Hluhluwe-iMfolozi Game Reserve

Birds

With more than 340 species recorded, along with excellent facilities for independent travel, Hluhluwe-iMfolozi is a great birding destination. There are several birding shelters in the park, and the viewpoint from Hilltop Camp is a great place to observe birds of prey, such as bateleur and martial eagle, soaring over the bush. Several pairs of southern bald ibis are known to breed within the park. Migratory birds are present from November to April.

Notable Birds in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi

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Black-bellied bustard
Common

Birding Rating

Expert Rating

3.9/5 8 Birding Reviews

User Rating

4.1/5 65 Birding Reviews

Birding Specials –Treats for Avid Birders

(E) = endemic to South Africa & (NE) = near-endemic to South Africa

African black duck
African finfoot
African marsh harrier
African pied wagtail
African rock pipit
Amur falcon
Bearded scrub robin
Bronze-winged courser
Brown-headed parrot
Crested guineafowl
Crowned hornbill
European nightjar
Fan-tailed widowbird
Gorgeous bush-shrike
Grey tit-flycatcher
Harlequin quail
Lanner falcon
Mocking cliff chat

Narina trogon
Red-collared widowbird
Red-throated wryneck
Red-winged starling
Southern bald ibis
Southern tchagra (NE)
Southern white-faced owl
Spotted thick-knee
Rudd’s apalis
Trumpeter hornbill
Village indigobird
White-fronted bee-eater
White-throated swallow
Wire-tailed swallow
Woodland kingfisher
Yellow-billed oxpecker
Yellow-throated longclaw

Best Time for Bird Watching

Bird watching in Hluhluwe-iMfolozi is good year-round, but at its best from November to April, when migrants from Europe and northern Africa are present. The best time for general wildlife viewing is during the dry months of June to September.

Best Parks for Birding –Including Birding Rating

Kruger is great for general birding, while Mkhuze is a real birding hotspot, offering almost as many species in a much smaller area with an incredible number of specials. The dry Kgalagadi is known for its raptors.