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    Botriviervlei: A1 Bridge to Benguela Cove (34201908)

    Western Cape
    Card 504475
    Compiler 58
    Location code 34201908Botriviervlei: A1 Bridge to Benguela Cove (Western Cape)
    Start date 2012-07-07
    Season WWinter
    Start time 08:30
    End time 12:10
    Shoreline covered 95
    Openwater covered 95
    Total Species 28
    Total Count 2342
    Wetland Condition 1Full (High tide for estuaries)
    Wetland Threats
    Count Condition 3Moderate
    Count Type 1On foot
    Nil Count (No birds present) 0There were CWAC species present
    Notes We had a bit of a cold and damp start to the count - a 30% chance of rain was predicted with temperatures not reaching more than 13 degrees. We started at the Bot River Bridge in gentle, but persistent rain, making visibility a little bit difficult. Due to the rain, we elected not to carry Helene's expensive scope so we relied on our binoculars. Whilst still on the bridge, the rain let up and a window of blue sky, with very weak sunlight brightened up the scene a bit and the birds were more visible. Leaving the bridge to climb though the farm fence at the side of the road was not without incident. Negotiating the culvert, Elize lost her footing and landed very awkwardly in the culvert, grazing her upper lip and nose on the culvert's far "wall". Quite a bit of bleeding was eventually stemmed with a good many tissues. There weren't very many birds at the bridge but we had a good variety, out first sighting being that of a female Giant Kingfisher - a great way to get the day started.. As we came over the crest of the hill and looked down on the lagoon we saw a huge "flotilla" of what appear to be Red-knobbed Coot at that distance. Our assumptions were confirmed as we approached the edge of the lagoon. A lovely sight to see after so many previous counts with very low numbers of this species since the 2008 breaches and a subsequent breach which had not allowed the vegetation to recover enough, or the lagoon to fill sufficiently to attact the birds back to the numbers we had been accustomed to in earlier years. A call from Mariana Delport confirmed that they'd had 500 of the species on the Arabella side of the lagoon. We decided to try and get as close to the "flotilla" as possible to get a more accurate count and also to eliminate the possibility of any other species being among this large flock. After some "bundu bashing" through the Port Jackson growth we managed to find an opening at the edge of the lagoon which was almost centred to the spread of the birds. By this time, the 500 or so from the Arabella side and merged with the flock on out side of the lagoon. Four estimates and treble counts by Helene and myself resulted in a count of 2400 birds - the highest number seen in this particular section of the lagoon in years. Suprisingly enough, they weren't as skittish as they are known to be, only moving maybe 10 metres away from the edge of the water, what a lovely sight too see. The rest of our count, having had to make our way back to the main road, as we couldn't get around the Benguela boundary fence due to the level of the water, was relatively quite in comparison. We decided to leave one car parked on the wide grass verge on the side of the road in order to cut down on wasted time which we've encounted previously when we've had to hike back to Benguela on the busy main Hermanus / N2 road - a hike of close to 3 kms. Leaving the car relatively close to the Benguela boundary fence made a huge difference and we'll definitely do this again in the future - we left a note on the dashboard indicating that we were from the TBC and in the process of Bird Monitoring, just in case some authorities thought it was an abandoned car.
    Survey notes


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    Observer NumberNameOptions

    Current data
    Ref #SpeciesCountBreeding
    Pairs    		Breeding
    indicator
    4Grebe, Great Crested
    (Podiceps cristatus)    		20
    6Grebe, Little
    (Tachybaptus ruficollis)    		520
    47Cormorant, White-breasted
    (Phalacrocorax lucidus)    		150
    50Cormorant, Reed
    (Microcarbo africanus)    		450
    52Darter, African
    (Anhinga rufa)    		150
    54Heron, Grey
    (Ardea cinerea)    		40
    55Heron, Black-headed
    (Ardea melanocephala)    		10
    59Egret, Little
    (Egretta garzetta)    		10
    81Ibis, African Sacred
    (Threskiornis aethiopicus)    		10
    84Ibis, Hadada
    (Bostrychia hagedash)    		250
    85Spoonbill, African
    (Platalea alba)    		10
    88Goose, Spur-winged
    (Plectropterus gambensis)    		10
    89Goose, Egyptian
    (Alopochen aegyptiaca)    		190
    96Duck, Yellow-billed
    (Anas undulata)    		260
    97Teal, Red-billed
    (Anas erythrorhyncha)    		90
    149Eagle, African Fish
    (Haliaeetus vocifer)    		40Probably Breeding
    167Harrier, African Marsh
    (Circus ranivorus)    		10
    208Swamphen, African
    (Porphyrio madagascariensis)    		10
    210Moorhen, Common
    (Gallinula chloropus)    		20
    212Coot, Red-knobbed
    (Fulica cristata)    		20710
    245Lapwing, Blacksmith
    (Vanellus armatus)    		60
    270Stilt, Black-winged
    (Himantopus himantopus)    		50
    287Gull, Kelp
    (Larus dominicanus)    		90
    289Gull, Hartlaub's
    (Chroicocephalus hartlaubii)    		60
    290Tern, Caspian
    (Hydroprogne caspia)    		40
    394Kingfisher, Pied
    (Ceryle rudis)    		60
    395Kingfisher, Giant
    (Megaceryle maxima)    		10
    686Wagtail, Cape
    (Motacilla capensis)    		90


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    Saturday 27 April 2024 11:51
    FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology
    Department of Biological Sciences - University of Cape Town

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