Despite Isiolo town being small in size its bird life is amazing from dry land species to big raptors soaring in clear sky on  hot dusty days. The variety of habitats attracts different species of birds, from shrub land,rocky & patches of grasslands. One of the spectacular views of birds I ever saw was Eastern Paradise Whydah, Pin-tailed Whydah,Steel-blue Whydah and a big flock of Red-billed Quelea on their bright plumage on the same tree. Bat hawks making fast hunts before dark will also add your checklist.

    Due to lack of enough rain for vegetation during dry season somali herders from as far as Moyale travels with their camel in to Isiolo-meru area in search of vegetation, they go purchasing Euphombia tirucalli planted around homesteads by Ameru community members. The purchase act as a source of income when there is no crops in their farms.

While recording birds in a company of a local guide we saw a herd of about 250 camels the biggest I had never seen before. Using my binoculars I noticed two of them were doing something strange on a dry leafless Acacia tortilis, at a close range I noticed that they were actually enjoying White-browed Sparrow Weaver's nests, hurriedly picked my phone to capture the moment but wasn't enough! Had a brief conversation with herder who mentioned that the big herbivores will go for the nests whenever they have an opportunity. What happens to eggs and the chics inside the nests??

Happy birding,

John Gitiri.