Open Writing

Johannesburg was established in 1886 when a chance discovery led to one of the biggest gold rushes in the world. Growing from a rough mining camp on the bleak Highveld, as these cold highlands came to be called, with little tree cover except for isolated clumps of indigenous trees and bushes, it is now the biggest man-made forest in the world.

Consequently, the numbers and types of birds attracted to this variegated habitat have changed dramatically and with the loss of much of the former environment many of the grassland species formerly dependent on the local flora and fauna have disappeared.

Instead, they have been replaced by arboreal species, many of which now live permanently in the suburban gardens or are summer visitors from the warmer areas of the country.

As an example, rodents are the main food source for Little Grass Owls which formerly were endemic to the Highveld grasslands. The mice feed on seeds and as their environment has changed the owls now feed on the rodents attracted to the grain and maize spilt from the trucks delivering their cargoes to the local silos. As ground feeders these owls are frequently killed by speeding traffic. Attempts are being made to curb this destruction by erecting signboards warning road-users of the presence of the birds as their predation is essential in rodent control, but statistics have yet to show if this measure has been successful.

On the other hand, many Lowveld species have migrated to the Highveld along the water-courses and it is no longer a surprise to see even the most unusual visitors perched on the bird-table enjoying a morsel or two. Beautiful glossy blue starlings are common - whereas 20 years ago they were unknown in Johannesburg. Brown Hadedahs - a member of the Ibis family together with their cousins the Sacred Ibis and Egyptian Geese, live in most gardens.

I have two species of Barbet who visit my bird table four to five times a day, and there is a flock of mousebirds living in the trees a biscuit's throw from my door. In fact, they are quite a nuisance as they eat the leaves and growing tips of winter seedlings when green food is scarce. Keen gardeners dislike them, as they make growing sweetpeas and African daisies a major undertaking, but amazingly, I've found that even after a few weeks of constant nibbling, the plants recover and the spring show of bloom is often better for the frequent pruning.

My garden has the following species as daily visitors and residents: Glossy Starlings, Hadehahs, Egyptian Geese, Speckled Mousebirds, Laughing Doves, Grey Louries, Lesser Masked Weavers, Black Throated Barbet, Crested Barbet, Redeyed Bulbul and Fiscal Shrikes.

Several Kurrichane Thrushes thrive here together with the Cape Robins who cock an enquiring eye in my direction whenever they see me, while a Common Shrike is so tame it will take morsels of cheese from my hand. It keeps an eye on my every movement and arrives for a feed within minutes of my appearance.

Two tame Laughing Doves who ask for their daily seed which they know I regularly place in a secluded spot away from the rapacious pigeons and are quiet but insistent visitors. Pied Crows are often seen circling overhead and occasionally a Grey Heron flies over on his way to the local dam, while in our dry, mild winters we have resident Plovers who stay over to breed. A few weeks later the African Hoepoe is seen probing for insects in the lawn and nearby around the many smaller water features in the complex Grey Wagtails dart about catching the tiny insects attracted by the moving water. Pied Starlings and the introduced Indian Mynahs are also a constant threat to local birds with their terrorist attacks.

Summer visitors are Bokmakierie [Telophorus zeylonus], Red Billed Weaver, Red Bishop, Piet-my-Vrou [Cuculus Solitarius], European Swifts and House Martins. In warmer suburbs to the north of Johannesburg European Bee-eaters as well as Red-billed Wood-hoopoes and the Lesser Sugarbirds are often seen. The Cape White-eye is another seasonal visitor and Blacksmith Plovers regularly breed down by the small dams which now boast a small but growing population of Moorhens, a Darter and a pair of African Black Duck.

Another interesting visitor is the Three-Banded or Slender Mongoose, which has often been glimpsed around the swimming pool and near the small stream which bisects the property while Vervet Monkeys have lived on the other side of the slight rise for many years, although it is anybody’s guess what they find to live on in these densely populated and highly trafficked suburban neighbourhoods.

With the summer on its way, I was delighted to hear the deep-throated bellow of a bull-frog this evening. Perhaps he knows more than we humans do, and is heralding the approach of the summer rains?

These days with the world and all its problems pressing so pressing living alongside these small creatures of the suburban environment is wonderfully relaxing and one of my greatest pleasures.