Kenya, Sunday 4th December 2022: Lake Baringo

 Today was a day of two halves, with a fabulous boat trip in the morning and a guided tour of the local area in the afternoon,  searching for some specialist species. 

As we woke ready for our boat trip, it was raining and dull outside, leading to Tim making the decision to leave his camera behind. Unfortunately this was a mistake, as the weather quickly brightened after we left and we had some stunning views of birds around the margins and perched on dead trees in the middle of the lake. 

Lake Baringo is a freshwater lake at the heart of the Rift Valley. It has been subject to a significant increase in water levels in recent years -  the cause is not fully known, but it seems likely that shifting tectonic plates may be a factor. At one point we were told we were sailing over the site of a five star hotel! Indeed the ground floor of our own accommodation block had been flooded and rendered unusable. Farmland had also been flooded and all of this has had a significant negative impact on the livelihoods of the local community.  If only the excess water here could somehow be transferred to the drought stricken Samburu area!

The bird life around the lake was awe-inspiring. A rich variety of  herons were seen, including Black-crowned Night Heron, Squacco, Green-backed, Purple and Goliath Herons and Little Bittern. 

Around the muddy lake margins waders familiar and new included Long-toed Plover, Black-winged Stilt, Wood Sandpiper and Greenshank. The star of this family was an African Three-banded Plover, although this skulked elusively at the back of the reeds, intermittently running across the mud to hide in another clump. A Purple Swamp-hen was also rather elusive, but  African Jacana and Black Crake preferred slightly more vegetated edges and showed themselves pretty well. 

Dead trees around the lake were dotted with Osprey, Pied and Giant Kingfishers, African Darters, Cormorants and egrets, including Great, Intermediate and Little Egret. A pair of Silverbirds were nesting at one end of the lake and put on a good display for us. A Yellow-billed Stork stood tall on another tree while lower lying dead bushes were covered with hirundines, mainly Barn Swallow, but with a few Wire-tailed and Red-rumped Swallows too as well as the occasional martin. African Fish Eagles called noisily from the trees while locals bathed and washed clothes at the lakeside.

Over the water Grey-headed Gulls and White-winged and Common Gull-billed Terns veered past as they searched for food.

We had seen an astonishing number of birds, with the boat allowing us to get very close without disturbing  them, a truly memorable experience and one of the highlights of the tour.

After a late breakfast, we met a local guide and set out in the vehicles to explore the local scrubland and some nearby rocky cliffs. Several new species were found in the bushes, although often fast-moving and tricky to observe closely. Red-fronted Prinia, Northern Crombec, Red-fronted Tinkerbird and Green Pytilia were all seen here amongst others, along with Jackson’s Hornbill.

At the cliff face, African Grey and  Hemprich’s Hornbill were both visible through the telescopes, and below the cliffs we found Brown-tailed or Rock Chat and a family of Rock Hirax, while Fan-tailed Ravens passed overhead. Blue-cheeked Bee-eater was another highlight here.

Jackson’s Hornbill

Red-fronted Tinkerbird

Rock Hyrax

We returned to the hotel for lunch and a bit of downtime before another afternoon drive in search of owls. Outside the dining block a pair of tame Grey-crowned Cranes absorbed Tim’s attention as he took photo after photo. They were beautiful, and from a distance of about six feet he managed some lovely shots!

Grey-crowned Crane

We watched a Crocodile swim past, and this then clambered out of the water to rest on the platform where our boats had launched that morning. Tim maintained a safe distance with a boat between him and the croc! As we waited by a small inlet, a Woodland Kingfisher and small Malachite Kingfisher perched in the trees and a Cardinal Woodpecker was tapping away on a tree trunk.

Crocodile

Woodland Kingfisher

Our first stop in the afternoon was at a snake park where an owl was known to roost. As we got out of the vehicles a Mouse-coloured Penduline-Tit perched on a telephone wire and a pair of Spotted Thick-knees were resting beside a small bush. We proceeded quietly and were able to locate  a Northern White-faced Owl perched high in the treetop. Next we took a short walk into the scrubland and our local guide pointed out a Slender-tailed Nightjar and a Three-banded Courser that he had found while we were having lunch. With their cryptic plumage I’m sure we would never have found these stunning birds ourselves! 

Slender-tailed Nightjar

Three-banded Courser

A short drive to another area of scrubland, followed by a scramble up a rocky path, produced a Greyish Eagle Owl and at our last stop a Pearl-spotted Owlet.

Pearl-spotted Owlet

Greyish Eagle Owl

This was our top birding day of the trip, with over 100 species of bird seen. However, when we returned to our rooms and looked out over the lake, we were thrilled to find a Hippo right in front of our window, looking at us with a beady eye. It gave a nonchalant iconic yawn then melted below the surface. A fabulous ending to a super day.

(I won’t mention the evening entertainment of African dancing…!!!)