[ ISSN 0250-4162

A publication of the
| Bird Committee of the
| East Africa Natural History Society

Edited by
=a Darcy Ogada
David Pearson

Volume 33, January 2014

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INTER NATIONAL The East Africa Natural History Society

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ISSN 0250-4162

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A publication of the
Bird Committee of the
East Africa Natural History Society

Edited by
Darcy Ogada
David Pearson

Volume 33, January 2014

DA.

BirdLife | NaturéKenya

INTERNATIONAL

Scopus 33, January 2014

Contents
FRANCOISE DOWSETT-LEMAIRE AND ROBERT J. DOWSETT. Checklist of the
birds of Kipini Conservancy, Lamu and Tana River districts, coastal Ke-

DAVID PEARSON, HERBERT BIEBACH, GERHARD NIKOLAUS AND ELIZABETH
YOHANNES, Spring weights of some Palaearctic passerines in Ethiopia and
Kenya: evidence for important migration staging areas in eastern Ethiopia
Same een mea nS ATRYN Penn ne Me Cee H, AO ME ae A Meme SOIL AN uh) 45

ROGER Q. SKEEN. A review of birds in Uganda: records updating the Ugan-
da Atlas and notes on species unrecorded Since 1980 ..mmmnmnnemnnnmnnnnes 53

JAMES BRADLEY AND DAVID BRADLEY. The Kavirondo Escarpment: a previ-
ously unrecognized site of high conservation value in Western Kenya ... 64
Short communications

SARAH NACHUHA AND IMRAN EJOTRE. Observations on the trend of the Pink-
backed Pelican Pelecanus rufescens at breeding colonies, eastern Uganda

sdm cat alk UN el cg eea c ghaitb L SIN 0 aN a 70
DONALD A. TURNER. Further remarks concerning the Little Egret complex in
FASE ALAC peace ah unt tetee cell lace MA st tether ase asa et eM Laka se ee a 72
CHACHA WEREMA. Shelley’s Greenbul Andropadus masukuensis in Kimboza
Forest: Reserve, TanZaniiaiicis cis ciscsinciishd Cavett dia UMAR NAN UI Dee seer ut rte eed 74
SEAN MCEneryv. A record of Black-shouldered Nightjar Caprimulgus
MISTISCHDULATIS Thy: VAVZATIA a.) eh Oe Mate at al rate gt ne gee ee 76

DONALD A. TURNER. The genus Phoeniculus in eastern and north-eastern
Africa, with remarks concerning the Phoeniculus purpureus superspecies

ADDISU ASEFA AND ANOUSKA A KINAHAN. Preliminary checklists for two
Important Bird Areas of Ethiopia: Sof Omar and Shek Husein in the Bale
s} Of © a 92 5.) MA eg MOR cee IRA US 1 nan rete ee RI a ce ret athe 80

ROGER Q. SKEEN. Great Knot Calidris tenuirostris at Lutembe Bay, Uganda

abuts se A dd ta Re ec 84
N.E. AND E.M BAKER. White-throated Swallow Hirundo albigularis in

DeaN Ze ie ases se ee atte ae Ce ee 85
jh yf 6 4 Genet Ue re ce tee ec eee ate lO EME sre ll tes 86
East African rarities committee report. commmmnmnnmnmnninnnnnnnnninnnnse 87

| Grr 0) | Ree ee ae eee Andee ene 92

Scopus 33: 1-44, January 2014

Pe

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, ~

Lamu and Tana River districts, coastal Kenya

Francoise Dowsett-Lemaire and Robert J. Dowsett

Summary

During a holiday in Kenya we were invited to visit the Kipini Conservancy, just north
of the Tana River. We encountered a number of birds of interest in this little-known
area, particularly noteworthy being Black-and-white Flycatcher Bias musicus, the first
sighting on the Kenya coast for many years. Range extensions included two species
previously unrecorded north of Sokoke Forest: Green Tinkerbird Pogoniulus simplex
and Pallid Honeyguide Indicator meliphilus. Among breeding records was the first of
African Crake Crex egregia from the Kenyan coast. Species of conservation concern
present at Kipini included resident Southern Banded Snake Eagle Circaetus fasciolatus
and Malindi Pipit Anthus melindae (the latter numerous), and migrant Madagascar
Pond Heron Ardeola idae. Many pairs of the regionally threatened Saddle-billed Stork
Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis were among waterbirds present in the area.

Introduction

Kipini Conservancy, created in 2006, covered approximately 250 km?2, between the
Tana River delta and the villages of Witu and Mpeketoni (Fig. 1). During a holiday
visit to Kenya we were invited to Kipini by Richard Hartley, who was then running
the Conservancy. We spent 64 days in the reserve, between 11 October and 26 Decem-
ber 2006. Heavy rainfall experienced from November onwards somewhat restricted
exploration of the area. We present here details of the birds we saw in an area whose
avifauna has been insufficiently studied. Except for comparison we have not detailed
the observations made by visitors to the Tana River delta area, outside the Kipini
Conservancy limits.

In 2006 the south-western boundary of the Conservancy stopped 1-2 km east of
Kipini town (thus did not reach the river), and the north-western and north-eastern
boundaries abutted onto Witu Forest Reserve and the southern bank of Lake Kenyat-
ta respectively. On the seafront it was bordered by c. 20 km of pristine sand beaches.

The area visited

The main habitats were live dunes, coastal thickets, seasonally flooded grassland and
pans in large depressions (“ziwas”), wooded grassland, thicket-clump savanna and
semi-evergreen rain forest. A large part of Kipini Conservancy included the “Nai-
robi Ranch”. This consisted of a small herd of cattle (about 130 head) mixing with
Burchell’s Zebras Equus burchelli and other wild mammals. The vegetation of the
future Kipini Conservancy was the subject of some investigations, mainly by Ann
Robertson and Quentin Luke in November 1988. Results were published in a report
on the vegetation of coastal forests of Kenya (Robertson & Luke 1993). The authors
referred to the area under “Ras Tenewi National Coastal Zone”.

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Overall we spent more time in the coastal zone (Sandamuke, Baharini, Ziwa
Lamuu) than in the north-west (one visit to the forests of Witu Extension and Luim-
shi, 30 October-3 November). The one important site we did not visit was the large
forest gallery at Kangawati. Witu Forest (then outside the Conservancy) was not vis-
ited.

The short rains were considerable in 2006. Occasional showers in October (some
heavy), a downpour on 5 November and on later dates in that month, led to increased
flooding of pans. More rain still fell in December, daily around the middle of the
month. By mid-December there was very extensive flooding of ziwa grassland in the
south; whereas the north-eastern section (Baharini) was getting drier.

Habitat types with their dominant bird species

Eight main habitat categories can be recognized in the Conservancy, progressing
from the coast to the interior. Tree nomenclature follows Beentje (1994).

Sand beaches

The seafront of the reserve was about 20 km long, the Ras Shaka point being on the
southern boundary. Most of this consisted of pristine sand beaches and small por-
tions of coral cliffs (at Ras Shaka and Seven Sisters). But the beaches were largely
covered at high tide and, as a result, did not harbour large populations of waders.

Live dune thickets

Live dunes are raised above the level of the beach by several metres and form a band
several dozen metres in width (often c. 50-60 m), rising and then descending towards
the plain inland. The wall of sand facing the beach has been receding slowly with the
rise in sea level and trees have been falling off the edge.

Live dunes were covered with dense thickets, 2-3 m high. These were often impen-
etrable, although in places they were interrupted by patches of bare sand, especially
on the steeper slopes. Some of the shrubs present have spines. The most characteristic
and frequent woody plants in the area of K4 (Fig. 1) were Cordia somaliensis, Haplocoe-
lum inoploeum, Salvadora persica (a variant with round leaves, cyclophylla), Syderoxylon
inerme, Tarenna trichantha and Uvaria denhardtiana (semi-scandent).

Bird-wise, this habitat was rather species-poor, but one sunbird (Variable Sunbird:
for scientific names, see systematic list) was found nowhere else in the area, and two
bush shrikes (Brown-headed Tchagra, Slate-coloured Boubou) were more common
here than inland. Zanzibar Greenbul, Northern Brownbul, Scaly Babbler and Grey
and Collared Sunbirds were also very common.

Coastal thickets

This was a very extensive formation of the reserve, covering then at least 40 km? (from
the southern boundary road near Ras Shaka, north-east to Buffalo camp in Baharini).
They formed a massive block 4 to 5 km wide in the southern section, narrower in the
north-east. This block came close to the seafront in the south, but elsewhere was sepa-
rated from the dunes by a large ziwa at least 1 km wide (Fig. 1). The south-western
corner (as shown on the map, Fig. 1) was in the process of being destroyed by illegal
settlers.

The height of the canopy was usually 5-6 m, and there was a scattering of taller
trees emerging to 10-12 m, rarely more (15 m). Nearer the coast, the height of the can-

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 3

opy decreased slightly to 3-4 m. The two main emergents were doum palms Hyphaene
compressa and baobabs Adansonia digitata; other emergents were Terminalia spinosa,
Lonchocarpus bussei and more rarely Tamarindus indica. The Terminalia and Lonchocar-
pus could also be part of the canopy. The most numerous canopy species were by far
Lecaniodiscus fraxinifolius and Carpodiptera africana. Lecaniodiscus was more common
in dense thicket whereas Carpodiptera is more light-demanding, thus more frequent
in slight gaps and generally on edges. Locally in the thickets there were depressions
of black soil that became water-logged in the rains; they have a completely differ-
ent vegetation, being dominated by one tree, Spirostachys venenifera, c. 10-12 m tall.

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Figure 1. Map of Kipini Conservancy. Dashed lines are roads or tracks. Crosses indi-
cate main areas of deforestation by illegal settlers; v = coastal thicket. 1 = base camp;
2 = new camp; 3 = K4 (southern end of coastal ziwa); 4 = Seven Sisters; 5 = Ras Shaka;
G4 = cattle post; HQ = headquarters.

These thickets had a bird-life which was fairly rich. They held important pop-
ulations of Crested Guineafowl, and other characteristic species included African
Goshawk, Tambourine and Emerald-spotted Wood Doves, Thick-billed Cuckoo,
Yellowbill, Wood Owl, Narina Trogon, Common Scimitarbill, Mangrove Kingfish-
er, Red-fronted Tinkerbird, Mombasa Woodpecker, Zanzibar Greenbul, Northern
Brownbul, Yellow-bellied Greenbul, Eastern Nicator, Red-tailed Ant Thrush, Red-
capped Robin Chat (in season), Bearded Scrub Robin, Grey-backed Camaroptera,
Black-headed Batis, Little Yellow Flycatcher, Afzican Paradise Flycatcher (in season),
Scaly Babbler, Collared and Olive Sunbirds, Black-backed Puffback, Tropical Boubou,
Retz’s Helmetshrike, Black-bellied Starling and Dark-backed Weaver.

4 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Thicket-clump savanna and wooded grassland

Inland of coastal thickets, the dominant vegetation was a mosaic of grassy depressions
(ziwas) surrounded by clumps of thicket or forest on ridges, and a more open type of
wooded grassland on level, dry ground. It is likely that some of the grassland on dry
ground is fire-derived, as there were many signs of fire-damaged trees, or relict burnt
stumps and in places the grassland was colonized by saplings of Hyphaene palms
almost to the exclusion of anything else. Grasses belong to many genera, including
Panicum, Hyparrhenia and Digitaria. In the more open types of wooded grassland, the
grass Dactyloctenium geminatum became dominant among low saplings of Hyphaene
spp. The small Rubiaceae Agathisanthemum bojeri (40-80 cm tall) was locally dominant
in the drier sections of open grassland (with Dactyloctenium grasses), being especially
conspicuous between Baharini and Maji-Grass. Many forbs of Leguminosae occurred
(Indigofera, Sesbania, Cassia), especially the gregarious Cassia mimosoides.

The doum palm Hyphaene compressa was the most widespread tall tree, reaching
20-25 m. It grew in isolation in dry grassland, as well as an emergent above forest
clumps. This graceful, much-branched palm is or was perhaps the most characteristic
tree of Kipini. The other Hyphaene present, the thick-stemmed H. coriacea was more
local, on wetter ground on the upper rim of ziwas. Other important tall trees in dry
grassland and forest clumps were baobab and Trichilia emetica (latter evergreen). The
most widespread small trees in wooded grassland were Antidesma venosum, Catunare-
gam (Xeromphis) nilotica, Dalbergia melanoxylon, Flacourtia indica, Harrisonia abyssinica
and Strychnos madagascariensis.

The avifauna of wooded grassland was characterized by Red-necked Spurfowl,
Ring-necked Dove and other doves, Striped Kingfisher, rollers, Flappet Lark, Yel-
low-throated Longclaw, Common Bulbul, species of Cisticola warblers (Coastal and
Siffling), Tawny-flanked Prinia, Pale Flycatcher, Black-crowned Tchagra, Common
Drongo and a couple of canaries. Large birds of extensive grassland such as bus-
tards seem to be missing completely. The most characteristic birds of thicket or for-
est clumps around base camp included Lizard Buzzard and Little Sparrowhawk,
Thick-billed and Levaillant’s Cuckoos, White-browed Coucal and Yellowbills, Speck-
led Mousebird, Violet Wood-hoopoe, Common Scimitarbill, Mombasa and Green-
backed Woodpeckers, Trumpeter and Crowned Hornbills, Northern Brownbul and
Scaly Babbler (often together), Yellow-bellied Greenbul and Zanzibar Greenbul,
Red-capped Robin Chat, Bearded Scrub Robin, Collared and Amethyst Sunbirds,
Black-backed Puffback, Retz’s Helmetshrike, Black-bellied Starling and Dark-backed
Weaver. In the larger clumps, forest species such as Fischer’s Turaco, Eastern Nicator,
Red-tailed Ant Thrush and Little Yellow Flycatcher may occur.

Acacia zanzibarica woodland

In the north-east of the reserve, on dry sand, patches of a special type of Acacia wood-
land occurred. The most extensive stands were between Kenyatta camp and Ziwa
Lamuu, but did not cover more than a few hectares. This woodland was 8-10 m tall
and was dominated by the whistling thorn Acacia zanzibarica. Other characteristic
trees were Acacia nilotica, Dichrostachys cinerea, Dobera loranthifolia and baobabs. These
patches intermingle with small thickets, under tall Hyphaene coriacea, H. compressa and
Tamarindus indica, with Combretum constrictum, Dalbergia melanoxylon, Garcinia living-
stonei, Thespesia danis, etc.

This was the only true woodland in the reserve, but it was not extensive enough

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 5

to have a typical woodland avifauna, which is lacking. This was the only place where
we found Spotted Flycatcher (a Palaearctic migrant); Black-headed Batis (otherwise
only in coastal thicket) was present, and the Northern Crombec was more common in
this habitat than in wooded grassland.

“Ziwas” or seasonally flooded grasslands

These varied in size from anything to several square kilometres. They were scattered
almost throughout the reserve, from just behind the dunes (area referred to as “coast-
al ziwa” below) to the Luimshi area in the north. The ziwas in the north-east sector
were drier, being on sand, while those in the north were much wetter. They differ
from “dambos”, another type of seasonally flooded grassland (White 1983), by the
nature of the soil (sand as opposed to peat) and the structure of the grassland, which
is much less compact. Indeed, there are often bare patches of sand or mud among the
grassland.

The outer rims and drier sections of ziwas are dominated by the grass Dactyloc-
tenium geminatum (often with Digitaria milanjana) and patches of the subshrub Cassia
mimosoides (often 1-1.5 m tall). At slightly lower levels where a few centimetres of
water can stand, Hibiscus cannabinus is very common. The central depression can hold
water for many months, and pans of this nature are usually covered in Nile Cabbage
(Pistia stratiotes); water lilies Nymphaea occur in the deeper ponds, next to open wa-
ter. In November-December flood levels slowly increased and vast areas of flooded
grassland started to form. A key grass species in the big coastal ziwa was Echinochloa
haploclada, as well as a small sedge (Eleocharis), both covering many hectares in a vivid
green swathe. Tall Cyperus spp. and other sedges also occur. The palm Hyphaene co-
riacea was often found at the ecotone, on the edge of a ziwa or a pan, as well as small
clumps of Lawsonia inermis (conspicuous at the southern end of the coastal ziwa). The
edge of the pan at Maji-Grass was ringed with a strip of Ambatch (Aeschynomene cris-
tata), c. 2 m tall.

The bird life was very characteristic: Hadada Ibis, Woolly-necked and Saddle-
billed Storks were very widespread, and the wet grasslands were important refu-
gia for large numbers of Spur-winged Geese, with smaller ones of Egyptian Geese.
Few other ducks occurred, African Spoonbills, herons and egrets were mostly visitors
from the Tana delta. African Crakes were common before the heavy floods. African
Jacanas invaded the pans in November to breed, while the floods pushed out the
Spur-winged Plovers to the drier, sandy ziwas. Small mud pans in the coastal ziwa
attracted moderate numbers of Palaearctic waders. At the peak of flooding in Decem-
ber, large numbers of Lesser Moorhens appeared, and other crakes might be expected
to occur. Yellow-throated Longclaws and Coastal Cisticolas bred in moderately wet
ziwas, whereas the numerous Malindi Pipits preferred the dry sections. The floods
forced them to concentrate in dry areas, often in large flocks. Zanzibar Red Bishops
bred in moderate numbers in the wettest ziwas, which were also invaded by Lesser
Swamp Warblers near the coast.

Permanent wetland (Lake Kenyatta)

On the northern boundary of the reserve, this permanent lake collects water from an
extensive catchment area. It was nearly 3 km long, and the greatest width was c. 1 km.
Its margins had a ring of tall aquatic vegetation, more developed on the northern side
(near Mpeketoni village) than the south-western side. Reedbeds of Typha bulrushes
occurred, but a tall rufous sedge Cyperus sp. was more widespread.

6 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

In 2006 the lake was the only wetland where a few Pink-backed Pelicans still oc-
curred. Small muddy beaches were suitable for Egyptian Geese and a few waders.
The passerine avifauna appeared rather impoverished, but it was the only site where
we observed the Eastern Golden Weaver.

Semi-evergreen (or semi-deciduous) rain forest

The most extensive area of forest was in the continuation of Witu Forest and probably
covered at least 15 km?. Other important forest patches occurred in broad galleries in
the area of Luimshi in the north and Kangawati in the centre. By the end of October
when we visited, most of the Witu Extension had been cleared by settlers. We ex-
plored a fragment of forest a few hectares in extent.

This forest had a closed canopy c. 25-30 m tall, with emergents reaching 40 m
in height. The main emergent was Milicia excelsa, and it was still very common in
other, more damaged fragments; others were Diospyros mespiliformis, Parkia filicoidea
and Sterculia appendiculata. Common canopy trees were Diospyros abyssinica, Erythro-
phleum suaveolens, Hyphaene compressa and Trichilia emetica. At Luimshi some patches
were also being cleared by illegal settlers. Here Hyphaene compressa and Trichilia emet-
ica were dominant; strangling Ficus scassellatii was also found.

Much closer to the coast, some tall forest occurred very locally within the San-
damuke thickets, on old dunes. To the east of “new camp” the forest was quite tall
(20-22 m), and a gallery c. 1 km long winded in a south-westerly direction until a
small hill where the canopy decreased to 15-18 m; from this point, the forest merged
gradually into thicket, with decreasing height and a change of composition. Carpo-
diptera and Cassipourea euryoides were dominant in the canopy on the hill. In the first
kilometre or so of tall forest, Combretum schumannii (20-25 m tall) occurred in clumps
of 3-4 trees. The woody flora here was a mixture of forest and thicket elements, with
Trichilia emetica as a dominant canopy species.

The avifauna in Witu Extension and Luimshi resembled that of forest clumps to
the south, but was more species-rich. Five bird species were not found anywhere
else in the reserve: Green Wood-hoopoe (Witu Extension only, not even in Luim-
shi), Fischer’s Greenbul, Black-headed Apalis, Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher and
Square-tailed Drongo. It is possible some of these would have been found in Kanga-
wati forest, unfortunately not visited. A forest raptor, the Southern Banded Snake
Eagle, reached the coastal thickets in very small numbers but must have occurred
in higher densities in the optimal habitat of Witu Extension and Luimshi. It took us
weeks to locate one displaying bird in Sandamuke whereas we found it easily in both
Witu Extension and Luimshi on our short visit. The Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird was
very common in Witu, whereas to the south we found some territorial birds only in
the old dune forest near new camp; our other records at base camp and in coastal
thickets were only of wanderers.

Annotated list of bird species recorded in the Kipini area

All species were observed by us, except for some reported in the literature or by oth-
er observers (indicated by *). Some additional extralimital, or doubtful reports are
placed in square brackets. Nomenclature and sequence follows EANHS (2009), except
for a few factual corrections.

Crested Guineafowl Guttera pucherani
Common in coastal thickets (Gandamuke-Baharini) as well as in Witu Extension. Up

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 7

to 12 seen in former, and once two birds were feeding amid a group of baboons Papio
sp.

Crested Francolin Francolinus sephaena
Common in thicket clumps and edge of coastal thickets. Calls much after rain. Two
small chicks 11 December would be from eggs laid in November.

Red-necked Spurfowl Francolinus afer

Numerous throughout; often sings high up in tall Hyphaene compressa. Enters coastal
forest or thicket. Two tiny chicks 18 November and three small chicks 5 December,
would be from eggs laid October and November respectively. Had bred earlier, as
several broods with large juveniles seen in October.

Harlequin Quail Coturnix deiegorguei
Intra-African migrant, with one in Baharini grassland, 16 November.

White-faced Whistling Duck Dendrocygna viduata

First noted 22 October (new camp) with increasing flooding. Small flocks on the move
often visited pan at base camp, where chased by Egyptian Geese. More frequent No-
vember-December, up to 20 or more in coastal ziwa after full November flood.

Spur-winged Goose Plectropterus gambensis

Common, especially short-grass ziwas near G4, and coastal ziwa (dozens at each
place). Some pairs clearly breedizg late November-December, very wary (e.g. one
sitting and male guarding, pan near Kenyatta camp).

Knob-billed Duck Sarkidiornis melanotos
One male on passage 12 October. A few present coastal ziwa from 5 November and
likely breeding there, but difficult to see and very discreet.

Egyptian Goose Alopochen aegyptiaca

Common edge of pans with some dry mud. Numerous at Lake Kenyatta in Novem-
ber-December (over 100 at far end). Had to leave some ziwas after flooding increased
in December (as at base camp). Some goslings in coastal ziwa 5 November.

African Pygmy Goose Nettapus auritus

Local: a few pairs in ziwas with extensive flooded grassland and patches of water lil-
ies. At least two pairs Luimshi pan (2 November). Present in coastal ziwa from at least
1 December, several pairs on 12 December. One or two pairs edges of Lake Kenyatta
November.

Red-billed Teal Anas erythrorhyncha
Occasional visitor? One pair in one of the Baharini pans on 11 December.

*Garganey Anas querquedula
Palaearctic migrant, a specimen was collected at Kipini on 14 March (Stager 1973).

Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis
One in a pool in front of new camp, 9 November for about a week.

8 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

*Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
R. Hartley reported small numbers (up to 15) flying south at dusk along beach, when
camping at Seven Sisters, July and September.

Woolly-necked Stork Ciconia episcopus

Common, often up to 4-6 birds in a loose group —in any ziwa, favouring short flooded
grassland. Not apparently territorial (come and go at base camp, can be absent on
some days), and no sign of breeding. A reported sighting of “several hundred soar-
ing above the Tana River” in the Ishaqbini Conservancy (Njoroge et al. 2008) seems
astonishing.

Saddle-billed Stork Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis

Common and very widespread, always in pairs — strongly territorial, unlike previous
species. The absence of immatures suggests no breeding took place in recent years.
Pair at base camp growing more excited with increasing rain in December. Likely to
breed in years of heavy floods.

Marabou Stork Leptoptilos crumeniferus
Only a visitor from outside, scavenging with vultures: one flying towards G4 on 15
November (see Vultures below).

Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus

Some large flocks flying over in October (e.g. over 100 on 19 October), to the south-
west at dusk. Small groups feeding locally (ziwa of new camp, Luimshi), last seen 12
November.

Hadada Ibis Bostrychia hagedash
Very common throughout, all ziwas. Often 3-5 together, up to 20 or so in local con-
centrations.

[Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus

A roost estimated to number 10000 at the Tana River delta, 30 March 2009, and 2000
reported at Kipini, April 2011 (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2009, 16: 232; 2011, 18:
234).

African Spoonbill Platalea alba

A few visiting pans late October-early November: first on 27 October, several locali-
ties November, including 5 in coastal ziwa 11 November, 6 at base camp 13 Novem-
ber, last date of the season.

*Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus
Collected at Witu 12 May, and identified as the Palaearctic nominate race by R.B.
Sharpe (Jackson 1898: 141).

Dwarf Bittern Ixobrychus sturmii
One by pool on the road near G4, 26 December. Intra-African migrant arriving with
heavy rains.

Striated Heron Butorides striata
One edge of flooded Spirostachys forest bordering ziwa (K4) on 25 November.

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 9

Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides

Widespread in pans in October, up to 6 at base camp, more at Luimshi (on 1-2 No-
vember, including some with blue bill of breeding plumage). Then numbers dropped
steadily, only 1 at Luimshi on 13 November, 2 at Maji-Grass on 15, last one there on
16. None seen for c. a month, one at Maji-Grass 13 December.

Madagascar Pond Heron Ardeola idae
Malagasy migrant (Globally Endangered), with wintering ending in October: at least
2 present on pan at base camp 21 October (next to Squacco Heron), 1 on 22 October.

Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis

In fluctuating numbers, feeding in semi-flooded grassland or with African Buffaloes
Syncerus caffer. In October flocks of dozens at dusk flying west, few feeding locally.
More feeding in wet ziwas in early November, still leaving at dusk for roosts to the
west. None late November-early December, suddenly back in mid-December: 1st on
16 December (Baharini pan), then dozens in various areas from the 17th, and up to 400
(in two flocks) flying at dusk on 18 December.

Black-headed Heron Ardea melanocephala
Particularly common in short grassland of ziwas, Ziwa Lamuu and Maji-Grass (up to
12 in a loose flock); the odd one elsewhere.

Goliath Heron Ardea goliath
Widespread, in pairs or singles (adults/immatures) in flooded grassland: Ziwa
Lamuu, base camp, Luimshi etc. Often visited for a day ot two then moved on.

Great White Egret Ardea alba
Less common than last, but following the same pattern. A few in October, only one
in November (18th).

Yellowbilled Egret Egretta intermedia

Widespread, with a few feeding in various pans in October-November, up to 10 or
more at new camp 12 November, leaving at 18:00 to fly west to roost. Almost absent
in the next five weeks, except one (in breeding dress) on 24 November (base camp).
Back in numbers on 25 December (40 + 9 flying east at 06:30).

*Black Heron Egretta ardesiaca
A vagrant, one seen by R. Hartley in a pan near headquarters in July or August 2006.

*Western Reef Heron Egretta gularis
There is a specimen from Witu (Jackson 1898).

*Greater Frigatebird Fregata minor
There is a specimen from Kipini, dated 31 August (Britton 1980).

Hamerkop Scopus umbretta
Very common, throughout: pans, pools on road. Old nest in a Trichilia emetica at new
camp.

10 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Pink-backed Pelican Pelecanus rufescens
A few at Lake Kenyatta October-November, maximum 4.

Reed Cormorant Phalacrocorax africanus
A few in October-early November, flying over base camp (e.g. 3 on 19 October), at
least 6 at Luimshi pan 1-2 November, a few at Lake Kenyatta on 12 November.

*African Darter Anhinga rufa
Occasionally present Lake Kenyatta, as reported by Ben Wachoa.

Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus
One over Ziwa Lamuu, flying north, 16 December.

Red-necked Falcon Falco chicquera
One pair flying into Hyphaene palm near G4, 5 November.

[Amur Falcon Falco amurensis
An estimated 10000 of this Palaearctic migrant were at the Tana River delta, 7 April
2011 (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2011, 18: 234).]

Sooty Falcon Falco concolor
Palaearctic migrant: one flying south 28 October.

Eurasian Hobby Falco subbuteo
Palaearctic migrant: one flying south 5 November.

Lanner Falcon Falco biarmicus
One flying over base camp, 3 December.

Osprey Pandion haliaetus
Palaearctic migrant probably wintering at Lake Kenyatta: one fishing and eating on a
dead palm, 15 December.

African Cuckoo Hawk Aviceda cuculoides

Apparently a local migrant (perhaps from inland in Kenya, Zimmerman et al. 1996),
with several seen in October, in open savanna with thicket clumps. Last on 24 Octo-
ber.

European Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus
Palaearctic migrant, uncommon: singles on 1 November, 5 December and 13 Decem-
ber (the last at least suggestive of local wintering in coastal thicket).

African Black-shouldered Kite Elanus caeruleus
Rare: one over Ziwa Lamuu 1 December. Habitat very suitable, but perhaps too poor
in rodents.

Black (Yellow-billed) Kite Milvus migrans parasitus
Rare: one over Baharini thicket 9 December is the only record. Also rare outside the
area, as only one seen at Mpeketoni (29 November) and none Witu-Garsen area!

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 11

African Fish Eagle Haliaeetus vocifer
Common visitor to pans, also scavenging in grassland. Usually as singles, but vocal
pairs at Luimshi and at Lake Kenyatta, where likely breeds.

White-backed Vulture Gyps africanus

Considered Globally Endangered. Up to 13 at Maji-Grass on 15-16 November, with
full crops (carrion not located). Some were flying in that direction on 14 November
(over base camp). Four circling over Ziwa Lamuu on 13 December. Evidently a visitor
from outside.

White-headed Vulture Trigonoceps occipitalis

This Globally Vulnerable species is probably a scarce resident. A pair over Ziwa
Lamuu November-December, On 6 December one came to base camp and landed at
far end: it left with a full crop (a female Topi and ker young watched it land and fled).

Black-chested Snake Eagle Circaetus pectoralis
One near Luimshi November. Seen regularly (adult and immature) in drier section of
coastal ziwa in December. Also hunting over Ziwa Lamuu and Maji-Grass.

Brown Snake Eagle Circaetus cinereus
Throughout, singles or pairs; e.g. pair holding territory around base camp.

