Mugged by a bird on Table Mountain
Often while walking on Table Mountain I will be asked the identity of the black bird with red tipped wings. Probably one of the more common birds to be seen on Table Mountain this is the redwinged starling. It is found throughout Southern Africa and is fairly cheeky. You can see it in many of the busy tourist areas around Cape Town waiting for the crumbs from the grazing tourists.
The flight feathers of the redwing starling are entirely red
However it seems that one (or perhaps several) of the birds on Table Mountain have taken that waiting one step further.! They are mugging people! Today whilst sitting at the Table Mountain cafe a redwinged starling flew straight at my husbands face from a distance of about a metre. Initially I thought the bird must be particularly stupid until I saw the offending animal proudly hopping on the wall beside me with a mounthful of Peters banana cake in its beak.
Never mind the baboons. Watch out for those birds!
A redwing starling on Table Mountain
