Bulletin of the African Bird Club
Vol 20 No 1 March 2013
Winter waterbird survey in Libya, 2011
Globally important breeding site for Royal Terns
Emerald Starling surveys in Sierra Leone
Birds of Dindefello Nature Reserve, south-east Senegal
Counting Macrodipteryx nightjars for monitoring purposes
Three new birds for South Sudan
Black-chinned Weaver in Angola and its nest
Bocage's Sunbird
Yellow-crowned Gonolek with yellow underparts
Baillon's Crake breeding in Mauritania
NATURAL HISTORY"
MUSEUM LIBRARY
0 2 APR 2013
PURCHASED 1
ISSN 1 352-481 XISSN 1352-481X
^ African Bird Clab
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• encourage observers to actively search for globally threatened and near-threatened species
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ABC Council
Phil Atkinson, Keith Betton (Chairman), John Caddick (Vice Chairman), Stephen Cameron, Anthony Cizek, Chris Magin, Geoff Orton (Secretary, co-opted), Stephen Pringle, Danae Sheehan and Alan Williams (Treasurer)
President: Tasso Leventis Vice President: Martin Woodcock
Bulletin Editorial Board
Chairman of the Board: Keith Betton Managing Editor: Guy Kirwan.
Editor: Ron Demey
Chris Bowden, Callan Cohen, Lincoln Fishpool, Peter Lack, Pete Leonard (Graphics Editor), Jeremy Lindsell and Nigel Redman
Contact ABC
African Bird Club, do BirdLife International, Wellbrook Court, Girton Road, Cambridge CB3 ONA. E-mail:
• info@africanbirdclub.org • website: http://www.africanbirdclub.org Further information can be obtained directly from individual Council members by writing to them at the Club’s postal address, or by e-mail as follows:
Chairman Keith Betton • chairman@africanbirdclub.org Secretary Geoff Orton • secretary@africanbirdclub.org Treasurer Alan Williams • treasurer@africanbirdclub.org Bulletin Editor Guy Kirwan • editor@africanbirdclub.org Conservation Officer Chris Magin
• conservation@africanbirdclub.org
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ABC particularly wishes to thank its Corporate Sponsors for their invaluable financial support in 2013: African Affinity, Ashanti African Tours, Avian Adventures, Avifauna, Ben’s Ecological Safaris, Bird Feeding Station, Birdfinders, Birding Africa, Birding and Beyond Safaris, Birding Ecotours, Birdquest, Birdwatching Breaks, Field Guides, Fur & Feather Pursuits, Greentours, Hyde-Lascelles, Insight Birding Safaris Lawson’s Birdwatching Tours, Letaka Safaris, Limosa Holidays, Nature’s Wonderland Safaris, Naturetrek, Ornitholidays, Rockjumper, Safariwise, Safari Consultants, Sarus Bird Tours, Sunbird, Turtle Bay Beach Club, Venture Uganda, Wild About Birds / Ndgewapori, WildSounds and Wildwings.
■ •*.
the Bulletin of the African Bird Club
T
The Bulletin of the ABC provides a figrum for news, letters, notices, recet3[>ji^liipu&^)s, «m|diti<|lf results, reviews and publication or studies on Altitun birds/ by contributors from throughout the world. Publication of /results in the Bulletin of the ABC publication of final results as journal papers either by the' ABC or elsewhere. No material
should, however, be submitted simultaneously to the Bulletin of the ABC and to any other publication.
Brief notes for contributors appear elsewhere in this Bulletin and further details are available from the Editor (editor@ africanbirdclub.org).
©2013 Copyright African Bird Club and contributors. Quotations should carry a full acknowledgement. No part etc may be reproduced, copied or stored in a retrieval system without the prior written permission of the Club or authors.
Contents
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1
News & Comment Features
2 Club News
Compiled, by Keith Betton
5 Corrigendum
5 Advertising information
6 Conservation Fund News
9 Africa Round-up
Compiled by Ron Demey, Guy M. Kirwan and Peter Lack
92 Recent Reports
Compiled by Ron Demey
109 Reviews 112 Obituary
128 Notes for Contributors Photographs
Mark Anderson, Svetlana Ashby, Vaughan Ashby, Nerea Ruiz de Azua, Nicola Baccetti, Nik Borrow, John Bowler, Essam Bourass, Ken Burton, John Caddick,
Dave Chantler, Anthony Cizek, F. P.
D. Coterill, Desire Darling, Aurelie Duhec, Adriano De Faveri, Johannes Ferdinand, Jose Maria Fernandez-Garcia, Dick Forsman, Ursula Franke, Paul French , Ian Fulton, Agnes Giannotti, Trevor Hardaker, Marc Hebbelinck, David Hoddinott, Naftali Honig, Jon Hornbuckle, Lee Hunter, Chege Wa Kariuki, Adam Scott Kennedy, Katharina Kiihnert, Barbie Kusserow, David Kusserow, Olivier Langrand, Mark Mallalieu, Johannes & Sharon Merz, Michael Mills, Georges Olioso, Liliana Pacheco, Phil Palmer, Pedro Vaz Pinto, Tim Poole, Bruno Portier, Thomas Rabeil, Solohery Rasamison, Alain Reygel, Adam Riley, Volker Salewski, Donald Shields, Adrian Skerrett, Ruben Barone Tosco, Cadnel Toundoh, A. Vaz, Larry Wilson, Simon Woolley and K. Yoganand.
Front cover plate
Secretary Bird / Messager sagittaire Sagittarius serpentarius, Kweneng, Botswana, 2 May 2012 (Ian White)
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Results of the seventh winter waterbird census in Libya, January— February 2011 Essam Bourass, Nicola Baccetti, Wajih Bashimam, Ali Berbash, Mohamed Bouzainen, Adriano De Faveri, Ashraf Galidan, Al Mokhtar Saied, Jaber Yahia and Marco Zenatello
Tanji River Bird Reserve, The Gambia— a globally important breeding site for Royal Tern Thalasseus maximus Peter Cosgrove, Paul Doyle, Robin Cosgrove, Roy Goff, Jan Veen and Lamin Manneh
Surveys of Emerald Starling Lamprotornis iris in Sierra Leone
John Bowler, Janet Hunter and James Sesay
Schotia brachypetala—a nectar cornucopia for birds Craig T. Symes and K. Yoganand
Counting Macrodipteryx nightjars for monitoring purposes
Derek Pomeroy, George Kaphu and Michael Opige
Birds of Dindefello Nature Reserve, south-east Senegal Jose Maria Fernandez-Garcia, Nerea Ruiz de Azua and Liliana Pacheco
Black-chinned Weaver Ploceus nigrimentus in Angola, and its nest Michael S. L. Mills and H. Dieter Oschadleus
First breeding record of Baillon’s Crake Porzana pusilla for Mauritania, in Diawling National Park Nina Seifert and Zein El Abidine Ould Sidaty
First record of Wahlberg’s Honeybird Prodotiscus regulus for Ghana Glen Valentine
First records for South Sudan of African Cuckoo Hawk
Aviceda cuculoides, Icterine Warbler Hippolais icterina and
White-winged Widowbird Euplectes albonotatus, and first sighting of Eleonora’s Falcon Falco eleonorae Mark Mallalieu
First Lesser Yellowlegs Tringa flavipes for Namibia Simon Woolley
First breeding record of Grey Wagtail Motacilla cinerea for Tunisia Georges Olioso, Jean-Marc Pons and Moez Touihri
Second observation of Common Crane Grus grus in Senegal
Volker Salewski, Troels Eske Ortvad and Kasper Thorup
Little-known African bird: Bocage’s Sunbird Nectarinia bocagii— an Angolan near-endemic Michaels. L. Mills
Photospot: Yellow-crowned Gonolek Laniarius barbarus with yellow underparts Ron Demey; photographs by Marc Hebbelinck
■NATURAL HISTORY .MUSEUM LIBRARY
it m
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 1
Club News
PAOC 13, Arusha, Tanzania, 14-21 October 2012
The Pan-African Ornithological Congress is held every four years, and the 13th congress took place in Arusha, Tanzania, on 14—21 October 2012. Tasso Leventis, the ABC President, and five ABC trustees (Phil Atkinson, Anthony Cizek,
Chris Magin, Stephen Pringle and Danae Sheehan) were among the >200 delegates from across Africa and further afield. The Club was pleased to sponsor the attendance of Augustus Asamoah (Ghana),
Sidi Imad Cherkaoui (Morocco), Raymond Katebaka (Uganda), Diana Nalwanga (Uganda), Joseph Mutahi Mwangi (Kenya) and Eric Marcel Temba (Madagascar) (Fig. 1), as well as the publication of the congress programme and abstracts booklet. Several talks featured work supported by the ABC Conservation Fund. To further assist the development of African ornithology, the Club also offered supported membership to all of those delegates studying at African universities.
The theme of PAOC 13 was ‘Birds in a Changing Environment’, and the stimulating plenaries
reflected how broad this topic is. Anthony Sinclair used >50 years of Serengeti data to emphasise that some African ecosystems, specifically some savanna types, are naturally highly variable in space and time. This makes disentangling the potential impacts of human- induced climate change a challenge and adds to the already complex task of understanding the causes of bird population declines or range changes in transformed landscapes. Flow important is climate change in landscapes transformed by cultivation and development, or within conservation units transformed by herbivores and fire? — this was the subject of a symposium and tackled by several other speakers. A historical perspective is crucial to understanding ecosystems that are naturally highly variable and requires strong African research institutions to monitor ecosystems over decades.
