St Lucia Birding Update: June

African crake, St Lucia

​Wetlands birding has been fantastic again this month. Many of the wetlands have receded and areas of flooded grassland have dried up due to a relatively dry month and this seems to have concentrated the birds into the main wetlands and pans again. African pygmy-goose, White-backed duck, Squacco heron, Saddle-billed stork, Red-billed teal, White-faced whistling duck, Intermediate egret, Little grebe, Black crake, Reed cormorant  and African jacana are regular on many of the wetlands. A few wetland rarities seen during the month include Lesser moorhen, African crake and Rufous-bellied heron. The African crake(s) in particular were a big surprise. At least 3 individuals were observed in the wetlands close to St Lucia. The Rufous-bellied herons (also at least 3 individuals) which have not been seen for a long while were once again present at their favourite spot (the wetlands on pan loop, Eastern shores).

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Rufous-bellied heron, Eastern shores, Isimangaliso

​It’s been busy in the forest with fantastic sightings of many of the winter-visiting birds such as Spotted ground-thrush, White-starred robin, Chorister robin-chat during the month. An unusual record for the area in the forest this month was a Yellow-throated woodland warbler on the Igwalagwala trail. The forest residents also came to the party with nice sightings of Narina trogon, Green malkoha, Woodward’s batis, Rudd’s apalis, Livingstone’s turaco, Eastern nicator, Brown scrub-robin, Blue-mantled crested flycatcher, Grey waxbill, Scaly-throated honeyguide, Olive bush-shrike and Buff-spotted flufftail during the month. Quite outrageously, we managed to see 5 different Buff-spotted flufftail individuals on a single morning walk this month!

Narina trogon, Igwalagwala trail, St Lucia.

​There has been a large tern roost at the estuary mouth this month consistently predominantly of Caspian and Greater crested tern. Other birds regularly seen include Western osprey, Kelp gull, African black oystercatcher, Sanderling, Yellow-billed stork, Eurasian whimbrel and out at sea- Winter-visiting Cape Gannet and Cape cormorant. In the narrows section of the estuary we have enjoyed regularly sightings of African finfoot during the month and Mangrove kingfisher have been seen regularly at the estuary edges

African finfoot, St Lucia

Nocturnal birding has been great with sightings of African wood-owl, Swamp nightjar, Fiery-necked nightjar, Spotted eagle-owl and White-backed night-heron

Swamp nightjar