On our way to Durban before catching our flight in the morning to Ethiopia we stopped by the Africa Birds of Prey Center to get an up close look at some of the raptors we saw (or missed) during our visit to Southern Africa and some raptors we hope to see in Ethiopia.

Pygmy Falcon

Bateleur

I love this bird’s name

Cape Eagle Owl – We saw this bird near Creighton, South Africa

Barn Owl

African Grass Owl

Crowned Eagle

Southern White-Faced Owl

Verreaux’s Eagle Owl

Don’t you just love the pink eyelids?

African Wood Owl. We saw this species on our Namibia tour.

Spotted Eagle Owl. We saw this species in Naimibia too.

Lanner Falcon

Brown Snake Eagle

Up Close and Personal

Hooded Vulture

Palm Vulture. We missed seeing this bird, which has a very restricted range.

Rock Kestrel

Rock Kestrel

Lanner Falcon

African Harrier Hawk

This one I guess can be quite friendly

Or maybe not ….

Of course I don’t blame the bird, I wouldn’t want to be caged up either

Yellow-billed Kite – probably the most prolific raptor in South Africa

Beautiful birds

Cape Vulture

African Hawk Eagle, I believe
I’m not sure what I think about raptor rehabilitation places. While it does serve as an education tool, allowing people to see these raptors up close and maybe appreciate them more, I hate seeing the birds in cages. The birds we saw cannot be released back into the wild due to debilitating injuries.
We also saw a very nice Amethyst Sunbird. Wow, when the light reflected off the feathers on the bird’s throat – beautiful.

Next up …. Birding in Ethiopia
It is always A GREAT DAY TO BIRD
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Wow, you have a nice collection ofAfrican raptors now. Nina