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Where to see

Where to see the Scaly-throated Honeyguide in South Africa

Hosts have recorded the Scaly-throated Honeyguide at stays in or beside Goukamma Nature Reserve, Kruger National Park and Phinda Private Game Reserve.

Indicator variegatus

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Scaly-throated Honeyguide
Photo: (c) Alan Manson, some rights reserved (CC BY)

Planning a trip

When and where to find the Scaly-throated Honeyguide

Hosts have recorded the Scaly-throated Honeyguide at stays in or beside Goukamma Nature Reserve, Kruger National Park and Phinda Private Game Reserve.

Best hours of the day

  • The first hours after sunrise, and late afternoon. Birds call and feed most in the cool.
  • Midday. Quieter, especially in summer heat.

Where to base yourself

  • Western Cape

    Western Cape

    Goukamma

    Self-driveMalaria-free
    Stays in Western Cape
    Western Cape
  • Limpopo

    Limpopo

    Kruger

    Self-drive
    Stays in Limpopo
    Limpopo
  • KwaZulu-Natal

    KwaZulu-Natal

    Phinda · Hluhluwe-Imfolozi · iSimangaliso Wetland

    Guided drives
    Stays in KwaZulu-Natal
    KwaZulu-Natal

Ways to look

Drive yourself

Your own vehicle and pace, on the park's roads.

Where hosts record it

GoukammaKruger

Guided drives from a lodge

A guide who knows where to look, with off-road and night drives in the private reserves.

Where hosts record it

Phinda

Species

Indicator variegatus

Records

142

iNaturalist observations

Every booking on Spekboom supports conservation.

Questions travellers ask

A record means a host has seen the Scaly-throated Honeyguide on the property or nearby. It is never a guarantee of a sighting.

Which parks and reserves are best for the Scaly-throated Honeyguide in South Africa?

Hosts on Spekboom have recorded the Scaly-throated Honeyguide at stays in or beside Goukamma Nature Reserve, Kruger National Park, Phinda Private Game Reserve, Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park and iSimangaliso Wetland Park. 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.

Where can you see the Scaly-throated Honeyguide in South Africa?

The Scaly-throated Honeyguide is most recorded in KwaZulu-Natal (56% of records), Western Cape (18% of records), Eastern Cape (13% of records), based on 142 iNaturalist observations. 27 places to stay on Spekboom in South Africa have recorded the Scaly-throated Honeyguide on site or nearby.

When is the best time to see the Scaly-throated Honeyguide?

The Scaly-throated Honeyguide 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. Goukamma Nature Reserve: year-round, warm Oct-Apr; Kruger National Park: Apr-Sep; Phinda Private Game Reserve: year-round, dry season May-Sep; Hluhluwe-Imfolozi Park: year-round, dry season May-Sep. In the dry months animals concentrate at water and the grass is short.

What is the Scaly-throated Honeyguide?

The scaly-throated honeyguide (Indicator variegatus) is a species of bird in the family Indicatoridae. It is found in Angola, Burundi, Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ethiopia, Kenya, Malawi, Mozambique, Rwanda, Somalia, South Africa, South Sudan, Swaziland, Tanzania, Uganda, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.

Stays that give back

Where to stay for a chance to see the Scaly-throated Honeyguide

Every stay on the Scaly-throated Honeyguide page lists the species its host has recorded on or near the property. A record is a sighting, never a promise.

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