Bird Watching Paradise in Kenya

Posted at April 29, 2010

The term paradise refers to any place of complete bliss, delight and peace; and Kenya bird watching paradise offers that experience with an estimated 1000 species of birds spread across the different variation of habitats in the country comprising of open savannah grassland, bush areas, forested areas, lakes, farmlands and woodlands.

With the growing interest in bird watching safaris, most tour companies are now organizing specialized birding trips across the country which can take between 1 to 14 days. This offers a good chance to see a number of different parks and habitats.

The lodges themselves are home to a number of bird species and provide bird walks through their grounds and even go a step further to employ guides who are familiar with the bird species in the area and can give an educated tour to the interested parties.

It is recommended that when going on a bird watching safari to ensure that all parties in the tour van are all birdwatchers rest you have a hard time trying to convince the drive to stop so that you can look at a bird as other travelers would rather chase after a Lion hunting a gazelle or some other wildlife.

To solve this some companies are offering a variation on the standard safari where you pay extra and have the tour van plus driver/guide to yourself, and even allow you to draw up your own itinerary. This can be fairly expensive, but with a plus side in that on game drives you stop when you want, watch what you want and get sit anywhere you want.

Alternatively take one of the standard safaris, but book with a group of birders who share the same enthusiasm for bird watching as yourself.

The parks and reserves credited with bird watching in Kenya include the following:

Lake Naivasha National Park:

This fresh water lake in the Rift valley is home to over 350 bird species mostly found on the lake edge where there is presence of dense vegetation which supports a thriving bird population including the Grey-capped Warbler, Spectacled Weaver, Brimstone Canary and Red-billed Fire finch.

With the lake having a large fish population, a variety of fish-eaters can often be seen including both Long-tailed and Great Cormorants along with Fish Eagles and Pied Kingfishers. The breathtaking sight of a canopy formed by the black Heron while feeding on the lake is nothing short of fascinating.

Other species found here include the Grey-backed fiscal, he Black-lored Babbler, large population of Lovebirds a mention of a few.

Aberdares National Park:

With a fascinating topography which is mainly montane grasslands, forest and moorland the area hosts a variety of bird species including the Crowned Eagle, the Rufous-breasted Sparrowhawk, the African Black Duck, Golden-winged Sunbird, Silvery-cheeked Hornbill, Hartlaub’s Turaco and the White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher which is rarely seen outside the highlands.

The aberdares mountain are a volcanic range which include a National Park and a number of Forest Reserves which provide habitat for a number of globally and regionally threatened species namely the African Green Ibis, Ayres’s Hawk Eagle, Crowned Eagle, African Grass Owl, Cape Eagle Owl and Long-tailed Widowbird, the Aberdare Cisticola, Baillon’s Crake and the Striped Flufftail.

Lake Baringo:

This is the other fresh water lake in the Rift valley, home to a record of over 470 species of birds. Away from the Lake shore the climate is generally hot and dry with the surrounding countryside appearing quite barren with the nearby cliffs hosting a variety of bird life such as the Vereaux’s Eagle, which are sometimes seen soaring over the basalt cliffs near the West shore of the lake hunting for the rock Hyrax.

The scrub around the edges of the lake also has some interesting birds spotted only but those with a keen eye. Heuglin’s or Three-banded courser is not uncommon and you may also be able to see Lichtenstein’s Sand-grouse and the Spotted thick-knee.

Pale and dark phase Gabar Goshawk, Paradise Flycatcher, African Fish Eagles, Marabou Storks, Shikra and White-faced Scops Owl are amongst the regular sightings, while some the less common birds that can be seen there include Hemprich’s Hornbill (along the cliffs), the African Darter, the scrub and occasionally the African Skimmer.

Kakamega Forest:

The birdlife of the Kakamega is a enthralling and exceptional combination of central African lowland species dominating the list and highland species. Kakamega forest has it own unique species of birdlife found no where else in Kenya estimated to be least 45 species.

It prides itself in being the last refuge in Kenya for the Grey Parrot which is present in very low numbers probably fewer than 10 individuals and is close to being extinct locally. Two other species, Turner’s Eremomela and Chapin’s’ Flycatcher are globally threatened and a further 15 species are regionally-threatened. Unique to Kakamega are Ansorge’s Greenbul, the Blue-headed Bee-eater, the Red-chested Owlet, Shelley’s Greenbul, Grey-chested Illadopsis, Brown Illadopsis and the Green-throated Sunbird.

Maasai Mara Game Reserve:

World renowned for hosting the annual migration of hundreds of thousands of wildebeest and zebras, the reserve is also a proud host to a variety of bird species totaling to an impressive 450. The abundance of game means that the Kenyan vultures namely Egyptian, Hooded, Griffon, Nubian, White-backed and White-headed are a common phenomenon in the game reserve, with the exception of the Lammergeier.

