Afromontane forest avifauna of the eastern Soutpansberg mountain range, Northern Province, South Africa

Abstract

The Soutpansberg forests form the northern limit of indigenous forest in South Africa, Commercial afforestation occurs at high altitudes whereas crops and orchards are planted at lower altitudes. A study of five protected afromontane forests in the eastern Soutpansberg identified 88 bird species utilizing indigenous forest. Twenty-eight (31.8%) are forest-specific species with 18 (64.3%) found in all five forests. This emphasizes the importance of forest for forest-specific bird species in the region. The buffering effect of afforestation within the forest-grassland mosaic likely contribute to the protection and wider distribution of certain forest bird species.