hey guys, i have a birding friend who has never travelled to africa. He is planning on visiting mala mala in early november. So my question is from birding perspective, have all the migrants arrived by nov or would it be better to wait until he can travel in jan or so.? I assume they have but figured i'd ask seeing as you guys have visited at so many different times of the year.
Also was wondering about walks there, as he as a birder, is used to travelling on foot. and finally, which of the 3 camps would you recommend (main, sable or rattrays) and is there a guide that is specifically good at identifying birds. I told him to get a private vehicle so that should help with his interest. He plans to stay for 5 nights.

thx in advance. BC

Hi bigcountry,

Napamatt is the bird expert, I am only a beginner. I am not sure about the arrival of all migrants, certainly the Woodland Kingfisher, the most obvious migrant is there by the end of November, and as Matt seems to like January and he is a birder, I feel January would be a better month, but see what Matt says.

There was a ranger who was beyond great with birds in particular, but no more, so certainly mentioned the bird factor when booking and definitely a private vehicle. I do not think travelling on foot will happen unless it is on the daily walk, then with other people walking I cannot see too much birding happening. I am very happy with main camp but usually manage a few nights at Rattray's because it is so beautiful.

Kind regards,

Kaye

To max out on birds you will need to cross many terrains, which are limited in the sabie sands be mala mala or elsewhere. That said there is ample riparian forest along the sand river to make the birding opportunities quite superb.

That time of year the migrants are in in abundance. Steppe eagles through to plum coloured starling, of course myriad others including potential sightings of thick billed cuckoo, plus many of the european kestrals and so on. Perhaps the bat hawk, but that is seen around the sabie river more frequently in the evenings than not.

I do believe that if he sends a note to the staff that a birding ranger will be assigned to him, but with mm you never know as they are quite keen on offering a big five certificate, which will detract from the birding experience.

Choice of camp, I do believe will not impact on the bird experience, while walks are certainly available and a top notch place like theirs should be able to accommodate a special request to walk in place of drive.

November will catch most of the migrants, though January is a surer bet. The amount ofbirding that can be done from the vehicle is amazing, and there are lots of spots where you can sit for twenty minutes and pick up twenty + species. My MM list is at 232 which puts me ahead of most staff members. Some rangers are definitely better than others with birds and now Leon is gone, I would hesitate to say there is a real expert. Phillemon the tracker is very good, and his english is very good and he seemed to enjoy birding with us.
In my experience there is plenty of time for birds and the big 5, and if MM know you are interested in birds they make a real effort. However you should have a private vehicle! Most other guests will not be tolerant of intense bird watching.
I would recommend some time in Kruger, maybe self driving to see a range of habitats (Roberts CD-Rom has an excellent list of great birding spots). Then visit MM for birding and mammals combined. In addition I would be happy to share my knowledge of MM's best spots off line.
There is a daily walk each day, but a ranger will also offer opportunities to walk as part of a game drive, especially if this is requested ahead of time.
[email protected] for further help.

thanks guys. Matt i will be sending you an email