f JOURNAL li1K THE EAST AFRICA NATURAL HISTORY NH SOCIETY AND NATIONAL MUSEUM 31 October 1977 Vol. 31 No, 163 EAST AFRICAN BIRD RINGING REPORT i974~77 By G. C. Backhurst P.O. Box 29003 , Kabete , N air obi > Kenya This report covers the three ringing years i July 1974 to 30 June 1977. The number of birds ringed in each of the three years has remained about the same, although there are large differences in the totals of some individual species (see Tables 1 and 2). Almost all birds have been ringed in Kenya, as in other recent years (Backhurst 1974). Ringing activities in East Africa can be divided into different categories: some ringers specialize in Palaearctic species, studying migration timing, distribution, moult and weight changes and fidelity to winter quarters. Distant recoveries are always hoped for and indeed, most people who concentrate on Palaearctics have been rewarded by at least one. Other ringers devote their attention to the avifaunas of certain discrete habitats, often forests, where, by quantitative ringing over several years, they become familiar with many aspects of the birds’ lives, as well as being able to understand something of the total bird community. A few ringers, mostly visitors from overseas, specialize in certain groups such as wood-hoopoes Phoeniculidae, kingfishers Alcedinidae, bee-eaters Meropidae and sunbirds Nectariniidae. A REVIEW OF THE THREE YEARS Very few ducks have been ringed in the period although there is a possibility that reasonable numbers will be caught in the future. The current world-wide interest in wetlands, and the flora and fauna associated with these habitats, would benefit greatly from data obtained from the ringing of more water birds, including ducks and herons. The only water-side birds ringed in any numbers are some species of waders ; in recent years most of these have been ringed at the hot springs at the south end of Lake Magadi. Lakes Nakuru and Naivasha, the traditional wader- catching sites in Kenya, have become less suitable because of falling water levels. In 1977 a few waders have been ringed on the coast, and it is likely that more will be ringed there in the future now that catching techniques have been established. The number of wader recoveries reported these days has declined, for no known reason, although some very interesting ones are given in Table 3. The Ruff Philomachus pugnax to I53°E. in northeastern Siberia is our most distant recovery ever. The first two foreign recoveries of Marsh Sandpipers Tringa stagnatilis have now been reported, one to South Africa and the other to the breeding area in the U.S.S.R. The bird recovered in South Africa in January, in its presumed winter quarters, had been ringed at Lake Nakuru in mid April on its way north through Kenya. At last there has been a ‘reasonable’ recovery of a Little Stint Calidris minuta , from over 10 000 ringed: one which died in a mist net in Kazakhstan while on its southwestern autumn migration. This recovery has another interesting aspect: the bird had been ringed at Lake Turkana where only a few hundred Little Stints have ever been ringed; there have still been no long distance recoveries from the many thousands ringed at Nakuru, Naivasha and Magadi. The only other foreign recovery of this species was the one controlled in eastern Zaire (Backhurst 1974), a movement of only 770 km. Page 2 G. C. BACKHURST No. 163 