The spotting of the Greater Painted-snipe on the 7th January 2015 at Tontonyane near the Sewerage Works prompted me to explore the area further. The place is 7km to the West of Mahikeng bordering Motsoseng Village.
Accompanied by young local birdwatchers we went through the length and breadth of this desolated area. Only some few fishermen were the only people passing by on their way to the nearby Modimola Dam.
By midday we had already spotted fifty six (56) bird species and the numbers were still rising. This is only a small fraction of Pentad 2550-2520, mind you.
The area is gradually becoming a dumping site; these un-rehabilitated borrow pits, have transformed the area into a palette of water ponds after the good rains. The nearby sewerage works plant provides most of the water into the area.
The following are photos taken from the area showing the rich diversity of bird species (a comprehensive report list is provided at the end):
Cape Long-claw
Scaly-feathered Finch
Abdim Stock (non breeding intra African migrant)
African Spoonbill
Little Egret
Northern Black Korhaan
Red-billed Quelea (a menace to neighbouring Motsoseng)
Wood Sandpiper (non breeding Palearctic migrant)
Yellow-billed Stock (regarded as near-threatened)
Glossy Ibis
Great Crested Grebe
Female Greater Painted-snipe
Pied Kingfisher
The expedition crew (Letlhogonolo, Mpho and Lungela)
The view of the area at a glance
The location in the map
List of birds:
1.
Chestnut Vented Titbabbler
2.
Scaly-throated Finch
3.
Black Chested Prinia
4.
Laughing Dove
5.
Red-billed Quelea
6.
Cape Sparrow
7.
Rock Kestrel
8.
Abdim Stock
9.
White-backed Mousebird
10.
Glossy Starlin
11.
Diderick Cuckoo
12.
Northern Black Korhaan
13.
Blacksmith Lapwing
14.
White-breated Sparrow Weaver
15.
Crowned Plover
16.
Little Egret
17.
Black Winged Stilt
18.
Zitting Cisticola
19.
African Pipit
20.
Great Crested Grebe
21.
Rattling Cisticola
22.
Cape Wagtail
23.
Kitzlig Plover
24.
African Sacred Ibis
25.
Egyptian Goose
26.
Curlew Sandpiper
27.
Red-knobbed Coot
28.
Common Sandpiper
29.
Cape Longclaw
30.
Little Grebe
31.
African Spoonbill
32.
Ruffous Napped Lark
33.
African Black Duck
34.
Spiked-heeled Lark
35.
Red-billed Teal
36.
Little Egret
37.
Three-banded Plover
38.
Glossy Ibis
39.
Hadeda Ibis
40.
Grey Heron
41.
Wood Sandpiper
42.
Yellow-billed Stock
43.
South African Cliff Swallow
44.
Reed Cormorant
45.
White-faced Duck
46. Amethyst Sunbird
47.
Black-throated Canary
48.
Southern-masked Weaver
49.
African Hoepoe
50.
Pied Kingfisher
51.
Familiar Chat
52.
Golden Finch
53.
Yellow-billed Duck
54.
Common Fiscal
55.
Pin-tailed Whydah
56.
Grey Headed Gull
57. Greater Painted-snipe
