Africa Wild Bird Book

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574. Yellow-bellied Greenbul (Formerly known as Yellow-bellied Bulbul) Chlorocichla flaviventris (Afrikaanse Geelborswillie)
Order: Passeriformes. Family: Pycnonotidae

Yellow-bellied Greenbul.jpg (60.06 KiB) Viewed 872 times

Description
The Yellow-bellied Greenbul is a brownish-olive colour above, with a pale yellow mantle and rump and bright yellow below. It has a distinctive white eye-ring and dark red eyes; the bill is slate-coloured, and the legs and feet are grey. The sexes are alike.
Juvenile is duller and paler than adult; eyes initially grey.
Similar species: Distinguished from smaller Sombre Greenbul by the dark reddish eye and the bright yellow underside that includes the throat and vent areas, as well as the underwings (as visible in flight). The thin white eyebrow is prominent. Smaller Sombre Greenbul has greener underparts, olive-grey underwings, whitish eye, without white eye ring, and lacks shaggy crest.

Distribution
Occurs from Kenya and south-eastern DRC through Angola and Zambia to southern Africa. Here it is common across Zimbabwe, Mozambique, northern Namibia, eastern and northern Botswana, Limpopo Province and KwaZulu-Natal.

C. f. occidentalis: nw Angola to w Tanzania south to nw Namibia, n Botswana, n South Africa and c Mozambique
C. f. flaviventris: e South Africa and s Mozambique

Habitat
It generally prefers thick tangled undergrowth, especially in clearings in riverine and coastal forest, miombo and mopane woodland, gardens, mangroves and semi-arid bush.

Diet
Mainly fruit; also insects, seeds and flowers. It forages with other bulbuls in the lower canopy, gleaning food from leaves and branches. Joins mixed-species foraging flocks.

Breeding
The Yellow-bellied Greenbul is monogamous, and builds a very fragile nest of twigs and grass that is often fixed to a branch by spider webs; it is sometimes so flimsy that the eggs can be visible from below! It is typically attached with spider web to the foliage of a sapling, shrub or creeper. Egg-laying season is from September-March, peaking from October to December. The females lays a clutch of between one and three white or cream eggs that are heavily marked with brown and grey, and which hatch after an incubation period of 14 days. Eggs are incubated solely by the female for about 14 days. The chicks are fed and brooded by both parents, leaving the nest after about 16-18 days.

Call
Series of nasal yapping notes sounding like Do you hear, do you hear, I'm here, here, here, the last 4 notes descending and drawn out. Listen to Bird Call.

Status
Common resident, especially in warmer subtropical regions. Sedentary and in pairs or small groups during non-breading season.

[Flutterby]

574. Yellow-bellied Greenbul Chlorocichla flaviventris (Afrikaanse Geelborswillie)

© Toko

© Dewi

© nan

Links:
Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
Sabap2
Newman's Birds of Southern Africa

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569. Terrestrial Brownbul Phyllastrephus terrestris (Boskrapper)
Order: Passeriformes. Family: Pycnonotidae

Terrestrial Brownbul Phyllastrephus terrestris.jpg (27.2 KiB) Viewed 920 times

Description
20-22 cm. A small to medium-sized, slender bulbul with a long, slender bill and a drab brown to olive green plumage. White throat, dark cheek, wine-red eyes and white eye ring are diagnostic. Above brown, lores dusky, washed rufous on tail. below white, washed greyish on flanks. Iris reddish brown to red; bill blackish horn, lower jaw sometimes paler; legs and feet slate grey.
Juvenile: Paler overall; wing feathers fringed rufous; iris washed greyish; bill pale horn.

Distribution
Occurs along the far eastern coast of Somalia, Kenya and Tanzania, Zambia to southern Africa. Here it is common across Zimbabwe, Mozambique, Caprivi Strip, northern and south eastern Botswana, Lesotho, Limpopo Province, Mpumalanga and the eastern coast of South Africa (from KwaZulu-Natal to the Western Cape). It is very inconspicuous and camouflaged, occupying the shadowy undergrowth of thickly vegetated habitats, such as evergreen and riparian forest.

Habitat
Shadowy undergrowth of thickly vegetated habitats, such as evergreen and riparian forest.

Diet
It mainly eats arthropods, probing and overturning leaf litter in search of prey. It also joins mixed-species foraging flocks, and may occasionally feed on Aloe nectar.

