Blue Crane | Mostly Birding

Onverwacht Farm

During our September 2020 visit to the farm of Pieter and Anlia, described in my previous post, the opportunity arose for a very unique birding experience, all thanks to Pieter’s efforts in setting it up.

Pieter had arranged with friend Trevor, retired professional hunter and nature expert of note, to pick him up from a nearby farm so that he could guide us to a bird sanctuary on a farm south-west of Vryheid – Trevor had already given the outing a name – “Crane Safari” which was an obvious hint of what we were likely to see but not of the exceptional numbers we would encounter.

Firstly though, there were various urgent farm matters to attend to – amongst them, counting the cattle to make sure none had been ‘appropriated’ overnight, checking fences for signs of any further ‘recycling’ operations and taking the bakkie to town for some repairs to the suspension (damaged during a fruitless hunt for fence ‘recyclers’ who had struck during the night and removed a few hundred metres of fencing) – such is the existence of a farmer in these parts.

Pentad 2745_3035

We picked up Trevor, who I had met before several years ago, drove to Vryheid and then proceeded along the R33 towards Dundee for about 15 kms before turning off onto farm roads and arrived at the farm around 1.30pm. Trevor knows many of the farmers in the area and had arranged access to the farm and bird sanctuary.

From then on, for the next two hours, the birding was hectic as Trevor and Pieter spotted birds in quick succession while I tried to record them on the Birdlasser app and verify the ID.

We drove along the earth wall of the first dam, which was filled with hundreds of waterfowl, including a group of White-backed Ducks (new record for the pentad) and others of Greater Flamingos, Southern Pochards and Cape Shovelers (which I like to call “Sloppy Ducks” based on their Afrikaans name of Slopeende).

White-backed Duck (Thalassornis leuconotus / Witrugeend)

Cape Shoveler (Anas smithii / Kaapse Slopeend)

Several Black-winged Stilts patrolled the dam fringes and Trevor called an African Marsh Harrier which was flying low over the grassy verges.

Moving on, the large vlei lower down came into view and at the same time a huge flock of perhaps 150 Grey Crowned Cranes rose up in unison, creating a birding spectacle that few people can have witnessed. The flock circled the vlei then settled for a while, but as soon as our vehicle edged closer they rose as one again, repeating the spectacle over and over.

Grey Crowned Cranes, Crane Safari near Vryheid

I would guess that most experienced birders have seen a pair or perhaps a small group of Grey Crowned Cranes at some time, but to see such a large flock of this endangered species is truly remarkable.

Once we were closer to the vlei, with the Crowned Cranes now settled on the opposite side, we could see a few Glossy Ibises along the fringe and a superior looking Goliath Heron right in the middle. Shortly after, a lone Squacco Heron flew in and a Purple Heron rose up out of the reeds to complete the trio of “scarcer Herons”.

Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus / Glansibis)

Between the dam and the vlei, lush grassland was good for Cape Longclaw, Spike-heeled and Red-capped Larks and African Stonechat.

Cape Longclaw (Macronyx capensis / Oranjekeelkalkoentjie)

Spike-heeled Lark (Chersomanes albofasciata/ Vlaktelewerik) – showing its main identifying features of short white-tipped tail and long slightly curved bill

Soon it was time for a lunch break – sandwiches of home made bread and last night’s leg of lamb leftovers along with coffee which went down a treat in the cold windy conditions. The lee side of the bakkie provided some shelter from the wind but we didn’t dawdle and were soon on our way again.

While we were enjoying lunch, a flock of Blue Cranes, some 100 strong, flew over the vlei and settled briefly before moving on – so we had seen large numbers of both of the Crane species found in these parts – mission accomplished, thanks to Trevor!

Later, we found a small group of Blue Cranes in a field, this time close enough for some photos …..

At the last dam before leaving this incredible birding spot, we saw a few waders at the water’s edge and approached carefully so as to get close enough to identify these sometimes difficult species. Fortunately they were all species that I have got to know well and I was able to record Ruff, Curlew Sandpiper (New record for the pentad), Little Stint and Kittlitz’s Plover – a real bonus after such a variety of waterfowl.

Ruff (Philomachus pugnax / Kemphaan), near Vryheid

Curlew Sandpiper (Calidris ferruginea / Krombekstrandloper), near Vryheid

I hadn’t planned to do a “Full Protocol” (FP) card for the pentad in which the dams and vleis fell, but as it turned out the last bird recorded on the way out – a Southern Masked Weaver at a small stream – was precisely two hours after the first bird and I was more than happy to submit my list as FP (which requires a minimum two hours of survey time in a pentad).

Back at the ranch – well, the farmstead where Trevor and Collette live – we sipped warming Milo while Trevor pointed out a few of the garden species including Paradise Flycatcher and a flock of Olive Pigeons that swooped by.

It had been a memorable day’s birding and I was very pleased to have been able to complete a Full Protocol Atlas card. I recorded 40 species in the two hours, the seventh card for the pentad, and added two new species

The Blue Crane is a unique bird for several reasons, not least of all for its striking good looks, but also for the fact that it is South Africa’s National bird and has appeared on stamp issues and has adorned the 5c coin since 1965 – initially a nickel coin, later a copper coin which inflation has rendered worthless except for small change.

It is also unique in being the world’s most range-restricted Crane (out of 15 Cranes worldwide). In the Southern African region (which encompasses South Africa, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and southern Mozambique) it qualifies as an endemic and almost makes it to the vaunted rank of South African endemic, but for an isolated population in Namibia near the Etosha pan and small numbers in the extreme south-east of Botswana.

Despite a significant decrease in numbers in parts of South Africa, it has grown in numbers in the Western Cape where they favour cereal croplands, planted pastures and ploughed fields, roosting in shallow water bodies such as dams and pans.

Voelvlei (literally “bird pan”) near Mossel Bay is well known to birders in the southern Cape as a magnet for birds (when it has water), and during “wet” seasons up to 1 000 Blue Cranes have been counted roosting there – unfortunately Voelvlei is virtually bone dry at present, as it has been for the last 4 to 5 years – just another reminder of the drought the region has endured.

All of this is just an introduction to this very special bird and to lead into the performance that a pair of Blue Cranes entertained me with earlier this year…

It has to do with their totally unique form of courtship – no candlelit dinners, roses and champagne for them – much too obvious. Blue Cranes which – in the words that American TV dramas have taught us – have “feelings” for one another, do it with an elaborate courtship dance like no other.

Now, I had seen Cranes doing short dances from afar on a couple of previous occasions, but this performance took place about 100 meters / yards from where I was sitting in my vehicle and with the aid of my bridge camera I was able to capture some of the moves. I was busy atlasing along a stretch of road not far from the aforementioned Voelvlei, saw a group of Blue Cranes in the field and stopped to view them properly.

One pair had separated from the larger group and, sensing that they were about to perform, I grabbed my camera and waited – not for long as they launched into a beautiful courtship dance that had me ooh-ing and aah-ing while I clicked away.

Here is a sample of the full sequence I took without too many further words, as the images speak for themselves …..

So there you have it – worth 10’s from all the judges in my book. But don’t get carried away by their gracious looks – Blue Cranes are known to be aggressive during the nesting season to the extent that they attack cattle, tortoises, plovers, even sparrows …… oh and humans as well, drawing blood and tearing clothes – you have been warned!

Adventurous Birding, Atlasing and Travel