rare DEDICATION

Cape Town-based Trevor Hardaker is one of South Africa’s most active birders. He runs a highly regarded rare bird alert system and is a regular contributor to African Birdlife, compiling the rarities report for each issue. When we chatted to Trevor, it became clear that his birding transcends being a hobby and is more of a lifestyle.

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You travel a lot in your quest to see different birds. What new destination would you most like to visit or revisit?

One of my biggest dreams would be to get to Papua New Guinea and/or West Papua to see the birds-of-paradise. I have seen the riflebirds in Australia, which are part of the same family, but the truly extravagant birds-of-paradise only occur in Papua New Guinea and West Papua and are very high on my birding bucket list. Having watched so many documentaries about these birds, I cannot help but want to see them for myself. They are just so different from anything else, with their incredible plumage patterns and, in many cases, outrageous breeding displays by the males, that I can’t believe that there are many dedicated birders out there who wouldn’t have them on their list of all-time, must-see experiences.