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Heritage and Leisure
A tall palm tree near the house, visible from the main bedroom, is home to many birds, mostly Indian Mynahs and Pigeons who produce their young throughout the year. This has attracted a Gymnogene (possibly the same one that visits Parktown West). Another attraction is the fifty Guineafowl on the hockey fields of the University next door. They roost in a deodar in the forest above our house on the Parktown Ridge. The Gymnogene’s arrival raises a cacophony from the Guineafowl and alerts us to the event. He is a large fellow with typical yellow face and legs and white band on the tail. On 19 August a neighbour phoned to say there were two very large birds in a tall cypress devouring a Guineafowl. By the time we got there all that remained were feathers floating down to earth. The description was of two very large grey birds with black tipped wings and tails. Our references don’t mention Gymnogenes swooping on prey, but in this case no other bird matches the description. Later the same day we saw a Gymnogene in a deodar, possibly one of those that visited that morning. It might also explain the problem of the neighbour’s missing ducks which were found in a cypress on a previous occasion.
There are many resident birds here. Apart from the common varieties (Sparrows, Weavers, Thrushes, Doves and Robins) there are other frequent visitors. Bird feeders attract the seedeaters, logs the Barbets, now taken over by Green (Redbilled) Woodhoopoes, but best of all a birdbath which is filled twice a day. As many as six Grey Loeries have been seen in the water at one time and almost as many Speckled Pigeons (Rock Pigeons). Hadedas roost in the Jacarandas in the forest. Daily visitors are Red-chested Cuckoos, Bokmakieries, Boubou Shrikes, Blackcollared Barbets and a solitary Crested African Hoopoe. Dikkops (Spotted Thick-knees) call on the lawns at night and Plovers (Crowned, Wattled and Blacksmiths) during the day. The two former have bred and raised young on the fields next door. Common in summer are Burchell’s Coucal and Diderick Cuckoos which parasitise Masked Weaver nests. Their young are infuriating with their continuous squawking for food while the Weaver hosts try to keep them satisfied. Less common are Black Flycatchers and a pair of Paradise Flycatchers. Once a few Rose-ringed Parakeets fed on the Persimmons. Similar sightings of Parakeets have come from Westcliff and from south of the Parktown Ridge. Apart from the bird life, occasional Lesser Spotted Genets and Banded mongooses are around, while quite large harmless snakes have appeared from time to time keeping the rats at bay. Parktown has an array of fauna to add to the more diverse indigenous flora. All worth watching! Graeme and Meg Hart. |
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We read with interest the ornithological section of the Parktown Association’s Newsletter, and especially that part describing the sighting of a Gymnogene (now called an African Harrier-Hawk). At our home in The Valley Road the species has been seen on many occasions. The most recent observations were on 14 July 2004, 19 August 2004 and 29 October 2004. (Two appeared on 19 August.)
Another less frequent visitor is a Black Sparrowhawk which is attracted when the Guineafowl are raising their chicks. He recently launched himself from the Parktown Ridge at great speed and took an adolescent Guineafowl (rather in the manner of a Fish Eagle) and disappeared in the direction of the Zoo with the hapless Guineafowl calling for support which never came. He flew into an evergreen oak nearby where he devoured it. We identified the raptor from this perch. Other birds of prey are present from time to time, Yellowbilled Kites, a Giant African Eagle Owl and smaller hawks and kites.