Birding

Do you have a birding list? Do you know what a Vagrant or Special is in birding terms? Then the President Paul Kruger Guest Lodge in Rustenburg, South Africa, is just the place to be. With many avid birdwatchers in the current owner’s family, it was easy to identify the 129 bird species on the property, including the African Green Pigeon (Treron calvus) and Brown-hooded Kingfisher (Halcyon albiventris).

Is the Tree Pipit (Anthus trivialis) on your Life List? The President Paul Kruger Guest Lodge is less than ten kilometres from the entrance to the Kgaswane Mountain Reserve, where you might see them. A Special, the White-backed Night-Heron (Gorsachius leuconotus), was seen at the Pilanesberg National Park, and the park is a comfortable 45-minute drive from the President Paul Kruger Guest Lodge.    

Are you a BirdLifer? BirdLife Rustenburg is affiliated with BirdLife South Africa and passionate about the region’s birds. Connect with the group before you visit, and you might add something to your own list.

We don’t just have wild birds on the property. Cocks crow at sunrise – and sometimes before sunrise when they get confused – to welcome the many sunny days we have in Rustenburg. A gander (male goose) herds his flock of chickens, and when the cocks fight, he steps between them to keep the peace. On many afternoons wild White-faced whistling ducks (Dendrocygna viduata) join the geese and Muscovy duck pair on one of the property’s dams.