field guides TRIPLIST MADAGASCAR, MAURITIUS & REUNION October 24, 2003 to November 19, 2003 Guided by Terry Stevenson & Jay VanderGaast With the 2002 political problems that closed down tourism in Madagascar now in the past, we returned with eager anticipation. Ground-rollers and asities, mesites and vangas were all there for the finding. But Madagascar is more than just great birds; lemurs, bright green geckos, chameleons, and weird weevils are just some of the delights to look for. As usual plane schedules were changed and our itinerary turned upside down only a few weeks before we departed. Not to worry though, that's the way with Madagascar, and our experience in taking tours there since 1986 puts us in good stead to pull together a great tour. We started in fine style on Reunion by seeing all the endemics and no fewer than 150 Barau's Petrels — a 'Pterodroma' that we watched from solid ground, some birds passing only 50 meters away. From Reunion it was a short flight to Madagascar — for many of us the highlight of this three-country tour. We connected to Majunga and began the next morning at Ankarafantsika, where some of the most difficult endemics are found. It turned out to be a fabulous day, as we walked in the dry deciduous forest seeing White-breasted Mesite, Coquerel's and Red-capped couas, the rare Van Dam's Vanga, and a stunning male Schlegel's Asity. Madagascar Fish-Eagle just before we departed was the cherry on the cake. We then went to the world-famous reserve at Perinet where again the specialties were falling into place: Madagascar (White-winged) Ibis, Red-breasted Coua, Cuckoo-Roller, and five species of vanga. Perhaps the most spectacular, though, was our morning in the adjoining park at Mantadia. Here in just a few hours, we saw Madagascar Grebe, a roosting Collared Nightjar, and both Scaly and Pitta-like ground-rollers. After a flight to the southeast we drove to Berenty and walked with dozens of lemurs while watching Giant Coua, White-browed Owl, and Hook-billed Vanga. In the southwest, Subdesert Mesite and Long-tailed Ground-Roller were particular favorites in the spiny forest, while Verreaux's Coua and the recently described Red-shouldered Vanga were memorable in the Euphorbia scrub. We then began a series of long drives north as we headed for a fabulous area of rainforest at Ranamofana; but not without stops along the way, finding Appert's Greenbul and Benson's Rock-Thrush without difficulty. At Ranamofana our luck continued — no rain and no leeches! Brown Mesite was the missing member of this endemic family, and eventually we got good close looks. We also did well with several of the real skulkers that inhabit the undergrowth here, including Madagascar Flufftail, Brown Emutail, and Yellow-browed Oxylabes. With just so many fabulous forest birds at Ranamofana it's hard to pick a favorite, but a male Sunbird Asity, within just feet of us, and Rufous-headed Ground-Roller were high on everyone's list. You may well be wondering why so far I've hardly mentioned anything about Madagascar’s famed 'eyes of the forest,' the lemurs. Did we not see any? On the contrary, it was one of our best tours ever, with mouse lemurs, bamboo lemurs, and Red-bellied Lemur at Ranamofana, hundreds of Ring-tailed Lemurs and Verreaux's Sifakas at Berenty, the striking Coquerel's Sifaka at Ankarafantsika, Diademed Sifaka at Mantadia, and of course the beautiful Indris, whose haunting calls through the forest at Perinet will long be in our memories. We concluded our tour In Mauritius, an island famed as the former home of the extinct Dodo, and now struggling to keep its surviving endemics alive. Thanks to captive breeding and release programs, several Field Guides Incorporated 800-728-4953 512-263-7295 [email protected] www.fieldguides.com With the 2002 political problems that closed down tourism in Madagascar now in the past, we returned with eager anticipation. Ground-rollers and asities, mesites and vangas were all there for the finding. But Madagascar is more than just great birds; lemurs, bright green geckos, chameleons, and weird weevils are just some of the delights to look for. As usual plane schedules were changed and our itinerary turned upside down only a few weeks before we departed. Not to worry though, that's the way with Madagascar, and our experience in taking tours there since 1986 puts us in good stead to pull together a great tour. We started in fine style on Reunion by seeing all the endemics and no fewer than 150 Barau's Petrels — a 'Pterodroma' that we watched from solid ground, some birds passing only 50 meters away. From Reunion it was a short flight to Madagascar — for many of us the highlight of this three-country tour. We connected to Majunga and began the next morning at Ankarafantsika, where some of