#bokmakierie

[proton-wobbler]

Backyard Loser Battle Royale (poll 10)

One group of randos

Australian Brushturkey

Black-collared Starling

Bearded Barbet

Bokmakierie

Black Redstart

Goldcrest

Great Spotted Woodpecker

Bell Miner

Grey Butcherbird

Voting ended onJun 17, 2025

all images sourced from Macaulay Library (original polls contain source links)

[thefloatingstone]

Bird book: this species is very shy and timid and generally avoids people.

The bird:

[wonder-rooms]

Bokmakierie, Telophorus zeylonus (1778) - Robert Jacob Gordon

[thalassarche]

Bokmakierie (Telophorus zeylonus) - photo by George Wilkinson

[proton-wobbler]

Great Backyard Bird Off - Africa (poll 4)

Choose your favorite

Blacksmith Lapwing

Bokmakierie

Voting ended onFeb 27, 2025

Bird Info & Submission Reasons

Blacksmith Lapwing (Vanellus armatus)

"used to be called Blacksmith Plover"

"Very elegant, very shy, stupid little legs and overdramatic call."

A smart-looking gray, black, and white lapwing; white crown and black face and breast. Immatures are mostly brownish. It is a common breeding resident that is strongly tied to wetlands, although it may also disperse into flooded grassland and adjacent dryland habitats to forage. Bold and brave parents, Blacksmith Lapwings have been known to launch defensive attacks on African Elephants and harass aerial threats like rollers or raptors in order to protect their young. A loud ringing “tink-tink-tink” call is uttered in series, like a blacksmith hammering on an anvil. (eBird)

Bokmakierie (Telophorus zeylonus)

"I saw them on holiday visiting relatives and they're my favourite now. The gorgeous patterning, the beautiful songs, the diet of geckos and other small creatures..."

A large, sturdy olive-gray and yellow bushshrike with a distinctive black chest band that arcs up to the bill base, forming a broad necklace. In flight the dark tail has striking yellow tips. The juvenile is dull and lacks the chest band. Pairs are bold in shrubby and open country, where they forage low in bushes or grass clumps, hopping on open ground or running between clumps looking for invertebrates. The species has a varied and complex repertoire of songs and calls, the most characteristic of which is a duetted onomatopoeic “bok-mak-ie-rie,” often delivered from a conspicuous perch. (eBird)

Image Sources: Lapwing (David Irving), Bok (Cameron Pearce)

[alonglistofbirds]

[1569/10977] Bokmakierie - Telophorus zeylonus

Order: Passeriformes Suborder: Passeri Superfamily: Malaconotoidea Family: Malaconotidae (bushshrikes)

Photo credit: Regard Van Dyk via Macaulay Library

[fullfrontalbirds]

[mandarb]

The Bokmakierie, Telophorus zeylonus. Beautiful song, pretty colours.

Taken in Dwarskersbos, South Africa