From: Colin Jackson <colin.jackson@arocha.org>
Date: 2011-03-30 17:53
Subject: Mad Prat ringed at Mida
We've just had a couple of nights ringing waders on Mida with a
total of just short of 200 birds caught. Good numbers of Lesser and
Greater Sand Plovers, the latter about the leave, the former still
fattening and with very few in breeding plumage. But the highlight
of the two nights was the almighty suprise of taking a long-winged,
dark bird with a white rump out of the net... some sort of petrel???!!
but no, with the short curved bill and longer strong legs, it turned
out to be nothing less than an immature Madagascar Pratincole!! This
is one of the few records of the species at Mida anyway and is also
quite an early date - certainly my first I've heard of this year.
This must be one of the only ones ringed in Kenya - must find out
from the Ringing Coordinator.
Also ringed were 1 Saunder's Tern, 1 White-winged Black Tern and 1
Common Tern. 12 Crab-plovers (10 in the same round...!), 16 Grey
Plovers, Greenshank and plenty of Little Stint and Curlew Sandpipers
coming into their beautiful brick red breeding plumage.
Some old retrap birds in amongst the new ones including a Curlew
Sandpiper from 1999 and Grey Plover from 2005.
Other records from around include the first Yellowbill calling at
Mwamba, the A Rocha Centre yesterday (29th), plenty of Eurasian
Golden Orioles around (1 ringed last Friday - check the A Rocha
Kenya facebook page for a picture), Carmine Bee-eaters still very
much in evidence with many in moult and therefore with short tails
etc, my first Long-crested Eagle right on the beach, at least 3
Common Terns found very weak and later died or already dead on the
beach last week - must have been a storm or something out at sea
though here it has been hot and dry so far. 7 what could only have
been Sooty Terns high overhead the beach on Saturday evening at dusk
- though quite what they were doing up there I have no idea.
Eurasian Bee-eaters going through, plenty of Barn Swallows and we're
planning on putting nets up in our nature trail to see what warblers
& Rufous Bush Chats may be moving through too...
We've had a Grewia plagiophylla tree in full blossom in the
compound that had at least 20 Purple-banded Sunbirds in it all day
that was an amazing sight to see. Looked hard for Violet-breasted
but all were P-banded; we tried to catch some, got one... and the
oriole.
Colin
--
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Colin Jackson
Director
A Rocha Kenya
PO Box 383,
Watamu, 80202
Kenya
Eml: colin.jackson@arocha.org
Tel: +254 (0)20 233 5865 (wireless)
+254 (0)42 23 32023 (landline)
Cell: 0722 842366 / 0771 757746
For more information:
www.arocha.org
www.assets-kenya.org
www.tanariverdelta.org