Cape Bird Club

Don't forget about our meeting happening this evening!

Join us next week Thursday!

Come and join us at Groote Schuur High School this evening!

The news of Peter's death is devastating for us. The bird was named in honour of Peter Steyn, our Honorary President at the Cape Bird Club, and one of the world's truly greatest raptor experts.

A third Black Harrier has been killed by the blades of wind turbines, on a wind farm situated between Bredasdorp and Swellendam. And the real number of fatalities could be even higher.

Peter, a Black Harrier that had a satellite tag fitted to him only in November last year, was killed earlier in 2024.

This wind farm makes use of a shutdown-on-demand approach, where turbines are shut down when threatened bird species get too close. While this approach has worked well for larger birds, such as vultures and eagles, Black Harriers have not been so lucky.

The Overberg Renosterveld Conservation Trust is now calling for additional mitigation measures to be tested at the wind farm, to find ways of protecting this threatened species better. Here’s more on our urgent appeal: https://overbergrenosterveld.org.za/black-harrier-collisions-with-wind-turbines/

Birdlife Overberg
BirdLife South Africa
WWF South Africa
Overberg Crane Group
FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology
Agulhas Plain Birding Project



Photo credits: Odette Curtis-Scott

Just take a look at some of the incredible flight routes, speeds and altitudes that our tagged Black Harriers are undertaking.

We recently released more news on the 14 Black Harriers that were tagged (of which nine tags are still active) - providing us with more vital data regarding their movements and the threats to them: https://bit.ly/48VXbqt

Our thanks to the Dutch Montagu’s Harrier Foundation, Cape Bird Club and the Inkwazi Bird Club for supporting the purchase of our GPS tags, as well as all the individual donors who supported via our BackaBuddy campaign.

One of the most meaningful sightings of the Cape Bird Club Birding Big Year!

Knysna warbler rediscovered on the Cape Peninsula Bird enthusiasts in Cape Town will be excited to know that the South African endemic Knysna warbler, thought to be locally extinct in Cape Town, has recently been rediscovered.

Did you know?

Albatrosses can fly for days - barely beating their wings. This is achieved by having high wing-loading (weight to wing area ratio) and high aspect ratio (wings length to width ratio). These birds have longer and narrower wings compared to other birds, which are better for gliding.

📷: Mike Buckham

Did you know?

Albatrosses are remarkable in covering large distance in a short space of time. A satellite-tracked Black-browed Albatross completed a journey of 4,500 kilometres within a span of four days averaging 48 km per hour.

📷: Mike Buckham

FOUR BLACK HARRIERS tagged in three days!

While several of the Black Harriers that we tagged at breeding sites in the Overberg last year have not returned to the same areas this year, our Overberg breeding hotspots are still packed full of harriers.

In November, the ORCT managed to trap and tag four new breeding adults. These individuals will now contribute vital information to us, to teach us about their movements, and help us better protect this Endangered species, of which fewer than 1 300 individuals remain.

Here’s more on our four new hero birds and their incredible donors: https://overbergrenosterveld.org.za/four-black-harriers-tagged-in-just-three-days/

The ORCT is extremely grateful to the Dutch Montagu’s Harrier Foundation, Cape Bird Club and the Inkwazi Bird Club for supporting the purchase of our GPS tags. And a big thank you to ORCT partner, Dr Rob Simmons for his help with trapping and tagging the birds.

We still have several tags to fit, so watch this space….

Did you know?

The Arctic Tern (Sterna paradisaea) holds the record for the longest migration in the world. This remarkable seabird undertakes an annual migration that spans the entire globe as it travels from its breeding grounds in the Arctic to its wintering areas in the Antarctic and back again. The Arctic Tern is a champion traveller, covering a round-trip distance of approximately 70,900 kilometres or more each year.

📷: Michael Buckham

Did you know?

The meaning of the genus - Apaloderma is ‘thin skinned’, a name given to the family because trogons have thin skin that tore easily when it was skinned.

📷: John Graham

Did you know?

Narina Trogons can secrete a foul-smelling liquid from the preen gland at the base of the tail when threatened.

📷: John Graham

Did you know?

Narina Trogon was named after Narina, a mistress of French ornithologist François Levaillant, whose name he derived from the Khoikhoi word for "flower".

📷: John Graham

Join us at the Fynbos LIFE - Locally Indigenous Flora Education Fair. We will be here until 4pm.

🌟 Exciting Announcement: Join our Weekly Mystery Mondays Bird ID Challenge on Instagram! 🌟

Get ready because our ID Challenge is here, and it's going to be epic!

Here's how it works:

📆 Every Monday, for the entire duration of the Spring Boost (until the end of November), a brand-new story will be uploaded on our Instagram page (https://www.instagram.com/capebirdclub/). Please note that the stories are only live for 24 hours, from 9 am on Monday to 9 am on Tuesday. So, be quick to participate!

🕵️ Your mission: Identify all the migrant bird species featured in the story!

💡 Think you know the answers? Simply click on the correct answer on the story with your guesses. Make sure to follow our page and tag your friends for extra fun!

🎉 At the end of the Spring Boost, the lucky winner will be drawn from the Mystery Mondays Bird ID Challenge participants who correctly identified all the migrant bird species from every week's question. It could be you!

🏆 The grand prize? A FULL YEAR of Cape Bird Club membership! Plus, bragging rights as the ultimate Mystery Mondays Bird ID Champion!

🌐 So, gear up for a season of exciting challenges, exploration, and avian knowledge. Let's put your bird identification skills to the test!

Follow us on Instagram and stay tuned every Monday for the latest Bird ID Challenge story. Get ready to discover, guess, and WIN! 🦉🐦🦢

If you have young children or grand-children you’d like to get interested in birds, please visit the Cape Bird Club stall at the Fynbos LIFE Fair this coming Sunday. We have some free colouring-in and puzzle activities, as well as pre-loved magazines, they can take away with them.