Frogging, ‘herping’ and rock-flipping in Wakkerstroom
The main focus of the weekend was of course frogs, but as we are wildlife enthusiasts and there were so many participants just as passionate about all things wild and…
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Migratory species and climate change
Sustainability may start at home, but many environmental challenges require the cooperation of multiple countries – and international agreements help to create a framework for such collaboration. For example, diverse…
Bringing Ocean View to the ocean
Flock At Sea Again! in April 2017 will have some special guests. The team from the Ocean View Association for People with Disabilities (OVAPD) centre that makes our bird-scaring lines…
Namibian National Awareness Workshop
Through a series of workshops, the Common Oceans Tuna Project aims to reduce the impacts of pelagic (tuna) longline fisheries on albatross and petrel populations and ensure that the implementation…
On the road with Ross
The Seychelles is a tropical island paradise with a swathe of endemic species and stunning landscapes. Ross Wanless reports on his tuna commission meeting and finding endemic frogs, visiting a…
Wilge Stewardship Project
The Wilge River runs through the grasslands of the beautiful eastern Free State, an area that contains many threatened bird species and is an important water catchment. Its formal protection…
The Kruger Bird & Wildlife Challenge
The Kruger Bird & Wildlife ChallengeIn support of the White-winged Flufftail 6th to 15th February 2019 (10 days) We are thrilled to launch an epic birding and wildlife event that…
On the road with Ross
It took two and a half weeks to crank through the staggering number of things to be done on my trip to the UK in July. The first stop was…
On the Road with Ross – June 2017
I’d been to Cape Verde before but never to do field work, so when another trip was cancelled and there was an opening for me to go to this amazing…
The unsung heroes of seabird conservation
When the members of the Ocean View Association for Persons with Disabilities (OVAPD) boarded the MSC Sinfonia, the joy and excitement on their faces was heart-warming. Until now the closest…
ACSA-sponsored guide training course
It seems so long ago that it all began. In November 2016, 12 lucky learners from the Ekurhuleni municipality were selected to attend a BirdLife South Africa guide training course…
Flock on the West Coast 2018
After the great success that was Flock at Sea AGAIN! 2017, the BirdLife South Africa staff have returned to shore and planning is well under way for next year’s Flock…
BirdLife South Africa Staff Meeting 2017
The BirdLife South Africa staff meeting, held from 23 to 25 May 2017, had a change of venue this year and took place at the picturesque Sea Villa Glen Craig…
On the Road with Ross May 2017
In early April my colleague Bronwyn Maree and I headed to Hoi An in Vietnam to run the second regional workshop on seabird bycatch. We’re trying to build consensus among…
On the high seas
Steve’s poem: Out on the limitless ocean Nothing to see but the waves: Ever changing, peaking, subsiding, All the same but each detail different. Cairns upon hills upon mountains, Rolling,…
What the Flock is all the fuss about AGAIN?
Tuesday, 25 April 2017 was a day that few people on Flock at Sea AGAIN! will ever forget. By now it is probably also etched in many bird books, notebooks,…
On the Road with Ross
The workshop was part of our Common Oceans project, and the main element that Bronwyn Maree is running (as well as overseeing the delivery of the whole shebang). We were…
Monitoring penguin predators
The ambitious plan to establish new African Penguin colonies requires a lot of planning to ensure that we have the best chance of success. One component of the planning is…
Working around the subregion
2016 was a very busy year for the Avitourism & Special Projects Programme, which has been involved in the East Atlantic Flyway Initiative, partner development work in southern Africa and…
Saving seabirds
For the Seabird Conservation Programme, 2016 has been a year of steady progress on existing work and expansion into new areas. Our staff also grew to 11 in Cape Town,…
Hosting Events
The Events Programme over the past 12 months was as versatile as ever and new twists to familiar themes proved to be very popular. On behalf of everyone at BirdLife…
Are IBAs better off at the end of 2016?
