Southern Fiscal

Hosts on Spekboom have recorded the Southern Fiscal at stays in or beside Cederberg Wilderness Area, Goukamma Nature Reserve, Anysberg Nature Reserve, Gamkaberg Nature Reserve, Rocherpan Nature Reserve and De Hoop Nature Reserve and other reserves. A record means a host has seen it on the property or nearby, which makes these the places to base yourself; it is never a guarantee of a sighting on any given day.

The Southern Fiscal is most recorded in Western Cape (56% of records), Eastern Cape (13% of records), KwaZulu-Natal (13% of records), based on 8,424 iNaturalist observations. 82 places to stay on Spekboom in Western Cape have recorded the Southern Fiscal on site or nearby.

The Southern Fiscal is recorded throughout the year, so no month is the wrong month to look for it. For the parks where hosts record it most, these are the best seasons they give. Cederberg Wilderness Area: Sep-Apr, flowers Aug-Oct; Goukamma Nature Reserve: year-round, warm Oct-Apr; Anysberg Nature Reserve: Autumn and spring, Mar-May, Sep-Nov; Gamkaberg Nature Reserve: Autumn and spring, Mar-May, Sep-Nov. In the dry months animals concentrate at water and the grass is short.

The southern fiscal or fiscal shrike (Lanius collaris) is a member of the shrike family found through most of Sub-Saharan Africa. It is also sometimes named jackie hangman or butcher bird due to its habit of impaling its prey on acacia thorns to store the food for later consumption. It was previously lumped together with the northern fiscal. Together they were known as the common fiscal.