Hogsback.
This village is magnificently sited on the slopes of the Amatole Mountains, an hours drive from Grahamstown, and is an ideal setting for some splendid bird watching. Easy contour paths through the forest will bring you close to birds such as Forest Canary, Cinnamon Dove, Knysna Lourie, Grey Cuckooshrike, Chorister Robin and Forest Weaver. At dawn and dusk watch for the rare Cape Parrots that fly overhead to their roosts. Numbers of this parrot are believed to be less than 1000 in the wild, and it is on the endangered list. Check the bramble thickets in some of the hotel gardens for Barrett’s Warbler. To get there, take the N2 west from East London. At Bisho take the road to Fort Beaufort. After about 60kms turn right at the sign to Hogsback.
Addo Elephant National Park.
70 km north of Port Elizabeth, this park has a wide variety of habitats. Although mainly bush, there are also grasslands, forest, fynbos and karoo. Both eastern and western birds are found here. Around the rest camp look for sunbirds and Cape and Black-eyed Bulbul. The hide at the dam here has resident Black Crakes. The Nzipondo Loop has more open scrub vegetation and birds to look for here include Black Korhaan, Blue Crane, Green-spotted Dove, Karoo and White-browed Robin, Southern Black and Cape Penduline Tit, Southern Tchagra, Southern Boubou and Streaky-headed, Yellow-eyed and White-throated Canary. Stanley’s Bustard can be found in the grasslands on the Gorah Loop drive. Martial Eagle, Forest and Jackal Buzzard are all found in the park. Nearly 200 bird species have been recorded here. The park has good amenities, with an information center, shop, restaurant and accommodation. To access the park from Port Elizabeth, take the N2 east and exit at the R335 turn off. Go north to the villages of Addo then Coerney. Follow the signs from there in to the park.
PORT ELIZABETH AREA
Cape Recife
, situated on a headland at the southwestern tip of Algoa Bay, is the best place near Port Elizabeth to see marine and freshwater birds. Seven tern species can be found here and this is also the best place in Southern Africa to see Roseate Tern. In winter Antarctic Tern are common and during summer, Damara Tern are frequently sighted. The two sewerage reclamation ponds have good reed beds, and from the hide one can often see Black Crake, Purple Gallinule and Little Bittern. Walk down to the beach from here, as this is a good spot for waders. African Penguins and Cape Gannets can be seen out to sea. Cape Recife is signposted from Marine Drive 2.5 km south of Summerstrand. If you wish to take a vehicle into the reserve (it is a 2.5 km walk to the point from the entrance) a permit is required, obtainable from Pine Lodge Resort just before the entrance boom. Try to visit on a relatively windless day.
Swartkops Estuary.
15km north of Port Elizabeth, this estuary has extensive intertidal mud banks, salt marshes and saltpans. Close by are patches of dense valley bushveld vegetation. Birds commonly found on the mud flats include Terek Sandpiper, Sand Plover and Bar-tailed Godwit. Around the saltpans look for Greater and Lesser Flamingos, South African Shelduck, Cape Teal and African Spoonbill. In the bushveld, Southern Grey and Cape Penduline Tits, Bar-throated Apalis, Titbabbler, Long-billed Crombec, Southern Tchagra, Cape Batis and Southern Boubou are all present. To access this site, go north on the N2 and exit at the Swartkops sign. From the village take any right turn to the river. The best saltpan and bushveld birding is around Redhouse. Continue through Swartkops and turn left at the Redhouse sign.
The Island Forest Nature Reserve
25km from downtown Port Elizabeth, this indigenous coastal forest near Seaview is the best place in the area to see many of the forest specials. The best areas to bird here are around the picnic site, where one can expect to see Knysna Lourie, Cinnamon Dove, Olive Woodpecker, Cape Batis, Terrestrial Bulbul, Paradise Flycatcher and Forest Canary. Next to the gatehouse there is a steep trail that leads down in to the forest. Brown, Chorister and Starred Robin, Blue-mantled Flycatcher, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Forest Weaver and Collared and Grey Sunbird can be found here. To get to the park from Port Elizabeth take the N2 west to Cape Town. After 18km take the Seaview off ramp. The park is signposted 5km from the N2.
Rhodes and Naude’s Nek.
Rhodes is a small town nestling in the southern Drakenserg in the northern part of the Eastern Cape. It is an ideal place to stay when birding the area. Naude’s Nek is the best birding around here. It is the highest public road in South Africa and offers birders excellent opportunities to get to grips with higher altitude ‘alpine’ birds. The target species here include Grey-wing Francolin, Drakensberg Rock-jumper, Mountain and Yellow-breasted Pipit, and Drakensberg Siskin. The best birding time is early in the morning when they are moving around. Most of these birds can be seen from the car. Other birds to look for are Ground Woodpecker, Sentinel Rock Thrush, Layard’s Tit-Babbler, Fairy Flycatcher and Cape Bunting. Eight species of Chat are present, and in the moister areas Striped Flufftail can be found. Overhead watch for Jackal Buzzard, Cape and Bearded Vulture and Black Harrier. To get to Rhodes and Naude’s Nek, take the N6 from East London to Queenstown, the R359 to Elliot and then the R58 to Barkley East. From there take the R396 to Rhodes.