Tag Archives: Marievale Bird Sanctuary

Marievale – An Unexpected Sighting

April 6, 2020 Don Reid 12 Comments

In my most recent post ( https://mostlybirding.com/2020/03/31/my-atlasing-month-february-2020-part-three/) I mentioned my encounter with an unusual mammal while atlasing / birding at Marievale Bird Sanctuary, but thought I would dedicate a special post to this most exciting sighting. If you have seen an Otter close up in the wild before, read no further – for those that have not ….. well, read on.

Marievale Bird Sanctuary

Just as a reminder, Marievale, with its extensive, shallow open waters and wetlands, reed beds and surrounding grasslands, is well known among birding enthusiasts as a place where you are pretty much guaranteed to see an excellent variety of waterfowl, wetland and grassland species in a morning’s birding.

I was atlasing (bird-mapping) along the “power line road” – a maintenance track below the main overhead power lines that run through a section of the wetlands. The track is narrow and lined with reeds in places, affording views of the ponds and small lakes, most of which have abundant bird life. After heavy rains the track becomes inundated and impassable, but at most times of the year it is drive-able as long as your vehicle has reasonably high clearance and you don’t mind the potential light scratches that may be caused as you squeeze your vehicle between the reeds and vegetation on both sides.

Once committed to the track, the only places to turn around are where the track has been widened at each of the pylons and I used one such spot for a coffee break, after which I headed back along the track toward the paved main access road. Still alert for any new bird species to record for atlasing purposes, I was passing a smaller pond when I noticed movement in the water and a glimpse of a dark shiny body. Dismissing it as a fish I was about to proceed when suddenly a small head popped up out of the water and looked at me – I knew immediately what it was and let out a gasp of excitement – an Otter!

As I watched, I saw that there was more than one otter, but they surfaced for just a second or two then dived below the surface, disappeared for a half minute, then popped up again in a different part of the pond. I got out of the car and carefully crept around the back to where I could watch their antics and hopefully get a photo or two. This game of cat and mouse – or man and otter – went on for a good ten minutes or more as one or both otters popped up to look at me curiously then slithered off below the surface only to pop up metres away, with me trying to anticipate where they would appear.

My only previous sighting of an otter was a distant one many years ago, while birding a farming area not far from Marievale, so this was for me a very unexpected and special moment.

Initially when I wrote this post I identified the otter as a Cape Clawless Otter, but was prompted by a comment (see below) to research a bit further and came to the conclusion that this was the much smaller Spotted-necked Otter. Wikipedia provides the following info :

The spotted-necked otter (Hydrictis maculicollis), or speckle-throated otter, is an otter native to sub-Saharan Africa.

The spotted-necked otter is a relatively small species, with males measuring 71 to 76 cm (28 to 30 in) from nose to rump, and weighing 5.7 to 6.5 kg (13 to 14 lb), while females are 57 to 61 cm (22 to 24 in) and 3.0 to 4.7 kg (6.6 to 10.4 lb). The tail is long and muscular, measuring 39 to 44 cm (15 to 17 in) in both sexes. Like many other otters, it is sleek and has webbed paws for swimming.

Although considerable variation exists among individuals, their fur is usually reddish to chocolate brown and marked with creamy or white blotches over the chest and throat. The head is broad with a short muzzle, small rounded ears, and a hairless nose pad. The teeth are adapted for consuming fish, with large sharp upper canine teeth, curved lower canines, and sharp carnassial teeth.

Below is a selection of the photos I was able to take of this endearing animal.

Spotted-necked Otter (Hydrictis maculicollis),, Marievale Bird Sanctuary

Atlasing, Birding South Africa, Birding Spots

My Atlasing Month – February 2020 (Part Three)

March 31, 2020 Don Reid 6 Comments

Continuing the monthly look at where Atlasing, or Birdmapping as it is also known, took me in February 2020 …..

I thought it best to split it into three parts as it has been a busy atlasing month during which I made a point of visiting some of Gauteng’s prime birding spots for my atlasing pursuits in the hope that it would get my birding year off to a cracking start (it worked!)

