Some South African Birds to Identify

Hello everyone.  I am posting this in the hopw that Ajay, a friend that I met  in South Africa may be able to identify the birds below.  Can you send me an email Ajay.  charlesfleming1@mac.com

 

Photo 1. Female Orange breasted Sunbird., Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens 12 January 2012.

Photo 2. Male Double-collared Sunbird coming in to breeding plumag.,  Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens 12 January 2012.

Photo  3. Unknown Buteo hawk is Forest Buzzard

Photo 4. Unknown canary/finch is a Male Cape Canary.

 Thank you Ajay and the other two  gentlemen who helped me to identify these birds.  The first one, the Orange breasted Sunbird female is a surprise, I hadn't guessed that at all. The second is what I always thought and the third is not in the least bit a surprise.  I had always known that this was a Buzzard and I may have even said Buteo buteo which is the European Common Buzzard and a bird that I am very, very familiar with. I now know that it is a Forest Buzzard with the scientific name  Buteo trizonatus, very closely related to Buteo buteo  which means incidentaly "Buzard, the buzard" and is the Buzzard from which all others worldwide are named. Apparently Forest Buzzard breed in the Cape Town area so I guess it is the common Buzzard of the district.  It was certainly behaving in exactly the same manner as a Common Buzzard, soaring higher and higher on the thermals.

Number 4, the Cape Canary was perhaps a bird I would have come up with for myself. The photograph shows how hard it is to get a good image when the sun is so intensly strong as it was when the photograph was taken.  Again thanks for the ID's.