Media representatives and project funders (WWF Nedbank Green Trust) visited the Verlorenvlei Protected Areas Project in the Western Cape to see progress and speak to landowners. Credit BirdLife South Africa…
What’s going on at Wakkerstroom
It’s been a year of change and progress at the Wakkerstroom Tourism and Education Centre, a year in which we’ve all grown a little more and learnt new things along…
Advocating for our birds and their habitats
2016 seems to have been an eventful year for everyone with whom I have chatted and it’s been no different for the Policy and Advocacy Programme. We provided extensive support…
Working around the subregion
2016 was a very busy year for the Avitourism & Special Projects Programme, which has been involved in the East Atlantic Flyway Initiative, partner development work in southern Africa and…
On the Road with Ross
It’s time to go to Senegal again? This month’s travel insert sees Ross Wanless heading off to Dakar, where a cancelled meeting gave him a one-day window for some birding……
A fair exchange: A much needed computer in exchange for bird scaring lines to save seabirds!
The Ocean View Association for People with Disabilities (OVAPD) centre has been given a boost in the form of a much-needed desktop computer. The centre runs the Tori Line project,…
Stony Point Penguins: To fence or not to fence
African Penguin conservation and management can be a controversial issue, especially when it comes to interactions with people. Over the last few months, there has been significant interest regarding the…
Guide Training
Over the past month, 10 students from KZN have been studying really hard on a bird specialist course. The course is endorsed by FGASA and skill, dedication and hard work…
Owl Awards – 2016
BirdLife South Africa hosted the annual Owl Awards on 6 October at Beechwood Gardens, Johannesburg. We would like to congratulate the award recipients, who were all very deserving of an…
Concentrated Solar Power plants in the Northern Cape
BirdLife South Africa was privileged to spend some time at Concentrated Solar Power (CSP) plants in the Northern Cape recently. These futuristic looking facilities are the face of modern, clean…
Key Biodiversity Areas: The future currency for recognising key sites important for conserving all species.
Not a replacement, but merely a bigger brother Key Biodiversity Areas (KBAs) are set to become the new global currency for site based conservation. Sites that are significantly important for…
Kruger birding weekends raise funds for Secretarybird conservation
To provide much needed support to our National Parks, the SANParks Honorary Rangers of the West Rand Region have initiated various birding events in Kruger National Park. They have supported…
A whistle-stop tour through a few of South Africa’s Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas
Most birders and nature enthusiasts may already be familiar with South Africa’s wonderful birdlife, consisting of over 800 different birds! What they might not be familiar with are our countries…
A New Nest for BirdLife South Africa
In early August 2015, BirdLife South Africa’s staff moved into Isdell House, our new head office in Dunkeld West, Johannesburg. For some time it had been our intention to move…
Flufftail Report
BirdLife South Africa, Rand Water (Water Wise) and Eskom hosted the annual Flufftail Festival at Cresta Shopping Centre from 2-8 February 2016. The Flufftail Festival is linked to World Wetlands Day, a global event celebrating wetlands worldwide on 2 February. The aim of the Flufftail Festival was to raise awareness about a critical resource (water), threatened habitat (wetlands) and endangered birds (especially the White-winged Flufftail). With the drought gripping our country in 2016, there was no better time to be raising awareness about water.
LAB 2016 in Kruger: a great opportunity to learn about birds, and great birdwatching opportunities
The biennial LAB, co-hosted by BirdLife South Africa and the Percy FitzPatrick Institute for African Ornithology, held at Skukuza, Kruger National Park (9 – 11 March 2016), offered a full…
A Birds Eye View of Sani2c
The Sani2c is one of South Africa’s premier mountain biking races. But did you know that the race route passes through three Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas (IBAs) as well as a number of habitats and threatened ecosystems? IBAs are globally recognised due to their conservation value for birds, and birds are good indicators ofother forms of biodiversity, so it is no wonder that these areas are home to endangered orchids, frogs and mammals. This year’s Sani2c race takes place from 10-14 May, so in preparation, here is a bird’s-eye view of the race.
