Winter is my favourite time of year. The mornings, although rather chilly, are what I cherish the most. I often like to start off a drive by taking a moment to sit in silence and watch the sunrise. Not only does this give us a chance to listen out for any alarm calls or territorial calls, but it gives us a special chance to welcome a beautiful new day and to appreciate the natural world around us.
Every day that starts with watching the sunrise is a good day.
It was during one of these moments that I happened to take my eyes off the rising sun and noticed two inconspicuous little birds sitting on the edge of the road, a pair of Double-banded Sandgrouse. I carefully lifted my binoculars, making sure not to frighten them off, and sat admiring them for a few minutes before we continued our drive. Often overlooked because of their mottled brownish back feathers that help to blend them into their environment, I decided to use this blog as an opportunity to share a little more on these subtly beautiful birds.
The male Double-banded Sandgrouse has a black and white forehead band and bolder yellow around the eye.
Often seen in pairs, you can easily distinguish between male and female by looking at their chest. The male has a distinct double band of black and white across the chest, (hence their name) and the female has a heavily barred chest. Both have yellow around the eye with the male being slightly bolder with a black and white forehead band.
The female Double-banded Sandgrouse lacks the white and black forehead as well as the double band on its chest.
They are monogamous and breed in the dryer months of winter (April- October). Their nests are seldom seen but are placed on the ground under a bush or between tufts of grass. Because of their small size, very little is known about the development and care of their young.
Being particularly small of their size, Sandgrouse chicks are seldom seen, therefore very little is known about their care and development.
They appear to be crepuscular, mostly foraging early morning and later afternoon, and sometimes even at night when the moonlight allows. Shortly after sunset they will gather around a water source and socialize for a little while. During this time, you will hear their soft conversational call that can be set to the words “oh NO, he’s gone and done it aGAIN”, with the emphasis on the final notes. A call that will almost always put a smile on my face as their sunset meetings have been linked to a “Secret Ceremony”. After all the chatter and a drink of water, they will fly off to a roosting spot for the night in a shallow scrape in the ground, perhaps on the edge of a road.
Unfortunately, this bird often goes unnoticed. This is because the colouration of the feathers makes them blend in so well with their environment. The Sandgrouse will also remain as still as possible until the very last moment and will burst off into flight only to disappear again into the vegetation. It is only once you take the time to look at it through the binoculars that you will see that it is a rather beautiful bird.
Double-banded Sandgrouse burst off into flight as the leopard approaches them.
I think as humans we need to take advantage of moments like watching the sunrise, where maybe you stop to look at something specific that may seem quite spectacular, but then something more unexpected ends up catching your attention that may be in a normal situation might seem quite insignificant but can still make your day.
Tayla, Thanks for a nice intro to the Sandgrouse! We will look for them on our next visit!
Beautiful photos. I was told by guides that the father carries water to the chicks in his breast feathers. Is this true?
I love these birds as well very much.
As their nests and the tiny chicks are so inconspicuous on the ground, are they not in danger to be run over by cars, especially during off- roading?
Hi Tayla, I appreciate so much this description of the Sandgrouse and I smiled at the image of them gathering like chatting ladies at tea time! Who knows what they are “talking about “… I always stop to look closer at small animals, insects in particular, every time there’s something new to learn from small creatures. Butterflies often shine with beauty as dragonflies while others melt with the environment the same way some birds do…
Lovely post Tayla and you are 100% correct – a wonderful perspective on starting the day!!
Thank you Tayla for your story on the sand grouse, they are some what very interesting birds. Their feathers
are beautiful and their chatting to each other very amusing. Pretty birds and we need to look at them more often.
Tayla, thank you for this informative story about the Sandgrouse. I will pay more attention on my next drives and look for these pretty brown speckled birds. I loved your description of their “secret ceremony” and can picture them at water’s edge, chittering with each other.
Tayla, great blog about the sandgrouse. Seeing the variety of wildlife at Londolozi is always welcome.
Quite remarkable that you were able to get a photo of the chick! Great photos and story, thank you!
Thanks for the interesting intro to this lovely little bird Tayla, and I wholeheartedly agree with your concluding remarks!