African paradise flycatcher (Paradysvlieëvanger)

Scientific name: Terpsiphone viridis

The African paradise flycatcher is a common resident breeder in Africa south of the Sahara Desert. This species is usually found in open forests and savannah habitats and in river and coastal forest, gardens and exotic plantations.
The African paradise flycatcher is a medium-sized passerine bird with a very long tail. The adult male is about 17 cm long, but the very long tail streamers double this. It has a black head, neck and underparts, and chestnut wings and tail. There is a prominent white wingbar. The female has a browner tint to the underparts and lacks the wingbar and tail streamers. Young birds are similar to the female but duller.
This bird feeds mainly on insects and builds a tiny cup nest in a tree where two or three eggs are laid.

Cape siskin (Kaapse pietjiekanarie)

Scientific name: Crithagra totta

The Cape siskin averages 13 cm in length. The flight feathers and tail have white spots on the tips which are diagnostic for both sexes, and especially visible in flight. The adult male has a light brown back, wing coverts, rump and upper tail and yellow underparts. The head, nape and sides of neck are yellowish grey and olive. Fine dark brown streaks are most prominent on the head and the sides of the throat. The female is similar but duller; she lacks grey on the head and has more streaking on the face and breast.
This locally common but shy and unobtrusive siskin is endemic to South Africa, specifically occurring in the Cape Fold Mountains in the Western and Eastern Cape. It generally prefers fynbos on mountains and in valleys, also occupying clearings in mountain forest patches, fringes of succulent Karoo, edges of pine plantations and village gardens.
It mainly eats seeds and buds either taken from bare patches of ground or directly from grasses and shrubs.

Spotted thick-knee (Gewone dikkop)

Scientific name: Burhinus capensis

The upper parts of the body and wings have brown, white and black splotches. Wings are brown and grey, tipped with black and have white edges surrounding them. The underpart and the mid throat of the bird is white, and the breast is light brown with black streaks. Green-grey long legs. It hasa short, yellow and brown beak, brownish black streaks on head and back, dark brown streak appears from under the eye to the ear covers and a white streak stretches below the eye to the cheek. White feathers surround the eyes.
 In southern Africa it is fairly common across much of the region, largely excluding Lesotho, southern Namibia and central and northern Mozambique. It generally prefers open habitats, especially savanna and grassland but also woodland fringes, low stony hills and urban habitats, such as parks, playing fields and parks.
It mainly eats insects, doing most of its foraging in a plover-like manner, repeatedly running forward, stopping then jabbing prey with its bill.

Ground woodpecker (Grondspeg)

Scientific name: Geocolaptes olivaceus

The ground woodpecker is the largest woodpecker in the region, reaching 30 cm in length. The upper parts are greyish-brown with pale spotting, and the rump is red, more visible in flight. The upper sides of wings and tail are brown barred with white. The underparts are buff, flushed with pink or red. The underside of the tail is pale brown, barred with paler colour. The beak is black, long and slender, the irises pink or yellow, and the legs grey.
The ground woodpecker (Geocolaptes olivaceus) is one of only three ground-dwelling woodpeckers in the world (the others are the Andean and Campo flickers). It inhabits rather barren, steep, boulder-strewn slopes in relatively cool hilly and mountainous areas of South Africa, Lesotho and Swaziland and has yet to be recorded outside of Southern Africa.
It is highly specialized, as ants form approximately 99% of its diet, digging up subsurface ant nests and licking them up with its sticky tongue. It eats so many ants that it can decrease the ant population in its area by as much as 25-50%

Red-billed teal (Rooibekeend)

Scientific name: Anas erythrorhyncha 

The red-billed teal is 43–48 centimetres long and has a blackish cap and nape, contrasting pale face, and bright red bill. The body plumage is a dull dark brown scalloped with white. Flight reveals that the secondary flight feathers are buff with a black stripe across them. The sexes are similar, but juveniles are duller than adults.
The Red-billed teal is the most common duck in South Africa. It lives in inland wetlands, artificial or natural, breeding in temporary pans and dams. It is nomadic, rapidly locating new temporary pans and vleis, rarely moving more than 250 km.
It feeds mainly on seeds, with smaller quantities of animals. It usually forages in the early morning and early evening, normally by swimming with its head submerged, picking up food as it goes a long. It also up-ends dabbles and picks animals off vegetation.

Rock martin (Kransswael)

Scientific name: Hirundo fuligula

It is 12–15 cm (4.7–5.9 in) long, with mainly brown plumage, paler-toned on the upper breast and underwing coverts, and with white "windows" on the spread tail in flight. The sexes are similar in appearance.
In southern Africa it is common in most of South Africa and Namibia, with smaller populations in southern and northern Botswana, Zimbabwe and northern Mozambique. As its name suggests it prefers rocky habitats, especially cliffs, quarries, boulder-strewn hills and buildings.
It exclusively eats flying insects, mainly hunting around neon lights or over beaches at low tide. It also hawks prey disturbed by ploughs or fires and is commonly observed feeding at termite alate emergences.

