Dear All,

I started a short tour on 15th November and the first part was an 
afternoon in Nairobi National Park. The recent rains over the past 
few days had inundated the area, we only stayed in the north of the 
Park, but Nagolomon,  Olmanyi and Hyaena Dams were full. Other areas 
of grassland were flooded. Many mammals were about in the overcast 
conditions including a Serval at Hyena Dam.

There was one exceptional new bird for the entire Nairobi district, 
a Black Coucal was sitting on a bush on the road roughly mid-way 
between Nagalomon Dam and the junction to Olmanyi Dam. It just shows 
how birds wander with the arrival of the rains, but it is a species 
that I would never have expected in Nairobi being no closer than the 
Maasai Mara although there are very old records from Limuru and 
Embu.  It was digitised of course, almost in full breeding plumage 
apart from some pale streaking on the breast.

Migrants included an adult Black Stork, three Eurasian Marsh and one 
male Pallid Harriers, two Common Buzzards and one Eurasian Hobby. 
Otherwise fairly poor with single Eurasian and Black-and-White 
Cuckoos, three Willow Warblers, one Red-tailed Shrike, one Yellow 
Wagtail and a few Barn Swallows. The two young Saddle-bills were on 
the Hyena Dam run-off, a yellow wing-tagged White-backed Vulture but 
were unable to get close enough to see the number, single Great and 
Yellow-billed Egrets at Hyena Dam.

On the Kisembe Forest Circuit Road (nr 26a) the pair of Nairobi 
Pipits were feeding three free flying birds, so that is a nice 
increase to the population.

Travelling out to JK Airport this morning I noticed that there were 
a few Long-tailed Cormorants in the Cattle Egret colonies, but not 
stopping could not see if there were any nests. I would imagine that 
this is a prelude to their breeding at the growing colonies along 
the highway, and believe that it will (when it happens) represent a 
new breeding record for Nairobi District. 

After a wet night and escaping the traffic jams of the city, we 
looked at Lukenya, which was green and lush. The only migrant 
passerines were two Sprossers calling from deep in cover, and a 
Blackcap. There were plenty of good species about, the best being a 
Bush Pipit. Otherwise Lanners and Peregrines playing along the cliff 
face, and an obliging Verreaux's Eagle. In the scrub there were Bare-
eyed Thrush, African Penduline-Tit and Southern Grosbeak Canary 
amongst the more normal species, with Lyne's Cisticola on the 
scrubby cliff face. 

Two kilometres past Sultan Hamud there was a Golden-breasted 
Starling, certainly the farthest west I have ever seen the species 
in the southern part of it's range. 

Ngulia was very quiet with very poor passage of migrants. On the 
road to Tsavo Gate we found a pair of Red-naped Bush-Shrikes as well 
as other species on the southern edge of their range such as 
Vulturine Guineafowl and Pale Prinia. 

Leaving Tsavo for Amboseli through Chyulu Gate on 18th, we found 
Lead-coloured Flycatcher in the small patch of riverine woodland at 
the Kimani end of the road, I have found this species there on every 
visit, and Red-capped Robin-Chat in full voice and quite obliging, 
another species that I have seen there before which seems out of 
range and in atypical habitat although I suspect it is resident 
there.

Amboseli was rather quiet, most marsh birds have vacated the area, 
however on the morning of 19th we found a Black-winged Pratincole 
associating with Commons. I took a digital of the bird, but it was 
quite distant once it had landed, and there was considerable heat 
haze, however it can be seen. There was a Sooty Falcon feeding over 
the marsh at the same time. There were a few migrants in Tortilis 
both Nightingale and Sprosser, five common warblers and a Cuckoo.

On the morning of 20th ten Eurasian Hobbys flew over the lodge, and 
on the same day at Mountain Lodge we had six more and an attractive 
male Amur Falcon. A few Common Buzzards passed overhead, as did a 
Black Stork and many House Martins. Other migrants were restricted 
to single Grey Wagtail, Sedge Warbler, Blackcap and Red-backed 
Shrike apart from the many Green Sandpipers coming in to roost.

The next morning we went up to the Met Station, nothing out of the 
ordinary, but Jackson's Francolins commenced at 8,500 feet, which 
seems a bit low. 