Marievale Bird Sanctuary – 26 February

This week’s choice of atlasing destination was Marievale Bird Sanctuary, situated near Nigel in south-eastern Gauteng and about 100 kms drive from our Pretoria home. I had intended to do two pentads – Marievale itself plus an adjoining pentad outside the nature reserve. After spending more time in Marievale than planned, I struggled to find an access road into the second pentad and found myself driving in circles, thanks to some confusing directions from my navigation system. A short session of “test atlasing” of a stretch of the very busy road that I eventually found, convinced me that it would be a wasted effort and a frustration, as it was by now the middle of the day – a very quiet time for birding – and I did not fancy dodging traffic for two hours.

Pentad 2620_2830

Marievale is famous for its extensive, shallow open waters and wetlands, reedbeds and surrounding grasslands. It is also well served with bird hides and a picnic spot – all well maintained and you are guaranteed to see an excellent variety of waterfowl, wetland and grassland species in a morning’s birding.

After a slow drive from home through early morning traffic, despite starting out at 5.30 am and following some back roads, I started atlasing as soon as I entered the pentad in its north-eastern corner, still on the R42 main road between Delmas and Nigel. It took 20 minutes to get to the Marievale entrance road, by which time I had logged 21 species seen along the road – I made sure to pull off onto the wide grass verge wherever possible, as the road proved to be quite busy. Black-winged Kite, Glossy Ibis and Spotted Thick-Knee were pleasing to see as well as two Widowbird species – Fan-tailed and Long-tailed.

**Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus / Glansibis), Marievale Bird Sanctuary**

I spent a while at the entrance complex which has a deck overlooking some wetlands and quickly added Red-billed Teal, Cape Shoveler and Hottentot Teal, taking my total to 31 by the time I accessed the reserve proper.

My next focus was on the “powerline road” – a maintenance track below the main overhead powerlines that run through a section of the wetlands. The track is narrow and lined with reeds in places, affording views of the ponds and small lakes, most of which have abundant bird life. The reeds are a favourite haunt for warblers which provide a soundtrack of birdsong as you drive along, windows open to hear all the calls. Lesser Swamp Warblers competed with African Reed Warblers for the title of “most prolific warbler” which ended pretty much in a draw.

The shallower ponds were alive with waders, including elegant Greater Flamingoes, Wattled Lapwings, Black-winged Stilts and Spoonbills; deeper ponds were filled with waterfowl such as Teals, Yellow-billed Ducks and SA Shelducks.

**African Spoonbill (Platalea alba / Lepelaar), Marievale Bird Sanctuary**

At one spot an African Swamphen and a Moorhen emerged from the reeds and went about their business while I tried to get them in the same frame, each nicely posed – a tall ask indeed.

**African Swamphen (Porphyrio madagascariensis / Grootkoningriethaan) with Common Moorhen, Marievale Bird Sanctuary**

On my return trip along the track a flash of colour caught my eye – a Malachite Kingfisher, often plentiful at Marievale but on this day it was the only one I found. A Natal Spurfowl (0.5%) crossed the track ahead of me – not usually regarded as a scarce bird but this was one of only a handful of records for Marievale.

**Malachite Kingfisher (Alcedo cristata / Kuifkopvisvanger), Marievale Bird Sanctuary**

With my total now standing at 52 after two hours of atlasing I knew the pace of adding new species would slow, but I was expecting 70 plus based on my previous visits to Marievale and continued along the main access road to the picnic spot, where I enjoyed coffee and a sandwich in the hide, before entering the northern part of the reserve.

The next two hours added just 18 species but took me to my target of 70 species and was quite satisfied with my citizen scientist contribution for the day. The only mild disappointment was the lack of small waders, barring a Little Stint, due to the higher levels of the ponds and dearth of muddy flats following the good summer rains.

A Squacco Heron in the middle of the track kept me fascinated for about ten minutes while it tried to manoeuvre a small fish into a swallowing position, pushing and pulling it on the ground then picking it up in its bill and flipping it about to get it in position, dropping the fish again and repeating the moves over and over. This went on until the heron grew tired of my attention and stalked off into the reeds, fish in bill.

**Squacco Heron (Ardeola ralloides / Ralreier), playing with its food**

On the way out I found a Common Buzzard (6%) and an Amur Falcon to round off a superb morning of atlasing.

The highlight of the morning? Undoubtedly an unusual mammal that I had never seen up close before – but more about that on another occasion …….

