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Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe Overland

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Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe Overland Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe Overland Adventure IV 11th to 28th October 2019 (18 days) Trip Report Victoria Falls by Andre Bernon Trip report compiled by Tour Leader: André Bernon Trip Report – RBL Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe – Overland Adventure IV 2019 2 Tour Summary This tour covered three countries and started off in Victoria Falls, one of the seven natural wonders of the world. Passing through the Caprivi strip and the Panhandle of the Great Okavango Delta, we witnessed some great sightings such as Pel's Fishing Owl, White-backed Night Heron, African Skimmer, African Pygmy Goose and Wattle Crane. Etosha National Park delivered the goods and mammals were a great feature here, with sightings of Cheetah, Black Rhinoceros, Lion and awesome Honey Badgers. The Erongo Mountains were a great spectacle as well as Spitzkoppe, before making our way to the coast through the Namib desert. We ended this great tour in the capital Windhoek with some great memories to cherish. _______________________________________________________________________________ Top bird list (as chosen by participants): 1. Southern Carmine Bee-eater 2. Schalow’s Turaco 3. Pel’s Fishing Owl 4. Crimson-breasted Shrike 5. Racket-tailed Roller ________________________________________________________________________________ Tour in Detail The first day of the tour finally arrived and after meeting all fellow travelers, we made our way to Victoria Falls National Park to visit the falls itself. We had great looks at the falls and its fauna attracted to this area. Brown-backed Honeybird, Rock Pratincole, Jameson's Firefinch and Trumpeter Hornbill were highlights for sure, as were the massive Common Warthog and Bushbuck. Leaving Victoria Falls and Zimbabwe, we ventured through Kazangulo Border Crossing, where four countries meet; namely Zimbabwe, Botswana, Zambia, and Zimbabwe. We passed through Chobe National Park, spotting our first African Elephant, African Buffalo, Plains Zebra, Giraffe, and even Lizard Buzzard and Dark Chanting Goshawk. Caprivi Mutoya Lodge, near the Zambezi River, was our home for the following couple of nights and was most enjoyable. A memorable time was had at the largest Southern Carmine Bee-eater colony that we know of. Numbering a staggering 5000 plus individuals, this show was incredible and memorable, to say the least. Other highlights here included Racket-tailed and Lilac-breasted Rollers, Arnott's Chat, Bearded Scrub Robin, rare Shelley's Sunbird, vagrant Yellow-throated Leaflove, roosting African Wood Owl, Racket-tailed Roller by Andre Bernon Lesser Jacana, Rufous-bellied Heron, Greater Painted Snipe, Ovambo Sparrowhawk, Schalow's Turaco, Retz's Helmetshrike and Bennett's Woodpecker. Some night birding saw us winning with African Scops Owl, African Barred Owlet and Fiery-necked Nightjar. We ventured west and into the Mahango part of the Bwabwata National Park. Roan and Sable Antelope proved popular as did Hippopotamuses out feeding in the day! We also saw many Lappet- faced Vultures, Wattle Crane, Hartlaub's Babbler, Martial Eagle, and our first Crimson-breasted Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe Trip Report – RBL Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe – Overland Adventure IV 2019 3 Shrike. From here, we carried on with the Okavango River to the panhandle of the delta! Many new species were added and we had a great time finding them whilst boating downriver. Special finds included Pel's Fishing Owl, a great show by an African Fish Eagle, Southern Pied and Black-faced Babblers, White-backed Night Heron, African Skimmer, African Pygmy Goose, Coppery-tailed Coucal, Slaty Egret, and both Luapula and Chirping Cisticolas. We left Botswana once more and made our way west towards Rundu and had a great time on the Okavango River overlooking Angola. A family of Spotted Eagle-Owl was a nice surprise and we also got many Brown Firefinch, Violet- eared Waxbill, Swamp Boubou, Hartlaub's Golden and Southern Brown- throated Weavers and many Black- crowned Night Herons on the river in the Northern Wheatear by Andre Bernon early morning. A nice surprise came in the form of a vagrant Northern Wheatear and proved to be southern Africa's 28th record! Another great find nearby was a great looking pair of Rufous-bellied Tits and Tinkling Cisticola. We had finally arrived in the Etosha region and stayed in three different camps. The dry salt lake and surrounding vegetation are a haven for fauna and the dry season, particularly good as most activity is centered around the waterhole. One of the first mammals we saw in the park was a mating pair of Lions! We had a great experience here and found many exciting things to look at. Mammals that obliged included huge herds of Plains Zebra, Gemsbok, Common Wildebeest, Springbok, Hartebeest, and Impala. We searched through the tons of birds and picked up Namaqua, Double-banded and Burchell's Sandgrouses, Kori and Ludwig's Bustards, Northern Black and Red-crested Korhaans, Double-banded, Temminck's