Dear All,
Rupert Watson and myself went into Nairobi National Park 16th
February. The dry conditions continued, and this was most evident in
the southern portions of the Park. On the drive down from the Main
Entrance were two female Violet-backed Starlings which are irregular
visitors to the Park, but the whole surrounding forest and scrub
reverberated with the singing wall to wall Blackcaps. This must
represent returning birds, and every year there is a huge swelling in
numbers in mid-February. On the drive down to the Ivory Burning Site
there were a couple of African Firefinches on the road, and the picnic
area was again a centre of interest. The male Irania was in his usual
group of bushes, a second bird was heard, a number of Nightingales
were singing as was a Garden Warbler, the two Upcher's Warblers
frequented the Acacia gerardii, where there was a single Willow
Warbler, the only one seen all day. A finally from this spot, a new
bird for Nairobi National Park, but not an exciting northern migrant,
or a refugee from the dry areas but a species that is resident in my
garden, as well as many other gardens in Karen and Langata and this
includes IUCN which is only mere hundreds of metres from the Park
boundary…… however the species in spite of their being square
kilometres of suitable habitat available had never up to now been
recorded in the Park. Now it is with the presence of a single
Black-collared Apalis in the scrub, both photographed and videoed for
evidence!
We continued on the back road towards Hyena Dam. There were a couple
of Nightingales singing, and a Eurasian Reed Warbler present in the
usual area, most interestingly there was a bird singing that sounded
like a Sprosser rather than a Nightingale, but unfortunately the bird
remained in cover. On the small swamp there was an African Water Rail
feeding with a second bird heard, and a passing female Montagu's
Harrier flushed a Common Snipe and a Yellow Wagtail. On the back track
down towards the dam were five Zebra Waxbill, whilst at the dam itself
there were two African Silverbills, continuing the remarkable influx
into the Park. The first of so very many Cinnamon-breasted Rock
Buntings were encountered, the sub-adult Fish-Eagle and the female
Eurasian Marsh Harrier were present as usual. Whilst watching this
harrier, which has become so tame we noticed an unusual habit, it
would drop into the damp grass, then wander around on foot obviously
searching for terrestrial food items. It is unlikely that it had
spotted anything from the air before landing. There was a single Great
Cormorant on the fast disappearing open water, not so much from lack
of, but encroaching nutrient enriched aquatic vegetation.  There was a
single Saddle-billed Stork feeding along the feeder creek, and on the
circuit road the first of four male Pallid Harriers, and the first of
over a dozen Lesser Kestrels.
Continuing along to Karen Primary School Dam there was a single
Temminck's Courser on recently grazed grass, and mixed larks including
a few Athi Short-toed. The first of six Red-tailed Shrikes was found,
there has been a remarkable switch in their presence, with five of
these being now isabellinus and only one phoenicuroides, also the
first of four Northern Wheatears. This dam had a good variety of
waterbirds, but the mammal vista here was also very impressive. There
were a Black-winged Stilt, two Green Sandpiper, a Marsh Sandpiper, the
only Greenshank of the day, around the edge singles Northern and only
the second Park Isabelline Wheatear recorded all season, and three
drinking African Silverbills. There was a Lilac-breasted Roller at the
junction of Ruai Dam road, this has been around a while now, on the
grassland there were four Montagu's Harriers only one being a male, on
the burnt area single Northern and another Isabelline Wheatears,
whilst at Ruai Dam again a good assortment of waterbirds, and yet
again an amazing assemblage of plains game. There were one each of
adult White and Pink-backed Pelicans and a single Yellow Wagtail. Our
next stop was the Hippo Pools, which is usually neglected.
Horrifyingly there are Sheep and Goats as well as Cows inside the Park
here, and there are Maasai herdsman with these animals, the incursion
of domestic mammals now is blatant, and KWS must do something about
this very soon, but they seem to do nothing. On a happier note, the
Violet Wood-Hoopoes are nesting with three adults feeding the young in
the huge dead tree just immediately down the track, which is also full
of breeding Lovebirds. This makes these birds easy to locate at the
moment. There were also a pair of Von der Decken's Hornbills, a pair
of Pygmy Kingfishers (interesting that recent records of Pygmy
Kingfishers here and elsewhere have all related to pairs of birds), a
Nightingale fed low down in scrub over the water, there were several
Olivaceous Warblers and the days only Spotted Flycatcher. There is a
bird resembling a magadi-type White-winged Scrub-Robin but I haven't
compared the photograph with others as yet. Amongst feeding parties
was one non-breeding Lesser Masked Weaver. From here we went to Rhino
Circuit for our picnic lunch, here the drought looks most devastating,
the trees away from the river being completely leafless, and the
atmosphere is eerie when in the wind blows and the dry branches rub
together with a lifeless rasping sound. On to Athi Dam where the water
level continues its descent, there were a lot of birds but nothing
stupendous. The Great Cormorant, Red-knobbed Coot, and White-winged
Black Tern were still there, an Open-billed associated with the twenty
White, Yellow-billed and Marabou Storks. Additionally were eight
Pink-backed Pelicans, forty Ruff, fifteen Little Stint, five Marsh
Sandpiper, three Common Sandpiper and a dozen Black-winged Stilts.
Three Spur-winged Plover but no sign of the chicks, and four
Kittlitz's Plovers. Here we made another interesting observation with
Eurasian Marsh Harrier, the "white-wing" female that has been long
resident here, was feeding on a long dead White-faced Whistling Duck,
(there were no White-faced Whistling Ducks present), we disturbed it
and it flew into the acacias on the dam wall. We continued birding
around the dam, and on crossing the dam wall, noticed a female Marsh
Harrier again on the dead duck. However our "white-wing" female was
still on the tree, and this was a different bird. On approaching the
corpse again, both Marsh Harriers kept coming back to the carcass.
There is no doubt that these birds were scavenging, and it is unlikely
that either were initially responsible for killing the duck. Amazingly
there was no agonistic behaviour between the two. We recorded little
all the way from here to Kingfisher Picnic Site, near here was a
Steppe Eagle and a male Eurasian Rock Thrush, also only my second in
the Park this whole season, but the Pied Wheatear was not there. On
the exit, the Crowned Crane was incubating, there was a nice pair of
Nairobi Pipits along the edge of the forest, but in the forest were
more Goats. Barn Swallows were in small numbers at the dams, and
Quailfinch were widespread.
The birds today were wonderful, but this is what is expected, the
mammals were also incredible with many Mara-like panoramas, "native"
mammal highlights were a barely days old Wildebeeste in a group of
adults, and an Oribi near Hyena Dam run-off.
The domestic mammal incursion is now a real issue, and KWS must be
forced to take some sort of action because it is going to get worse
and worse, until we have a Kitengela inside the Park.