Pleasingly, several plenaries aimed to identify ways in which environmental change influences birds. John Wingfield emphasised that African research has a key role to play in understanding organism-environment relationships,
because ecosystems change at such fine resolutions: windward slopes of mountains can support lush forests, while rainshadows only a few kilometres away are occupied by dry savannas or grasslands. Fie pointed out that some environmental variability is ‘predictable’ to birds — which respond, for example, by double-brooding in ‘boom’ years, and delaying breeding in years when the rains are late — but that ‘unpredictable’ events can have disastrous impacts on populations. Why some species are unable to respond to what are ‘predictable’ events to other species is an important line of enquiry.
Will Cresswell demonstrated that there is some predictability to the movements of Afrotropical-Palearctic migrants, which would otherwise be expected to be rather flexible in their habitat use (because they move over very large areas). He discussed the ‘chain-link hypothesis’, which suggests the susceptibility of species reliant on a chain of habitats at specific sites across Africa. The loss of even one site could lead to the collapse of the entire system and to population declines. This highlights the importance of a pan-African approach, and two of the round¬ table discussions broached action for migratory birds in the Africa-Eurasia flyways (waterbirds and landbirds).
Monitoring changes at continental scales requires a pan-African approach to data centralisation and management, and this emerged as a major theme of PAOC 13, with a plenary, two round-table discussions and at least ten talks devoted to it. The technological revolution is facilitating the centralisation of birders’ data and several institutions have vied for this valuable resource. But it appears we are some way from finding an institution with the capacity both to capture point
Figure 1. Four of the six delegates whose attendance at the PAOC was sponsored by the Club: Diana Nalwanga (far left), Raymond Katebaka (left centre), Eric Marcel Temba (right centre) and Sidi Imad Cherkaoui (far right) (Anthony Cizek)
Quatre des six delegues dont la participation au treizieme Congres Panafricain d Ornithologie a ete sponsorise par le Club : Diana Nalwanga (a gauche), Raymond Katebaka (centre gauche), Eric Marcel Temba (centre droit) and Sidi Imad Cherkaoui (a droite) (Anthony Cizek)
2 -Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Club News
data, which is necessary to tie bird distributions to particular habitats in highly variable African landscapes, and to vet data on a large scale.
The >170 talks in 29 sessions illustrated the strength of enquiry in African ornithology. It was particularly pleasing to see the depth of the ethno-ornithology symposium, which sought to place birds within the human landscapes in which they occur. The importance of this could not have been hammered home more vividly than by the reports from several speakers of the importation of vulture parts from across West Africa into Nigeria for the ‘juju’ market. Thandiwe Chikomo described the innovative approach of BirdLife International’s ‘Living on the Edge’ programme to link improved livelihoods in the Sahel to environmental conservation and restoration, an approach which might be broadly employed to halt crashes in vulture populations. For example, Darcy Ogada revealed the links between vulture declines, an increase in scavenging dogs and thus in rabies, which has the potential to push national healthcare budgets skywards. A public-awareness campaign of the ecosystem services provided to humans by vultures was contemplated during the round¬ table discussion of the vulture crisis. But this will only work in more developed human landscapes that feature stray dog populations, and one was left ruminating the socio¬ political challenges faced by the IUCN’s Vulture Specialist Group, established in 2011 in response to the crisis. Poisoning of vultures by poachers — including deliberately, to prevent wildlife authorities tracking their movements — is apparently widespread in East Africa and has reached southern Africa, with Andre Botha (co-chair ol the Group) noting that 1 83 vultures had recently been killed by poachers in Gonarezhou National Park, Zimbabwe. Sidi Imad Cherkaoui was voted onto the Group to represent North Africa at the meeting, and we wish him and the rest of the group well in their work.
PAOC13 was originally set for Nigeria, and the Tanzanian local
organising committee did a great job in stepping in. The event coincided with the tenth anniversary of the A.
P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute (APLORI), Nigeria, one of just two such African institutes.
It is the only field station dedicated to conservation training in West Africa and to date 52 West Africans have graduated from its M.Sc. Conservation Biology programme. APLORI co-hosted the closing gala dinner and its anniversary made a fitting end to a busy, successful PAOC.
Contributed by Anthony Cizek
British Birdwatching Fair
Once again the Club attended the annual Birdfair held at Rutland Water in August 2012. Around 20,000 enthusiasts attend over the three days, and those manning the ABC stand were pleased to meet many members and Corporate Sponsors. The event proved to be very successful for the Club in that founder member John Clark, representing ABC, scored the highest total in the annual ‘Bird Brain of Britain’ contest, winning UK£1000 in the process (Fig. 2). His specialist subject was ‘Birds of Hampshire’, and while that is not part of Africa it was a fair win by just one point! In particular, we thank those members who gave up their valuable time to help on the stand. The 2013 Birdfair
Figure 2. John Clark (middle) receives the Bird Brain Trophy from TV presenter Mike Dilger (left), with ABC Chairman Keith Betton (Tim Poole)
John Clark (au milieu) regoit le ‘Bird Brain Trophy’ du presentateur de television Mike Dilger (a gauche), en presence du president de l’ABC Keith Betton (Tim Poole)
dates are Friday 16th-Sunday 18th August, and this will be its 25th year. We look forward to seeing many members there.
Contributed by Keith Betton
ABC Conservation Tour to Zimbabwe and Mozambique,
17-30 November 2012
The 2012 ABC Conservation Tour to Zimbabwe and Mozambique was a great success, being extremely well organised by Chris Lotz of Binding Ecotours who contributed UK£750 to our Conservation Fund.
On arrival at Johannesburg, we met Chris for a few days in South Africa before travelling to Zimbabwe. At Suikerbosrand Nature Reserve, the highlight was an unexpected party of 23 Cuckoo Finches Anomalospiza imberbis. We spent two nights at Wakkerstroom, with time to find many of the rare birds of the threatened grasslands:
26 Blue Anthropoides paradiseus , 39 Grey Crowned Balearica regulonim and two Wattled Cranes Bugeranus carunculatus , 12 Blue Korhaans Eupodotis caerulescem feeding close to the road, four Denham’s Bustards Neotis denhami , and many larks, including Eastern Long-billed Certhilauda semitorquata , Rudd’s Heteromirafra ruddi , Pink-billed Spizocorys conirostris and Botha’s S. fringillaris.
Pausing overnight at Polokwane on the long journey north, we were fortunate to find five singing male Short-clawed Larks Certhilauda chuana. We entered Zimbabwe via the Beit Bridge border post. Although traffic was light, formalities still took 2.5 hours. Crossing the Limpopo River we headed for Aberfoyle Lodge in the Honde Valley, where we found Red-throated (Peters’s) Twinspot Hypargos niveoguttatus (Fig. 3), Red-faced Crimsonwing Cryptospiza reichenovii and Red-winged Warbler Heliolais erythropterus. Travelling further into the highlands around Nyanga we were fortunate to find eight Blue Swallows Hirundo atrocaendea , an increasingly rare species (Fig. 4).
In this area, we were very pleased to be joined by Tony Wood and
Club News
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 3
Figure 3. Red-throated (Peters’s) Twinspot / Senegali enflamme Hypargos niveoguttatus , Aberfoyle Lodge, Zimbabwe, November 2012 (John Caddick)
Julia Pierini, President and Vice- President of BirdLife Zimbabwe, respectively, who had travelled from Harare (Fig. 5). Our very productive meeting covered several issues of interest to both ABC and BirdLife Zimbabwe, and we handed over several pairs of binoculars for use in schools.
Next day we travelled via Mutare to Seldomseen Cottages in the Buvumba highlands near the Mozambique border. The small area of forest and grassland yielded Chirinda Apalis Apalis chirindensis , nesting Swynnerton’s Robin Swynnertonia swynnertoni , Barratt’s Warbler Bradypterus barratti , Fan-tailed Grassbird Schoenicola brevirostris and Miombo
Double-collared Sunbird Cinnyris manoensis. Near Mutare, a search of the miombo woodland produced Miombo Rock Thrush Monticola angolensis , Spotted Creeper Salpomis spilotiotus and Cinnamon-breasted Tit Parus ( rufiventris ) pallidiventris , while the local golf course’s avian highlights were Whyte’s Barbet Stactolaema whytii and Abdim’s Stork Ciconia abdimii.
Following six wonderful days in Zimbabwe, we crossed at Mutare into Mozambique. Our first destination was Mphingwe camp, where it was 44°C on arrival. From here we accessed the lowland forest around Inhamitanga. The rains that would motivate our main target to sing after months of silence were due
Figure 4. Blue Swallow / Hirondelle bleue Hirundo atrocaerulea , near Nyanga, Zimbabwe, November 2012 (John Caddick)
Figure 5. Keith Betton, ABC Chairman, and Tony Wood, President of BirdLife Zimbabwe (John Caddick)
Keith Betton, president de I’ABC, et Tony Wood, president de BirdLife Zimbabwe (John Caddick)
to fall only about one week later, but we were lucky. They arrived early, and after a thorough drenching an African Pitta Pitta angolensis started displaying enthusiastically. We were less fortunate with White-chested Alethe Alethe fuelleborni , which remained hidden from view. Several views were obtained of Livingstone’s Flycatchers Erytbrocercus livingstonei and a fly-over Thick-billed Cuckoo Pachycoccyx audeberti was an unexpected bonus. A visit to the wetlands adjacent to the Zambezi at Caia brought many waders including ten Greater Painted-snipes Rostratida benghalensis , while all around there were Southern Brown-throated Weavers Ploceus xanthoptems.
