Move to Natal Midlands - New Horizons, New Birds

After leaving the farm I moved into the Natal Midlands where, for various reasons, I neglected Birding for a number of years. It was after a major setback and the onset of depression that I once again went to find tranquility in birds. This time I acquired the first of my collection of current Bird Field Guides, Roberts Birds of Southern Africa version V and a pair of binoculars.  I had the great privilege of living in an area very rich in Nature Reserves, Game reserves and Conservancies which made access to some of the best birding spots very easy. I became very frustrated at times when I found similar looking birds and could not positively identify them, especially in the Winter months. At the time, a set of tapes was released with bird calls by Guy Gibbon from Birdlife South Africa. Since the birding bug had now really manifested itself in me, I went out and equipped myself with a microphone, tape recorder, sound deflector and a set of Guy Gibbon's tapes. Later I was to acquire a telescope, a 35mm Camera with a 600mm reflex lens and then a VHS Camera.

When the first Atlassing Project started, I did not have enough confidence in my knowledge of birds and I never contributed towards the Project. It was enough for me to spend a day birding in one of the Reserves and return home with a list of 50 positively identified birds. Pretty soon my life list grew to 350 and I would return with daily lists of 120 to 130 species. I met a keen birder from the UK and together we explored many parts of the Natal Midlands. He visited with me every year for four years and together we would find out of the way venues where we would camp for a few days and explore the area. With his enthusiasm and assistance my list grew to close on 500 species.

There was a pair of Verreaux Eagles nesting in the hills just outside the town where I lived and I did a two year video project on them, over two breeding seasons. I accumulated about 100 hours of material on them. I would spend many hours on the hill about 12ft (4M) from their nest observing, photographing and taking videos of these amazing birds. I watched them hunting hyrax, guinea fowl and rabbits. I watched how they repaired their nest, lining it with fresh greenery before the breeding started.  When the eggs were close to hatching I would make my way up that hill twice a day in the hope of filming the cracking.