Saturday Walks

Scott waiting for his Saturday walk

On Saturdays, if I am not out looking for vultures, I normally take the dogs for a walk on Rookwood.   

Sometimes my walks are relatively short (approximately two hours) or else I go for a pleasant long walk.  Rookwood, being diverse, allows me a variety of different routes. As always, our paths could cross the stock on the farm, who just watch us pass by from a distance

Merino sheep at Rookwood

Cattle on Rookwood watching us passing by

 

a stone in the river at Rookwood

During the winter months it can be very windy so I then choose the more sheltered options like down or up the river or up the kloof.  On the calmer days, I then head for the higher ground to get the view of the stunning countryside in which I live. 

The Border Collies just love this, and as soon as they see I pick up my blue backpack, it is a clear sign for a ‘trip’ into the countryside for them.  The number of dogs that accompany me depends on various factors.  If Jack and Sam are out working stock then I will only have Oz and Scott however, if Kevin is visiting then normally Angie and Buksie will also be part of the walking party!!  

Sam 'talking' to the Hamerkop in the river

Angie

Buksie

A trip up the kloof means we will first walk past the dam that is at the base of the kloof. 

Egyptian geese and Yellow-billed Ducks on the dam

The dam is inhabited by lots of Yellow-billed Ducks, Dabchicks and Red-knobbed Coot and sometimes a pair of African Shelduck.  They are a quite distinct copper colour with the male having a white head.  Their call is a magical honk, which travels far when they are flying.  I just love their Afrikaans names’ – Kopereend or Berggans, which literally translated could mean copper duck or mountain goose!

 

 

Jackal Buzzard nest in Common Cabbage tree

Once we walk past the top end of the dam, we then head up into the kloof.  In the kloof we find a number of trees and the White stinkwood (Celtis africanus) and Buffalo thorn (Ziziphus micronata) are dropping their leaves and still show the colours of autumn.  The two Cussonia species – Common or Mountain Cabbage  (Cussonia spicata) and Highveld Cabbage (Cussonia paniculata) can be seen on either side of the kloof and are often used by the Jackal buzzards as a suitable nesting site.

As we climb up in the kloof, we come across the numerous aloes (Aloe ferox) that flower from the end of May through to August. This plant is a huge source of food for many birds during the dry winter months on Rookwood. 

Cape Weavers feeding off the aloes

 
One just has to look at the heads of the Cape, Southern-masked Weaver, Black-headed Orioles, Red-winged starlings and Dark-capped Bulbuls to see the tell-tale signs of pollen stuck to their feathers, to understand how much they utilize this source. 

  

Black-headed Oriole with the tell tale sign of Aloe pollen

The one bird of course that thrives off these aloes is the Malachite Sunbird.  The males are very distinctive with their long tails and brilliant dark green colours.  In Afrikaans they call him the Jan Groentjie, which is very apt.

 



 

Once at the top we get a panoramic view towards the Windvogel Mountains near Cathcart.

a view towards Cathcart

 

Verreaux Eagle

Overhead the skies are sometimes filled with a pair of Verreaux Eagles, which breed in the area or a group of Cape Vultures searching for food. 

Near the kranzes I will normally find the Rock Kestrel and in the river will come across the African Harrier-hawk and African Fish Eagle.    The Jackal Buzzard with its ‘jackal-like’ call is the most often seen as there is more than one breeding pair on Rookwood.  Sometimes we unfortunately disturb the Spotted Eagle owl but move on quickly to leave it in peace.

a pair of young Rock Kestrels

Porcupine activity at the base of a Buffalo thorn tree

a porcupine 'disappearing into its hole

On a walk like this it gives me opportunities to notice the presence of various animals.  It is not often I physically see a porcupine, (they are generally nocturnal) but one just has to look for their droppings or how they eat the bark at the base of a tree or dig up young thorn trees (Acacia karoo). 

 






We often will disturb a group of Kudu, which then move off quietly, compared with the Mountain reedbuck that will give a warning whistle before bouncing off with their tails lifted showing a flash of white.  On odd occasions we will find a Genet (Small spotted or large) or other mongoose.  Warthogs have increased over the years and will snort and disappear into their holes for protection.

Brown-hooded Kingfisher

Fairy Flycatcher

Blue-eyed pansy a relatively 'new butterfly for Rookwood

Black-crowned Night Heron in the river

I find various different plants – some I can identify while others I will photograph to be able to do research on, to identify.  Fortunately the plants do not all flower in spring, so I am privileged to a magical ‘show’ at different times of the year.  If I walk down the river, I will pass numerous cycads (Encephalartos friederici) and one can only admire their resilience over all these years – they are the most primitive living seed-bearing plant.

The cycad 'hiding' behind the aloes with its seed-bearing cones

 

So on Saturdays when I pick up my blue backpack with my binoculars and camera to take a walk, the dogs jump for joy as we are about to be given a sneak preview of the wonderful world in which we live.