Southern Banded Snake Eagle Circaetus fasciolatus

Throughout, more tied to forest than Brown Snake Eagle. Calls high in the air as
well as perched. Any forest (Witu Extension, Luimshi, bigger forest clumps near base
camp), and also in coastal thickets (Gandamuke) where appears rare.

Bateleur Terathopius ecaudatus
Very widespread, often in pairs. One subadult seen but no immatures (poor breeding
performance?).

Western Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus

Palaearctic migrant. First seen (immature male) on 12 November at Lake Kenyatta.
Winters in small numbers as adult male/immature male seen occasionally over coast-
al ziwa late November-December.

Pallid Harrier Circus macrourus or Montagu’s Harrier Circus pygargus

Palaearctic migrant: immature male (white rump, grey in wings) seen briefly over big
ziwa before Mpeketoni on 23 November. Dived into stream gully. On the coast Pallid
is reported more often (Zimmerman et al. 1996).

African Harrier Hawk Polyboroides typus

Common and widespread, adults and immatures. Systematically chased by drongos
and rollers. On 14 December immature in moult, with tail growing (grey with black
bars, as in adult), but body plumage still brown; it was chased by a Common Drongo.

African Goshawk Accipiter tachiro
Common in coastal thickets (up to three heard simultaneously at Sandamuke) and
large clumps of forest. In song October-December.

12 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Little Sparrowhawk Accipiter minullus

Widespread, thicket or forest clumps, also hunting in the open. One chasing a Ma-
lindi Pipit in acrobatic flight over the grassland was probably successful eee
in the grass for some time).

Great Sparrowhawk Accipiter melanoleucus

Widespread: six observations of adult or immature. Although not mapped on the
coast north of the Galana River by Zimmerman et al. (1996), the species has been
reported further north at Kiunga (Britton 1980) and into southern Somalia (Ash &
Miskell 1998).

Lizard Buzzard Kaupifalco monogrammicus
Commonest small raptor, especially in thicket-clump savanna. Very vocal. Hunts
from tall palm or forest edges (insects, frogs etc.).

Lesser Spotted Eagle Aquila pomarina
Palaearctic migrant, with a few on southward passage: three on 5 November, two on
16 November and one on 13 December.

? Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga

Palaearctic migrant (Globally Vulnerable): two large, dark brown eagles with a short
tail, circling and drifting south on 18 December. Almost certainly this species, but
identification remains contentious (and some hybridize with Lesser Spotted Eagle in
Europe).

Wahlberg’s Eagle Aquila wahlbergi

A few pairs present October-December, including one at base camp. Latter chased
other raptors on occasions (African Hawk Eagle, Brown Snake Eagle), especially Oc-
tober-early November, suggestive of breeding.

African Hawk Eagle Aquila spilogaster
Thinly but widely distributed, from base camp to coastal ziwa and G4.

Ayres’s Hawk Eagle Aquila ayresii
Seen three times over the thickets at Baharini (November-December).

Martial Eagle Polemaetus bellicosus
Singles (adult and immature) seen a few times over Ziwa Lamuu; also one west of
Luimshi. Not mapped on the coast as far north as the Galana River by Zimmerman et
al. (1996), but localities in our area were plotted by Lewis & Pomeroy (1989) and there
are numerous records from Somalia.

Long-crested Eagle Lophaetus occipitalis
Occasionally seen in two places: near headquarters and on the northern boundary
road. Also at Mpeketoni.

Crowned Eagle Stephanoaetus coronatus
Widespread, at least two pairs between base camp and the coast at Baharini. Imma-
ture also seen near the coast.

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 13

*Hartlaub’s Bustard Lissotis hartlaubii
Past records from Kipini and Lamu (Fischer in Jackson & Sclater 1938).

African Crake Crex egregia

Intra-African migrant, common October-November in any rank grass, often crossing
roads, from Luimshi to the coast. One adult with two tiny chicks on 16 November,
would have laid end October; first breeding record for the coast (Zimmerman et al.
2001). Fewer in December, last one on the 13th.

Corncrake Crex crex

Palaearctic migrant, with one flushed on 10 November. Backhurst et al. (1973) had no
coastal records and the only plot in Lewis & Pomeroy (1989) is well south of 3°S, but
there is a record from the coast of southern Somalia (Ash & Miskell 1998).

Black Crake Amaurornis flavirostra
Only recorded at the permanent wetland of Lake Kenyatta, where apparently very
uncommon.

Lesser Moorhen Gallinula angulata

Intra-African migrant, with sudden invasion of flooded grassland at base camp, 25-
26 December. Scores arrived at night, calling everywhere. This happened about a
week after the full flood. We did not have the time to check how widespread this
phenomenon was.

Common Buttonquail Turnix sylvaticus

Regularly flushed from grassland near G4 and towards the coast (Baharini) in dense
grass c. 30-40 cm tall (pure or with scattered shrubs/ palms); also on the road to Ras
Shaka. Not mapped on the coast as far north as the Galana River by Zimmerman et
al. (1996), but localities in our area were plotted by Lewis & Pomeroy (1989) and there
are numerous records from Somalia.

Water Thick-knee Burhinus vermiculatus
Rare: one by pan (K4) on 11 November; one on sand, coastal ziwa (K4) on 12 Decem-
ber.

Spotted Thick-knee Burhinus capensis
One pair regularly encountered on dry sand edge of coastal ziwa (K4), October-De-
cember.

Crab-plover Dromas ardeola

African or possibly Palaearctic visitor, with two on 10 November (north) and two on
5 December (Ras Shaka). Partial to beach with some low coral rocks.

Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus

Several pairs and immatures came in with the flood of 5 November in the coastal ziwa
and pans. Still present on 18 November, but had left by the end of the month when
the water was too deep.

Long-toed Plover Vanellus crassirostris
Single pairs in some of the wetter ziwas, at edge of Nile Cabbage and in flooded grass-

14 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

land: Luimshi, Ziwa Lamuu and Maji-Grass. A total of 225 were counted at the Tana
River delta, 5-6 February 2008 (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2008, 15: 270).

Spur-winged Plover Vanellus spinosus

Very widespread at pans, on sand and muddy edges, or short grass generally. Pushed
out of some ziwas by the floods of November or December. Concentrations of 20-30 at
Maji-Grass in November, fewer in December.

Black-headed Plover Vanellus tectus
The occasionall pair in dry sand and very short grass in drier section of coastal ziwa,
sheltering under trees (Dobera) in the hot hours.

Senegal Plover Vanellus lugubris
One (or a pair) heard flying near Maji-Grass 15 November. A pair edge of flooded
ziwa (K4) 25 December. Species subject to movements.

Pacific Golden Plover Pluvialis fulva
Palaearctic migrant: seven birds on mud, just inland of the dunes (K4), 10 November.

Three flocks totalling 182 birds were reported from the Tana River delta, 5-6 February
2008 (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2008, 15: 270).

Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola
Palaearctic migrant: a few on beach, October-December.

Common Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula
Palaearctic migrant: common, in small numbers, at pans and beaches (October-De-
cember).

Kittlitz’s Plover Charadrius pecuarius
Several pairs and immatures on dry mud edge of coastal pans and Maji-Grass. Up to
a dozen locally.

Three-banded Plover Charadrius tricollaris
Only one record, of one by a coastal pan, 11 November.

White-fronted Plover Charadrius marginatus
Uncommon and local: some pairs on beach (November-December), also one at coast-
al pan 11 November.

Lesser Sand Plover Charadrius mongolus
Palaearctic migrant: a few on beach and coastal pans, November-December.

Greater Sand Plover Charadrius leschenaultti
Palaearctic migrant: a few on beach, November-December.

[Caspian Plover Charadrius asiaticus

Palaearctic migrant. No fewer than 2347 were counted at the Tana River delta on 15
February 2010 (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2010, 17: 244).]

African Jacana Actophilornis africanus
Occasional visitor to the small pan at base camp in October, but a pair arrived on 8

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 15

November after increased flooding (5 November). At first chased by Spur-winged Plo-
ver, but came back and settled on 9 November. Built nest on Nile Cabbage, and mated
from 14th. Male brooded the clutch from 17th, until 12 December (26 days). During
this time, the clutch was threatened by numerous intruders, including a Marsh Mon-
goose Atilax paludinosus (who did not see it), Monitor Lizard Varanus niloticus (who
probably took one egg), the local male Hippo Hippopotamus amphibius (who usually
walked outside that particular area), Goliath Heron, herds of up to 500 Buffaloes.
However, at least three chicks hatched successfully, usually hiding in grass, and com-
ing in the open on Nile Cabbage only when their father visited them. Throughout that
time, the female (who does not incubate) often appeared near the nest in case of dan-
ger (Buffaloes, herons, etc.), and helped the male chase the Monitor Lizard. The male
also covered the chicks during rain (e.g. 25 December). By mid-December the male
built another nest in the middle of the pan, and mating was seen on 24-26 December.

The species invaded all pans of suitable size in Kipini after the flood of 5 Novem-
ber. Some are probably resident at permanent wetlands such as Lake Kenyatta and
(near-permanent) Luimshi pan.

*African Snipe Gallinago nigripennis
Seen at Witu by Britton (1980).

Great Snipe Gallinago media
Palaeartic migrant, with one flushed from rank grass (Baharini) on 4 December.

Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago
Palaearctic migrant: a few wintering in muddy patches with grass. Widespread but
especially common at Maji-Grass. First noted 15 November.

[Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa

Palaearctic migrant, reported at the Tana River delta, August 2010 (Bulletin of the Af-
rican Bird Club, 2011, 18: 99).]

Whimbrel Numenius phaeopus
Palaearctic migrant: few on beach, November-December.

Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata
Palaearctic migrant: singles on beach, November-December.

Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis

Palaearctic migrant: fairly common in shallow water of several coastal pans, from 11
November.

Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia

Palaearctic migrant. At several pans, especially common in flooded grassland of
coastal ziwa, from 5 November (day of first big flood).

Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus

Palaearctic migrant: more local, at pans, edge-of flooded grassland, from 22 October.
More in November, still noted mid-December.

16 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola
Palaearctic migrant: the most widespread wader, at any pan and shallow flooded
grassland, from 4 October-26 December (wintering).

Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinereus
Palaearctic migrant: several on the beach November-December (over 25 near Ras
Shaka 5 December).

Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos

Palaearctic migrant: especially common at Maji-Grass, edge of Nile Cabbage, with
over 20 (November-December). Otherwise a few on the beach (October-December),
edges of Lake Kenyatta.

Ruddy Turnstone Arenaria interpres
Palaearctic migrant: a few on the beach and low coral rock, November-December.

Sanderling Calidris alba
Palaearctic migrant: widespread on the beach, October-December.

Little Stint Calidris minuta
Palaearctic migrant: small numbers on muddy edge of coastal pans 13-17 December,
max. 15.

Temminck’s Stint Calidris temminckii
Palaearctic migrant: one wintering at Maji-Grass, seen nearly all visits from 4-25 De-
cember; also one in coastal pan, 16 December.

Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea
Palaearctic migrant: one with Little Stints at coastal pan, 17 December.

Broad-billed Sandpiper Limicola falcinellus
Palaearctic migrant: one on sandy beach, 10 November.

Ruff Philomachus pugnax

Palaearctic migrant: small numbers winter in short flooded grassland almost through-
out, from coast to Lake Kenyatta and inland (Maji-Grass to new camp etc.). From 9
November.

Bronze-winged Courser Rhinoptilus chalcopterus
Intra-African migrant: one on the main road, 15 December.

Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola

A pair with independent immature on dry mud edge of Maji-Grass, November-De-
cember. Probably a local breeder; Valle (2005) reported the first evidence of breeding
on the Kenya coast, at the Sabaki River mouth.

[Madagascar Pratincole Glareola ocularis
Globally Vulnerable. Some 3000 were at the Tana River delta in August 2010, and
2000 on 10 April 2011 (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2011, 18: 99, 234).]

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 17

Sooty Gull Larus hemprichii
Occasionally seen along shore from the dunes; dozens resting at Ras Shaka on 5 De-
cember.

Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus
Palaearctic migrant (form heuglini): six adults and one immature flying south at Seven
Sisters on 20 October (high tide).

Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica

Palaearctic migrant: common in October-early November, feeding on crabs in free
water of the larger pans (Lake Kenyatta, Luimshi, Ziwa Lamuu, Maji-Grass, coastal
ziwa). Numbers suddenly decreasing in November, with last seen on 16.

Lesser Crested Tern Sterna bengalensis
Possibly seen over sea in November (from dunes). Hundreds resting on beach near
Ras Shaka, 5 December. Some immatures still begging from adults.

[Sandwich Tern Sterna sandvicensis
Palaearctic migrant, one at the Tana River delta, 6 February 2008 (Bulletin of the African
Bird Club, 2008, 15: 270).]

Roseate Tern Sterna dougallit
One on beach seen at close range, near Ras Shaka, 5 December.

Common Tern Sterna hirundo
Palaearctic migrant: at least seven on the beach, 5 December.

Saunders’s Tern Sternula saundersi
Over 100 resting on beach, Ras Shaka, 5 December.

Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida
At least two, with many White-winged Terns, over Luimshi pan, 2 November.

White-winged Black Tern Chlidonias leucopterus

Palaearctic migrant: over 100, in groups of 20-30, hawking insects over flooded grass-
land and pans at Luimshi, 1-2 November.

*Lesser Noddy Anous tenuirostris
At least 50 were seen off Kipini, 27 October (Britton 1980).

Red-eyed Dove Streptopelia semitorquata
Common and throughout, in savanna with thickets and forest patches, canopy of
coastal thicket.

Ring-necked Dove Streptopelia capicola
Common, throughout savanna.

Emerald-spotted Wood Dove Turtur chalcospilos

Common and throughout, including the interior of extensive coastal thickets. Nest-
building observed 25 November.

18 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Tambourine Dove Turtur tympanistria
Common, throughout any thicket and forest type.

Namaqua Dove Oena capensis
A wanderer, near northern boundary road, 16 November.

African Green Pigeon Treron calvus
Widespread but uncommon: usually in pairs, rarely more than three together.

African Orange-bellied Parrot Poicephalus rufiventris

Only one record: three flew across Lake Kenyatta from Mpeketoni, 23 October. The
scarcity of parrots could be explained by the lack of fruit of baobabs in October-De-
cember, although Terminalia spinosa came into seed in November.

Fischer’s Turaco Tauraco fischeri

This Globally Near-Threatened species is widespread, with well-spaced territories in
large clumps of forest (only one heard from base camp), but numerous in Witu Exten-
sion. Apparently absent from coastal thickets.

White-bellied Go-away-bird Corythaixoides leucogaster
Vagrant: one pair wandering through savanna (baobabs, palms) on 28 October.

*Jacobin Cuckoo Clamator jacobinus

There are specimens from Kipini (pica, 5 August: Fischer & Reichenow 1879 — this is
the race breeding in East Africa), Kau and Kosi (pica, December, January: Percival
collection) and Lamu (serratus, 2 October: Fischer & Reichenow 1878 —this is a non-
breeding migrant from southern Africa).

Levaillant’s Cuckoo Oxylophus levaillantii

Black form only, seen frequently (up to three in a day) in October, when seemed to
be moving around. In November-December more often located by song, from 8 No-
vember, increasing in volume and frequency (base camp) until late November. Called
more sporadically in December, sometimes at dusk or at night. Widespread, from the
northern boundary to headquarters, in small thickets.

Thick-billed Cuckoo Pachycoccyx audeberti
The most numerous cuckoo, very vocal from October to mid-November. Fewer songs
later (28 November) but pair displaying 19 December and again very noisy on the
26th. From Witu Extension to coastal thickets.

Common Cuckoo Cuculus canorus
Palaearctic migrant: a female hepatic phase, 16 October.

*African Cuckoo Cuculus gularis
A specimen was collected at Witu, 21 May (Jackson 1898).

Lesser Cuckoo Cuculus poliocephalus
Palaearctic migrant: one on 24 November, of the grey phase, well seen (small and
slender).

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 19

Klaas’s Cuckoo Chrysococcyx klaas
Rare: two encountered on the move, one at Luimshi (singing 1 November, not the
next two days), and one singing at base camp 8 November.

Diederik Cuckoo Chrysococcyx caprius

First song heard at headquarters on 12 December, and one singing at G4 on 26 De-
cember. Probably related to greater breeding activity of Golden Palm Weavers with
increasing rains.

Yellowbill Ceuthmochares aereus

Very widespread, from coastal thickets (fairly common) to forest patches at Luimshi,
and in thicket/ forest clumps throughout. Vocal October-December, a frequent mem-
ber of bird parties, no doubt resident.

_ Black Coucal Centropus grillii

Curiously very local, as found only at Luimshi pan in rank, moist grass (perhaps
because the habitat there is almost permanent?). Breeds there, seen 30 October-2 No-
vember carrying food to nest or hidden young (eggs would have been laid Septem-
ber).

White-browed Coucal Centropus superciliosus
Common and throughout: savanna, small thickets, edge of swamps and of coastal
thickets. Nest-building mid-December.

*Barn Owl Tyto alba

A specimen was collected at Witu by Jackson (1898, under the name Strix flammea).
Zimmerman et al. (1996) did not map the species north of the Malindi area.

Spotted Eagle Owl Bubo africanus
Only one record: one flushed by road on 11 November on the northern boundary
(short grass ziwa). Habitat in the Conservancy is largely unsuitable for this species.

Verreaux’s Eagle Owl Bubo lacteus
Several records, including edge of thickets at Ziwa Lamuu, dry forest at base camp
(singing on the opposite side, wandering occasionally into our camp) and new camp.

[Pel’s Fishing Owl Scotopelia peli
Known from the Tana River delta (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2009, 16: 232; 2011,
18: 99), see also Campbell (1977).]

African Wood Owl Strix woodfordii
Common and throughout, any thicket and forest.

African Barred Owlet Glaucidium capense
One calling in forest clumps near base camp on 23 November did not stay.

*Donaldson Smith’s Nightjar Caprimulgus donaldsoni
Two were collected at Kipini 14-15 March (Stager 1973). Also reported from Hewani
(Andrews et al. 1975). There is no suitable habitat within the Conservancy.

20 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

[Fiery-necked Nightjar Caprimulgus pectoralis

Reported from the Hewani area (Andrews et al. 1975), without details, while Njoroge
et al. (2008) listed “Donaldson-Smith’s Nightjar Caprimulgus pectoralis” (sic) from
Ishaqbini area. In the extreme north known from Boni (Britton 1980), where two col-
lected in February (Stager 1973) and heard in August (Britton & Britton 1973), but it
remains unrecorded from Somalia (Ash & Miskell 1998). ]

*Plain Nightjar Caprimulgus inornatus
Several were collected in the Kipini-Witu area, 13-14 March (Stager 1973).

Slender-tailed Nightjar Caprimulgus clarus

Common in short grassland with sandy patches in sections of the coastal ziwa and
at Ziwa Lamuu, many singing there in December. Also marginally present in short
grass at headquarters, where seen September (Gus Ankerheilm pers. comm.), and
December, singing on 4 December.

[Gabon Nightjar Caprimulgus fossii

Specimens have been claimed from Witu (1 October, Fischer & Reichenow 1878) and
Lamu (Jackson & Sclater 1938), and listed without comment from Ishaqbini (Njoroge
et al. 2008). However, they may well have been misidentified, and Zimmerman et al.
(1996) map the species north to Malindi only. Interestingly, there is a recent claim of
one photographed on its nest on Manda Island (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2012,
19: 101).]

*Bohm’s Spinetail Neafrapus boehmi

Seen at Witu, August 1970 (Britton & Britton 1970), although Britton (1980) gave coast-
al records north only to Sokoke, where it is resident (Lewis & Pomeroy 1989). Also
found at Witu 26 April 2010 (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2010, 17: 244). Doubt has
been thrown by Brown & Britton (1980: 68) on a breeding record in an underground
chamber in Sokoke in late January, though why they doubt it is not explained —the
nest site is quite normal (Brooke 1966), although nesting in a baobab was also prob-
able there in December (Short & Horne 1985). The one record from Somalia is of an
August specimen in the extreme south (Ash & Miskell 1998). There is probably some
dispersal in the non-breeding season, as in Zambia (Dowsett et al. 2008).

Mottled Spinetail Telacanthura ussheri

Uncommon: one seen regularly around a patch of forest near base camp. One in a
group of swifts and swallows over coastal thickets (Sandamuke) 25 December. The
genus is spelled correctly here, not Telecanthura as in EANHS (2009).

African Palm Swift Cypsiurus parvus
Common, throughout, feeding pulli at nest (Hyphaene) 25 December (eggs probably
laid November).

Common Swift Apus apus
Palaearctic migrant: some flying south in November, on few a dates.

Forbes-Watson’s Swift Apus berliozi
This highly local species breeds in caves off the coast of Somalia and migrates to the

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 21

Kenya coast from October-February (Zimmerman et al. 1996, 2001). First few seen
on 1 November (Luimshi), and thereafter at least once a week, usually a few drifting
south, or feeding in rain clouds. Probably wintering in 2006 as still seen regularly in
December, including on 25 December with other swifts and swallows. Calls reminis-
cent of African Black Swift A. barbatus. Flies more slowly than either A. barbatus or A.
apus, more leisurely, showing big white chin.

Little Swift Apus affinis
In Mpeketoni town and occasionally wandering into the Conservancy, e.g. near Lake
Kenyatta (24 October). Two at headquarters on 24 October.

Speckled Mousebird Colius striatus
Widespread and common, thicket-clump and wooded savanna. One November
clutch.

Narina Trogon Apaloderma narina
Common in coastal thickets as well as in tall forest (Witu Extension, Luimshi, old
dune forest at Sandamuke). Much singing in October until early December.

Rufous-crowned Roller Coracias naevius
A few, singles or pairs, in open savanna with few trees (doums etc.) at Ziwa Lamuu
and drier sections of coastal ziwa. October-December, possibly resident.

Lilac-breasted Roller Coracias caudatus

Common and widespread in savanna; strongly territorial. In November many territo-
ries with just the male posted while the female was brooding in a tree hole (usually in
Hyphaene). Some completed breeding by October (family with fully-grown juveniles).
One feeding a fledgling 16 December (clutch laid September or October). Probably at
least one September clutch, one October and two November.

*Eurasian Roller Coracias garrulus

Palaearctic migrant, collected in the Kipini area 13 March (Stager 1973). There are also
records from Garsen (Britton 1980) and Massabubu (1 November: Fischer & Reiche-
now 1879).

Broad-bilied Roller Eurystomus glaucurus

Several seen October, especially hunting at dusk, but silent. Noisy and territorial from
1 November, fighting neighbours over holes. Some females sitting in early Novem-
ber. Still very noisy by end of December. At least three laying in November.

Grey-headed Kingfisher Halcyon leucocephala

Very common, noisy, throughout savanna country. Occupied nest hole (incubating)
on 23 October.

Striped Kingfisher Halcyon chelicuti
The most numerous kingfisher, throughout savanna.

Mangrove Kingfisher Halcyon senegaloides —
Very common (and noisy) in coastal thickets in October, singing in duets at dawn

22 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

and dusk. Heard two singing to each other in forest clumps opposite base camp (Oc-
tober, early November); seen at new camp. Heard at forest edges in Witu Extension
and Luimshi. Not singing in second half of November nor December and then easily
overlooked (none seen December).

*African Pygmy Kingfisher Ceyx pictus

The migratory subspecies natalensis from southern Africa was reported at Witu (Brit-
ton 1980). It occurs as a non-breeding visitor on the Kenyan coast, north to Malindi,
April to August (Britton & Britton 1974). The Percival collection includes four speci-
mens from the Tana River, from Momba Sassa north to Kidore, dated between 11
January and 22 February, which suggests they may breed this far north.

Malachite Kingfisher Alcedo cristata
Widespread at small pools, flooded pans in several ziwas, even at road-side (thus one
roosting in Indigofera edge of the main road). Pair displaying at K4 ziwa 25 November.

Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis
Uncommon wanderer: one at base camp on 12 October; one shores of Lake Kenyatta
12 November.

Little Bee-eater Merops pusillus
In pairs and family groups, dense grassland in open palm savanna or edges of ziwas.
Widespread but somewhat local.

White-throated Bee-eater Merops albicollis
Intra-African migrant: common wintering species, throughout. Hunts low down,
from shrubs, and roosts in baobabs or other large trees in groups of 20-25.

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater Merops persicus

Palaearctic migrant, on southward passage. First noted on 4 November (several),
becoming very common mid-to late November (dozens daily, feeding over ziwas).
Last (several) on 6 December, but there are specimens from Momba Sassa and Massa
dated 9 January and 30 June (N. Rice in litt.), while more than 100 were near Witu on
26 April 2010 (Bulletin of the African Bird Club, 2010, 17: 244).

Eurasian Bee-eater Merops apiaster
Palaearctic migrant, apparently marginal: groups flying south on 9-21 October (nu-
merous on 21); also on 18 November (over beach).

Northern Carmine Bee-eater Merops nubicus

Common “wintering” species, scattered around ziwas, taking position on the back of
mammals (Warthogs Phacochoerus africanus are special favourites, and also Zebras,
Buffalo, Topis Damaliscus korrigum) to feed on disturbed insects. Defend their “mam-
mal territory” against congeners. Also hunt from shrubs. Normally breeds in sand
cliffs on the Tana when water levels are low.

Green Wood-hoopoe Phoeniculus purpureus
Confined to tall, closed-canopy forest in Witu Extension.

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 23

Violet Wood-hoopoe Phoeniculus damarensis

Very common and widespread, savanna and forest clumps, also in coastal thickets.
Spends most of its time feeding in bark crevices and among leaf bases of Hyphaene
compressa, also occasionally in other trees (e.g. Trichilia emetica).

Common Scimitarbill Rhinopomastus cyanomelas
Common and widespread, forest clumps, coastal thickets, groves of Acacia zanzibarica.

Crowned Hornbill Tockus alboterminatus
In pairs or family groups, widespread in coastal thickets, forest clumps, or more con-
tinuous forest (Luimshi, Witu Extension).

Trumpeter Hornbill Bycanistes bucinator
In small numbers but very widespread, thicket-clump savanna and forest. Seen feed-
ing on fruits of Diospyros abyssinica (Witu Extension), Manilkara sansibarensis, Flacour-
tia indica, Ekebergia capensis (October), and figs. Male feeding young or female at nest
31 October in a big Parkia (Witu Extension).

*Southern Ground Hornbill Bucorvus leadbeateri
This Globally Vulnerable species was reported from Witu (Britton 1980), but now
likely extinct.

[Green Barbet Stactolaema olivacea

Reported in coastal Kenya north to the Tana River (Britton 1980, Mackworth-Praed
& Grant 1957). Although these authors gave no source, this is clearly based on van
Someren (1932: 279): “I have found the species to be very plentiful in certain localities,
from the type locality Rabai to the Tana River at its mouth and south to the Usambara
Mts”. No details of the Tana report appear to have been published. Never recorded in
the Tana Primate Reserve, and in our opinion there is no suitable forest for this spe-
cies in the Witu-Kipini area, as it is largely dependent on an abundance of rain forest
fig trees. It is unlikely to occur north of Marafa (Kilifi) Ganda forest (north of Vanga).]

Green Tinkerbird Pogoniulus simplex

More local and spaced-out than Yellow-rumped, in broken-up tall forest. One singing
in Witu Extension (against 5-6 Yellow-rumped in the patch visited), one near Kanga-
wati, one at Luimshi, and one ina patch of forest opposite base camp. Two seen cross-
ing the road near base camp once (RJD). The song is somewhat more metallic than
that of Yellow-rumped and consists of more notes (15-20), delivered in a faster trill.
Hitherto not known north of Sokcke Forest (Britton 1980) and absent from Somalia
(Ash & Miskell 1998).

Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird Pogoniulus bilineatus

Common in forest in Witu Extension, elsewhere confined to some patches of tall for-
est (such as old dune forest at Sandamuke). Some wanderers: one singing in coastal
thicket 30 November where never heard before nor after, one stopping in base camp
to sing a few phrases in a Trichilia on 3 December. Usual song of this coastal form is
quite unlike that of other populations of the species. Its song is much closer to that of
Green Tinkerbird, consisting of trills of 8-12 notes (with an introductory note). Comes
readily to tape playback of its own song, but also to that of Green Tinkerbird from

24 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Malawi! Some birds seen closely had a greenish wash below, and we suspect this
coastal population may have hybridized with Green Tinkerbirds, which would also
explain their unusual song. The one specimen from the region (collected by Fenwick
at Momba Sassa, February 1927) is attributed to the race fischeri, and has not been re-
ported previously. These are extensions of the known distribution northwards from
Arabuko-Sokoke (Zimmerman et al. 1996). In addition, D.A. Turner (pers. comm.)
heard a trill of one or other tinkerbird at Kiunga on 23 September 1990 in thick coastal
thicket.

Red-fronted Tinkerbird Pogoniulus pusillus
Common throughout, in savanna, coastal thickets and forest.

Black-collared Barbet Lybius torquatus
Widespread in thicket clumps and patches of broken forest; not in extensive coastal
thickets. Noisy throughout October-December.

Brown-breasted Barbet Lybius melanopterus

Widespread in thicket clumps, patches of broken forest, edge of forest at Luimshi and
Witu Extension. Very noisy in October-early November, more quiet later (common
call is a “kraa-kraa-kraa-kraa”). Eats a variety of small fruit.

Pallid Honeyguide Indicator meliphilus

Seen on three occasions, twice an individual within 1-2 km of base camp (flying into
tall trees). On 30 November a song-post was located in the crown of a large baobab
in coastal thicket (road to Seven Sisters after forking right). The song is a series of
12-15 notes delivered at the rate of 14/11 s, or 15/11 or 12 s, “tjuwi-it, ttuwi-it, t....”.
It sounds very similar to that of its close relative, the Guineo-Congolian Willcock’s
Honeyguide I. willcockst. It was singing actively at 08:30-09:00, occasionally changing
its position in the tree, and flycatching between songs. At 09:00, the bird was visited
by a congener, presumably a female (sitting in a hunched position): he stopped sing-
ing, flitted around her, and followed her when she left the tree. Hitherto not known
north of Sokoke Forest (Britton 1980) and absent from Somalia (Ash & Miskeli 1998).

