Rare Birds in South Africa
Our list for South Africa has 63 rare birds recorded regularly there: 11 residents, 23 summer visitors, 1 winter visitor, 19 passage migrants and 9 scarce visitors
Most likely in October
GBIF · Oct
Share of all bird records in South Africa in October, 2019–2024. Each month links to that month’s page.
All 63, most common first
Red KnotCalidris canutusSummer visitorRare23–26 cmRegularly Sep–Apr
African Pygmy-falconPolihierax semitorquatusResidentRare19–20 cmRecorded all year
Great ShearwaterArdenna gravisResidentRare43–51 cmRecorded all year
Yellow WagtailMotacilla flavaSummer visitorRare15–17 cmRegularly Oct–Mar
Roseate TernSterna dougalliiWinter visitorRare33–41 cmRegularly Jan–Sep
Manx ShearwaterPuffinus puffinusPassage migrantRare30–38 cmRegularly Oct–Jul
Montagu's HarrierCircus pygargusSummer visitorRare43–47 cmRegularly Oct–Mar
Pectoral SandpiperCalidris melanotosSummer visitorRare19–23 cmRegularly Oct–Mar
Grey PhalaropePhalaropus fulicariusPassage migrantRare20–22 cmRegularly Feb
Indian PeafowlPavo cristatusResidentRare86–230 cmRecorded all year
CuckooCuculus canorusSummer visitorRare32–34 cmRegularly Nov–Apr
King PenguinAptenodytes patagonicusPassage migrantRare70–100 cmRegularly Oct
Lesser NoddyAnous tenuirostrisScarceRare30–34 cm
Red-necked PhalaropePhalaropus lobatusSummer visitorRare18–19 cmRegularly Aug–Apr
Pomarine JaegerStercorarius pomarinusPassage migrantRare46–51 cmRegularly Oct–Apr
Damara TernSternula balaenarumSummer visitorRare22–24 cmRegularly Sep–May
European Storm-petrelHydrobates pelagicusSummer visitorRare14–18 cmRegularly Oct–May
Eurasian OystercatcherHaematopus ostralegusSummer visitorRare40–45 cmRegularly Oct–Jan
Baird's SandpiperCalidris bairdiiPassage migrantRare14–17 cmRegularly Jan
Long-tailed JaegerStercorarius longicaudusPassage migrantRare48–58 cmRegularly Nov–Apr
Buff-breasted SandpiperCalidris subruficollisScarceRare18–20 cm
Arctic TernSterna paradisaeaSummer visitorRare33–39 cmRegularly Aug–Mar
Gull-billed TernGelochelidon niloticaPassage migrantRare33–42 cmRegularly Dec
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