25/02/2020 Birds from Africa again thanks to my friends.

I have blogged photos from my friends Christelle and Patrick before and this one is because of the great excitement of having an African Spotted Eagle Owl on their roof yesterday morning.

In Christelle's words, "Since about 4am the little birds were making such a noise, I asked P to check if there was a snake around and he discovered this handsome boy sitting on the roof... luckily the camera is never far from me .. it does not take much to make my day." It certainly would have made my week let alone my day.

African spotted eagle-owl (Bubo africanus)...

As above...

As above...

As above.

And a few photos that Patrick took while we were birding with Tim Cockroft in October.

Bokmakierie (Telophorus zeylonus) it is a bushshrike...

As above...

As above.

Red-fronted tinkerbird (Pogoniulus pusillus)...

As above.

Brown-hooded kingfisher (Halcyon albiventris) juvenile.

Joining up with 

Wild Bird Wednesday

and

I'd Rather B Birdin

Post number 12 on birds seen in Southern Africa

Black-collared Barbet (Lybius torquatus). The photo was taken by my friend Christelle in her garden in Mahikeng. Thanks Christelle for allowing me to publish your photos....

The Black-collared Barbet is a smallish bird but somewhat larger than a house sparrow. The height of the bird is about 20 cms and its weight is about 58 gms.   The male and female have the same plumage and colours...

It eats invertebrates, fruits, and nectar. It is monogamous unless its mate dies when it will seek out a new mate. The nesting habit of the bird is to create a nest in a hole in a tree trunk. It lays between 2 to 5 eggs which are white in colour.

The Spotted Eagle Owl (Bubo Africanus)....

It hunts mainly at night, but will also eat carrion, and is therefore frequently encountered by roadsides scavenging road kill. Hunting, it either snatches prey up in its talons or pursues it on foot along the ground. Airborne prey, such as bats, birds and insects may also be skilfully chased and caught on the wing.

The bond between breeding pairs of spotted eagle-owls is strong, and they may stay together for life.

Hooded Vulture (Necrosyrtes monachus).  One of the smaller vultures and the female is slightly bigger than the male.  As with many vultures, this is another one endangered and on the red list.  KwaZulu-Natal.

White-headed vulture (Trigonoceps occipitalis).  A medium size vulture and yet another one on the endangered list.  KwaZulu-Natal.


Linking to 
Wild Bird Wednesday 306