Bird of the week – Greater honeyguide
The Zulu name is iNgede and in Afrikaans die grootheuningwyser.
A widespread but sparse resident absent from the dry west of South Africa.
They like woodlands, savanna, forest edge, exotic plantations, orchards and farmyards. Usually solitary, the male has fixed call sites often high up in a tall tree used year after year and such sites known to be used for over 20 years. When calling, the male stretches head upwards at an angle. The call being a two note song phrase whit-purr, whit-purr, whit-purr about 11 times, is also written victor. The male jerks his tail with each whit.
Males and females guide man to bees nests, bobbing body, flirting tail then flying in undulating flight to next perch where calling repeated until hive reached. The guiding attempts may last for an hour or more. When the bees hive is reached the guiding call becomes chittick, chittick, chittick. While circling the hive they fly in a circle of about 100m diameter with wings resonating voova, voova, voova three to four times in quick succession.
They feed on adult and larval bees and bees wax. May also hawk insects in flight from perch.
Breeding season is September to January. They use only hole nesting hosts to lay their four to eight white eggs, but only one egg per host nest. The incubation is unrecorded and nestling period is 30 days. The nestling kills the chicks of the host bird with bill hooks which are lost after 14 days. They are fed for about 10 days by the host after leaving the nest.
The Zulu name is iNgede and in Afrikaans die grootheuningwyser.
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