Himiidines are always worth ringing for recoveries, but the problem has been finding sites where they can be caught in good numbers. The 2000-odd European Swallows Hirundo rustica ringed in 1976-77 were almost all caught at an enormous roost near Eldoret (Best 1976) early in the autumn; unfortunately, the roost disbanded soon after catching had started, but already there have been two recoveries from this ringing effort. All the other Swallow recoveries given in Table 3 had been ringed at Lake Nakuru in earlier years. The ringing of Yellow Wagtails Motacilla flava has continued in the Nairobi area, both at a roost and at a daytime feeding station; besides continuing to produce recoveries, interesting data on fattening, moult and reccurrence ate being collected for eventual analysis. Most of the Palaearctic warblers and small thrush species have been ringed at Ngulia in Tsavo West National Park; a great deal of work has been done at this site each autumn since 1969, and there have been occasional visits in spring as well. A preliminary account (Pearson & Backhurst 1976) and an account of the 1976-77 autumn passage (Backhurst & Pearson 1977) have been published. Recoveries of Ngulia-ringed birds are now being reported with reasonable regularity. In the last report (Backhurst 1974) I gave the first and only recovery of an Ngulia bird, a Barried Warbler Sylvia nisoria to Saudi Arabia. I also remarked that there had been no recoveries of Marsh Warblers Acrocephalus palustris> even though the species could be expected to reach Europe, where the chances of recovery should be greater than in parts of Asia, where most of ‘our5 Palaearctic species breed. Table 3 in the present report shows that the situation has changed quite dramatically, with eight more recoveries of Ngulia-ringed Palaearctics, and even a recovery of a weaver which had been ringed there. No less than five of these recoveries were of Marsh Warblers, and two of these were controlled by ringers in Germany, while another was killed by small boys in southern Malawi, only six days after it had been ringed. There are still a number of species which have been ringed in fair numbers which have yet to produce a recovery, as a perusal of Table 1 will show, but one species stands out for special comment, the Whitethroat Sylvia communis of which no less than 6185 have been ringed, mostly at Ngulia. Many of our recovery rates are quite amazing, for example, one Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor to Greece from only six ringed, a Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus to Iraq from only 52, and various other high rates, which can be seen in Table 1. Recoveries of Whitethroats from the Arabian area can be expected in the future even if there are none from the breeding grounds. Catching birds for ringing sometimes turns up unexpected species and there were a few such records in the period under review. The Broad-billed Sandpiper Limicola falcinellus ringed at Nakuru in 1975 was the first to be recorded inland in Kenya south of Lake Turkana (EANHS OSC 1977); the Savi’s Warbler Locustella luscinioides ringed at Ngulia, also in 1975, was new to East Africa (Backhurst & Pearson 1976), as was the Grasshopper Warbler L. naevia on the Nguru- men in 1977 (Fayad & Fayad 1977). The Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix ringed in 1976 at Ngulia appears to be only the