Birds of the Bright Mountains

Here's a article meant for an online magazine I wrote about  year or so before I left South Africa in December 2017. I've been thinking about 'my birds' recently, and thought I'd share this here.

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Birds of the Bright Mountains

By E.J. Davidson

At the tip of Africa there is a picturesque place known as the Helderberg, literally a ‘Bright or Clear Mountain’. There is indeed an imposing edifice we call the Helderberg Mountain, but we are also surrounded by many other peaks, crevasses, gorges, cliffs and mighty castles of wind-eroded rock.

It’s an ancient land, stable and settled. Perched on the southern end of False Bay where great white sharks compete with southern right whales, many dolphins, seals and even the occasional orca family, the weather is definitely Mediterranean with typically hot, windy summers and wet winters (not too cold, although snow does prettify our peaks now and again).

The mountain slopes are home to the Protea flower and ‘fynbos’ found nowhere else in the world. And a massive variety of birds! To list every feathered friend resident in the Helderberg, though, and to then add detail would make this a too long-winded biology project. Right, I’m shaking my head, too.

Living on these slopes with mountains at my back and the ocean before me, daily I have the privilege of little feathered visitors popping in to say hello and therefore daily I fall in love all over again with ‘my’ birds. Allow me to share their ‘stories’ with you.

In this edition we will discover three ‘black birds’, regular indeed to the water bowl and in the skies above us – the Square-tailed Drongo, the Pied Crow and the Red-winged Starling. The reason I’m putting them together is, firstly, the dominant black common to all three and, secondly, because they are so alike in temperament and behaviour.

The Square-tailed Drongo is a small bird (approximately 19cm) common in much of Africa south of the Sahara. They are insect eaters and are usually found in forests or dense bush. Given the scrub surrounding us, with Protea bushes taller than humans, the terrain is perfect for them.

Two to three eggs are laid in a cup nest in a fork high in a tree. Aggressive and fearless, given their small size, they will attack much larger species if their nest or young are threatened. Trust me, they mock attack people too, dive bombing from on high and shouting warning! On the upside, they do bring their young to visit as well – every year the resident flock here grows larger.

The male is mainly glossy black, although the wings are duller, and the female is similar but less glossy. Drongo bills are black and heavy (totally remind one of rooks!), with reddish eyes and short legs, and they love to perch prominently, seemingly on display. They fly-catch or take prey from the ground and are pretty nimble in flight. The call is a harsh cherit-cherit.

In summer they are daily visitors to the water bowl, perching without concern upon the railing to survey the world. I have seen them dance during mating season and watched them bathe with abandon.

Summer is HOT here and water is ever scarcer during the season; when the drongos flock, we know true waterless summer has arrived! When the sprinklers go on they are there almost immediately to fly through the spray. They never come alone; the sprinklers attract a variety of feathered friends, but that’s a whole other story.

The Red-winged Starling is an African species fond of bright-coloured fruits. It may become aggressive in nest defence, even attacking humans.

May be? Both male and female will dive bomb the hell out of you! A couple returns to nest every year under the eaves and, boy, just dare walk out onto the balcony when they are around! Cawing like to crazed crows, they fly by so close their wings have grazed my cheek. Despite that, they remain welcome; they have such character. Red-wings love high ground and are thus ever in attendance.

Adult males have glossy black plumage with a blue overall sheen, except on their wings. Their primary flight feathers are bright chestnut with blackish tips, but when folded only a red patch is visible. Their long pointed tails are black. Females are similar, although they have a brownish-grey head and chest. Red-winged starlings average around 30cm.

Their common call is a drawn out spreeu, while their contact call is twee-twoo. Warning sounds are tchorr and kwok-kwok (gives one the jeebies and my reflex is to duck when I hear it!).

Beyond that, their song is intricate with complex tones and notes, the most musical visitors to the water bowl. They whistle and sing phrases and my entire world narrows to them when they sing. I stand dead still sometimes just listening and I am awed and inspired.

Of course, because they also eat larger insects when fruit and berries become scarce, they are totally welcome for that reason alone! May the spider and scorpion population beware, and thank heavens. Spiders and scorpions abound here.

It’s quite common to see the drongos and starlings side by side at the bowl. And do they perform for each other!

Now the Pied Crow is a whole other tail (see what I did there?). They do not ever perch on the railing and never use the water bowl BUT they are nearby! They too patrol the region and the drongos keep a wary eye out, their warning calls often summoning the red-winged starlings to battle (and sometimes the red-wings sound exactly like the crows when they utter the alert).

Winging like to eagles, pied crows swirl around our house, land with loud thuds on the roof and caw from the highlands to the lowlands. Often the Red-wings take to the sky to chase them away.

Physically, the pied crow is close to a small crow-sized Raven (except the lack of throat hackles, fan-shaped tail and other more crow-like traits). Their behaviour and size (46 – 52cm) is more typical of the Eurasian carrion crow, although they have a longer bill, slightly longer tail and wings, and longer legs. As the name suggests, a glossy black head and neck is followed by a large area of white feathering from shoulders to lower breast but the tail, bill and wings are black. The eyes of a fully matured bird are dark brown. The white plumage of immature birds is often mixed with black. Pied crows have a wingspan 85 to 98 centimetres and appear quite majestic soaring upon the thermals. As they fly one hears their harsh ar-ar-ar-ar or karh-karh-karh.

Pied crows are generally encountered in pairs or small groups, although an abundant source of food may bring large numbers of birds. I saw this just the other day; at least twenty had gathered on the road, clearly chasing something. It was quite the conclave! I do wonder if one would still say a ‘murder of crows’ here in Africa or is it a ‘murder of pied crows’?

Food is obtained from the ground, such as insects and small reptiles, mammals, young birds and eggs, grain, carrion and any scraps of human food. Sometimes fruit and even mushrooms.

Nests are usually built in tall, isolated trees, though sometimes smaller ones are used, depending on availability. Both sexes build the nest. A clutch of 3–6 eggs is laid and are pale green, spotted with various shades of brown. Both sexes rear the young. Quite the dedicated parenting strategy, right? I have yet to discover where our locals nest. They will probably dive bomb intruder me as well!

Yes, pied crows are aggressive and most birds and creatures in the region fear them, but they have such character and seem so confident that it becomes quite an event to watch them interact with each other. I do wish one would land at the water bowl, just so I can say hello.

And that’s it for this edition! Next time we’ll enter the world of the brilliantly plumaged, the tinier inhabitants of mountains bright and clear. Until then!

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