Lesser Honeyguide Indicator minor
One or two seen October (one heard Mpeketoni November). Not seen later, when
barbets (its normal hosts) rather inactive.

Scaly-throated Honeyguide Indicator variegatus
Two different song-posts at either side of base camp (October-December), also locally
in Sandamuke (old dune forest).

Greater Honeyguide Indicator indicator

Widespread, savanna and forest clumps. A few singing October-early November,
only one brief song in December, but some “guiding” calls (base camp, Kenyatta
camp).

Nubian Woodpecker Campethera nubica

Widespread in open palm savanna, thicket-clump savanna (Xeromphis, Dalbergia, Di-
chrostachys), edges of dry thicket, and groves of Acacia zanzibarica. Bigger territories
than other woodpeckers.

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya Zo

Mombasa Woodpecker Campethera mombassica

Common in any form of thicket and forest: from Witu Extension to coastal thickets
(and the only woodpecker in the latter). Feeds low down, usually hidden, as well as
higher up (canopy trees, tall palms). Distinctive rolled calls “weerr, weerr, weerr,
weerr, wur”, quite unlike the single nasal note of its closest relative, the Golden-tailed
Woodpecker C. abingoni. The transcription in Zimmerman et al. (1996) “keeoank-
yaaaank-yaaaank...” appears rather inappropriate.

Green-backed Woodpecker Campethera cailliautti
Common in forest clumps, broken forest and closed tall-canopy forest: from Witu Ex-
tension, Luimshi to base camp. Not in extensive coastal thickets. Feeds overall higher
than Mombasa Woodpecker, often on doum palms.

Cardinal Woodpecker Dendropicos fuscescens
Somewhat patchily distributed, in thicket-clump savanna, frequently feeding on
doum palms. Also in Acacia zanzibarica (GA).

Black-and-white Flycatcher Bias musicus

Vagrant? Only one sighting, of a male associated with a large bird party at base camp,
13 October (RJD). Was completely silent. Never seen or heard anywhere else, al-
though suitable habitat certainly exists: forest clumps with emergent Hyphaene appear
very similar in structure to other dry forests occupied by the species (e.g. Sterculia for-
est in Lengwe N.P., Malawi: Dowsett-Lemaire & Dowsett 2006). There are historical
records from the Kenya coast from a few localities north to Takaungu (Zimmerman
et al. 1996). Already by the 1980s it was said to have been unrecorded for more than
50 years (Britton & Zimmerman 1979). Yet there have been many reports in recent
years from coastal forests further south, in Tanzania (e.g. Jensen et al. 2005). The Meru
population in central Kenya too has also been shown to be extant (Pearson & Turner
1998). Whether any more than just the odd bird remains in coastal Kenya remains to
be elucidated, with more extensive surveys of the Kipini Conservancy needed.

{Forest Batis Batis mixta
Reported “... to the lower Tana River” (van Someren 1932), probably a misidentifica-
tion.]

[Pale Batis Batis soror

Reported from the lower Tana River and Lamu (Britton 1980), the former apparently
based on the statement by van Someren (1932: 297) “... to the Tana River.” Considered
unconfirmed by Zimmerman et al. (1996).]

Black-headed Batis Batis minor

Widespread in the canopy and emergents of coastal thickets, also in Acacia zanzibarica
woodland and small thickets near Ziwa Lamuu. Voice distinctive, a rising “tuee”,
then “tuuwee” (modulated), followed by a succession of “tuee tuee tuee tuee” slow
and deliberate, 2 notes/s. Thus rather different from the voice of the form erlangeri (cf.
Chappuis 2000).

*Black-throated Wattle-eye Platysteira peltata

Reported from Witu (Zimmerman et al. 1996), as well as Lamu on the coast (Jackson &
Sclater 1938) and the Tana River (e.g. Hewani: Andrews et al. 1975).

26 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Retz’s Helmetshrike Prionops retzti

Very common in coastal thickets (canopy, emergents), all forest types and thicket-
clump savanna with tall palms, baobabs etc. Spends much time feeding among
leaves, inflorescence and bark of tall Hyphaene compressa. Several groups had imma-
tures, some still begging.

[Chestnut-fronted Helmetshrike Prionops scopifrons

Apart from old records from Lamu and Malindi (van Someren 1932, Jackson & Sclater
1938), unreported on the coast between Boni, on the Somali/ Kenya border (Ash &
Miskell 1998, Stager 1973) and Sokoke (Britton & Zimmerman 1979). Listed from the
Lower Tana forests (Important Bird Area #23: Bennun & Njoroge 1999), and mapped
for that area (Lewis & Pomeroy 1989), but with no details. Range on coast shown as
continuous in Zimmerman et al. (1996), but the Kipini gap seems to be real.]

Grey-headed Bushshrike Malaconotus blanchoti

Large, scattered territories occupied in tall palm country with small thickets below
(e.g. western border of Lake Kenyatta), ecotone of coastal thicket and grassland, and
forest clumps in grassland (e.g. Luimshi).

Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike Chlorophoneus sulfureopectus
Locally in thicket-clump savanna with some thorn trees (e.g. Dichrostachys, Xeromphis),
at edges of coastal thickets and in Acacia zanzibarica stands with thickets.

[Gorgeous Bushshrike Chlorophoneus viridis

There are old specimen records from Lamu (collected by Clarke) and the “Lower
Tana” (van Someren) in Jackson & Sclater (1938). The former was mentioned by
Clarke (1913) when he named the race nigricauda, but it is not clear if there was in-
deed a specimen from that locus (and Clarke made it clear that many specimens were
obtained along the coast by a native collector, in his absence, thus mislabeliing re-
mains a possibility). There is no specimen from Boni (Stager 1973). We are unaware
of any records in the past 25 years or more north of Sokoke (Britton & Zimmerman
1979). It is not clear what the justification is for its inclusion on the Tana River Delta
list (Important Bird Area #22, in Bennun & Njoroge 1999), but possibly there has been
confusion with the voice of Slate-coloured Boubou.|

Brown-crowned Tchagra Tchagra australis

One of the few species found in the short, impenetrable thickets on live dunes. Also at
thicket edges (ecotone between coastal thicket and palm savanna) in coastal area. Not
found beyond 2-3 km of the coast.

*Three-streaked Tchagra Tchagra jamesi
There are specimens from Witu (Jackson 1898), Lamu and Manda (van Someren 1922).
There is no suitable habitat within the Conservancy.

Black-crowned Tchagra Tchagra senegalus
Very common throughout savanna habitats, thicket clumps, Acacia woodland.

Black-backed Puffback Dryoscopus cubla
Very common, throughout, all forest and thicket types and palm savanna. A fledgling
October would be from an egg laid August.

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 27

Slate-coloured Boubou Laniarius funebris

In drier types of thicket, including on live dunes where common. Also in thickets on
coral, such as on the northern boundary road and very locally at the edge of thicket
near the coastal ziwa. Has a variety of song motifs, often disyllabic “kotiok, kotiok”, or
“kou-ik, kou-ik” etc. The latter is fairly similar to the dialect of Gorgeous Bushshrike
at Arabuko-Sokoke (“ouik, kou-ik kou-ik”), so much so that tape playback experi-
ments with our Sokoke tape were carried out in several sections of dune thicket: only
Slate-coloured Boubous were confirmed to occur there, one in particular coming to
the tape of Gorgeous Bush-shrike and reacting very strongly, in full view on a bush.

Tropical Boubou Laniarius aethiopicus

Widespread, in the interior of coastal thickets and large clumps elsewhere. Very dif-

ficult to see, but the few birds seen were black-and-white, although a black boubou

is known from the coastal region, and the type of nigerrimus was collected at Kipini

by Fischer in 1878 (Reichenow 1879). It has been suggested that the black birds rep-

resent a separate species, but their taxonomic status requires further investigation, as
xplained by Turner et al. (2011).

Black Cuckooshrike Campephaga flava

Intra-African migrant, widespread in October (forest patches, coastal thickets, Witu
Extension); decreasing in November with last ones (one female, a male in song) on
15th.

[Northern White-crowned Shrike Eurocephalus rueppelli

Sclater (1930: 601) reported it south along the coast to about Witu, but evidence for
Witu is unknown. It appears to be known only inland of this area, e.g. Hewani (An-
drews et al. 1975).]

Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio

Palaearctic migrant, with heavy passage in November. First male seen on 29 October;
mostly males passing in the first two weeks of November, with females and imma-
tures becoming more common in second half of the month. Evidently a few winter in
wooded savanna, including some adult and immature males seen at fixed posts until
our departure in late December.

Isabelline Shrike Lanius isabellinus

Palaearctic migrant, much less common than congener: a few identified last week of
November, 1-2 probably wintering as one male seen in Dobera trees in sandy coastal
ziwa on 26 December.

Long-tailed Fiscal Lanius cabanisi

Very local resident: a pair and two immatures in very open grassland (with few Hy-
phaene compressa) on northern boundary; one pair in palm savanna on the edge of
Luimshi pan.

African Golden Oriole Oriolus auratus
Status unclear, some singing and passing through forest and thicket clumps in Octo-
ber. One sang briefly in a baobab on 14 December.

28 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Black-headed Oriole Oriolus larvatus
Fairly widespread in thicket-clump savanna and in forest (including Witu Extension,
Luimshi). Often on the move in October-December, not strongly territorial.

Square-tailed Drongo Dicrurus ludwigii

Very common in mid-storey of tall-canopy forest in Witu Extension; also present
(more locally) at Luimshi in sections of closed-canopy forest. Absent from tall forest
on old dunes (Sandamuke). The coastal population in Kenya is very isolated, being
confined to the Tana drainage (Zimmerman et al. 2001). The whole-scale destruction
of Witu Extension is therefore very worrying.

Common Drongo Dicrurus adsimilis

Very common throughout palm savanna, thicket clumps, Acacia zanzibarica wood-
land, coastal thickets (emergents especially) and wooded grassland. In open savanna
flycatches from low bushes or drops to the ground. At Luimshi and Witu present in
broken canopy and emerging palms, next to (above) Square-tailed Drongo.

Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher Trochocercus cyanomelas

Very common in low dense understorey of forest at Witu Extension. Smaller numbers
in tongues of forest at Luimshi. Curiously absent from coastal thickets and even taller
forest on old dunes (Sandamuke). Another species seriously threatened by forest de-
struction near Witu.

Little Yellow Flycatcher Erythrocercus holochlorus

Common in forest, whether continuous (Witu Extension) or broken into large clumps
(Luimshi, old dunes, one patch near base camp), as well as in coastal thickets. Very
vocal in October-November, much less so in December.

African Paradise Flycatcher Terpsiphone viridis

Intra-African migrant, common in October, defending territories in coastal thickets
and forest clumps near base camp. Disappeared before the end of the month (last
recorded 21 October).

Pied Crow Corvus albus
Occasional visitor to headquarters, cattle post, and a pair once flying near the beach.

Sand Martin Riparia riparia
Palaearctic migrant: a few wintering (savanna, ziwas), with Barn Swallows. First not-
ed on 23 October.

Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
Palaearctic migrant, wintering commonly throughout the area, often resting on
shrubs edge of ziwas.

*Ethiopian Swallow Hirundo aethiopica
Collected at Kipini in March (Stager 1973) and reported at Lamu (Britton 1980).

Common House Martin Delichon urbicum
Palaearctic migrant: one on 13 December. A possible one in November. Often flies too
high to be noticed.

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 29

Lesser Striped Swallow Cecropis abyssinica
Occasionally a dozen around the buildings at headquarters.

Mosque Swallow Cecropis senegalensis
In isolated pairs, rather uncommon.

[Singing Bush Lark Mirafra cantillans
Claimed “... to the mouth of the Tana River” (van Someren 1932: 336), but this is far
from the known range of the species (Zimmerman ef al. 1996).]

[Red-winged Lark Mirafra hypermetra

Reported from the lower Tana (Britton 1980). No source is given but it is clearly based
on van Someren (1932: 335): “J have.... birds from.... the coast at Kipini and Mongeya.”
That this species should occur on the coast is surprising, and this is missing from the
map in Zimmerman et al. 1996. ]

Flappet Lark Mirafra rufocinnamomea

Numerous in rank grassland, edge of ziwas and open palm savanna. Singing and
alarm-calling throughout; frequently flushed by car on roads. Several birds feeding
young November-December; at least four clutches would have been laid October and
November.

Chestnut-backed Sparrow Lark Eremopterix leucotis

A rare visitor: an immature male with Malindi Pipits in short grass and sand in the
drier section of coastal ziwa, 17 December.

[Tana River Cisticola Cisticola restrictus

This is a taxon of uncertain validity, with a very limited distribution, from north to
south: Sangole, Tara, Mnazini, Garsen, Karawa (Britton 1980, Traylor 1967a). It is
probably a hybrid between Rattling Cisticola C. chiniana and Ashy Cisticola C. cine-
reolus. Both of these species occur in dry vegetation, including thornbush, inland, and
there is no suitable habitat for them in Kipini Conservancy. For instance, they both
occur on the southern bank of the Tana, in Retief’s camp, where found by D.A. Turner
(pers. comm.) in December 1992). |

Coastai Cisticola Cisticola haematocephalus

Very common throughout ziwas and any open wooded grassland (grass with Hibis-
cus, Indigofera and Cassia forbs), with or without standing water. Also in sedges in
flooded sections, including Lake Kenyatta. Single clutches laid September, October,
November and December (all based on adults feeding at nest). Although treated as a
distinct species in EANHS (2009), our field and museum experience convinces us it is
best treated as a race of Winding Cisticola Cisticola galactotes.

Siffling Cisticola Cisticola brachypterus
Very common throughout, in wooded grassland (palm savanna).

Zitting Cisticola Cisticola juncidis

Locally common in very large and relatively dry ziwas near the northern boundary,
including part of coastal ziwa (Baharini) and open palm savanna with medium-long
grass and Agathisanthemum herbs.

30 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

[Desert Cisticola Cisticola aridulus

Recorded (under the name C. lavandulae, sic) from the Lower Tana River, without
details (van Someren 1922), and not mapped from anywhere near this area by Zim-
merman et al. (1996). ]

Tawny-flanked Prinia Prinia subflava

Very common in any grassland of ziwa and open palm savanna, or thicket edges.
Avoids the wetter sections of ziwas, present in shallow flooded sections (with Hibis-
cus). One clutch each laid September and October. Some pairs had bred earlier and
remained inactive (independent juveniles still with parents).

[Yellow-breasted Apalis Apalis flavida

Apparently absent from the forests of the Tana Primate Reserve sensu stricto, be-
ing noted only in drier acacia/commiphora or Dobera bush (Andrews et al. 1975). The
ecological preferences of this thicket species vary geographically, but if confined to
thornbush in the Tana, then the reason for its absence from Kipini is rather obvious.]

[White-winged Apalis Apalis chariessa

This Globally Vulnerable species was known on the Lower Tana at Mitole (the type
was collected in 1878: Fischer & Reichenow 1879) and 23 miles north of Garsen, thus
perhaps in the Primate Reserve (where collected in 1961: Traylor 1967b). There are
no other reports from the Tana River. The recurrence and severity of droughts in the
region probably mean that the future of this species was hanging by a thread. Its sur-
vival on the Tana was probably in jeopardy even if the existing forests had been well
preserved. From what we know of its ecology in Malawi, where another race is or was
locally common (Dowsett-Lemaire & Dowsett 2006), the species is at home in rain for-
est dominated by Mimosaceae, spending much of its time feeding in the feathery foli-
age of canopy trees (Albizia, Newtonia). Some Mimosaceae with suitable architecture
were present in the Tana riparian forests but are missing completely from the type
of semi-evergreen forests found near Witu. We do not think therefore that there was
much chance of finding this species in the Witu Extension sensu lato.]

Black-headed Apalis Apalis melanocephala

Very common in closed-canopy forest in Witu Extension, much more scattered in
forest strips at Luimshi. Absent from apparently suitable tall forest on old dunes (San-
damuke). Should be largely exterminated from the Conservancy with the complete
destruction of Witu Extension.

Grey-backed Camaroptera Camaroptera brachyura

Widespread in small and large thickets. Very common in the understorey of coastal
thickets and tall forest (Witu etc.). A big fledgling in October would have been from
an August clutch.

Common Bulbul Pycnonotus barbatus
Widespread in savanna habitats, edge of thickets and canopy of forest patches. A very
young fledgling 13 December was from a clutch laid November.

Zanzibar Greenbul Andropadus importunus
Very common (and noisy) in thicket clumps, palm savanna with shrubs, coastal thick-
ets (including on live dunes) and forest edges.

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 3]

Yellow-bellied Greenbul Chlorocichla flaviventris

Common in tall forest, whether continuous (Witu Extension) or in patches. Also in
coastal thickets, especially around Spirostachys pools, where trees taller. Very few call-
ing in October (none in coastal thickets), but singing actively November-December.

Terrestrial Brownbul Phyllastrephus terrestris
Very local, found in smali numbers in coastal thickets (road to Seven Sisters) in Oc-
tober.

Northern Brownbul Phyllastrephus strepitans

Very common in thicket-clump savanna, moving from clump to clump in small
groups. Common in coastal thickets 5-6 m tall and in shorter thickets (2-3 m) on
dunes. Also at forest edges but does not enter tall forest.

Fischer’s Greenbul Phyllastrephus fischeri

Confined to understorey of closed, tall-canopy forest. Very common in Witu Exten-
sion, smaller numbers at Luimshi. Very local in old dune forest (Sandamuke): found
only under the canopy of Combretum schumannii in a tongue of forest c. 1 km long.

[Tiny Greenbul Phyllastrephus debilis

There is supposedly a specimen from the Tana River mouth (van Someren 1932, Jack-
son & Sclater 1938), and Jensen et al. (2005) repeat that it is “widespread in coastal
Kenya from Tana River south”. it has not been found in the Tana Primate Reserve

and is unknown in Somalia, the most northerly records otherwise being Ganda for-
est, Kilifi district jackson & Sclater 1938) and Sokoke (Britton & Zimmerman (1979). |

Eastern Nicator Nicator gularis
Widespread and common in coastal thickets and large clumps of forest, as well as in
Witu Extension.

[Little Rush Warbler Bradypterus baboecala

There is a specimen from the Delta area at Tschara (Fischer & Reichenow 1879), and
one was collected on the Tana upstream near Hewani (Andrews et al. 1975). The ab-
sence of this marsh-loving warbler from the edge of Lake Kenyatta is not easily ex-
plained. The tall flooded grassland of the coastal ziwa also looks suitable, but the
seasonal character of much of the marshland vegetation may on the whole exclude
this warbler. |

[Moustached Grass Warbler Melocichla mentalis
Collected at Oda (N. Rice in litt.)]

Lesser Swamp Warbler Acrocephalus gracilirostris

A few pairs in bulrushes and sedges edge of Lake Kenyatta (November). Invaded
coastal ziwa (K4) as flood increased and vegetation developed: first heard on 1 De-
cember, becoming common in mid-December, in sedges but also taller stands of
aquatic grasses. Much singing, alarm-calling, chasing of neighbours gave the impres-
sion breeding had started.

32 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Eurasian Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus
Palaearctic migrant: one heard (subsong) in tall sedges, edge of Lake Kenyatta, 12
November.

[Olive-tree Warbler Hippolais olivetorum

Palaearctic migrant. There are specimens from Oda and Ngao, 2 and 3 January (N.
Rice in litt.); the former is catalogued as from Oda Boda, but the date shows it must
have been from Oda.]

Northern Crombec Sylvietta brachyura
Common in stands of Acacia zanzibarica near Ziwa Lamuu, with smaller numbers in
wooded palm savanna elsewhere, often in Xeromphis-Dalbergia-Dichrostachys.

Rufous Chatterer Turdoides rubiginosa

Rare, only two sightings: one well seen at headquarters, coming out of low secondary
bush (Hoslundia opposita, palm saplings) to perch on a fence; one crossing the road 2-3
km north of base camp.

Scaly Babbler Turdoides squamulata

Common in thicket-clump savanna, moving in small groups from one clump to the
next. Also in the understorey of coastal thickets (including live dunes). Does not pen-
etrate forest. Often in mixed parties with Northern Brownbul, which has similar eco-
logical requirements.

*Abyssinian White-eye Zosterops abyssinicus

The race flavilateralis is reported from Witu, as well as Lamu and Manda (van So-
meren 1922). Specimens from Kipini and Tschara were attributed to the race tenellus
(Fischer & Reichenow 1879), now considered a synonym of nominate African Yellow
White-eye Z. senegalensis. Although Moreau (1957: 411-12) seems not to have taken
these specimens into account, they must certainly also be Z. abyssinicus.

Rippell’s Starling Lamprotornis purpuropterus

More of a savanna bird than last, especially in tall palm savanna with only small
thickets. Also any wooded savanna with short grass or bare ground where feeds a lot.
Eggs were laid in October in a nest observed from building to nestlings.

Black-bellied Starling Lamprotornis corruscus

Very widespread and quite common, in all forest and thicket types, as well as open
palm savanna, wherever can find fruit. Seen killing a large gecko in a Hyphaene. Fledg-
lings in October would have been from eggs laid August.

*Magpie Starling Speculipastor bicolor

Three specimens of this erratic species were collected at Kipini, 11 July (Fischer &
Reichenow 1879).

Red-billed Oxpecker Buphagus erythrorhynchus

Common, in dozens when attending large herds of Buffalo. Also on Warthog and Ze-
bra. Often tries Waterbuck Kobus ellipsiprymnus who shake them off. Never on Topis.
One of a pair seen taking hair from a young zebra for nest-building, 25 December.

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 33

Red-tailed Ant Thrush Neocossyphus rufus

Very common in forest understorey in Witu Extension, smaller numbers in any tall
forest and also in coastal thickets. May move between clumps of Trichilia/Hyphaene
forest, flying across roads or open savanna.

*Spotted Ground Thrush Zoothera guitata

Globally Endangered. Fischer collected two specimens at Kipini, 25 and 28 July
(Fischer & Reichenow 1878, who give the date of the first, in error, as 28 May). The
coastal non-breeding range is also known to extend to Lamu, where collected by Al-
len Turner (Jackson & Sclater 1938), but a recent review of the status of this endan-
gered species (Ndang’ang’a et al. 2008) did not provide any further information from
this area.

*African Bare-eyed Thrush Turdus tephronotus

Specimens were collected at Witu (Jackson 1898), and it is also reported from Kipini
(J.-M. Hildebrandt in Jackson & Sclater 1938), although it is not clear that Hildebrandt
travelled that far north. Known from Lamu and Manda (Fischer & Reichenow 1878,
van Someren 1922).

[East Coast Akalat Sheppardia gunningi

Known in forests along the Lower Tana from near Hewani (Andrews et al. 1975) and
further north at Makeri (Keith 1968): these two localities correspond to “Garsen to
Wenje” (Zimmerman et al. 1996). Although there are no recent records north of So-
koke (Nemeth & Bennun 2000), the Tana River patches have not been explored during
the past few years. |

Common Nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos

Palaearctic migrant: scarce wintering species, with one singing in thicket clump on
1 December, and another singing (clearly immature, motifs not fully formed) on 9
December.

White-browed Robin Chat Cossypha heuglini
Very common in thicket clumps, also at edges of coastal thicket and in small gaps
with broken canopy. Does not enter forest.

Red-capped Robin Chat Cossypha natalensis

Very common in October, throughout any forest (continuous or in clumps) and coast-
al thickets (including large clumps). Numbers decreasing in November until last one
heard calling (“see-saw”) on 29th. However, there are specimens in the Percival col-
lection between 7 January and 21 February, from Punewani and Mwina. Hitherto
the race intensa was believed present only late April to November (Zimmerman et al.
1996).

Much singing in October and early November: all birds were heard imitating Em-
erald Cuckoo (not present on the coast), as well as Black Cuckoo (ditto), and at least
two different individuals imitated Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo Cercococcyx montanus.
This suggests the origin of these robins could be the highlands of Kenya, or further
south in the region of the Zambezi valley. Other imitations were of local birds like
Crowned Eagle, Levaillant’s Cuckoo, Thick-billed Cuckoo, White-throated Bee-eater,

34 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike, African Golden Oriole, and interestingly they repro-
duced calls of Eurasian Bee-eaters when they were passing over (October).

[Collared Palm Thrush Cichladusa arquata and Spotted Palm Thrush Cichladusa
guttata

The former is known from Hewani on the Tana and Lamu on the coast (Andrews et al.
1975, Jackson & Sclater 1938), the latter from Lamu and Kau in the Tana delta (Fischer
& Reichenow 1879, van Someren 1922). |

Bearded Scrub Robin Cercotrichas quadrivirgata
Very common in large thickets and forest, the interior of extensive coastal thickets as
well as large clumps. Need bigger patches of thicket than White-browed Robin Chat.
Very common also in Witu Extension, Luimshi etc., in tall-canopy forest. Vocally very
active in October-December, and much alarm-calling (suggesting breeding). A few
vocal imitations, including of Thick-billed Cuckoo.

[White-browed Scrub Robin Cercotrichas leucophrys
Reported “... to the mouth of the Tana River” (van Someren 1932: 376), and known at
Hewani (Andrews et al. 1975)]

*Isabelline Wheatear Oenanthe isabellina
Palaearctic migrant, collected at Kipini, 15 December (Fischer & Reichenow 1879).

Northern Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe
Palaearctic migrant: one on sand near Mpeketoni, 23 October.

[Southern Black Flycatcher Melaenornis pammelaina
Known from the Lower Tana in the Hewani area (Andrews e¢ al. 1975), and on the
coast collected in Boni (Stager 1973).]

Pale Flycatcher Bradornis pallidus

Common in thicket-clump savanna, and adjacent wooded grassland; also in Acacia
zanzibarica woodland. Large fledglings in October would have been from an August
clutch.

Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata

Palaearctic migrant: very local, 1-2 found only in Acacia zanzibarica woodland late
November-December.

Ashy Flycatcher Muscicapa caerulescens

Fairly common in canopy/emergents of coastal thickets, and large clumps of broken-
canopy forest anywhere. Also in canopy of tall forest in Witu Extension.

Lead-coloured Flycatcher Myioparus plumbeus
Small numbers in thicket-clump savanna, patches of broken-canopy forest.

[Plain-backed Sunbird Anthreptes reichenowi
An “Eastern forest” endemic, with its northern limit of distribution in the riparian
forests of the Lower Tana, where a pair was seen near Hewani (Andrews et al. 1975:

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 35

19). It is not known from Witu F.R., but could conceivably be found in the moister
forests of Witu Extension or Kangawati. The only vocalization on commercial tape
is the song, which is not of territorial value. A tape of its aggressive call (to which it
reacts strongly) was therefore obtained at Arabuko-Sokoke Forest in November. We
did not have the opportunity of exploring the big forest gallery at Kangawati to look
for this sunbird. |

[Uluguru Violet-backed Sunbird Anthreptes neglectus

Known from the Lower Tana forests at Kitere (Butynski 1994) and Makeri (Keith
1968), but on the coast there is no record north of the Shimba Hills and Diani (Zim-
merman et al. 1996), more than 200 km to the south.]

Collared Sunbird Anthodiaeta collaris

The most numerous sunbird in coastal thickets or any forest. Also in thicket-clump
savanna and Acacia zanzibarica woodland. Observations suggested four clutches laid
October (one C/2), two clutches November (one C/1). The genus for this sunbird has
to be as above, and not Hedydipna, as in EANHS (2009), see Mann & Cheke (2006).

Olive Sunbird Cyanomitra olivacea
Common in coastal thickets and forest (Witu Extension, any patch of tall forest), and
in well developed thicket clumps.

Mouse-coloured Sunbird Cyanomitra veroxii

Completely overlooked in October, when silent. Found commonly from 10 Novem-
ber-December in a coastal strip only c. 2 km wide. Very common in dune thickets, on
the edge of coastal thickets inside of the dunes and extending a short way inland in
wooded grassland and palm savanna in the Baharini area. Does not reach headquar-
ters nor base camp area.

Amethyst Sunbird Chalcomitra amethystina

The most widespread and common savanna sunbird, feeding on flowers of Trichilia,
Erythrina and Combretum constrictum. Takes Hyphaene palm wine from taps! Does not
enter forest but feeds at edges or in open canopy of clumps.

Violet-breasted Sunbird Cinnyris chalcomelas

Very marginal in the area: a female well seen in savanna near base camp on 28 Octo-
ber, possible pair/male flying through the area on other occasions; also a female (well
seen) and possible male on 12 December, feeding on tiny flowers of Hyphaene com-
pressa. Clearly more at home in drier thornbush around Garsen: several males in full
song there, before and after the Garsen/ Malindi turn-off, in Acacia spp., Dichrostachys,
Prosopis, 19-26 December. The area was then very wet. There are female specimens at-
tributed to Black-bellied Sunbird Nectarinia nectarinioides (Momba Sasa), which ought
to be re-examined, in view of the difficulties in identifying females of some sunbirds.

Variable Sunbird Cinnyris venustus
White-bellied form (albiventris) confined to low dense thickets on live dunes, where
very common.

36 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Grey-headed Sparrow Passer griseus
Marginal: around small cotton farm on the northern boundary road. One or two call-
ing in Acacia zanzibarica woodland near Ziwa Lamuu.

[Yellow-spotted Petronia Petronia pyrgita
Collected by Fenwick at Kulesa (N. Rice in litt.).]

Grosbeak Weaver Amblyospiza albifrons
A flock (20+) at Lake Kenyatta on 23 October, one bird on 5 December. Three nests
there in Typha, not occupied. A few birds around Luimshi pan November.

Spectacled Weaver Ploceus ocularis
Heard once in a forest clump near Luimshi pan.

Black-necked Weaver Ploceus nigricollis

Very local: a few pairs in Acacia zanzibarica woodland at Ziwa Lamuu, and thickets
(with Acacia, Dobera) near Kenyatta camp. Also seen once at the edge of coastal thicket
near K4. Several nests (unoccupied) in Acacia.

Eastern Golden Weaver Ploceus subaureus
Found only on the edge of Lake Kenyatta, in tall Cyperus sedges, 12 November: at
least two males and two females.

