An impressive 'birds and people' project to protect a Critically Endangered breeding endemic of Ethiopia has turned twitchers into charitable givers. The White-winged Flufftail Sarothrura ayresi is an extremely elusive crake that is very high on many African birders' 'most wanted' list. It breeds in Ethiopia and 'winters' in the austral summer in South Africa, where it's known from a handful of sites including the Middelpunt Wetland in the northeast province of Mpumalanga. The Middelpunt Wetland Trust organises an annual drive of the marsh to provide a transient sighting of the bird (it tends to flush, fly about 1.5 m above the vegetation for a distance of up to 60 m and then pitches back in). Twitchers who go to see the flufftail are asked to pay 250 rand per head (approx £23).