Cape grassbird (Grasvoël)

Scientific name: Sphenoeacus afer

The Cape grassbird is 17 to 19 centimetres (6.7 to 7.5 in) long and weighs around 30 grams (1.1 oz) Its crown and face sides are rufous, except for white around the eye, and it has black malar and moustachial stripes on its white throat. The upperparts are brown with heavy streaking and the long tail is a lighter brown while the underparts are whitish with blackish spotting. The long, pointed, straggly tail, chestnut cap and facial stripes are diagnostic of Cape grassbird. The sexes are similar.
Endemic to southern Africa, with the bulk of its population in the Western Cape, Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho, Swaziland and Lempopo Province.
 It generally prefers habitats with restios, rank grasses or ferns, such as fynbos and grassland.
It mainly eats insects, such as beetles, grasshoppers and caterpillars, doing most of its foraging on the ground beneath vegetation.

Water thick-knee (Waterdikkop)

Scientific name: Burhinus vermiculatus

In contrast to the Spotted thick-knee with its spotted appearance, the Water thick-knee has a  brown, white and black streaky appearance with a pale grey panel on the folded wing, upwards delimited by white and dark. Notice also the face pattern with broad white from base of bill to below eye, dark malar and white chin and throat.
Within southern Africa it is locally common in Zimbabwe, patches of Mozambique, eastern and southern South Africa, northern and eastern Botswana and northern Namibia (including the Caprivi Strip).
It generally prefers freshwater wetlands, especially dams, lakes and large rivers but also mangroves, estuaries and open banks.
It mainly eats insects, other invertebrates, frogs and tadpoles, doing most of its foraging in a plover-like manner, repeatedly running forward a bit before pausing and jabbing at prey.

Peregrine falcon (Swerfvalk)

Scientific name: Falco peregrinus

The back and the long pointed wings of the adult are usually bluish black to slate grey with indistinct darker barring (see "Subspecies" below); the wingtips are black. The white to rusty underparts are barred with thin clean bands of dark brown or black. The tail, coloured like the back but with thin clean bars, is long, narrow, and rounded at the end with a black tip and a white band at the very end. The top of the head and a "moustache" along the cheeks are black, contrasting sharply with the pale sides of the neck and white throat. The cere is yellow, as are the feet, and the beak and claws are black. The upper beak is notched near the tip, an adaptation which enables falcons to kill prey by severing the spinal column at the neck. The immature bird is much browner with streaked, rather than barred, underparts, and has a pale bluish cere and orbital ring.
It can be found in every continent of the world excluding Antarctica, with some sub-species that are resident and with others that are migratory.
In southern Africa it is generally uncommon and localised in Namibia, northern and eastern Botswana, Zimbabwe, western Mozambique and South Africa. It generally favours riverine, mountainous or coastal environments, especially with high cliffs, used for roosting and hunting. Dam walls, quarries and the tall buildings of city centres can also fulfil this purpose.
It eats mainly birds, supplemented with bats and flying insects, catching all of its prey aerially. It does most of its hunting in the vicinity of a cliff or another tall structure, either hunting from a perch near the top or from high up in the air, so that it can single out an individual; once it has done so it dives almost vertically and, due to its aerodynamic shape, can attain speeds of over 300km/hr! It strikes its prey with its talons at this speed (killing it instantly), or if it misses it may give pursuit for over two kilometres before returning to a perch to feed, if the hunt was successful. It sometimes flies close to the cliff face to flush birds and then chase them, and it may even rob the nests of cliff-nesting birds. On the whole about a quarter of its hunts are successful, based on two different South African studies.
Near-threatened in South Africa.

Familiar chat (Gewone spekvreter)

Scientific name: Cercomela familiaris

The familiar chat is a dumpy short-tailed bird 14–15 cm (5.5–5.9 in) long. The adult’s upperparts are a dull brown with warmer brown ear coverts behind the eye. The underparts vary from off-white to pale grey-brown, and the rump and outer tail feathers are rufous with a dark brown tip. The central tail feathers are dark brown. The short straight bill and the legs and feet are black. The sexes are alike, but the juvenile is similar to the adult but has buff spots above and a scaly pattern on the breast.
 It is common across Namibia, South Africa, Zimbabwe, south-eastern Botswana and north-western Mozambique, generally preferring boulder-strewn mountain slopes, rocky outcrops, valley hills, open woodland along drainage lines, woodland, farmyards and rural gardens.
It mainly eats invertebrates, which it catches using a variety of foraging techniques, often pouncing on prey on the ground from a perch or hawking insects aerially. It also gleans food from leaves and branches while hovering or chasing small arthropods on the ground; it may even forage in the intertidal zone, perching on kelps or seaweed.

