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Marievale Bird Sanctuary: Area A (26212830)

Gauteng

CWAC status REGISTERED-COUNTED REGULARLY
Authority Private
Management status LOCAL GAME/NATURE RESERVE
Conservation status PROTECTED
IBA information SA021 - BLESBOKSPRUIT
Ramsar information
Heritage information
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Information 

Date_registered
1993-01-17
Brief_description
An IBA and part of the Blesbokspruit Ramsar site. Has extensive Phragmites and Typha reedbeds, also sedgebeds, wet grass, and open water with floating-leaved vegetation. Good numbers of Glossy Ibis, Yellowbilled Duck and Redknobbed Coot occur all year; Squacco Heron may be quite common in summer. Hottentot Teal and Spurwinged Goose numbers peak in winter. A good selection of rails occurs, and Spotted Crake is also recorded. Purple Heron, Little Bittern, Grass Owl and Marsh Owl also occur. Increases are apparent in the number of species (summer and winter) and total count (summer). Blesbokspruit is severely threatened by discharge of mine water which drastically increases total water volume, maintains artificially high water levels in the dry season, and contains many pollutants, including salt. The CWAC site known as "Marievale Area A" is the original area that has been counted from 1992 and consists of sections 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5.

SppCommon nameTaxonomic nameMinAvgMaxIBASubregional
IBA
RAMSAR
256Calidris pugnax185.25955  
1016Anas platyrhynchos11.001
72Scopus umbretta11.001   
269Avocet, PiedRecurvirostra avosetta116.4172   
71Bittern, EurasianBotaurus stellaris11.001   
67Bittern, LittleIxobrychus minutus13.278   
212Coot, Red-knobbedFulica cristata53500.671366   
50Cormorant, ReedMicrocarbo africanus237.03112   
47Cormorant, White-breastedPhalacrocorax lucidus19.3839   
199Crake, AfricanCrex egregia11.001-1
202Crake, Baillon'sZaporina pusilla22.002
203Crake, BlackZaporina flavirostra112.1348
201Crake, SpottedPorzana porzana11.001
52Darter, AfricanAnhinga rufa16.0221   
95Duck, African BlackAnas sparsa16.6450   
101Duck, Fulvous WhistlingDendrocygna bicolor126.54299   
91Duck, Knob-billedSarkidiornis melanotos13.009   
103Duck, MaccoaOxyura maccoa12.674   
10014Duck, UnidentifiedAnas sp.17.0022
104Duck, White-backedThalassornis leuconotus12.606   
100Duck, White-faced WhistlingDendrocygna viduata111.0570   
96Duck, Yellow-billedAnas undulata17136.15564   
58Egret, GreatArdea alba13.2926   
60Egret, Intermediate [x]Ardea intermedia13.2913   
59Egret, LittleEgretta garzetta16.1144   
982Egret, SlatyEgretta vinaceigula11.402   
61Egret, Western CattleBubulcus ibis150.84245   
14799Egret, Yellow-billedEgretta brachyrhyncha11.001   
149Fish Eagle, AfricanHaliaeetus vocifer12.146
86Flamingo, GreaterPhoenicopterus roseus130.53201   
87Flamingo, LesserPhoeniconaias minor1303.921252  600
205Flufftail, Red-chestedSarothrura rufa11.533
265Godwit, Black-tailedLimosa limosa11.502 
89Goose, EgyptianAlopochen aegyptiaca233.62152   
88Goose, Spur-wingedPlectropterus gambensis1186.602465 1875710
5Grebe, Black-neckedPodiceps nigricollis11.001   
4Grebe, Great CrestedPodiceps cristatus17.5817   
6Grebe, LittleTachybaptus ruficollis125.90113   
263Greenshank, CommonTringa nebularia13.0410   
288Gull, Grey-headedChroicocephalus cirrocephalus134.91144   
167Harrier, African MarshCircus ranivorus11.915
166Harrier, Western MarshCircus aeruginosus11.502
64Heron, BlackEgretta ardesiaca18.1919   
55Heron, Black-headedArdea melanocephala16.5624   
56Heron, GoliathArdea goliath14.2819   
54Heron, GreyArdea cinerea13.1910   
57Heron, PurpleArdea purpurea14.0412   
62Heron, SquaccoArdeola ralloides117.1276   
63Heron, StriatedButorides striata11.382   
81Ibis, African SacredThreskiornis aethiopicus18.9166   
83Ibis, GlossyPlegadis falcinellus154.27424   
84Ibis, HadadaBostrychia hagedash18.7366   
228Jacana, AfricanActophilornis africanus12.389   
395Kingfisher, GiantMegaceryle maxima11.502
396Kingfisher, Half-collaredAlcedo semitorquata11.001
397Kingfisher, MalachiteCorythornis cristatus13.278
394Kingfisher, PiedCeryle rudis14.0914
247Lapwing, African WattledVanellus senegallus16.0531   
245Lapwing, BlacksmithVanellus armatus340.68284   
509Martin, Brown-throatedRiparia paludicola11.001
210Moorhen, CommonGallinula chloropus1082.65312   
69Night Heron, Black-crownedNycticorax nycticorax13.5016   
360Owl, African Grass Tyto capensis11.001
361Owl, MarshAsio capensis12.596
230Painted-snipe, GreaterRostratula benghalensis24.006   
233Plover, Common RingedCharadrius hiaticula14.6711   
237Plover, Kittlitz'sCharadrius pecuarius19.8952   
238Plover, Three-bandedCharadrius tricollaris111.92129   
102Pochard, SouthernNetta erythrophthalma19.4548   
197Rail, AfricanRallus caerulescens17.1225-1
926Sandpiper, Buff-breastedCalidris subruficollis11.001
258Sandpiper, CommonActitis hypoleucos11.864  
251Sandpiper, CurlewCalidris ferruginea13.7512  
262Sandpiper, MarshTringa stagnatilis14.7622   
264Sandpiper, WoodTringa glareola14.5221   
90Shelduck, South AfricanTadorna cana117.66104   
1342Shelduck, CommonTadorna tadorna11.001
94Shoveler, CapeAnas smithii124.6588   
250Snipe, AfricanGallinago nigripennis117.49128   
85Spoonbill, AfricanPlatalea alba16.0039   
270Stilt, Black-wingedHimantopus himantopus114.1553   
253Stint, LittleCalidris minuta131.63212   
79Stork, BlackCiconia nigra11.001   
76Stork, Yellow-billedMycteria ibis12.627   
208Swamphen, AfricanPorphyrio madagascariensis117.4858 50
10007Swan, BlackCygnus atratus22.002
99Teal, Blue-billedAnas hottentota139.83181   
98Teal, CapeAnas capensis16.1923   
97Teal, Red-billedAnas erythrorhyncha273.87426   
290Tern, CaspianHydroprogne caspia12.003   
305Tern, WhiskeredChlidonias hybrida130.351851507585
938Tern, White-cheekedSterna repressa33.003 
304Tern, White-wingedChlidonias leucopterus135.00517   
10008Wader, UnidentifiedN/A N/A17.6724
686Wagtail, CapeMotacilla capensis110.3282
689Wagtail, Western YellowMotacilla flava17.6720
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Saturday 04 April 2026 08:21
FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology
Department of Biological Sciences - University of Cape Town

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