Dear All

I recently spent a few months in Kenya assisting with a number of projects; these included collaring 2 lions at Olkirimatian group ranch, Magadi, and a 10 day trip to Lake Turkana to carry out some field research for a hydrological study taking place there. We used boats at Turkana and covered the whole lake, visiting the Omo delta in the far north, and all 3 islands. These are two of my family's favourite places to go to on safari and I have been going to both since I was a few weeks old so they are close to my heart.

My brother and I are very keen birders and keep detailed lists of birds we see on our trips, and as not many people get to visit the Turkana region I thought I would send you all a copy of our bird list from the trips, which I have typed up and are at the bottom of this message. I have included the Olkirimatian list for interest sake.

I thought I should point out a few interesting siting's we had for those who don't want to read the whole list:

Our Turkana trip was really interesting-we travelled from lodwar to Kalokol on the western shore and from there travelled to north island, the omo delta, sibiloi national park, central island, turkwell delta and south island. A very interesting trip including some new/interesting birds. Here are a few of the interesting sitings;

1. Two caspian terns diving around eratically

2. White fronted plovers on south island... Very interesting because in the book it mentions how they "may collect water in their breast feathers" and we positively observed an individual ruffling its breast feathers and soaking them in the lake, collecting water. Presumably this must mean that they are breeding on south island?

3. Lots of kentish plovers all over the lake and big flocks of caspian plovers at the turkwell delta.

4. Yellow crowned bishops in the Omo delta reeds. These are not reported as being found here; does anyone have any info regarding this?

5. Blue cheeked bee-eaters in the Omo delta. Again these are not recorded in the books as being found here so any info would be interesting.

6. Large flocks of breeding northern masked weavers in the Omo delta

7. Pair of peregrines hunting on the peak of north island.

8. Single eurasian marsh harrier which nearly flew in to my brother one evening wile we were fishing on central island because it was so engrossed in searching the shoreline for a meal!

9. Large numbers of pallid harriers and kestrels (fox and common) on all three islands.

10. Multiple ospreys at all locations on the lake and fish eagles too.

11. Two single willow warblers-one on north island and one on central island.

12. Heuglins wheatears on the plains between lodwar and kalokol as well as large numbers of northern and pied wheatears (particularly on the islands).

13. Huge flocks of yellow wagtails at most places on the lake shore and a pair of white wagtails.

14. Large flock of white storks on thermals at Todenyang at the north western shore of the lake.

15. Large numbers of waders particularly ruffs, common green shanks, marsh and green sandpipers, little stints, three banded plovers, black smith plovers, senegal thick knees. 

16. Large flocks of collared pratincoles.

17. Numerous brown tailed rock chats and crested larks.

18. Numerous white winged terns, gull billed terns, grey headed gulls and smaller numbers of lesser black backed gulls.

19. Pair of spotted eagle owls

20. About 5-6 individual black morph little egrets together with white morph little egrets on south island.

21. White bellied morphs of variable sunbird on central island

22. Large breeding colonies of black herons, great cormorants, sacred ibis, african spoonbills on central island as well as large colonies of great cormorants on south island.

23. Several thousand lesser flamingos on the soda crater lake on central island and 5 greater flamingos at the turkwell delta.

24. Large flock of alpine swifts feeding over lodwar

25 Abysinnian rollers in lodwar.

26. Pair of jackson's hornbills in lodwar.

27. Single curlew at the turkwell delta.

28. House sparrows in kalakol!

The bird life was superb on the lake with hundreds of migrant gulls and terns. Unfortunately we didn't see any skimmers... They were the ones we really hoped to see so maybe that's why...! The fisherman are getting quite desperate as the fish supplies are diminishing rapidly with all the fishing pressure; we saw pelicans which they had shot to eat and a number of crocodile carcasses in their camps too.


Olkirimatian safari:

1. I saw a bare faced go-away bird on a number of occasions in the same place; the books do not have it down for this area so that was interesting. Has anyone heard of them being seen here before?

2. I also saw a brown-headed apalis which is said to be found up on the Nguruman escarpment, but where I saw it was in the low lying ground several kilometres to the east of the escarpment. 

3. There was thousands of white storks over the whole area.

4. The grass was very long and lush and we were lucky enough to see a few corncrakes flying off in front of the car.

5. As I was out at night following lions I saw a large number of owls including 11 spotted eagle owls together at one time on a rocky outcrop at dusk; we found them there every evening in the same spot from then on! Also an african wood owl, verraux eagle owls, and heard pearl spotted owlets plus african scops.

6. Single Narina trogon in the fig tree riverine forest along the parkasi river

While we were there I was lucky enough to catch a lift on an aerial reconnaissance of the area in a light aircraft. We flew around the whole group ranch, down the Ewaso Ngiro river and over it's swamp, then over Natron. The swamp was way more extensive than we had realised and looked fantastic because it was full of water; the bird life was phenomenal; whistling ducks, pelicans, cattle/little egrets, black herons, goliath/grey/black headed herons, saddle billed stalks, white storks, darters, flamingos and thousands of waders. I have never seen such a density of birds in an area like that before and we are now planning a trip in to the depths of the swamp - maybe using a small boat from downstream as it looks impenetrable otherwise... Who knows what interesting birds could be in there! There were quite a few flamingos on the peripheries of natron because it was very full of water.

