Kenya, June '99

In June of 1999, I spent 24 days in Kenya birding on a private tour led by Terry Stevenson. I don't have nearly enough time for a real trip report, but some of the highlights:

647 species seen (602 of them lifers)
All three critically endangered Taita Hills specialties (Taita Thrush, Taita Apalis, Taita White-eye)
The rarely seen Abbott's Starling
Brilliant views of many shy birds - Taita Thrush, East Coast Akalat, Equatorial Akalat, Grey-winged Robin-Chat, Baillon's Crake
48 species of weavers/bishops/widowbirds - all but one in full breeding plumage (and that one nearly there)
Scarlet-tufted Malachite Sunbird up at 11,500 feet on the moorlands of Mount Kenya
Among 56 species of mammals, Lion, Leopard, Cheetah, Caracal, Black Rhinoceros, Tree Hyrax, and 18 species of antelope, from the tiny Suni to the huge Eland
And in reptiles, a tiny Spitting Cobra and a 6-foot Jameson's Mamba!

If you've got any questions, feel free to write.

A few photos

Photos added 11/29/99:

African Openbill (Anastomus lamelligerus)
Green-backed Eremomela (Eremomela canescens)
Lesser Moorhen (Gallinula angulata)
White-headed Woodhoopoe (Phoeniculus bollei)
Baillon's Crake (Porzana pusilla)
Immatures found here with this and other adults this year were a first confirmed breeding record for all of East Africa!
Sharpe's Longclaw (Macronyx sharpei)
Nearly a Kenyan endemic (only recently discovered on the Ugandan side of Mt. Elgon), and restricted to highland grasslands
Scarlet-tufted Malachite Sunbird (Nectarinia johnstoni)
Chestnut-throated Apalis (Apalis porphyrolaema)

Older photos:

Red-and-yellow Barbet (Trachyphonus erythrocephalus)
Black-faced Sandgrouse (Pterocles decoratus)
Egyptian Goose (Alopochen aegyptiacus)
Buff-crested Bustard (Eupodotis ruficrista)
Tacazze Sunbird (Nectarinia tacazze)
Pearl-spotted Owlet (Glaucidium perlatum)
Southern Ground-Hornbill (Bucorvus leadbeateri)
Narina Trogon (Apaloderma narina)
Gray-crowned Crane (Balearica regulorum)
White-crowned Shrike (Eurocephalus rueppelli)
Wire-tailed Swallow (Hirundo smithii)
(look closely - there are wires there)
White-bellied Bustard (Eupodotis senegalensis)
Von der Decken's Hornbill (Tockus deckeni)
Verreaux's Eagle-Owl (Bubo lacteus)
(One of 9 seen roosting on this trip. That'd be a good thing if these guys didn't have a habit of eating Spotted Eagle-Owls and others...)

And some mammals:

No permission is needed for use of any of these photos, though credit would be appreciated. However, I cannot allow direct links to any of these images; either make a copy of the file for your own use, or link to this page. All the images have been pretty severely compressed, so the quality's not the best.

Itinerary

June 6th: Nairobi-Lake Magadi-Nairobi
June 7th: Nairobi-Thika-Mt. Kenya Lodge
June 8th: Mt. Kenya Lodge-Naro Moru Lodge
June 9th: Upper Mt.Kenya
June 10th: Naro Moru Lodge-Samburu
June 11th-12th: Samburu
June 13th: Samburu-Baringo
June 14th: Baringo
June 15th: Baringo-Kakamega Forest
June 16th-17th: Kakamega Forest
June 18th: Kakamega Forest-Busia District-Kisumu
June 19th: Kisumu-Naivasha
June 20th: Naivasha-Kinangop Plateau-Nairobi-(flight)-Masai Mara
June 21st: Masai Mara
June 22nd: Masai Mara-(flight)-Nairobi
June 23rd: Nairobi N.P.-(flight)-Watamu
June 24th: Sokeke Forest, Sabaki River Mouth
June 25th: Sokeke Forest
June 26th: Sokeke Forest-Mombasa-Taita Salt Lick Lodge
June 27th: Taita Hills Forest-Taita Hills Sanctuary
June 28th: Taita Salt Lick Lodge-Mombasa

Adam Winer