We then moved c. 1 20 km south to Gorongosa Aventuras camp, which made an excellent base to explore the nearby national park, although Mount Gorongosa was temporarily out of bounds due to recent heavy rain. Our target species here were White-breasted Cuckooshrike Coracina pectoralis, Black-eared Seedeater Serinus mennelli and Collared Palm Thrush Cichladusa arquata.
The tour ended in Beira, where our time was enlivened by 60 African Pygmy Geese Nettapus auritus on an overgrown lake, while a roosting Bat Hawk Macheiramphus alcinus just outside the city was very approachable. However, the rain had not really reached the coast, so
Figure 6. Keith Betton, ABC Chairman, and Buluwesi Murambiwa, the excellent guide at Seldomseen (John Caddick)
Keith Betton, president de l’ABC, et Buluwesi Murambiwa, 1'excellent guide a Seldomseen (John Caddick)
4 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Club News
bird numbers at the marshes near the Rio Savane were still quite low, but Rufous-bellied Heron Ardeola rufiventris and Black-rumped Buttonquail Tumix nanus were a bonus.
Among the many excellent local guides we met, we are very pleased to welcome Norman Saratia Mncube (Wakkerstroom) and Buluwesi Murambiwa (Seldomseen; Fig. 6) as supported members of the Club.
Contributed by Keith Betton and John Caddick
New searchable DVD of Bull. ABCW ols. 1-10: special members offer!
The Club is pleased to announce the arrival of a new DVD containing Bull. ABC vols. 1-10 available as colour .pdf scans. Most of these issues are now out of print. This offers comprehensive review and search capabilities to find references to sites, species or any other word, and has been designed to operate on both PC and Macintosh systems, permitting rapid access to every article. The price to non¬
members is UK£50, but we are offering the DVD at a special price of just UK£30 to ABC members (see advertisement p. 108). To order your copy visit the ABC website or purchase it at the AGM or British Birdwatching Fair. Any UK members who decide to dispose of old back issues are welcome to leave them with us at the above events as some people still prefer to buy hard copies of old issues.
Contributed by Keith Betton
Georges Henry Oueda 1964-2012
It is with great sadness that we learned of the death of Georges Henry Oueda. Aged just 48, he was Director of Conservation at NATURAMA (BirdLife in Burkina Faso) and the single most knowledgeable expert in ornithology in his country, for which he was the ABC representative. Widely known and respected in the international bird conservation community, his contribution to nature conservation in Burkina Faso cannot be over-estimated. Georges was the driving force behind establishing and training local conservation groups at sites like Oursi-Darkoye and the Sourou Valley, two shining examples
of community-based conservation, and the recent designation of 12 wetlands in the country as Ramsar sites was largely achieved through his dedication. His plans to continue and expand this work have been sadly thwarted. Our condolences go to his family and friends. An appreciation of Georges’ contribution to bird study in Burkina Faso will appear later in the year.
The Birds of the Moroccan Atlantic Sahara
A book on the birds of the Moroccan Atlantic Sahara with an annotated checklist is in active preparation. Ornithologists are requested to send their unpublished records to Patrick Bergier, pbergier@yahoo.fr
Les Oiseaux du Sahara Atlantique Marocain
Un ouvrage sur les oiseaux du Sahara Atlantique Marocain integrant une liste annotee des especes rencontrees est en cours de preparation. Les ornithologues disposant de donnees sur cette vaste region peuvent les transmettre a Patrick Bergier, pbergier@yahoo.fr
Corrigendum Bull. ABC 19 (2)
In the note on the first records of Long-legged Pipit Anthus pallidiventris for Nigeria and Benin (pp. 206-208), the species is named 'Pipit a long bee’ in the French summary and legends. The correct French name is Pipit a longues pattes.
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Club News
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 5
^ African Bird Club Conservation Fund
New Awards
The Conservation Committee reviewed 12 proposals ahead of the September 2012 Council meeting, and recommended four for funding. Five other applicants were requested to resubmit and offered advice on how to improve their proposals. Council approved all four recommended proposals, which were yet again fully funded by regular ABC sponsors. A total of UK£5,531 was therefore released, as follows.
On the trail of a West African enigma: expedition to search for Liberian Greenbul
Liberian Greenbul Phyllastrephus leucolepis is probably the most enigmatic and threatened bird species in West Africa. The area where it was originally found, near Zwedru in Grand Gedeh County, is one of Liberia’s nine Important Bird Areas (IBAs), but is poorly known ornithologically. Ben Phalan of the University of Cambridge and Michael Garbo of the Society for the Conservation of Nature in Liberia (SCNL — the BirdLife Affiliate in Liberia) were awarded UK£1,980 for an expedition to search for Liberian Greenbul, which has not been observed since the type specimen was collected in 1984. The expedition will build on recent efforts to locate the species by spending more time in the field and surveying during the more promising dry season. The personnel will be equipped to take photographs, sound-recordings and DNA samples. If this bird persists in West Africa and is a valid taxon, then it is of the highest possible conservation importance: the species’ known range is tiny and its habitat is threatened by logging and agriculture. Even if the expedition is unsuccessful in locating Liberian Greenbul, it will collect useful genetic samples from other greenbuls from the type locality for comparison with DNA from the single specimen, will help to build the capacity of the SCNL, and increase knowledge of a very poorly known IBA. The award was generously sponsored by Tasso Leventis.
Creating community awareness of the biodiversity value of Lake 01’ Bolossat, Kenya
Olle Holst of Avifauna sponsored an award of UK£860 to George Ndung’u Muigai of the Nyahururu Bird Club. Lake Of Bolossat is the only natural lake in Kenya’s Central Province. It covers 43.3 km2 of which c.4 km2 is open water and is the main source of the Uaso Narok River that flows through key conservation areas, among them Samburu National Park and Buffalo Springs. The lake holds over 100 bird species and is one of the 61 sites in Kenya recognised as Important Bird Areas (IBAs). Key flagship bird species found here include Maccoa Duck Oxyura maccoa , African Black Duck Anas sparsa , Aberdare Cisticola Cisticola aberdare , Sharpe’s Longclaw Macronyx sharpei, Jackson’s Widowbird Euplectes jacksoni, African Marsh Harrier
Maccoa Duck / Erismature maccoa Oxyura maccoa (Mark Anderson)
Sharpe’s Longclaw / Sentinelle de Sharpe Macronyx sharpei (Adam Scott Kennedy/ www.rawnaturephoto.com)
Jackson’s Widowbird / Euplecte de Jackson Euplectes jacksoni (Adam Scott Kennedy / www.rawnaturephoto. com)
Circus ranivoms , Saddle-billed Stork Ephippiorrhynchus senegalensis and Great Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus, among others. The wetland is threatened by human activities in and around it, such as quarrying, uncontrolled grazing, poaching, fire, uncontrolled water
6 -Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
ABC Conservation Fund
^ African Bird Club Conservation Fund
abstraction, urban development, and poor soil and water management. The potential and sustainability of this natural resource as an IBA largely depends on the engagement of communities around the lake. The project aims to empower resource users (fishermen, cattle grazers, papyrus harvesters, farmers) with information about this lake, through environmental education in schools and discussion with various community groups.
Student intern projects at the National Biodiversity Databank (NDBD) Makerere University, Uganda
Prof. Derek Pomeroy received UK£720, generously sponsored by Tasso Leventis, to support the transport and subsistence costs of a number of student projects. These will include checking the routes of new high- voltage power lines to gather data on bird collisions (no datasets exist yet for Uganda, but many more such power lines are planned); contributing to monthly and twice-yearly transect counts of common birds and working on the data collected; data collection and analysis for long-term, ongoing surveys of Marabou Storks Leptoptilos cmmenifer , Hamerkops Scopus umbretta , Hooded Vultures Necrosyrtes monachus and Cattle Egrets Bubulcus ibis , and a wider scavenger study; and data entry (from many sources) for the NBDB, with some analyses under the supervision of the Data Bank manager, Herbert Tushabe.
Avifaunal survey of Kitovu Forest, Kenya
Little-known Kitovu Forest lies in south-east Kenya, just north of Tanzania’s North Pare Mountains and south of Kenya’s Taita Hills. Due to its location within the biodiversity rich Eastern Arc forests of East Africa, it is probably an important site for various bird species with affinities to the Taita Hills and the Usambaras in the south. Edson Mlamba of the National Museums of Kenya received UK£ 1,971, generously sponsored by Olle Holst of Avifauna, for an ornithological
Spiny forest / Foret epineuse, Madagascar (Solohery Rasamison)
expedition to Kitovu Forest. The objectives will be to determine the avifaunal biodiversity, document the different habitats and investigate threats to the forest. Ornithological data will be collected using timed species counts, point counts, mist-netting and ad hoc observations. A bird species checklist for Kitovu Forest will also be produced. The expedition team will include ten young researchers, all interns in the Ornithology Section of the National Museums of Kenya, and will therefore also serve as a valuable training exercise and exposure to field research methods for them.
Pan-African Ornithological Congress 13
The Conservation Fund supported the attendance at PAOC 13 in Arusha, Tanzania, ot five African delegates (from Ghana, Kenya, Madagascar, Morocco and Uganda: see Club News) providing US$1,000 towards the costs of each. All gave presentations at the conference.
