Ever wondered why flufftails are called ‘flufftails’? It’s somewhat of an odd name for a family group, because not all flufftails have wispy, decomposed, fluffy tail feathers! Admittedly though, as a family group, they do have much softer tail feathers than most non-passerines. Of the four species that occur in South Africa, Red-chested definitely wins first prize for having the most fluffy tail! The closest thing to an ‘air-brush’ that I know of, and would be at home on any woman’s bedroom dresser!
Below: Three tail examples, all males.
Interestingly, females have a greater degree of tail ‘decomposition’ than males, especially in Buff-spotted and Striped, even though they occupy completely different habitats. And of course, their tails look less fluffy when wet.
I consider myself very privileged to have photographed three flufftail species that occur in South Africa.
There are nine Flufftail species on the continent of Africa (incl Madagascar). Five species in southern Africa, and four in South Africa.
Red-chested Flufftail.
This species occupies the dampest habitat in the region. If you walk into the edge of a shallow reed bed, where you are standing in mud or in shallow water, try lying down on the mud with your eyes a few centre meters above the water or mud (below, left), and take a ground level look at what’s in front of you. Whether you’re at 6000 ft above sea level, or at 6 ft above sea level, this is the chosen habitat of Red-chested Flufftail. This is where they spend their lives, skipping over shallow water or soft mud, from one patch of vegetation to the next. Red-chested is one of the most widespread flufftail species on the continent.
Broad, dense undertail coverts that merge with the tail, giving it the appearance of having a thickset, fluffy tail.
Like most flufftails, frustratingly shy, always alert, and ever on the ready to scamper off in a flash!
Below: A male in search of invertebrates in shallow water. This shy bird ventured half a meter out into the open, a rare occurrence!
Striped Flufftail
A species of moist, dense grassland, often along grassy hillside seeps, or adjacent small grassland streamlets. The chosen habitat of Striped Flufftail.
The Striped Flufftail photos below were taken in the Drakensberg, 2000 masl. The photo on the right shows the damp grass territory occupied by this pair of flufftails.
Below: A male Striped Flufftail cautiously crossing a small open patch of moist upland grassland.
Below: The male in a more relaxed mode, stretches his wings. This is the most difficult species to see in the region if one excludes the critically endangered White-winged Flufftail.
Buff-spotted Flufftail – the region’s finest ventriloquist
The ‘easiest’ flufftail to see in the region, although none of these secretive birds are anywhere near ‘easy’ to see! What strikes me most about this shy forest, or thicket species is its voice throwing capability. It is a remarkable ventriloquist, second to none in the region. Nearly 40 years ago, I remember hearing a Buff-spotted calling at the bottom of a well-wooded ravine. I quietly made my way down there and crawled the final few meters till I was sure that I was only meters from this elusive, haunting bird. Somehow the bird seemed to be moving to the left. Search as hard as I could, I couldn’t see a hint of any movement, nor hear the rustle of a leaf on the ground! This continued over a period of about 5 – 10 minutes, and all the while, I continued to shift my angle on the ground until I’d turned a full 360 degrees. How could the bird, which seemed only four or five meters away, have circled me without me even getting a glimpse of the ‘ghost’! Finally, and in sheer frustration, I made my way out that valley thicket, wondering where I’d gone wrong.
Years later, I read of someone who’d been making a sound recording of this species, using a parabolic dish. Because the operator couldn’t locate the direction (origin) of the call, as indicated to him by the volume needle on his recording device, he swung the parabolic dish over, to face it in the opposite direction, and as he did so, the volume needle climbed, indicating that the source of the call was directly above his head!!!! That’s when the penny dropped! I’d been deceived by this 16cm bird with its uncanny ventriloquistic capabilities. It was on a branch above me, turning slowly, and projecting its call in a different direction as it moved around on the branch! Indeed, the finest ventriloquist in the country.
Below: A male Buff-spotted Flufftail drinking at a pond in the garden of Frank & Lorna Rautenbach at Mtunzini.
Below: A male Buff-spotted Flufftail brooding one chick, and standing next to the other.
Below: The male Buff-spotted Flufftail brooding two chicks, & one of the chicks wading through shallow water. Buff-spotted Flufftails bathe and drink regularly.
I was also privileged to be invited to photograph a Buff-spotted Flufftail nest in Melmoth by a friend, Don Leitch. These birds were breeding in the leaf litter below a low bush at the lower end of his garden.
Below: The female rises off the white eggs in the nest to turn them with her bill (left), the male incubating (centre), and, the female incubating (right).
By now, you’ll no doubt be wanting to know how it is that I claim to have photographed the fourth flufftail species within South Africa, White-winged. Technically true, but actually, not really!!! Like a limited number of lucky South Africans, only at a distance! Below: My good friend and colleague, Greg Davies pointing to a White-winged Flufftail in full flight over one of the sedge meadows at Middlepunt where he and Adrian Craig were doing official flufftail work in 2013. The bird was photographed from 50 m away with a short lens, so yes, I have managed to photograph a White-winged Flufftail!! You can just see the white secondaries as it flies away on the right!
This is the habitat of this critically endangered breeding bird, lightly flooded, knee to waist high sedge beds of the highveld.
Acknowledgments: I thank the following who helped in various ways to facilitate the enjoyable pastime of flufftail photography. In alphabetical order, Derek Coley, Greg Davies, Don Leitch, Alwyn Schultz & Lorna Rautenbach. Also, thanks to David Allan, Durban Natural Science Museum, for photos of Museum study skins.
Hugh Chittenden read more of Hugh’s wonderful insights here