On the morning of the 22nd , we were coming down from Mountain Lodge 
and had an Eleonora's Falcon passing over with three Common 
Buzzards. The second river bridge had a White-eared Barbet in a 
fruiting fig. Solio Ranch road in the afternoon had over 100 Lesser 
Kestrels, single Hobby and Amur Falcon along the fenceline. Four 
Pallid and eight Montagu's Harriers and a Common Buzzard. Also ten 
each of Isabelline and Northern Wheatears and six Whinchats. There 
were also two Broad-tailed Warblers in the rank grass.

After a night of rain on the 23rd  we found an beautiful adult red 
Long-legged Buzzard along the road near Mweiga, and it was good to 
see that the Mackinder's Eagle-Owls had successfully fledged a young 
bird. There was a Pallid Honeyguide in the T-Falls Hotel garden, and 
Common Quail were calling from Barley near Nyahururu. The road to 
Baringo was dramatically flooded in places.

We looked at the shoreline of Lake Baringo on the 24th but it was 
too inundated to be attractive to birds. A few Blue-cheeked Bee-
eaters were in the waterside scrub. Whilst the afrotropicals were 
very good throughout the area, migrants were a very poor show, 
although there was an Eurasian Hoopoe and one Upcher's Warbler near 
the airstrip. 

Nakuru was receiving some of the recent rain, but has a long way to 
go to return to former glory. There were maybe 100,000 Lesser 
Flamingos, but only twenty White Pelicans (compared to an estimated 
150,000 the same time last year). 

Waders were abysmal for the time of year although three Temminck's 
Stints were at the Hippo Point. Migrant raptors were not too 
conspicuous but did include a near adult Great Spotted Eagle, and a 
young Eleonora's Falcon digitised whilst posing on a dead tree. One 
dark Dimorphic Egret was still present.

A Little Rock Thrush has joined the Cliff Chats hopping around the 
feet of breakfasters in the dining room at Lion Hill. Hildebrandt's 
Francolins still appear in decline in the Park. There were some 2000 
Northern Shoveler on the sewage ponds, but no other palaearctic 
ducks which seemed strange.

Passerine migrants were poor, a smattering of Willow Warblers, a few 
Northern Wheatears and an Eurasian Rock Thrush. 

Leonotis beyond Elburgon had all four long-tailed sunbirds including 
Tacazze which I personally had not seen there before. Rain was 
persistent at Kericho and the road quite bad in places across to the 
Mara.

Migrants were not good, there was a sub-adult Sooty Falcon perched 
along the Mara River. Although no migrant shrikes at all, Northern 
Wheatears were in fairly good numbers, Isabelline a fairly poor show 
and no Pied at all. Only one Eurasian Rock Thrush and three 
Whinchats. There was an incredible downpour on the 27th resulting in 
roads turning to rivers and plains to lakes. On the 28th some 2000 
White Storks were moving southwards into the Serengeti, and after a 
night of rain there was a small fall at Kichwa Tembo bringing ten 
Garden Warblers into one small bush on the lawn. Four Eurasian 
Rollers also appeared. Three Black Storks were about and there were 
two juvenile Woolly-necks with a pair of adults. We found four 
Rufous-bellied Herons on the western side of Musiara Swamp, as well 
as ten Spur-winged Plovers still on the increase. The eastern part 
of Musiara Swamp has become inaccessible with the construction of a 
trench preventing free access from the reserve at Musiara across the 
Koiyaki land adjacent. For a tourist now it is $40 per day to be in 
Trans Mara, another $40 per day to visit the Narok County Council 
reserve, and now the Koiyaki's have a barrier across the road 
between the Mara bridge and Mara Rianta, and want $40 per day to 
drive between the two!!!!!  Naturally it is another $40 per day to 
visit the Siana region. The politics of the Mara is an absolute 
debacle nowadays, and the extortionate demands of the local Maasai 
clans makes for an unpleasant experience. Sadly also Conservation 
Corporation (Kichwa Tembo) has shown that money not conservation is 
their driving force, and have completely demolished important 
scrubland and forest bordering the Sabaringo Creek to construct more 
tents. These South Africans really are ruining what was once a 
paradise. A Geman is building a camp on top of the Oloololo 
Escarpment closing off what was the best view in the Mara. 

On the morning we flew back to Nairobi the water was over the Mara 
Bridge and impassable and the Sabaringo Creek was in speight making 
it uncrossable. With the first fall of migrants that I had 
experienced this season on that morning, it would seem that there is 
a major delay in migrants this year, maybe they are lingering longer 
in favourable places en route.

Best birding to all

Brian