Reports received
Madagascar forest use
Charlie Gardner received UK£760 in 2010 to investigate the impact of habitat change on the bird and reptile fauna of southern Madagascar’s spiny forest. The study site was the newly established protected area of PK32-Ranobe on Madagascar’s south-west coast, part of the Mikea Forest Important Bird Area, recognised as the single most important site for biodiversity conservation within the spiny forest ecoregion. Incidental observations of Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica made during the expedition have already been published {Bull. ABC 18: 207-210, 2011). The main bird and reptile surveys were conducted at three sites across a gradient of land-use intensity at Ranobe on the western limits of the protected area. Birds were surveyed using the point count method, while reptiles were surveyed using pitfall bucket traps, into which they were channelled by 50 cm-high ‘drift fences’ of plastic sheeting. In total 53 species of bird and 32 species of reptile were recorded. Three important patterns emerged from the data:
Moderate levels of degradation can lead to an increase in bird species richness over lightly degraded areas; this is due to an influx of non-forest species while all forest specialists are retained.
This increase in richness masks a community turnover from forest specialists to non-forest specialists, and from endemics to non-endemics, with increasing degradation intensity.
Forest-dependent birds, including species endemic to the spiny forest ecoregion, appear more tolerant of degradation than has been previously reported, and were recorded even at heavily degraded sites.
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The results suggest that new multiple-use protected areas within the spiny forest ecoregion may maintain their bird and reptile diversity even in heavily utilised zones.
Kenyan bird database
In 2010, Peter Njoroge of the National Museums in Kenya was the recipient of UK£1,000 to download birdwatchers’ field list records from the internet into a database in order to monitor common bird species.
An intern, Alex Syingi, was trained and employed on a full-time basis. Rather than create a new database as originally suggested, around 2,000 records from the Kenyabirdsnet webpage were uploaded into the Kenya Birdfinder database (part of the World Bird Database initiative by BirdLife International). This task continued until July 2011. All rarities records will be published in future issues of Scopus.
Williams’s Lark
Solomon Kipkoech of the Ornithology Section of the National Museums of Kenya received UK£ 1,090 in 2011 to undertake a population survey and threat assessment of Williams’s Lark Mirafra williamsi , which is endemic to Kenya and occurs in two disjunct populations: one in Dida Galgalu desert, 20 km north of Marsabit, and the other near Isiolo (in and around Shaba National Reserve). Both sites are now recognised as Important Bird Areas, mainly because of the presence of this species. The survey technique used was 'flush and count’. Transects of 0.5 km were walked holding a 25-m rope tight between two members of the study team, while beating the vegetation (lava rocks and scattered grasses) to flush any birds. One observer was positioned near the middle of the rope / transect and recorded all of the larks flushed. A total of 16 Williams’s Larks was recorded on 1 9 transects at three study sites. The overall population density was 0.61 individuals / ha. Where Williams’s Lark was flushed, percentages of grass cover, lava rocks and Barleria shrubs were estimated within aim2 grid. The majority of flush sightings were in areas with numerous mature Barleria shrubs, confirming the reported association with this plant. One site (Selebule) with a few Barleria shrubs but no Williams’s Larks was heavily grazed by cows, goats and camels belonging to a nearby Gabra community. Generally Williams’s Lark appear to prefer habitats with less / scanty grass and shrub cover. The species may be sensitive to human encroachment, but the expedition concluded that this was not currently a severe threat, as evidence of human activities were scarce, probably due to unfavourable climatic conditions. Future threats to the species may be ecological and biological, for example changes to the land cover type or conversion of habitat to grassland or woodland.
Williams’s Lark / Alouette de Williams Mirafra williamsi (Adam Riley / Rockjumper Birding Tours)
Waterbird-aquaculture conflict
In 2012, Maurice Ogama, also of the Ornithology section of the National Museums of Kenya, received UK£1,500 for a baseline survey of the conflict between piscivorous birds and rural fish farmers. The study concentrated on Lamu West District in coastal Kenya, covering Mpeketoni Division on the mainland, where many fish ponds have been constructed and are at different stages of stocking with Tilapia. Focus group discussions were held with local fish farmers in order to collect their views on their conflicts with birds, while bird sightings were recorded opportunistically in or near fish ponds during random visits in the evenings / mornings. Farmers used various methods to control bird predation at their ponds, including throwing stones to scare birds away, employing boys with catapults to kill them, scarecrows, locally made noose traps, and nets. According to fish farmers, Reed Cormorant Microcarbo aficanus is the most significant predator and is also the major target of trapping and shooting. Other common predators are Great Egretta alba and Little Egrets E. garzetta. Birds that are killed, especially cormorants, are eaten as a local delicacy. Kenya’s Fisheries Department recommends the use of nets as a deterrent, but most fish farmers cannot afford to purchase them. The report recommends a variety of non-lethal alternative deterrents that could be deployed around fish ponds of different sizes.
Dr Chris Magin, ABC Conservation Officer on behalf of the ABC Conservation Committee
The ABC website (www.africanbirdclub.org/club/ consfund_projects.html) shows the full list of conservation projects and awards made since the inception of the programme over a decade ago. A
remarkable total in excess of £126,000 has been donated during this period. You can also view many of the final project reports, including full versions of those summarised above, by clicking on the hyperlinks on the webpage.
8 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
ABC Conservation Fund
Africa Round-up
Compiled by Ron Demey, Guy M. Kinoan and Peter Lack
General
Category changes of threatened birds 2012
The latest update to the IUCN Red List for birds, released by BirdLife International in 2012, brings the total number of globally threatened bird species to 1,313 (up from 1,233 in 201 1). Of the 208 category changes, 120 resulted from a genuine change in the status of species (two improvements versus 180 deteriorations), 63 were a result of improved knowledge (of the status of species or the threats impacting them) and 25 from taxonomic revisions (either recently published or recently evaluated / re-evaluated by BirdLife). In the region covered by the ABC, the categories of 25 species changed. Four species have become Endangered: White-backed Vulture Gyps africanus , Riippell’s Vulture G. rueppellii (both previously Near Threatened), Saker Falcon Faleo cherrug and Grey Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum (both previously Vulnerable). Five have been upgraded from Near Threatened to Vulnerable: Yelkouan Shearwater Puffinus yelkouan. Grey Parrot Psittacus erithacus , together with its former subspecies and recently split Timneh Grey Parrot P. timneh , Brown-cheeked Hornbill Bycanistes cylindricus and Yellow- casqued Hornbill Ceratogymna elata. Five species that were previously ranked as Least Concern are now treated as Near Threatened: Crowned Eagle Stephanoaetus coronatus ,
Arabian Bustard Ardeotis arabs, Madagascar Jacana Actophilornis albinucha, Semipalmated Sandpiper Calidris pusilla and the recently split Blue-moustached Bee-eater Merops mentalis (see also Taxonomic proposals). Also Near Threatened is Monteiro’s Bushshrike Malaconotus monteiri (previously Data Deficient).
Two species, on the other hand, have been classified at lower threat levels: Grey-striped Francolin Francolinus griseostriatus is now Least Concern (previously Near Threatened) and Green-tailed Bristlebill Bleda eximius is Near Threatened (previously Vulnerable). In addition, two taxa are no longer recognised as separate species and consequently are now treated as Least Concern: Kungwe Apalis Apalis argentea (previously Endangered; lumped with A. rufogularis) and Kivu Ground Thrush Zoothera tanganjicae (previously Near Threatened; lumped with Z. piaggiae).
Source: i vww. birdlife. org! 'action! 'science/ species/global_species programme / whats_new. html
‘From the Arctic to Africa’: new initiative to protect key sites for migratory birds
A new initiative to protect waterbirds migrating between the Arctic and Africa has been launched by Wetlands International, with financial support from the Arcadia Fund.
The three-year initiative will engage local people and governments to develop a coherent approach to the management of wetlands along the flyway. Millions of waterbirds migrate each year along the East Atlantic Flyway, between the Russian Arctic and South Africa, via a chain of wetlands used by birds for breeding, staging, moulting and wintering.
It includes Ramsar sites as well as nationally and locally important wetlands. The initiative will aim to limit the threats to key sites and thereby assure the safe migration of waterbirds, while simultaneously ensuring that the ecosystem services provided by these wetlands benefit local people dependent upon them.
It will complement and enhance the effectiveness of conservation measures already taken by the European Union
member states in accordance with the Birds Directive of the EU.
Wetlands International offices in Senegal and Russia, supported by the head office in the Netherlands, will work to improve the management of key wetlands along the flyway. Together they will promote cooperation, networking and exchange by site managers at three levels: the ecoregion, subregion and entire flyway. The initiative will start with the ecoregions of the Arctic coastal tundra in the Nenets Autonomous Okrug, an internationally important area for breeding and staging birds in Russia, and the Senegal River Delta with the focus on Djoudj National Park in Senegal and Diawling National Park in Mauritania. The transboundary site Djoudj-Diawling is of international importance for many northern migrants during the non-breeding period as well as for waterbirds resident in the region or intra-African migrants.
Source: Wetlands International press release, December 2012
Amur Falcon escapes from ‘hell’
An adult female satellite-tracked Amur Falcon F. amurensis , which was fitted with a 5-g tag in early January 2010 in South Africa, was tracked (lor the third time) in spring 2012 over the Indian Ocean to its breeding grounds west of Beijing in China. It departed south again in the first half of October to arrive on 4 November at Doyang Reservoir, eastern India, which region has recently become infamous for the slaughter of these birds, with the staggering figure ol 120,000-140,000 birds estimated to be killed annually there (www.conservationindia.org/ campaigns/amur-massacre). The tagged female also visited the area in autumn 2011, prior to knowledge of this conservation outrage becoming widely known. The researchers had
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Amur Falcon / Faucon de l’Amour Falco amurensis (Desire Darling)
some anxious days, but finally, on 14 November, the bird departed and started her crossing of the Indian Ocean on 17 November, some 400 km south of Mumbai (Bombay), further south than in previous years. By 20 November, the female was just 240 km from the coast of Somalia in East Africa and by 13 January she had returned to her regular wintering grounds around Newcastle, KwaZulu-Natal. In 2010, the bird arrived in Somalia on 21 November, and on 22 November in 2011.