A typical scene for a Saturday walk at Rookwood

Sascha and Klein Danie

a free flying Cape Vulture

On Thursday, I got the dreaded call from Dana Berens in Germany, informing that she was convinced that Sascha, the Cape Vulture, was not alive anymore and feared that he had died under a power line and would I be prepared to go and look for him.

 

Sascha was one of five Cape vultures fitted with tracking devices at Oribi Gorge in KwaZulu Natal (KZN) early in 2013. Sascha decided that he wanted to visit the Eastern Cape and not long after being fitted with his device, he was tracked to the Patryshoogte area near Bedford.  While Sascha was foraging on these flats, we had just fitted Klein Danie with a tracking device and had released him in the Knapdaar area of Burgersdorp close to the Orange River.

 

Four electrocuted Cape Vultures  - Klein Danie just missed this! (photo Danie von Litsenborg)

Klein Danie patiently waiting for his tracking device to be fitted

  

Klein Danie was a ‘lucky’ Cape Vulture that was found by Danie von Litsenborg of the Burgersdorp area. Six other vultures had been electrocuted, but Klein Danie had miraculously missed being killed.  

 

Klein Danie with the tracking device just before take off

Danie brought Klein Danie to me to allow him to recover before being released again.  Sadly this was to be the 4^th Cape Vulture I had collected from Danie. Power lines had affected all these vultures.

Patryshoogte flats where Sascha foraged last summer

We were concerned about Sascha and in April he seemed to be fairly stationary and I feared the worst regarding the power lines. I drove down to the Patryshoogte flats to see if I could locate him, however he had decided to move on up to Cradock.  While searching for Sascha,I had found another dead vulture that had unfortunately died of starvation after breaking her wing on a transmission line.

Klein Danie takes off !!!

Like Sascha, Klein Danie (also a new kid on the block) enjoyed his new found freedom and he proceeded to show us how high he could fly, how fast he could fly and of course most importantly where he was flying.  

Dana continued to keep me updated on Sascha’s movements in the Eastern Cape and at times it seemed that Sascha and Klein Danie were flying and foraging together.  One could clearly identify as they moved from colony to colony as they flew.  Young vultures have to spend at least five years on the wing before finding their suitable mate to start breeding, so both these guys could be free flying teenagers for a long time.

 

Stormberg range a favourite foraging ground for Cape Vultures in the Eastern Cape

  

Klein Danie's last hours of life!

Just under four months after releasing Klein Danie, I noticed that his tracking device had indicated that he seemed to have stopped moving. My heart was heavy when I set out to search for him close to the Birds’ river area near Penhoek pass. 

 

Klein Danie's killer power lines!

The only evidence we found was that Klein Danie’s last meal was that of a cow that had died.  During our search we crossed paths with a farmer in the area, Andre Scheepers and explained who we were looking for. 

He told us that he had seen dead vultures near a power line on one of his properties and promised to look when he went that way. 

Klein Danie

A day later, I got the call, Klein Danie was found dead under power lines.  He had been electrocuted.  The ‘new kid on the block’ had not survived!!!!  Andre found a second bird, barely alive, lying a little distance from Klein Danie. I was devastated.

I arranged to collect them and brought them both home.  Klein Danie’s tracking device had been damaged beyond repair. The Stormberg branch of the SA Hunters and Game Conservation Association had sponsored this device. 

 

Houdini

The second bird, I called Houdini, so badly wanted to survive,but unfortunately had a hip break that would not heal. Dr Schalk Janse van Rensburg put him to sleep for me.  It was and still is a very emotional period for me.

Houdini in a sling

 

 

Sascha continued to fly free and wide and during the colder winter months returned to his ‘home’ colony at Oribi Gorge area in KZN.  He however, seemed to like the Eastern Cape and set off south during the summer months once more.  Both he and Klein Danie enjoyed the Stormberg mountain range and their tracking devices told us this story. 

Sascha's last view before he died - power lines in the distance ended his life.

 

Sascha’s last months were spent flying past the 

Donkerhoek roost near Penhoek pass, up past the Dorper Wind Farm turbines on top of the Bamboeshoek Mountains and moved back into the Stormberg range. Sadly his gamble with our unsafe power line structure was to be his demise.

So when Dana phoned me, I just knew what she was going to tell me and ask me to do.  Just like Klein Danie, I can only hope that the pain they felt was not too long before they died.

 

The plastic of the harness burnt to the skin of Sascha

Sascha and Klein Danie were only young vultures doing what vultures do; however, one wonders how many ‘untracked’ young birds manage to safely dodge the incredible maze of unsafe electric power lines for five years before they can start breeding in this province or even in South Africa.

Cape Vultures using a transmission line structure as a roost

As background to this unnecessary sad loss, I think the Environmental Impact Assessment processes are not done correctly or thoroughly. 

A 22kV line being fitted with raptor protectors

The 22 kV lines - the smaller ones that are the major killers should be fitted with raptor protectors before they are refurbished.

Sascha has been buried close to Klein Danie and Houdini and in due course I will plant an indigenous tree there in remembrance of these poor guys, who gave us just a little peek into their world with their tracking devices.

 

Sascha