fourth record for Kenya, while the Lesser Cuckoo Cuculus polio- cephalus caught at the same time at the same place was also of great interest. This particular day’s ringing at Ngulia has also produced two recoveries to the Palaearctic (a Red-tailed Shrike Lanius isabellinus to Kuwait and a Sprosser Luscinia luscinia to Lebanon), so far. Those ringers specializing in African birds seldom expect or get recoveries. The two Grey- headed Kingfishers Halcyon leucocephala found in Kenya had been ringed at two different sites in Ethiopia and are of very great interest, since, apart from throwing light on the migrations of this species, they show that recoveries of Ethiopian Region birds smaller than ducks can be made and reported. A list of East African ringers is given at the end of Table 3 ; many of these have left, others have let their ringing lapse while others ring very few birds indeed. So much can be learned by ringing birds, especially in this part of the world; any readers who are trained ringers or who would like to join the ringing scheme are urged to contact me as soon as possible. Our scheme is No. 163 E. A. BIRD RINGING REPORT 1974-1977 Page 3 the second largest in Africa, but if three or four people were to leave, we would have no effective ringing effort at all. Unlike European and North American ringing schemes, we do not want to cut down the number of birds ringed each year. ACKNOWLED GEMENTS Ringers gratefully acknowledge the help given them by various people throughout East Africa in granting permission to ring birds in certain areas, such as National Parks and private land. We are also grateful to the Administrative Director of the National Museums of Kenya for allowing the Museum’s address to appear on rings and to him, and the Curator of ornithology, for forwarding recovery letters. We are also grateful to the organizers of certain foreign ringing schemes for passing on details of recoveries and for making their ringing reports available. A number of other people have been of tremendous help during actual ringing operations and I should like to thank especially, on behalf of all those who have worked at Ngulia, Barrie and Veronica Fimister for their great kindness and assistance during the last season. Table i Palaearctic Birds ringed in East Africa No. of 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1960-77 recoveries Ixobrychus minutus Little Bittern Anas acuta Pintail A. clypeata Shoveller A. querquedula Garganey Circus macrourus Pallid Harrier Milvus migrans Black Kite Falco subbuteo Hobby Porzana porzana Spotted Crake Charadrius asiaticus Caspian Plover C. dubius Little Ringed Plover C. hiaticula Ringed Plover C. leschenaultii Greater Sand Plover C. mongolus Mongolian Sand Plover Pluvialis squatarola Grey Plover Sterna hirundo Common Tern S. leucoptera White- winged Black Tern S. nilotica Gull-billed Tern Phalaropus lobatus Red-necked Phalarope Arenaria interpres Turnstone Calidris alba Sanderling C. ferruginea Curlew Sandpiper C. minuta Little Stint C. subminuta Long-toed Stint C. temminckii Temminck’s Stint Gallinago gallinago European Snipe G. media Great Snipe G. stenura Pintail Snipe Limicola falcinellus Broad-billed Sandpiper Limosa lapponica Bar-tailed Godwit L. limosa Black-tailed Godwit Numenius phaeopus Whimbrel Philomachus pugnax Ruff Tringa erythropus Spotted Redshank T. glareola Wood Sandpiper T. hypoleucos