Kenya Day 6, Saturday 3rd December: Naro Moru and Lake Baringo transfer

-

 Having arrived at this attractive riverside location at dusk the previous day, in time for dinner, we took some time this morning to explore the grounds before departing for a long transfer with some scheduled stops en route to Lake Baringo.

The gardens by the fast flowing river were lush and green with luxuriant flowering shrubs and tall trees. Birds were not abundant nor easy to locate, however a few interesting new species were found.  A Tacazze Sunbird with beautiful purple sheen when caught in the light was nectaring  on flowers around the gardens and a colourful African Paradise Flycatcher was spectacular with an extensive orange tail and bold blue facial markings, but unfortunately with the shade from trees the light was poor for photographs.

As we approached the end of the garden, the vegetation opened out and led to a track behind and away from the lodge. A Hadada Ibis and various weavers were found in this area, and as we continued up the track we located a Red-fronted Barbet and Yellow Bishop in a distant hedgerow.

Returning to the hotel, we were soon underway driving for some time before stopping at a coffee plantation. Here we met a local guide whose task it was to try to locate for us the endemic Hinde’s Babbler. As we descended for the bus I noticed some small yellowish birds on the grassy bank and queried what these were. I was thrilled to discover these were Kikuyu White-eyes, another endemic species which had been seen by some of the party in the Aberdare forest, but which I had not been able to locate in the dense bushes. After a fruitless search for the babbler down the track, we returned to the vehicles for a short diversion to another nearby road. Here we found a lovely Spot-flanked Barbet in a tree, and finally the Hinde’s Babbler appeared, giving excellent views for several  minutes before disappearing form view.

Spot-flanked Barbet

Hinde’s Babbler

We continued our journey, stopping again beside the main road where a rocky gorge held Mackinder’s Eagle Owl (a race of Cape Eagle Owl)  pointed out to us by another local guide, who shared details about his conservation work over the years, predominantly trying to persuade local farmers that the owls are not ill omens and cause no harm, but actually help to control vermin and prevent damage to their crops.

After a long drive we arrived at our waterside lodge, with just enough time for a shower before dinner.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Friday 5th January 2024: Pesky Parakeets

-
Image
 On our day out yesterday we had a fly past Parakeet, but I was not very satisfied with that as an annual sighting tick. With the feeders topped up, mum’s garden is a good bet for this species, much to her chagrin. So today we were thrilled, and mum dismayed, to spot no less than five birds on the feeders. Ring-necked Parakeets  Despite their bad press and dubious provenance, they are certainly attractive birds, especially the male with its rosy ring and contrasting black bib, and the orange-red bill and eye ring contrasting with the vibrant green plumage.  Less attractive is their screeching call as they descend on the feeders and announce their presence. Now, that’s a worthy tick!
Read more

Sunday 27th June: Roller in Suffolk

-
Image
 After daily reminders from Jenny that a Eurasian roller was still present in Suffolk I finally made the effort to go to see it and took advantage of the trip to visit several other local sites which were of interest to me.  My first stop was at the tiny village of Ampton where I normally find my annual tick for tree sparrow and this year was no exception as I saw one within 20 seconds of getting out of my car.  After watching it for a minute or so I quickly moved on to the next venue which was Lackford Lakes, a Suffolk wildlife trust reserve which had been reporting a juvenile glossy ibis for a few days.  I was told by someone in the car park exactly where it had been seen recently but he had not seen it that day when he had walked around earlier.  When I arrived at the hide 3 other birders were there but they had not seen it and so after 10 minutes I gave up waiting for it to show and moved on to try to see the roller. I had seen a number of birders along the A1101 as I drove past on
Read more

Wednesday 8th November 2023: Brazil Atlantic Rainforest 1

-
Image
 We arrived at Rio early in the morning following an overnight flight of 11 hours, and were soon en route to our accommodation at Itororo Lodge, set in the heart of the forest, close to Nova Friburgo. As we sped through Rio, a few distant egrets, Neotropical Cormorants and Magnificent Frigatebirds were seen, together with plenty of Black Vultures resting on lampposts close to the busy road. After around an hour of driving we stopped for coffee, noting Blue and White Swallows nesting under the eaves of the adjacent building, a Yellow-headed Caracara perched atop a tall tree together with a Kiskadee and a pair of stunning, bright Saffron Finches perched on the wires.  Our birding adventure had begun…! Brassy-breasted Tanagers We continued on to our base at the beautiful Itororo Lodge,  arriving mid-morning to tea and cake on the terrace, where a feast of birds met our eyes.  The feeding tables were arrayed with fruit, attracting beautiful tanagers with brilliant, rich colours and wonderf
Read more