Karoo prinia, Spotted prinia (Karoolangstertjie)

Scientific name: Prinia maculosa

The Karoo prinia has short rounded wings, a longish tail, strong legs and a short straight black bill. The head has a whitish eyebrow and the upperparts are otherwise brown. The throat and lower face are whitish with dark streaking and the rest of the underparts are yellowish white or yellow with distinct black streaking. The long tail has a dark spot near the end and is typically cocked up at an angle. The feet and legs are pinkish-brown, and the eye is dark brown. The sexes are identical, but juveniles are much yellower below than the adults and less heavily streaked.
Endemic to southern Africa, occurring from the extreme south of Namibia to the Northern, Western and Eastern Cape, extending into the Free State and Lesotho. It is common to locally very common, preferring shrubland such as fynbos, Karoo scrub and renosterveld but also occupying gardens, thickets of alien Acacia trees and strandveld.
It eats a variety of small invertebrates, gleaning them from the leaves and stems of bushes.

Southern boubou (Suidelike waterfiskaal)

Scientific name: Laniarius ferrugineus

The male southern boubou is a bird with black upperparts extending from the top of the head down to the tail, a striking white wing stripe, and a relatively long black tail with white outer feathers. The underparts are white shading to rufous on the lower belly, undertail and flanks. The bill, eyes and legs are black. The female is similar to the male, but dark grey above and with a rufous wash to the breast. Young birds are like the female, but mottled buff-brown above, have a buff wash to the wing bar, and are barred below.
Unlike the true shrikes, which perch conspicuously in the open, the southern boubou prefers to forage in dense vegetation close to the ground, a habit which has led to its being called shy
 It occupies a wide variety of woodland habitats, as well as coastal thickets, riverine scrub, alien tree plantations and suburban gardens.
Highly adaptable, it eats a variety of animals and occasionaly plants, most of which are caught on the ground. It also gleans insects off leaves and bark and occasionally hawks flying insects.

White-fronted plover (Vaalstrandkiewiet)

Scientific name: Charadrius marginatus

The white-fronted plover two sexes differ slightly in plumage coloration. Adult male plovers show a white forecrown and supercilium, with a dark band crossing the mid crown, with the rest of the crown a sandy grey colour. The face is mainly white, with a blackish brown stripe running from behind the eye to the ear coverts. The mantle, back, and rump is light greyish brown, with pale brown to grey fringing feathers. The upper covert and central feathers of the tail are black, and the lateral feathers are white. Primaries and secondaries are dark brown with with white shafts, bases, and inner webs. White-fronted plovers also have a pale dusky-brown lateral patch on the upper breast, and white underparts, occasionally with a washed chestnut lower breast and upper belly. The eyes are brown, the bill is black, and the legs are pale grey, green-grey, or pale green/olive. Adult females have a similar appearance to adult males, however the black crown band is less defined and not as thick, and may even be absent in some cases.
In southern Africa it is one of the most common birds along the coastline.  It generally prefers sandy shores, coastal shores, estuaries and the sandy margins of rivers and lakes, while inland it favours wetlands with extensive mudflats and saline pans.
It mainly eats insects and aquatic invertebrates, foraging by day and night using the  typical technique of plovers, running, stopping then searching for prey to pluck from the ground, then repeating the process. It also stands while trembling its feet in the substratum, which disturbs invertebrates for it to catch.

Southern grey-headed sparrow (Gryskopmossie)

Scientific name: Passer diffusus

 It is sometimes treated as a subspecies of the grey-headed sparrow. It is found in savanna and woodland in Angola and Zambia southwards into South Africa, where it is expanding its range.
 It generally prefers savanna woodland, especially with Acacia, also occupying dry broad-leaved woodland, plantation edges, cultivated land and gardens. It has adapted to the modification of habitats by humans, causing its range to expand as far south as Betty's Bay in the Western Cape.
It eats seeds, fruit, nectar and insects, doing most of its foraging on the ground, often in flocks with other granivorous birds.

Protea canary (Witvlerkkanarie)

Scientific name: Crithagra leucopterus

The protea canary is 15–16 cm in length with a large pale bill. The adult has grey-brown upperparts, a black chin, white throat and two thin buff wing bars. The underparts are buff with light streaking. The sexes are similar, but young birds are more heavily streaked below than the adults. The call of the protea canary is a trilled tree-lee-loo or a sweet. The song is a loud medley of warbles and trills, with much mimicry.
It is an endemic resident breeder in the Western Cape Province, South Africa. This species is found in mature protea scrub, tangled valley thickets and forests in the mountains of the Western Cape. Generally resident and sedentary, although it makes local movements in response to fire and the flowering and fruiting patterns of fynbos plants.
It mainly eats the seeds of fynbos plants, doing most of its foraging on the ground in the foliage of shrubs and trees. It tends to be found singly or in pairs, or occasionally in small groups. It is a shy and retiring bird which stays in thick vegetation. When it flies, it soon dives back into cover.