Footnote : Where I show percentages in brackets, these refer to the relative scarcity of the species according to the pentad surveys completed to date over the ten years that the project has been running. So if 100 pentad surveys have been done to date and a species has been recorded 5 times by the observers, it will be shown as 5%. Notable species in my book are those with a % of less than 10%

Bird Photography

My Birding Companion

March 12, 2019 Don Reid 8 Comments

Niki, my trusted birding companion, accompanies me on all my birding trips and I have to admit I just cannot get along without her – she has eyes like a hawk which can help to identify those distant birds in a trice with just one quick glance and is content to endure hours of travel on sometimes bumpy, dusty roads with nary a complaint.

So I was deeply concerned when Niki started showing signs of weariness and a distinct lack of focus towards the end of 2018 and I resolved to book her into a clinic as soon as we were back in Gauteng in January 2019. Niki went to the clinic without complaint and I booked her in on a Monday, hoping that her stay would not be long – they sent a message later setting out the proposed treatment and estimated that she would have to stay for at least a week for the treatment to have the desired effect, which I replied was acceptable.

The week without Niki was difficult and my birding outing was just not the same without her on the seat beside me, but I knew it was something that had done. I resisted the temptation to visit Niki in the clinic, being so far from our house and patiently waited for the message to tell me I could come and fetch her.

At last the message came to my phone – she was ready to go home! Next morning I drove to the clinic and fetched Niki – what a relief to hold her in my arms again!

I could hardly wait for my next birding outing with Niki once again at my side and planned a trip to one of Gauteng’s prime birding destinations – Marievale Bird Sanctuary to put our combined skills to the test again.

Niki, also known as my Nikon D750 DLSR camera with Nikon 80-400mm lens, performed admirably – but I will leave you with a few photos from the morning at Marievale, so you can judge for yourself.

Spotted Thick-Knee / Gewone Dikkop (Burhinus capensis) in the reception parking area before getting into the Nature Reserve itself – bright-eyed and bushy-tailed (OK just bright-eyed)

Blacksmith Lapwing / Bontkiewiet (Vanellus armatus)– despite its name suggesting a somewhat rougher individual, this is one bird that looks as if it could be an avian James Bond – elegant, formally attired, ready to order a martini “shaken, not stirred”

Wood Sandpiper / Bosruiter (Tringa glareola) – the only wader I came across during my visit – water levels were high after good summer rains so the hundreds of waders usually present were somewhere else

African Reed-Warbler / Kleinrietsanger (Acrocephalus baeticatus) – at one spot along the power-line track which has wetlands on both sides (shown in the featured image at the top of the post) I seemed to be surrounded by calling Warblers, with this species most prominent, calling vigorously and showing briefly amongst the reeds.

Red-knobbed Coot / Bleshoender (Fulica cristata) – the hides at Marievale are well looked after and afford great views of the comings and goings of several species, including this very common one

Squacco Heron / Ralreier (Ardeola ralloides) – demonstrating why it can be a difficult bird for beginners to identify, particularly in flight when it appears to be all-white and can easily be taken for a Cattle Egret. Once settled though it is an obvious species and in breeding plumage as it is here it shows the elongated feathers on the crest and neck, giving it an even more distinctive look

Common Moorhen / Grootwaterhoender (Gallinula chloropus) – another common water bird seen from the hide

Yellow-crowned Bishop / Goudgeelvink (Euplectes afer) – resembles a very large bumble-bee in flight display as it fluffs up its yellow back feathers and flies slowly and ponderously amongst tall reeds

Lesser Swamp Warbler Kaapse rietsanger (Acrocephalus gracilirostris) – one of the bolder warblers but more often heard rather than seen. This one popped onto a perch right in front of the picnic spot hide as I was chatting to a visitor from Scotland

Whiskered Tern / Witbaardsterretjie (Chlidonias hybrida) – almost always present at Marievale, this tern in breeding plumage (losing the black belly and much of the black crown when non-breeding) was hovering and plunge-diving in front of the hide, constantly on the search for food

Birding Trips

My 2015 Photo pick

January 1, 2016 Don Reid 4 Comments

Here’s a selection of my photos from places visited in 2015 – mostly from places that support my favourite pastime of birding.

