Africa Wild

719. Buffy Pipit Anthus vaalensis (Vaalkoester)
Order: Passeriformes. Family: Motacillidae


Kruger National Park, H14

Description
Size 16-18 cm. It is one of the largest of the 'Large pipits' group, with a particularly long tail, long tibiae and a long neck. In the field, the head usually appears rather small in proportion to the body and the crown is flattened (giving the bird a "long-nosed" look). The Buffy Pipit lacks streaking on the mantle and upperparts. The face is usually quite plain, with at most a paler supercilium and sometimes a faint malar stripe. They lack the well-defined and bold facial markings of the smaller 'Large pipits'. The breast markings are usually fairly faint and smudgy. The lower mandible appears pink.
On the ground it stops, generally remaining horizontal, but does occasionally stand bold and upright. Moves its tail up and down, wagtail-like, more frequently than other pipits.
Juvenile. resembles adult but is mottled above.
Similar species: Difficult to distinguish from Plain-backed Pipit but the breast markings are often faint, with a rich, buffy belly and flanks. The base of the bill is pink (not yellow).

Distribution: Occurs in sub-Equatorial Africa from southern DRC through Zambia, Malawi and Angola to southern Africa. Here it is locally common from Mozambique to South Africa (excluding the fynbos and Karoo biomes of the west), Botswana and Namibia, marginally extending into Mozambique.

Habitat
Similar to that of Plain-backed Pipit (hillsides covered with short grass) but usually at lower altitudes. It generally prefers open grassy plains with patches of bare ground, overgrazed land, fallow pastures, recently burnt fields and the edges of pans.

Diet
It mainly eats insects and other invertebrates, doing most of its foraging on the ground.

Breeding
The nest is an untidy cup of coarse grass, lined with fine grass and rootlets and placed in a hollow at the base of a grass tuft or rock overhang.
Egg-laying season is from July-February, peaking from September-December. It lays 2-3 eggs, which are incubated for 14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents, leaving the nest after about 12 days.

Call
A repeated, two-noted song, tchreep-churup. When slushed, it gives a shot sshik.

Status
Uncommon resident.

719. Buffy Pipit Anthus vaalensis (Vaalkoester)

© ExFmem
Kgalagadi Transfrontier Park


Kruger National Park, H14

Links:
Species text Sabap1
Sapap2: http://sabap2.adu.org.za/spp_summary.ph ... &section=3
http://www.biodiversityexplorer.info/bi ... lensis.htm
A gallery of southern African pipits with commentary, identification pointers and references to the Pipits of southern Africa.
Sasol: Identifying Large brown Pipits

718. Plain-backed Pipit Anthus leucophrys (Donkerkoester)
Order: Passeriformes. Family: Motacillidae


Description
Length 17 cm, mass 23-30 g. Uniform, unstreaked back, paler underparts, buff (rather than white) outer tail feathers, contrasting supercilium and a yellowish base to the lower bill. Upright stance, but not as pronounced as in Buffy Pipit. The tail is seldom raised above the horizontal when pumped or wagged.
Similar species: It is very similar to the Buffy Pipit, but the Plain-backed Pipit has darker upperparts and more distinct breast markings. It is a slightly smaller species than the Buffy Pipit and darker with a whiter supercilium. The hind claw is longer, and the base of the bill is yellowish.
Both species are distinguished from any of the 'Large pipits' with streaked plumage by the unmarked or very sublty streaked mantle, weak breast markings and heavier tail wagging.

Distribution
South and East of the sub-region. Occurs in patches across sub-Saharan Africa, from southern Mauritania to Ethiopia south through southern DRC, Zambia and Angola to southern Africa. Here it is locally common in northern Namibia, southern and northern Botswana and South Africa (excluding most of the Northern Cape).

Habitat
Grasslands, especially recently burned areas. It generally prefers moist short grassland with scattered trees, rocks and termite mounds, cultivated land and Karoo dwarf shrubland, however it may move into other habitats which have recently been burnt, as well as sandy beaches with lots of seaweed, flood plains and marshes.

Diet
Mainly insects and their larvae, doing most of its foraging on the ground, plucking food from the soil and the bases of grass tufts.

Breeding
Monogamous. The nest is a deep cup of roots and coarse grass stems lined with fine grass, roots and occasionally feathers, hair or fur. It is typically placed in a hollow between or at the base of a grass tuft, which effectively conceals it from intruders. Egg-laying season is from August-December, peaking from October-November. It lays 2-4 eggs, which are incubated for up to 14 days. The chicks are fed by both parents on a diet of insects, leaving the nest after about 16 days.

Call
Monotonous series of double notes chree-cheup, chree-cheup. Listen to Bird Call.

Status
Locally common resident.

718. Plain-backed Pipit Anthus leucophrys (Donkerkoester)



© Flutterby
Rietvlei Nature Reserve

© Puff Addy
Mountain Zebra National Park

Links:
http://sabap2.adu.org.za/docs/sabap1/718.pdf
Sabap2
http://www.pipits.co.za/main.html
Sasol: Identifying Large brown Pipits

720. Striped Pipit Anthus lineiventris (Gestreepte Koester)
Order: Passeriformes. Family: Motacillidae

Description
17-18 cm. A compact heaviliy built pipit with boldly striped underparts extending over almost entire belly. Upperparts olive brown, streaked dark brown.
At close range has diagnostic yellow-edged wing feathers. Streaking that continues all the way from the throat down onto the flanks and less markedly, the belly, ending at the vent. The crown, hind-neck and mantle are greenish-grey, while the wings have distinctive lemon-yellow edges, giving the wing a greenish appearance when seen from a distance, pink legs.

