African black oyster catchers

This pair of oystercatchers seems to have been hungry! Contrary to their name, they eat mainly mussels and limpets as well as a varied diet of what is on offer in the shallows.

As bird royalty their elaborate full names are: African black oystercatcher, swarttobie in Afrikaans and scientifically Haematopus moquini.

Living along the west and south coasts of South Africa, some visit the KwaZulu-Natal coast as nonbreeding migrants only. Migrancy is, however, uncommon. Most black oystercatchers stay put in fixed territories where all feeding, breeding and family life take place. Seen near the waterline, they wade around in search of food or studiously check out the birds on the beach.

The black plumage contrasting against red, orange and purplish pink on the bare parts of both male and female adults make identification easy. The female is slightly larger with a slightly longer beak... whether it is more used is unknown.

Living along the coast where people also like to live, work and spend leisure time, they have become threatened in nature. Population estimates range from less than 5000 to over 6000. People should take special care in respecting black oystercatcher space.

Their survival problem is exacerbated by their nesting habit: They merely scrape a hollow in the sand on an exposed beach or among coastal rocks. Two eggs are the typical clutch, hatched by both parents sharing. This takes them from 27 to 39 days, plus about 40 days of caring for the fledglings. The breeding season is from late spring to mid-autumn (Maclean, 1993; Wikipedia).