The recolonisation, host and habitat-use by yellow-billed oxpeckers (Buphagus africanus) in the Kruger National Park

Abstract

The two oxpecker species (Buphagus spp.) in Africa’s savanna habitats have undergone drastic changes in distribution in the wake of anthropogenic landscape changes. The yellow-billed oxpecker (Buphagus africanus) was extirpated from South Africa by 1907, but since the late 1970s has naturally and progressively recolonised the Kruger National Park (KNP) and the neighbouring Associated Private Nature Reserves (APNR). Using available historical and current records, we aimed to describe the recolonisation and current status of yellow-billed oxpeckers in the KNP and adjoining conservation areas, and to investigate mammalian host and habitat selection. The yellow-billed oxpecker may now be encountered throughout the KNP and APNR so long as suitable host mammals are present. We found evidence for distinct host choice and significant habitat preferences (χ² = 4362.4, df = 9, p < 0.0001), but the interactions between the birds, the hosts and the choice of habitat by hosts made evaluating oxpecker preferences a complex task. Fourteen wild and two domestic host species were recorded, with African buffalo (Syncerus caffer) the most frequently used host species, followed by giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis). Yellow-billed oxpecker sightings decreased with increasing latitude across the study area, and some regional and seasonal differences in host selection were apparent. The success of the yellow-billed oxpecker in the KNP is testimony to the benefits of the long history of game and ecosystem preservation in the KNP and surrounding areas.
Conservation implications: The yellow-billed oxpeckers of the KNP constitute the only breeding population of this species in South Africa, and significant additional range expansion is unlikely. Given the numerous protected areas in South Africa’s savanna habitats, reintroduction of this species into other suitable areas of its former range is recommended.