15 March 2025

As Africa’s oldest surviving botanic gardens (Est. 1849) it is currently Africa’s oldest surviving botanic garden and remains a national and local city asset actively contributing to plant conservation and plant-based education. The Durban Botanic Gardens Trust was established in 1993 to support the Gardens key strategic areas in biodiversity, culture, education, heritage, horticulture, people and plants, and research.

The planned outing to the Durban Botanic Gardens drew 30 enthusiastic booking. The high rainfall received on the 13/14 March (over 100 mm) deterred the fainthearted reducing the number of attendees to 15 by Friday evening. Despite the persistent rain throughout Friday night, we decided to proceed with the outing as we had arranged with the Botanical Gardens to open the gardens at 6:30 am.

At 06h20 on Saturday morning, five intrepid birders arrived at the Botanical Gardens, and as per our arrangement, the security promptly let us in at 6:30 am. While waiting at the entrance, we were delighted to observe a group of majestic Great White Pelican gracefully perched atop a light pylon at the hockey field.

The gardens were damp and slippery, and the mosquitoes were abundant, but thanks to Cathy’s thoughtful gesture of bringing Tabard to repel them we survived. Our reward for enduring the damp conditions was the sighting of three raptors: African Harrier Hawk, Common Buzzard, and Black Sparrow Hawk.

As we ventured around the main dam, we were fortunate enough to encounter various waterfowl, including Black-headed Heron, African Spoonbill, Sacred Ibis, Malachite Kingfisher, and a Pink-Backed Pelican, among others.

Pink-backed Pelican

Eager to explore the forest area, we ventured away from the dam and discovered a diverse array of forest birds, including Kurrichane Thrush, Golden-Tailed Woodpecker, Black-Backed Puffback, and African Paradise Flycatcher.

The highlight of our morning was the sighting of the Palm Nut Vulture, which landed gracefully in a tree right in front of us. This was a lifer for Vicky, making it an unforgettable moment for her.

Pic – Palm-Nut Vulture

Shortly after, a second Palm Nut Vulture arrived and joined the first one, perching on the same branch. It truly was an awe-inspiring sight.

However, the heavens opened up, and we sought shelter under a tree to escape the torrential rain. In the distance, we caught a glimpse of a Black Sparrow Hawk standing triumphantly on its kill of a pigeon.

Despite the relentless rain, we managed to observe a total of 40 species before deciding to head back to the car park after two hours of birdwatching.

Text and photos by Ronnie Herr