Dear All,
I have just returned from a Wings tour of Central Kenya, which followed hot on the heels of an interesting Eastern Tanzania safari which contains much relevance to Kenya, and I will detail later, and tomorrow I go off to Uganda.

The Kenya tour from 18th June until 2nd July 2008, covered Nairobi National Park, Lukenya, Tsavo West, Chyulu Gate to Kimana, Amboseli, Mt. Kenya, Naro Moru, Mweiga, Ndaragwa, Nyahururu, Baringo, Nakuru National Park, Kericho, Mara.

We started off the 18th in Nairobi National Park which had some extensive grasslands that were seeding. This was attracting hundreds upon hundreds of White-winged Widowbirds, Red-collared and Jackson’s were already out of breeding dress. The grasslands also attracted other seed-eating species, Cardinal Queleas still sported red heads, Zebra Waxbills and Quail-finch were common, whilst Common Waxbills were the most numerous estrildid with small numbers of Crimson-rumped Waxbill, Purple Grenadier, Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu, Red-billed Firefinch and Bronze Mannikins. Hyena Dam had a single African Darter, African Water-Rails called but did not reveal themselves, a pair of attractive Black Duck were at the Hippo Pools, but little else of interest there apart from a pair of Violet Wood-Hoopoes. Athi Dam had a reasonable assortment of waterbirds that included a pair of Spur-winged Plover, and two wintering Greenshanks. Some twenty Yellow-throated Sandgrouse fed around the margins, and a single Harlequin Quail was flushed.

On 19th we departed for Tsavo West, with a morning stop at Lukenya. A family party of African Penduline-Tits indicated local breeding, and we finally located a Southern Grosbeak Canary. Hunter’s Lodge was desolate, no weavers or much activity, however the museum area at Mtito Andei Gate was most entertaining. The usual pair of Black-headed Plovers were there (and two more pairs further along the road). On the drive to Ngulia Lodge we had a Spotted Eagle-Owl, but there were no nightjars of any description. The place looked very dry.

After an early breakfast on the 20th we descended onto the Tsavo Gate road. The area was in the grip of a drought, many acacias and commiphoras had completely shed their leaves. However the birds were present, and we managed to locate a Rock Kestrel (I don’t recall seeing them here before), Scaly Chatterers on three occasions, three Red-naped Bush-Shrikes which afforded excellent views, Pale Prinias which now are no longer newsworthy here, the usual Pringle’s Puffbacks and the remaining Somalian-acacia species. Vulturine Guineafowl were not to be seen or heard however.
In the afternoon we birded below Ngulia on the road to the Hippo Pools, which did not contain any hippos. A few kilometres around the corner on the road that eventually gets to Maktau, or across the lava to Kilaguni, we were down along the wooded lugga an area I had never looked at before. In the late evening I could hear Grey-olive Greenbuls, but it was too late to do anything.

On 21st we left early morning, and went straight to the creek and successfully called in a pair of Grey-olive Greenbuls. Another new location for this species, but I believe the first ever within the Tsavo National Park borders. Near Chyulu Gate were a pair of Yellow-billed Hornbills, my farthest western record in the Park, the grasslands above Mzima were devoid of birds but a Red-winged Lark flew in to a pre-recorded tape. A pair of Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse had two chicks, and at Chyulu Gate were several Black-bellied Sunbirds.

Stopping off at the small woodland as usual we found Brown-hooded Kingfisher, more Grey-olive Greenbuls, pairs of Red-capped Robin-Chats and Black-throated Wattle-eyes, Lead-coloured Flycatcher, and what were to be out only three White-fronted Bee-eaters for the tour being able to locate any around Nakuru. All of these species are resident there and none came as a surprise.

Morning of 22nd we found a few Taveta Golden Weavers in the Ol Tukai grounds. And located both adults of Little and Dwarf Bitterns in the swamps. Southern Rush Warblers were very obliging at the “smelly bridge” and Short-tailed Larks were on there usual dry plain, although only five were found. A pair of Black-faced Sandgrouse had two chicks here. For the first time in many trips we were not able to locate White-headed Mousebirds on the road to the main gate. Whilst there were indications of some recent rain, the area overall seemed very parched and dusty.

We flew out of Amboseli on the morning of 23rd, there were a pair of Spotted Thick-knees near the airstrip and the somewhat isolated colony of Speke’s Weavers were next to the buildings. Landing at Nanyuki we were transferred to Mountain Lodge and spent the remainder of the afternoon on the roof. It was fairly quiet, cold and overcast, good numbers of Bronze-naped Pigeons were present, and a fruiting tree was attracting a number of species including Oriole-Finch. In the evening a Green Sandpiper arrived to roost, I have never before seen a Green Sandpiper in June.

After another look at the roof on the morning of 24th, we departed for the Met Station above Naro Moru. We found a nice Doherty’s Bush-Shrike at the airstrip, before undertaking the climb (by vehicle of course!). There were plenty of Abyssinian Ground-Thrushes, and they have become absurdly tame. One Hill Chat was in the car park, the first there in the past three visits, other normal montane species were found but try as we might we could not find a Jackson’s Francolin. We descended feeling robbed, finding a number of montane species including a huge party of fifteen White-headed Wood-Hoopoes. Only one kilometres before arriving at the staff houses we encountered a pair of Jackson’s Francolins on the road, I don’t know what the elevation was but it was ridiculously low for the species.
The remainder of the evening was at Mountain Lodge and two Green Sandpipers arrived for roosting!!!!

