Roseate Tern Chase.
I still needed the Roseate Tern for my life list. So when it was announced on the Rare Bird Alert on Sunday that the bird was seen in Mauritz Bay, I just had to try and see it. I could only get away on Thursday, and knew that the chances are slim that it would still be there.
Mauritz Bay or better known as Jacobs Bay is about 100 Km from Cape Town on the West Coast. Travelling from Saldanha to Vredenburg look for the turnoff to your left.
We arrived at Mauritz bay about 11:00. After I set up my telescope on the Tern Roost, I managed to see 4 Roseate Terns, three of them juveniles. Very happy that I saw my lifer I scanned again and found Common Terns, Sandwich Terns and lots of Antartic Terns in full breeding colours.
Mauritz Bay must be one of the most reliable sites to see the Antartic Tern this time of the year.
We then birded the area before returning home.
( We managed to see 55 birds ).
Below you will find some photos of birds that I managed to photograph during the day. Also some photo’s to show you what Jacob’s Bay looks like.
I still needed the Roseate Tern for my life list. So when it was announced on the Rare Bird Alert on Sunday that the bird was seen in Mauritz Bay, I just had to try and see it. I could only get away on Thursday, and knew that the chances are slim that it would still be there.
Mauritz Bay or better known as Jacobs Bay is about 100 Km from Cape Town on the West Coast. Travelling from Saldanha to Vredenburg look for the turnoff to your left.
We arrived at Mauritz bay about 11:00. After I set up my telescope on the Tern Roost, I managed to see 4 Roseate Terns, three of them juveniles. Very happy that I saw my lifer I scanned again and found Common Terns, Sandwich Terns and lots of Antartic Terns in full breeding colours.
Mauritz Bay must be one of the most reliable sites to see the Antartic Tern this time of the year.
We then birded the area before returning home.
( We managed to see 55 birds ).
Below you will find some photos of birds that I managed to photograph during the day. Also some photo’s to show you what Jacob’s Bay looks like.
Birds Seen
African Black Oystercatcher, African Pipit African, Sacred Ibis,
Antarctic Tern, Bar-throated Apalis, Black-headed Heron,
Black-shouldered Kite, Blacksmith Lapwing, Bokmakierie,
Brimstone Canary, Brown-throated Martin, Cape Bulbul, Cape Canary,
Cape Cormorant, Cape Robin-Chat, Cape Sparrow, Cape Spurfowl,
Cape Wagtail, Cape Weaver, Common Buzzard, Common Fiscal,
Common Starling, Common Tern, Crowned Cormorant, Crowned Lapwing Egyptian Goose, Grey Heron, Grey-backed Cisticola, Hadeda Ibis,
Hartlaub's Gull, House Sparrow, Jackal Buzzard, Karoo Prinia, Kelp Gull Laughing Dove, Malachite Sunbird, Pied Crow Pied, Starling,
Red-capped Lark, Red-eyed Dove, Rock Dove, Rock Kestrel, Roseate Tern Sandwich Tern, Southern Double-collared Sunbird, Speckled Mousebird Speckled Pigeon, Spotted Thick-knee, Spur-winged Goose, Streaky-headed Seedeater, White-backed Mousebird, White-breasted Cormorant ,
White-fronted Plover, White-throated Canary, Yellow Canary.
Antarctic Tern, Bar-throated Apalis, Black-headed Heron,
Black-shouldered Kite, Blacksmith Lapwing, Bokmakierie,
Brimstone Canary, Brown-throated Martin, Cape Bulbul, Cape Canary,
Cape Cormorant, Cape Robin-Chat, Cape Sparrow, Cape Spurfowl,
Cape Wagtail, Cape Weaver, Common Buzzard, Common Fiscal,
Common Starling, Common Tern, Crowned Cormorant, Crowned Lapwing Egyptian Goose, Grey Heron, Grey-backed Cisticola, Hadeda Ibis,
Hartlaub's Gull, House Sparrow, Jackal Buzzard, Karoo Prinia, Kelp Gull Laughing Dove, Malachite Sunbird, Pied Crow Pied, Starling,
Red-capped Lark, Red-eyed Dove, Rock Dove, Rock Kestrel, Roseate Tern Sandwich Tern, Southern Double-collared Sunbird, Speckled Mousebird Speckled Pigeon, Spotted Thick-knee, Spur-winged Goose, Streaky-headed Seedeater, White-backed Mousebird, White-breasted Cormorant ,
White-fronted Plover, White-throated Canary, Yellow Canary.