Ringing demonstrations for school children are rewarding, in seeing the excitement when they gently touch a bird and let it go after watching the ringing process. While ringing at Intaka Island in Cape Town for the Vine school, we caught an unexpected bird – a Brown-backed Honeybird. Interestingly, I had never recorded this species at Intaka previously, although I know it from Kirstenbosch and other sites.
Relatively few have been ringed with SAFRING rings to date, 163 compared to 3982 for the Lesser Honeyguide! The bird in the hand shows the white outer tail feathers clearly, a feature of many honeyguides and honeybirds as they flew away.
Fact sheet:
Number ringed to date (SAFRING): 163 [1948-2024]
Longevity: n/a [2 recoveries]
Trip report: ebird list
Reason special: few caught; ringing lifer
