Number 56: Planning a Twitch at the St. Lucia Estuary, northern KwaZulu-Natal

A churny tummy is a good sign that planning has started on a twitch, which bears no resemblance to birding, mostly because of the 'spend large amounts of money and travel long distances' as per the quote below.
But also because of the likelihood of failure.

Number 56:

Planning a Twitch at the St. Lucia Estuary, northern KwaZulu-Natal.

I am not a dedicated twitcher and can count on one hand the number of trips I have made to pursue a rarity. A penguin in 2009 comes to mind, where I booked a ticket, flew to Cape Town from Johannesburg, drove a couple of hundred kilometers to see a bedraggled bird on a beach; another was a one day 1500 km roundtrip from Johannesburg to Pongola to see the Golden Pipit; another the trip with Doreen to Phinda Game Reserve last year to find the Malagasy Pond Heron.

So, how can I not do a twitch this year for my 100 Different Things.

Fred and I dipped on our first attempt at finding the Sooty Tern at St Lucia quite some years ago and it has been showing itself again. The SA Rare Bird Report on the 23rd July mentioned that the bird had been seen at the estuary, so here goes, attempt number 2. The first attempt was a hot, humid New Year and now a mid-winter attempt.

Twitching process:

1. Discuss with Fred, he says no.
2. Let is rest for a little while.
3. Fred says maybe.
4. Call Themba of Themba Birding in St. Lucia and see if he is free.
5. He is indeed.
6. Mention to Fred again, he is warming to the idea.
7. Logistical planning starts, I am in Amanzimtoti, some 265km from St. Lucia, so easy enough for me and I have the car.
8. Fred however is in Cape Town, flying back to Johannesburg. So I need to convince him to fly to Durban, fetch him and then drive up to St. Lucia. This could be a hard sell, but this is the nature of twitching, also the camera equipments, binocs and bird books are in Johannesburg and we need them.
9. We will need to overnight in St Lucia as we are planning two attempts for the Tern, late afternoon and early morning.
10. Look at Airbnb options but first need to look at Fred's logistics.
11. Just had an email from Fred, he has bought a ticket, so the twitch is on.
12. Sent a message to Themba.
13. Booked a little cottage in St Lucia for the Friday overnight on Airbnb.
14. Morning of the twitch has arrived, can feel the fluttering of nervous energy.
15. Uneventful drive up the North Coast of KZN.
16. We are on track for the 2pm hook-up with Themba and arrange to pick him up at the Dukuduku Gate just before the bridge into St. Lucia.
17. At Ingwe Beach we park and sort out the cameras, binocs and pull on walking shoes and start to walk along the Estuary Beach making for the mudflats behind the sand dunes.
18. As we approach the flats, the skies are dark and moody but we see flocks of birds, Caspian Terns, small waders, Avocets and Stilts, pelicans, Egyptian Geese and gulls.
19. Themba calls excitedly, pair of Sooty Terns!
20. So thrilled, I have a Sooty Tern in sight. The twitch has been a success.
21. I quietly sit on the sand bank and watch the birds, as Fred creeps closer to get some photos.
22. Thema mutters to me that Fred should be a bit more careful as there are crocodiles in the estuary. Just then Fred hustles back and sinks knee deep into the mud, fortunately he is agile enough to not get his rig wet.
23. Eventually the Sooty's get tried of being mobbed by the gulls and they head off to sea. We also head back to drop Themba off in town and check into our cottage.
24. Glass of wine to celebrate and seafood dinner at the Ski Club, dorado and yellowtail fresh from the Indian Ocean. Fred can now watch the rugby tomorrow as no attempt 2 needed.
25. Content.

Sooty Terns, St Lucia mudflats.

Sooty Tern been harassed.

Quote from Trevor Hardaker, on zestforbirds.co.za:

Twitcher: A birder in all the good sense of the term during normal times, but responds with frenzied activity to news of rarities in his region, and will spend large amounts of money and travel long distances at short notice in order to see a rarity or new bird. Consequently is the subject of scorn from certain birdwatchers who find this eagerness to see new birds distasteful. Is often accused (and sometimes guilty) of contravening the Code of Ethics in his desire to see a new bird. Due to his extra focus on rare species, it is the twitcher who very often discovers new or rare species in the region.