On Monday the 6th June 2011 I finally got to visit Wolfhuiskraal Farm (covered in chapter 41 of Birding Gauteng). It is a private farm half way along the Zaagkuildrift Road to Kgomo Kgomo about an hour north of Pretoria on the N1 highway. I called on the weekend and chatted to the owner of the property (Danie Opperman on 0839270325) and he gave me permission to visit even though I was not planning on sleeping over at the accommodation they rent out to birders. He was so welcoming and my repeated meetings with him on the day were really significant - he freely shared information but remained sensitive to the fact that I was there to bird the property and did not hinder me in any way.

The spot is divided into 2 sections (North and South of the Zaagkuildrift Road). I arrived at the entrance at around 6:50am and made my way through the entrance gate towards the cattle kraals and feeding troughs on the left some 200 meters from the road - along the way spotting Green-winged Pytilia (this would prove to be one of the most common birds on the farm), Crested Barbet, Swainson's Spurfowl, Natal Spurfowl, Crimson-breasted Shrike, Chinspot Batis and Neddicky. It was a little early, and the light too low, to get any photography done in this area:

When I arrived at the troughs I was blown away to see between 30 and 50 Hornbills (Red and yellow-billed) feeding around the troughs. I birded the area on foot for a while and the birds would fly off to the nearby trees before returning to feed when they realised I meant them no harm. These birds were around the troughs: Crested Francolin, Cape Glossy Starling, Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, Helmeted Guineafowl, Red-billed Hornbill, Chestnut-vented Tit-Babbler, Laughing Dove, Fork-tailed Drongo, Southern Masked-Weaver, Southern Grey-headed Sparrow and Red-billed Quelea.

I continued up the road and arrived at the farmstead - stopping to have breakfast while watching the dozens of birds in the area including: Burchell's Starling, Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, Blue Waxbill, Village Weaver, Grey Go-away-bird, Black-faced Waxbill, Crowned Lapwing, Cattle Egret, Dark-capped Bulbul, White-browed Scrub-Robin, White-browed Sparrow-Weaver, Southern Grey-headed Sparrow, Chestnut-vented Tit-Babbler, Southern Masked-Weaver, Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver and Chinspot Batis.

My next stop was a drive past the fields to the Boskamp (Bushcamp) and along the way I saw a strange looking Lapwing and realised that it was probably a Leucistic Crowned Lapwing. I spent some time watching the birds around the water reservoir just to the left of the boskamp:

The Bushcamp turned out to be a rather luxurious looking lodge that can be hired out (currently at just R120 per person for the night - an ideal stay over for those wanting to do some early morning and late evening birding in the area - as well as at the floodplain at Kgomo Kgomo village - Danie said that it gets booked when the Warblers are around in February and March so booking is essential).

I spent about an hour birding along the paths and roads behind the Bushcamp where I got to see: Fork-tailed Drongo, Red-billed Hornbill, Burchell's Starling, Crimson-breasted Shrike, Grey Go-away-bird, Marico Flycatcher, Blue Waxbill, Jameson's Firefinch, White-browed Scrub-Robin, Neddicky, Green-winged Pytilia, Long-billed Crombec, Cardinal Woodpecker, Magpie Shrike, Spotted Thick-knee, Chestnut-vented Tit-Babbler, Crowned Lapwing, Violet-eared Waxbill, Pearl-breasted Swallow, Southern Masked-Weaver and Red-billed Quelea.

I made my way back to the farmstead to head towards the southern section but the bird life was so prolific around the homestead that I got rather distracted. A highlight was watching Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver building their nests and realising that they were using rather hectic thorn branches to build - I assume they work on some padding - otherwise it could be a rather painful experience:

I spent a bit more time about the sheds where the farm implements are kept:

I saw a number of different nests, some that were easy to identify by the presence of birds, but others harder without their presence (any ideas?):

I reluctantly left the northern section and made my way across the Zaagkuildrift Road and through the gate that leads to the southern section. From the gate to the Pienaars river a few hundred meters along the dirt road I saw: Marico Flycatcher, Blue Waxbill, Red-billed Quelea, Village Indigobird (these birds were also incredibly common on the day - at times in group of up to 20 birds), Green-winged Pytilia and Burchell's Coucal.

I arrived at the low bridge over the Pienaars River and realised how fortunate I was to be visiting in a dry season, because the road would certainly not be passable in the rainy season when the Pienaars River floods it's banks.

From the River to Tit Corner I spotted Burchell's Starling, Lilac-breasted Roller, Grey Go-away-bird, Crowned Lapwing, Blue Waxbill, Swainson's Spurfowl, Scaly-feathered Finch, Fork-tailed Drongo, Southern Red Bishop, Magpie Shrike, Red-billed Hornbill, Pearl Spotted Owlet and Long-billed Crombec.

