holding an excellent diversity of typical african birds such as Hornbills, Barbets and mousebirds, will provide the opportunity to see a number of "North-western" species such as Northern Black Korhaan, Kalahari Robin, Crimson-breasted Bush Shrike, Southern Pied Babbler, Cape Penduline-Tit, Black faced Waxbill, Ashy Tit and Barred Wren-Warbler. We will also encounter a host of other regional endemics such as Shaft-tailed Whydah, Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, Black-chested Prinia and Marico Flycatcher.
Depending on rains, wetlands in the area can offer a spectacular array of waterbirds including uncommon rallids such as African Rail, Allen's Gallinule, Lesser Moorhen, Greater Painted Snipe and Dwarf Bittern.
Our last stop will be the Rooiwal Water Treatment Plant, which always offers a host of shorebirds, ducks, hirundines and others. This stop will ensure that the species list for the day probably exceeds 150.
Tour ends.
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ALSO: See information on Tailor-made Tours
Other Tours offered in 2005
Day Trips
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