Distribution
Occurs in patches from southern Kenya through Tanzania, Zambia, southern DRC and Malawi to southern Africa. Here it is uncommon to fairly common in northern Mozambique, Zimbabwe, south-eastern Botswana, eastern South Africa and Swaziland.

Habitat
It prefers woodland on the steep slopes of mountains, hills and gorges, especially miombo (Brachystegia) woodland but also Afromontane forest and alien tree plantations.

Diet
It does most of its foraging between rocks on the ground, in sparse vegetation and on roadsides, feeding on insects such as grasshoppers (Orthoptera) and other invertebrates, including ticks (Amblyoma).

Breeding
The nest is a cup of dry grass, leaves and twigs, lined with fine grass and rootlets. It is typically placed on level ground against a rock or dead grass tuft, or alternatively on a low bank among ferns. Egg-laying season is from September-January, peaking from October-December. It lays 2-3 white eggs, heavily speckled with brown and grey.

Call
Its call is a loud, penetrating thrush-like song uttered from a rock or tree.

Status
Locally common resident.

720. Striped Pipit Anthus lineiventris



Links:
Sabap2
Species text Sabap1
Biodiversity Explorer: http://www.biodiversityexplorer.org/bir ... entris.htm
BirdForum: http://www.birdforum.net/opus/Striped_Pipit
SASOL VOELS VAN SUIDER AFRICA (3de UIT)

Fringillidae birds are distributed worldwide, though there are no true finches in Antarctica or Australia. The family comprises 29 genera, 144 species, 406 taxa.
These small to medium-sized passerines with relatively to very stout, conical bill; plumage highly variable, often colourful occur in almost all habitats; most species in mixed woods, thickets and adjacent semi-open areas, forest edges and clearings with mosaic of grassland, shrubs and small trees, also farmland, especially stubble, orchards, plantations, parks, gardens and tree-lined suburban streets. In southern Africa, the Fringillidae have more than 50% of their members occurring in the Fynbos Biome, Western Cape, South Africa.
While there is a good deal of variety in terms of size and coloration, these birds do share several common characteristics, including:
Granivorous diets and stubby, conical bills adapted for eating seeds
Dimorphic plumage with females more camouflaged than males
Cup- or basket-shaped nests constructed in trees or shrubs

The treatment of the Canary group including canaries, seedeaters and the African siskins as a single genus has been subject to much debate, with behavioural and vocal characters being used to divide it into seven or more genera. The majority of species are small to medium sized birds with green and yellow, often streaky plumage though there are a few notable exceptions. Often, the use of Serinus is confined to the Palaearctic canaries and allied species, and Crithagra for the strictly Afrotropical clade.

Family Fringillidae (Finches)
Fringilla coelebs Common Chaffinch 868
Crithagra hyposticta Southern Citril
Crithagra scotops Forest Canary 873
Crithagra atrogularis Black-throated Canary 870
Crithagra citrinipectus Lemon-breasted Canary 871
Crithagra mozambica Yellow-fronted Canary 869
Crithagra totta Cape Siskin 874
Crithagra symonsi Drakensberg Siskin 875
Crithagra flaviventris Yellow Canary 878
Crithagra sulphurata Brimstone Canary 877
Crithagra gularis Streaky-headed Seedeater 881
Crithagra mennelli Black-eared Seedeater 882
Crithagra albogularis White-throated Canary 879
Crithagra leucoptera Protea Canary 880
Serinus canicollis Cape Canary 872
Serinus alario Black-headed Canary 876

868. Common Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs (Gryskoppie)
Order: Passeriformes. Family: Fringillidae


Description
Size 14,5-16 cm. A finch with striking double white wing bars. The wing bars are formed by white patches on the wing coverts, and primary and secondary wing feathers.
Male is the only finch of the region to have pinkish face and breast, a blue-grey crown and nape, and conspicuous large double white wings bares, white tail edges and greenish rump. Its breeding plumage is brighter that its non-breeding plumage.
The female has an olive-brown back, and grey-brown underparts becoming almost white towards the rump, which is greenish.
The juveniles are similar to the female but lack the greenish rump. The bill is brown in both the female and juveniles.

Distribution
The Chaffinch is widespread and very familiar throughout Europe. Its range extends into western Asia, northwestern Africa. It was introduced from Britain into a number of its overseas territories in the 18th and 19th centuries. In South Africa a very small breeding colony in the suburbs of Tokai, Constantia, Houtbay, Newlands and Rondebosch, is the only remnant of the introduction in ca. 1898.

Habitat
In South Africa it almost exclusively occupies plantations, alien woodlands, parks and gardens, rarely moving into mountain fynbos.

Movements and migrations
Largely resident and sedentary, although it may make local movements in the period from March-September.

Diet
It mainly eats insects and seeds, doing most of its foraging on the ground and in the canopy of trees.

Breeding
Although its breeding habits are little known in South Africa, it is though to be a monogamous, territorial solitary nester. The nest is built solely by the female, consisting of a small cup of moss, grass stems, rootlets and hair, bound together with spider web and lined with feathers, hair, plant down and other soft material. It is typically placed in an alien bush or tree, usually from 3-10 m above ground. Egg-laying season is from September-November. It lays about 3-4 eggs, which are incubated solely by the female for about 12-13 days. The chicks are fed mainly by their mother, leaving the nest after roughly 12-13 days and remaining dependent on their parents for approximately another 25 days.

Call
A clear pink, pink, pink: a short, rattling song, failing in pitch, typically uttered from high in a tree. Listen to Bird Call.

Status
Introduced from Europe, uncommon, localised resident on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain.

868. Common Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs





© Dewi
Female

© Dewi
Male

Links:
Sabap2
Newman's birds of Southern Africa