Birds of Botswana

I would love to tell you the name of all of the birds in the pictures below. However, there were so many different species of birds that I am not even able to begin to tell you all of them. I personally can identify the ostrich, the yellow billed and red billed hornbills, the guinea fowl, the Kori Bustard, and the pelican. To say this was even 5% of what we saw within the bird world would be a gross understatement.

One day when we were resting in our tents, I decided to record the sound of the red billed hornbill. I think I confused the bird who made the call because I played it back inside my tent. I wanted to make sure it was a good recording because at the time I didn’t know what bird was making that sound. My intention was to play it for Scotty and Annelies, so they could identify it for me. As I listened to my recording to make sure it was clear enough, the bird outside continued making calls, and my, were they loud!

I shared the audio at the conclusion of nap time, and Annelies let me know hornbills are pretty territorial. She said I was likely confusing and maybe angering the hornbill by playing my recording. I didn’t want to stress the hornbill anymore, but I’m sharing the call with you! Just make sure there are no hornbills around when you play it 🤪.

The bird in the featured photo is called a Saddle-billed Stork. Its beak has a yellow patch on it that looks like a saddle. At any rate, watching it hunt was amazing. The bird would walk through the water flapping its wings. The wing flapping helped to get the hidden animals in the water moving away from hiding spots. Once the animals began their escape, the Saddle-billed Stork would strike.

Jenny, Mark, and I hoped to see a kill in the wild. We aren’t masochistic, but with it as a part of nature, we wanted a first hand experience (from afar). Almost all the kills happened by birds. That probably was best as I’m sure my nighttime sleeping would have been further hindered by a massive show. The Saddle-billed Stork scored a meal, and another random bird caught a butterfly mid-air. It was unbelievably skilled, and I talked about it for a long time.

I had so many favorites: lilac breasted roller and the hornbills topped the list. However, the guinea fowl were the absolute best. They could fly, but most of the time they were running everywhere. I imagine their instinct might have been fear, but I always had a smile on my face when we would meet them on the side of the road.

Finally, we had the opportunity to look at a bird’s nest up close. Scotty told us the name, but I forgot to write it down. I believe it is the Southern Masked Weaver’s handiwork, but I’m not 100% sure.

We learned birds can take over abandoned nests, birds can build nests on one side of a tree, and birds can build nests on top of nests. If you can’t tell from this article, the variety of birds you’ll find within the Botswana could keep you on Safari for years. I think if I return, I’ll invest in the best binoculars and an amazing guidebook. I know I won’t be disappointed.