Source: B.-U. Meyburg in litt.
November 2012 and January 2013
Movements of immature European Honey Buzzards tracked across tropical Africa
European Honey Buzzards Pernis apivorus normally first breed when they are 3+ years old and are believed to remain in their wintering areas until they are two years old. T o study the movements of immatures during the first years of their lives, six nestlings were equipped with satellite transmitters in south-west Sweden. After crossing the Sahara in October, all of them remained some time in the West African Guinea savanna zone, between Mali and Nigeria, between 09.9-13.6°N. Four of the five individuals whose transmitters continued to function moved further south and south-east, mainly in
November, to 01.7-09.8°N. Three immatures continued to perform extensive movements, travelling 2,430-3,990 km in 13-14 months, thereby visiting several different sites. Adults exhibit a different migration pattern, as they fly directly to their wintering areas where they remain within a relatively small territory.
The movements of immature Honey Buzzards prior to their first northbound migration may be associated with responses to seasonal changes in the weather in the tropics and prospecting behaviour. Possibly, these young birds also avoid intraspecific competition with adults. The degradation and fragmentation of tropical forests may enhance this behaviour as relatively little suitable habitat where they can stay for longer periods now remains.
Source: Ardea 100, pp. 157-162
Whinchat declines not linked to Africa
Whinchat Saxicola rubetra has been declining rather rapidly in many parts of its breeding range in Europe. It spends the northern winter south of the Sahara and the species’ winter ecology has now been studied in detail by Mark Hulme and Will Cresswell of St. Andrews University, based on field work in central Nigeria. Densities were highest in farmed areas with short vegetation but density seemed independent of most habitat variables measured. Foraging behaviour also did not vary between habitats. It appears that Whinchats occur at well below the potential carrying capacity and remain at quite high density where they are present. The authors’ overall conclusion is that recent population declines in the breeding grounds are not linked to the situation in the winter quarters in Africa.
Source: Ibis 154, pp. 680-692
North Africa
New breeding species in Algeria
Several notes in Alaada document recent breeding by species not previously or only seldom recorded as doing so in Algeria: Common
Pochard Aythya ferina at Lake Regaia in 2009 and 2010; Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus at Dayet El-Kerfa in 2010; European Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur and Laughing Dove S. senegalensis at Annaba; and more than 50 nests of Ruddy Shelduck Tadomaferruginea were found in the Oued Righ Valley, where the species was found to be resident.
Sources: Alauda 80, pp. 151-152, 153-154, 293-294, 295-300
Hope for Oryx and Addax in Tunisia
Conservation work is helping Tunisia restore its once vibrant large mammal fauna. Desert species, such as Ostrich Struthio camelus and Dorcas Gazelle Gazella dorcas , enjoy the relative safety of the semi-wild in restored habitats within a network of protected areas. The most striking success is probably the return of the Scimitar-horned Oryx Oryx dammah and Addax Addax naso?naculatus, which existed in large herds but are now considered Extinct in the Wild and Critically Endangered by IUCN respectively. The first group of oryx was brought back to Tunisia 27 years ago. Several other imports have occurred since then and there are now c.180 individuals in four protected areas (Bou Hedma,
Sidi Toui, Oued Dekouk and Dghoumes). In collaboration with the Sahara Conservation Fund, Marwell Wildlife is assessing the impact of increasing numbers of oryx on their habitat and the effects of limited habitat on the performance of the population in Dghoumes National Park. The results will help inform management of the species, and create a practicable monitoring system that could be applied more widely. Meanwhile, the herd of addax that was reintroduced to Djebil National Park in 2007 is doing well. Births are monitored so that calves can be identified and selected for future translocation to Senghar National Park, to help achieve long¬ term goals for the restoration of this species in the Grand Erg Oriental.
Source: ivww. wildlifeextra.com/go/ news/tunisia-addax. html
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Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse / Ganga a ventre brun Pterocles exustus (Dick Forsman)
Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse reappears in Egypt
Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse Pterocles exustus was formerly common in the northern and central Nile Valley of Egypt, but this population, which was accorded subspecific status, under the name P. e. floweri , was in decline by the 1920s and was last recorded, in March 1979, south of Luxor. As a result the subspecies floweri was widely considered to be extinct. However, in March- May 2012, a team of German and Austrian ornithologists rediscovered P. exustus in Egypt, making a series of observations involving up to 1 00 birds, some of them documented with photographs, in the region of A1 Bahnasa, between Giza and Luxor.
To date, it has been impossible to prove that this population can be confidently ascribed to P. e. floweri , but the observations do provide conclusive proof of the species’ survival in Egypt.
Source: Dutch Birding 34, pp. 213-218
Village Weaver observed in southern Egypt
Village Weaver Ploceus cucullatus occurs across much of sub-Saharan Africa, but the only records from further north (in the Cape Verdes and Portugal) appear to have involved escapes from captivity.
In May 2006, an adult male was
Village Weaver / Tisserin gendarme Ploceus cucullatus (Ken Burton)
photographed at the Egyptian vagrant hotspot of Abu Simbel (see, for example, Bull. ABC 19: 137), in the far south of the country, constituting what appears to be the first record of a wild bird in Egypt and the Western Palearctic, and perhaps mirroring a recent increase in the species numbers and range in neighbouring Sudan.
Source: Dutch Birding 34, pp. 316-319
Atlantic Ocean islands
Azores Bullfinch needs your help
Since 2003, the Azores Bullfinch Pyrrhula murina has benefitted
considerably from a highly successful conservation project, operated by BirdLife’s Portuguese Partner and its official Species Guardian. Already >250 ha of natural forest has been restored by replanting 150,000 native saplings. As a result, the bullfinch population has stabilised and its threat level has been downlisted to Endangered. However, more work is needed to ensure the species’ long¬ term future: the priority is continued forest restoration and maintenance, but controlling invasive plants is also important. Support for the project has come from several international sources, with the main funding being provided by the Azorean government and the EU Commission via two substantial grants. Now these grants have come to an end, and finding funds to keep this flagship project running is an urgent priority. To spearhead the fundraising effort and keep a vital project team in place, a new campaign has been launched, see http://www.indiegogo. com/projects/let-s-preserve- the-azores-bullfinch?website_ name=PreserveAzoresBullfinch.
Source: BirdLife International press release, February 2013
Cape Verde Shearwater in Madeira
In April 2012, a Cape Verde Shearwater Calonectris edwardsii was found amid a colony of Cory’s Shearwaters C. diomedea borealis on Selvagem Grande, in the Madeiran archipelago. It was the second record for the islands, following a dead individual in June 2005; as its name suggests. Cape Verde Shearwater is known to breed only in the Cape Verde archipelago.
Source: Dutch Birding 34, pp. 310-311
Common Buzzard survey on Madeira
A survey was conducted in May— June 2008 to determine the population size and distribution of Common Buzzard Buteo buteo on Madeira. Distance sampling on foot was carried out along 87.6 km of transects. The species was present in small numbers in all areas sampled.
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Eastern Imperial Eagle / Aigle imperial Aquila heliaca (Dick Forsman)
Population size was estimated at 409 individuals at a density of 0.55 buzzards / km’.
Source: Ardeola 59, pp. 145-155
White-tailed Tropicbird in the Cape Verdes
Chronologically the second record lor the Western Palearctic and the second for the archipelago, a White¬ tailed Tropicbird Phaethon lepturus was photographed at sea off the island of Santiago in May 2011; it was perhaps the same bird as that recorded in the Azores in October of the same year (see Bull. ABC 19: 138).
Source: Dutch Birding 34, pp. 312-313
West and Central Africa
Diet of Eurasian Spoonbills breeding in Mauritania not involved in population decline
The population of the endemic subspecies balsaci of Eurasian Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia breeding on the Banc d'Arguin, in north-west Mauritania, has decreased from c.6,000 individuals in 1998-2002 to c. 2,500 in recent years. The causes of this dramatic decline are unknown. Jan Veen and co-workers investigated whether it is correlated with a change in composition of the birds’ diet. By analysing their droppings, they found that the spoonbills’ diet consisted almost exclusively of shrimp (59.7%) and small fish (35.4%). Diet composition fluctuated considerably between years during the study period, but there were no significant trends that could be linked to the population decline. The researchers therefore recommend a more detailed ecological study, including a quantitative analysis of food intake and foraging conditions. This should be combined with observations on other factors possibly affecting breeding success, such as predation by Common Jackals Cams aureus and flooding of the colonies by high tides.
Source: Ardea 100, pp. 123-130
Most migrants fatten slowly for spring migration
Thirty-eight species of Palearctic migrants were studied using constant-effort mist-netting throughout the non-breeding season at Djoudj National Park in western Senegal by Nicolas Bayly et al. from The Wetland Trust. Twenty-four of these species used the site either throughout the northern winter or as a spring migration fattening area. The other 14 appeared just to pass through. Late winter and early spring when birds are preparing to fly north is the local dry season so wetland sites like Djoudj can be important areas. Nevertheless most species only accumulated sufficient fat reserves for the spring migration to Europe rather slowly, commencing in January-February. However, three accumulated mass faster and these were found to stopover for a shorter time.
Source: J. Ornithol. 153, pp. 931-945
First Eurasian Wigeon for The Gambia documented
The first Eurasian Wigeon Anas penelope for The Gambia, reported on 22 January 2010 ( cf. Bull. ABC 18: 233) has been documented. The first-winter male was photographed in a rice field near Madina-Sapu, Lower River Division.
