Avian Adventures in Tanzania

We’ve recently returned from another very enjoyable Avian Adventures tour, this time in Northern Tanzania.

The itinerary included Tarangire, Lake Manyara and Serengeti National Parks and Ngorongoro Crater and was a repeat of previous tours that we have blogged about in the past here, here, here, here and here.  On this occasion our local driver/guide was Allen Kweka.

Once again we had a great time with plenty of birds and huge numbers of mammals. Without any doubt this is one of the world's top wildlife destinations.

 Writing about it in detail would involve a great deal of repetition so instead we’re just going to share a few photographs, starting with some from Tarangire.

Maasai Giraffes (Giraffa camelopardalis tippelskirchi), the largest subspecies of Giraffe

 Baobab trees (Adansonia digitata) - the upside down tree

 Breakfast in the National Park - bacon, sausage, egg, yoghurt, fruit and more

 Tarangire Sopa Lodge - our accommodation for two nights

 The Tarangire River

 Our transport - a Toyota Land Cruiser safari vehicle

 Northern White-crowned Shrike (Eurocephalus rueppelli) - seen almost every day

 Lilac-breasted Roller (Coracias caudatus) - another everyday bird but always appreciated

African Elephant (Loxodonta africana) - particularly numerous in Tarangire but elsewhere in Tanzania suffering badly at the hands of poachers

Scarlet-chested Sunbird (Chalcomitra senegalensis)  - common in Tanzania and widely distributed in much of sub-Saharan Africa

On Safari in Northern Tanzania

This year's Avian Adventures tour in Tanzania followed the now familiar itinerary that includes Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater. Familiar it might be but it’s an absolutely wonderful area and once again we had a great tour with plenty of birds and huge numbers of mammals. Without any doubt this is one of the world's top wildlife destinations.

If I were write about it in detail I would probably have to repeat much of what I wrote last year so this time I will keep it brief and just share a few photographs.

White-headed Buffalo-Weaver - a common species in Tarangire and the Serengeti.

Black-faced Sandgrouse - regularly found in pairs along the roadside in Tarangire.

Lilac-breasted Roller - very common but always popular.

African Spoonbills - there were hundreds at Lake Manyara. Maybe one day we'll find one in the Algarve!

This Lion did his best to frighten us...

...but he obviously had other more important things to do!

Capped Wheatear - numerous along the road through the Ngorongoro Conservation Area.

Zebras head-resting

Mwanza Flat-headed Agama - the field guide says they are 'quite wary...and often reluctant to allow humans to approach closely'. This one was very much an exception - an impressive beast! They are reported to have become popular as pets because of their resemblance to Spider-Man.

Auditioning for a place in Trafalgar Square? Rocky outcrops like this one are popular resting places for Lions.

Rufous-naped Lark - particularly common in the Serengeti, singing from bushes and termite mounds, but what a monotonous song.

A personal favourite - Double-banded Courser

Long-crested Eagle - if only all raptors were so obliging and easy to identify!

White-backed Vulture - the commonest of the vultures...

...and Lappet-faced, the largest

Little Bee-eater - widespread and usually seen in pairs. In the Ngorongoro highlands we also saw the similar but much larger Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater.

Rufous-crowned Roller - somewhat eclipsed by its much more numerous and brightly-coloured cousin.

Bateleur - another easy to identify raptor. The name "Bateleur" is French for "tight-rope walker", referring to the bird’s characteristic habit of tipping the ends of its wings when flying, as if to keep its balance.

Serval Cat - our attention was drawn to this one in the Serengeti by several very alarmed and noisy Helmeted Guineafowl. Servals hunt in the long grass and can be difficult to see, so we were pleased the next day when we came across another one in Ngorongoro Crater.

Ngorongoro Crater seen from the rim, some 600 metres above.

Tacazze Sunbird - a garden bird at the Ngorongoro Serena Safari Lodge.

White-naped Raven - this is a seriously big bird - check out that huge bill!

One of the very approachable Yellow-billed Kites that frequent the Ngoitokitok picnic site in Ngorongoro Crater.

There was more water in the Crater this year than I've seen before and as a result more wetland birds. Ducks included Cape Teal, Hottentot Teal and these Red-billed Teal.

We watched for several minutes as this Black-headed Heron wrestled with a snake and was finally able to swallow it.

If only Great Bustards were as approachable as Kori Bustards!

Cheetahs were hard to find this year but eventually we had close-up views.

Finally, a sunset! Huge old baobab trees like this one are a feature of Tarangire.

Once again thanks go to our local driver/guide, Peter Loishiye Laizer and Roy Safaris for their contributions to making our birding safari the undoubted success that it was.

Tanzania - Part 1

This month's Avian Adventures tour in Tanzania followed a familiar itinerary that took us to Tarangire, Lake Manyara, Serengeti and Ngorongoro Crater, places that can provide some of the most wonderful wildlife spectacles available anywhere on Earth. Our local driver/guide was Peter Loishiye Laizer who was excellent throughout and had a good knowledge of the birds, something that isn't guaranteed from safari guides in East Africa.

After a night in Arusha on arrival, we began in Tarangire National Park and enjoyed a two-night stay at the very comfortable Tarangire Sopa Lodge. Birding began on the way there with roadside species such as White-headed Buffalo-Weaver, Lilac-breasted Roller and Northern White-crowned Shrike providing a taste of things to come.

Northern White-crowned Shrike

Red-headed Rock Agama (female) - common around the lodge

The park is at its most attractive to large concentrations of wildlife in the dry season (June to September) when the Tarangire River offers a permanent water source. The rolling landscape was otherwise mainly dry and dusty red with huge baobab trees, acacia thorn-bush and large areas of parched grassland. During our stay we saw in good numbers most of the expected large mammal species. There were hundreds of Elephants, Zebra, Wildebeest and Impala for instance, plus Giraffes, Grant's Gazelles, tiny Kirk's Dik-diks and many more. We found our first of many Lions seen on the tour soon after lunch on the first day, always an impressive sight even when just 'lion around' doing nothing.

African Elephants

It was the birds, though, that were our main focus and there was always something to see ranging from the large, easy to see and identify, Ostriches to the more challenging cisticola species and weavers and bishops most of which were not unfortunately in their brightest and most helpful plumage. As many as 550 species are said to have been recorded in the park, amongst them the endemic Yellow-collared Lovebird and Ashy Starling both of which were very easy to see. Not surprisingly, showy species such as Saddle-billed Stork, Long-crested Eagle, Martial Eagle and Bateleur were among the favourites but a delightful Two-banded Courser was also particularly popular.

Ostrich

Martial Eagle

Saddle-billed Stork

Ashy Starling

Two-banded Courser

More to follow...