Golden Palm Weaver Ploceus bojeri

The most widespread weaver in the area. Not conspicuous at all in October, but
many sightings in November-December with increasing breeding activities. Occu-
pied nests in ambatch (Aeschynomene cristata) over water on the edge of Maji-Grass,
in herbaceous Aeschynomene in flooded cultivation and grass near Luimshi, in neem
(Azadirachta indica) and in a Prosopis juliflora at headquarters, Hyphaene coriacea over
water in coastal ziwa, and in a Bridelia micrantha in old cultivation. Nests in isolation
or in small colonies. Takes many insects. One October clutch (feeding at nest 11 No-
vember); many (20+) laying November and December. There are female specimens
attributed to Lesser Masked Weaver Ploceus intermedius (Ngao) which ought to be re-
examined, in view of the difficulties in identifying female weavers.

Village Weaver Ploceus cucullatus

Some small non-breeding flocks in October-early November; not seen late Novem-
ber-December. An old nesting colony in a baobab near base camp remained unat-
tended.

Dark-backed Weaver Ploceus bicolor

Very common in all forest and thicket types, but also in thicket-clump savanna, some-
times flying long distances to reach the next clump or tall Hyphaene. In pairs. Laid
once in October, twice in November.

*Red-headed Weaver Anaplectes rubriceps
The race jubaensis is reported from Kipini by van Someren (1932: 319), and from Ki-

wayo north to Kiunga (Zimmerman ef al. 1996). The name Anaplectes melanotis, used
by EANHS (2009), is invalid, see Oschadleus (2009).

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya a7

Red-billed Quelea Quelea quelea
A small flock of c. 20-30 near Kenyatta camp, moving up to Ziwa Lamuu. In grass-
land, with Pin-tailed Whydahs, October-December.

*Fire-fronted Bishop Euplectes diadematus
Collected at Witu in June (Jackson 1898), and there are historical reports from Lamu
(Jackson & Sclater 1938, Britton 1980).

Zanzibar Red Bishop Euplectes nigroventris

Widespread, in small numbers in flooded grassland and sedges in various ziwas, and
borders of Lake Kenyatta. Already a few in breeding dress in October, increasing
numbers in November-December, but still several in only partial dress in coastal ziwa
by the end of December. It seers the enormous expanses of flooded grassland on the
coast should have a lot more bishops than this.

*Black-winged Red Bishop Euplectes hordeaceus
Known from Witu (Jackson 1898), Anasa and Lamu (van Someren 1932).

Fan-tailed Widowbird Euplectes axillaris

Does not seem to breed anywhere in the area. One male (in full breeding dress) flying
over road on 28 October. One or two (non-breeding) at Luimshi pan in November.
Surprisingly absent from Lake Kenyatta.

Common Waxbill Estrilda astrild

Rare in October-early November, when never more than six together. Numbers in-
creasing late November and especially December, feeding on Panicum etc. Flocks of
up to 12-15 December, some birds in song.

Red-cheeked Cordon-bleu Uraeginthus bengalus
Widespread, in small numbers, in thicket-clump savanna and Acacia zanzibarica
woodland.

Peters’s Twinspot Hypargos niveoguttatus
One record, of one singing in forest clump, north of base camp (October).

[Green-winged Pytilia Pytilia melba

No records and must be rare, but should occur in view of the presence of Vidua para-
disaea in coastal thickets. Lamu is the type-locality of the race kirki, named on the basis
of a single undated specimen obtained by Kirk (Jackson & Sclater 1938). ]

Red-billed Firefinch Lagonosticta senegala

Curiously very rare. Small group present in neglected cotton field on northern bound-
ary. One pair (male in moult November) seen at thicket edges near coastal ziwa (K4)
in November-December.

Jameson’s Firefinch Lagonosticta rhodopareia
Also very rare: one edge of road just north of. base camp, and a pair near Kangawati
(October). In thicket-clump savanna.

38 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

*Orange-breasted Waxbill Amandava subflava
A specimen was collected at Witu 12 May 1891 (Jackson 1898), on a day when Jackson
also got Little Bittern and Grosbeak Weaver.

[Grey-headed Silverbill Odontospiza griseicapilla
Collected at Momba Sasa by Fenwick (N. Rice in litt.]

Bronze Mannikin Spermestes cucullata
Uncommon, in pairs or small groups, savanna. Nest-building mid-October.

Black-and-White Mannikin Spermestes bicolor
More common than last, in thicket-clump savanna and also in forest clumps. Nest-
building 24 November.

Parasitic Weaver Anomalospiza imberbis

One female was present in a small area of grassland and bushes just north of base
camp 12-19 October. Lurking around two pairs of Tawny-flanked Prinias, at least
one of which was nest-building. Zimmerman et al. (1996) wrote that reports from the
Lower Tana floodplain require confirmation. This is perhaps based on plots in Lewis
& Pomeroy (1989); we cannot trace the origin of these, and there is no relevant record
anywhere in Scopus.

Pin-tailed Whydah Vidua macroura

Surprisingly large numbers at Ziwa Lamuu and Maji-Grass, up to 100 together and
other groups, some with Red-billed Queleas. Also in other areas with short grass,
such as headquarters. Males in breeding dress October-December.

Eastern Paradise Whydah Vidua paradisaea

Very local: two males in breeding dress at the ecotone between coastal thicket and
grassland on 12 October, presumably at the end of the breeding season. None seen
on subsequent visits, except one bird in non-breeding dress in a Lawsonia (K4) on 25
December.

Village Indigobird Vidua chalybeata

Two (in non-breeding dress) at edge of coastal thickets (K4), exactly where Red-billed
Firefinch was located, on 25 December.

Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava

Palaearctic migrant: first noted on 5 November. Winters in good numbers in the big
ziwas (Ziwa Lamuu, Maji-Grass) feeding around Zebras, Buffaloes and cattle. Up to
120 going to roost on 13 December; often 20-30 together with game. Few elsewhere,
pans with Nile Cabbage. The main race is lutea, also a few flava.

African Pied Wagtail Motacilla aguimp
Usually a couple of immatures at cattle post. Occasionally visits headquarters.

Golden Pipit Tmetothylacus tenellus
Rare visitor: one female with Malindi Pipits on 11 December, in drier section of coast-
al ziwa (sand and short grass).

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 39

Yellow-throated Longclaw Macronyx croceus

Very common, throughout grassland of open palm savanna and ziwas. In ziwas breeds
in fairly tall grass above the flood-line. Nest-building and adults feeding young gives
one clutch each laid October, November and December.

Grassland Pipit Anthus cinnamomeus
Very local: one singing on coral beach at Seven Sisters (12 October). One or two pairs
muddy shores of coastal pans, often singing November-December.

Malindi Pipit Anthus melindae

Very common, with probably thousands inside the Conservancy. Occupies the short
grassland and bare patches (mud or sand) of any ziwa. Quite a few singing in October
in severai places, but pushed out of some ziwas by flooding, e.g. over 40 at base camp
in October, but few in November and none after December flooding. By December
only a few in song in the drier sections of the coastal ziwa, where flocks of dozens
locally. Sings perched on a bush or in a circular flight, a double “bizeerr”, repeated
every second. Common flight call a “pslee”, or “psleeu”.

Reichenow’s Seedeater Crithagra reichenowi

A few in October, in open palm savanna. Increasing numbers late November-Decem-
ber, in coastal thickets and all areas of thicket-clump savanna in central reserve, with
much singing.

Yellow-fronted Canary Crithagra mozambica
Rather common in October, thicket and forest clumps, palm savanna. Numbers de-
creasing late November-December, contrary to congener.

Discussion
Biomes

The avifauna at Kipini is largely “Eastern” from a biogeographical point of view. The
lack of Somalia-Masai Acacia-Commiphora bush means that this biome is very poorly
represented. The Conservancy constitutes an important refugium for a few species,
including storks and Malindi Pipits. The forests are probably too dry (meaning the
rainfall this far north is too irregular) to have the full range of forest species found in
the south of the country or in the riparian forests in the Tana River Primate Reserve.

Species confined to the Eastern region of endemism sensu Dowsett-Lemaire &
Dowsett (1998, 2006) include Southern Banded Snake Eagle, Fischer’s Turaco, Man-
grove Kingfisher, Green Tinkerbird, Brown-breasted Barbet, Mombasa Woodpecker,
Malindi Pipit, Zanzibar Greenbul (near-endemic), Fischer’s Greenbul, Eastern Nica-
tor (near-endemic), Bearded Scrub Robin (near-endemic), Black-headed Apalis, Little
Yellow Flycatcher, Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher (near-endemic), Mouse-coloured
Sunbird, Violet-breasted Sunbird, Black-bellied Starling (near-endemic), Zanzibar
Red Bishop. Most of them are forest-associated species; only a few belong to grass-
_ land habitats (Malindi Pipit, Zanzibar Red Bishop). Violet-breasted Sunbird is very
closely related to the Pemba Sunbird N. pembae. Fishpool & Evans (2001) also include
in this biome Scaly Babbler, although this babbler extends somewhat into the Soma-
lia-Masai region.

The second biome represented (Somalia-Masai) is very marginal, with African

40 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Orange-bellied Parrot (status in Kipini uncertain), White-bellied Go-away-bird (a va-
grant), Forbes-Watson’s Swift (a migrant), Long-tailed Fiscal (rare), Rufous Chatterer
(rare), Golden Palm Weaver. Many more Somalia-Masai species appear a short way
inland in the Garsen area, in thornbush.

Species of conservation concern

Three of the species listed above have been classified by BirdLife International (2012)
as “Globally Endangered” (http://www.birdlife.org/datazone/country / kenya.
Checked 8 November 2012): Madagascar Pond Heron, White-backed Vulture and
Spotted Ground Thrush. Five more are treated as “Globally Vulnerable”: White-
headed Vulture, Greater Spotted Eagle, Madagascar Pratincole, Southern Ground
Hornbill and White-winged Apalis.

Among others belonging to the Globally Threatened category of “Near-threat-
ened” should be mentioned Southern Banded Snake Eagle and Malindi Pipit . Num-
bers of the Snake Eagle are certainly affected by the destruction of the Witu Exten-
sion forests, although it is widespread elsewhere in other forest and thicket types; it
appears rare in coastal thickets. The Malindi Pipit occurs in a limited section of the
coast between Ngomeni and Karawa (Britton 1980), as well as in the Tana River delta
where it is said to be “less numerous” (Zimmerman et al. 1996). Its habitat around
Karawa and in the delta has shrunk or deteriorated with increasing human pressure.
Its occurrence in Kipini Conservancy had never been documented: Kipini appears to
be, in fact, the centre of distribution of this coastal endemic. Local concentrations of
several dozen may occur and total numbers in the Conservancy must be in the order
of thousands.

Many pairs of Saddle-billed Stork occur in the local ziwas; we also found it com-
mon in the pans along the road between Witu and Garsen. This species is very un-
common elsewhere in Kenya and is treated as a Regionally Threatened species by
Bennun & Njoroge (1999). There was, however, no sign of recent breeding activities
and the recurrent droughts the region is suffering from are cause for concern.

On a regional level, one should also consider Black-and-white Flycatcher to be
of conservation concern. Unfortunately, the status of the species at Kipini remains
mysterious.

The isolated coastal population of Square-tailed Drongo is suffering throughout
its small Kenyan range: about 80% of the riparian forests in the Tana River Primate
Reserve are thought to have disappeared through deforestation (Butynski 1994, Wiec-
zkowski & Mbora 2000, R. Hartley pers. comm.) and Witu F.R. suffers from much
illegal logging.

Previous ornithological knowledge

Ornithologically this section of the northern coast of Kenya has remained virtually
unexplored. There exist a few old collections from Witu and Kipini, e.g. Gustav Fisch-
er passed through twice in the 1870s (Fischer & Reichenow 1878, 1879) and Frederick
Jackson (1898) stayed in May-June and November 1891. The Arthur Blayney Percival
collection contains a total of 68 specimens from the region (Witu, Kipini, Kao, Ngao)
(see Bowen 1932); a second part of that paper with a detailed list was not published
(N. Gilmore & E. Mathias in litt.), but a complete list of the Percival collection in the
Academy of Natural Sciences at Philadelphia has generously been made available
by N. Rice (in litt.). Examination of the ANSP collection shows that it was Norman

Checklist of the birds of Kipini Conservancy, Kenya 4]

Percival Fenwick who in late 1919-early 1920 collected extensively along the lower
Tana. In the next half century there was just the one visit to Witu incompletely docu-
mented (Britton & Britton 1970). To the south, the Tana River Delta has been visited
briefly on occasion (e.g. Archer 1986; recent reports in Bulletin of the African Bird Club)
and further inland the Primate Reserve received some attention (Andrews et al. 1975,
Butynski 1994). There was a student expedition from Oxford University to the dry
forests of Dodori and Boni to the north in 1961. Unfortunately, apart from a small pa-
per on waders (Fogden 1963), results were never published, but an unpublished list of
specimens collected in Boni for the Los Angeles County Museum in 1973 is available
(Stager 1973). Njoroge et al. (2008) have provided a list of species reported from the
Ishaqbini Community Conservancy in Ijara District, adjacent to the Primate Reserve.

Gazetteer

Anasa 2°31’S, 40°18’E
Bodhei 1°51’S, 40°43’E
Boni 1°40’S, 41°15’E
Bura 1°05’S, 39°56’E
Diani 4°18’S, 39°35’E
Formosa (Ungama) Bay 2°40’S, 40°20’E
Ganda forest, Kilifi dist. 3°13’S, 40°04’E
Garsen 2°16’S, 40°07’E
Gedi 3°18’S, 40°01’E
Hewani 2°15’S, 40°10’E
Tjara 1°36’S, 40°31’E
Karawa 2°38’S, 40°12’E
Kau 2°29’S, 40°26’E
Kidore, Tana R. 0°45’S, 39°45’E
Kilifi 3°38'S, 39°51’E
Kipini 2°32'S, 40°31°E
Kitere 1°57’S, 40°09’E
Kiunga 1°45/S; 41°29'E
Kosi, Tana R. not traced
Kulesa, lower Tana 2210S, 40°01 E
Kwaihu (Kiweyu) 1°59’S, 41°18’E
Lamu 2217'S; 40°55:E
Makeri 1°52’S, 40°07’E
Malindi 3°13/S,,40°07'E
Manda Is. 2°17'S, 40°57'E
Manda Mtoto 2°14’S, 40°59’E
Massa (Masabubu) Tana R. 1°12’S, 40°00’E
Mitole 2°08’S, 40°11’E

Mnazini

Mombasa

Momba Sasa, Tana R.
Mongeya (Sokoke-Mongeya)
Mrima Hill

Mundane range, Kiunga

2°00’S, 40°09’E
4°03’S, 39°40’E
2°23,9; 40°32 E

G,,3°20'S,.39°50°E

4°29'S, 39°16’E
1°48’S, 41°25’E

42 F. Dowsett-Lemaire and R. J. Dowsett

Muniumi 2°00’S, 40°12’E
Mwina, Tana R. 2°03’S, 40°04’E
Ngao 2°24’S, 40°12’E
Oda, lower Tana 2°28’S, 40°12’E
Oda Boda, Tana river 0°25’S, 39°35’E
Ozi (Ossi) River mouth 2°32'S, 40°31’E
Punewani (Shunewaya), Tana R. 2°23’S, 40°12’E
Sabaki 3°09’S, 40°08’E
Sangole 1°30’S, 40°36’E
Shakababo Lake 2°25'S, 40°11’E
Sherekiko (Sheriko) 2°39S, 40°16’E
Shimba Hills 4°13’S, 39°25’E
Sokoke Forest 3°20’S, 39°50’E
Tana River mouth 2°32’S, 40°31’E
Tschara 2°33’S, 40°20’E
Wema 2°13’S, 40°11’E
Wenrje, Tana R. 1°47’S, 40°06’E
Witu 2°22’S, 40°30’E
Acknowledgements

Richard Hartley, responsible for the creation of the Kipini Conservation Trust, invited us to
Kipini and made our stay there as comfortable as possible. We thank all the scouts for their
enthusiasm and resilience, and two in particular (Ben Wachoa and Adan Kore), who accom-
panied us in the field from mid-November. Ann Robertson in Malindi and Quentin Luke in
Nairobi kindly helped with identification of plant specimens. Nate Rice (Academy of Natural
Sciences, Philadelphia) generously and promptly provided full details of the unpublished Per-
cival bird collection. Don Turner has offered valuable advice in the preparation of this paper.

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Scopus 33: 1-44, January 2014
Received 8 November 2012

Scopus 33: 45-52, January 2014

Spring weights of some Palaearctic passer-
ines in Ethiopia and Kenya: evidence for
important migration staging areas in eastern
Ethiopia

David Pearson, Herbert Biebach, Gerhard Nikolaus and
Elizabeth Yohannes

_ Summary

Palaearctic migrants were trapped in late April and early May at a passage site
near Jijiga in eastern Ethiopia. Willow Warblers Phylloscopus trochilus and Spotted
Flycatchers Muscicapa striata were predominant, while Red-backed Shrikes Lanius
collurio, Sedge Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus, Reed Warblers A. scirpaceus,
Garden Warblers Sylvia borin and Common Whitethroats S. communis also featured
prominently. Weights were high in all species, and over 70% of the birds caught were
extremely fat. Spring weights and fat scores at Jijiga were compared with those found
in the same species in Kenya, and ihe difference was striking. In Kenya, most species
had mean spring weights 10-20% above lean weight; at Jijiga, species’ mean weights
ranged from 30% to 55% above lean weight. Whereas the reserves of most migrants
departing from Kenya would have supported flights only as far as Ethiopia, the fat
loads of birds at Jijiga indicated a potential for crossing Arabia with little need to
feed. This suggests important staging and fattening grounds between these two areas,
perhaps in the Acacia-Commiphora bushlands drained by the upper Juba and Shebelle
rivers and their tributaries.

Introduction

Each year hundreds of millions of migrant passerines must set off from the Horn
of Africa in April and early May on a crossing of the Arabian Peninsula (Moreau
1972). These are bound ultimately for Palaearctic breeding grounds distributed from
Western Europe to Siberia and central Asia. They include birds which have wintered
in northeast or east Africa as well as others which have already travelled thousands of
kilometres from wintering grounds in southern parts of the continent. Many species
cross Arabia rapidly in late April and May, and although desert conditions may be
ameliorated locally by limited spring rainfall, this must present energy demands
comparable with those of birds facing a spring crossing of the Sahara (e.g. Fry et al.
1970, Wood 1982), and require extensive pre-migratory fattening. Some high spring
weights have been noted in Ethiopia (Ash 1993, 1994, Yohannes et al. 2009) but there
have been no reports of concentrations of fat migrants preparing for take-off from The
Horn. Further south, in Kenya, wintering departures and passage take place mainly
in April, within a period of just three to four weeks (Pearson 1990, 1992). A few
species, such as Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus schoenobaenus (Pearson et al. 1979) and
Great Reed Warbler A. arundinaceus, sometimes accumulate large fat loads at these
equatorial latitudes, but the great majority of departing or passing migrants carry

46 D. Pearson, H. Biebach, G. Nikolaus and E. Yohannes

only sufficient reserves to take them to refuelling areas in north-east Africa. Where
are these important fattening grounds?

Numbers of passerine migrants on the coasts of Sudan and Eritrea during April-
May appear to be unremarkable (e.g. Smith 1960, GN unpubl.). In Ethiopia, Ash (1980)
noted some impressive concentrations of Willow Warblers Phylloscopus trochilus in
late March-early April in the central Rift Valley, and Sylvia warblers trapped in April
in southern and central parts of the Rift have included some very heavy birds (Ash
1994, and in litt.). But major spring transit areas probably lie further east. One likely
clue to this was the discovery by Ash (1980, 1993) of mid-April concentrations of
migrants in southeast Ethiopia, in an area of thorn bush southeast of Negelle at about
5° N, 40-41° E. The few birds that he trapped here included some Great Reed Warblers
and Willow Warblers with high weights, but the proportion of heavy birds present
was not large, suggesting that most needed to stay longer or move on quickly to
fattening areas elsewhere. In late April 1995, HB, GN and DP joined John Ash in a
search for Palaearctic migrants further north in eastern Ethiopia. Surveys near Aseita,
in the Lake Awash area, proved disappointing, but 100km to the southeast, near
Jijiga, JA discovered a substantial passage and trapped fat migrants of several species.

In 1998, HB, GN and EY returned to the Jijiga site on 21 April and mist-netted
continuously there until 3 May. A heavy passage of Palaearctic passerines was
confirmed, and most birds trapped were found to have very high weights. Here we
report the composition of this catch and give details of weights and fat scores. These
are compared with spring data for the same species collected mainly by DP from
passage sites in central and southeast Kenya.

40° 3u°

Methods and ringing sites
Jijiga (9°22'N, 42°51'E, 1600m)
is located in semi-arid country
in eastern Ethiopia, to the north
of the Ogaden region (Fig. 1).
The study site was located about
15km southeast of the town in an
area of sparse bushy vegetation
and acacia trees. Birds were mist-
netted from early morning (05:00)
until sunset. All were weighed
to the nearest 0.1g immediately
after capture, using a digital pan
balance, and were scored for
visible fat following the procedure
and 0-8 scale of Kaiser (1993).

The Kenya spring data given
here were collected in April-early
May from the Nairobi area and in

an 50° April from Tsavo West National
Figure 1. The Horn of Africa showing the location of Park. Near Nairobi, birds were mist-
the Jijiga ringing site (A) and ringing areas in central :
paeet ens ‘eS High our over 2100m is Dae ene een

indicated. The likely Ethiopian fattening area is :
marked by a dashed line. 1600 m) on the eastern outskirts of

Spring weights of Palaearctic passerines in Ethiopia and Kenya 47

the city, and also in scrub, bush and ditches 25 km to the southeast at Athi River
(1500m). In Tsavo, birds were caught in semi-arid bush at Ngulia Lodge (3°00’S,
38°13’ E, 900 m), mostly after attraction to lights at night. Birds were weighed to the
nearest 0.1 g using a Pesola spring balance. Visible subcutaneous fat was scored on a
0-4 scale according to the appearance of the furcular pit. A score of 0 here (fat absent
from the furcular pit) corresponds to 0 on the Kaiser scale; a score of 4 (furcular pit
filled with fat and bulging) corresponds to 5 or above on the Kaiser scale, and is
translated as such in Table 3 and the comparisons made below.

Species, weights and fat scores at Jijiga

A total of 647 Palaearctic migrants of 23 species was caught over the 12-day spring
ringing session. Table 1 shows the composition of this catch.

Table 1. Numbers of each Palaearctic species caught, and numbers re-
trapped, at Jijiga, Ethiopia, 21 April-3 May 1998.

New captures Retraps

Hoopoe Upupa epops epops 4 0
Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio 45 4
Eurasian Golden Oriole Oriolus oriolus 5 0
River Warbler Locustella fluviatilis 2 1

Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus 11 3

Sedge Warbler A. schoenobaenus 24 Z
Marsh Warbler A. palustris 11 0
Eurasian Reed Warbler A. scirpaceus 38 4
Icterine Warbler Hippolais icterina 2 0
Upcher’s Warbler H. languida 1 0
Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus 303 19
Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla 1 0
Garden Warbler S. borin 26 1

Common Whitethroat S. communis 31 3
Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia 15 5
Common Nightingale L. megarhynchos 2 0
White-throated Robin /rania gutturalis 5 0

Common Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus t 0
Whinchat Saxicola rubetra | 0
Common Rock Thrush Monticola saxatilis | 0
Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata 109 12
Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava 2 0
Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis 2 0

Willow Warbler and Spotted Flycatcher dominated throughout. Red-backed
Shrikes, Sedge Warblers, Reed Warblers, Garden Warblers and Common Whitethroats
also featured prominently, while Great Reed Warblers, Marsh Warblers and Thrush
Nightingales gave smaller but informative weight samples. Birds appeared to be
moving quickly through the site for there were rather few retraps. The weights and
visible fat scores of the ten main species are detailed in Table 2.

48 D. Pearson, H. Biebach, G. Nikolaus and E. Yohannes

Table 2. Weights and fat scores of the main migrants trapped at Jijiga, April-May 1998.

Species Weight Fat score
n mean sd range n mean sd % = f5

Red-backed Shrike 40 33:3 49 23.1-41.7 44 45 1.8 86
Great Reed Warbler 11 37.6 49 32.0-46.2 11 6.3 1.3 91
Sedge Warbler 18 19:2 2.5 10.4-17.2 19 5.0 2.6 58
Marsh Warbler 11 16.2 2.2 10.8-18.7 11 6.4 1.8 91
Eurasian Reed Warbler 38 13.7 25 9.8-18.3 37 5.5 2.0 84
Willow Warbler 298 10.6 12 7.4-13.9 279 5.1 1.0 89
Garden Warbler 25 21.4 1.8 18.2-26.5 25 41 Ae 44
Common Whitethroat 31 19.1 19 14.0-22.2 30 5.9 1.1 87
Thrush Nightingale 15 32.9 3.9 22.5-38.3 15 6.3 1.4 93
Spotted Flycatcher 109 17.6 2.0 13.5-22.4 109 3.4 1.2 17

Mean weights and maximum weights were high in all these species (for
comparisons see e.g. Cramp 1988, 1992, Cramp & Perrins 1993). The majority of birds
were very fat. Seven of the ten species usually scored fat 5-7 on the Kaiser scale. Only
in Sedge Warbler, Garden Warbler, and most notably Spotted Flycatcher, were scores
below fat 5 commonly recorded. The high weights of some of the scarcer Jijiga species
also deserve mention: 2 River Warblers, 22.7 and 27.0 g; 2 Icterine Warblers, 15.2 and
15.4g; 2 Common Nightingales, 29.6 and 30.0g; 7 Common Redstarts, 12.7-19.9¢
(mean 15.8) and 1 Whinchat, 19.2 g.

Spring weights and lean weights in Kenya

For the ten main species above, Table 3 summarizes spring weights from central and
southeast Kenya, and gives the percentage of birds at or above fat 5 (Kaiser scale)
for the sample sizes indicated. Some significant (mostly small) differences in spring
fattening pattern have been found in Kenya between different sites and with different
weather situations (see e.g. Pearson et al. 1979, Pearson 1992). However, the broad
combined samples in Table 3 serve as a useful comparison with the Jijiga birds.

Table 3. Weights and prevalence of fat birds (score 25) in central and southeast Kenya,
April-early May. N, data mainly or entirely from Nairobi/ Athi River; T, data mainly from
Tsavo; NT, data from both areas.

Species Weight Fat
n mean sd range n % 2f5

Red-backed Shrike NT 57 28.8 3:2 24.0-39.8 42 it
Great Reed Warbler NT 84 32.0 5A 24.6-45.7 65 12
Sedge Warbler NT 643 11.9 1.8 9.1-21.0 321 8
Marsh Warbler T 94 11.1 0.9 9.1-13.2 93 0
Eurasian Reed Warbler N 537 ts 1.1 8.5-15.8 331 2
Willow Warbler NT 869 8.5 1.0 6.2-14.6 475 2
Garden Warbler N 191 PX 2.6 15.4-28.7 159 28
Common Whitethroat NT 475 15.2 2.0 11.3-22.3 158 (3
Thrush Nightingale NT 87 24.9 SE 18.8-36.8 66 5

Spotted Flycatcher N 11 14.3 de2 12.8-17.2 11 0

Spring weights of Palaearctic passerines in Ethiopia and Kenya 49

Some high maximum weights are shown, and the heaviest Great Reed Warblers,
Sedge Warblers and Willow Warblers were about double the lean weight given in
Table 4. But the proportion of Kenya spring birds with these massive fat loads was
small. Moderate reserves were commonly carried (Kaiser fat 3-4), but many birds
were quite lean. With the exception of Garden Warbler (28%), the proportion of each
species scoring fat 5 or above in these samples ranged from just 0 to 13%.

Table 4 lists mean weights (with number in sample and standard deviation) of
birds caught in Kenya between November and April with a fat score of 0. These are
taken as the ‘lean weight’ of the species concerned.

Table 4. Lean weights.

(birds scoring f0, Kenya, Nov—Apr)

n Mean sd
Red-backed Shrike 407 24.6 1.6
Great Reed Warbler 15 26.8 2.2
Sedge Warbler 146 10.2 0.7
Marsh Warbler 2267 10.4 0.6
Eurasian Reed Warbler 51 10.1 0.5
Willow Warbler 384 lee 0.7
Garden Warbler 105 16.9 21
Common Whitethroat 653 13.1 1.0
Thrush Nightingale 954 21.3 1.5
Spotted Flycatcher 315 13.3 0.9

Spring birds from Jijiga and Kenya compared

In all ten species the mean weight of birds at Jijiga was higher than that in Kenya. The
difference ranged from just 0.3 g in Garden Warbler up to 8 g in Thrush Nightingale
(Table 5). In all species except Garden Warbler and Sedge Warbler the difference was
highly significant (p<0.1%).

Table 5. Differences of mean spring weight between Jijiga and Kenya
and corresponding values of the t-statistic and probability level p.

Difference + SD t p

Red-backed Shrike 4.5+0.88 5.1 <0.001
Great Reed Warbler po a otal LS 3.6 <0.001
Sedge Warbler 1.3 + 0.59 22 0.03

Marsh Warbler Sal 0:67 7.6 <0.001
Eurasian Reed Warbler 2.6 + 0.34 7.6 <0.001
Willow Warbler 2.1 + 0.08 27.3 <0.001
Garden Warbler 0.3 + 0.41 0.7 0.47

Common Whitethroat 3.9 + 0.35 11.1 <0.001
Thrush Nightingale 8.0 + 1.07 1:5 <0.001
Spotted Flycatcher 3.3+0.41 _ BECK! <0.001

At Jijiga, mean weights ranged from 30% above lean weight in Sedge Warbler to well
over 50% higher in Thrush Nightingale and Marsh Warbler. In Kenya, by contrast,
mean spring weights ranged between 7% above lean weight in Spotted Flycatcher
and 24% in Garden Warbler.

50 D. Pearson, H. Biebach, G. Nikolaus and E. Yohannes

Differences in visible fat levels between the two areas are even more striking.
While 72% of the Jijiga birds scored fat 5 or above (all ten species combined), the
corresponding figure for the Kenya sample was just 7%. In all species except Garden
Warbler and Spotted Flycatcher the higher proportion of these very fat birds at Jijiga
was highly significant (p <0.1%).

