Written by Adam Cruickshank and published on 03 December 2025.
This is the story of Caleb de Beer, a young South African birder who became the youngest person to record 800 species in the southern African subregion. His journey, guided in part by Birding Ecotours, highlights youth birding, family travel, and birding across places such as South Africa, Mozambique, Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe. It is a story about family, passion, and the joy of birding.
What happens when family, adventure, and the quest to see birds come together!
While some 14-year-olds spend much of their lives scrolling through social media, Caleb de Beer has taken a very different path.
On Thursday, 25th November 2025, Caleb and his father booked a Cape Town Day tour with Birding Ecotours. On that trip they saw a Baird’s Sandpiper. This was a rare and special bird for the Western Cape, but it held even more meaning for Caleb. At 14 years and 26 days old he became the youngest birder to reach 800 species in the southern African subregion.
Caleb and Dom, after reaching that special milestone.
The sighting was even more memorable because the guide on the day was Western Cape birding specialist Dominic Rollinson, whose younger brother, Patrick, previously held this record at 16 years and 274 days old.
Caleb’s birding journey began when he was nine years old. His father, Dr Johnny de Beer, first encouraged him to join birding trips by offering him treats on outings. Over time, birding became far more than a list of species. It became time together in the field. His eight-year-old brother, Luke, has also taken up birding, which has turned these outings into meaningful family moments.
Caleb has traveled widely in southern Africa. He has visited Mozambique, Namibia, Botswana, and Zimbabwe (in addition to his home South Africa). One of his best birding memories was seeing his favorite bird, the Black-fronted Bushshrike, in the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe.
As Caleb approached the 800 mark, his father contacted Birding Ecotours to help plan the remaining trips. As a team we were honored to play a small part in his journey. We wanted his final milestone to be accurate and clear.
Before a Karoo trip with guide Zach Simpson, we requested Caleb’s southern African life list. Zach audited every species. He worked through the list with Caleb and his father. A few entries were removed due to finger slips. A few others were removed because Caleb could not recall the sighting well. We also updated the list to match the most recent AviList changes.
Once the list was correct, we planned the next steps. The Western Cape and the Karoo offered the best chance of adding the species he still needed. A private Western Cape and Karoo trip in September, led by Zach, added birds such as Sclater’s and Stark’s Larks, Antarctic Tern, and Fynbos Buttonquail. The itinerary focused on giving Caleb the best chance to see each target species. Zach made sure that Caleb had clear views before adding anything to his list. The trip ended one species short of the milestone, but most of the remaining list had been completed.
Sclater’s Lark was one of Caleb’s recent lifers on his to 800.
A short wait followed. Then a run of rarities in the Western Cape created the perfect moment. With Dr de Beer’s busy schedule, time was limited. They booked a day trip with Dominic Rollinson and our team waited for the update from the field. When the message arrived, we were thrilled: Caleb had reached his 800th species!
There is an African proverb that says it takes a village to raise a child.This is something that most birders understand as none of us build our life lists alone. We learn from people who give their time, share their knowledge, and walk the path with us. Caleb’s journey is a clear picture of this. His family formed the heart of his village, and we were grateful to add our support by helping with his list, planning his trips, and guiding him through his final species.
After reaching 800 species, Caleb sent us this message. “I really appreciate the guidance of Birding Ecotours in helping me pass this milestone. A big thank you to Zach for helping to sort out my list, as well as Uncle Dom for the expertise that he and the company has shown.”
Thank you for allowing us to be part of your journey, Caleb. We look forward to leading you on more trips and celebrating many more milestones with you and your family.
If you are close to a birding milestone and would like support, contact us at [email protected] to start planning your adventure. We would love to help plan a trip that gives you the best chance of reaching your goal.