Speckled mousebird (Gevlekte muisvoël)

Scientific name: Colius striatus 

 The speckled mousebird (Colius striatus) is the largest species of mousebird, as well as one of the most common. It is well-named, because it is dull-mousy brown in overall color on the back and on the head (including a prominent crest). The bill is black on the upper part and is a pinkish color on the lower part.The speckled mousebird is not known for its voice, as songbirds are, although it is a noisy creature. They make a warbling tsu-tsu call while in flight, and are known for their tisk-tisk alarm call while in flight

The Speckled mousebird is common in South Africa and Mozambique, where it is common in suburban gardens. It is highly adaptable, and can be found in many types of habitats. It feeds on a wide variety of plant matter, especially fruit but also flowers, nectar, leaves, buds and dead bark. It usually forages in the mid to upper tree canopy, often in groups of 5-20 birds.

Yellow-billed kite (Geelbekwou)

Scientific name: Milvus aegyptius

As suggested by its name, the yellow-billed kite is easily recognized by its entirely yellow bill, unlike that of the black kite.
Occurs across sub-Saharan Africa; in southern Africa it is common across much of the region, largely excluding the Karoo, Kahalari and Namib Desert. It can be found in a wide variety of habitats, but it especially favours woodland and rural areas (with a high human population).
It eats a wide variety of animals, typically searching for prey aerially; it uses the style of flight characteristic of kites, as it swivels its tail horizontally to steer accurately. Once it spots something, it rapidly swoops to the ground to catch the prey item.

Laughing Dove (Rooiborsduif)

Scientific name: Streptopelia senegalensis

In southern Africa it is extremely common and widespread, occupying woodland, farmland, suburban parks, Acacia plantations and gardens.
The laughing dove is a long-tailed, slim pigeon, typically 25 cm (9.8 in) in length. It is pinkish brown on the underside with a lilac tinged head and neck. The head and underparts are pinkish, shading to buff on the lower abdomen. A chequered rufous and grey patch is found on the sides of the neck and are made up of split feathers. The upper parts are brownish with a bluish-grey band along the wing. The African populations senegalensis and phoenicophila have a bluish grey rump and upper tail coverts. The tail is graduated and the outer feathers are tipped in white.
Eats mainly seeds, as well as small fruit, bulbs and insects, doing most of its foraging on the ground.

Hadeda ibis (Hadeda)

Scientific name: Bostrychia hagedash

The hadeda is a large (about 76 cm long), grey-to-partly brown species of ibis. It has a narrow, white, roughly horizontal stripe across its cheeks. This is sometimes called the "moustache" though it does not reach the mouth corners. The plumage over the wings has an iridescent purple sheen. The bird has blackish legs and a large grey-to-black bill with a red stripe on the upper mandible. The upper surfaces of the toes are of a similar red. The wings are powerful and broad, enabling quick take-offs and easy manoeuvring through dense tree cover.
It generally prefers open grassland with well-wooded valleys and patches of dense woodland, also occurring in clearings in forest, marshes with short grass, moist grassland, irrigated croplands with lucerne and clover (Medicago), playing fields, pastures, airfields and lawns in suburbia.

It mainly eats invertebrates, doing most of its foraging on moist ground, probing for prey or taking them from the soil surface.

Malachite sunbird (Jangroentjie)

Scientific name: Nectarinia famosa

The breeding male malachite sunbird, which has very long central tail feathers, is 25 cm long, and the shorter-tailed female 15 cm. The adult male is metallic green when breeding, with blackish-green wings with small yellow pectoral patches. In non-breeding (eclipse) plumage, the male's upperparts are brown apart from the green wings and tail, the latter retaining the elongated feathers. The underparts in eclipse plumage are yellow, flecked with green.
Here it occurs along the West coast of South Africa bordering on Namibia, extending east through the Eastern Cape and Lesotho to KwaZulu-Natal, Mpumalanga and the Limpopo Province. It occurs in a variety of habitats, ranging from alpine and montane grasslands to scrubby hillsides in mountainous areas, as well as in arid steppes of Namaqualand, riverine thornbush, gardens, parks and alien plantations.
Its diet is mainly made up of nectar supplemented with small Arthropods. It usually forages singly or in pairs, but it may aggregate in groups of over 100 at localised food sources.