The Places

Sunset, Inhambane - Mozambique — Sunset, Inhambane – Mozambique

Canola fields along Herbertsdale road near Mossel Bay

The Animals

Giraffe at waterhole, Chobe Game Reserve

Burchell's Zebra, Satara - Nwanetsi S100 — Burchell’s Zebra, Satara – Nwanetsi S100

The Birds

Jackal Buzzard with nest material, Mossel Bay-Herbertsdale

Brown-headed Parrot, Satara - Orpen H7 — Brown-headed Parrot, Satara – Orpen H7

Others

Best wishes to all for 2016 and hope you enjoy my ramblings as much as I enjoy recording them in words and photos!

Atlasing, Birding Spots

Marievale – the Production

September 6, 2013 Don Reid 2 Comments

It was October 2012 and I was starting to get used to having more time for my own pursuits, particularly birding. Mondays seemed the obvious choice for a regular day off as it extends the weekend and prevents (or postpones) those “Monday blues”. The only decision is – where to go? Not too difficult with the wide choice of birding venues within an hour or two from Pretoria and there’s always atlasing to do and a new Pentad to visit. On this particular morning I decided to visit Marievale, having last been there around 5 years previously – I wasn’t sure what to expect by way of facilities and security but was pleasantly surprised to find the hides and the picnic spot in a clean and looked-after state. The approach roads and those within the sanctuary are not great so a high-clearance vehicle is preferable.

For those not familiar with this spot, Marievale Bird Sanctuary is a protected area in Gauteng, South Africa covering about 10 square Km on the Blesbokspruit, a perennial river which is flanked by extensive wetlands on either side. There have been some comments recently about pollution of the water but to my untrained eye it looked clear and the presence of so many birds seemed to attest to the quality.

As it turned out, I had the whole of Marievale to myself on that Monday morning for the entire 4 to 5 hours that I was there, which is great when you are intent on photographing the birds without being disturbed, or irritating others. The various ponds and the surrounding vegetation make the perfect backdrop and with the help of the hides and using your own vehicle as a moving hide, it is possible to get “up close and personal” with the variety of water birds on view.

On the day I visited Marievale the whole scenario was so perfect and the bird life I encountered so accommodating that it seemed like a staged production in a way ………

“OK people, ….er birds, I’m your Director today and we’re running late, so let’s get this show on the road – it’s past 8am and I think our one-man audience has got lost, but I’m sure he will be here any moment now. Right, a little bird just told me he’s been doing the pentad next door to us and he’s now approaching the entrance to Marievale.

Now, let’s not overdo it in the first stretch, we need to save some good ones for later – we’ll just get him warmed up with a few run o’ the mill birds – Coots you can start the show followed by the Yellow-billed Ducks plus a Moorhen or two. Little Grebe and African Purple Swamphen, you’re up next and let’s get those Warblers warbling. I’m willing to bet he pulls out the bird-calls gadget to check them – yes, I was right and he’s got them sorted : African Reed Warbler, Little Rush Warbler and Lesser Swamp Warbler. Nice chorus, guys.

Right, now for the Teals – Red-billed you go first then Hottentot can come in a bit later and for good measure let’s have a Whiskered Tern doing a fly past or two. Greater Flamingo, have you got over my “break a leg” comment yet? You know that it’s just a good luck saying in our business …… anyway, just stand in the shallows looking elegant – OK, fly if you must, it will make a good action photo.

This is going well so far everyone, keep it up! Now he’s at the picnic spot hide so, Pied Avocet, this is your chance to show off your classic beauty close to the hide – just stop diving for a few seconds so that he can get a decent photo.

OK, he’s off into the Reserve proper and you know how close to the road the water gets, which means close-up action photos, so let’s do this right – that means you Cape Shoveler and you Ruff – what’s that, you want Wood Sandpiper to join you? Fine.

This is also your chance, Black-winged Stilt and African Snipe, to show yourselves off in the good light.

What do you say we throw in a Squacco Heron right next to the road and Glossy Ibis I want you to pose gracefully in the grass as he passes by – yes that’s just right!

And now for the grande finale which I’m sure will surprise him – as I had hoped he’s stopped at the “Bus-stop” hide, so I want you, Reed Cormorant, to show yourself off on that convenient perch in the water, then African Darter it’s over to you to do your diving and spearing act right in front of the hide and make sure you show the speared fish nicely, then juggle it around a bit and swallow all in one smooth action – yes, beautiful!