Discussion

Migrant passerines setting off from wintering sites or spring transit sites in central
or southern Kenya typically do so with low or moderate reserves of fat fuel. Some
are close to lean weight on departure and perhaps proceed north via a series of short
flights, with frequent pauses to feed. Many, however, are 20-30% above lean weight,
with sufficient reserves to support 30-40 h of flight (for estimates see e.g. Pennycuick
1975, Alerstam 1990). This might involve three to four nights flying with little need to
feed during daytime resting. Assuming a speed of 30-40 km/h (in still air) this should
take them to fattening and staging areas 1000-1500 km further north.

The majority of spring passage birds caught at Jijiga were 30-60% above lean
weight. This corresponds to a flight potential of 50-70 h, or, in still air, a flight range of
1500-3000 km. Such fat reserves should therefore be sufficient to take many of these
birds across the Arabian desert with little or no need to feed. These high fat loads
are similar to those recorded in migratory passerines preparing to cross the Sahara
in West Africa (e.g. Smith 1966, Fry et al. 1970, Wood 1982). Despite high weights
Spotted Flycatchers tended to record lower fat scores at Jijiga than other species. They
may well tend to use a strategy of intermittent feeding on the crossing of Arabia, as
they would appear to do on the southern autumn crossing of the Egyptian Sahara
(Biebach 1985).

Most migrants heading north from Kenya must replenish their reserves in
Ethiopia. At Jijiga, however, passage birds had already fattened extensively, nearby
or to the south. This indicates important staging areas in eastern Ethiopia, which
should probably be looked for east of the Bale Mountains (see Fig. 1). These may well
lie in the Acacia-Commiphora bushlands drained by the upper Juba and Shebelle rivers
and their tributaries. This region usually receives the bulk of its annual rainfall during
March-May (Griffiths 1972; see also the online accessible resources of The World Bank
Climate Change Knowledge Portal (http://sdwebx.worldbank.org/climate portal/
index.cfm), and the flourishing of vegetation there typically coincides with the spring
passage of Palaearctic migrants. Its likely importance has been underlined in recent
experiments in which Red-backed Shrikes and Thrush Nightingales were tracked with
light level geolocators. Birds paused for some days during their northward migration
through eastern Africa, most apparently in southeast Ethiopia (Tettrup et al. 2012).

Stopover and staging areas in north-east Africa appear to be utilized by most
of the global population of some Palaearctic passerine species en route to and
from their southern African winter quarters. The spring staging area indicated
here is well separated from the autumn stopover area identified in eastern Sudan
and/or western Ethiopia (Pearson et al. 1988), apparently a reflection of a geographic
difference in seasonal rainfall pattern. In both seasons these areas are evidently more.
spatially restricted than many southern African wintering ranges. Their location and
conservation should therefore be a priority in the protection of the migration routes
and strategies of the species involved.

Spring weights of Palaearctic passerines in Ethiopia and Kenya 51

Acknowledgements

We thank all those who helped in various ways with the Ethiopian expeditions. In particular we
owe a debt to the late John Ash whose enthusiasm inspired the search for the spring ‘take-off’
site. The team at Jijiga included Brigitte Biebach, Charlotte Deerenberg, Ursula Puszkarz and
Agnes Tiirk. Financial assistance was received from the Max-Planck Institute for Ornithology,
Andechs. We are grateful to the late director Prof. Eberhard Gwinner. Graeme Backhurst and
members of the Ngulia Ringing Group are thanked for their assistance in the collection of
the Kenya data. We also thank two anonymous reviewers whose comments and suggestions
improved this manuscript.

References

Alerstam, T. 1990. Bird migration. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.

Ash, J.S. 1980. Migrational status of Palaearctic birds in Ethiopia. Proceedings of the 4th Pan-
African Ornithological Congress: 199-208.

Ash, J.S. 1993. Migration of Palaearctic birds inland in Ethiopia. Scopus 17: 19-25.

Ash, J.S. 1994. Weights of migrant Palaearctic Sylvia warblers in Ethiopia. Scopus 17: 119-123.

Biebach, H. 1985. Sahara stopover in migratory Flycatchers: fat and food affect the time
program. Experientia 41: 695-697.

Cramp, S. 1988. The birds of the western Palearctic Vol. V. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Cramp, S. 1992. The birds of the western Palearctic. Vol. VI. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Cramp, S. & Perrins, C.M. 1993. The birds of the western Palearctic. Vol. VII. Oxford: Oxford
University Press.

Fry, C.H., Ash, J.S. & Ferguson-Lees, |. 1970. Spring weights of some Palaearctic migrants at
Lake Chad. Ibis 112: 58-82.

Griffiths, J.F. 1972. Climates of Africa. Vol. 10. World Survey of Climatology. Amsterdam:
Elsevier.

Moreau, R.E. 1972. The Palearctic-African bird migration system. London & New York: Academic
Press.

Pearson, D.J. 1990. Palaearctic passerine migrants in Kenya and Uganda: temporal and spatial
patterns of their movements. Pp 41-59 in Gwinner E. (Ed) Bird Migration, Physiology and
Ecophysiology. Berlin: Springer-Verlag.

Pearson, D.J. 1992. Northward passage of Palearctic songbirds through Kenya. Proceedings of
the 7th Pan-African Ornithological Congress: 113-124.

Pearson, D.j., Backhurst, G.C. & Backhurst, D.E.G. 1979, Spring weights and passage of Sedge
Warblers Acrocephalus schoenobaenus in central Kenya. Ibis 121: 8-19.

Pearson, D.J., Nikolaus, G., & Ash, J.S. 1988. The southward migration of Palaearctic passerine
through northeast and east tropical Africa: A review. Proceedings of the 6th Pan-African
Ornithological Congress: 243-262.

Pennycuick, C.J. 1975. Mechanics of flight. Pp. 1-75 in Farner, D.S. & King, J.R. (Eds) Avian
Biology. New York: Academic Press.

Smith, K.D. 1960. The passage of Palaearctic migrants through Eritrea. [bis 102: 536-544.
Smith, V.W. 1966. Autumn and spring weights of some Palaearctic migrants in central Nigeria.
Ibis 108: 492-512.

Tottrup, A.P., Klaassen, R.H.G., Kristensen, M.W., Strandberg, R., Vardanis, Y., Lindstrém,
A., Rahbek, C. & Alerstam, T. 2012. Drought in Africa caused delayed arrival of European
songbirds. Science 338: 1307. :

Wood, B. 1982. The trans-Saharan spring migration of Yellow Wagtails (Motacilla flava). Journal
of Zoology 107: 267-283.

52 D. Pearson, H. Biebach, G. Nikolaus and E. Yohannes

Yohannes, E., Ash, J., Biebach, H., Nikolaus, G. & Pearson, D.J. 2009. Passerine migration
strategies and body mass variation along geographic sectors across Europe, East Africa, the
Middle East and Arabia Peninsula. Journal of Ornithology 150: 369-381.

David Pearson

4 Lupin Close Reydon, Southwold, Suffolk IP18 6NW, UK; Email dpearson251@gmail.com
Herbert Biebach

Von-der-Tann-Str. 7 82346 Andechs, Germany

Gerhard Nikolaus

Feldweg 87, 27474 Cuxhaven, Germany

Elizabeth Yohannes

University of Constance, Institute for Limnology, Stable Isotope Laboratory, D-78464, Germany

Scopus 33: 45-52, January 2014
Received 3 July 2013

Scopus 33: 53-63 January 2014

A review of birds in Uganda: records
updating the Uganda Atlas and notes on
species unrecorded since 1980

Roger Q. Skeen

Introduction

This paper is the first update of the Ugandan avifauna since the publication of the Bird
Atlas of Uganda (Carswell et al. 2005) and reviews the status of selected species. It lists
eighteen additions to the Uganda list since 2005, some the result of range expansion,
but others revealed by advances in identification and technology. Secondly it deals
with eight species which were listed in the Atlas in Appendix 1. These had been added
provisionally to the list between 2000 and 2005 but some were then still under review
by the East African Rarities Committee (EARC). Thirdly, it deals with species known
before 1980 then not recorded again until after publication of the Atlas. Finally, it
summarizes details of species known before 1980 but not recorded since.

Additions to the Uganda list since publication of the Atlas

Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga

An adult was photographed and identified by Dick Forsman at Murchison Falls
National Park on 15 December 2009. A full description has been provided and a
photograph appears in Bulletin of the African Bird Club 17(2), 2010. Accepted by the
EARC. Although a few sight records had been reported previously, no descriptions
were received and the species was not on the Uganda list.

Eleonora’s Falcon Falco eleonorae

The Atlas gives an unsubstantiated record from Kidepo in 1972. Recent studies using
satellite transmitters attached to captured birds have confirmed that this species
occurs in Uganda. An adult trapped on 17 September 2007 on Mallorca, Spain, was
tracked using satellite telemetry through Libya, Chad and Sudan, then into Uganda
on its journey south to the wintering area in Madagascar (L6pez-Lopez et al. 2009). In
2008, four birds trapped in Greece in October were followed on their journey south.
One of these was tracked flying over south-west Uganda.

Grey-throated Rail Canirallus oculeus

Urban Olsson was able to identify and sound record two individuals.in Semliki
National Park on 21-22 July 1996. This record was accepted by the EARC. Two earlier
records from the same area are catalogued in the Atlas but with no supporting details.

Wattled Crane Bugeranus carunculatus

On 2 May 2009 one was located at Kibimba Rice Scheme by Sarah Nachuha Kasozi
in a flock of Grey Crowned Cranes Balearica regulorum. She contacted Achilles
Byaruhanga who photographed the bird next day. It remained until at least 26 June. A

54 R. Skeen

photograph is published on the NatureUganda website (http:/ /www.natureuganda.
org/). Accepted by the EARC.

White-crowned Plover Vanellus albiceps

On 10 July 2003 a bird was discovered by Dave Richards on the River Nile in Murchison
Falls National Park (see Scopus 26: 48-49). Accepted by the EARC. Further records
from the same site involved a pair in January 2004, a pair with small chicks on 6 July
2006, and then subsequent annual reports. The species is evidently consolidating its
position.

Pacific Golden Plover Pluvialis fulva

On 15 February 2007 six birds were identified by Allan Kirby on grassy flats bordering
reed beds near the Ishasha River in Queen Elizabeth National Park. A full description
and photographs were taken (see Bulletin of the African Bird Club 15: 98-99). Accepted
by the EARC. A second record on 1 January 2009 involved four birds at the same site.

Great Knot Calidris tenutrostris

On 8 December 2010 a knot species found by the author at Lutembe Lagoon was
suspected to be a Great Knot C. tenuirostris. Some poor and inconclusive photographs
were taken, but better ones were obtained by Achilles Byaruhanga on 20 December
2010 and these conclusively confirmed the species, an addition to the Uganda list. The
bird was still present on 5 January 2011, but was not seen subsequently. Accepted by
the EARC (for more details see pages 84-85 in this issue).

White-eyed Gull Larus leucophthalmus

An adult in summer plumage was observed at Lutembe Lagoon on 22 November 2002
by Malcolm Wilson, Chris Sharpe, Ian Kerton, Barry Williams and Nathan Eluku. It
was seen with a few Grey-headed Gulls Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus and about 40
Lesser Black-backed Gulls L. fuscus. A full description was taken and the record has
been added to the Uganda list. Accepted by the EARC.

Franklin’s Gull Larus pipixcan

An adult was discovered in Murchison Falls National Park on 8 June 2011 by Jonathan
Rossouw. It was resting on mud flats with a small flock of Grey-headed Gulls, Gull-
billed Terns Gelochelidon nilotica and a single Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus
ridibundus at the confluence of the River Nile and Lake Albert. A splendid image was
published in Bulletin of the African Bird Club 19: 108. Accepted by the EARC.

Black Tern Childonias niger

A first-winter bird was identified and photographed by Dick Forsman at the Kasinga
Channel in Queen Elizabeth National Park on 8 December 2009. It was present in
a flock of several hundred White-winged Black Terns C. leucopterus. A photograph
is published in Bulletin of the African Bird Club 17(2). Accepted by the EARC. The
main migration of Black Terns is along the West coast of Africa to wintering areas in
Namibia.

Fischer’s Lovebird Agapornis fischeri
First noted at Entebbe Botanical Gardens on 14 Jan 2006, since when further records
have come from Gaba, with a single bird on 5 December 2010, three on 3 March 2011,

A review of birds in Uganda 30

and a pair on 20 March 2011. Its status as a wild bird is clouded by escapes from
captivity.

Thick-billed Cuckoo Pachycoccyx audeberti

The first accepted record was a bird described from Lake Mburo National Park on 29
March 2000 by Charlie Williams. Accepted by the EARC. Further records from the
same site involved a displaying bird on 24 March 2006 and another single bird on 2
September 2007. An earlier record from Murchison Falls National Park has not been
substantiated.

Yellow Penduline Tit Anthoscopus parvulus

First documented for Uganda when Guillaume Passavy discovered two individuals
on 11 June 2009 in the vicinity of Rhino Camp at Balala Swamp, Arua District. A full
description was submitted and accepted by the EARC. It has since been recorded
several times in Murchison Falls National Park by Pete Morris, and most recently
on the south side of the River Nile at Red Chili camp where a pair was recorded
by the author on 25 October 2010. This inconspicuous species has presumably been
overlooked.

Boran Cisticola Cisticola bodessa

In June 2011 Sheila Taylor realized on regular walks that cisticola song changed in
character from that of the regular Rattling Cisticola C. chiniana as she ascended Mt
Moroto. She sound recorded the song and calls of the birds concerned and concluded
that they matched those of Boran Cisticola. These recordings and a description were
submitted to the EARC and the species was accepted onto the Uganda list.

Southern Black Flycatcher Melaenornis pammelaina

There are several recent reports from Lake Mburo National Park, including a pair
on 25 July 2002, a pair with a juvenile 6 February 2003 and three birds on 5 February
2004. The author cbserved a “shiny” Black Flycatcher there on 12 February 2010, and
then a pair from 5 to 7 March 2010, including a singing male. Accepted by the EARC.

Coilared Flycatcher Ficedula albicollis

An immaculate male was photographed by Phil Palmer in the Kasenyi area of Queen
Elizabeth National Park on 10 March 2006. Accepted by the EARC. The Atlas states,
“There have been published records for F. albicollis from Uganda, but the position is
confused (with F. semitorquata) and it has not been reliably reported.”

Golden-naped Weaver Ploceus aureonucha

On 1 August 2006 a group led by Malcolm Wilson discovered two unidentified
“nuthatch” WeaversinSemlikiNationalPark;they appeared tobeapair. Afterexamining
photographs made available by the American Museum of Natural History, the Vienna
Naturhistorische Museum and the Stockholm Natural History Museum, they identified
the birds as Golden-naped Weavers. This record was published in the Bulletin of the
African Bird Club Bulletin 14: 200-202, and was accepted by the EARC. A second record
by Herbert Byaruhanga, again from Semliki National Park, involved a female on 16
June 2009. As this species was previously known only from the Ituri Forest in Eastern
Democratic Republic of Congo, these Semliki records extend the range eastwards by
80 km.

56 R. Skeen

Blue-capped Cordon-bleu Uraeginthus cyanocephalus

A pair was found in the Moroto region of Karamoja on 4 September 2011 by the author
and Michael Opigi. The birds were present in degraded Acacia thornbush, habitat
similar to that in which the species occurs in neighbouring Kenya, so its discovery
was not so surprising. Accepted by the EARC.

Additions to the Uganda list confirmed between January 2000 and 2005
These were all listed within Appendix 1 of the Atlas.

Great Bittern Botaurus stellaris

The Atlas gives a poorly documented record from the west bank of the Nile at Laropi
on 2 April 1948. There were no other records until a bird was seen at Kibimba rice
scheme on 20 November 2002 by Malcolm Wilson, Chris Sharpe, Ian Kerton and Barry
Williams (see also Bulletin of the African Bird Club 12: 47). Accepted by the EARC.

Red-footed Falcon Falco vespertinus

A record of three birds at Moroto in May 1966 was considered by Pearson & Turner
(1986) as unsubstantiated. The species was accepted for the Uganda list when a bird
was recorded at Murchison Falls National Park on 4 October 2000 by Malcolm Wilson.
Accepted by the EARC.

Saker Falcon Falco cherrug

This Palaearctic species is listed for Kidepo Valley National Park but no documentation
is available so that a bird seen at Moroto on 7 January 2001 by Malcolm Wilson is the
first acceptable record. Accepted by the EARC.

Southern Carmine Bee-eater Merops nubicoides

The Atlas gives a record from Lake Mburo on 20 July 1998, when this was considered
to be asubspecies of Carmine Bee-eater M. nubicus. It was recorded again in Murchison
Falls National Park on 17 July 2003, by Brian Finch and group. Two birds were found
among a party of about 20 Northern Carmine Bee-eaters and photographs were
published in the Bulletin of the African Bird Club 15(1).

Ansorge’s Greenbul Andropadus ansorgei

The only acceptable record involves a bird seen on 2 August 2001 at Buhoma in the
Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park by Nik Borrow (see Bulletin of the African
Bird Club 9: 140-141). Accepted by the EARC. The nominate race ansorgei breeds
discontinuously from Sierra Leone to the Democratic Republic of Congo, while the
subspecies kavirondensis breeds in Western Kenya. The lack of Uganda records is
perhaps due to confusion with the more widespread Little Grey Greenbul A. gracilis.

Pale Wren Warbler Calamonastes undosus

On 19 September 2000 one was discovered in grass and acacia scrub in Lake Mburo
National Park by Malcolm Wilson and party (see Scopus 23: 44-45). It is known across
the border in North-West Tanzania, so its arrival was not unexpected, but to date this
is the only Uganda record. Accepted by EARC.

House Sparrow Passer domesticus
Added to the Uganda list in November 2001 when a small party was found at Kibimba

A review of birds in Uganda 57

rice scheme by Malcolm Wilson. The species has since consolidated its range and is
now found throughout most towns and villages of Uganda, with records received
from the north-west, south-west, south, east and central regions. Indeed, only the far
north-east has yet to provide records.

Orange-cheeked Waxbill Estrilda melpoda

The first Uganda record of this West African species involved eight birds found in
Semliki National Park on 26 December 2002 by David Gee and Fay Enright. Accepted
by the EARC. This was followed by a sighting in the same area on 7 June 2003 by K.D.
Dijkstra and Godfrey Bakyesiima, and then further records in 2005, 2006 and January
2011.

Species known from before 1980, and for which there are recent post-Atlas
records

Kori Bustard Ardeotis kori

There are two or three old records, the last from Kidepo in 1966. Recent evidence has
shown the species as still present in Kidepo. A fine photograph was taken there by
Byekwaso Blasio on 24 May 2010 and a single bird was seen by Lotuk Benard in April
2011.

Egyptian Plover Pluvianus aegyptius

Included in the Atlas on the strength of two specimens from the Achwa River on the
Uganda-Sudan border, the first undated, the second collected on 9 December 1913
(Jackson & Sclater 1938). There are several recent records of single birds from the
River Nile in Murchison Falls National Park. Photographs have been published — the
most recent taken on 13 March 2011 by John Lofgreen, and which appears on the
NatureUganda website.

Forbes’s Plover Charadrius forbesi

One was photographed at Lake Nabugabo on 27 May 2010 by Fred Hodgson. Accepted
by the EARC. This was the fourth record for Uganda, the third having come from the
same site on 20 February 1971. The following year (2011) an adult was recorded at the
same site by the author and Ian Little.

Greater Sandplover Charadrius leschenaultii

A bird found and identified by the author at Entebbe on 4 September 2010, and
photographed together with a Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola and a Ruff Philomachus
pugnax, represents the second Ugandan record. Accepted by the EARC. The first
record was from Entebbe Airport on 25 September 1966 (Pearson 1972).

Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse Pterocles lichtensteinii

There have been several recent reports from Kidepo Valley National Park, and near
Moroto, the most recent concerning two birds flushed in the park by the author on 25
April 2011 (see Bulletin of the African Bird Club 18(2)). Old records from Karamoja are
given by Jackson (1926) and Jackson & Sclater (1938).

African Barred Owlet Glaucidium capense
A group led by Harriet Kemigisha had excellent views of a bird in the Semliki Valley
on 24 January 2011. A full description has been received. This represents only the

58 R. Skeen

second record for Uganda, the first involving a female collected at Ntandi in the
Bwamba Forest, Semliki Valley on 8 December 1968 (Friedmann & Williams 1971).

Red-rumped Tinkerbird Pogoniulus atroflavus

There have been several recent records from Semliki Valley, including a report by
Phil Gregory (Bulletin of the African Bird Club 18(2)). The Atlas gives records from
Bwamba Forest in 1963 and Ntandi in 1967.

African Piculet Sasia africana

Records from Semliki include a report by Phil Gregory (Bulletin of the African Bird Club
18(2)) and most recently by Harriet Kemigisha and group of two pairs on 24 January
2011. These are the first since the earlier records, all from Bwamba in the 1960s.

Marsh Warbler Acrocephalus palustris

Birds were trapped and ringed by the author at Gaba on 19 November 2010 and 20
March 2011. Five birds trapped at the same site between 19 November and 2 December
1967 (Pearson 1972) and one trapped there on 4 December 2000 by Malcolm Wilson
represent the only other unequivocal Uganda records.

Black-backed Cisticola Cisticola eximius

Records in recent years from grasslands in Murchison Falls National Park have
included those from the warden, this author and Derek Pomeroy. Apart from an
anonymous Murchinson Falls National Park report this species had not been recorded
in Uganda since Jackson & Sclater wrote in 1938.

Rock-loving Cisticola Cisticola aberrans

There are recent records from Kidepo Valley National Park, with sightings and
photographic evidence by the author, Achilles Byaruhanga and Harriet Kemigisha
from 2010 and 2011. There was just one earlier record, also from Kidepo (Elliott, 1972).

Red-fronted Warbler Spiloptila rufifrons
Confirmed as being present in Kidepo Valley National Park, most recently by the

author on 25 April 2011. The only older record involves a bird seen in Karamoja in
November 1965 (Mann 1971).

Pale Prinia Prinia somalica

Seen by the author in Kidepo Valley National Park on 17-20 January 2010 and 25
April 2011 . Otherwise known only from a single bird collected on Mt Moroto in 1963
(Friedmann 1966).

Chapin’s Flycatcher Muscicapa lendu

There have been several recent records from Bwindi Impenetrable National Forest.
Otherwise known in Uganda from a single bird collected in Bwindi in 1960 (Keith &
Twomey 1968).

Orange Tufted Sunbird Cinnyris bouvieri

Recorded fairly regularly in recent years. It was considered scarce in the Atlas which
could report no records since 1972.

Cut-throat Finch Amadina fasciata
A bird was photographed in Kidepo Valley National Park in March 2010, and three

A review of birds in Uganda 59

birds were seen there on 25 April 2011. Considered rare and local by the Atlas which
mentions records from Kidepo in August 1966.

Notes on species recorded in Uganda before 1980 but not since

Black-necked Grebe Podiceps nigricollis
Rare with just two records, from Queen Elizabeth Natinoal Park January 1969 and
Muko, Kabale, January 1970.

Cape Teal Anas capensis
Square-bracketed in the Atlas as unproven, but a record by Chapin (1932) of three
birds at Katwe near Lake Edward in January 1927 appears to have been overlooked.

Common Pochard Aythya ferina

Now very scarce. Birds were shot in western Uganda at Lake Nakivali in November
1925 and at Lake Mogishu in December 1938, and there were sight records from
Queen Elizabeth National Park in January 1966, December 1969 and (up to 4) during
December/January 1970/71 (Pearson & Turner 1986).

Ferruginous Duck Aythya nyroca
The only definite record is from Butiaba, Lake Albert, on 13 November 1901 (Jackson
1926).

Maccoa Duck Oxyura maccoa

The Atlas gives only three records, all before 1935; at the north end of Lake Kyoga, on
Lake Bunyonyi and at Lake Kayumba where a male was collected on 20 November
1933;

Chestnut-flanked Goshawk Accipiter castanilius
A single male was collected in Bwamba Forest on 1 April 1963 (Friedmann 1966).

Shelley’s Francolin Francolinus shelleyi

The only record is of three females collected at Murema, south-west Uganda, by
Doggett in April 1903, now in the Natural History Museum, Tring.

Orange River Francolin Francolinus levaillantoides

Few Uganda records. Seen on Mt Moroto in 1913, and three birds were collected there
in May 1963 (Friedmann 1966). Then seen in hilly country in Kidepo Valley National
Park in August 1966 (Elliott 1972).

Little Crake Porzana parva
The sole record is of four females collected by G.F. Archer, with three others seen, in
a swamp near Butiaba on 6 December 1901 (Jackson & Sclater 1938).

Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus
There is a single old record of one at Entebbe on 20 March 1915 (Meinertzhagen 1922).

Pallas’s or Great Black-headed Gull Larus ichthyaetus

The only record is of a first summer bird that remained at Entebbe between 16 April
and 25 September 1966 (Pearson 1971, Mann 1971).

60 R. Skeen

Lesser Crested Tern Sterna bengalensis
Known only from a sight record from Entebbe dated 6 August 1950 which was
accepted by Britton & Brown (1974).

Eurasian Scops Owl Otus scops

Known from a few specimens collected between Kampala and Jinja early last century
(van Someren 1916, 1932, Jackson & Sclater 1938). A report from West Nile in April
1966 is unsubstantiated.

Bates’s Nightjar Caprimulgus batesi

There are just three definite Uganda records of this Central African rain forest species,
the last being a bird collected at Nkarara (now in Semliki National Park) in July 1967
(Friedmann & Williams 1968).

Pallid Swift Apus pallidus

Due to confusion with other swifts this species is undoubtedly overlooked. A bird
collected at Mt Moroto and assigned to the race brehmorum represents the only reliable
record (Pearson & Turner 1986).

Southern Ground Hornbill Bucorvus leadbeateri

The Atlas gives just two old specimen records from south-east Uganda as definite:
Bosoga November 1984 (Jackson 1902) and Mudama (Jackson & Sclater 1938).

Singing Bush-Lark Mirafra cantillans

The Atlas mentions specimens collected at Kumi, April 1913, and Soroti, November
1917, and it was recorded in Kidepo Valley National Park in August 1966 (Elliott
1972). Other more recent records have been received, but with insufficient supporting
detail.

Pink-breasted Lark Mirafra poecilosterna
The Atlas gives a single record, a male collected north of Moroto in January 1913.

Chestnut-backed Sparrow-Lark Eremopterix leucotis
Recorded early last century from Mt Moroto and Mt Napak (van Someren 1921, 1922),
and listed anonymously for Kidepo Valley National Park.

Tawny Pipit Anthus campestris
The only record is of a bird feeding with Yellow Wagtails Motacilla flava at Entebbe on
4 December 1966 (Pearson 1972).

Sassi’s Olive Greenbul Phyllastrephus lorenzi

The only record is of a specimen collected in the Bwamba Lowlands in Semliki on 17
June 1967 (Friedmann & Williams 1968).

Yellow-throated Nicator Nicator vireo

Three were collected in Bwamba Forest in July 1945 (van Someren & van Someren
1949) and several more specimens subsequently (Friedmann 1966, Friedmann &
Williams 1971). Although recent sight records have been reported from Semliki no
descriptions have been offered.

A review of birds in Uganda 61

Thrush Nightingale Luscinia luscinia

The Atlas gives just two specimen records, both from Moroto in 1917: one in January
(van Someren 1921), the other, in December, examined at the American Museum of
Natural History and bearing a Meinertzhagen & Turner label.

Forest Scrub Robin Cercotrichas leucosticta

Known from a single bird collected in Bwamba Forest on 23 July 1960 (Keith &
Twomey 1968). Recent reports from Semliki Valley have not been accompanied by
adequate description.

Rufous Bush Chat Cercotrichas galactotes
The only record is of a bird seen in Kidepo Valley National Park on 15 October 1969
by A.P. Zeigler (Pearson & Turner 1986).

Capped Wheatear Oenanthe pileata
There were confirmed records in the 1960s from the West Nile region (J. Mackenzie-
Grieves) and from the Queen Elizabeth National Park (see Britton 1980).

River Warbler Locustella fluviatilis

One was collected at Mweya in Queen Elizabeth National Park on 24 November 1970
by M.P.L. Fogden (Pearson & Turner 1986).

Upcher’s Warbler Hippolais languida

The only satisfactory records are from the southeast. Birds were trapped and ringed
at Kachong’a and Lake Bisina in late March 1971; another was seen at Lake Bisina on
2 April 1972 (Rolfe & Pearson 1973).

Turner’s Eremomela Eremomela turneri
A specimen collected in the 1930s from Nyondo Forest, Kigezi, on the Uganda/
Democratic Republic of Congo border (Jackson & Sclater 1938) is the only record.

Common Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita

Found to be common in the Cheptui and Chebonnet valleys of northwest Elgon
between December and March 1971-1972, mainly at 2500-3000 m. Two were also
trapped and ringed on 19 December 1971 at Lake Bisina, thought to be on passage
(Rolfe & Pearson 1973). There appear to have been no records since, although a
Finnish-ringed bird was recovered in central Uganda on 29 December 1976 (Dowsett
et al. 1988).

Southern Hyliota Hyliota australis
The only record concerns a pair of the race slatini collected at Hakitengya in the
Semliki Valley in October 1946 (van Someren & van Someren 1949),

Wailing Cisticola Cisticola lais
Known only from Mt Moroto where it was collected by Lynes (1930) and six more
specimens (including three juveniles ) were taken in May 1963 (Friedmann 1966).

Grey-headed Batis Batis orientalis
Because of confusion with Black-headed Batis B. minor, the only unequivocal record is
of a male collected on Mt Moroto on 12 May 1963 (Friedmann 1966).

62 R. Skeen

Spotted Creeper Salpornis spilonotus

The only records concern a pair of the race salvadori collected at Sebei, Mt Elgon, in
February 1890 (Sharpe 1891) and birds of the race emini in Arua district (Jackson &
Sclater 1938).

Fiery-breasted Bushshrike Malaconotus cruentus

Several specimens were collected from the Bwamba lowlands in the Semliki Forest
between 1957 and the late 1960s (Williams 1957, Friedmann 1966, Friedmann &
Williams 1968). It has not been recorded since.

