Tag: Kenya Bird Guides

Bird of the Week, Bird Photography, Bird watching

White-chinned Prinia also kown as White-chinned Warbler (Schistolais leucopogon)

Photo By Juhani Vilpo

White-chinned Prinia is one of the two species found in Kakamega tropical rain forest,the other one frequently recorded there is Banded Prinia.Both species are found in thick understory of forest,overgrown cultivation,and edge habitats.This species has unusual broad-tailed with a white throat,it is also important to note the black cheek and white in the outer rectrices.

Usually the species is found in small very actives groups always continuously moving inside the vegetation cover exposing themselves once in a while.When the birds are singing,they clearly line-up on an exposed horizontally lying branches proving excellent opportunities for photography.

In Kenya the species is only found the remnant patches of tropical rain forest of Kakamega and South Nandi,both in Western Kenya.

Bird of the Week

Karamoja Apalis (Apalis karamojae)

Karamoja Apalis

The Karamoja apalis is a globally threatened warbler, which is very poorly known. It was first discovered in 1919 in the Karamoja District of north east Uganda, hence its English name. This bird has greyish upperparts, whitish underparts and a black bill. The wings and tail are dark grey, and the tail has white outermost feathers. The inner secondary feathers of the wing are white, forming a narrow stripe. There are two subspecies or races; Apalis karamojae karamojae is found in Uganda, while Apalis karamojae stronachi is found in Northern Tanzania and Southern Kenya, mostly in the Vachellia drepanolobium habitat found in northern part of Masai Mara game reserve. This photo showing in this page was taken by Arjan Dwarshuis who is currently doing the Big year challenge at Naboisho conservancy .

Bird of the Week

Scarlet-Tufted Malachite Sunbird (Nectarinia johnstoni)

Scarlet-Tufted Malachite Sunbird (Nectarinia johnstoni)

Photo@Stratton Hatfield

Scarlet-tufted Malachite Sunbird are endemic to the alphine zones of East Africa mountains. In Kenya, they are exclusively restricted to the moorlands of Mt.Kenya and Aberdare National Parks.They feed exclusively on the nectar of Lobelia telekii flowers.Males are resident on their territories all year and defend Lobelia telekii inflorescenes from conspecifics.Males are bright iridescent green, with scarlet pectral tufts which are displayed prominently during aggressive interactions with other males.

Uncategorized

Brown-crowned Tchagra (Tchagra australis

Brown-crowned Tchagra (Tchagra australis

Photo@ Raymond Galea

Bird of the Week

Grey-capped Warbler (Eminia lepida)

Grey-capped Warbler (Eminia lepida)

Photo@Joe.Aengwo

Grey-capped Warbler is a species of bird in the Cisticola family (African Warblers).It is the only species in the genus Eminia. The Grey-capped warbler is a very melodious in nature and calls continuously for pretty some time and once in a while popping out of is hideout which is mostly undergrowth vegetation in forest and thick bush land for lower altitude areas. This species has a very large range and can be mostly be in areas like Lake Nakuru, Aberdare and Mt. Kenya National Parks, Lake Naivasha, Mau Forest just to mention a few.

Bird of the Week

Egyptian Vulture (Neophron percnopterus)

Image
Photo@Michael Sammut

The Egyptian Vulture is the smallest of all the African Vultures.This vulture flies with more wingbeats than most vultures, but takes off much more gracefully, as it is built lighter and smaller.  Once gliding, the bird holds its wings flat, shifting them very little.  The bird posesses great endurance, and is able to fly up to 70 kilometers in search of food.Egyptian vultures are specialists in egg-eating.  They are among the only known birds in the world to use stones as tools.  They will repeatedly strike at an abandoned ostrich egg with stones, then use their beak to enlarge the hole and penetrate membrane.  This behavior is not instinctive, but learned from other vultures, as the species is very intelligent.

This species of vulture is a very adaptable, inhabiting various habitat types, and slowly estblishing territories closer and closer to humans. That is the reason they are mostly affected my human poisoning of vulture using Furudan, a lethal insecticide.  In Kenya they are found in mostly in Wider Tsavo East and West National Park,where this photo was taken.Other than that there records of the species from Maasai Mara, Lake Nakuru, Amboseli, Samburu and Meru National Parks.
Bird of the Week

Taita Apalis (Apalis fuscigularis)

photo@Michael Sammut

Taita Apalis (Apalis fuscigularis), a Critically Endangered bird endemic to patches of natural forest in the Taita Hills of Southern Kenya. The entire world range of the Taita Apalis is less than 500 ha (5 km²).

The Taita Hills of South Eastern Kenya are the northernmost reach of the Eastern Arc, one of the world’s 34 biodiversity hotspots (Mittermeier et al. 2004). Human impact is strong in the Taita, where deforestation hits 95% or more (Rogo & Oguge, 2000). The Taita are one of the key sites for biodiversity conservation in Kenya, with numerous endemic plants, vertebrates and invertebrates.

Bird of the Week, Uncategorized

African Hawk Eagle (Aquila spilogaster)

Photo@Michael Sammut

African Hawk Eagle (Aquila spilogaster) are large birds of Prey  that occur naturally in Kenya, where they inhabit wooded hills.In Kenya they mostly seen in birding hot spot like Masai Mara,Tsavo West and East,Nairobi National Park,Hell’s Gate, and Lake Nakuru National Park.

African Hawk Eagles are large eagles that measure about 55 – 65cm in length.The plumage above is blackish. Below they are mostly white, heavily streaked with black. Theunderwing feathers are white with a black trailing edge. The wings below are blackish with white spots.Males and females look alike, but young birds are brown above and rufous colored below.

Their large platform nests are built out of sticks and are about 3 meters in diameter.They are typically placed in the forks of large trees.The average clutch consists of one or two eggs.