Source: Malimbus 32, pp. 120-122
Satellite-tracked Eastern Imperial Eagle makes new records
A juvenile Eastern Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca fitted with a satellite transmitter in the Hungarian lowlands as a nestling in July, roosted in south-west Niger in November 2012, c.200 km north of Niamey. The eagle, named ‘Gabi’ after Gabriella Szabo, the Hungarian gold medalist at the 2012 London Olympic games, continued its migration through eastern Mali, northern Togo, northern Ghana and Burkina Faso (to follow its journey, see www. satellitetracking, eu). Previously, the only western African records were three sightings in northern Cameroon. The satellite¬ tracking study forms part of an EU project coordinated by MME, BirdLife in Hungary, in response to the increased poisoning of Eastern Imperial Eagles in Hungary. Security conditions permitting, MME are also seeking to study the bird’s ecology in the Sahel. A similar study was undertaken in southern Niger in February-March 2010, on a satellite- tracked Hungarian Saker Falcon Falco cherrug , by Housseini Issaka, whose report can be downloaded at http://sakerlife.mme.hu/en/content/ newsfkerecsen 187.
Source: J. Brouwer in litt.
November 2012
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Ten new bird species for Burkina Faso documented
In the latest issue of Malimbus ,
Marco Pavia and collegues document ten additions to the country’s avifauna, all from the south-west: Ovambo Sparrowhawk Accipiter ovampensis, Black Sparrowhawk A. melanoleucos , Red Phalarope Phalaropus fulicarius, Black¬ shouldered Nightjar Caprimulgus nigriscapularis , Red-headed Lovebird Agapomis pullarius , Buff-spotted Woodpecker Campethera nivosa. Grasshopper Warbler Locustella naevia , African Reed Warbler Acrocephalus baeticatus , Emin’s Shrike Lanius gub ernator and Tropical Boubou Laniarius aethiopicus. For some species, range extensions within the country are also presented.
Source: Malimbus 32, pp. 57-81
White-necked Picathartes population is stable in Sierra Leone
David Monticelli and others from the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (BirdLife in the UK) surveyed the White-necked Picathartes Picathartes gymnocephalus population in Gola Forest and surrounding areas of Sierra Leone. They found 1 57 active nests in 40 colonies, fewer than half of which were in the protected forest reserve. However, colonies in the protected area were mostly used annually, whereas those outside were sometimes active less frequently.
The overall population appears to have been stable at least over the last two decades.
Source: Bird Conserv. Intern. 22, pp. 170-183
Survey of Abdim’s Stork in northern Nigeria
The first large-scale survey of Abdim's Stork Ciconia abdimii in northern Nigeria was conducted in 2010 by the A. P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute.
The species was found to breed in 53 villages and the population was estimated to be at least 538 individuals. Earliest laying dates were at the end of March-early April (mean clutch size 2.7 + 0.11 eggs), with fledging occurring in mid to late
July. Twelve tree species were used for nesting, with Baobab Adansonia digitata being the commonest.
Source: Malimbus 32, pp. 82-91
African Pitta with brood patch in Omo Forest, Nigeria
On 27 May 2012, an African Pitta Pitta angolensis with a brood patch was mist-netted in Omo Forest Reserve, south-west Nigeria. This suggests local breeding by this species, for which there are no breeding records in Nigeria.
Source: Malimbus 32, pp. 122—124
Forest discovery improves prospects for Angola’s endemics
A large tract of near-pristine Afromontane forest has been found in Angola’s Namba Mountains, tripling the amount of this habitat thought to be extant in Angola.
The site meets the criteria for a new Important Bird Area (IBA), harbouring one globally threatened species, and assemblages of restricted range and biome-restricted bird species. Afromontane forest is the most localised and threatened habitat type in Angola. By the early 1970s, only 200 ha was estimated to remain, mainly at the Mount Moco IBA (85 ha), and perhaps in the Namba Mountains, where most forest was thought to be degraded by logging.
Swierstra’s Francolin / Francolin de Swierstra Ptemistis swierstrai (Ursula Franke)
Mount Moco and the Namba Mountains lie within the Western Angola Endemic Bird Area, which includes four restricted-range species associated with Afromontane vegetation. Two Afromontane endemics of global conservation concern, the Endangered Swierstra’s Francolin Ptemistis swierstrai and Near Threatened Angola Cave Chat Xenocopsychus ansorgei, occur at Mount Moco, but the francolin is now uncommon. The Data Deficient endemic Grimwood’s Longclaw
Angola Cave Chat / Cossyphe des grottes Xenocopsychus ansorgei (Pedro Vaz Pinto)
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Macronyx grimwoodi is also found at Moco. Several other Afromontane specialists have been found only there or at 1-2 other sites in Angola, and face a serious threat of extirpation in the country. Angola’s Afromontane forest holds 20 species, subspecies or populations of conservation significance, isolated and distinct from other Afromontane ‘centres of endemism’, the nearest of which is >2,000 km away. All 20 were recorded at Moco prior to 1970, but several are now rare or absent.
A team from the University of Jos, Nigeria, and Percy FitzPatrick Institute of African Ornithology, South Africa, visited the Namba Mountains in July 2010, to establish the extent and condition of forest, and to conduct bird surveys. Due to the difficulty of the terrain, they were confined to exploring a single area of 24 ha, in which they recorded 89 bird species, 56 of them in or adjacent to forest, including a significant population of Swierstra’s Francolin and the other Afromontane specialists now hard to find at Mount Moco.
On their return, they examined satellite images from Google Earth, which indicated that there is currently c.590 ha of forest in the Namba Mountains. ‘Compared with the forest at Moco, individual forest patches in the Nambas are larger and have greater area / edge ratios, making these patches less susceptible to edge effects and human impacts’, the discovery team writes in their paper, published in Bird Conservation International. ‘Besides this, the forest patches in the Nambas are in better condition, showing fewer signs of human disturbance. This is likely to be a consequence of the ruggedness of the terrain, and its unsuitability for establishment of human communities.’ But they add: ‘Despite the limited extent of Afromontane forest in Angola, threats to it from human activities and its high biodiversity value, none of it is formally protected, putting it at risk of becoming the first Afromontane centre of endemism to be lost...
The Nambas deserve national and international recognition for their conservation importance, and along
with Moco are among the highest priorities for the establishment of new conservation areas in Angola.’
Sources: BirdLife International press release, July 2012; journals. Cambridge, org/ action/ displayAbstract/fromPage=on line&aid =8607 52 1
Mount Moco project boosted
In July 2010 the Mount Moco Project (www.mountmoco.org), with support from the Rufford Small Grants Foundation and the A. P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute, constructed the first native tree nursery on the slopes of Mount Moco, with the long¬ term aim of reforesting Angola’s highest mountain and home to a vital population of the Endangered Swierstra’s Francolin Pternistis swierstrai , one of the country’s rarest birds. Over the next 18 months, the pilot nursery project successfully grew native forest trees, and in October 201 1 the first ol these were successfully planted on the mountain, with more in March 2012. Following the success of the pilot project, and with fresh financial assistance from the Gulf Agency Company, a new nursery facility was constructed with the capacity to hold 400-500 trees at one time. The expanded nursery will also assure the employment of at least one additional person from Kanjonde village (three were employed by the original nursery) and will greatly improve efforts to conserve the fragile habitat at Mount Moco.
Source: M. Mills in litt. July 2012
East Africa
Charcoal production threatens 9% of Somalia’s avifauna
An estimated four million sacks of charcoal waiting to be exported, with a further four million sacks stockpiled in and around the city, and at the village ol Buur Gabo, near the Kenyan border were found when African Union Mission in Somalia (Amisom) forces took control of the port city of Kismayo in southern Somalia in September 2012. Much of the charcoal leaving Kismayo is suspected to have come
from the Jubba Valley, part of an Endemic Bird Area (EBA) shared between Somalia and Ethiopia, which includes six Important Bird Areas (IBAs) on the Somali side.
All of the charcoal at Buur Gabo is thought to have come from the mangroves and Acacia forests of the Laag Badaana (Bush Bush National Park) IBA, which is contiguous with the Boni Forest Reserve on the Kenyan side of the border, part of the East African Coastal Forests EBA. Further stocks of charcoal subsequently found at Badhaadhe, north of Laag Badaana, also probably came from the national park.
Between them, the Jubba forests and Laag Badana are home to more than 50 bird species not found anywhere else in Somalia, representing 9% of Somalia's avifauna, and their survival in the country is threatened by the scale of charcoal production. Although the UN and the Somali government have banned the export of charcoal, these have resumed because the port is under control of forces with no allegiance to the president. It is thought likely that the fragile Acacia dry-forest ecosystems in particular will be unable to recover, while Laag Badana holds the most important remnant of Somalia’s mangroves.
Source: BirdLife International press release, December 2012
New secretary for the East African Rarities Committee
The East African Rarities Committee has a new secretary, Kenyan resident Nigel Hunter. The committee covers Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda, and collects details of the first to fifth records of all rare species for each country. The EARC prefers to receive records in electronic form via e-mail sent to nigelhunter@timbale.org. Photographs are especially useful, but if not available then a full written description is required. Past records of rare species are also sought. For those without access to the internet, records can also be submitted by post to Nigel Hunter, PO Box 24803, Karen 00502, Nairobi, Kenya.