Common Sandpiper T. nebularia Greenshank T. ochropus Green Sandpiper T. stagnatilis Marsh Sandpiper T. terek Terek Sandpiper T. totanus Redshank Cuculus canorus European Cuckoo C. poliocephalus Lesser Cuckoo over 100 km I 0 0 3 0 0 O 0 X 0 0 O 0 X 0 0 O 0 22 0 0 O 0 X 0 0 O 0 3 0 0 O 0 5 0 0 O 0 3 0 0 O 0 X 0 0 O 0 23 X 16 3 1 185 X 0 0 9 19 0 0 0 5 x6 0 0 0 6 6 0 0 0 0 x 0 I 3 2 256 0 0 0 0 9 0 0 0 0 4 0 0 1 3 7 0 0 1 0 IX 0 62 214 97 1308 6 593 1151 453 xo 652 6 0 0 0 2 0 6 0 0 4i 0 2 0 0 149 0 0 0 0 44 0 0 0 0 X 0 1 0 0 X 0 0 0 0 I 0 0 0 0 2 0 0 0 1 3 0 368 858 1x2 5742 13 1 0 0 2 0 19 1 X 914 4 23 3 4 254 X 10 5i 14 173 0 2 1 0 56 0 24 88 33 1278 3 O 0 5 15 0 O 2 0 2 0 O 0 2 7 0 O 0 X X 0 Page 4 G. C. BACKHURST No. 103 1974-75 1975-76 1976-77 1960-77 No. of recoveries Otus scops European Scops Owl 2 0 0 4 over 100 km 0 Caprimulgus europaeus European Nightjar 13 2 5 22 0 Coracias garrulus European Roller 0 3 0 7 0 Merops apiaster European Bee-eater 3 0 0 4 0 M. superciliosus persicus Blue-cheeked Bee-eater 0 0 0 8 0 Upupa epops European Hoopoe 0 0 0 1 0 Jynx torquilla European Wryneck 0 0 0 3 0 Delichon urbica House Martin 0 0 0 48 1 Hirundo rustica European Swallow 538 133 2292 12420 42 Riparia riparia European Sand Martin 44 0 57 1743 1 Lanius collurio Red-backed Shrike 97 113 68 306 0 L. isabellinus Red-tailed Shrike 56 77 66 263 1 L. collurio /isabellinus [hybrid] 1 1 1 3 0 L. collurio + L. isabellinus [1960-73] — — — 240 0 L. minor Lesser Grey Shrike 1 0 0 6 1 L. senator Woodchat Shrike 0 0 0 1 0 Anthus cervinus Red-throated Pipit 33 9 0 77 0 A. trivialis Tree Pipit 23 36 27 274 0 Motacilla alba White Wagtail 3 0 0 8 0 M. cinerea Grey Wagtail 3 0 0 5 0 M.flava Yellow Wagtail 5029 2190 2176 42 842 28 Ficedula hypoleuca Pied Flycatcher 0 0 0 2 0 Muscicapa striata Spotted Flycatcher 18 16 10 116 0 Acrocephalus arundinaceus Great Reed Warbler 30 20 6 214 0 A. griseldis Basra Reed Warbler 54 36 71 228 0 A. palustris Marsh Warbler 1100 1346 1441 6110 5 A. schoenobaenus Sedge Warbler 81 11 20 1798 1 A. scirpaceus Reed Warbler 87 30 26 1201 2 Hippolais icterina Icterine Warbler 0 0 0 4 0 H. languida Upcher’s Warbler 27 27 48 160 0 H. olivetorum Olive-tree Warbler 19 29 11 91 0 H. pallida Olivaceous Warbler 33 50 40 235 0 Locust ella fluviatilis River Warbler 253 215 141 968 0 L. luscinioides Savi’s Warbler 0 1 0 1 0 L. naevia Grasshopper Warbler 0 0 1 1 0 Phylloscopus collybita Chiffchaff 0 1 1 5 0 P. sibilatrix Wood Warbler 0 0 1 1 0 P. trochilus Willow Warbler 128 175 104 3137 1 Sylvia atricapilla Blackcap 47 32 43 436 1 S’, borin Garden Warbler 99 57 82 1506 1 S. communis Whitethroat 1038 1782 1814 6185 0 S. nisoria Barred Warbler 75 69 73 365 1 Cercotrichas galactotes Rufous Bush Chat 52 36 40 184 0 Irania gutturalis Irania 178 100 122 526 0 Luscinia luscinia Sprosser 1174 657 773 3412 1 L. megarhynchos Nightingale 53 32 53 191 0 Monticola saxatilis European Rock Thrush 3 5 10 47 0 Oenanthe isabellina Isabelline Wheatear 3 1 3 16 0 O. oenanthe European Wheatear 7 1 4 58 0 O. pleschanka Pied Wheatear 1 0 1 9 0 Phoenicurus phoenicurus Redstart 0 0 1 52 1 Saxicola rubetra Whinchat 1 1 1 81 0 Oriolus oriolus European Golden Oriole 3 6 0 23 0 Totals 11 539 9677 10382 106 873 123 Number of species 54 47 51 93 23 Table 2 Ethiopian Birds ringed in East Africa 1974-75 534 74 1975-76 1976-77 1089 80 1960-77 8195 189 Non Passerines Number of non passerine