and Burchell's Courses, Stark's and Pink- billed Larks, Red-necked Falcon, Sociable Weaver, Blue Crane, and the tiny Rufous- eared Warbler. Halali Rest Camp also gave us the localized Bare-cheeked Babbler, Violet Woodhoopoe and Carp's Tit. We left this amazing place after a great time at Okaukuejo Rest Camp with its magnificent floodlit waterhole and drinking Black Rhinoceroses. The Erongo Mountains certainly kept the pace going with fantastic scenery and great looks at Rockrunner, Hartlaub's Spurfowl, White-tailed Shrike, many Black-faced Babbler by Andre Bernon Rosy-faced Lovebirds and Rüppell’s Parrots nearby. We then ventured to the great-looking Spitzkoppe Inselberg and managed to find the extremely sought-after Herero Chat before moving on to Walvis Bay, through the Namib Desert. Walvis Bay is a stunning little city situated on the edge of the lagoon. We enjoyed thousands of both Lesser and Greater Flamingos on our doorstep! One of our biggest targets here was the Dune Lark Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe Trip Report – RBL Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe – Overland Adventure IV 2019 4 and we had great looks at this handsome endemic. A lot of entertainment was had from the many Damara and Caspian Terns, African Oystercatcher, Chestnut-banded Plover, Terek Sandpiper, Cape Cormorant, Gray’s Lark and Tractrac Chat. The nearby Welwitschias were a treat too! We meandered inland, through the Namib-Naukluft National Park and had fantastic looks at Rüppell’s Korhaan before reaching Namibia’s smallest town – Solitaire. We made our way up the escarpment via the Spreetshoogte Pass and had the most incredible view from the top vantage point. Namigrens was our next stop and provided us with some unique accommodation set amongst the granite boulders and some great local dishes for dinner. Waterhole scene in Etosha by Andre Bernon We left for the capital Windhoek after ticking White-throated Canary, Ludwig’s Bustard, Pygmy Falcon, and White-tailed Shrike and Karoo Scrub Robin off our list. Our final destination of the tour had unfortunately already arrived but our farewell gift came in the form of Bradfield’s Swift, Chestnut Weaver, Common Scimitarbill and Black-faced Waxbill before making our respective ways home. All in all, a truly magical experience through this incredible destination. Welwitschia plant by Andre Bernon Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe Trip Report – RBL Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe – Overland Adventure IV 2019 5 Annotated List of species recorded Note: Number in brackets ( ) indicate number of days on the tour the species was recorded. List powered through the report generator of our partner iGoTerra. Visited locations Zambezi NP, Victoria Falls (ZIM), Caprivi Mutoya Lodge, , Katima Mulilo--woodland, Caprivi Strip, Caprivi Houseboat Safari Lodge, Bwabwata NP--Mahangu Safari Lodge, Namibia, Botswana, Bwabwata NP--Mahango GR, Okavango Panhandle, Hakusembe River Lodge, Rundu, Etosha NP, Mokuti Lodge, Erongo Wilderness Lodge, Spitzkoppe NR, Swakopmund, Walvis Bay, Namib-Naukluft NP, Namibgrens, Windhoek, Windhoek--Avis Dam. Birds (383 in total: 382 seen, 1 heard) Nomenclature and taxonomy follows Gill, F and D Donsker (Eds). 2019. IOC World Bird List (v 9.1). Status codes: E = Endemic, NE = Near-endemic, I = Introduced IUCN codes: CR = Critically endangered, EN = Endangered, VU = Vulnerable, EW = Extinct in the Wild, NT = Near Threatened, DD = Data Deficient Ostrich Struthionidae Common Ostrich Struthio camelus australis (7) Namibia 15.10, observed Namibia 19-23.10 and Namibia 26.10. Ducks, Geese & Swans Anatidae White-faced Whistling Duck Dendrocygna viduata (4) Observed Namibia 13-15.10, Botswana 15.10 and Botswana 16.10. Spur-winged Goose Plectropterus gambensis (3) Namibia 14.10, Namibia 15.10 and Botswana 16.10. Knob-billed Duck Sarkidiornis melanotos (1) Bwabwata NP--Mahango GR 15.10. We saw a few birds on the floodplain. Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca (6) Namibia 12.10, Namibia 15.10 and observed Namibia 20-23.10. South African Shelduck Tadorna cana (1) Etosha NP 19.10. Seen well at the Andoni Waterhole. African Pygmy Goose Nettapus auritus (1) Okavango Panhandle 16.10. Cape Teal Anas capensis (4) Etosha NP 19.10, Namibia 21.10, Namibia 24.10 and Namibia 25.10. Red-billed Teal Anas erythrorhyncha (4) Namibia 13.10, Namibia 15.10, Botswana 16.10 and Namibia 21.10. Guineafowl Numididae Helmeted Guineafowl Numida meleagris (12) Zambezi NP 11.10, Botswana 12.10, observed Namibia 18-24.10 and observed Namibia 26- 28.10. Rockjumper Birding Tours View more tours to Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe Trip Report – RBL Namibia, Botswana & Zimbabwe – Overland Adventure IV 2019 6 Pheasants, Grouse, and Allies Phasianidae Crested Francolin Dendroperdix sephaena (4) Namibia 12.10, Namibia 13.10, Namibia 15.10 and Namibia 18.10. Hartlaub's Spurfowl Pternistis hartlaubi (1) Erongo Wilderness Lodge 22.10. We had extended views of a small covey between the boulders. Red-billed Spurfowl Pternistis adspersus (12) Namibia 14.10, Namibia 15.10, 1 heard Botswana 16.10, observed Namibia 17-21.10, Namibia 24.10 and observed Namibia 26-28.10.
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