Breeding
Both sexes build the nest, which is a fragile and untidy cup of twigs, roots, leaves, moss, bark and lichen, lined with softer plant material. It is typically placed inconspicuously on a branch near the edge of a bush or thicket. Egg-laying season is from October-April, peaking from November-December. The females lays 2-3 eggs, which are incubated for roughly 13 days, by both sexes. The chicks are cared for by both parents, becoming independent a few days after fledging.

Call
Harsh churring chattering wak, wak, wakkity wakkity wakkity, kra-kra-kra, etc.; often calls in groups; song warbled wicherwer-wicherwer.

Status
Fairly common resident.

[Flutterby]

569. Terrestrial Brownbul Phyllastrephus terrestris

© Flutterby
Kruger National Park, Lake Panic

Links:
Species text in The Atlas of Southern African Birds
Sabap2
Newman's Birds of Southern Africa

[Toko]

The swallows and martins are a group of passerine birds in the family Hirundinidae which are characterised by their adaptation to aerial feeding. This family comprises two subfamilies: Pseudochelidoninae (the river martins of the genus Pseudochelidon) and Hirundininae (all other swallows and martins). Within the Old World, the name "martin" tends to be used for the squarer-tailed species, and the name "swallow" for the more fork-tailed species. The entire family contains around 83 species in 19 genera.
The genus Cecropis is frequently subsumed into the larger genus Hirundo. DNA studies suggest that there are three major groupings within the Hirundininae subfamily, broadly correlating with the type of nest built. The groups are the "core martins" including burrowing species like the Sand Martin, the "nest-adopters", with birds like the Tree Swallow which utilise natural cavities, and the "mud nest builders". The Cecropsis species construct a closed mud nest and therefore belong to the latter group. It is believed that the evolutionary sequence is from species that make open cup nests (Hirundo and Ptyonoprogne), through Delichon house martins with closed nests, to Cecropis and Petrochelidon, which have retort-like closed nests with an entrance tunnel.
The swallows and martins have an evolutionarily conservative body shape which is unlike that of other passerines. Swallows have adapted to hunting insects on the wing by developing a slender, streamlined body and long pointed wings, which allow great maneuverability and endurance, as well as frequent periods of gliding. Their body shape allows for very efficient flight, which costs 50–75% less for swallows than equivalent passerines of the same size. The wings are long, pointed, and have nine primary feathers. The tail has 12 feathers and may be deeply forked, somewhat indented, or square-ended. A long tail increases maneuverability, and may also function as a sexual adornment, since the tail is frequently longer in males. In Barn Swallows the tail of the male is 18% longer than those of the female, and females will select mates on the basis of tail length.
The legs are short, and their feet are adapted for perching rather than walking, as the front toes are partially joined at the base. Swallows are capable of walking and even running, but they do so with a shuffling, waddling gait.
The most common hirundine plumage is glossy dark blue or green above and plain or streaked underparts, often white or rufous. The chicks hatch naked and with closed eyes. Fledged juveniles usually appear as duller versions of the adult.
The swallows and martins have a worldwide cosmopolitan distribution, occurring on every continent except Antarctica. Many species have enormous worldwide ranges, particularly the Barn Swallow, which breeds over most of the Northern Hemisphere and winters over most of the Southern Hemisphere.
The family uses a wide range of habitats. They are dependent on flying insects and as these are common over waterways and lakes they will frequently feed over these, but they can be found in any open habitat including grasslands, open woodland, savanna, marshes, mangroves and scrubland, from sea level to high alpine areas.
Species breeding in temperate regions migrate during the winter when their insect prey populations collapse. Species breeding in more tropical areas are often more sedentary, although several tropical species are partial migrants or make shorter migrations.
Swallows are excellent flyers, and use these skills to feed and attract a mate. In general, the males select a nest site, and then attract a female using song and flight, and (dependent on the species) guard their territory. Outside of the breeding season some species may form large flocks, and species may also roost communally. This is thought to provide protection from predators.
For the most part swallows are insectivorous, taking flying insects on the wing. Species in Africa have been recorded eating the seeds of Acacia trees, and these are even fed to the young of the Greater Striped Swallow.
The more primitive species nest in existing cavities, for example in an old woodpecker nest, while other species excavate burrows in soft substrate such as sand banks. Swallows in the genera Hirundo, Ptyonoproggne, Cecropis, Petrochelidon and Delichon build mud nests close to overhead shelter in locations that are protected from both the weather and predators. The mud-nesters are most common in the Old World, particularly Africa, whereas cavity-nesters are the rule in the New World. Mud nesting species in particular are limited in areas of high humidity, which causes the mud nests to crumble. Mud nests are constructed by both males and females, and amongst the tunnel diggers the excavation duties are shared as well.
Pairs of mated swallows are monogamous, and pairs of non-migratory species often stay near their breeding area all year, though the nest site is defended most vigorously during the breeding season. Migratory species often return to the same breeding area each year, and may select the same nest site if they were previously successful in that location. Overall the contribution of male swallows towards parental care is the highest of any passerine bird.
The eggs of swallows tend to be white, although those of some mud-nesters are speckled. The average clutch size is around four to five eggs in temperate areas and two to three eggs in the tropics. The incubation duties are shared in some species, in others the eggs are incubated solely by the females. Even in species where the male does not incubate the eggs the male may sit on them when the female is away to reduce heat loss. Incubation stints last for 5–15 minutes and are followed by bursts of feeding activity. From laying, swallow eggs take between 10–21 days to hatch, with 14–18 days being more typical.

