An initiative by BirdLife South Africa, the Sasol Birds & Birding Fair is sponsored by Sasol and partnered by the Johannesburg Zoo and Africa - Birds & Birding magazine. It is an ideal platform for improving your knowledge of birds and learning about some of the measures being taken to conserve this country's birds. Free talks and workshops on a variety of topics will be held on both days in the Education Centre and at the Old Elephant House. These will be on a first-come, first-served basis.

 

Professional photographer Robbie Aspeling, will conduct workshops for bird enthusiasts who want to venture into the world of bird photography and will cover photography of birds in flight. Well-known bird expert, Geoff Lockwood, will focus on the changing bird species of Johannesburg – what is here and what is no longer here and bird territories.

 

"Sasol wants to create widespread enthusiasm for the preservation of South Africa's precious wildlife and has committed itself to sponsoring a number of bird projects. These include the popular Sasol Birds of Southern Africa field guide, commonly referred to as "Sasol Birds", bird hides and birding weekends in places such as the Kruger and West Coast national parks," says Richard Hughes, Sasol Manager Sponsorships.

 

Situated in Johannesburg's leafy Parktown, the Johannesburg Zoo was founded in 1904 and is one of the city's most popular local tourist attractions. The 81-hectare site was donated to the city for recreational use by the firm of the late Hermann Ekstein. It offers numerous activities such as various night and day tours, school holiday programmes and music and sporting events. It is a great venue for a family outing in a safe environment. Apart from their activities, the zoo houses over 320 species of animals, totaling about 2000 animals.

 

The Johannesburg Zoo is proud to be associated with several conservation initiatives such as the Wattled Crane Recovery and Vulture Conservation programmes. "The fair is an important event towards highlighting the plight of wildlife in this country and worldwide and is yet another way for the zoo to demonstrate its support for the conservation of endangered animals in this country and worldwide," says Candice Segal, Johannesburg Zoo Acting PR and Brand Communications Manager.

 

In addition to the Sasol Birds & Birding Fair, Sasol supports the development of BirdLife South Africa's bird guides, the Endangered Wildlife Trust's Birds of Prey working group Vulture monitoring Programme and the Mabula Southern Ground-Hornbill Project.

 

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Notes to the editor:

 

For further information about the Sasol Birds & Birding Fair, contact Nikki McCartney on +27 (0)83-636-1060, fax +27 (0)86-581-9999, e-mailevents@birdlife.org.za.

 

 

 

*This workshop has been compiled to enable the bird enthusiast to venture out into the world of bird photography and will cover the following topics:

 

1. Getting started

2. Equipment recommendations for new bird photographers

3. What camera settings to use to achieve the best results

4. Exposure, exposure compensation and working with histograms

5. Basic composition

6. Basic field techniques

7. Birds in flight photography

 

The workshop and lectures are on a first come first served basis.

 

A Migration Game for children will take place twice during the morning and afternoon on both days. Visit the BirdLife South Africa stand for more information.