species 592 73 No. 163 E. A. BIRD RINGING REPORT 1974-I977 Page 5 Passerines 3585 2875 3350 38 087 Number of passerine species 235 193 206 394 Total Ethiopian birds ringed 4119 3467 4439* 46 284 Total number of Ethiopian species 309 266 286* 583 Total Ethiopian and Palaearctic birds ringed 15 658 13 144 14 820 153 156 Total number of species 361 3ii 235 674 * Over 700 more Ethiopian birds were ringed in this year, some of which are species new to the ringing list, but the schedules have not been received from the ringers ; thus the totals for 1976-77 and 1960-77 are all lower than they should be. Table 3 Recoveries and Controls Key to symbols and terms Ring number Age fg ad 1W pull JUV Sex S $ Manner of recovery + X xA /?/ 0 Date of recovery Distance (km) Elapsed time (d) where this is in italics the ring has been returned, full grown, age uncertain; adult ; bird in its first winter; young, not able to fly freely; juvenile, able to fly freely, male female. shot or killed by man ; found dead or dying; found long dead ; manner of recovery unknown; caught or trapped alive and released with ring (= control); caught or trapped alive and not released, or released with ring removed. given in the order: day, month, year. If the date is unknown, the date of the reporting letter is given in round brackets. the Great Circle distance in kilometres between the ringing and recovery sites, i.e. the shortest distance between these two points. days ; if the figure is in brackets the number of days is approximate. All rings are marked 'Send Museum Nairobi’ unless otherwise stated. All ringing localities are in Kenya unless otherwise stated. Co-ordinates of frequently mentioned ringing sites Lake Nakuru o°2o'S., 36°o6'E. Lake Magadi 2°oo'S., 36'To'E. Ngulia, Tsavo 3°oo'S., 38°i3/E. Lake Naivasha o°43'S., 3625'E. Kariobangi, Nairobi Ti5'S., 36°53'E. Kabete, Nairobi i°i3'S., 36°47'E. Pelecamus onocrotalus Great White Pelican London Z33 657 pull 4.5.1974 X 27-5.I974 Ciconia ciconia White Stork Paris pull 1.6.1968 BB 2732 X 14.4.1969 Anas capensis Cape Wigeon Z0107 ad 8.11.1970 0 16.5.1975 Lake Shalia, Shoa, Ethiopia. 7°27'N., 38°28/E. JSA. Gilgil, Kenya o°29'S., 36°i9'E., 23 d, 915 km, C. W. Armstrong. El Kseur, Constantine, Algeria 36°42/N., 4°5o'E. M. Forget. Hoey’s (now Moi’s) Bridge, Kenya o°53/N., 35°o8'E., 317 d, 5060 km. Lake Nakuru, PLB. Lake Baringo, Kenya o°32/N., 36°07/E., 1650 d, 96 km, J. H. E. Leakey. Page 6 G. C. BACKHURST No. 163 Anas erythrorhynchos Red-billed Duck Z0257 ad 22.3.1971 Arusha National Park, Tanzania 3°I3'S., 36°54/E. JSSB. + 13.6.1975 Mwea Rice Scheme, Kenya o°43'S., 37°22'E., 1544 d, 283 km. Anas hottenfota Hottentot Teal mm ad $ 30.3.1974 Lake Nakuru. JFH. + 20.12.1975 Lake Solai, Kenya q°03'N., 36°09'E., 630 d, 43 km, J. Barrah. Vanellus armatus Blacksmith Plover C 1117 ad 1.5.1969 Lake Naivasha. EDS. X 25.9.1976 Rocco Farm, Lake Naivasha o°44'S., 36T6'E., 2704 d, 17 km, I. Douglas- Hamilton. Larus f asciis Lesser Black-backed Gull Stockholm pull 8.7.1963 Juniskar, Njurunda, Madelpad, Sweden 8014824 X 18. 11. 