Birding enthusiasts enjoyed an exciting and stimulating weekend at the Agulhas National Park, Western Cape, in the company of renowned travel writer, Don Pinnock, and his wife Patricia Schonstein. Held from the 4 - 6 November, the attending crowd sighted a rare Roseate Tern bird, which is uncommon for the area.

The Agulhas National Park is on the Southern-most tip of Africa, rich natural and cultural features, and is home to almost 280 bird species. The Park provides excellent bird watching locations, where the group spotted 150 types including Fish Eagles, Agulhas Long-billed Larks, Cape Longclaw, Southern Tchagra and the African Stonechat amongst others.

The attendees were chaperoned by Dave de Beer, a qualified bird and whale guide, Mel Tripp, vice-chairperson of the Cape Bird Club and Honorary Rangers Koos Swart and Chris van Gass.

Organised by the South African National Parks Honorary Rangers and sponsored by Sasol, the birding weekends takes place throughout the year at various parks and showcases the spectacular array of bird species. The crowd was also taken through informative presentations on bird photography, birds and birding. There were kayaking trips on the Nuwejaars River and hikes as well. As a proud South African company, Sasol’s support for environmental conservation projects is aimed to promote an appreciation of our national heritage and showcase the birding species our country has to offer.

Honorary Ranger, Eddie Cassani says, “This year we celebrated our fourth Sasol birding weekend at Agulhas National Park and it has become an annual event for many residents. The birding weekend is an amazing breakaway, especially at this time of the year, as it provides birders the opportunity to see rare birds from this region.”

The weekend was attended by birding enthusiasts and avid outdoor fans. Attendees were divided into groups and competed with each other to spot as many birds as possible. The group which received the prize for most bird sightings was headed by de Beer, with a total of 118 species spotted.

Pinnock regaled his experience on a trip to the Antarctic on the SAS Agulhas. Using a presentation themed “Blue Ice”, he used his experience to create awareness of the state of the planet by showing the natural beauty that needs to be protected.

“Bird-watching is becoming one of the world’s fastest growing pastimes and our country is the perfect destination to pursue the activity, as we have close to 850 bird species. Sasol’s involvement in bird wildlife is about conservation and promoting birding as a past time. We have one of the most diverse bird populations in the world and this should be enjoyed by all South Africans,” says Richard Hughes, Sasol’s sponsorship manager.

Sasol also sponsors the annual Birding Fair at the Johannesburg Zoo and supports the development of BirdLife South Africa’s bird guides and the Endangered Wildlife Trust’s Birds of Prey Programme and Southern Ground-Hornbill Project.

For more information on Sasol’s birding weekends or if you would like to attend the next birding weekend at Camdeboo National Park on 25 – 27 November 2011, please contact Judy Bouwer on 083 610 1090.

Birding at the De Mond

Spotting the Roseate Team

last updated: 24 Nov 2011