1 March - after a 12 hour flight from Sydney, we arrived at Johannesburg in the late-afternoon. We picked up a campervan near the airport, and while undergoing the contractual formalities, saw our first African birds including Fiscal Shrike, Cape Sparrow, Cape Wagtail, and Brownthroated Martins. We then drove for an hour and a half out to the town of Witbank where we spent the night in a campground near a large reservoir. It was dark by the time that we arrived.

2 March - We awakened to many new songs and what was to be a memorable day. The surrounding hillsides were covered with dry grassland, and the reserve was situated in a slightly wetter and lightly wooded gully below a dam. As soon as it was light enough to see, we began to find new birds everywhere. Cape Robins, three Streptopelia doves, three Canaries, Cape Sparrows and Spottedbacked Weavers were all common in the campground. A pair of Redwinged Starlings was seen as they perched atop a light platform near our campsite. In clumps of grass and thickets along the edge of the park, we found numerous Grassbirds, Tawny-flanked Prinias, Speckled Mousebirds, Bluebilled Firefinch, Red Bishops, Common Waxbills and others. Most spectacular was a male Greater Doublecollared Sunbird which was sighted as it foraged in a small tree.

We eventually entered the nature reserve and followed a track through the gully. A sign near the entrance of the reserve warned of the presence of Bilharzia (parasitic fluke) in the stream so we were careful when walking near the streambed. Along the track, we found a small quarry in which we saw a number of rock-dwelling species including Mountain Chat, Rock Bunting, Rock Pigeon, and Rock Martin. Overhead, swallows such as Greater Striped, European (Barn) and House Martin were numerous as were Little and Whiterumped Swifts. In about 3 hours of birding and a couple of kilometres of walking, we recorded nearly 50 species of birds.

Before setting out for Wakkerstroom, we stopped briefly above the dam. A Goliath Heron was sighted as is approached and then flew over the dam wall. Reed Cormorants, Egyptian Geese and Spurwinged Geese were all observed on the shoreline and Giant Kingfishers were seen hunting over the water. Also sighted on a nearby hillside were several antelope including Blesbok and Impala.

The drive to Wakkerstroom traversed many strip coal mines, agricultural lands and grasslands. Along the way, we stopped at a small lake surrounded by cornfields, but full of birds. Yellowbilled Duck, Redbilled Teal, Southern Pochard, Cape Shovelor, and Redknobbed Coots were all on the water while on the shoreline, we saw a Ruff, Marsh Sandpipers, Wood Sandpipers, Curlew Sandpipers, Greenshanks, Threebanded Plovers, and a pair of Blackwinged Pratincoles. Whitewinged Black and Marsh Terns hunted above the lake. Several fully coloured Masked Weavers and a Pintailed Whydah perched on a fenceline, and a male Pallid Harrier flew over a nearby field.

In the late afternoon, we left the sealed highway at Amherst and travelled along a gravel road towards Wakkerstroom. We stopped after a few kilometres to watch a swirling flock of about a hundred Eastern Redfooted Falcons which were hunting over a field. We then drove for a few more kilometres and found a flock of Blue Cranes feeding in a hay pasture. We climbed on top of the campervan so that we could get a better view, and then realised that a pair of the rare Wattled Cranes was also present in the flock. In the same area, we sighted several of the beautiful Blue Korhaans (bustards). A Marsh Owl appeared and hunted over a pasture on the opposite side of the road. Fading light finally forced us to continue on and we arrived at the Weaver's Nest Guesthouse in Wakkerstroom after dark.

3 March - Weaver's Nest is situated on a grassy hillside above a river and wetland. We began the day by birding in the gardens of the guesthouse where we saw many common species such as Cape Weavers, Cape Glossy Starlings, Diederik Cuckoo, Hadeda Ibis, and Greyheaded Sparrows. A single Black Harrier flew by, our only sighting of this unusually marked harrier on the trip. A walk through the grassland near the guesthouse produced sightings of Swainson's Francolins, Helmeted Guineafowl, and Fantailed Cisticolas. A loud double-noted call alerted us to the presence of a pair of Crowned Cranes which had left their roosting site in the wetlands and were flying along the river.

We next visited the large swamp (vlei) which is situated on the outskirts of town. The reeds were alive with birds, particularly Red Bishops and Masked Weavers. Levaillant's Cisticolas, Yellow Warblers, African Sedge Warblers, and several Acrocephalus warblers were commonly heard and occasionally glimpsed as they foraged in thick cover. Waterbirds were numerous including Yellowbilled Duck, Hottentot Teal and Redbilled Teal. We saw large numbers of African Cliff Swallows and Whiterumped Swifts which were nesting under a bridge next to the swamp.