[Toko]

Family Hirundinidae (Swallows, Martins)
Psalidoprocne albiceps White-headed Saw-wing 913
Psalidoprocne pristoptera Black Saw-wing 536
Psalidoprocne orientalis Eastern Saw-wing 537
Pseudhirundo griseopyga Grey-rumped Swallow 531
Phedina borbonica Mascarene Martin, Mascarene Swallow 535
Riparia paludicola Brown-throated Martin 533
Riparia riparia Sand Martin 532
Riparia cincta Banded Martin 534
Hirundo rustica Barn Swallow 518
Hirundo angolensis Angola Swallow 519
Hirundo albigularis White-throated Swallow 520
Hirundo smithii Wire-tailed Swallow 522
Hirundo atrocaerulea Blue Swallow 521
Hirundo dimidiata Pearl-breasted Swallow 523
Ptyonoprogne fuligula Rock Martin 529
Delichon urbicum Common House Martin 530
Cecropis cucullata Greater Striped Swallow 526
Cecropis abyssinica Lesser Striped Swallow 527
Cecropis semirufa Red-breasted Swallow 524
Cecropis senegalensis Mosque Swallow 525
Cecropis daurica Red-rumped Swallow 904
Petrochelidon spilodera South African Swallow, South African Cliff Swallow 528

[Michele Nel]

536. Black Saw-wing Psalidoprocne pristoptera (Swartsaagvlerkswael)
Order: Passeriformes. Family: Hirundinidae

Black Saw-wing Psalidoprocne pristoptera.jpg (22.7 KiB) Viewed 930 times

Description
A small swallow at 13–15 cm length with a forked tail. Its plumage is black with greenish gloss (head, body and lesser and median upper coverts) to blackish brown (flight feathers and greater wing coverts). The bill is black, the eyes dark brown, and the legs and feet are purplish.
Sexes are similar, but the female has shorter outer tail feathers, and less obvious wing serrations.
Juveniles are brown with little gloss, and have short tails.

Taxonomy
12 subspecies accepted which are sometimes split in no fewer than 7 species:
P. p. petiti - Petit's Sawwing - from South-eastern Nigeria east to Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of Congo
P. p. chalybea - Shari Sawwing - from South-eastern Nigeria east to Central African Republic and Democratic Republic of Congo
P. p. pristoptera - Blue Sawwing - Eritrea, Ethiopia and Somalia
P. p. antinorii and P. p. blanfordi - Brown Sawwing - Ethiopia
P. p. oleaginea - Ethiopian Sawwing - South-western Ethiopia
P. p. mangbettorum - Mangbettu Sawwing - North-western Democratic Republic of Congo to South-western Sudan
P. p. orientalis and P. p. reichenowi - Eastern Sawwing - From Gabon and Angola east to Zambia, Tanzania, Zimbabwe and Mozambique
P. p. holomelas with ruwenzori and massaica - Black Sawwing - From Uganda to Kenya and Tanzania and south to South Africa

Distribution
Occurs across the DRC, Cameroon, northern Angola and Zambia, with separate populations in Ethiopia, Kenya to Tanzania and southern Africa. Here it is common in Swaziland, the southern Mozambique coast and the eastern escarpment and lowlands of South Africa, from Limpopo Province south to KwaZulu-Natal and down the coast to Cape Town.



Habitat
It generally favours fringes of montane, coastal and riparian forests, especially near watercourses or marshes. It also occupies edges of miombo (Brachystegia) woodland, valley bushveld and fynbos.

Movements and migrations
Intra-African breeding migrant, arriving in southern Africa around August-September and leaving around April - May. The location of its non-breeding grounds hasn't been confirmed, and there are still birds present from May-August, but it is quite scarce in this period.

