Birding update for St Lucia: June '25

It was a beautiful weather month in St Lucia with predominantly warm, windless conditions interrupted by a cold front or 2. The chilly mornings and dew have made for some great birding with many secretive forest species such as Green malkoha and Livingstone's turaco sunning and drying themselves conspicuously in the warm early morning sunshine. 

Green malkoha sunning itself on a chilly morning in St Lucia

The Southern-banded snake eagle has been very regular on walks this month and treated us to some fantastic sightings. 

We enjoyed regular sightings of Southern-banded snake-eagle throughout the month

Another treat this month has been regular sightings of Spotted ground-thrush. They can be very scarce some years so it's great to have a few individuals present this Winter. 

Spotted ground-thrush in the forest surrounding St Lucia.

Fruiting figs have continued to attract large numbers of frugivorous birds including Livingstone's & Purple-crested turaco, Trumpeter hornbill, White-eared barbet, Yellow-bellied greenbul and African green pigeon.

Livingstone's turaco sunning itself in close proximity to a fruiting fig tree

It has been a great month for Kingfishers! The Mangrove kingfisher has been treating us to great sightings at the edges of the estuary. We also enjoyed a rare sighting of Half-collared kingfisher.

Half-collared kingfisher in St Lucia

The highlight though was a Grey-headed kingfisher sighted on the Eastern shores of Isimangaliso Wetlands Park. 

Grey-headed kingfisher, Eastern shores

At the estuary mouth, sightings during the month have included Caspian, Greater crested, Sandwich and Common tern, Greater flamingo, African oystercatcher, Sanderling, Eurasian curlew, Kittliz's plover, Western osprey, Palm-nut vulture, African fish-eagle, Cape Gannet, Kelp gull and Pied avocet to name a few. 

Greater flamingo at the Lake St Lucia estuary mouth

Wetlands surrounding St Lucia and on the Eastern shores of Isimangaliso are holding African pygmy-goose, White-backed duck, Yellow-billed duck, Red-billed teal, White-faced whistling duck, Intermediate egret, Malachite kingfisher, Squacco heron, African jacana, Striated heron, Purple heron, African marsh harrier and Black crake to name a few. 

African pygmy-goose in the wetlands close to St Lucia

On the Eastern shores, the Rufous-bellied heron has continued to show erratically in the Wetlands surrounding Amazibu hide during the month. There have also been a couple of sightings of African crake on the road verges on the Eastern shores. An unusual sighting on the Eastern shores during the month was that of a Rock kestrel hunting small birds over the grassland. Very strange habitat for a bird synonomous with mountainous/hilly & rocky habitats! 

Rock kestrel on the Eastern shores

Closer to Cape Vidal there have been good numbers of Senegal lapwing and also a few sightings of Yellow-billed oxpecker.

Senegal lapwing close to Cape Vidal