Later, we drove out to an area of grassland along the Amersfoort Road where a couple of the Wakkerstroom specialties, Rudd's and Botha's Larks, are known to occur. Despite multiple attempts, we failed to locate either species since it was apparently too late in the year to find displaying males. We did see Redcapped Larks and a Longbilled Pipit. We also saw many Longtailed Widowbirds, the males of which flew with peculiar, floppy wingbeats. Other common birds of these high elevational grasslands included Stonechats, Southern Anteating Chats, Grassveld Pipits, Orangethroated Longclaw, Ayre's Cisticolas, and Banded Martins. Mammals included the introduced Bontebok, Blesbok and a Black Wildebeast.

In the late afternoon, we drove east from Wakkerstroom across the KwaZulu-Natal border to the Zaaihoek Dam. The scenery was superb with rolling mountains that were almost completely covered in grassland. A Secretary Bird was one of the most interesting sightings along the way and we stopped to watch it walking on a grassy slope. We also saw a Greater Kestrel perched on a telephone pole. The hillsides below the Zaaihoek Dam were steep and covered with boulders. In this habitat, we recorded Rock Kestrels, Buffstreaked Chats, Mocking Chats, Mountain Chats, Cape Rock Thrushes and Rock Pigeons. Family groups of Rock Dassies (Hyrax) were often seen sunning on rockpiles along the road or on the surrounding slopes.

4 March - Today we drove east from Wakkerstroom and crossed over the scenic escarpment into lower elevational grasslands near the small town of Dirkiesdorp. While descending the escarpment, the road crossed a stream valley with dense thickets of low-growing trees. In this area we heard and saw Bokmakierie, Malachite Sunbirds, Greater Doublecollared Sunbirds, Redwinged Starlings and a Redthroated Wryneck. Overhead, we saw a flock of Alpine, Whitevented, and Black Swifts. As we continued the descent, we passed traditional Zulu villages which consisted of round, mud-bricked huts with thatched roofing. In the surrounding grasslands, we found a pair of Jackal Buzzards, Redshouldered and Redcollared Widows.

In mid-afternoon, we again returned to Wakkerstroom and met a local bird guide who intended to show us some of the specialties of the area that we had not yet located. A thunderstorm was approaching, so we had to rush to the various sites before the heavy rain arrived. We began by driving to a high plateau just east of the town where we methodically walked across a pasture in order to flush larks or pipits. After about 20 minutes of walking and a nearby strike of lightning, we flushed two Yellowbreasted Pipits. We had an excellent view of one of these birds while it stood for several minutes in the open at the base of a rock. Next, we headed back to the Amersfoort Road where we were shown a flock of Blackwinged Plovers and a male Montagu's Harrier. After this, we continued on to another pasture which had been heavily grazed but was apparently a favoured locality for both of the rare larks. Unfortunately, the thunderstorm was becoming intense and we only had a few minutes to search before lightening and hail forced our retreat. We did flush a number of larks but could not recognise these due to the strong winds and the dark sky. Blue Koorhans were well seen in the same pasture. It rained for the remainder of the day and we had dinner by candlelight at the guesthouse due to a power outage for the night.

5 March - At first light, I walked from the guesthouse to the wetlands to search for Palecrowned Cisticolas. While struggling through the tall grass, I eventually found a pair of the Cisticolas which were feeding young. I also flushed a Redchested Flufftail, a rail which is more often heard than seen. Later, I watched a pair of Crowned Cranes as they flew to a dead tree on the opposite side of the river. They began a display which included lots of bowing and calling while holding their wings outstretched. While I was enjoying this spectacle, a Malachite Kingfisher suddenly appeared and landed on a cattail only a few meters from me before darting away.

We departed Wakkerstroom in the early morning and commenced the long drive to Kruger National Park. We stopped briefly near Amersfoort where we had seen the cranes. This time, no cranes were found, but we saw Orangebreasted Waxbills, Golden Bishops, Redshouldered Widows, Stonechats, and a Spikeheeled Lark in a small roadside marsh. A pair of Blue Korhans flushed noisily and flew off giving us great views of their rich blue and chestnut plumage. In the same area, we watched a Yellow Mongoose as it hunted along the edge of the road.

ON TO:    Detailed account (PART 2) : birding in the Kruger National Park.