Source: D. Fisher in litt. October 2012
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Poverty reduction and biodiversity harmonious in Kenya
The BirdLife Africa Partnership received a renewed boost to its work in poverty reduction and policy making when the Spanish Agency for International Cooperation and Development (AECID) provided additional funding in October 2010. One of the sites benefiting from the project is Dakatcha Woodlands north-west of Malindi in coastal Kenya, which has been identified as an Important Bird Area (IBA) due to the presence of globally threatened birds such as Sokoke Scops Owl Otus ireneae , Sokoke Pipit Anthus sokokensis and Clarke’s Weaver Ploceus golandi, all of which are highly restricted in range. NatureKenya. (the BirdLife partner in Kenya) recently achieved success when the National Environment Management Authority officially rejected a proposal to convert 10,000 ha of Dakatcha IBA to grow the biofuel crop Jatropba curcus (see Bull. ABC 19: 13-14).
Local communities continue to benefit from initiatives supported by this project, via the IBA Site Support Groups, which comprises two main umbrella groups encompassing over seven other groups. Initiatives include bee-keeping, with over 300
Sokoke Scops Owl / Petit-due d’lrene Otus ireneae (Chege Wa Kariuki)
beehives and a honey-processing unit, and non-native tree species are now being grown to meet local demands for wood without impacting on the surrounding native woodland.
A tourist site has also been established at Mekatilili, which is part of Dakatcha, while the Dakatcha Community Forest Association (CFA) has been formally registered to engage with the Kenya Forest Service in managing and protecting the area. Local communities have also formed a Charcoal Producers Association to sustainably produce charcoal, thereby further reducing negative impacts on the area.
Source: BirdLife International press release, July 2012
Genetically distinct lion population discovered in Ethiopia
A team of international researchers has provided the first comprehensive DNA evidence that 1 5 captive lions Panthera leo at the Addis Ababa Zoo in Ethiopia are genetically unique and is urging immediate conservation action to preserve this endangered population. While it has long been noted that some lions in Ethiopia have a large, dark mane, extending from the head, neck and chest to the belly, as well as being smaller and more compact than other lions, it was not known until now if these lions represent a genetically distinct population. It has previously been suggested that no lions comparable to those at Addis Ababa Zoo still exist in the wild. However, the researchers say that, according to the Ethiopian authorities, lions with a similar appearance still exist in the east and north-east of the country, notably in the Babille Elephant Sanctuary near Harar and southwards to Hararghe. These regions should thus be prioritised for field surveys. Lion numbers are in serious decline and two distinct populations of lion, the North African Barbary lions and the South African Cape lions have already become extinct in the wild.
Source: www. wildlifeextra. comlgol news/addis-ababa-lions. htrnl
Forbes-Watson’s Swift does breed in Arabia
Forbes-Watson’s Swift Apus berliozi is widely considered to breed solely in northern Somalia and on the Yemeni-administered island of Socotra, with two subspecies, the nominate on Socotra and A. b. bensoni in Somalia, and some birds apparently wintering as far south as coastal Kenya. There were also suggestions in the literature that the species breeds in southern Arabia, especially in Omani Dhofar. Fresh study of museum specimens previously identified as Common Swiff A. apus pekinensis or Pallid Swiff A. pallidus , and collected in southern Arabia, has revealed all of them to be Forbes-Watson’s Swifts, probably of the subspecies bensoni. The specimens, all taken in south¬ west Oman or southern Yemen, were confidently identified based on a combination of plumage, especially vocal, and biometric characters, which eliminate all other possible species. The authors of the research demonstrate that A. berliozi is a locally common summer visitor to the southern Arabian coast and its immediate hinterland, as well as on a handful of offshore islands.
The migrant or partially migratory A. b. bensoni is separable only on its marginally longer wing from nominate A. berliozi (other characters claimed to differentiate it prove unreliable), with the latter subspecies apparently resident on Socotra, or largely so.
Source : Bull. Br. Ornithol. Cl.
132, pp. 194-206
Tana River Delta is newest Ramsar Site in Africa
Conservationists are celebrating the declaration of Kenya’s Tana Delta as one of the newest Ramsar sites in Africa. In a statement from the Ramsar Convention Secretariat, the Assistant Advisor for Africa, Ms Ako Charlotte Eyong described the delta as the second most important estuarine ecosystem in Eastern Africa. The delta is one of the most neglected regions in the country,
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with the majority of people living below the poverty line, but in addition to being an internationally important area for birds and wildlife, the wetland is vital for the herders who depend on the water and grasslands during the dry season, farmers who cultivate rice, mangoes and other crops, and fishermen who work its lakes and watercourses. NatitreKenya has worked with local communities for six years to promote ecological sustainability in the delta and is currently running a humanitarian campaign to assist the victims of recent ethnic violence through provision of basic food items. Acknowledging the importance of deltas for the economy as well as ecological services, NatureKenya is collaborating with the Prime Minister’s office to develop a land-use plan for long¬ term sustainable management of the delta to provide economic prosperity, stable social conditions and lasting environmental quality. Designation of the Tana Delta as a wetland of international importance had stalled in recent years. In 2008 NatureKenyn supported the Kenya Wildlife Service’s efforts to jump- start the process, as well as playing a major role in creating local awareness of the importance of including the Tana Delta on the Ramsar list.
Other wetlands in Kenya designated as Ramsar sites are Lakes Nakuru, Naivasha, Bogoria, Baringo and Elementaita.
Source: BirdLife International press release, October 2012
Yellow-throated Apalis in good health
Yellow-throated Apalis Apalis flavigularis is confined to three massifs in southern Malawi, and is this country’s sole endemic. Tiwonge Mzumara and others surveyed the species in 41 forest patches on one of the massifs, Mount Mulanje. The species favoured forest edges and even occurred in some very small patches. The overall estimate was 7,900 birds only in the cedar forest habitat on Mount Mulanje, and as the species occurs in other native forest types the
population could approach or even exceed 10,000 on Mulanje alone.
Source: Bird Conserv. Intern. 22, pp. 184-192
Indian Ocean islands
Schoolchildren come to rescue of threatened flycatcher
An after-school clubs, the Friends of the Flycatcher, is helping to keep Seychelles Paradise Flycatcher Terpsiphone corvina watered. The club is based on the flycatcher’s stronghold island of La Digue and has installed eight bird baths at different locations on the island for the benefit of the iconic bird. Seychelles Paradise Flycatcher favours native Terminalia catappa and Calophyllum innophylum broadleaf plateau woodland in proximity to wetland areas that are important breeding grounds for insects, which the birds feed on. But, in the dry season the marshes dry out, and the birds have been observed visiting domestic water sources placing them in danger of drinking detergent and being caught by cats. Nature Seychelles (BirdLife Partner) has been promoting the conservation of the Critically Endangered flycatcher through an advocacy and education project, and the project is part of the BirdLife Preventing Extinctions Programme and is supported by the Species Champion, Viking Optical. Although still in its infancy, the club has been involved in a number of activities including cleaning up the island on World Clean-up Day and planting trees in the Veuve Reserve.
Source: BirdLife International press release, Januaty 2013
Madagascar’s palms near extinction
Eighty three percent of Madagascar’s palms are threatened with extinction, putting the livelihoods of local people at risk, according to the latest update of the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. The assessment was undertaken by the IUCN Species Survival Commission (SSC) Palm Specialist Group, drawing on research by the Royal
Botanic Gardens, Kew. ‘The figures ... are truly terrifying, especially as the loss of palms impacts both the unique biodiversity of the island and its people’, said Dr Jane Smart, Global Director, IUCN Biodiversity Conservation Group. Palms represent an integral part of Madagascar’s biodiversity and all of the 192 species assessed are endemic to the island. They provide essential resources to some of Madagascar’s poorest communities, such as materials for house construction and edible palm hearts. Habitat loss and palm heart harvesting are major threats putting these species at risk. ‘The majority of Madagascar’s palms grow in the island’s eastern rain forests, which have already been reduced to less than one quarter of their original size and which continue to disappear’ said Dr William Baker, Chair of the IUCN SSC Palm Specialist Group and Head of Palm Research at the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew.
Populations of many palm species are at risk as land is cleared for agriculture and logging. Ravenea delicatula (Critically Endangered) is known from just one site, which is not protected and is being threatened by forest clearance to cultivate rice, and by miners searching for minerals and gems such as rubies. The recently discovered Tahina (or Suicide) Palm Tahina spectabilis has been listed for the first time on the IUCN Red List. Large enough to be viewed on Google Earth, it grows up to 18 m tall. A few months after flowering, the tree dies. With only 30 mature palms in the wild, it is classified as Critically Endangered, and much of its habitat has been converted to agriculture. Dypsis brittiana is known only from the recently established Makira Natural Park and may already be extinct; none was found during a 2007 survey. D. tokoravina (Critically Endangered) is targeted by seed collectors who fell the trees, of which fewer than c.30 survive.
‘The national system of protected areas, managed by Madagascar National Parks, offers protection to some, but by no means all, of Madagascar’s palm species’ said Dr Russell Mittermeier, President
16 -Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
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of Conservation International and Chair of the IUCN SSC Primate Specialist Group. 'The key to saving Madagascar’s palms, and its biodiversity in general, is strongly dependent on the closest possible collaboration with local communities — especially in this period of severe political instability during which government agencies are working well below standard. Unfortunately this extremely high degree of threat in Madagascar is not unique to palms.’
Well-managed seed harvesting and habitat protection can help conserve some species. The Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, has initiated several projects to protect some of Madagascar’s most charismatic and threatened palms. One such project encourages local communities to protect the Vulnerable Manambe Palm Dypsis decipiens and the Critically Endangered D. ambositrae in the Itremo proposed protected area. For the Tahina Palm, the power of the horticultural community is being harnessed. Assisted by Madagascar’s national seed bank, sustainably harvested seeds are sold via a commercial palm seed merchant. The money returns to local people who use it to renovate buildings and grow food more productively.
