Mount Moreland Conservancy Important Bird Area

In 2007 Mount Moreland was awarded Important Bird Area Status by Birdlife South Africa which has put both the local and international spotlight on our community and the way we live and manage our natural environment here at Mount Moreland.

Important Bird Areas form part of an international conservation programme implemented and run by BirdLife International and its worldwide partners to protect and conserve bird species.

IBAs protect and conserve birds and the habitats that support them and in so doing, also protect the overall Biodiversity which includes plants, insects, reptiles and animals.

Although the area within the Mount Moreland Conservancy has been awarded Important Bird Area status the vast majority of the residents clearly do not know about, understand, or support this important status. In fact the majority of owners and residents living in Mount Moreland by their actions and lack of actions show that they clearly do not care at all about the natural environment in this very important place that we live.

Mount Moreland is certainly not  the home to the European or Barn Swallow  as it is often refered to they live and breed in Europe and only use our reedbeds as a temporary roosting site when feeding in this area.

We do however have our very own resident breeding swallow the Lesser Striped Swallow which is abundant here in Mount Moreland in addition we have large numbers of other rare and beautiful birds that need habitat and protection.

One of our own resident Lesser Striped Swallows in my garden

If one takes a look around the area all one sees is invasive alien vegetation in particular the Brazilian pepper tree Schinus terebinthifolius that is so very destructive to the natural environment growing on private properties in particular properties that have still to be developed. If one takes a closer look at the undeveloped properties that are mostly overrun by alien invasive vegetation one would be appalled to see the extent of dumping on these properties by the residents of Mount Moreland.

Considering the natural treasures that those living in Mount Moreland are custodian of this attitude and total lack of concern for the natural environment is most disgusting and needs to change.

Lesser Striped Swallow nest in an outbuilding on my property at Mount Moreland

Every single person living in this area should be doing everything possible to change their negative mind sets and misguided senses of order and to play their role in conserving the treasures that we are custodian of by firstly cleaning up their own acts.

Crested Barbet which lives and breeds in a nestbox that I erected for it right in 

front of my kitchen window bringing food for its young

Nature conservation starts at your own front door so please do your part giving attending meetings and giving lip service to the environment does nothing only actions on the ground count.

Over the next weeks, months and years I will be posting photos, observations and offering tips to improve that disgusting and shameful situation we find ourselves in today.

The rare and very beautiful Amethyst Starling feeding young in a nest box that I errected 

at Mount Moreland