Knysna this, Knysna that: Birding South Africa's Garden Route

South Africa is home to nine different biomes, one of which is the coastal forests of the south coast; untouched, preserved and well and truly wild. This stretch of forest is also surrounded by patches of fynbos which in turn increases the variety of vegetation occurring in the area as well as the wildlife which occupy this vegetation-thus it was aptly named 'The Garden Route', however I like to think that this stretch was named such due to its uncanny resemblance to the text describing the biblical Garden of Eden. Thus when I found myself travelling the long two day trip down toward the town of George, one of the main attractions along the Garden Route, I couldn't help but feel as if I was about to go back to times biblical.

The Garden Route is home to some incredible biodiversity with both species of bird and amphibian being named after the town of Knysna, which some call the heart of the Garden Route. Any naturalist and nature enthusiast who plans a trip to this part of South Africa will immediatly start salivating at the sight of names along the likes of Knysna Turaco, Knysna Woodpecker, Knysna Warbler, Knysna Leaf Folding Frog and Knysna Seahorse to name but a few. Being privileged enough to have had stunning views of Knysna Turaco on many an occasion I had only four species left to finish off the 'Knysna specials' list and I had my sights set on the Warbler, Woodpecker and Leaf Folding Frog this time around, however this would prove somewhat of a challenge as the trip was more of a family orientated one than it was a biodiversity exploration trip, but nevertheless I kept my hopes and eagerness at an all time high! 

An African Black Oystercatcher in a hot territorial pursuit. 

We arrived in Plettenberg Bay to a stunning sunset and African Black Oystercatchers mere meters away from us on the rocks, patrolling the sharp edges for musscles with which they pry open with their specially designed chisel like bill. We settled in, unpacked our bags and hit the hay as the following morning would see me up bright and early in my quest to connect with the somewhat elusive Knysna Warbler which proved tricky to find last year (2014) during my Big Year and had in fact evaded my sights for all of nine years which I have been birding. 

Up and early it was and I was greeted by Dalene's spitting exhaust attached to her Opel Corsa at the front of our hotel, the exhaust fumes creating what looked to be like miniature clouds which soon dissipated in the cool morning air. Our destination for the morning was a small beach called Victoria Bay, a spot which is well known among local birders (and surfers!) as a Knysna Warbler hot spot and the locality where we hoped to pick up on at least one calling individual which we could then locate and get visuals on. 

Well not only did we manage to locate one individual calling but the minute the first bird started calling, with a few minutes to 7am, it triggered a whole choir of Knysna Warbler's into song with individuals calling from, what seemed to me to be like every bush! It was a truly remarkable experience being surrounded by a good few dozen of one of South Africa's most sought after endemics singing their little hearts out as they greeted the morning. We finally found a confiding pair which required minimal effort in order to obtain more than sufficient views and after one or two blurred photographs for proof we moved on toward the Saarsveld campus of the Nelson Mandela Metropolitan  University (NMMU) with Knysna Warbler in the figurative bag and Knysna Woodpecker in our sights. 

Perfect Knysna Warbler habitat lining the road sides around Victoria Bay

The Saarsveld campus of the NMMU is truly a remarkable one with breathtaking scenery and a fantastic environmentally friendly orientated campus life thanks to the help of the Campus Green Forum who help contribute toward the lessening of the campus' carbon footprint as well as the raising of awareness surrounding the areas fantastic biodiversity. Of course being nestled among gorgeous forest patches there are trails leading all over the place but one particular trail lead to a series of pools which was a well known spot for another species of Amphibian I had my eyes set on finding: the Southern Ghost Frog. 

Our hike into the surrounding forests commenced and we had fantastic views of Knysna Turaco, Grey Cuckooshrike, Southern Double-collared Sunbird, Cape Batis and Olive Woodpecker. We also picked up on the call of yet another Knysna Warbler (as Murphy would have it they were practically everywhere now that I had seen them!) but sadly as hard as we listened we couldn't hear any call resembling that of a Knysna Woodpecker, not even the characteristic wood 'pecking' associated with the family. 

It wasn't long before Dalene said "I think we're on the wrong path" and with that we back tracked our steps and took the other path which had forked off the original. A few minutes later and the process repeated itself with Dalene saying "I don't think we're on the right path" and so marked the beginning of our days inability to locate the famous "Pepsi Pools", home of the Ghost Frogs, but instead we practically dragged ourselves to the nearest shopping center to hydrate and consume copious amounts of artery clotting woolworths milkshakes. What I would classify as a success and a morning well spent! 

Southern Double-collared Sunbird

Cape Sugarbird

The following days were spent exploring areas around Plettenberg Bay and George, namely Natures Valley and Wilderness National Park respectively. Natures Valley was truly incredible as I spent the morning partaking in the art of bird ringing with the chaps from the Natures Valley Trust, Mark Brown explaining the ropes to a few volunteers and teaching me some handy tips here and there which I have no doubt I will be using in my future ringing endeavors. Some of the species we caught and successfully banded included Orange-breasted Sunbird, Southern and Greater Double-collared Sunbirds, Cape Sugarbird, Cape Batis, Forest Canary, Cape White-eye and Cape Robin-chat. 

Knysna Turaco

Wilderness National Park also proved fruitful and exploration of the Half-collared Kingfisher trail produced great sightings of Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher, Yellow-throated Woodland Warbler and Knysna Turaco. But sadly with all the walking we did, all the sore muscles gained and all the sweat we couldn't manage to find a Knysna Woodpecker and to add insult to injury upon my departure back home I received a message from Dalene telling me that the Knysna Leaf Folding Frogs had been sighted and were in full song back on Saarsveld. 

....even more reason for me to return to this incredible part of South Africa!