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The Gambia: a Taste of Africa, November 2017
Tropical Birding - Trip Report The Gambia: A Taste of Africa, November 2017 A Tropical Birding “Chilled” SET DEPARTURE tour The Gambia A Taste of Africa Just Six Hours Away From The UK November 2017 TOUR LEADERS: Alan Davies and Iain Campbell Report by Alan Davies Photos by Iain Campbell Egyptian Plover. The main target for most people on the tour www.tropicalbirding.com +1-409-515-9110 [email protected] p.1 Tropical Birding - Trip Report The Gambia: A Taste of Africa, November 2017 Red-throated Bee-eaters We arrived in the capital of The Gambia, Banjul, early evening just as the light was fading. Our flight in from the UK was delayed so no time for any real birding on this first day of our “Chilled Birding Tour”. Our local guide Tijan and our ground crew met us at the airport. We piled into Tijan’s well used minibus as Little Swifts and Yellow-billed Kites flew above us. A short drive took us to our lovely small boutique hotel complete with pool and lovely private gardens, we were going to enjoy staying here. Having settled in we all met up for a pre-dinner drink in the warmth of an African evening. The food was delicious, and we chatted excitedly about the birds that lay ahead on this nine- day trip to The Gambia, the first time in West Africa for all our guests. At first light we were exploring the gardens of the hotel and enjoying the warmth after leaving the chilly UK behind. Both Red-eyed and Laughing Doves were easy to see and a flash of colour announced the arrival of our first Beautiful Sunbird, this tiny gem certainly lived up to its name! A bird flew in landing in a fig tree and again our jaws dropped, a Yellow-crowned Gonolek what a beauty! Shocking red below, black above with a daffodil yellow crown, we were loving Gambian birds already. -
Senegal and Gambia
BIRDING AFRICA THE AFRICA SPECIALISTS Senegal and Gambia 2019 Tour Report Vinaceous Black-faced Firefi nch Text by tour leader Michael Mills Photos by Gus Mills SUMMARY ESSENTIAL DETAILS Our first trip to Senegal and Gambia was highly successful and netted a Dates 16 Jan: Full day in the Kedougou area seeing Mali good selection of localised and rarely-seen specials. For this private trip we Firefinch.. ran a flexible itinerary to target a small selection of tricky species. In Senegal 11-23 January 2019 17 Jan: Early departure from Kedougou. Lunch Savile's Bustard was the last African bustard for the entire party, and was at Wassadou Camp. Evening boat trip on Gambia Birding Africa Tour Report Tour Africa Birding seen well both at the Marigots and in the Kaolack area. Other Senegalese Leaders River with Adamawa Turtle Dove and Egyptian Report Tour Africa Birding Plover.. highlights included Western Red-billed Hornbill, Sahel Paradise Whydah Michael Mills assisted by Solomon Jallow in full breeding plumage, Little Grey Woodpecker, Mali Firefinch, Egyptian 18 Jan: Morning at Wassadou Camp, before driving to Gambia. Afternoon around Bansang with Plover and African Finfoot. Large numbers of waterbirds at Djoudj and the Participants Exclamatory Paradise Whydah in full plumage. Marigots were memorable too. Julian Francis and Gus Mills 19 Jan: Early departure from Bansang, driving to Tendaba for lunch via north bank. Afternoon at Tendaba seeing Bronze-winged Courser. Itinerary 20 Jan: Early morning on the Bateling Track seeing 11 Jan: Dakar to St Louis. Afternoon at the Marigots, Yellow Penduline Tit, White-fronted Black Chat, hearing Savile's Bustard. -
GHANA MEGA Rockfowl & Upper Guinea Specials Th St 29 November to 21 December 2011 (23 Days)
GHANA MEGA Rockfowl & Upper Guinea Specials th st 29 November to 21 December 2011 (23 days) White-necked Rockfowl by Adam Riley Trip Report compiled by Tour Leader David Hoddinott RBT Ghana Mega Trip Report December 2011 2 Trip Summary Our record breaking trip total of 505 species in 23 days reflects the immense birding potential of this fabulous African nation. Whilst the focus of the tour was certainly the rich assemblage of Upper Guinea specialties, we did not neglect the interesting diversity of mammals. Participants were treated to an astonishing 9 Upper Guinea endemics and an array of near-endemics and rare, elusive, localized and stunning species. These included the secretive and rarely seen White-breasted Guineafowl, Ahanta Francolin, Hartlaub’s Duck, Black Stork, mantling Black Heron, Dwarf Bittern, Bat Hawk, Beaudouin’s Snake Eagle, Congo Serpent Eagle, the scarce Long-tailed Hawk, splendid Fox Kestrel, African Finfoot, Nkulengu Rail, African Crake, Forbes’s Plover, a vagrant American Golden Plover, the mesmerising Egyptian Plover, vagrant Buff-breasted Sandpiper, Four-banded Sandgrouse, Black-collared Lovebird, Great Blue Turaco, Black-throated Coucal, accipiter like Thick- billed and splendid Yellow-throated Cuckoos, Olive and Dusky Long-tailed Cuckoos (amongst 16 cuckoo species!), Fraser’s and Akun Eagle-Owls, Rufous Fishing Owl, Red-chested Owlet, Black- shouldered, Plain and Standard-winged Nightjars, Black Spinetail, Bates’s Swift, Narina Trogon, Blue-bellied Roller, Chocolate-backed and White-bellied Kingfishers, Blue-moustached, -
Song Mimicry and Association of Brood-Parasitic Indigobirds (Vidua) with Dybowski's Twinspot (Eustichospiza Dybowskii)
The Auk 112(3):649-658, 1995 SONG MIMICRY AND ASSOCIATION OF BROOD-PARASITIC INDIGOBIRDS (VIDUA) WITH DYBOWSKI'S TWINSPOT (EUSTICHOSPIZA DYBOWSKII) ROBERT B. PAYNE TMAND LAURA L. PAYNE • •Museumof Zoologyand 2Departmentof Biology,University of Michigan, Ann Arbor,Michigan 48109, USA AI•STRACT.--Apopulation of brood-parasiticCameroon Indigobirds (Viduacamerunensis) in Sierra Leone mimics the songsof its apparent foster species,Dybowski's Twinspot (Eusti- chospizadybowskii). Song mimicry includesthe widespreadsong elementsand phrasesand the major featuresof organizationof song(introductory units, terminal units, repetitionof certain units, and complexity in number of kinds of units in a song) of the twinspots.The songmimicry by indigobirdsof Dybowski'sTwinspots was predictedfrom a hypothesisof the origin of brood-parasiticassociations by colonizationof new foster speciesthat have parentalbehavior and habitatsimilar to their old fosterspecies. Indigobirds (Vidua spp.) now are known to mimic five speciesand generaof estrildidsthat are not firefinches(Lagonosticta spp.), their more commonfoster group. The evolutionarysignificance of songmimicry by indigobird populationsand speciesof severalgenera of estrildid finches,including the twinspot, is that the brood-parasiticindigobirds (Viduaspp.) appear to have associatedwith their fosterspecies through recentcolonizations rather than through ancientcospeciations. Received21 January1994, accepted 2 July 1994. THE AFRICANINDIGOBIRDS (Vidua spp.) are the Viduacospeciated with them and diverged brood-parasiticfinches -