Laingsburg nest checks with my mom

Most mothers are curious about what their children get up to when they are not around and my mother is no different. My mother was curious about the field work I do. Common questions I was asked were “Where do you go to look for nests? How hard is it to find nests?How close do you observe the eagles? Where do the Martial Eagles build their nests? Are you going to climb up those electricity pylons?”She had seen pictures of Martial Eagles, but had never seen one up close. She wondered why I chose Martial Eagles in particular to study and what made them so interesting.

My mother is a grade 1,2 and 3 teacher, a nature enthusiast and it gives her joy to pass on her love of nature to her students. To satisfy her curiosity and relay to her student what studying eagles was all about, she proposed a trip to find Martial Eagle nests, that I had never seen.

We were in Knysna for the 50km mountain bike race my mom had entered and so it made sense to drive up through Oudtshoorn into the Karoo. We drove for hours and eventually ended up at the first set of nests near Laingsburg. We arrived at the farm where we were supposed to see our first Martial Eagles nest but unfortunately the farmer was not around. It was getting dark at this point and we soon realised that we would not have enough time to check the nests anyway.

We drove through to Sutherland where we battled to find accommodation. (Not surprising when you know that mid-winter is the most popular time for a visit to Sutherland!)Finally we settled in the Sutherland Hotel for a warmer than expected stay. The following day we left to go back and check for nests. We took a turn off,opposite to the farm we had visited the previous day. As we approached the farm house we met a very enthusiastic farmer, who knew exactly where the nests were I was looking for. He checked the nests every so often when he travels on that section of the farm, just to make sure they are still there. Map to the nests in hand we drove down a muddy dirt road with my mom’s prize Polo Vivo and two bicycles on the back (in case the nests where far enough from the road that we would need to cycle, not my idea).

After 27kms of dirt road we reached the position which the farmer described the nest to be around. We hiked over a small Koppie to see the nests and saw nothing. We were both pretty despondent at this point because we had come so far. Despite this I kept searching, determined to find a nest and eventually I spotted a nest hidden by the spikes on top of a distant pylon. It was a Black Eagle nest with no sign of an eagle near.

It was 16:30 by this point and the day seemed to have run away. We needed to get back home, my uncle had passed away and my mother needed to be with my aunt. We retraced our tracks and headed home. On the drive back I checked every pylon for nests. I found a nest that Martial Eagles had been using in 2005 and 2006. The pylon was far away but I managed to get a photo of the nest. The photo revealed a head in the nest, unfortunately I was not able to check because we were on a tight schedule.

I am planning a trip out there again with Koos De Goede, a man who dedicated a huge portion of his life to the conservation of Martial Eagles. I know exactly where to look the next time I am in the area and the trip allowed me to orientate myself. I think my mom left humbled by the experience. She said to me later that she thought that I would drive to the nest co-ordinates, find the nest see the Eagles and go home. There is far more that goes into the process of nest monitoring and it was nice for her to gain some perspective on the work that I do. She did however, leave with an unanswered question“why Martial Eagles, if it is so hard to find these nests, why put yourself through that? She soon found out in the presence of a Martial Eagle....

 Eskom Power lines

 New 765kV lines on the Beaufort West to Cape Town stretch of line

 Mom and her dirty car looking for eagles in the Karoo

 Black Eagle nest we hiked to 

Martial Eagle in a nest used in 2005 and 2006

The end of the field work day