The birds’ species include the large and highly conspicuous Common Ostrich, the small but still conspicuous Cardinal Quelea, White-bellied Go-away-bird, the Bare-faced Go-away-bird and the Eastern Grey Plantain-eater all of which are commonly seen. The Mara is also home to three relatively uncommon Woodpeckers namely Golden-tailed, Little Spotted and Fine-banded.

The very fortunate ones on occasion get to spot the rare and elusive African Finfoot along the Mara River. The Mara is also one of the most likely spots for the Blue Quail, a rare intra African migrant and the resident Jackson’s Widowbird.

Amboseli National Reserve:

Boasts of an estimated 400species of birds. Bird life in Amboseli is variable, with the best times to spot bird life being during the rainy season that is March-May and October-December. During and just after the October-December rains the local birds are joined by migrants from the Northern hemisphere, sometimes in fairly large numbers, and bird watching around the swamps and impromptu lakes can be very rewarding.

Meru National Park:

Its varied habitat of savannah, forest and swamp is home to over 300 species of birds including the elusive African Finfoot and Pel’s Fishing Owl. During the northern migration (October through to March) it plays host to an impressively large population of Eurasian Bee-eaters and Rollers.

Mount Kenya National park:

The habitat is a mix of rain forest, bamboo, open woodland, scrub, moorland as well as the high altitude rock peaks. It hosts a number of globally and regionally endangered species some also present in the Aberdares.

Aside from these it is also home to the Lesser Kestrel, the Purple-throated Cuckoo-shrike and is one of the few remaining areas in Kenya where the Lammergeier can still be seen. When visited at certain times of the year, large numbers of raptors can be seen either in the trees or circling overhead.

Bronze-naped and green pigeons come down to the waterhole and take advantage of the natural salt-lick and occasionally the Grey-headed Negrofinch and Montane Oriole. At night a number of sandpipers and other waders visit the waterhole.

Other birds’ species include Tacazze Sunbird, Montane White-eye and Black and White Mannikin. One of the local dawn and dusk spectacles in the foothills of Mt Kenya is the daily ‘migration’ of the Red-fronted Parrots from their overnight roosts to their daily feeding grounds.

Samburu, Buffalo Springs and Shaba national reserves: Birds commonly seen in Samburu include the Bristle-crowned Starling, Vereaux’s Eagle-owl, Night Heron, Palm-Nut Vulture also known as the South African Fish-Eagle and Pygmy Falcon; Verreaux’s Eagle can be seen soaring over the hills in the park.

Samburu/Buffalo Springs serves as the best spot for the Donaldson-Smith’s Sparrow Weaver which is fairly common in some locations. At Samburu Game Lodge you may even get to see the somewhat uncommon Red-headed Weaver which has been nesting in the grounds for the last couple of years.

Shaba’s birdlife is fairly similar to Samburu/Buffalo Springs but it also includes the rare and endemic Williams’ Lark whose background is very little known.

Lakes Bogoria, Nakuru and Elementeita:

All these lakes have one thing in common and that is the fact that they are soda lakes. Lake Bogoria is dominated by the countless hot springs which pour boiling water into the sterile lake. Known to flock the lake are millions of flamingoes and thousands of Black-necked Grebe. Other birdlife include the Steppe Eagles, Fish Eagles and Tawny Eagles are present in amazing numbers.

Lake Nakuru is home to a very large population of Flamingos (Greater and lesser) feeding on the abundant algae. It is an excellent place to spot a wide range of waders including Avocet, while large rafts of Pelican can also be seen sweeping the water in unison.

Lake Elementeita like the others is usually inhabited by large numbers of flamingoes and, not being as alkaline as Bogoria, by large numbers of other water birds. It has Kenya’s only breeding colony of Great White Pelicans and Great Crested Grebe have been seen there. Grey-crested Helmet-shrike and Jackson’s Widowbird can be seen in the area around the Lake.

Tsavo National park:

The bird life is as varied as the landscape, from the conspicuous flocks of Golden-breasted Starlings around most of the park to the dull, skulking Evergreen Forest Warbler in the Chyulu hills. Tsavo is home to both species of Kenyan Ostrich with the Common Ostrich present in Tsavo West and the Somali Ostrich in Tsavo East. Hartlaub’s Bustard is found in both parts of the NP.

Tsavo lies on one of the main migration routes for northern hemisphere birds taking place each year from September to November at the Ngulia region the best place to spot some of the rarer migrant falcons, with Eleonora’s Falcon and the Sooty Falcon both being on the bird list for the region.

In the South-West corner of Tsavo on the border with Tanzania is Lake Jipe where some of Kenya’s less common water birds, such as the African Water Rail, Purple Swamphen and Lesser Jacana can be seen.

With all these options am sure you will agree with me that Kenya is indeed a birds watchers’ paradise.