Helen and I stayed at Pafuri tented camp last May. Thankfully not during the recent devastating floods in Kruger, and in the Pafuri area. The Pafuri section is the biodiverse northernmost part of Kruger National Park. It is well known for famous for its diverse landscapes (fever tree forests, riverine habitats), exceptional birdwatching (Pel’s Fishing Owl and Racket-tailed rollers), and the confluence of the Limpopo & Luvuvhu rivers at Crook’s Corner, where three countries (South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique) meet.

“I have always been delighted at the prospect of a new day, a fresh try, one more start, with perhaps a bit of magic waiting somewhere behind the morning.” ~ J. B. Priestley

We enjoyed morning and afternoon game drives. One morning game drive took us to Reedbuck pan in the Maluleke Concession. This is a stunningly beautiful pan situated at the edge of a large fever tree forest. The pan is usually filled by a combination of rainwater runoff and back flow from the Luvuvhu river which meets the Limpopo river at Crook’s corner. When the level of the Limpopo river rises the higher water levels cause a back flow up the Luvuvhu river. The back flow, at times, extends and floods the fever tree forest and surrounding area including the pans.

The pans are a magnet for bird life especially water birds such as storks, herons, egrets, lapwings, plovers and ducks and a pair of African fish eagles.

On the first morning we arrived at the pan it was around 7h00 and was bathed in golden morning light from the east which resulted in vivid reflections in the still water of the pan. There was a lot of activity with heronries in the trees and egrets, herons and storks flying back and forth with food for chicks and building material for new nests. Amongst all the aerial activity, we found a solitary Goliath heron stealthily walking in the shallow water of the pan.

We had seen a pair of fish eagles in the fever trees but they quietly perched high up in the tree watching the goings on. All of sudden from behind us one fish eagle swooped down close to the water aiming directly at the Goliath heron.

African Fish Eagles are known to frequently steal food from Goliath Herons in behaviour known as kleptoparasitism. Fish Eagles are opportunistic predators that often wait for the much larger Goliath Heron to catch a large fish (such as catfish or lungfish), then swoop down to harass the heron into dropping or regurgitating its meal.

While Goliath herons are the world’s largest, standing up to 5 feet tall, they are often forced to surrender a percentage of their catch to faster, aggressive raptors.

In this instance, the Goliath heron did not have a fish in its beak so this attack was not kleptoparasitism but rather a territorial imperative where the Fish eagles did not want competition for their main food source, being the fish in the pan.

“Nature is full for us of seeing inconsistencies and glad surprises” Margaret Barker

Not done with its intimidation tactics, the Fish eagle did a low level swoop to try again. Although these eagles are persistent, they do not always succeed. Goliath herons are known to fight back, and in some instances, have successfully defended their catch. The Goliath heron has a serious weapon in the form of its large sharp beak which its uses as an effective spear. The Goliath heron did not fight back but moved closer to a group of partly submerged branches from a fallen tree.

The Goliath heron ducked its head and body into the water between the fallen branches. That way the Fish eagle could not get its talons close enough to do any damage.

Studies indicate that Goliath herons lose roughly 11% of their fish catches to these “fish-pirates”. We visited this pan every day for the next two days because of all the bird activity. The Fish eagle pair did not succeed in chasing the Goliath heron away from the pan. Needless to say, the Goliath heron chose its fishing spots more carefully where it had more protection than the open water.

The pan turned out to be action packed. The Fish eagle pair flew around the pan intimidating the Yellow-billed storks and Grey and Black-headed herons as they were flying to and from their nests to the area surrounding the pan. At times it looked like the Fish eagles were having great fun.

“Animals are part of every landscape, part of the symphony of interactions that create an ecosystem, but too much of our science is siloed into looking at all these living things in isolation from each other.” ~ Kristin Ohlsen

The last morning we visited Reedbuck pan we saw a Great White pelican on the far side of the pan. We did not see it fly into the pan which can usually provide spectacular shots as they land by skiing across the water on their large webbed feet to land on the water and so sufficiently to land on their bellies and tuck their wings in. We were surprised to see a lone Great White pelican as they are often seen in small flocks as they are co-operative feeders. Great White pelicans are highly social, cooperative feeders which frequently fish in groups, using coordinated, team-based strategies to maximize their prey catch, particularly in shallow waters. 

The Fish eagle pair took turns to intimidate this Great White pelican. The size difference was noticeable but the Fish eagle’s lesser size was amply made up for by its aggression.

A Great White pelican is a large water bird, standing  up to 180cm and it has a wingspan of 226cm to 360cm and can weigh up to 15kgs, making it one of the world’s largest flying birds. It is also clearly distinguished by its long beak with a large, pale gular pouch. Males are generally larger and heavier than females, with a beak up to 47 cm long. 

“Nature’s imagination far exceeds humanity’s.” ~ Richard Feynman

The Fish eagle’s attacked from above swooping down on the hapless pelican which made itself look bigger by opening its wings and its large beak.

Fish eagles are known to attack Great White pelicans for the purposes of kleptoparasitism not predation. The pelican usually catches larger fish which makes the attack more cost effective for the Fish eagle.

The Fish eagle aimed to grab the pelican’s beak with one of its talons and managed to briefly hold onto the end of the pelican’s beak.

It was interesting so see how much the pelican’s beak bent under the weight of the fish eagle’s attack. No damage appeared to have been done during the attack.

Like the Goliath heron, the Great White pelican remained at the pan. The Fish eagle’s intimidation tactics did not work.

There were plenty of crocodiles in the pan and with all the waterbirds attracted to the pan we assumed there must have been good fishing for all the reptiles and birds involved. The fever trees provided some wonderful perches from which to look for fish and stage attacks on unwary pelicans and herons, especially those with fish in their beaks.

The Pafuri area in Kruger National Park was significantly affected by the January 2026 flooding, leading to the closure of the Pafuri Gate, road closures due to submerged bridges and overflowing rivers (especially the Luvuvhu), and precautionary evacuations of camps like Pafuri Camp. Reports suggest areas further south experienced even greater damage, with the floods inundating floodplains and cutting off access. 

“We inhabit a water planet, and unless we protect, manage, and restore that resource, the future will be a very different place from the one we imagine today.” ~ Alexandra Cousteau

Reedbuck pan was highly productive from a birding and bird photography point of view. The recent devastating rains and flooding in the Limpopo and Pafuri area have destroyed many of the roads but once the water levels subside I have no doubt the birding and photograph around this pan will be even better than before.

“To find the universal elements enough; to find the air and the water exhilarating; to be refreshed by a morning walk or an evening saunter… to be thrilled by the stars at night; to be elated over a bird’s nest or a wildflower in spring — these are some of the rewards of the simple life.” ~ John Burroughs

Explore, seek to understand, marvel at its interconnectedness and let it be.

Have fun, Mike