Cape Robin-Chat ( Cossypha caffra, family: Muscicapidae)

Birds & Birding in the Kruger National Park South Africa. In Roberts 6 this bird was called Cape Robin

cape robin chat kruger national park birds The Cape Robin-Chat (Latin name Cossypha caffra) is described in Roberts Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition. This bird has a unique Roberts number of 601 and you will find a full description of this bird on page 928 also a picture of the Cape Robin-Chat on page 960. The Cape Robin-Chat belongs to the family of birds classified as Muscicapidae. According to the Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology the Cape Robin-Chat is also known by these other names: Robin-Chat.

In the previous edition of Roberts (ie 6th edition) the Cape Robin-Chat was called the Cape Robin

The map of the Kruger you see on this page shows the areas (coloured orange) where this bird has been identified. The basic information was provided by the Avian Demographic Unit based at UCT and I created the maps from that information ... the green dots show the locations of the various Kruger National Park Rest Camps

The Cape Robin-Chat is neither Endemic or near Endemic to the Kruger National Park.

In terms of distribution of the Cape Robin-Chat in the Kruger National Park you may not see it in all areas. Cape Robin-Chat has been recorded in only 1 sections of the arbitrary Kruger Park regions I selected.

Kruger Park Cape Robin ChatIdentification assistance for this avian species ...

One of the first indicators to take note of when trying to identify a bird is it relative size. For example how big is the bird compared to a well known familiar bird. The Cape Robin-Chat is a small bird about the size of a house sparrow. Do not take this relative indicator as anything other than a rough easy to remember indicator. It is not a accurate visualization. The height of the Cape Robin-Chat is about 17 cms and its weight is about 28 gms

The male and female Cape Robin-Chat have the same plumage and colours

  • Head is brown.
  • Eye is brown.
  • Bill is black.
  • Throat is grey.
  • Back is grey.
  • Legs are black.

This bird has normally proportioned leg length.

Main diet items for this bird ...

The Cape Robin-Chat feeds on the ground and in foliage mainly

Invertebrates

Seeds

Breeding and nesting habits for this bird ...

The Cape Robin-Chat is monogamous unless its mate dies. In the event of a partner dying Cossypha caffra will seek out a new mate

The nesting habit of Cape Robin-Chat is to create the nest on the ground. The bird lays eggs which are white in colour and number between 2 to 3

Habitat and flocking behaviour for this bird ...

The preferred habitats for Cape Robin-Chat are: forests and heavily treed regions

You will normally see the Cape Robin-Chat by itself rather than in the company of birds of the same species.

Names of this avian species in other languages ...

Xhosa ... Ugaga

Zulu ... uGaga/umBhekle

Afrikaans ...Gewone Janfrederik

German ... Kaprtel

Portuguese ... Cossifa do Cabo

French ... Cossyphe du Cap

Dutch ... Kaapse Lawaaimaker

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For in-depth birding information please refer to these authoritative avian references ...

Robert's 7th edition number ... 601

The main reference source for this data was "Roberts - Birds of Southern Africa, 7th Edition" . Other references were "Newmans Birds of the Kruger Park" by Keith Newman published circa 1980 . Names in foreign languages were obtained from the Percy Fitzpatrick Institute of African Ornithology, University of Cape Town website , www.fitzpatrick.uct.ac.za