When we think of migratory birds, one’s mind is automatically directed towards the birds that travel various distances, whether long or short, which are in search of preferable conditions. Sometimes it’s to find conditions more suitable for breeding, safer habitats or better food sources. The theory is that migratory birds ultimately undertake their various journeys to improve their chances of survival. This makes sense as food resources and temperatures decline during the winter. Being the peak of our winter now, all of the migratory birds that we see here should be away and would start to return towards the end of August having fled northwards to warmer climates where life is more abundant.
Southern carmine bee-eaters have a rather interesting migratory pattern in that they do it in three stages. They over-winter in the equatorial parts of Africa, migrate slightly south to breed in large flocks along the Zambezi River and in the Caprivi Strip of Namibia from August to November and then disperse further south into South Africa in December before returning back to the equator in March.
The European bee-eater is an example of a Palearctic migrant, a bird that undergoes a migration to Africa from Europe or Asia, whilst the familiar woodland kingfishers have flown northwards and settled in equatorial Africa (e.g. Uganda or Kenya), making it an Intra-African migrant.
African Stonechats are altitudinal migrants meaning as the seasons change, they would move up or down from the mountains.
This winter we have been seeing a significant increase in the number of African Stonechats. Normally we would not expect to see any migrants arriving here during the winter as the migrants are away during this time. This little bird undertakes a different type of migration, one in which it seeks out different altitudes at different times of the year, commonly referred to as an altitudinal migrant. Although the movements of this species of bird elsewhere in its distribution might be different, the individuals we see here at Londolozi have most likely bred in the highveld and areas inland from the Drakensberg plateau, and then migrated down the Drakensberg mountains to the Lowveld in winter months where conditions are less harsh than they might be at higher altitudes.
Having not seen many here in the past, it may be that due to the wetter than normal summer we have had that the conditions at Londolozi suit the Stonechats better or that conditions inland may be too harsh and therefore they have dispersed.
The Stonechat frequents open grasslands and it is always a welcome surprise to come upon one of these birds anywhere on the reserve. One afternoon while driving through the grasslands in the south-western part of the reserve, we were pleasantly surprised by a pair of stonechats perching proudly on an exposed branch singing. They are monogamous, meaning they form a strong bond between the male and female and are rarely seen far apart. African Stonechats are hard to mistake, especially the males, with their contrasting black and white plumage, merging into a buffy brown breast.
Often found calling from a prominent perch.
And so even though some species of Palearctic migrants have ventured vast distances away from the grasslands of Londolozi, such as the Amur falcon which on average flies 11 000km in search of favourable conditions, others have done the opposite and chosen to frequent them during the winter months having travelled not nearly as far to do so.
The sun setting over the distant Drakensberg. The altitudes of the portion of the mountain range that we see reach about 2000m, whilst the average altitude at Londolozi is 350m, a stark contrast.
Which migratory bird do you look forward to seeing while at Londolozi?
At night I listen to the last scops owls that will migrate to Africa… i just wish I could fly like them and the European bee-eaters to Londolozi
I think migratory birds are such interesting animals. It’s wonderful how they know exactly where to fly to and how long to stay.
You ask which ones I would like to see at Londolozi… Whoever is around at the time of any visit. But I would really love to see sunbirds. I guess they are migratory, too?
Woodland Kingfisher’s & Violet Backed Starlings are special visitors always nice to see.
Robbie so good to hear the migratory birds are slowly coming back. The Stone Chat birds are beautiful and the bea-eater has stunning colors. We have a pair of Lesser stripped swallow by us now for about 8 years. Every year they migrate and Sept month they come back. I have named them Jessie and James. This year they had two chick’s and one chick was a little cripple. Three times I put the little chick back into the nest , she flew out but could not get back in. Luckily she came right and flew in and out the nest with a little help from my hubby who put a stick nearby so that she could fly on to the stick, then straight into the nest which is under the roof by by kitchen window. To precious for words.
Thanks for that interesting story about the birds. Like the pic of the bee eater flying, hard to get it like this.
Actually, most of the birds I enjoy viewing are not migratory it seems. A few are the Tawny eagle, Lilac-breasted Roller, Fish eagle, Kingfisher, and Hammerkop. They all are around whether I’m there in November or April. I enjoy seeing the Carmine bee eater as well as the little green bee eater but I’ve only seen them around the Chobe River. I’m just learning how to identify more birds….. next trip I hope to find a few new ones to add to my list.
Robert, You have shown us a few birds we have not seen! The Southern Carmine Bee-eater is beautiful! One of our goals on our next visit is to focus some extra time on birding!
Great article! I absolutely love birds – their gorgeous colours and how incredibly smart they are! Love it thanks.
You have so many beautiful birds at Londolozi, it hard to pick one. However I always adore watching the lilac breasted rollers in flight!! we live in the city and so we v
have lots of birds, but the ones in Africa are often so speculative. Thank you, Victoria
Enjoyed your discussion of the different types of migration. I didn’t know about the altitudinal migration. Very cool. When I was living in South Africa, I was able to go to Zimbabwe to birdwatch. Actually got to see a Swynnerton’s robin nesting. Very cool! Many other birds as well. I also especially enjoyed seeing the kingfishers and carmine bee-eaters.
Robert, thanks very much for your blog on migratory birds. I really love birds and you have some really beautiful and interesting birds in Africa. I think most people going on safari are focused only on the large animals and miss out on not appreciating our winged warriors. Enjoyed the pics very much.