1963 62°i8'N., I7°27'E. near Kisumu, Kenya o°05'S., 34°5o'E., 133 d, 7096 km. Helsinki pull 13.7.1974 Kuhmalahti, Finland 6i°3o'N., 24°5o'E. HT 22612 + 13.1.1975 Karakaba, Lake Mobutu Sese Seko, Uganda 2°oo'N., 3I°3o'E., 184 d, 6647 km. Sterna anaethetus Bridled Tern London CB 65474 ad 22.5.1973 Cousin Island, Seychelles 4°20/S., 55040'E. AWD, 0 13.5.1974 off Pemba Island, Tanzania c. 5°S., 40°E., 356 d, c. 1740 km. Calidris ferruginea Curlew Sandpiper A 18852 1W 24.3.1973 Lake Magadi. DJP. + 16.3.1976 Sayed Mahalleh, Mazandaran, Iran 36044'N., 53°oiE., 1088 d, 4651 km. A 12748 fg 29.12.1973 Lake Magadi. DJP, WPHD. V 30.8.1975 Lake Nakuru, 609 d, 186 km, GCB. (Reringed A 20997). Calidris minuta Little Stint K 2400 fg 9.2.1974 Lake Bogoria (formerly Hannington) o°I5'N., 36°o6'E. DJP, WPHD. V 23.9.1974 Lake Magadi, 226 d, 250 km, DJP, WPHD. K5161 fg 22.4.1976 Ferguson’s Gulf, Lake Turkana (formerly Rudolf) 3°3i,N„ 35°55'E. GCB, WPHD. + (= ?) 8.8.1976 Irgiz-Tourgai Depression, Kazakhstan, U.S.S.R. 48°28'N., 62°09'E., 108 d, 5580 km, E. I. Gavrilov. Pretoria ad 13.10.1974 Rainham Dam, Rhodesia I7°46/S., 30°53'E. AA 37396 V 3.10.1976 Lake Magadi, 721 d, 1848 km, GCB. Philomachus pugnax Ruff C 3116 ad c3 2.1. 1971 Lake Nakuru. DJP. + 3.6.1975 near Sredne Kolymsk, Yakutian ASSR, U.S.S.R, 67°25'N., i53°40'E., 1613 d, ii 193 km, (RCM). B 9700 1W $ 11.9.1971 Lake Nakuru. DJP, JGR. ‘recovered’ 5.5.1975 near Aldan, Yakutian ASSR, U.S.S.R. 58°37'N., I25°24/E., 1332 d, 10 010 km, (RCM). B 1 1727 1W ? 2.2.1974 Lake Naivasha. DJP, WPHD, V 4.1. 1975 Lake Magadi, 336 d, 145 km, WPHD, DJP. No. 163 E.A. BIRD RINGING REPORT I974-I977 Pag e 7 Tringa glareola Wood Sandpiper B 6103 fg 12. 10. 1969 X 16.5.1974 B 17174 ad 3-4-I975 X 4.4.1975 Tringa stagnatilis Marsh Sandpiper B 8716 fg 1 5.4. 1972 X 13.1.1975 B 8256 fg 4. 10. 1974 /?/ 3.9.1975 Apus apus European Swift London fg 8.3.1973 SA 14859 X 31. 12.1976 Halcyon leucocephala Grey-headed Kingfisher London fg 16.10.1970 CN 35522 V 19.1x.1974 London juv 4. 10.1974 CJ 40224 X I.3.I975 Hirimdo daurica Red-rumped Swallow J 18264 ad 12.9.1969 V 7.7.1977 Hirundo rustica European Swallow X 0786 ad 17. 10. 1970 X 25.10.1974 X 2301 1W 30.9.1972 ‘found’ 17.3.1975 J 86630 1W 15.3.1974 X 15.8.1974 J 86759 ad d 16.3.1974 /?/ 15.8.1976 J 87069 ad 16.3.1974 IV 12.5. 1974 J 87816 fg d 30.3.1974 X 0.5.1974 J 90312 ad S 23.12.1974 + (15.10.1976) Bunyaia Rice Project, o°Q5'N., 34°02'E. PLB. near Semenov, Gor’kii Region, U.S.S.R. 56°48/N., 44°33/E., 1677 d, 6384 km. (RCM) Kariobangi, Nairobi. DJP, Lavington, Nairobi i°i6'S., 36°47'E., 1 d, 11 km, J. Macharia. Lake Nakuru. GCB. Rooiwal sewerage pans, Transvaal, South Africa 27°i8'S., 27°32'E., 1003 d, 3139 km, A. C. Kemp Lake Nakuru. JFH. near Vagai, Tyumen’ Region, U.S.S.R. 56°27'N., 67°2i'E., 334 d, 6915 km, (RCM). Hackenthorpe, Derbyshire, England 53°20'N., I°22'W. Kachepa, Masasi, Tanzania io°55'S., 38°4o'E., 1394 d, 8095 km, per K. M. Howell. Lake Abiata, Arussi, Ethiopia 7°36'N., 38°4o'E. JSA. Masogo, near Kisumu, Kenya o°io'S., 34°5i/E., 1495 d, 963 km, j. Parsons. Aseita, Harar, Ethiopia ii°34'N., 4i°27'E. JSA. Zombo 3 near Mombasa, Kenya c.4°S., 39°25'E., 148 d, c. 1 747 km, Inzi Moti. Kariobangi, Nairobi. LC. Firestone Factory, Nairobi i°2i'S., 36°52'E., 2855 d, 11 km, C. B. Nthakyo & H. Muguna. Lake Nakuru. PLB. near Zheleznovodsk, Stavropolskii Region, U.S.S.R. 44°07'N., 42°54'E., 1469 d, 4994 km, (RCM). Lake Nakuru. JFH. Nasiriyah, Iraq 3X°04'N., 46°i7,E.J 898 d, 3657 km, H. T. Tawilly. Lake Nakuru. JFH. near Madzhalis, Dagestan AS SR, U.S.S.R, 42°07'N., 47°so/E., 153 d, 4870 km, (RCM). Lake Nakuru. JFH. near Akhmeta, Georgian SSR, U.S.S.R. 42°03'N., 45°i3'E., 883 d, 4806 km, (RCM). Lake Nakuru. JFH. near