Description
A shy bird that lives near the forest floor, the Green Twinspot is small and camouflaged and can be hard to locate, even where they are relatively common. Understanding their behaviour and contact call is critical in locating them.
Distribution
The Green Twinspot lives in the eastern parts of Africa, wherever the appropriate forest habitat is found. In South Africa, they can only be found on the East coast through to the Southern Kruger region and some of Limpopo Province.
Where To Find
The Green Twinspot lives in the under canopy of thick forests where it commonly forages on the forest floor. It also lives in gardens and plantations adjacent to indigenous forests and is fairly common in this habitat. However, it is small and quiet and is often missed if you do not know what you are looking for.
How To Id
The Green Twinspot is distinctive if you can get a good look at it. The green colouring and spotted front, with brightly coloured face is enough to recognise it - but they don’t always sit still. Their contact call most commonly gives them away, a very soft ‘tink … tink’ can be heard from them either in flight or while foraging.
Conservation/Rarity
Green Twinspots thrive in indigenous forests which are a limited ecosystem in South Africa. Their behaviour is shy and secretive and they are quick to fly away. They are often overlooked or missed with their camouflage in the shadows, and are a rare sighting.
Book Now
The Green Twinspot is not easily seen and hiring a bird guide for the region can accelerate your learning and ability to spot this elusive sighting. With Zululand Birding, Junior Gabela will show how where to look for this bird and how to locate it with its contact call so if you are looking to add this sighting to your list - add it to your wishlist when making a booking and he will do his best to make it happen!
