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When hunting this year in Zimbabwe we watched flocks of a small bird, the size of a sparrow, that flew in what looked like flocks of 1000 birds at times. They swarmed as much as anything, and the sound from their wings was really something. It certainly drowned out any other sound. They flew in such tight formations that it made you wonder how they kept from crashing into each other. Their wing-speed wasn't like a hummingbird, but in flight they reminded me of a swarm of bees, locusts, or hummingbirds, the way they could hover and dart around. They would hover over water, drinking I guess, then settle in a tree in a densely packed cloud of birds. Can anyone tell me the name of that small bird? I've forgotten and was trying to describe them to someone yesterday. I believe the PH told me that they tried to irradicate them in the past since they were very destructive to crops or trees. | ||
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Those are quelea. George  | |||
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After the 1991/92 drought, there was a quelia population explosion in the lowveld. One had to see it to believe it - millions upon millions of them, all over the place, in huge colonies. The raptors would feast all day long. Landowners harvested them by the ton and rationed them to labor or sold them to croc farmers. They can be a real menace to crop farming efforts in the highveld, but since there are no longer any highveld crop farming efforts... | |||
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Does this help?  Dan | |||
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That's them. Thanks | |||
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We used to shoot them and a PH friend I shot with had the object of seeing how many he could kill with only one shot. Believe you me the number is quite large even with the rather mediocre Zimbabwean 12 gauge shells. Wish I could remember exactly what was the number of birds killed. Only thing I can find written in my notes is over 30 with one shot. I know he said he had killed a far higher number than that. SCI Life Member NRA Patron Life Member DRSS | |||
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Here's a video of a bunch of Quelea over a lake. I love watching these birds. The way they move is amazing. Pete http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eCDBoEZ2ag8 | |||
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They are called Madagascar Fighting Falcons, only native to Zimbabwe. There are only 2,000 left in the world so it is amazing that you saw them...... Mink and Wall Tents don't go together. Especially when you are sleeping in the Wall Tent. DRSS .470 & .500 | |||
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Red-billed Quelea, to be pedantic. | |||
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Rikkie is quite right. Incidentally, Red Billed Quelea are reputed to be the most numerous bird in the world (haven't counted them personally though  ) In some areas, these birds are so numerous they'll strip a field very quickly and some farmers will wait till they roost in the evenings and then set out a bunch of 45 gallon drums of fuel and blow the lot up to protect their crops. - I seem to remember that the BBC once made a documentary about it.Regarding shooting 'em, a few years ago, we wanted some for bait so took a client into a bow hunting blind that was surrounded by very dense thorn bush, waited a few minutes and then told him to fire one barrel of 12 gauge out of the window. - No need to aim, just fire. When we went outside, he'd hit a fair number, but a huge number of birds in their panic had impaled themselves on the thorns........... the whole area was covered in dead quelea hanging in the trees like Christmas decorations. If I remember correctly, we picked up a total of something like 263 birds and had bait for a week plus enough to feed the trackers and their families. | |||
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Candied Quelea wings are quiet tasty. It takes 3,000 per guest so give yourself plenty of time ahead of dinner. I'd say about 4 months  Gray Ghost Hunting Safaris http://grayghostsafaris.com Phone: 615-860-4333 Email: hunts@grayghostsafaris.com NRA Benefactor DSC Professional Member SCI Member RMEF Life Member NWTF Guardian Life Sponsor NAHC Life Member Rowland Ward - SCI Scorer Took the wife the Eastern Cape for her first hunt: http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6881000262 Hunting in the Stormberg, Winterberg and Hankey Mountains of the Eastern Cape 2018 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/4801073142 Hunting the Eastern Cape, RSA May 22nd - June 15th 2007 http://forums.accuratereloadin...=810104007#810104007 16 Days in Zimbabwe: Leopard, plains game, fowl and more: http://forums.accuratereloadin...=212108409#212108409 Natal: Rhino, Croc, Nyala, Bushbuck and more http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6341092311 Recent hunt in the Eastern Cape, August 2010: Pics added http://forums.accuratereloadin...261039941#9261039941 10 days in the Stormberg Mountains http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/7781081322 Back in the Stormberg Mountains with friends: May-June 2017 http://forums.accuratereloadin...6321043/m/6001078232 "Peace is that brief glorious moment in history when everybody stands around reloading" - Thomas Jefferson Every morning the Zebra wakes up knowing it must outrun the fastest Lion if it wants to stay alive. Every morning the Lion wakes up knowing it must outrun the slowest Zebra or it will starve. It makes no difference if you are a Zebra or a Lion; when the Sun comes up in Africa, you must wake up running...... "If you're being chased by a Lion, you don't have to be faster than the Lion, you just have to be faster than the person next to you." | |||
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PLUCKING HELL !!   | |||
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