Red-eyed Puffback Dryoscopus angolensis

Seen and collected in Bwamba lowlands July-September 1944 (van Someren & van
Someren 1949), and collected again there in November 1971 (Friedmann & Williams
1971).

Red-bellied Malimbe Malimbus erythrogaster

The only definite record concerns a specimen collected from Bwamba Forest in the
Semliki Valley (van Someren & van Someren 1949). Reports from Budongo Forest
remain unsubstantiated.

Acknowledgements

Particular mention must be made to the members of the East Africa Rarities Committee
who have vetted many of these records, while the comments and suggestions of Achilles
Byaruhanga, Derek Pomeroy, Don Turner and David Pearson have been particularly useful.

References

Britton, P.L. (Ed). 1980. Birds of East Africa. Nairobi: East Africa Natural History Society.

Britton, P.L. & Brown, L.H. 1974. The status and breeding behaviour of East African Lari.
Ostrich 45: 63-82.

Carswell, M., Pomeroy, D., Reynolds, J. & Tushabe, H. 2005. The Bird Atlas of Uganda. Oxford:
British Ornithologists’ Club & British Ornithologists’ Union.

Carswell, M. 1986. Birds of the Kampala Area. Scopus special supplement Number 2.

Chapin, J.P. 1932. Birds of the Belgian Congo Part 1. Bulletin of the American Museum of Natural
History, vol. 65.

Dowsett, R.J., Backhurst, G.C. & Oatley, T.B. 1988. Afrotropical ringing recoveries of Palaearctic
migrants 1: Passerines (Turdidae to Oriolidae). Tauraco 1: 29-63.

Elliott, C.C.H. 1972. An ornithological survey of Kidepo National Park. Journal of the East Africa
Natural History Society and National Museum 129: 1-31.

Friedmann, H. 1966. Contribution to ornithology in Uganda. Bulletin of Los Angeles County
Museum of Natural History Science 3: 1-55.

Friedmann, H. & Williams, J.G. 1968. Notable records of rare and little known birds from
western Uganda. Revue de Zoologie et de Botanique Africaines (Bruxelles) 77: 11-36.

Friedmann, H. & Williams, J.G. 1971. The birds of the lowlands of Bwamba, Toro Province,
Uganda. Los Angeles County Museum of Natural History Contributions in Science 211.

Jackson, F.J. 1902. List of birds obtained in British East Africa. Part 3. Ibis 2: 611-643.

Jackson, F.J. 1926. Notes on the game birds of Kenya and Uganda. London: Williams and Norgate.

Jackson, F.J. & Sclater, W.L. 1938. Birds of Kenya Colony and the Uganda Protectorate. 3 volumes.
London: Gurney & Jackson.

Keith, S. & Twomey, A. 1968. New distributional records of some East African birds. [bis 110:
537-548.

A review of birds in Uganda 63

L6pez-Lopez, P., Limifana, R. & Urios, V. 2009. Autumn migration of Eleonora’s Falcon Falco
eleonorae tracked by satellite telemetry. Zoological Studies 48: 485-491.

Lynes, H. 1930. A review of the genus Cisticola. Ibis Cisticola Supplement.

Mann, C.F. 1971. Distributional notes on some Uganda birds. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’
Club 91: 111-113.

Meinertzhagen, R. 1922. Notes on some birds from the Near East and from Tropical East Africa.
Part 1 Ibis 4: 1-74.

Pearson, DJ. 1971. The occurrence of a Great Black-headed Gull Larus ichthaetus in Uganda.
Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’ Club 91: 171-172.

Pearson, D.J. 1972. Some migrant bird records from the Kampala area, Uganda. EANHS Bulletin
1972: 27-29.

Pearson, D.J. & Turner, D.A. 1986. The less common Palaearctic migrant birds of Uganda.
Scopus 10: 61-82.

Rolfe, J.G. & Pearson, D.J. 1973. Some recent records of Palaearctic migrants from from East
Africa. EANHS Bulletin 1973: 62-66.

Sharpe, R.B. 1891. On the birds collected by Mr. F.J. Jackson during his recent expedition to
Uganda through the territory of the Imperial British East Africa Company. Ibis 3 part 2:
587-602.

Stephenson, T. & Fanshawe, J. 2002. Field guide to the birds of East Africa. London: T, & A.D.
Poyser.

van Someren, V.G.L. 1916. A list of birds collected in Uganda and British East Africa, with notes
on nesting and other habits. Parts 1 and 2. Ibis 4: 193-252, 373-472.

van Someren, V.G.L. 1921. On a collection of birds from Turkanaland. Journal of the East Africa
and Uganda Natural History Society 16: 3-38

van Someren, V.G.L. 1922. Notes on the Birds of East Africa. Novitates Zoologicae 29: 1-246.

van Someren, V.G.L. 1932. Birds of Kenya and Uganda, being addenda and corrigenda to my
previous paper in Novitates Zoologicae 29, 1922. Novitates Zoologicae 37: 252-380.

van Someren, V.G.L. & van Someren, G.R.C. 1949. The birds of Bwamba. Special Supplement to
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Williams, J.G. 1957. Four new bird records for eastern Africa. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’
Club 77: 151-160.

Roger Q. Skeen
NatureUganda, Plot 1, Katalina Crescent, Naguru, PO Box 27034, Kampala, Uganda

Scopus 33: 53-63, January 2014
Received 29 November 2011

Scopus 33: 64-69 January 2014
The Kavirondo Escarpment: a previously
unrecognized site of high conservation
value in Western Kenya

James Bradley and David Bradley

Summary

In western Kenya, extant woodland habitats and their representative bird species are
increasingly scarce outside of protected areas. With the assistance of satellite imagery
we located several minimally impacted ecosystems on the Kavirondo Escarpment
(0°1.7'S, 34°56.5’ E), which we then visited to examine the vegetation communities
and investigate the avifauna. Despite only a limited effort there, we report several
new atlas square occurrences, presence of the local and poorly known Rock Cisticola
Cisticola emini and a significant range extension for the Stone Partridge Ptilopachus
petrosus. Our short visits indicate high avian species richness is associated with the
escarpment and we suggest comprehensive biodiversity surveys here are warranted.

Introduction

The Kavirondo Escarpment in central-west Kenya is a significant geologic and
topographic feature. It straddles the equator, extending over 45km from east to
west, and comprises the northern fault line escarpment of the Kavirondo Rift Valley
(Baker et al. 1972). Immediately to the south lie the lowlands of the Lake Victoria
Basin and Nyando River Valley, and to the north, the high plateau of the western
Kenya highlands (Fig. 1). The escarpment slopes range in elevation from 1200-1700 m
at the western end to 1500-2000 m in the east, where it gradually merges with the
Nandi Hills. Numerous permanent and seasonal drainages on the escarpment greatly
increase the extent of land surface and variation in slope gradients, as well as the
richness of vegetation communities. These include humid gallery forest in drainages,
open woodland on slopes, and areas of low dense bush at lower elevations. Some
prominent tree genera represented on the central and eastern areas of the escarpment
include Acacia, Terminalia, Erythrina and Combretum, while small shrubs, large
boulders and scree slopes characterise much of the terrain towards the western end.

The Kavirondo Escarpment is situated close to popular and historic birding
locations in the Nyando Valley such as Ahero, Awasi and Nyarondo, and to the South
Nandi Forest in the Nandi Hills. Despite this, very little appears to be known of its
avifauna although the western end, sometimes known as the Maragoli Escarpment,
was noted as a site for Ring-necked Francolin by Frederick Jackson over 100 years ago
(Zimmerman et al. 1996).

To assess the escarpment’s birding potential we visited three different locations in
a total of four short visits (2-4 hours each); 20 Jan 2011, 18 Feb 2012 (twice) and 19 Feb
2012. Although the escarpment extends across three atlas squares (60B, 61A and 49C;
Lewis & Pomeroy 1989), all the locations we visited are situated in atlas square 60B,
at elevations between 1350-1650 m. Below, we provide notes on: a) species observed
of interest, and b) species for which the observation represents a new atlas square

The Kavirondo Escarpment 65

occurrence, or new post-1970 occurrence as mapped by Lewis & Pomeroy (1989).
All further comments on species distributions are based on Lewis & Pomeroy (1989)
unless noted otherwise.

Muhoroni
} ® a
\ pr ee ge

Lake ~ f my
Victoria >> : | 30km

Figure 1. Map showing the Kavirondo Escarpment dividing the highlands of
Western Kenya and the lowlands of the Kavirondo Rift Valley and Winam Gulf,
Lake Victoria. Asterisks indicate the three sites visited: A) 18 Feb 2012 (1 hour of
observations), B) 20 Jan 2011 and 18 Feb 2012 (4 hours combined), C) 19 Feb 2012
(4 hours). Darker shading represents higher elevations and contours shown are

for 1400 m, 1600m and 1800 m.

Species Accounts

[Stone Partridge Ptilopachus petrosus]|

On the evening of 18 Feb 2012 while attempting to record the calls of African Firefinch
Lagonosticta rubricata, we inadvertently recorded the calls of a gallinaceous-sounding
bird near the western end of the escarpment. Reviewing our audio files subsequently,
we and other colleagues have thought that these short background calls are possibly
those of Stone Partridge. The habitat on the escarpment appears suitable for this
species, and this record, probably of resident birds, would represent a noteworthy
range extension and the furthest south to date, being 150 km from the nearest known
population on the Kongelai Escarpment (Zimmerman et al. 1996). Bearing in mind this
species’ secretive nature during much of the year, it may well have been overlooked
elsewhere [nearby] and targeted searches may reveal its presence in similar rocky
habitat in the Maseno, Adungosi and Malaba areas (B. Finch, pers. comm.).

Western Banded Snake Eagle Circaetus cinarescens

Two adults were seen well and a third was heard calling in mature woodland at
two different locations. This is a scarce and local species in Kenya (Zimmerman ef al.
1996), which may be declining at this site as woodland habitat is cleared for charcoal
production.

Martial Eagle Polemaetus bellicosus
A single independent juvenile of this globally Near-Threatened species (Birdlife

66 J. Bradley and D. Bradley

International 2013) was seen well soaring westwards along the upper reaches of the
escarpment. There are no previous records from this atlas square although there are
several probable breeding records from nearby areas.

African Black Swift Apus barbatus

Five birds were seen well, whilst foraging together at 1500m prior to a heavy, late
afternoon thunderstorm. They were identified by their similarity to Common Swift
A. apus but with a blacker appearance and a white throat contrasting strongly with a
dark forehead. This is a local species of highland areas in western Kenya (Zimmerman
et al. 1996) but is unrecorded from this atlas square.

Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater Merops oreobates

Several pairs were seen in open woodland at mid-elevations on the escarpment. This
species, restricted to the East Africa Highlands Biome (Bennun & Njoroge 1999), is
known in this atlas square from pre-1970 records only, though it may well be resident
here.

Northern Puffback Dryoscopus gambensis

Two individuals were seen at two sites in bushy woodland. There is no record from
this atlas square although it may be fairly common here and merely overlooked. It is
typically found to the north of the equator (Zimmerman et al. 1996), though we have
seen it south of here in the nearby Nyando Valley, as well as at Kericho.

Red-shouldered Cuckooshrike Campephaga phoenicea

On 18 Feb 2012 we observed and recorded a single female in open woodland at 1450m
where it called for an extended period of time from the top of a mostly leafless tree.
While time constraints prevented us from studying the bird closely so as to visually
distinguish it from the Black Cuckooshrike C. flava, our recordings closely match
online recordings of this species but not those of Black Cuckooshrike. This is a very
infrequently reported species in Kenya, where it is known from the far west only.
There are pre-1970 records from this atlas square, though it is known more recently
from nearby Kakamega (Pearson & Turner 1998) and Kaimosi (C. Mann, pers. comm.).

Rock Martin Ptyonoprogne fuligula

This widespread species is probably fairly common on the escarpment, with small
numbers observed in two locations. Although generally not resident across most
of the Lake Victoria Basin, the absence of previous records from this atlas square is
probably a reflection of low observer effort in suitable habitat.

Singing Cisticola Cisticola cantans

A pair was audio-recorded duetting from thicket and forest edge at 1500 m. There are
no previous records from this atlas square, although the species is common in nearby
highland areas.

Whistling Cisticola Cisticola lateralis

Family groups were observed and tape-recorded in two different locations in open
woodland and ravine thicket. In Kenya, this is a local and uncommon species found
in the far west only, where it reaches the eastern edge of its continental range. It has
been reported at nearby Kakamega (Pearson & Turner 1998) and although previously

The Kavirondo Escarpment 67

unrecorded in this atlas square, it is probably resident at this site where there is
suitable habitat.

Rock Cisticola Cisticola aberrans

A single individual was seen briefly but well at 1450m, firstly on a boulder and then
inasmall shrub. Our field notes at the time describe the bird as follows: an unstreaked
and clean looking, prinia-like cisticola, uniform sandy-buff below and darker brown
above; crown a contrasting rufous; tail quite long and cocked. Although we did not
note the pale supercilium described in field guides, it seems possible that we could
have missed this feature during our brief views. In Kenya, this is a very poorly known
species of boulder slopes and rocky hills, previously known west of the Rift Valley
only from the Oloololo Escarpment in the northwest Maasai Mara (Zimmerman et
al. 1996). The subspecies there, C. a. emini, may well be the same as that which we
report here, although our experience with the species is insufficient to make that
determination.

Little Greenbul Andropadus virens

Known in this atlas square from pre-1970 records only, this vocal species appeared to
be common and was heard singing from several ravines with good tree cover and a
thick understorey.

Yellow-bellied Hyliota Hyliota flavigasier

A pair was seen well and photographed in open woodland at 1400m on 20 Jan 2011.
This is a very scarce and local species in Kenya, only occurring west of the Rift valley
and with most records falling in the June-August period (Lewis & Pomeroy 1989). It
is previously unrecorded from this atlas square, although there are old records from
nearby areas of Fort Ternan and Kericho (Zimmerman et al. 1996), 45km and 50 km to
the south-east respectively.

Green-capped Eremomela Eremomela scotops

A pair of the subspecies E.s. citriniceps was seen well and photographed in open,
grassed woodland at 1400m, where they foraged primarily in small acacia trees.
This is a scarce and local species in Kenya, the nearest known site also situated in
atlas square 60B, at Kendu Bay, from where there are pre-1970 records only. The
Kavirondo Escarpment represents a 50 km north-easterly extension of range and only
the second known area where it overlaps with its largely allopatric sister species, the
Green-backed Eremomela E. canescens, which is known from the Muhoroni area in the
adjacent Nyando Valley (Zimmerman et al. 1996).

Grey-winged Robin Sheppardia polioptera

A single individual was seen well along the margins of dense understorey and gallery
forest in a spring-fed drainage. There are no previous records from this atlas square
although it is locally common in the nearby Nandi Hills.

Familiar Chat Cercomela familiaris

A single individual was seen briefly but well, in fairly dense and humid bush at 1350 m.
We ruled out the possibility of a female Common Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus, by
its larger size and greyer colouration. This species is local and infrequently reported
in Kenya, being more numerous in the north, in rocky, bushed habitat similar to that

68 J. Bradley and D. Bradley

on the Kavirondo Escarpment. It is previously unrecorded from this atlas square,
although there are both pre- and post-1970 records from several nearby areas.

Little Rock Thrush Monticola rufocinereus

Two counter-singing males and a pair were seen at two different locations, both at
1500m. This local and uncommon species, restricted to the East African Highlands
Biome (Bennun & Njoroge 1999), is previously unrecorded from this atlas square
although it may be resident here in small numbers.

Olive-bellied Sunbird Cinnyris chloropygius

Previously unrecorded from this atlas square, although known to occur at nearby
Kisumu and Koru (pers. obs.), a single male was seen well in dense thicket and ravine
woodland at 1350 m. This is a locally common species in far Western Kenya, occurring
here at the very eastern edge of its continental range (Zimmerman et al. 1996).

Long-billed Pipit Anthus similis

A single bird was seen well in bushed grassland on steep rocky ground at 1450m.
Though previously unrecorded in this atlas square, it is known to be a widespread
species at low densities and possibly overlooked (Lewis & Pomeroy 1989).

Discussion

Biogeographically, the Kavirondo Escarpment exhibits similarities with other
escarpment avifaunas in Western Kenya and in particular the Oloololo Escarpment
in the north-west Maasai Mara 130km to the south. Species of note shared between
the latter site and the Kavirondo Escarpment include Rock Cisticola, Yellow-bellied
Hyliota, Green-capped Eremomela, Familiar Chat and Long-billed Pipit. The presence
of such local and infrequently recorded species here is a testament to the integrity
of the indigenous vegetation communities that remain, although these are certainly
exposed to considerable anthropogenic pressure.

The human population both below and above the slopes is high, and while the
rocky terrain is largely unsuitable for farming, a number of other activities appear to
be causing a gradual denuding and degradation of vegetation cover. In particular, the
production of charcoal is highly destructive, with tree felling preceded by annual/
semi-annual dry season burning and livestock grazing. Populations of woodland
birds in particular are likely at risk from this disturbance. However, while woodland
habitat remains, we can recommend this site as a very productive birding location
worthy of further study and surveys, in particular to establish the continued presence
of Ring-necked Francolin.

Acknowledgements

We would like to thank D. Turner, B. Finch, C. Mann, R. Dowsett and F. Dowsett-Lemaire for
assistance with identification queries. Bird vocalization websites Xenocanto, Avocet and the
Macaulay Library were of great use for checking our audio recordings, and D. Turner and P.
Bradley provided useful feedback on this note.

References

Baker, B.H., Mohr, P.A. & Williams, L.A.J. 1972. Geology of the Eastern Rift System of Africa.
Boulder, Colorado: The Geological Society of America.

Bennun, L.A. & Njoroge, P. 1999. Important Bird Areas in Kenya. Nairobi: East Africa Natural
History Society.

The Kavirondo Escarpment 69

BirdLife International 2013. Species factsheet: Polemaetus bellicosus. Downloaded from http://
www.birdlife.org on 31/05/2013.

Lewis, A. & Pomeroy, D. 1989. Bird Atlas of Kenya. Rotterdam: A.A. Balkema.
Pearson, D.J. & Turner, D.A. 1998. Review of Kenya Bird Records 1992-1996. Scopus 20: 65-83.

Zimmerman, D.A., Turner, D.A. & Pearson, D.J. 1996. Birds of Kenya and northern Tanzania.
South Africa: Russel Friedman Books.

James Bradley

2241 Bradford Avenue, Sidney, British Columbia, Canada, V8L 2C8; james_bradley@ymail.com
David Bradley

Department of Integrative Biology, University of Guelph, 50 Stone Road East, Guelph, Ontario,
Canada, N1G 2W1; bradleyd@uoguelph.ca

Scopus 33: 64-69, January 2014
Received 3 June 2013

70 Short communications

Short communications

Observations on the trend of the Pink-backed Pelican Pelecanus
rufescens at breeding colonies, eastern Uganda

The Pink-backed Pelican Pelecanus rufescens occurs in sub-Saharan Africa, Madagascar
and the southern Red Sea (del Hoyo et al. 1992). It has an extremely large range with a
relatively stable population, making its conservation status of least concern (BirdLife
2013). P. rufescens has been known to breed
in Uganda as early as 1939, with official
records made in subsequent years (Din &
Eltringham 1973, Pomeroy 2002, Nachuha
2007, Nachuha & John 2012). Breeding,
particularly in eastern Uganda, starts in
March when the main rains begin and ends
in July. For the past seven years, P. rufescens
has bred at mixed colony sites in eastern
Uganda. In 2005 breeding was recorded at
three sites, namely North-Road Primary
School in Mbale town, Busolwe Hospital
grounds and Mbale railway quarters, whose

¥ ty ae exact locations are shown in Table 1. The
Figure 1. An Adult and young of presence of Mvule trees Milicia exclesa at
Pelecanus rufescens on Milicia exclesa tree these sites seemed to be one of the attractions
at North-Road Primary School. Picture (see also Nachuha & Quinn 2012 and Fig. 1).
taken on 9 June 2013 at 09:30. Three years later P. rufescens was no longer

breeding at either Busolwe Hospital or
Mbale railway quarters because the nesting trees had been cut down, presumably
causing a local migration of the birds to other unknown locations.

Table 1. Breeding colonies at which numbers of nests of Pelecanus rufescens were recorded.

Year
2005 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013
Busolwe Hospital grounds O°50'N,.33°5FE* .¢ 0 0 0 0 0 0
Butaleja district Headquarters 0°55'N, 33°56'E 0 0 0 0 0 6 4
North-Road Primary School 1°4'N, 34°10°E = 182 137 13% 4) A208 90 127
Mbale railway quarters 1°4'N, 34°10°E =. 30 0 0 0 12 0 0

Breeding site Lat/Long

Results in Table 1 show site fidelity of P.rufescens to the main breeding colony
at North-Road Primary School, where numbers have fluctuated over the years. This
colony also supported other species such as Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis, Sacred Ibis
Threskiornis aethiopica, Yellow-billed Stork Mycteria ibis, African Spoonbill Platalea
alba and Black-headed Heron Ardea melanocephala. However, since 2010, these other
species have left this colony, apparently for the Mbale railway quarters site about 3 km

Short communications 7]

away, where numbers have recently increased. It is difficult to guess the underlying
cause of this move considering that the colony to which these birds have relocated has
trees such as Jambula Syzygium guineense and Cassia Cassia spectabilis that are weak
and already heavily populated with breeding birds of the same species together with
Long-tailed Cormorants Phalacrocorax africanus. This colony is also more threatened
by settlement and other human activities.

On 4 April 2011 and 23 May 2013 we observed solitary individuals and loose
groups of P. rufescens feeding on small adult fish, mainly Tilapia and Haplochromis, at
the Mbale town sewage lagoons located about 3 km away. The limited observations
at the floor of the breeding colony further indicated that P. rufescens fed exclusively
on fish (see Fig. 2), most likely obtained from these lagoons.

The North-Road Primary School colony seems
to be robust because the birds nest there every
year. However, its future is not assured given that
it is located at a school whose management may
consider expanding their infrastructure at any
time and conceivably cutting down of the six
Milicia exclesa trees. Should this happen, then P.
rufescens could struggle to find an alternative site
considering that there are hardly any M. exclesa
trees left in eastern Uganda, and if there are any,
they may not be located within quick and easy
access to food.

There has been a general decline in the
sround of the breeding colony of breeding: population of P. rufescens over the
P. rufescens, at North-Road Primary Y€a. This may be attributed to a combination of
school. Picture taken on 9 June 2013 factors, such as loss of breeding trees and possibly
at 10:15. the frequent storms that lead to the death of the

immature birds. This decline has conservation
implications for this species and others. However, our effort to monitor the breeding
sites on a yearly basis enables us to build a dataset that will inform the future, and
also gives us an opportunity to stress to the local people the importance of the Mvule
tree to the survival of P. rufescens and to the environment in general. This approach
could be adopted by other researchers in areas where birds face similar threats.

Figure 2. Fish remains found on the

References

BirdLife International 2013. [UCN Red List for birds: Downloaded from http://www.birdlife.
org on 11/06/2013.

del Hoyo, J., Elliot, A., & Sargatal, J. 1992. Handbook of the Birds of the World. vol. 1. Barcelona:
Lynx Edicions.

Din, N.A. & Eltringham S.K. 1974. Breeding of the Pink-backed Pelican (Pelicanus rufescence) in
the Ruwenzori National Park, Uganda; with numbers of Marabou Storks. Ibis 116: 477-493.

Nachuha, S. 2007. Yellow-billed Stork breeding in eastern Uganda. Scopus 26: 47-48.

Nachuha, S & Quinn, J. 2012. The Distribution of Colonial Waterbirds in relation to a Ugandan
rice scheme. Waterbirds 35: 590-598.

Pomeroy, D. 2002. Notes on Breeding Populations of Marabou Storks and Pink-Backed Pelicans
in Uganda. The Uganda Journal 48: 115-120.

72 Short communications

Sarah Nachuha

Department of Environmental Science, Faculty of Science, Islamic University in Uganda, P.O. Box
2555, Mbale, Uganda. Email: snachuha@yahoo.com

Imran Ejotre

Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science, Islamic University in Uganda, P.O. Box 2555,
Mbale, Uganda. Email: iejotre@gmail.com

Scopus 33: 70-72, January 2014
Received 17 June 2013

Further remarks concerning the Little Egret complex in East
Africa |

Little Egret-like birds that occur in Africa have been the subject of debate for decades,
and remain taxonomically highly controversial. Three forms in Kenya (garzetta,
schistacea and dimorpha) largely behave as separate species and are generally easy to
identify, but confusion remains as to whether Egretta garzetta in Africa is monotypic or
whether it represents a polytypic species embracing some or all of the forms dimorpha,
schistacea and gularis.

In Europe the Western Reef Egret (E. gularis) and the Little Egret (E. garzetta) are
usually recognized as separate species (Cramp & Simmons 1977, Hancock & Elliott
1978, Payne 1979, Brown et al. 1982, Sibley & Monroe 1990). Two, sometimes three,
subspecies have been recognized for the Western Reef Egret, all of which have a mainly
coastal distribution and are dimorphic with dark and white individuals occurring in
the same population, together with intermediates in variable proportions. These are:
nominate gularis in West Africa; schistacea in East Africa and the Indian sub-continent,
and a third form dimorpha in the Malagasy Region and coastal East Africa which has
been variably considered as a race of either gularis or garzetta or a species, Dimorphic
Egret, in its own right (Dubois & Yesou 1995).

The race schistacea (known earlier as asha), is typically a bird of the Indian sub-
continent, while in Africa it occurs throughout the Persian Gulf from the southern
Sinai south to the Somali and north Kenya coasts. Elsewhere an inland population
extends (alongside typical Little Egrets) down the Rift Valley to Lake Turkana in
northern Kenya with vagrants reported south to lakes Nakuru, Naivasha, Albert
and Edward. From southern Kenya south through coastal and off-shore islands in
Tanzania to the Comores and Madagascar, schistacea is replaced by the form dimorpha.

The introduction of several hundred schistacea from Pakistan into Germany and
Austria during 1980-82 resulted in several escapees, some of which were of the dark-
morph variety and subsequent sightings of dark egrets along the Mediterranean
coasts may have referred to such individuals (Wust 1983, Cistac 1984).

Typical characteristics of Little Egrets (E. garzetta sensu stricto) and Western Reef-
Egrets (E. gularis/schistacea) have been described which should allow ready separation
in the field.

i) General overall appearance: Little Egrets are typically slimmer and more graceful.
No dark morph individuals are recorded in East Africa, while in gularis/schistacea/
dimorpha populations a high percentage of dark morph birds are always present.

ii) Bill shape and colour: Little Egret has a long, narrow, straight, black bill compared

Short communications 73

to gularis/schistacea in which birds often have a thicker yellowish bill with variable
amounts of black.

iii) Loral features: Little Egrets have blue-grey lores, while those of guiaris/schistacea
are yellow.

iv) Tarsus and feet: Little Egrets have black legs and yellow feet, while gularis/
schistacea have blackish legs with yellow extending variably from the feet and often
well up the tarsus.

Dimorphic Egret (E. dimorpha) is polymorphic, with dark birds common.
Madagascar populations are larger than Little Egret (E. garzetta sensu stricto) but
resemble it in leg colour and in bill colour and shape. Indeed, white birds of the smaller
south Kenya coast population, ascribed to this form, are doubtfully distinguishable
from Little Egrets though they do tend to show more extensive yellow on the tarsus
(Zimmerman et al. 1996).

Little Egrets tend to feed in small groups on wetlands, inland or near the coast,
while the reef-egrets (gularis/schistacea/dimorpha) tend to be more solitary and are
characteristically found on coastal shores. It might be reasonable to treat the two
East African coastal reef-egrets (schistacea and dimorpha) as races of E. gularis, but
the presence of schistacea alongside Little Egrets (garzetta) throughout the Rift Valley
from Ethiopia south to Kenya and Uganda, and the presence of dimorpha throughout
all inland wetlands in Madagascar complicates the issue. Also, dark individuals of
schistacea are often paler or more greyish than either dark gularis or dimorpha, while
the white wing patches that are always present in dark morph dimorpha and gularis,
are generally absent in schistacea.

Turner (2010) outlined three possible treatments of the E. garzetta complex in
East Africa: as three, two or just a single species. Dickinson & Remsen (2013) have
since followed Payne (1979) in treating garzetta and gularis as separate species with
dimorpha included in garzetta, and schistacea within gularis. Meanwhile, Safford &
Hawkins (2013) have followed del Hoyo et al. (1992) in considering gularis, schistacea
and dimorpha as being conspecific with garzetta, but agreed with Kushlan & Hancock
(2005), who point out the lack of convincing evidence to resolve the taxonomy of
this group, and urge for “definitive, range-wide studies using a combination of
biochemical, morphological, and behavioural characteristics”.

Confirmed cases of interbreeding between schistacea and garzetta are few, but
studies over a period of five years at Lake Turkana, northern Kenya of the pairing
and nesting of individuals that appeared to be dark phase schistacea with those that
appeared identical with the all-white garzetta, led Hancock & Kushlan (1984) to the
hypothesis that they are best considered the same species.

While schistacea are highly variable in appearance, they are relatively easy to
separate from Little Egrets (garzetta) by the combination of characters detailed above.
Many nominate gularis share these diagnostic characters, but others closely resemble
Little Egrets, and white individuals can be very difficult to separate from them.
Meanwhile in Europe, several pale grey or pied egrets with plumage resembling
gularis or schistacea, but with shape and structure typical of garzetta have occurred in
both France and Spain suggesting that mixed pairing may occasionally occur and be
productive (Dubois & Yesou 1995). Elsewhere, and particularly in India and Africa,
the many examples of what appear to be intermediate birds, presumably resulting
from cross breeding, constitute strong arguments supporting the concept that these

74 Short communications

populations are not different species.

In conclusion, while many issues remain unresolved, and pending molecular
information to the contrary, the evidence appears to support the view that the E.
garzetta complex is best considered for now to be a single polymorphic species. The
principal characteristic of all reef-egrets, that of a thicker bill, is probably an adaptation
to hard-bodied food in marine habitats.

Acknowledgements
Thanks go to David Pearson for his comments on an earlier draft of this note.

References

Brown, L.H., Urban, E.K., & Newman, K. 1982. The Birds of Africa. Vol 1. London & New York:
Academic Press.

