The Cape Bird Club

Spring has come by Bunty Rowan

This article appeared in the Cape Bird Club Newsletter No 91 September 1969.

Bunty was a distinguished ornithologist and a former editor of the CBC newsletter. 
She also served as CBC Chairman from June 1977 to June 1981.

photograph by Greg Morgan

Orangethroated Longclaw.

At Neetling's dam near Vlottenberg on 13 July 1969, the still sunny weather felt like spring to Mrs Lipp, Dr Bennet and myself, and the birds evidently thought so too, to judge from their behaviour. A Blacksmith Plover was plainly incubating eggs, though it had chosen to nest on a sand spit so surrounded by marshy ground that we lazily decided not to disturb it. Whitebreasted Cormorants had three or four nests on the drowned tree in the middle of the dam, but none were occupied, presumably because a juvenile Fish Eagle had chosen the tree as its loafing spot. It certainly had the bare branches all to itself, while the cormorants swam restlessly up and down, like a troop of soldiers, so precice was their manuvouring, with all heads always facing the same way.

Cape Longclaws were indulging in display, rising to 20 or 30 feet and hovering on fluttering wings, calling before plummeting down into the grass again. These activities brought 2 birds into conflict and they had a brief fight in the air fluttering breast to breast and apparently clasping feet while 2 others hung around on the outskirts of the fray. They also dropped to the ground briefly lost to sight in the the rank vegetation. Then one bird possibly one of the fighters, flew up to perch on a fence post, where it sat for a few seconds, blown out and puffed up to quite enormous dimensions for a Longclaw. Its orange throat was almost scarlet in its brilliance, and the expanded belly a beautiful yellow, while its tail was fully fanned to make a handsome white-tipped background to this bright splash of colour.

photograph by Peter Steyn

Ethiopian Snipe

Perhaps, however the Ethiopian Snipe were the most exciting birds at Vlottenberg that sunny afternoon. We were watching a group of 4 Blacksmith Plovers, when we noticed fluttering helplessly in the grass beside them. One of the Plovers poked at the moving creature with its bill and it fluttered a little farther away. The plover seemed mildly aggressive and followed stabbing occasionally at the other appently disabled bird. They moved for some distance through the grass until the helpless fluttering suddenly ceased, as a Snipe rose back to the spot where we first noticed it and there was joined by a second Snipe, the two then disappeared, but within a few minutes the Blacksmith Plovers were back in the area, and the whole performance started all over again. Altogether we watched this remarkable and prolonged distraction display by the Snipe on three separate occassions. Each time it occurred when the Plover wandered into the one specific area (posssibly the Snipe had a nest there) and each time it ceased, once the bigger birds had been led away.

At 5,15PM sated with good birding and begining to feel the chill we were on the point of going home, but the Snipe had not yet finished the treats they had in store. As we moved towards the car, one rose high into the air and swooped in a shallow dive toward us, drumming as it came. In an instant three more birds were also on the wing and suddenly the fields around us seemed filled with drumming Snipe. There must have been 8 or 9 at least and possibly more cicling up and swooping down in rather shallow drumming dives. The performance went on for a full seven minutes by our watches and then ceased as suddenly as it had begun. Within seconds there was nor a Snipe in sight.
A fitting end to a lovely afternoon.

An edittorial note - was added by CBC Newsletter editor Rudolf Schmidt as follows;

"If Cape Town members want to hear Ethiopian Snipe drumming nearer home, I can recommend the marshy pastures of Strandfontein Sewerage Works. During July, around sunset, I watched them from the tarred Zeokoevlei road, which turns off Strandfontein Road. Stop at the turnoff to the speed boat slipway, and you will hear about half a dozen, provided no boats are drumming at the same time."

How sad that, 40 years on we cant enjoy the same experience!