Located in the urban surrounds of Johannesburg, Walter Sisulu Botanical Garden provides an excellent opportunity to escape the hustle and bustle of the city. The garden is home to many bird species, including the main drawcard – a nesting pair of Verreaux’s Eagles.
Having recently relocated to Johannesburg from Durban, I was excited to visit the gardens to get a taste of local Johannesburg birding and view the famous eagles. After arriving at the garden entrance, the sounds of Hadeda Ibis, Grey Go-away-bird, Red-eyed Dove, Amethyst Sunbird, Cape White-eye, Cape Robin-chat, and Kurrichane Thrush greeted me.
My main objective was to view and photograph the Verreaux’s Eagle pair from the top of the waterfall. I birded while making my way up to the top, having good views of Southern Boubou, Helmeted Guineafowl, White-bellied Sunbird, Yellow-fronted Canary, and Red-winged Starling, while Acacia Pied Barbet, Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird, Crested Barbet, Karoo Thrush, Natal Spurfowl, and Bar-throated Apalis called in the background.
Once I reached the top of the waterfall, it became a waiting game as the Verreaux’s Eagles weren’t active yet. This species breeds during the winter months, and there were eggs in the nest at the time of my visit. One of the birds was incubating the eggs while the other perched in a tree nearby. After about ten minutes, the eagle in the tree took flight with some foliage in their beak and flew directly towards me at close to eye level – passing within 20 meters of the edge of the ridge. This was just the beginning of a few hours of eagle activity as the two birds flew past several times between incubating and hunting duties. At one stage, an immature Peregrine Falcon caused a stir, mobbing the eagles and providing magnificent fly-bys.
Having had my share of excellent sightings, I decided to see what the rest of the gardens had to offer. Even though it was close to midday, the birds were still active. New additions to the day list included Black-collared Barbet, Cape Weaver, Fiscal Flycatcher, Malachite Sunbird, African Grey Hornbill, Greater Double-collared Sunbird, Black-headed Oriole, Black Sparrowhawk, Chestnut-vented Warbler, and African Harrier-hawk.
My idea was to head back up to the top of the waterfall for the afternoon since, from a photographic perspective, the light would be better for photographing the eagles. While the eagles did fly frequently, they didn’t come anywhere near as close in the afternoon as they did in the morning. However, it was still wonderful to see them soaring together, albeit a bit unusual, watching them with the houses in the background.
Spending time standing in one location often has its benefits, as many other birds were seeking my intention. A male Mocking Cliff Chat sat on a rock and sang for a few minutes before a dainty Fairy Flycatcher sat out in the open, reasonably close to me for a few seconds. As the day drew to a close, the bird activity increased again, and I recorded new birds for the day. These were Cape Wagtail, Lazy Cisticola, Neddicky, Brown-hooded Kingfisher, and Amethyst Sunbird.
Overall, it was a relaxed, fabulous day out, which provided a sense of comfort, knowing that there is a place in the hustle and bustle of the city where one can come to enjoy nature and marvel at birds. Standing at the top of the waterfall and seeing the huge Verreaux’s Eagles flying at such close range in the morning was an incredible experience and certainly the highlight of the day.