Birds to See in Botswana in October
59 species listed for October · birdwatchers' records, 2019–2024
59 bird species on our list for Botswana are recorded regularly in October. Of these, the most often recorded are Fork-tailed Drongo, African Jacana, Egyptian Goose, Great White Egret and Squacco Heron. New this month: European Bee-eater, Spotted Flycatcher, Buzzard and Common Swift and 8 more.
Residents
(32)Recorded all year
Fork-tailed Drongo
Dicrurus adsimilisLC
Recorded all year
African Jacana
Actophilornis africanusLC
Recorded all year
Egyptian Goose
Alopochen aegyptiacaLC
Recorded all year
Great White Egret
Ardea albaLC
Recorded all year
Squacco Heron
Ardeola ralloidesLC
Recorded all year
Helmeted Guineafowl
Numida meleagrisLC
Recorded all year
Spur-winged Goose
Plectropterus gambensisLC
Recorded all year
Grey Heron
Ardea cinereaLC
Recorded all year
Magpie Shrike
Urolestes melanoleucusLC
Recorded all year
Little Egret
Egretta garzettaLC
Recorded all year
Hoopoe
Upupa epopsLC
Recorded all year
Cattle Egret
Ardea ibisLC
Recorded all year
Glossy Ibis
Plegadis falcinellusLC
Recorded all year
Cape Starling
Lamprotornis nitensLC
Recorded all year
Southern Masked Weaver
Ploceus velatusLC
Recorded all year
Pied Crow
Corvus albusLC
Recorded all year
Common Ostrich
Struthio camelusLC
Recorded all year
Purple Heron
Ardea purpureaLC
Recorded all year
African Marsh Harrier
Circus ranivorusLC
Recorded all year
Great Cormorant
Phalacrocorax carboLC
Recorded all year
Black-crowned Night-heron
Nycticorax nycticoraxLC
Recorded all year
Moorhen
Gallinula chloropusLC
Recorded all year
Little Grebe
Tachybaptus ruficollisLC
Recorded all year
House Sparrow
Passer domesticusLC
Recorded all year
Little Bittern
Ixobrychus minutusLC
Regularly Apr–Jan
Osprey
Pandion haliaetusLC
Regularly May–Mar
Common Reed-warbler
Acrocephalus scirpaceusLC
Regularly Apr–Feb
Secretarybird
Sagittarius serpentariusEN
Recorded all year
Rock Dove
Columba liviaLC
Recorded all year
Cape Sparrow
Passer melanurusLC
Regularly May–Mar
Greater Flamingo
Phoenicopterus roseusLC
Recorded all year
Lanner Falcon
Falco biarmicusLC
Recorded all year
Summer visitors
(18)Arrives to breed; scarce or absent in winter
Common Sandpiper
Actitis hypoleucosLC
Regularly Jul–May
Wood Sandpiper
Tringa glareolaLC
Regularly Aug–May
Barn Swallow
Hirundo rusticaLC
Regularly Sep–May
Ruff
Calidris pugnaxLC
Regularly Aug–May
Greenshank
Tringa nebulariaLC
Recorded all year
European Bee-eater
Merops apiasterLC
Regularly Oct–Apr
Willow Warbler
Phylloscopus trochilusLC
Regularly Sep–Mar
Little Stint
Calidris minutaLC
Regularly Aug–Apr
Spotted Flycatcher
Muscicapa striataLC
Regularly Oct–Apr
House Martin
Delichon urbicumLC
Regularly Aug–May
Barn Owl
Tyto albaLC
Regularly Sep–Jul
White-winged Tern
Chlidonias leucopterusLC
Recorded all year
Buzzard
Buteo buteoLC
Regularly Oct–Mar
Ringed Plover
Charadrius hiaticulaLC
Regularly Sep–Mar
Common Swift
Apus apusLC
Regularly Oct–Mar
Sand Martin
Riparia ripariaLC
Regularly Oct–Apr
Yellow Wagtail
Motacilla flavaLC
Regularly Sep–Mar
Hobby
Falco subbuteoLC
Regularly Oct–Jan
Winter visitors
(2)Present outside the breeding season
Passage migrants
(7)Seen mainly in spring and autumn migration
Curlew Sandpiper
Calidris ferrugineaNT
Regularly Sep–Dec
Golden Oriole
Oriolus oriolusLC
Regularly Oct–Apr
Grey Plover
Pluvialis squatarolaLC
Regularly Oct–Nov
Sanderling
Calidris albaLC
Regularly Oct
Common Quail
Coturnix coturnixLC
Regularly Oct–May
Montagu's Harrier
Circus pygargusLC
Regularly Oct–Feb
Nightjar
Caprimulgus europaeusLC
Regularly Oct
Data: EOD – eBird Observation Dataset (Cornell Lab of Ornithology), accessed via GBIF.org, CC BY 4.0. Records from 2019–2024, aggregated and filtered by Birdfact. How these lists are made