Cistac, L. 1984. Observation d’une Aigrette des recifs (Egretta gularis schistacea) en Camargue,
en relation vraisemblable avec des importation en Allemagne. Alauda 52: 145-146.

Cramp, S., & Simmons, K.E.L. 1977. The Birds of the Western Palearctic. Vol 1. London: Oxford
University Press.

del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. (Eds). 1992. Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol 1.
Barcelona: Lynx Edicions.

Dickinson, E.C. & Remsen, J.V. (Eds) 2013. The Howard & Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of
the World. 4th Edition. Eastbourne, UK: Aves Press.

Dubois, P.J. & Yesou, P. 1995. Identification of Western Reef Egrets and dark Little Egrets.
British Birds 88: 307-319.

Hancock, J. & Elliott, H. 1978. The Herons of the World. New York: Harper & Row.
Hancock, J. & Kushlan, J. 1984. The Herons Handbook. New York: Harper & Row.
Kushlan, J.A. & Hancock, J. 2005. Herons. Oxford: Oxford University Press.

Payne, R.B. 1979. Ardeidae. In Mayr & Cotterell (Eds). Peters Check List of Birds of the World 2nd
Edition. Cambridge, USA: Museum of Comparative Zoology.

Safford, R.J. & Hawkins, A.F.A. (Eds). 2013. The Birds of Africa. Vol 8. The Malagasy Region.
London: Christopher Helm.

Sibley, C.G. & Monroe, B.L. 1990. Distribution and Taxonomy of Birds of the World. New Haven:
Yale University Press.

Turner, D.A. 2010. The Egretta garzetta complex in East Africa: A case for one, two or three
species. Scopus 30: 59-63.

Wurst, W. 1983. Kiistenreiher (Egretta gularis schistacea) aus Pakistan nach Mittelfranken
importiert. Ornithologische Mitteilungen 35: 132-133.

Donald A. Turner
P.O. Box 1651, Naivasha 20117, Kenya; Email: mat@wananchi.com

Scopus 33: 72-74, January 2014
Received 30 October 2013

Shelley’s Greenbul Andropadus masukuensis in Kimboza Forest
Reserve, Tanzania

Kimboza Forest Reserve is a lowland forest (300-500 m) located in the eastern foothills
of the Uluguru Mountains, Tanzania (7°00'S, 37°48' E). It is a small c. 386 ha (Burgess et

Short communications fe)

al. 2002) semi-deciduous lowland forest (Svendsen & Hansen 1995) currently invaded
by an exotic species of tree Cedrella odorata.

Shelley’s Greenbul Andropadus masukuensis is a very common, but generally silent
bulbul found in eastern Africa from 900-2300m (Keith et al. 1992). The only low
altitude record of this species was at 350 m in forest edge at Mtai in the East Usambara
Mountains during the cold season in July-August 1990 (Evans & Anderson 1993).

A. masukuensis has been found to be a seasonal altitudinal migrant in the Uluguru
Mountains (Werema 2007a,b) and in the other Eastern Arc Mountain forests (Stuart
1983, Stuart et al. 1987, Stuart et al. 1993, Burgess & Mlingwa 2000). On 17 July 2012
while mist netting at Kimboza Forest Reserve at 300m, I captured one individual
of A. masukuensis. Previous records from the Uluguru Mountains indicate that this
species has not been recorded at this altitude (Stuart & Jensen 1985). Because the
bird was caught during the cold season, it is possible that this individual was a cold
season visitor at Kimboza. The forest of the contiguous Uluguru Nature Reserve is at
a higher altitude and is separated from the Kimboza Forest Reserve by 12-15km of
farmland matrix. The record of this species at Kimboza Forest Reserve indicates that
it may have the potential to cross large forest gaps to reach the low altitude forests.

Though the importance of Kimboza Forest Reserve as a cold season refuge for
seasonal altitudinal migrants has been documented by several ornithologists (Stuart
& Jensen 1985, Svendsen & Hansen 1995, Werema 2007a,b), it is my impression
that further studies will help to improve its recognition as a forest of considerable
conservation value to birds. It is possible that more species that make seasonal
altitudinal movements are using Kimboza Forest Reserve as a cold season habitat.
The reserve is currently under threat from logging and fire. The latter threat is causing
the spread of the exotic tree C. odorata (C. Werema pers. obs).

Acknowledgements

I would like to thank the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism, Tanzania for permission
to do research at Kimboza Forest Reserve. This short note is a product of the PhD study I
have been undertaking in the University of Dar es Salaam. I am grateful to World Bank C1B1
Project through the College of Natural and Applied Sciences, University of Dar es Salaam for
sponsoring the study. In particular I would like to thank Professors F.S.S. Magingo and T.J.
Lyimo for a smooth coordination of the project at the college level. I gratefully acknowledge
Professor Kim M. Howell for having supervised the entire study. I wish to thank Rafael
Bartazar, John Lyakurwa and Mwita Mwita for assistance in setting and monitoring mist nets
in July 2010. Special thanks are due to the Regional Forest Officer, Morogoro and the Morogoro
Rural District Forest Officer for permission to conduct fieldwork at Kimboza Forest Reserve.
Lastly, | would like to thank the communities living in the vicinity of Kimboza Forest Reserve
for help with camping arrangements. Kibungo Mission Sisters (at Kimboza) are thanked for
their help in several aspects including accommodation.

References

Burgess, N.D. & Mlingwa, C.O.F. 2000. Evidence for the altitudinal migration of forest birds
between montane Eastern Arc and lowland forests in East Africa. Ostrich 71: 184-190.

Burgess, N., Doggart, N. & Lovett, J.C. 2002. The Uluguru Mountains of eastern Tanzania: the
effect of forest loss on biodiversity. Oryx 36: 140-152.

Evans, T.D. & Anderson, G.Q.A. 1993. Results of an ornithological survey of the Ukaguru and
East Usambara Mountains, Tanzania. Scopus 17: 40-47.

Keith, S., Urban, E.M. & Fry, C.H. 1992. The birds of Africa. Vol. IV. Academic Press, London.

Stuart, S.N. 1983. Biogeographical and ecological aspects of forest bird communities in Eastern

76 Short communications

Tanzania. Ph.D. Dissertation, University of Cambridge.

Stuart, S.N. & Jensen, F.P. 1985. The avifauna of the Uluguru Mountains, Tanzania. Le Gerfaut
75: 155-197.

Stuart, S.N., Jensen, F.P. & Brogger-Jensen, S. 1987. Altitudinal zonation of the avifauna in
Mwanihana and Magombera forests, eastern Tanzania. Le Gerfaut 77: 165-186.

Stuart, S.N., Jensen, F.P., Brogger-Jensen, S. & Miller, R.I. 1993. The zoogeography of
montane forest avifauna of eastern Tanzania. Pp. 203-228 in Lovett, J.C. & Wasser, S.K.
(Eds) Biogeography and Ecology of the Rain Forests of Eastern Africa. Cambridge: Cambridge
University Press.

Svendsen, J.O. & Hansen, L.A. (Eds). 1995. Report on the Uluguru biodiversity survey 1993.
Parts A & B. Sandy: The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds.

Werema, C. 2007a. The altitudinal and seasonal use of riverine forests by birds in the Uluguru
Mountains, Tanzania. Unpublished M.Sc. Thesis, University of Dar es Salaam.

Werema, C. 2007b. Seasonal altitudinal migration of forest birds along a riverine forest: Further
evidences from Uluguru Mountains, Tanzania. Proceedings of the 6th TAWIRI Scientific
Conference, Arusha, Tanzania, pp. 141-157.

Chacha Werema
Department of Zoology and Wildlife Conservation, University of Dar es Salaam, P.O. Box 35064, Dar
es Salaam, Tanzania; E-mail: cwerema@yahoo.co.uk

Scopus 33: 74-76, January 2014
Received 27 October 2012

A record of Black-shouldered Nightjar Caprimulgus
nigriscapularis in Tanzania

Recent opinion has varied as to the taxonomic rank that should be given to the Black-
shouldered Nightjar Caprimulgus (pectoralis) nigriscapularis. It is recognized as a full
species by, for example, Fry & Hargreaves 1988, Cleere 1998, Dickinson 2003 and
Carswell et al. 2005, but is considered by others, for example Dowsett & Dowsett-
Lemaire 1993, Zimmerman et al. 1996, and Dickinson & Remsen 2013, as best retained
as a race of C. pectoralis. It is treated as a full species by the Tanzania Bird Atlas and is
discussed as such here.

On the night of 9 February 2012 a nightjar was heard calling and recorded in an
area of regenerating forest and grassland roughly 5 km south of Minziro town (1°02’S,
31°32’ E). Based on the location of the observation, close to the Uganda border, this bird
was deemed likely to be C. nigriscapularis rather than the race shelleyi of Fiery-necked
Nightjar C. pectoralis which occurs further south in western Tanzania. Recordings on
Xenocanto of C. nigriscapularis from Ghana seemed to further confirm this identity.
However, because the calls of these taxa are so similar, the recording was forwarded
to David Moyer for an expert opinion. The call was enhanced, and calls of C. pectoralis
from Mahale National Park in western Tanzania and of C. nigriscapularis from Senegal
(C. Chappuis) were spliced in for comparison. Moyer considered that the Minziro bird
“is most probably nigriscapularis”. The recordings were sent to Francoise Dowsett-
Lemaire who also suggested that the Minziro bird was most likely nigriscapularis,
stating that “the first part of the (Minziro bird) song is rather flat as in nigriscapularis,
it does not have the dip in frequency of pectoralis.”

Short communications 77

This record appears to represent an extension of nigriscapularis from nearby south-
west Uganda, and is the best evidence for its occurrence in Tanzania. Stevenson
& Fanshawe (2003) show its range to include north-west Tanzania, and BirdLife
International (2012) includes the Kigoma area of western Tanzania within the
“probable range” but seemingly with little or no empirical evidence. The Tanzania
Bird Atlas has no confirmed records for C. nigriscapularis, although a single report
from Rumanyika Game Reserve by M. Baker is assumed to refer to this species. This
appears to be the first confirmation of its occurrence in Tanzania.

References

BirdLife International. 2012. Caprimulgus nigriscapularis. In: T'UCN 2013. IUCN Red List of
Threatened Species. Version 2013.2. <www.iucnredlist.org>. Downloaded on 04 January
2014.

Carswell, M., Pomeroy, D., Reynolds, J. & Tushabe, H. (2005). The Bird Atlas of Uganda. British
Ornithologists’ Club & British Ornithologists’ Union, University of Oxford.

Cleere, N. 1998. Nightjars: a guide to nightjars and related nightbirds. Robertsbridge, UK: Pica
Press.

Dickinson, E.C. (Ed). 2003. The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the Birds of the World, 3rd
ed. London: Christopher Helm.

Dickinson, E.C. & Remsen, J.V. jr. (Eds). 2013. The Howard and Moore Complete Checklist of the
Birds of the World, 4th ed., Vol. I, Eastbourne, UK: Aves Press.

Dowsett, R.J. & Dowsett-Lemaire, F. 1993. A contribution to the distribution and taxonomy of
Afrotropical and Malagasy birds. Tauraco Research Report No. 5.

Fry, C.H. & Harwin, R.M. 1988. Order Caprimulgiformes. In Fry, C.H., Keith, S. & Urban, E.K.
(Eds). The birds of Africa. Vol. 3. London: Academic Press.

Zimmerman, D.A., Turner, D.A. & Pearson, D.J. 1996. Birds of Kenya and Northern Tanzania.
London: A&C Black.

Sean McEnery
Larchill, Ballyhee, Ennis, Co. Clare, Ireland; Email: seanmcenery@hotmail.com

Scopus 33: 76-77, January 2014
Received 8 June 2012

The genus Phoeniculus in eastern and north-eastern Africa, with
remarks concerning the Phoeniculus purpureus superspecies

The genus Phoeniculus Jarocki 1821 currently comprises five species, all confined to
sub-Saharan Africa (Fry 1988). Two (castaneiceps and bollet) are forest specialists, while
the remaining three (purpureus, damarensis and somaliensis) make up a superspecies of
wooded savanna species, and form the basis of this note.

Traditionally wood-hoopoes and scimitarbills have comprised the Afrotropical
family Phoeniculidae Bonaparte 1831. Peters (1945) recognized two genera
(Phoeniculus and Rhinopomastus) while White (1965) placed all in Phoeniculus. The
single genus arrangement (Phoeniculus) was also preferred by Davidson (1976) and
Fry (1988), while Sibley & Ahlquist (1985) recommended separate family status for
wood-hoopoes (Phoeniculidae) and scimitarbills (Rhinopomastidae).

Within the genus Phoeniculus, the P. purpureus superspecies, occurring in all

78 Short communications

savanna regions of Africa, has been the subject of much debate. The forms damarensis,
granti and somaliensis appear very closely related to purpureus, but all have been
variably treated as either separate species or sub-species, and much needed DNA
sequencing data remains scant. With several forms described, those occurring in
eastern and north-eastern Africa are:

Phoeniculus purpureus (Green Wood-hoopoe) including niloticus and marwitzi
Phoeniculus damarensis / granti (Violet Wood-hoopoe)
Phoeniculus somaliensis (Black-billed Wood-hoopoe) including abyssinicus and neglectus

In Green Wood-hoopoes the degree of divergence between Namibian birds and
Kenyan P. purpureus marwitzi is low, and in all wood-hoopoes the degree of phenotypic
divergence among currently recognized taxa is poorly characterized, while mantle
plumage varies among individual wood-hoopoes and between age classes (Cooper et
al. 2001). At the same time there appear to be no discernible vocal differences between
the three forms of the P. purpureus superspecies.

In Kenya P. purpureus marwitzi is largely blackish, glossed with green on the
head, upperparts and breast, while P.p. niloticus has the head, mantle, breast and
tail appearing more steel-blue than green, thus appearing very similar to the Violet
Wood-hoopoe of eastern Kenya. The continuum between green and purple is well
known to all who study iridescent plumage, with the colours shifting from one to the
other as the light source and angle vary, and so plumage colours in purpureus may
appear to change from greenish to blue to violet to almost blue-black depending on
whether the bird is seen in bright sunlight, deep shade or dappled light, often leading
to identification difficulties in several areas. There can also be apparent differences in
colour between early morning and late afternoon viewing conditions. While recently
examining specimens in the BMNH collection at Tring, | was impressed at how much
the varying colours would change depending on whether viewed in sunlight or under
artificial light conditions.

The Black-billed Wood-hoopoe P. somaliensis, long considered a race of the Green
Wood-hoopoe, was deemed worthy of separate species status by Davidson (1976)
on the grounds that the largely all-black bill is typically more slender and decurved
than in either purpureus or damarensis, and indeed that the longer bill does serve to
distinguish it from the other two.

While some authors consider the Violet Wood-hoopoe P. damarensis a Southern
African endemic, others believe that it might simply be a plumage variant and junior
synonym of P. purpureus (Cooper et al. op. cit.). The form granti (treated as a full
species by White 1965) is endemic to the palm-fringed river systems of eastern Kenya,
with as yet no known cases of intergrades with purpureus. Elsewhere however, birds
reported as granti may be nothing more than individual purpureus with distinctive
violet tail and mantle feathering appearing more prominent depending on light
conditions at the time. Adult granti have varying densities of green-glossed feathers
and juveniles cannot safely be distinguished from juvenile purpureus. On the other
hand any observed differences in plumage colour between Green and Violet Wood-
hoopoes may well be clinal or habitat-related, with possibly a more pronounced violet
colouration occurring in birds in arid areas.

Ash & Atkins (2009) omitted the Violet Wood Hoopoe from south-west Ethiopia
on the grounds that Neumann did not after all collect it there. Peters (1945) did
however include the Omo Valley and lakes Rudolf and Stephanie within the

Short communications 719

range of P. purpureus granti. Two early specimens collected by Zaphiro at 4150 ft
(1263 m) along the Zoula River (a tributary of the Omo) in July 1905 (Ogilvie-Grant
1913) were originally named somaliensis, but recent close examination at Tring showed
both birds to be short-billed, and so to belong to purpureus or granti. Meanwhile, in
Somalia, there are no “typical” granti-type birds along the Juba or Shabeelle river
valleys in the south where one might expect them (Ash & Miskell 1998 reported
only somaliensis there). That then leaves granti as a largely Kenya endemic, but there
also remains the question as to whether granti is a race of damarensis or purpureus.
On simply zoogeographical grounds it would make more sense to treat granti and
damarensis as belonging to separate species, but bearing in mind the reservations
expressed by Cooper et al., our eastern and northeastern birds are all the more in need
of further study.

While Cooper et al. may not have presented a clear case for treating damarensis
as simply a plumage variant of purpureus, they have identified issues that need to
be addressed more fully. Further study of vocalizations together with additional
molecular work that includes representatives of niloticus, neglectus, abyssinicus,
somaliensis, marwitzi and granti would seem necessary to clarify relationships and
species limits within this complex group of wood-hoopoes.

Acknowledgements

Thanks go to Robert Prys-Jones and Mark Adams at the BMNH at Tring for allowing me to
critically examine all Phoeniculus specimens in the collection. I am also grateful to comments by
David Pearson, Robert Dowsett and DaJe Zimmerman on a first draft of this note.

References

Ash, J. & Atkins, J. 2009. Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea. An Atlas of Distribution. London: Christopher
Helm.

Ash, J.S. & Miskell, J.E. 1998. Birds of Somalia. Robertsbridge, UK: Pica Press.

Cooper, M.I., Cunningham, M. & Cherry, M.I. 2001. Taxonomic status of the Namibian Violet

Woodhoopoe Phoeniculus damarensis as determined by mitochrondial DNA. Ibis 143: 572-
579

Davidson, N.C. 1976. The evolution and systematics of the Phoeniculidae. Bulletin of the Nigerian
Ornithological Society. 12: 2-17.

Fry, C.H. 1988. Family Phoeniculidae in Birds of Africa. Vol 3. London: Academic Press.

Ogilvie-Grant W.R. 1913. On a collection of birds from southern Abyssinia, presented to the
British Museum by Mr. W.N. McMillan. Ibis 1: 550-641.

Peters, J.L. 1945. Check-list of birds of the world. Vol. 5. Cambridge, USA: Museum of Comparative
Zoology.

Sibley, C.G. & Ahlquist, J.E. 1985. The relationships of some groups of African birds, based
on comparisons of the genetic material, DNA. Pp. 115-161 in Proceedings of the International
Symposium on African Vertebrates. Bonn, West Germany: Museum A. Koenig.

White, C.M.N. 1965. A revised check list of African Non-Passerine Birds. Lusaka: Government
Printer.

Donald A. Turner
P.O. Box 1651, Natvasha 20117, Kenya. Email: mat@wananchi.com

Scopus 33: 77-79, January 2014
Received 19 September 2013

80 Short communications

Preliminary checklists for two Important Bird Areas of Ethiopia:
Sof Omar and Shek Husein in the Bale eco-region

Ethiopia harbours 837 bird species, 18 of which are endemic and a further 14 near
endemic (shared with Eritrea) (Ash & Atkins 2009). To promote the conservation
of these birds and their habitats, 69 Important Bird Areas (IBAs) were identified for
Ethiopia (Fishpool & Evans 2001). These important areas were selected based on the
following criteria: the presence of globally threatened birds (red data species; criterion
A1), the presence of range-restricted species (whose distribution occurs within 5000
km’; criterion A2), the presence of species characteristic of specific biomes (criterion
A3) and lastly, the presence of congregations (criterion A4) (Fishpool & Evans 2001).
In many of these IBAs however, there is a distinct lack of adequate knowledge of
avifauna assemblages and their significance (EWNHS 1996). Sof Omar and Shek
Husein are two of these IBAs.

Sof Omar (6°54’ N, 40°47’ E; 1150-1450m) and Shek Husein (7°50’N, 40°35E; c.
1200 m) are situated in the Bale Zone of the Oromia Regional National State, in the
south-eastern semi-arid lowlands of Ethiopia. Sof Omar is dominated by Commiphora-
Kirkia-Acacia woodland and bushland and Shek Husein by mixed acacia and deciduous
woodland. Both sites are significant places of worship which attract pilgrims from
all over the country and are increasingly popular with tourists. Security problems
and relative inaccessibility has meant that these areas, especially Shek Husein, were
rarely visited in the past by birders, even in 1996 when the IBAs were being identified
(EWNHS 1996). Both sites were selected as IBAs based on criterion Al with Sof Omar
also meeting criterion A3. It is only now, more than a decade later, that these sites
have begun to be visited for their birding interest (Ash & Atkins 2009, Behrens et al.
2010, Spottiswoode et al. 2010)

In July 2007 and October 2008 AA visited both sites. Birds were recorded from a
slow-moving vehicle while travelling from Robe town to Sof Omar caves and on a
return trip from Ginir town to Shek Husein. Active bird searching was also conducted
in the valley area of Sof Omar from the Cave’s entrance to exit, and in and around the
village of Shek Husein, for two to four hours each during both visits. All observations
started and ended in the site specific characteristic habitats.

Appendix 1 provides an updated species list for both sites. Previous reports
gave 65 species for Sof Omar (EWNHS 1996; Ash & Atkins 2009; Behrens et al. 2010;
Spottiswood et al. 2010) and 48 for Shek Husein (EWNHS 1996, Ash & Atkins 2009).
Of these, we were able to list 35 of the Sof Omar species and 14 from Shek Husein. We
also added 12 new species for Sof Omar and 15 for Shek Husein.

In Sof Omar, newly documented species included the near threatened Pallid
Harrier Circus macrourus and Eurasian Roller Coracias garrulus. In addition we found
three species of which there are few Ethiopian records: Scarce Swift Schoutedenapus
myoptilus (which belongs to the Afrotropical Highlands biome), White-headed
Mousebird Colius leucocephalus and Blue-capped Cordon-bleu Uraeginthus bengalus.
In July 2007, nine Scarce Swifts were observed flying over the vegetation covering the
escarpment of Sof Omar Cave. They were more slender than other swifts, and darker
than African Palm Swift Cypsiurus parvus with slightly paler throat. Ash & Atkins
(2009) gave only five previous Ethiopian records, the last being in 1990. Although

Short communications 81

White-headed Mousebird is common in Somalia, the only published record from
Ethiopia concerns a 1973 sighting on the Somali border, also (as for our observation)
in an area where the Speckled Mousebird C. striatus occurs (Ash &Atkins 2009).
There are only two previous Ethiopian reports of Blue-capped Cordon-bleu, also near
the Somali border, the last of these in 1973. We now have 70 species listed for Sof
Omar, including 26 belonging to the Somali-Masai Biome and two to the Afrotropical
Highlands biome. Three species reported for Ethiopia for just the sixth, third and
second time respectively, two are near threatened and one is an Ethiopian endemic.

Newly reported species for Shek Husein include the vulnerable White-headed
Vulture Trignoceps occipitalis and again the elusive White-headed Mousebird. This
brings the total number of species documented to 56, including 21 species belonging
to the Somalia-Masai Biome, one endemic, one endangered, one vulnerable and one
near threatened species.

It is clear, given the diversity, rarity and the number of globally important species
occurring, that both sites are correctly considered IBAs and have potential as popular
Ethiopian avitourism sites. It is also clear that further visits are required at other times
of year to obtain comprehensive species checklists. Serious consideration should be
given to conservation of these areas given the high levels of human use. The tentative
nomination of Shek Husein for World Heritage Site listing is a major step forward.

Acknowledgements

Site visits were logistically and financially supported by the Frankfurt Zoological Society- Bale
Mountains Conservation Project. Binityam Admasu and the Nyala Guide Association at the
Bale Mountains National Park are duly acknowledged for accompanying us on these trips.

References
Ash, J. & Atkins, J. 2009. Birds of Ethiopia and Eritrea. London: Christopher Helm.

Behrens, K., Barens, K. & Boix, C. 2010. Birding Ethiopia: A guide to the country’s birding sites.
Barcelona: Lynx.

Ethiopian Wildlife and Natural History Society (EWNHS) 1996. Important 99 Bird Areas of
Ethiopia: A first inventory. Addis Ababa: Ethiopian Wildlife and Natural History Society and
BirdLife International.

Fishpool, L.D.C. & Evans, M.I. 2001. Important Bird Areas in Africa and associated islands: Priorities
sites for biodiversity conservation. Newbury and Cambridge, UK: Pisces Publications and
BirdLife International (BirdLife Conservation Series No. 11).

Spottiswoode, C., Gabremichael, M. & Francis, J. 2010. Where to Watch Birds in Ethiopia. London:
Christopher Helm.

Addisu Asefa

Bale Mountains National Park, P.O. Box 107, Goba, Ethiopia; Email: adde_bird@yahoo.com

Anouska A. Kinahan

Frankfurt Zoological Society- Bale Mountains Conservation Project, P.O. Box 165, Robe, Bale Ethiopia

Scopus 33: 80-83, January 2014
Received 18 September 2012

82 Short communications

Appendix 1. Provisional revised checklists for Sof Omar and Shek Husein.

Sof Omar Shek Husein
Present Past Present Past
record record record record
Black-shouldered Kite Elanus caeruleus xX
Black Kite Milvus migrans aegyptius Xx xX X x
Bearded Vulture Gypaetus barbatus X X
Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus X X
Hooded Vulture Necrosyrtes monachus X Xx xX xX
White-headed Vulture? Trignoceps occipitallis Xx
African White-backed Vulture® Gyps africanus Xx X
Pallid Harrier*® Circus macrourus X
African Harrier Hawk Polyboroides typus X X X
Eastern Chanting Goshawk' Melierax poliopterus X X
Augur Buzzard Buteo augur xX xX X
Tawny Eagle Aquila rapax X X
Crested Francolin Francolinus sephaena x Xx
Kori Bustard Ardeotis kori xX X
Speckled Pigeon Columba guinea xX X
Red-eyed Dove Streptopelia semitorquata Xx x Xx
Ring-necked Dove S. capicola xX Xx
Laughing Dove S. senegalensis xX X x
Blue-spotted Wood Dove Turtur afer X
African Orange-bellied Parrott Poicephalus rufiventris X
White-bellied Go-away-bird' Corythaixoides leucogaster Xx X Xx
Scarce Swiftt Schoutedenapus myoptilus x
Speckled Mousebird Colius striatus X X Xx
White-headed Mousebird! C. leucocephalus X Xx
Narina Trogon Apaloderma narina x X
Eurasian Hoopoe* Upupa epops Xx X
Black-billed Wood-hoopoe! Phoeniculus somaliensis X Xx X
Abyssinian Scimitarbill' Rhinopomastus minor X X
Eurasian Roller** Coracias garrulus
Northern Red-billed Hornbill Tockus erythrorhynchus xX X
Hemprich’s Hornbill T-hemprichii X
Von der Decken’s Hornbill' T. deckeni X X
Black-throated Barbet' Tricholaema melanocephala xX X
Lesser Honeyguide Indicator minor X X
Mountain Wagtail Motacilla clara Xx Xx X
Fork-tailed Drongo Dicrurus adsimilis x x X
Brown-tailed Rock-Chatt Cercomela scotocerca X X

Dwarf Ravent Corvus edithae x

Northern Grey Tit' Parus thruppi X

White-rumped Babbler! Turdoides leucopygius ¥ X X

Common Bulbul Pycnonotus barbatus X X X X
Northern Brownbul Phylistrephus strepitans X X

White-winged Cliff-chatt Thamnolaea semirufa X

Short communications 83

Sof Omar Shek Husein

Present Past Present Past
record record record record

Pygmy Batist Batis perko xX

Grey-headed Batis B. orientalis Xx x

Boran Cisticolat Cisticola bodessa Xx

Somali Long-billed Crombect Sylvietta isabellina Xx X

Grey-backed Camaroptera Camaroptera brachyura Xx Xx xX

Grey Wren-Warblert Calamonastes simple x x Xx

Little Rock Thursh Monticola rufocinereus xX X

African Grey Flycatchert Bradornis microrhynchus xX Xx Xx

Northern Black Flycatcher Melaenornis edolioides x x

Lead coloured Flycatcher! Myioparus plumbeus Xx

Common Fiscal Lanius collaris X x
Red-napped Bush-shrike! Laniarius ruficeps
Rosy-patched Bush-Shriket Rhodophoneus cruentus
Black-crowned Tchagra Tchagra senegalus
Three-streaked Tchagrat T. jamesi
Grey-headed Bush-shrike Malaconotus blanchoti
Abyssinian white-eyet Zosterops abyssinicus
Greater Blue-eared Starling Lamprotornis chalybaeus
Superb Starling L. superbus
Fischer’s Starling! L.. fischeri
Shelley's Starling L. shelleyi
Goiden-breasted Starling L. regius
Bristle-crowned Starling' Onychognathus salvadori
Collared Sunbird Hedydipna collaris
Hunter’s Sunbird! Chalcomitra hunter
Shining Sunbird' Nectarinia habessinica
Grey-headed Sparrow! Passer griseus gongonensis
White-headed Buffalo-weaver' Dinemellia dinemelli
White-browed Sparrow-weaver Plocepasser mahali
Speke’s Weaver! Ploceus spekei x xX
Red-billed Quelea Quelea quelea
Northern Red Bishop Euplectes franciscanus X
Red-collared Widowbird E. ardens X X x
Black-and-White Mannikin Spermestes bicolor ¥
Purple Grenadier! Uraeginthus ianthinogaster x X
Crimson-rumped Waxbill Estrilda rhodopya xX
Red-checked Cordon-bleu Uraeginthus bengalus xX xX Xx
Blue-capped Cordon-bleu! U. cyanocephalus x
Village Indigobird Vidua chalybeate X Xx
Eastern Paradise Whydah Vidua paradisaea
Straw-tailed Whydaht V. fischeri
Salvadori’s Seed-eater*t Serinus xantholaemus
Somali Bunting Emberiza poliopleura
Total Fite ee een Gy PO OSE 47 48 29

* = Palaearctic migrant; a = Endangered; b = Vulnerable; c = Near-threatened; t = Somali-Masai biome; +

=Afrotropical Highlands Biome

~~ K KR KR KR KK KU KUlUlKDLUKLUlUKULUlCKCUCUKCUCUKCUK OK
x. 8 OS OK. OK

A> fatto, St > pete
<
MGs LPG) SS OS

84 Short communications

Great Knot Calidris tenuirostris at Lutembe Bay, Uganda

Lutembe bay is a sheltered shallow bay on the northern shores of Lake Victoria near
Entebbe International Airport with scattered mud islands often covered by water
hyacinth. It has many Palaearctic migrants, particularly huge congregations of gulls
and terns. Interesting species such as Caspian Tern Sterna caspia, Hottentot Teal Anas
hottentota, Temminck’s Stint Calidris temminckti and Broad-billed Sandpiper Limicola
falcinellus have been found as vagrant visitors by diligently searching the masses of
terns, ducks and waders.