Urkarakh, Dagestan ASSR, U.S.S.R. 42°09/N,, 47°38'E., 57 d, 4869 km, (RCM). Lake Nakuru. JFH. near Rovno, Rovno Region, U.S.S.R. 50°37'N., 26°i5'E., (32-62 d), 5748 km, (RCM). Lake Nakuru. JFH. Panyabono, Alero District, Uganda 2°37'N., 32°02'E., (662 d), 560 ion, (Uganda Museum). Page 8 G. C. BACKHURST No. 163 1 109593 1W 3*9*1976 Lev/a Downs, Eldoret o°30'N., 35°I5'E. JRB. Amukura Market, Busia, Kenya o°34'N., 34°i6'E,, + 27.2.1977 177 d, no km, P. Encoit. J 110417 fg 8.10.1976 Lewa Downs. JRB. X 16.5.1977 near Dinskaya, Krasnodar Region, U.S.S.R. 450i4'N., 39°i2'E., 220 d, 4995 km, (RCM). Lanins isabellinus Red-tailed Shrike A 27841 1W 3.12.1976 Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo. GCB, DJP, JD, PL. + 19.4. 1977 near sea coast, Kuwait c. 29°N., 48°E., 137 d, c. 3700 km, ( Kuwait Science & Natural History Museum). Motacilla flava Yellow Wagtail 1 10406 ad <3 18.2.1969 Kabete, at roost. GCB. {flava). ‘recovered’ 10.5.1975 near Shamkhor, Azerbaijan SSR, U.S.S.R. 40°48'N., 46o03/E., 2272 d, 4771 km, (RCM). J 22655 fg (3 11.2.1969 Kabete, at roost. EDS. {, lutea ). near Novotulka, Piterka District, Saratov X 0.7.1974 Region, U.S.S.R. 50°50'N., 47°36'E., (1966- 1996 d), 5884 km, (RCM). J 18423 fg ? ‘caught’ 31. 10.1969 Kariobangi, Nairobi. LC. probably Masiddah, Ad Dawadimi, Saudi Arabia 24°3o'N., May or June 44°24'E., (2008-2068 d), 2979 km. 1975 J 37270 ad 3 29.1. 1970 Kariobangi, Nairobi. GCB. {lutea). /?/ 14.9.1975 Rasht, Gilan, Iran 370i6'N., 49°36'E., 2054 d, 4484 km, Mehran Hakimzadeh. J 35555 fg 3 9.2.1970 Thembigwa, Kiambu, at roost. GCB. {luted). finding details as J 22655 above, (1603-1633 d), 5882 km. J 72883 ad 3 1. 10.1972 Kariobangi, Nairobi. DJP. {lutea). IV autumn 1975 near Kirovobad, Azerbaijan SSR, U.S.S.R. 40°42'N., 46°23'E., 4768 km, (RCM). X 5137 ad 3 0 10.10.1972 24.6.1974 Kariobangi, Nairobi. DJP. {luted). near Ufa, Bashkirian ASSR, U.S.S.R. 54 44‘N., 55°57'E., 622 d, 6473 km, (RCM). J 94220 iw 3 /?/ 2.2.1975 2.5.1975 Kariobangi, Nairobi. DJP, WPHD. {luted), near Engel’s, Saratov Region, U.S.S.R. 5i°27'N., 46°07'E., 820 d, 5931 km, (RCM). J 98995 ad 3 12.10.1975 Kariobangi, Nairobi. DJP. {luted). /?/ 6.4.1976 near Makhachkala, Dagestanian ASSR, U.S.S.R. 42°58/N., 47°28'E., 177 d, 5035 km, (RCM). Terpsiphone viridis Paradise Flycatcher I 74073 fg 28.10.1972 Kikuyu, 1 15 'S., 36^40 '£. DPC. v(= ,$) 6.4.1976 Kabete, 1256 d, 9 km, JD, FN, GCB. Acroceplialus palustris Marsh Warbler I 80501 fg 2.12.1972 Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo. GCB, DJP. v (= $) 3.7.1975 12 km NE of Schwedt/Oder, East Germany 53°io/N., i4°22'E., 943 d, 6637 km, (Vogel- warte Hiddensee). Hiddensee 9055153 added. J 76888 fg 16.12.1973 Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo. GCB, DJP, PLB. /?/ 0.5.1977 A1 Artawiyah, Saudi Arabia 26°3i/N., 45°2i'E., c. 1230 d, 3374 km, Neam Mohmed- Twala. J 85739 fg 20. 1 1. 1974 Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo. GCB, DJP. V 23.5.1977 Eching, Kr. Landshut, Niederbayern, West Germany 48°3o'N., I2°04/E., 915 d, 6268 km, Max Kasparek. No. 163 E. A. BIRD RINGING REPORT I974-I977 Page 9 J 93652 1W 26.11.1974 X 20.7.1975 J 42665 fg 26.1 1. 1975 + 1.12.1975’ Phylloscopus trochilus Willow Warbler Stockholm juv 25.7.1964 1060515 (+) (2.8.1965) Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo. DJP, GCB. Klosters, Graubiinden, Switzerland 46°52'N., 9°53,E.j 236 d, 6200 km, Stefan Josler. Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo. GCB, DJP. Mlanje, Malawi i6°05'S., 35°29/E., 6 d, 1487 km, (I. F. Kamesa). Ledskar, Uppland, S wee den 6o°3i,N., I7°43'E. Kaberamaido, Teso, Uganda i°46'N., 33°09,E., (373 d), 6672 km. Sylvia borin J 78946 Garden Warbler fg 3.2.1974 Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo. GCB, DJP. + 24.8.1975 El Hassa, Jordan 30°49/N., 35°58'E., 567 d, 3772 km, Mahmond S. Alayyan. Luscinia luscinia J 118369 Sprosser 1W 3.12.1976 + I3-4-I977 Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo; caught and ringed at night. GCB, DJP, JD, PL. Dik el Mehdi, near Beirut, Lebanon 33°55'N., 35°35'E., 13 1 d, 4120 km, Levon Guzelian. Neetarinia reichenowi Golden-winged Senbird J 69654 ad ? 22.3.1973 + 18.4.1975 16 km SW of South Kinangop, o°47'S., 36°34'E. FBG, LLW. Mitaboni Location, Machakos District, Kenya i023'S., 37°i5/E., 757 d, 101 km, Mutunga s/o Ngave. Ploceus Jacksoni A 9010 Golden-backed Weaver ad $ 9.5.1970 Kisumu, o°o6'S., 34°45/E. PLB. + 27.11. 1975 Kombewa Sub-Location, Kenya o°07'S., 34°3Q'E. 2028 d, 28 km, Joseph Oyucho. Ploceus rubiginosus Chestnut Weaver A 21625 % 6.12.1974 0 (3.5.1975) Nguiia Safari Lodge, Tsavo. GCB. Migwani, Kitui District, Kenya i°o6'S., 38°oTE„ 148 d, 213 km, David Mulandi. KEY TO INITIALS IN THE LIST OF RECOVERIES JSA J. S. Ash WPHD *W. P. H. & B. Duffus GCB *G. C. & D. E. G. Backhurst FBG *F. B. Gill JSSB J. S. S. Beesley JFH *J. F. & L. M. Harper JRB J. R. Best PL P. Lack PLB *F. L. & H. A. Britton RCM Ringing Centre, Moscow LC *L. Campbell DJP *D. J. Pearson DPC D. P. Carthy JGR J. G. Rolfe AWD *A. W. Diamond EDS E. D. Steel JD *J. Dirks LLW L. L. Wolfe OTHER RINGERS IN EAST AFRICA *D. Angwin, K. Campbell, *]. A. D. Cape, *M. Carswell, *G. R. Cunningham-van Someren, *V. C. Fayad, *R. Hegner, *D. Ligon, C. F. Mann, *F. Ng’weno, *U. Reyer, *J- F. Reynolds. Those marked with an asterisk are still, as far as is known, members of the ringing scheme. Page 10 G. C. BACKHURST No- 163 REFERENCES Backhurst, G. C. (1974). East African bird ringing report 1972-73, 1973-74. E. Africa nat. Hist. Soc. rtatn. Mus. 146: 1-9. Backhurst, G. C. & Pearson, D. J. (1976). Savi’s Warbler in Tsavo, an addition to the Kenya list. EANHS Bull. 1976: 21-22. Backhurst, G. C. & Pearson, D. J. (1977). Southward migration at Ngulia, Tsavo, Kenya 1976/77. Scopus 1: 12-17. Best, J. R. (1977). A large hirundine roost in Uasin Gishu. EANHS Bull. 1977: 39-40. EANHS OSC (1977). Some recent records of Palaearctic birds in Kenya and Tanzania. Scopus 1: 39-43. Fayad, V. C. & Fayab, C. C. (1977). A Grasshopper Warbler Locustella naevia from the Nguruman Escarp- ment, Kenya. Scopus 1: 84-86. Pearson, D. J. & Backhurst, G. C. (1976). The southward migration of Palaearctic birds over Ngulia, Kenya. Ibis 1 18: 78-105. Corrections to the 1972-74 report (Backhurst 1974) The totals at the end of Table 1 (page 3) are incorrect. The three totals should have read as follows: 1972/73 9166, 1973/74 11 098, and the Grand total 75 429. The Saker Falco cherrug included in the same table should be deleted, the bird concerned was in fact a Lanner F. biarmicus. (. Received 6 August 1977 ) Published by The East Africa Natural History Society , Box 44486 > Nairobi , Kenya and Printed by Kenya Litho Ltd., Box 40775 , Changamwe Road , Nairobi. ewiTUQnNiAN INSTITUTION LIBRARIES 3 9088 01313 7336