the most difficult endemics are found. It turned out to be a fabulous day, as we walked in the dry deciduous forest seeing White-breasted Mesite, Coquerel's and Red-capped couas, the rare Van Dam's Vanga, and a stunning male Schlegel's Asity. Madagascar Fish-Eagle just before we departed was the cherry on the cake. We then went to the world-famous reserve at Perinet where again the specialties were falling into place: Madagascar (White-winged) Ibis, Red-breasted Coua, Cuckoo-Roller, and five species of vanga. Perhaps the most spectacular, though, was our morning in the adjoining park at Mantadia. Here in just a few hours, we saw Madagascar Grebe, a roosting Collared Nightjar, and both Scaly and Pitta-like ground-rollers. After a flight to the southeast we drove to Berenty and walked with dozens of lemurs while watching Giant Coua, White-browed Owl, and Hook-billed Vanga. In the southwest, Subdesert Mesite and Long-tailed Ground-Roller were particular favorites in the spiny forest, while Verreaux's Coua and the recently described Red-shouldered Vanga were memorable in the Euphorbia scrub. We then began a series of long drives north as we headed for a fabulous area of rainforest at Ranamofana; but not without stops along the way, finding Appert's Greenbul and Benson's Rock-Thrush without difficulty. At Ranamofana our luck continued — no rain and no leeches! Brown Mesite was the missing member of this endemic family, and eventually we got good close looks. We also did well with several of the real skulkers that inhabit the undergrowth here, including Madagascar Flufftail, Brown Emutail, and Yellow-browed Oxylabes. With just so many fabulous forest birds at Ranamofana it's hard to pick a favorite, but a male Sunbird Asity, within just feet of us, and Rufous-headed Ground-Roller were high on everyone's list. You may well be wondering why so far I've hardly mentioned anything about Madagascar’s famed 'eyes of the forest,' the lemurs. Did we not see any? On the contrary, it was one of our best tours ever, with mouse lemurs, bamboo lemurs, and Red-bellied Lemur at Ranamofana, hundreds of Ring-tailed Lemurs and Verreaux's Sifakas at Berenty, the striking Coquerel's Sifaka at Ankarafantsika, Diademed Sifaka at Mantadia, and of course the beautiful Indris, whose haunting calls through the forest at Perinet will long be in our memories. We concluded our tour In Mauritius, an island famed as the former home of the extinct Dodo, and now struggling to keep its surviving endemics alive. Thanks to captive breeding and release programs, several offield the birdsguides have made remarkable recoveries; the kestrel has gone from 4 birds to perhaps 800, the Pink Pigeon from about 12 to 350, and the Parakeet from 19 to 120. The Cuckoo-Shrike, Bulbul, White-eye and Fody, however, are not doing so well, but we did manage to get good looks at all of them during our full day in one of the few remaining patches of forest. With such success at finding so many of the endemic birds the tour was now complete and part of the group returned home; the remainder continued on for six days in the Seychelles. List total: 202 bird taxa and 19 mammal taxa If marked to left of list, * = heard only, I = introduced, E = endemic mad03-TS MADAGASCAR, MAURITIUS & REUNION 2 Field Guides Incorporated 800-728-4953 512-263-7295 [email protected] www.fieldguides.com Podicipedidae LITTLE GREBE (Tachybaptus ruficollis) PodicipedidaeLITTLEOne atGREBE Lac Alarobia.(Tachybaptus ruficollis) MADAGASCAR GREBE (Tachybaptus pelzelnii) MADAGASCARRather difficult GREBE in recent (Tachybaptus years, but pelzelnii) we saw two very well on a small flooded quarry in Mantadia N.P. Procellariidae BARAU'S PETREL (Pterodroma baraui) BARAU'SHow often PETREL do you (Pterodroma see a 'Pterodroma' baraui) from land? Not only did we see this little known seabird from land, but ProcellariidaeBARAU'Salso about PETREL 150 (Pterodromaof them, and baraui)some only 50 mtrs. away! WEDGE-TAILED SHEARWATER (Puffinus pacificus) WEDGE-TAILEDAbout four were SHEARWATER seen distantly (Puffinus off Reunion. pacificus) Phaethontidae WHITE-TAILED TROPICBIRD (Phaethon lepturus) WHITE-TAILEDAbout six at TROPICBIRDReunion and (Phaethona dozen in lepturus)Mauritius. Anhingidae "AFRICAN" DARTER (Anhinga melanogaster rufa) "AFRICAN"Four at LacDARTER Ampijoroa. (Anhinga melanogaster rufa) Fregatidae GREAT FRIGATEBIRD (Fregata minor) GREATNot usuallyFRIGATEBIRD seen on (Fregata this tour, minor) but we had great looks at two over our hotel north of Tulear. Ardeidae GRAY HERON (Ardea cinerea) ArdeidaeGRAYSingles HERON in the (Ardea Majunga cinerea) and Tulear areas. HUMBLOT'S HERON (Ardea humbloti) ArdeidaeHUMBLOT'SWe almost HERON over looked (Ardea this humbloti) one, but then had good looks in our scopes at Lac Ampijoroa.