On the late afternoon of 8 December 2010 I observed a Calidris wader which
recalled a Red Knot C. canuta, a species with which I am familiar in the UK. I informed
my teammate Henry Seguya and we managed to get our boatman to paddle us a bit
closer. The bird appeared to be an adult in non-breeding plumage and its general size
and dark spotting on the breast sides led me to think that it might be a Great Knot C.
tenuirostris. Unfortunately it became nervous and flew to another island and we were
unable to pursue it before darkness fell. | was, however, able to take some record
shots. I circulated the best of four poor photographs to a few birding colleagues for
their opinion, and the general consensus favoured Red Knot rather than Great Knot.

I returned to Lutembe on the 20 December 2010, together with Achilles Byaruhanga
and Michael Opigi and after some three hours of searching the bird was located on a
muddy island in a group of other waders: Black-tailed Godwits Limosa limosa, Ruffs
Philomachus pugnax, Little stints Calidris minuta, Black-winged Stilts Himantopus
himantopus and Curlew sandpipers Calidris ferruginea. Good photographs were
ster es Achilles which showed clearly that the bird was a Great Knot.

Among several comments on the new
photograph, the following is a quote from
Dick Forsman, “This image clearly shows
that the bird is a Great Knot, not a Red Knot
as has been suggested. The proportions.......
suggest Great Knot, with a big body and a
comparatively small head, a rather long and
slightly decurved bill (longer than Red Knot),
which is rather deep at the base but tapers
clearly towards the tip. The most striking
plumage feature is the spotted side of the
breast, which is typical for Great Knot
compared to Red. The facial pattern also differs. In Great Knot the pale supercilium is
broken in front of the eye by the dark loral marking and does not reach the base of the
bill, while in Red Knot the supercilium is brighter and reaches the bill, and the dark
loral stripe is more clearly defined.”

This constitutes the first record of Great Knot for Uganda and East Africa. There are
a few recent records from southern Africa: from South Africa where a bird returned to
Langebaan Lagoon in four successive winters 2000-2003 (Cohen & Winter 2003), from
Mozambique in December 2004 and (3 birds) September 2008, and from Namibia in
November 2008 (Engels 2009).

Acknowledgement

Special thanks go to Achilles Byaruhanga whose photograph is shown here.

Short communications 85

References
Cohen, C. & Winter, D. 2003. Great Knot: a new species for sub-Saharan Africa. Bulletin of the
African Bird Club 10: 120-121.

Engels, J.S. 2009. First record of Great Knot Calidris tenuirostris for Namibia. Bulletin of the
African Bird Club 16: 220.

Roger Q. Skeen
NatureUganda, Plot 1, Katalina Crescent, Naguru, P.O. Box 27034, Kampala, Uganda

Scopus 33: 84-85, January 2014
Received 22 August 2013

White-throated Swallow Hirundo albigularis in Tanzania

There is only one documented record of the White-throated Swallow for East Africa.
Britton (1980) lists the species on the basis of “a male collected over the open waters of
Lake Jipe, NE Tanzania, on 25 July 1957”. There have now been further reports from
Tanzania. Two records have been accepted by the East African Rarities Committee as
the second and third for Tanzania:

A bird photographed by NEB at the Kapunga rice scheme on the southern edge
of the Usangu Flats (approx. 8°40’S, 34°05’ E) on 10 July 1995. It was feeding
along the concrete irrigation channels and perching on emergent rushes.

Six birds found by David Moyer at Ihefu Swamp on the eastern Usangu Flats
(8°21’ S, 34°32’ E, 1016 m) on 22 September 1997, one of which was photographed.

More recently, on 20 August 2004, NEB & EMB watched at least 11 birds in three
groups along a short stretch of the Manonga River, upstream from Lake Kitangire at
4°04’ S, 34°14’ E in the Eyasi Basin. They were perching on fish traps and feeding over
the slow-moving river. Then on 31 July 2006 John Whittle and Paul Oliver watched
a single bird on the Mara River, in Serengeti NP west of Kogatende Ranger Post. JW
was familiar with this species from many visits to South Africa.

These new records probably reflect an increase in observer effort rather than any
significant extension of the non-breeding range, but the latter cannot be ruled out.
The dates suggest northward post-breeding movement as would be expected for this
southern African breeding species. In Zambia it is a locally common intra-African
migrant and non-breeding visitor from March to mid December, with far fewer
records in northern than in central areas (Dowsett et al. 2008).

References

Britton, P.L. (ed.). 1980. Birds of East Africa. Nairobi: East Africa Natural History Society.

Dowsett, R.J., Aspinwall, D.R. & Dowsett-Lemaire, F. 2008. The Birds of Zambia. An atlas and
handbook. Liege, Belgium: Tauraco Press and Aves a.s.b.l.

Acknowledgements

Our thanks to David Moyer, Paul Oliver and John Whittle for submitting records to the Atlas

database.

N.E. and E.M. Baker
P.O. Box 1605, Iringa, Tanzania; Email: tzbirdatlas@yahoo.co.uk

Scopus 33: 85, January 2014
Received 21 December 2011

86 Erratum

Erratum

A yellow ‘Hippolais’ warbler trapped at Ngulia re-identified as
Eastern Olivaceous Warbler Iduna pallida

On 19 November 1995 a yellow ‘Hippolais’ warbler was trapped at Ngulia Lodge.
Its wing length of 70.5 mm was short for an Icterine Warbler H. icterina and a rather
rounded wingtip clearly excluded that species. The second primary (counting
ascendantly) was close in length to the sixth, the first primary was much longer
than the primary coverts, and the third to fifth primaries were emarginated. These
wing and other measurements were all within the range of Melodious Warbler H.
polyglotta. They also fitted well for Eastern Olivaceous Warbler H. pallida (now Iduna
pallida), but this was discounted because of the yellow washed underparts and strong
olive tone to the upperparts. A small blood sample was preserved and its cyt b was
analysed in the laboratory of Dr Andreas Helbig at Greifswald, Germany. Word was
subsequently received that the bird was H. polyglotta, and the record was detailed in
Scopus 20: 43-45 as a first for East Africa. Following the untimely death of Dr Helbig
in 2005 a listing from his laboratory indicated that the Ngulia sample had come not
from H. polyglotta but from I. pallida. Melodious Warbler was therefore omitted from
the fourth edition of the Checklist of the birds of Kenya (2009) Nairobi: Bird Committee
EANHS, with an explanation on p. 41. The blood sample was retrieved and has
now been kindly reanalysed in the Heidelberg laboratory of Dr Michael Wink. Its
mitochondrial cyt b gene has been confirmed as matching that of I. pallida. The bird
could conceivably have been a hybrid with an I. pallida mother, but was more likely
just a most unusual yellow variant of Eastern Olivaceous Warbler I. pallida elaeica.
Melodious Warbler must be removed from the East African list.

David Pearson

East African rarities committee report 87

East African Rarities Committee Report 2010-2013

The East African Rarities Committee assesses records of new and very rare birds
occurring in Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi. This responsibility also
includes assessing up to the fifth record of any species from each of the five countries.
Therefore if you see a species for which there are fewer than five records in the country
please submit full details to the EARC Secretary: Nigel Hunter, P.O. Box 24803, Karen
00502, Nairobi, Kenya; Email: nigelhunter@timbale.org

Please contact the Secretary if you are unsure whether your record requires a
submission and for guidance on details to include in your submission. Past records
of rare species are also sought in order to bring our database up to date. Since the
Committee’s last report in 2009 (Scopus 29: 23-26) the following records have been
accepted:

Great Bittern Botaurus stellaris
First record for Kenya: Lake Baringo, 22 December 1994 (Brian Finch)

Humblot’s Heron Ardea humbloti
First record for Tanzania and mainland Africa: adult present in the Selous GR 2007
(photographs from Pietro Luraschi and Mark Sheridan Johnson)

Short-toed Snake Eagle Circaetus gallicus gallicus
First record for Tanzania: juvenile Arusha NP, 1 December 2010 (Tobie Muller, Niall
Perrins and Valery Schollaert)

Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus
Third record for Tanzania: first winter female Kilimanjaro, 18 January 2011 (Stefan
Ferger)

Greater Spotted Eagle Aguila clanga
First record for Uganda: Murchison Falls NP, 15 December 2009 (Dick Forsman)

Cassin’s Hawk Eagle Spizaetus africanus

Third record for Kenya: juvenile Imenti Forest, Meru, 28 February 2013 (Darcy
Ogada, Shiv Kapila, Peter Wairasho and Ben Mugambi). This is a second record from
the Imenti Forest (see Scopus 29: 23 for details of the 2006 record)

Corncrake Crex crex
Adult 4 km east of Kajansi, near Kampala, 4 December 2003 (William Dunlop). This is
the first record for Uganda since 1950

Pacific Golden Plover Pluvialis fulva

First record for Uganda: group of six birds in Queen Elizabeth NP, 15 February 2007
(Allan Kirby). For full details see Kirby (2008)

Forbes’s Plover Charadrius forbesi
Fifth record for Uganda: Lake Nabugabo, 29 June 2011 (Roger Skeen)

Greater Sand Plover Charadrius leschenaultii
Second record for Uganda: Entebbe, 4 December 2010 (Roger Skeen)

88 East African rarities committee report

Great Knot Calidris tenuirostris
First record for Uganda and the East African region: Lutembe Bay, near Entebbe, 8
December 2010 (Roger Skeen)

Pectoral Sandpiper Calidris melanotos

Third record for Kenya: Nairobi NP, 7 April 2002 (Brian Finch). Fourth record
for Kenya: Sabaki Estuary, 21 July 2011 (Ed Harper). First record for Tanzania:
Ngorongoro Crater Lake, 14 March 2005. For details see Aeberhard (2013)

White-eyed Gull Larus leucophthalmus

First records for Kenya: Lake Turkana, 18-21 December 1983 and 23-24 February
1985 (photographs from Barry Taylor). First record for Uganda: Lutembe Bay, near
Entebbe, 22 November 2002 (Chris Sharpe and Malcolm Wilson)

Franklin’s Gull Larus pipixcan
First record for Uganda and the East African region: Murchison Falls NP, June 2011
(photograph from Jonathan Rossouw)

Slender-billed Gull Chroicocephalus genei

First, second, third and fourth records for Tanzania: seven at Speke Bay, Lake Victoria,
28 February 2010; three Lake Manyara, 20-25 September 2010; two Lake Natron, 30
September 2010; and one Lake Eyasi 20 February 2012. For full details see Baker et
al. (2013)

Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea
First record for Kenya: Sabaki Estuary, 6 July 2002 (Jan Bisschop). See also Bisschop
(2002)

Black Tern Chlidonias niger
First record for Uganda: Queen Elizabeth NP, 8 December 2009 (Dick Forsman).
Fourth record for Kenya: Lake Baringo, 18 April 2011 (Brian Finch)

Forbes-Watson’s Swift Apus berliozi
First record for Tanzania: large flock near Dar es Salaam, 25 March 1996 (Brian Finch)

Racquet-tailed Roller Coracias spatulatus
First record for Kenya: Mara GR, 14 August 2011 (video and photograph supplied by
Itai Shanni)

Shining Blue Kingfisher Alcedo quadribrachys

First record for Tanzania: Minziro Forest, 15 July 1987 (photographs by Neil & Liz
Baker)

Black-throated Barbet Tricholaema melanocephala
Second record for Uganda: Kidepo Valley NP, 17 January 2010 (Roger Skeen)

Eurasian Wryneck Jynx torquilla

First record for Tanzania: Arusha NP, 11 January 2010 (photograph from Adam Scott
Kennedy)

Yellow-crested Woodpecker Dendropicos xantholophus

First record for Tanzania: Minziro Forest, 24 July 2000, with subsequent records
during August and September 2000, and August 2006 (Neil & Liz Baker)

East African rarities committee report 89

Coastal Black Boubou Lamiarius nigerrimus
First Kenya records from Manda Island for nearly a century (Brian Finch and Nigel
Hunter). For full details see Turner et al. (2011, 2013)

Yellow Penduline Tit Anthoscopus parvulus
First documented record for Uganda: near Rhino Camp, West Nile District, 11 June
2009 (Guillaume Passavy)

White-throated Swallow Hirundo albigularis

Second record for Tanzania: six birds at Ihefu Swamp, Usangu Flats, southern
Tanzania, 22 Sept 1997 (David Moyer). See also Moyer (1999)

Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica rufula

First record of the Palaearctic race for Kenya: Ngulia Lodge, Tsavo West NP, 18
December 2009 (David Pearson). Second record for Kenya: Ngong Hills, 20 April 2013
(Brian Finch et al.)

Greated Short-toed Lark Calandrella brachydactyla

Second record for Kenya: Solio Plains, Naro Moru, 28 November 2003 (Brian Finch).
Third record for Kenya: Watamu, 5 November 2009 (Colin Jackson)

Boran Cisticola Cisticola bodessa
First record for Uganda: Mt Moroto foothills, 10 July 2011 (Sheila Taylor)

Pale Prinia Prinia somalica
First record for Tanzania: Near Same, 11 December 2011 (Brian Finch)

Ansorge’s Greenbul Andropadus ansorgei
First record for Uganda: Bwindi-Impenetrable Forest NP, 2 August 2001 (Nik Borrow).
See also Borrow & Demey (2002)

Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix

First record for Tanzania: Gibb’s Farm, Karatu, near Ngorongoro Crater, April 2007
(Mikael Kall)

Southern Black Flycatcher Melaenornis pammmelaina
First record for Uganda: Lake Mburo NP, 12 February 2010 (Roger Skeen)

Collared Flycatcher Ficedula albicollis
First record for Uganda: Queen Elizabeth NP, 10 March 2003 (photograph from Philip
Palmer)

Red-billed Buffalo Weaver Bubalornis niger
Second record for Uganda: Kidepo Valley NP, 24-26 April 2011 (Roger Skeen)

Golden-naped Weaver Ploceus aureonucha
First record for Uganda and East Africa: Semliki NP, 1 August 2006 (Malcon Wilson).
See Wilson et al. (2007)

Weyns’s Weaver Ploceus weynsi
First record for Kenya: Sioport swamp, 25 October 2010 (photographs from Martin
Odino)

90 East African rarities committee report

Black-rumped Waxbill Estrilda troglodytes

First and second records for Tanzania: Speke Bay, Lake Victoria, 30 December 2012
(Elsle Rotenberg), and near Grumeti Camp, western Serengeti, 28 March 2013 (Joseph
Openja)

Blue-capped Cordon-bleu Uraeginthus cyanocephalus
First record for Uganda: Karamoja District, 4 September 2011 (Roger Skeen)

A number of records were rejected either due to misidentification or insufficient
details to establish identification with certainty. These were:

Great Bittern Botaurus stellaris Thika, Kenya, January 1985; Western Reef Heron Egretta
gularis Nyumba ya Mungu Reservoir, Tanzania, November 2007; Little Crake Porzana
parva Thika, Kenya, January 1983, 1984 & 1985; Lesser Sand Plover Charadrius mongolus
Lake Nabugabo, Uganda, 26 August 2010; Least Sandpiper Calidris minutilla Lake
Turkana, Kenya, October 1984; Western Sandpiper Calidris mauri Dandora Sewage
Works, Nairobi, August 1985; Kelp Gull Larus dominicanus Watamu, Kenya, August
2010; Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis MacDonald’s Bay, Entebbe, Uganda,
January 2010; Little Gull Larus minutus Queen Elizabeth NP, Uganda, October 2008,
and Ngorongoro Crater, Tanzania, November 2011; Arctic Tern Sterna paradisaea near
Mombasa, April 1984; Black-naped Tern Sterna sumatrana Watamu, Kenya, August
2010; Black-billed Wood Dove Turtur abyssinicus Kerio Valley, Kenya, November
1995; White-thighed Hornbill Bycanistes albotibialis Minziro Forest, Tanzania, May
2010; Yellow Penduline Tit Anthoscopus parvulus near Moroto, Uganda, January 2012;
White-throated Swallow Hirundo albigularis in Tanzania at Kilombero Valley, July
2000; Eastern Bearded Greenbul Criniger chloronotus, Semliki NP, Uganda, January
2010; Northern Masked Weaver Ploceus taeniopterus Lake Bunyoni, Uganda, June
2006; and Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citreola near Sumbawanga, Tanzania, January
2011.

References

Aeberhard, M. 2013. Pectoral Sandpiper Calidris melanotos. First record for Tanzania. Scopus 32:
54-55.

Baker, N.E, Aeberhard, M., Carlson, J.C. & Kennedy, A.S. 2013. The first four records of Slender-
billed Gull Larus genei for Tanzania. Scopus 32: 42-43.

Bisschop, J. 2002. Arctic Tern in Kenya in July 2002. Kenya Birds 10: 19.

Borrow, N. & Demey, R. 2002. Ansorge’s Greenbul Andropadus ansorgei, new to Uganda.
Bulletin of the African Bird Club 9: 140-141.

Kirby, A. 2008. First record of Pacific Golden Plover Pluvialis fulva for Uganda. Bulletin of the
African Bird Club 15: 98-99.

Moyer, D.C. 1999. Avian Biodiversity of Ihefu Swamp and floodplains in Usangu, Tanzania. DFID
Unpublished Report October 1999.

Turner, D.A., Finch, B.W. & Hunter, N.D. 2011. Remarks concerning the all-black coastal
boubous (Lanzarius spp.) of Kenya and southern Somalia. Bulletin of the British Ornithologists’
Club. 131: 125-128.

Turner, D.A., Finch, B.W. & Hunter, N.D. 2013. Remarks concerning the East African coastal
form of the Tropical Boubou Laniarius aethiopicus sublacteus (Cassin 1851) and its supposed
black morph. Scopus 32: 47-49.

East African rarities committee report 91

Ackowledgements

We are very grateful to Don Turner for the real and valuable assistance he provided in
compiling this report.

David Fisher

56 Western Way, Sandy, Bedforshire SG19 IDU, England, United Kingdom

Nigel Hunter

P.O. Box 24803, Karen 00502, Nairobi, Kenya

92 Tribute

ALEXANDER DAVID FORBES-WATSON (1935 - 2013)

Born at Wylam, Northumberland on 26 February 1935, Alec came to Kenya as a child
and spent his early years at the family home, first at Kitale and later at Ruiru near
Thika. He was educated at the Prince of Wales School in Nairobi, and following a short
period of military service with the Kenya Regiment spent four years at the University
of Cape Town. His interest in birds started as a young boy and it was during his
early years that he was greatly influenced by such well known local ornithologists as
Charles Belcher, Myles North, John Williams and Leslie Brown.

On his return from Cape Town in 1959, Alec joined the Kenya Game Department
and for the next four years was stationed at Kapenguria and at Kilgoris, though his
interest in birds took precedent over all other issues at the time. Leaving the Game
Department in 1963 Alec, with the help of John Williams at the then Coryndon
Museum, was engaged by the Smithsonian Institution in Washington to make a series
of collections of East African birds, starting in March 1964 with four months on the
island of Socotra, during which he was able to collect a hitherto unknown species
of swift that was later named Apus berliozi Forbes-Watson’s Swift. Later collections
were assembled from the Cheranganis, Mt Elgon, the Kakamega and Arabuko-
Sokoke forests, and it was while at the coast in January 1966 that Alec collected two
further swifts over the Gedi Forest that were later named Apus berliozi bensoni, a new
subspecies of his own Forbes-Watson’s Swift from Socotra.

In 1965 Alec married Anna Kofsky daughter of Cynthia and Nat Kofsky, a well-
known violinist and head of the Kenya Conservatoire of Music. Meanwhile Alec’s
reputation as one of Africa’s finest field ornithologists was quickly spreading, and
late 1966-1967 marked a major turning point in his career. Firstly he was fortunate
to succeed John Williams as Head of the Ornithology Department at the National
Museum of Kenya, and shortly afterwards was engaged by the Mt Nimba Research
Committee to make a collection of birds from the Nimba region of northern Liberia.
During his two years at Nimba (May 1967-December 1968 and January-April 1971)
Alec made one of the most important collections of birds from a hitherto little known
area of West Africa, including the discovery of the Nimba Flycatcher Melaenornis
annamarulae which he described and named after his wife Anna.

During a visit to Tsavo West NP in November 1969 Alec noticed that large numbers
of Palaearctic migratory birds were attracted to the floodlights of Ngulia Lodge, and
so quickly alerted Daphne and Graeme Backhurst, Hazel and Peter Britton and David
Pearson, all experienced ringers, to go and see for themselves the opportunity at
Ngulia to ring hundreds of migrants on their southward passage. This phenomenon
has now been studied in some detail, and with the Ngulia Ringing Group now in
its 37th year of operation over 500000 migrants have been ringed by both local and
overseas ringers.

After his time in Liberia, Alec soon turned his attention to the birds of Madagascar
and the Malagasy Region and for the next few years he and I made several visits to
the Comoros, Seychelles, Madagascar, Reunion and Mauritius, and in 1976 we were
able to resuscitate the Pan African Ornithological Congresses with a very successful
and well-attended 4" PAOC in the Seychelles. By the time of 5" PAOC in Lilongwe,
Malawi in 1980 and the 6" PAOC in Francistown, Botswana in 1985 Alec was one of
only a handful of individuals fortunate to have attended all PAOC gatherings up to
that time, such was his passion for Africa and its unparalleled birdlife. Later in 1993

Tribute 93

he collaborated and co-authored with Bob Dowsett a Checklist of the birds of the
Afrotropical and Malagasy regions.

With a long outstanding commitment to write up his fieldwork at Mt Nimba, Alec
resigned his position at the National Museums of Kenya and in 1978 sent his Nimba
collection to the British Museum in London where Peter Colston and Kai Curry-
Lindahl were able to start work on the entire Mt Nimba collection. After several
delays the report itself (The birds of Mount Nimba, Liberia) was finally published by the
British Museum (Natural History) in 1986.

In 1979 Alec travelled to the United States where a long-time friend and colleague
Frank Gill arranged for him to work on the Vireo Photographic Project at the
Philadelphia Academy of Sciences. Alec remained in the United States for a few years
before going to England in 1983, then back to the USA in 1985-86. He returned to East
Africa in the late 1980s but was unable to get back into his life-long passion, though
from 1990-92 he did participate in a number of bird surveys of several Uganda Forest
Reserves under the auspices of the [UCN Tropical Forest Programme. However,
his health was deteriorating badly and following a short stay in the Louise Decker
Rest Home in Nairobi, he suffered a minor stroke and was forced to move into the
Nanyuki Cottage Hospital in 2003 where, under excellent medical supervision and
care, he remained until his death on 16 September 2013.

His commitment to African birds and his enthusiasm for birding was palpable
at all times. He was also a talented artist and some of his many line drawings
adorned the book “Oh Quagga” published in 1983 by Ian Parker and Alan Root.
Alec was constantly the life and soul of many parties and impromptu get-togethers,
so much so that he will be fondly remembered by many friends and colleagues in
the United States and United Kingdom as well as in Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and
several other African countries as a fountain of knowledge on not just birds, but on
all aspects of natural history. With no surviving next of kin, his two brothers having
been killed under tragic circumstances several years earlier, Alec Forbes-Watson, an
extraordinarily talented individual, will be a person long-remembered by those of us
who were fortunate to know him as a true friend, mentor, and companion in so many
distant parts of Africa.

Don Turner

SCOPUS

Cover illustration from a gouache painting by P.A. Clancey

Scopus is published twice a year, or as a combined annual volume, by the Bird Committee of the
East Africa Natural History Society. For information on current subscription rates and modes of
payment, contact Nature Kenya, P.O. Box 44486, G.P.O. 00100, Nairobi, Kenya, tel. +254 20
3749957, email: news@naturekenya.org or visit the website: www.naturekenya.org. For subscrip-
tions in Uganda contact Nature Uganda, P.O. Box 27034, Kampala, Uganda, tel. +256 41 540719

or email: eanhs@imul.com or visit www.natureuganda.org

Editors
Darcy Ogada, darcyogada@yahoo.com; NatureKenya, P.O. Box 44486, G.P.O. 00100, Nairobi,
Kenya and David Pearson, djpearson@dsl.pipex.com; 4 Lupin Close, Reydon, Southwold, Suffolk

IP18 6NW, UK

Editorial board
Graeme Backhurst
Leon Bennun
Norbert Cordeiro
Luc Lens

Jeremy Lindsell
Muchai Muchane
Derek Pomeroy
Don Turner

Notes for contributors

Scopus welcomes original contributions on all
aspects of the ornithology of eastern Africa, en-
compassing the area from the Sudan south to
Mozambique and including the Indian Ocean
islands.

Contributions comprise original papers,
short communications (normally less than two
pages in length), short notes and records, notic-
es, and letters. Original papers and short com-
munications should present new information
that has not been published or been submitted
for publication elsewhere. All manuscripts are
subject to peer review. They will be assessed by
at least one member of the editorial board as
well as by independent referees.

Submissions must be written in English
(following the Oxford dictionary of English,
3rd edition, IsBN 978-0-19-957112-3). When
preparing your submission, please follow the
conventions used in Scopus and refer to a recent
issue (vol. 30 onwards) for guidance. Please be
sure to type nothing in all capital letters other

than combinations that always occur in capi-
tals, e.g., USA. Some examples of Scopus house
style are:

Units: Metric units and their SI equivalents
should be used. Separate the value from the ab-
breviation by a space.

Dates: 21 February 2001 [note the order, no
comma, not 215].

Time of day: 13:00 [note colon, no ‘hours’,
‘hrs’ or “hi};

Names of birds: e.g., White-necked Raven
Corvus albicollis [po comma, no parentheses,
no author’s name].

References cited in the text: Cite multiple
references in chronological order, separated
by commas, e.g., Njoroge & Launay 1998,
Mlingwa et a/. 2001 [note ampersand, italicized
‘et al.’, no comma between authors’ names and

date].

List of references at end of an article: See
the examples below for format.

(continued on inside back cover)

Give names of journals in full. For books,
after author(s), year of publication and title,
give town followed by the publisher. For exam-
ple:
Cordeiro, N.J. & Githiru, M. 2000. Con-
servation evaluation for birds of Brachylaena
woodland and mixed dry forest in north-east
Tanzania. Bird Conservation International

10: 47-65.

Stuart, S.N., Jensen, EP, Brogger-Jensen,
S. & Miller, R.I. 1993. The zoogeography
of the montane forest avifauna of eastern
Tanzania. Pp. 203-228 in Lovett, J.C. &
Wasser, S.K. (eds) Biogeography and ecology
of the rainforests of eastern Africa. Cambridge:
Cambridge University Press.

Urbans Fs 3Fry,/-C.H., & Keith, S., (eds)
1986. The birds of Africa. Vol. 2. London:

Academic Press.

Both English and scientific names of birds
should be given when the species is first men-
tioned— in the title and in the text—thereafter,
only one name should be used.

Bird names, both English and scientific,
should be those of a stated work. Any devia-
tions from the work followed should be noted
and the reasons given. An article or short com-
munication should be submitted as an email
attachment in Microsoft Word (.doc, .docx or
ttf). Only short items, such as letters, will be
accepted in non-electronic, paper form. Illus-
trations, including photographs, line drawings
and graphs, should be submitted initially as
separate files in .jpg, .tif or .eps format. Once
a paper is accepted, the editors may ask for il-
lustrations to be submitted in another format.
Authors of accepted full papers and short com-
munications receive a PDF copy of their article
gratis. Any paper copies, charged at cost, should
be ordered when the submission is accepted.

Please send all contributions to darcyogada@
yahoo.com or djpearson@dsl.pipex.com

Rare birds in East Africa

Records of rare birds from Kenya, Tanzania and
Uganda are assessed by the East Africa Rarities
Committee. Records from other countries in
the region can also be submitted for review and
possible publication in Scopus. A full account of

the record should be sent to the Scopus editors
and to Nigel Hunter, Secretary, East Africa Rar-
ities Committee, email: nigelhunter@timbale.
org or mailed to him at P.O. Box 24803, Karen
00502, Nairobi, Kenya.

Ringing scheme of eastern Africa

This covers several countries in the area. Quali-
fied and aspiring ringers should contact the
ringing organizer, Bernard Amakobe, Orni-
thology Section, Zoology Department, Nation-
al Museums of Kenya, P.O. Box 40658, G.P.O.
00100, Nairobi, Kenya; tel. +25420 3742161
ext. 243; email: scopumbre05@gmail.com

EANHS Nest Record Scheme

Details of most kinds of breeding activity are
welcomed by the scheme and nest record cards
may be obtained free of charge from the Nest
Record Scheme organizer, EANHS, Nature
Kenya, P.O. Box 44486, G.P.O. 00100, Nai-
robi, Kenya; email: office@naturekenya.org

THE EAST AFRICA NATURAL History SOCIETY

Nature Kenya
P.O. Box 44486, G.P.O. 00100, Nairobi, Ken-
ya, tel. +254 20 3749957, fax +254 20 3741049;

email: office@naturekenya.org

Nature Uganda
P.O. Box 27034, Kampala, tel. +256 (0)
41540719, fax 533528; email: eanhs@imul.

com

Wildlife Conservation

Society of Tanzania

PO. Box 70919, Dar es Salaam, tel. +255 (0)
22 211:2518 /211 2496, fax +255 (0) 22 212

4572; email: wcst@africaonline.co.tz

The BirdLife International

Partnership in eastern Africa

Through its national partners, the BirdLife
International Africa Partnership Secretariat in
Nairobi co-ordinates bird conservation work in
the region and produces several publications of
interest to ornithologists.

Ethiopian Wildlife &

Natural History Society

P.O. Box 13303, Addis Ababa, Ethiopia; tel.
+251 (0) 2183 520; email: ewnhs@telecom.
net.et

ee :