Diet
It eats aerial arthropods, doing most of its foraging close to the ground in clearings between trees, flying slowly while hawking prey.

Breeding
Monogamous, usually solitary nester, although sometimes semi-colonial. Both sexes excavate the nest, which is a upwardly inclined burrow consisting of a long tunnel ending in a chamber, where a saucer-shaped nest of lichen and grass is constructed. It is usually dug into a riverbank, sandbank, erosion gulley, roof of Aardvark burrow, trench or road cutting, with the entrance often concealed by vegetation. Egg-laying season is from September - March, peaking around December. It lays 1-3 eggs, which are incubated for 14-15 days, although in East Africa it can be as long as 18 days. The chicks are fed by both parents, leaving the nest after at least 25 days.

[Michele Nel]

536. Black Saw-wing Psalidoprocne pristoptera (Swartsaagvlerkswael)


Subspecies Psalidoprocne pristoptera holomelaena

Links:
Species Text Sabap1
Sabap2
Biodiversity Explorer
Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Black_Saw-wing

[Toko]

531. Grey-rumped Swallow Pseudhirundo griseopyga (Gryskruisswael)
Order: Passeriformes. Family: Hirundinidae

Grey-rumped Swallow.jpg (37.45 KiB) Viewed 897 times

Description
Length about 14 cm. Sexes alike. Very small; build slender. Grey-brown cap and pale grey rump are diagnostic, but cap not easily seen in flight and rump may appear almost white.
Adult: Forehead, crown and nape brown, narrow buff edges to feathers giving slightly scaly appearance. Ear coverts darker brown, lores black, upper margins of both sometimes fringed by narrow, pale supercilium. Mantle and lower back glossy deep blue, mantle feathers with white bases (sometimes visible). Rump grey-brown, upper tail coverts darker, feathers fringed pale buff when fresh. Tail deeply forked, brownish black, with dull blue wash; rectrices fringed buff when fresh, abrading with wear. Scapulars and wing coverts deep blue. Flight feathers brownish black, with dull blue wash, undersides blackish grey; underwing coverts white. Underparts creamy white, chin to breast with pinkish wash when fresh (fading rapidly). Undertail blackish grey. Bill black. Eyes dark brown. Legs and feet pale to dark brown.
Juvenile: Above less metallic than adult, scaled dull whitish; rump browner; outer rectrices shorter; inner secondaries tipped buff.
Similar species: Juvenile Common House Martins are similar, but have a white rump and shallowly forked tail.

Distribution
Localised in West Africa, with the bulk of its population extending from Uganda through the eastern DRC, Zambia, Angola, Malawi and northern Mozambique to southern Africa. Here it is scarce to locally common in Zimbabwe, northern Botswana, extreme northern Namibia, southern Mozambique, Swaziland and the eastern areas of Limpopo Province, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal.



Habitat
It is most commonly seen over flood plains, expansive woodland clearings and short or burnt sandy grassland, especially near water. It also occurs in ploughed fields, bare ground at vlei edges and sports fields.

Movements and migrations
Mostly resident in northern Namibia, South Africa and Mozambique but partially migratory in Zimbabwe. here its generally much more scarce from October-April and can be completely absent during wet summers.

Diet
It eats aerial insects, especially flies (Diptera), termite alates and beetles (Coleoptera), usually foraging about 8 metres above ground, sometimes over open water. It often hawks prey flushed by tractors, fires and even military explosives.

Breeding
Monogamous, solitary or loosely colonial in groups of about 3-10 breeding pairs. The nest is an untidy platform built of dry grass, flower heads and stems, placed in a chamber at the end of a 0.6-1 m long tunnel. It usually uses old rodent burrows on bare ground, such as in burnt grassland, at the edge of pans and even on sports fields. It may also use a deserted Kingfisher or Little Bee-eater burrow. Egg-laying season is from April to November, peaking from June to August. The female lays 2-5 glossy white eggs, the shape of which may, vary even within a clutch from stumpy to long and pointed.

Call
Usually silent; in flight it utters a grating chraa.

Status
Locally common resident.

[Toko]

531. Grey-rumped Swallow Pseudhirundo griseopyga

© Michele Nel
Zambia

Links:
Species text Sabap1
Sabap2
Ian Sinclair, P. A. R. Hockey. The Larger Illustrated Guide to Birds of Southern Africa
A Handbook to the Swallows and Martins of the World. Angela Turner, Chris Rose