Just past Tit Corner I had a real highlight when an unusually shaped bird flew past my head and landed in a tree near the roadside. I soon realised that it was a Pearl-spotted Owlet. I was able to get quite close to it to get some decent pics:

The next stop is the kraal and waterhole area at the next gate on the dirt road. In this area I saw Black-faced Waxbill, Green-winged Pytilia, Crested Francolin, Crested Barbet, Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, White-browed Sparrow-Weaver, Marico Flycatcher, Pale Flycatcher, Kalahari Scrub-Robin, Tawny-flanked Prinia, Levaillant's Cisticola, Black-chested Prinia, White-browed Scrub-Robin, Green-winged Pytilia, White-browed Sparrow Weaver, Speckled Pigeon, Laughing Dove, Magpie Shrike, Red-billed Oxpecker and Violet-eared Waxbill

Soon after I arrived at the spot I spotted a Black-backed Jackal with a bird that it had just killed - I jumped out my car, fired a few shots off hoping for the best:

I made my way through the gate at the kraal past the fields on the right and arrived at the next set of cattle kraals and large water trough. I finally found the Oxpeckers that had managed to hide from me all day so far - and felt quite sorry for cattle because groups of 10 birds would land on one cow at a time and cause it some distress.

I stopped for lunch around 12am near the windmill just past the cattle kraal and saw Chestnut-vented Tit-Babbler, Magpie Shrike and Crimson-breasted Shrike:

The large cattle trough near the kraal caught my attention and I spent almost an hour watching the birds, mostly see-eaters come to drink (oh, and a little Squirrel) - a fly by of African Hawk-Eagle was a special sighting for the area for me. Here is a list of the birds I saw at the trough: Blue Waxbill, Green-winged Pytilia, Blue Waxbill, Violet-eared Waxbill, Southern Grey-headed Sparrow, Laughing Dove, Burchell's Starling, Hadeda Ibis, Red-billed Quelea, Jameson's Firefinch, Village Indigobird and African Hawk-Eagle.

I headed back towards Tit Corner and finally got a half sighting of the illusive White-browed Scrub-Robin that I had seen for split seconds during the morning:

At Tit Corner I made a right turn and headed down the dirt track that you can follow for a few kilometers. On my way down the road I snapped some picture of my armed escort - a good sized flock of Helmeted Guineafowl. The other birds I saw on this part of the farm include: Helmeted Guineafowl, Crested Francolin, Arrow-marked Babbler, Neddicky, Fork-tailed Drongo, Kalahari Scrub-Robin, Southern Pied Babbler, Village Indigobird, Blue Waxbill, Red-billed Quelea, Laughing Dove, White-browed Sparrow-Weaver, Crimson-breasted Shrike, Cape Glossy Starling, Cape Turtle-Dove, Marico Flycatcher, Acacia Pied Barbet, White-browed Scrub-Robin and Namaqua Dove.

I headed back towards the Pienaars River and at one point just before the road makes a sharp left bend I realised that the river comes right up to the road - so I headed off on foot - risking encountering snakes in the long grass even though I had spotted one at the farmstead - and took some pics of the river and scared off a Hamerkop that was perched on some branches on the banks of the river.

The other birds I saw on my way back towards the Pienaars River include a special sighting of Orange-breasted Bush-Shrike (however no amount of patience or phishing could lure it closer to me), African Wattled Lapwing, Red-billed Firefinch, Pin-tailed Whydah (including a juvenile), Natal Spurfowl, Swainson's Spurfowl (and a rare sight of a juvenile for me), Village Indigobird and Rattling Cisticola.

By now it was already 2 o'clock but I knew that I needed to spend just a "little more" time on the northern side of the spot - plus I had not gotten to visit the fields to the north-east of the property so I headed off in that directions (I clearly saw an Ashy Tit through my binocs but missed the photo opportunity as it did not re-appear). Here is a list of the birds that I saw at the big fields surrounded by trees: Lilac-breasted Roller, Red-billed Hornbill, Southern Yellow-billed Hornbill, Burchell's Starling, Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver, Cape Turtle-Dove, Blue Waxbill, Neddicky, Marico Flycatcher, Crowned Lapwing, Blue Waxbill, White-browed Scrub-Robin, Southern Masked-Weaver, Swainson's Spurfowl, Black-faced Waxbill, African Hoopoe, Zitting Cisticola, Rattling Cisticola, Crested Francolin, Red-billed Quelea and Southern Grey-headed Sparrow.

I drove back to the Boskamp one more time, but the weather had changed and it was really dark and gloomy - and trying to photograph a group of 4 Burn-necked Eremomela feeding in tall trees was almost impossible in the low light:

What a spot! What a day!!! I got home around 7pm, covered in dust (it is really dry in the area) and exhausted from a long day in the field. The sheer volume of birds (not necessarily the amount of birds) although I did see 66 bird species on the day - was mind-boggling. There was never a moment when you were not looking at a bird or groups of birds! I can't imagine what it would be like birding this spot in Spring or in February - which I certainly plan to do!!!