On the 25th we birded the roof, and left for Naro Moru nearly colliding with a Lemon Dove on the way. On Solio Plains road (soon to be paved it appears), we had a pair of Greater Kestrels, but nothing else of note, I don’t ever remember seeing the place as parched as it is now, much of it just dust.

On the 26th we had a cursory look around the grounds of Naro Moru River Lodge, the best there being four vepres Black-lored Babblers.

The Mackinder’s Eagle Owl was resting on the quarry wall when we arrived, prior to that we watched Elementeita Rock Agamas, basking on rocks and Little Rock Thrush bursting into song.

A dam near Nyahururu had a pair of very obliging African Water Rails, as well as White-backed Duck and Levaillant’s Cisticolas.

A small dam near Subukia had breeding Jackson’s Golden-backed Weavers, they were seen here some four years ago. A Battersby’s Green Snake also posed for the photographers.

We made Baringo and crossed to the island for overnight, where a Barn Owl entertained us.

On the morning of 26th we had our breakfast, Northern Brownbuls were around the lodge, it must have been a struggle for them to reach there. Little Weavers were very attentive of the early morning biscuits. The previous evening I had heard the distinctive staccatoed call of Senegal Thick-knees, so instead of going straight back to the mainland, we had a very short detour, finding seven resting on a beach. On the crossing we saw nothing apart from a Black-headed Gull in very tatty plumage.

On the mainland we found (thanks to Francis) all of the local specialities, but for me a surprise was of two Black-cheeked Waxbills at the cliffs. I have never seen them at Baringo before. A second surprise at the cliffs were two Ethiopian Swallows singing and chasing each other around the rock face. They nest in buildings at Nginyang not so far away however. A Pink-backed Pelican circled around, typically absent from most of the usual haunts at this time of year, there were a pair of wahbeli Eurasian Hoopoes, but generally the place was very dry in spite of the water level still being fairly (though much lower than six months ago) high and drowning the Prosopis.

On the return to Nakuru I was surprised to find Jackson’s Hornbill almost to the equator.

The 27th we were looking at Lake Nakuru, to the resident the numbers were very low, but to the visitor it was still a spectacular sight, as was the huge number of White Pelicans in breeding plumage. A few palearctics were found, three White Storks, two Black-headed Gulls, a few White-winged Black Terns, twenty or so Greenshank, two Marsh Sandpipers, a few Barn Swallows all much expected, but a Black Kite at the settling ponds wasn’t.  The best summering palearctic was found here a few days earlier when David Fisher with a private group found a drake Northern Pintail! Also here were four White-backed Ducks, eight Fulvous Whistling-Ducks, and an assortment of resident waterfowl. The forest produced a very bright Broad-billed Roller (unlikely to be wintering from further south as in breeding condition), a few Grey-crested Helmet-shrike, and Scaly-throated Honeyguide, Klaa’s, Diederic, Black and Red-chested Cuckoos were very vocal, whereas cuckoos had not been encountered anywhere else apart from an Emerald (silent) at Ndaragwa, and an African (silent) on the Baringo Road.

On 29th we left for the Mara via Kericho. Not very far past Elburgon were a pair of Black-crowned Waxbills, not usually found until Chagaik Arboretum. Our stop here gave us Black-faced Rufous Warbler, Banded and White-chinned Prinias, Mackinnon’s Fiscal, Grey-throated Barbet, Stuhlmann’s Starling etc., just a touch of the west before passing through Sotik, Kilgoris, Lolgorien to Kichwa Tembo.

The morning of the 30th was spent on the Oloololo Escarpment, most of the specialities were located, but it was not very good for bird song. In the afternoon we visited the Serena Oxbows, which had a healthy amount of water, but not a healthy assemblage of birds. A Grey-rumped Swallow near the Oloololo Gate was a good record for the Mara as the species is inexplicably scarce here.

On the 1st July we had a morning walk around Kichwa Tembo, better birds were Scaly Francolins with a chick, Ross’s and Schalow’s Turacos in a fruiting tree, Golden-tailed Woodpecker, plus the usual. Around the rondavels we had a very surprising find in the shape of a male Olive-bellied Sunbird, unbelievably whilst standing in the car-park at the other side of the camp we relocated it feeding of all things on tithonia flowers. This enabled me to get some very nice conclusive images, and represents a new species for the Mara, and I have never before heard of any vagrancy in this species.

On the way we found three Short-necked Skinks, this according to Spalls Field Guide was the first record west of the Rift in Kenya. I sent him he images and he confirmed the identification, but added that he had recently received a photo of the species also from the Mara, so they would appear to be present in the west in the Mara.

Musiara Swamp housed four Rufous-bellied Herons, the airport pits had six Madagascar Pond Herons, whilst this sounds good, it is a bit alarming compared to nineteen there this time last year. There were also three Long-toed and two Spur-winged Plovers here, not so long ago when both were vagrants to the Mara, and now both breed and are resident. An African Marsh Harrier patrolled over the swamp, and not far from the airstrip was a Montagu’s Harrier in rather ragged condition. A pair of Athi Short-toed Larks were on the road well before “Double-Cross”, usually not encountered until in the vicinity of Intrepids. A few Buffy Pipits were along the road, when the ground became gravelly.

The last morning for the tour, 2nd July we had a pre-breakfast look in the Siana Valley, only finding two Magpie Shrikes, but ten Buff-bellied Penduline-Tits which were very noisy indeed, and forming linear clusters along branches as if most were young birds. There was an adult Lesser Spotted Eagle in the valley, I had one in exactly the same place a couple of years ago (also an adult).

On the whole tour we only encountered two single Palm Swifts, where have they all gone?

Best birding

Brian