TENTH NYLSVLEY WOODLAND CENSUS, 29 January 2009
The tenth successive mid-summer census of Nylsvley’s woodland birds took place on Saturday 29 January 2009. It was a well supported occasion: 87 people participated in the count, with three teams from the Bosveldvoëlklub, six from the Naboomspruit Voëlklub and the remainder from the ranks of the Witwatersrand Bird Club and Friends of Nylsvley.

The Limpopo Parks & Tourism Board sponsored the Friday night dinner (a banquet actually!!) and the Witwatersrand Bird Club sponsored Saturday evening’s event and a big thank-you is extended to them, and to all the good people who participated in various ways, from cooking to counting; also to the reserve management for providing free access and for mowing the routes before the census.

On the ground, conditions were good for counting birds ... after a couple of prior days of intermittent drizzle, the census morning remained overcast, but rain-free. Given the good turn-out, the routes were well-manned this year - in fact 23 routes were counted as opposed to the normal 18.

As in previous years, teams were assigned to counting the birds they encountered (seen or heard; between 06h00 and 08h00 only) along these predetermined routes in the Acacia-, Burkea- and Combretum-dominated woodlands. This year, seven routes were covered in the Acacia and Combretum, and nine in the Burkea, and an adjustment was made in the final figures to bring each count to 6 so as to facilitate comparing the data collected with that from previous years. One new species (Barn Owl) was added to the growing woodland bird total (now 191 species), and a total of 128 species and 2706 birds (the adjusted total) was counted. This is down on the 10-year average (131 species and 3172 birds). As in previous years, a couple of the species recorded have not been included in the totals, pending their confirmation.


Of special interest this year were the highest-yet counts made of Swainson’s Francolin (104), Crested Barbet (63), Helmeted Guineafowl (65), Dark-capped Bulbul (31), White-browed Scrub Robin (69) and Cinnamon-breasted Bunting (57). By contrast swift and swallow numbers hit an all-time low (54 counted compared with average of 273, perhaps because of the overcast weather?) and there were very few queleas about (45 counted compared with average of 575); these two gaps accounted for the lower-than average grand total.

The “top- 10" species in terms of numbers remains in the same ball-park as previous years: Cape Turtle Dove (181 counted; average=179); Cattle Egret (170; ave=109); Grey Lourie (106; ave=102); Swainson’s Francolin (104; ave=64); Rattling Cisticola (101; ave=81); Cape Glossy Starling (95; ave=66); Arrow-marked Babbler (78; ave=62); White-browed Scrub Robin (69; ave=38); Helmeted Guineafowl (65; ave=42); Neddicky (60; ave=48).

A pdf file is attached which tables the 10-year totals for the top 55 woodland species on Nylsvley and their relative abundances in the Acacia, Burkea and Combretum woodlands; the tables also provides the summer’s rainfall each year, as it was at the end of January (when the censuses were done each year).

Those interested can compute these data in various ways if they wish. The expanded 10-year data set (comprising nearly 10 000 entries!) will be made available as a spreadsheet on the Friends of Nylsvley website.

Warwick Tarboton
7 February 2009