Sorry it is such a long message, I just thought it may be of interest. Please let me know what you think so I can judge whether to report on trips like this in the future. My email address is kieranavery@gmail.com if anyone has any questions (bird lists below).

Thanks.

Kieran Avery

Turkana trip Jan 2012
New species for us *

Abysinnian roller *
Caspian Tern *
Blue cheeked bee eater *
Northern masked weaver *
Heuglin's wheatear *
Lesser black backed gull *
White fronted plover *
Kentish plover *
Caspian plover *
Eurasian marsh harrier *
Jackson's hornbill *
Black morph little egret *
White bellied morph variable sunbird *
Sand martin *
Curlew
Speckled pigeon
Feral pigeon
YVBB
Pied crow
Brown necked raven
Fan tailed raven
White billed buffalo weaver
White bellied go away bird
Common swift
Eurasian swift
Palm swift
Ring necked dove
Namaqua dove
Laughing dove
Mourning dove
Crested lark
Rufous chatterer
Somali sparrow
House sparrow
Hoopoe
Taita fiscal
Somali fiscal
Chestnut backed sparrow lark
White headed buffalo weaver
Northern wheatear
Pied wheatear
Pied wagtail
Yellow wagtail
White wagtail
Yellow bellied eremomela
Blue naped mouse bird
Red fronted warbler
Eastern violet backed sunbird
Black kite
White winged tern
Grey headed gull
Gull billed tern
Glossy ibis
Sacred ibis
Hadada ibis
White faced whistling duck
Purple heron
Blacked headed heron
Squacco heron
Black crowned night heron
Goliath heron
Grey heron
Great egret
Intermediate egret
Little egret
Cattle egret
Green backed heron
Long tailed cormorant
Great cormorant
Egyptian goose
Spurwinged plover
Blacksmith plover
Three banded plover
Collared pratincole
Little stint
Ruff
Marsh sandpiper
Green sandpiper
Common green shank
Pied kingfisher
Senegal thick-knee
Brown tailed rock chat
Pallid harrier
Osprey
Fish eagle
Fox kestrel
Common kestrel
Peregrine falcon
Black shouldered kite
Knob billed goose
White stork
Marabou stork
Yellow billed stork
Cape teal
Carmine bee-eater
Eurasian bee-eater
Pink backed pelican
Great white pelican
African jacana
Red and yellow barbet
Black throated barbet
Willow warbler
Red tailed shrike
Cinammon breasted rock bunting
White browed coucal
Wattled starling
Slender tailed nightjar
Plain night jar
Black winged stilt
Lesser flamingo
Greater flamingo
African spoonbill
Northern brownbul
Harlequin quail
Spotted eagle owl


Olkirimatian/Shompole Christmas 2011
* New species for us
 
Dusky nightjar *
Horus swift *
Heuglins courser *
Corncrake *
Brown headed apalis *
White stork
Narina trogon
Grey crowned crane
Hadada ibis
African spoonbill
Sacred ibis
Lesser flamingo
Greater flamingo
Hammerkop
Spotted thick-knee
Crowned plover
Common sandpiper
Harlequin quail
Yellow necked spurfowl
Helmeted guinea fowl
Kori bustard
White backed vulture
Martial eagle
Bateleur
Eastern pale chanting goshawk
Black shouldered kite
Lanner falcon
Pygmy falcon
Black faced sand grouse
Laughing dove
Mourning dove
Speckled pigeon
Red eyed dove
Green pigeon
Namaqua dove
Emerald spotted wood dove
White bellied go away bird
Diedriks cuckoo
Chestnut bellied sandgrouse
Chestnut weaver
Verreaux eagle owl
Crested francolin
Striped kingfisher
Tawny eagle
Lesser striped swallow
Banded martin
Purple roller
Red and yellow barbet
Village indigo bird
Northern crombec
Peregrine falcon
Red fronted warbler
Grey headed gull
Little swift
Blacksmith plover
Desert cisticola
Black throated barbet
Little egret
Masai ostrich
Black chested snake eagle
Red bellied shrike
African silverbill
Eurasian bee-eater
Verreaux eagle
Grey wren warbler
Cardinal quelea
Black backed puff back
Slate coloured boubou
Long tailed fiscal
Northern white crowned shrike
Pygmy batis
African grey flycatcher
Rufous chatterer
White browed scrub robin
Spotted morning thrush
Isabelline wheatear
Buff bellied warbler
Tawny flanked petronia
Abysinnian white eye
Beautiful sunbird
Scarlet chested sunbird
Rufous sparrow
Grey headed sparrow
White browed sparrow weaver
Red billed quelea
Southern red bishop
Vitelline masked weaver
Blue capped cordon bleu
Red billed fire finch
White bellied canary
Brubru
Abysinnian scimitarbill
Harrier hawk
Bearded woodpecker
Nubian woodpecker
Cardinal woodpecker
Egyptian goose
Fish eagle
Superb starling
Ruppells long tailed starling
African wood owl
Bare faced go away bird
Knob billed goose
Eastern violet backed sunbird
Pied wheatear
White winged widow bird
Woodland kingfisher
Narina trogon
Red headed weaver
Black headed oriole
Grey woodpecker
Common kestrel
Secretary bird
Western reef heron
Blackwinged stilt
Saddle billed stork
Black heron
White faced whistling duck
Marabou stork