Dear All,
On Saturday 8th February, Gordon Boy and myself went on an exploratory
trip with Nigel and Julia Hunter. It was to take us on an interesting
road that none of us had ever been on before. We left early  and took
the Kiserian to Isinya Road, then went through Isinya village, which
is some fifty yards on the left, after turning right at the Namanga
Road junction. This road passes through interesting highland arid
plains and scrub with large expanses of stunted Whistling Thorn, and
shallow luggers with fringing Fever Tree. We nicknamed this "Bustard
Alley" as on the 30km drive to Konza we saw from the car, over fifteen
Kori, eight White-bellied and a single Harlaub's Bustards. The
population on these plains is quite staggering. During the day we
encountered over fifty Wheatears, mainly Northern but good numbers of
Isabelline, but oddly only one Pied. There were also four Eurasian
Rock-Thrush, and the only migrant raptors were a couple of male
Montagu's Harriers. Just three kilometres before the first Konza
Railway crossing, there were two male Gerenuk… these seemed
considerably out of range and suitable habitat. On reaching the
Mombasa Road, we took a right, then after a few-hundred metres a left
turn to climb onto the Ulu Hills, the object of the days expedition.
We drove along the ridge-top, then descended into a forested stream
where there were three Violet-crested Turacos, then had a picnic on a
plot of open scrub that the Hunters had recently purchased. There was
another pair of Turacos here, and more were heard further up the
valley. It would appear that the local population of this very local
species in Kenya, and the habitat are both healthy. Also on Nigel and
Julias plot we located three if not four pairs of Bush Pipits, they
were quite with noisy males singing both in flight and on the bushes,
so this was a good find, and certainly the densest that I have ever
seen this species, and undoubtedly they are more widespread on the
plains below the Ulu Hills. Other species encountered that were not
surprising numbered African Penduline Tit and Southern Grosbeak
Canary.
Every two or three years, I get momentarily fooled by a chat-like bird
crossing an opening and landing on a bush. The bird has a very rusty
tail, cold grey back and very whitish underparts. It turns out to be a
Spotted Flycatcher with a reddish tail. I have gone through the
literature, and no races show anything but brown tails with no rufous
tinge. Where these birds originate is a real mystery, or if such a
colour plumage has been noted elsewhere, I can find no trace of such a
claim. On this occasion at Ulu, I was able to photograph the bird, to
show that such a form does exist. Has anyone else seen this form.
Initially it can look like a duller tailed Redstart when seen
fleetingly. We did see one normal Spotted Flycatcher as well.