‘While some species of palm may respond to focused species conservation action, securing the future for Madagascar’s palms requires wide-scale efforts’ said Jane Smart. ‘Madagascar has made great progress to preserve its unique wildlife by conserving 10% of the island in protected areas. But a game-changing conservation effort is needed to protect the remaining habitat and create more protected areas, in line with the Aichi targets to save the world’s biodiversity, which many governments committed to in 2010.’
Source: www. iucn. orgl 'about/ 'work/ programmes/species/news/H 1273/ Madagascars-palms-near-extinction
Southern Africa
Hope as copper mining at Lower Zambezi IBA put on hold
The Lower Zambezi is an Important Bird Area and a national park, but has been threatened by a proposed copper mine in the area. Moses Nyoni, CEO of Bird Watch Zambia (BWZ), formerly the Zambian Ornithological Society (the BirdLife partner in Zambia), which has led a campaign to stop the mining plan said: ‘This the right first step the Zambia Environmental Management Agency (ZEMA) has taken in this case. Our aim is to see the mining project eventually withdrawn. Short-term economic gains should never override long-term benefits to the country’. ZEMA’s decision comes a few months after public hearings attended by BWZ and other interested organisations in June 2012. The project received little support during the hearings because the investor failed to address key issues such as job creation and impacts on biodiversity. Mwembeshi Resources Limited have appealed to the Minister of Lands, Natural Resources and Environmental Protection to review ZEMA’s decision under the Environmental Management Act of 201 1. 'BWZ and like-minded organisations are determined to ensure that Lower Zambezi is protected from this damaging development. We will continue engaging ZEMA and other government agencies as well as involve local communities by raising grassroots awareness. We will also demand a comprehensive cost and benefit analysis of the mining project’ said Mr Nyoni.
Source : BirdLife International press release, September 2012
Marabou Stork survival and population dynamics
During a long-term study into the survival and population dynamics of Marabou Stork Leptoptilos crumenifer conducted by Ara Monadjem and collegues in Swaziland, since 2005, 193 nestlings and 17 free-flying individuals have been equipped with
patagial tags in Hlane National Park, the only breeding site in the country, while breeding storks were monitored regularly in 2003—1 1. Between 19 and 31 pairs of Marabous bred annually and fledged 1 1-43 chicks, i.e. a mean of 1.05 fledged offspring per pair per annum. Survival rates varied considerably between age classes and the datasets analysed. Typically, first-year survival, with mean survival estimates of 64%, was lower than that ot older birds.
For the latter, the survival rate was 87%, based on free-flying birds, and apparently did not differ between subadults and adults. The study corroborated previous findings showing fecundity to be negatively related to rainfall during the breeding season. Although the exact nature of the relationship between rainfall, food and Marabou Stork fecundity remains unclear, the researchers suggest that increased rainfall during the breeding season represents increased cloud cover during this period of food stress when parents need to fend for themselves as well as for growing chicks. As Marabous require thermals for foraging, which are only available on sunny days, increased cloud cover may result in less soaring time and less efficient foraging. The metapopulation structure of Marabou Storks in southern Africa (including the colonies in Botswana and Zimbabwe) could explain the presence of 300—400 non-breeding birds in Kruger National Park, South Africa, a country where the species has not yet successfully bred. Juveniles are capable of dispersing up to 1,500 km after fledging, easily permitting them to cover the <100 km between the study site in Swaziland and Kruger National Park. The study showed that adults contributed twice as much as subadults and over three times as much as juveniles to the growth of the population. This means that the emphasis of conservation efforts targeting long-lived species should be on ensuring the survival of adults. Source: PLoS ONE 7(9): e46434. doi:l 0. 1371 /journal, pone. 0046434
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Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) -17
More than 500 rhinos killed in South Africa in 2012
Rhino poaching in South Africa continues to worsen. By November 2012, a total of 528 rhinos (including both White Rhino Ceratotberium simum and the Critically Endangered Black Rhino Diceros bicomis ) had been killed by poachers since the beginning of the year, with Kruger National Park being the hardest hit, having lost 320 rhinos. In 2010 and 2011, 333 and 448 rhinos, respectively, were killed in the country ( cf. Bull. ABC 19: 16).
Source: www. wildlifeextra. comlgol news/201 2-rhino-poached, html
Taxonomic proposals
Newly split and lumped taxa on the BirdLife 2012 list
Taxonomic changes to species occurring in the region covered by the ABC on the BirdLife International 2012 list include the following. Six taxa have been elevated to species level: Timneh Grey Parrot Psittacus timneh (split from Grey Parrot P. erithacus ); Blue-moustached Bee-eater Merops mentalis (split from Black Bee- eater M. muelleri)-, Fire-crested Alethe Alethe castanea (previously lumped with White-tailed Alethe A. diademata ); the Sahel-to-Kenya taxon Heuglin’s Wheatear Oenanthe heuglini (separated from Horn of Africa and south-west Arabian Botta’s Wheatear O. bottae)\ African Crimson-winged Finch Rhodopechys alienus (split from Crimson¬ winged Finch R. sanguineus ); and Reichenow’s Seedeater Serinus reichenowi (recognised as separate from Black-throated Seedeater S. atrogularis) . Four taxa are no longer treated as distinct species: Loanda Swift A. toulsoni (subsumed in Horus Swift A. horns)-, Kivu Ground Thrush Zoothera tanganjicae (lumped with Abyssinian Ground Thrush Z. piaggiae ); Kungwe Apalis Apalis argentea (subsumed in Buff- throated Apalis A. rufogularis ); and Yellow-browed Seedeater
Serinus ivhytii (subsumed in Streaky Seedeater S. striolatus).
Source: http://www.birdlife.org/ datazone/
How many species of darters?
Recent decades have seen some dissension in the literature as to the number of darters Anhinga spp. recognised in the Old World. 'Bucking the trend’ witnessed in many species of birds, whereby somewhat arbitrary decisions taken by Peters for his influential world checklist have had a profound influence on their taxonomy, in this case Peters considered the group to comprise three species, but many subsequent works have treated them as just one. Lacking was a robust reappraisal of the group’s taxonomy. Now, morphological analysis of the major populations of darters from Africa to Australia has identified significant regional differentiation in sexual dimorphism, shape and structure of the pale cheek stripe, pattern and tone of the chin and foreneck, form of scapular feathering, and marking and tone of the greater wing-coverts. Further differentiation occurs in the proportions of the tail, bill and feet, and in bare-part colours, particularly in the irides and feet. Among the three major forms — Afro-Middle East rufa. Oriental melanogaster and Australasian novaehollandiae — qualitative differentiation in plumage patterning was almost of the same high order as that between these darters and the Anhinga A. anhinga of the New World. Furthermore, differentiation of a lower but still clear-cut order was found among African, Malagasy and Middle East populations of rufa , and between Australian and New Guinean populations of novaehollandiae. The authors of the recently published study conclude that rufa, melanogaster and novaehollandiae have speciated, and that Malagasy, Middle East and New Guinean isolates are subspecies of African rufa and Australian novaehollandiae respectively.
Sourer. Bull. Br. Ornithol. Cl.
132, pp. 283-294
Subspecies status of Mauritanian spoonbill verified
In 1974, the Eurasian Spoonbills Platalea leucorodia breeding on the Banc d’Arguin, Mauritania, were described as a distinct subspecies balsaci, based on their somewhat smaller size, their breeding plumage lacking yellow on the upper breast, and their all-black bill. Theunis Piersma and co-workers have now revisited this subspecific separation for the first time by comparing molecular variation between those spoonbills breeding in Mauritania and their sympatrically wintering conspecifics breeding in the Dutch Wadden Sea, which belong to the nominate subspecies. The level of genetic differentiation indicates that gene flow between the Mauritanian and Dutch birds is much lower than among Dutch colonies on separate Wadden Sea islands. Field observations of individually colour- marked birds from the Netherlands suggests extensive dispersal within north-west Europe, with some introgression of leucorodia genes into the balsaci population. The level of dispersion between the two populations is estimated at c. 4—5 individuals per generation. For example, in 2000 a Dutch-born leucorodia was observed feeding chicks in a balsaci colony. A colour- ringed male born in the Netherlands in 1 997 and paired with an apparent leucorodia individual probably of European origin was seen feeding chicks in the Banc d’Arguin in 2010. There are also several observations of European-born spoonbills copulating with apparent balsaci. However, on the basis of the observed genetic differentiation between the two spoonbill populations, the subspecies status of balsaci seems entirely valid.
Source: Ardea 100, pp. 131-136
Ayres’ Hawk-Eagle or Ayres’ Eagle?
In a recent note concerning eagle genera, specifically which species should be included within Aquila and which in Hieraaetus, Bill Clark also remarks on the English name of Hieraaetus ayresii. Because H.
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Ayres’s Hawk Eagle / Aigle d’Ayres Hieraaetus ayresii (Nik Borrow)
ayresii presents few, if any, relevant characters in common with other hawk-eagles, specifically the Neotropical members of the genus Spizaetus and two other African raptors, both of which hunt inside forests, Clark recommends that ayresii be referred to simply as Ayres’ Eagle. He also suggests that Hieraaetus continues to be recognised as a genus apart from Aquila, with the following additional species as constituents: Wahlberg’s Eagle H. wahlbergi, Booted Eagle H. pennatus (the type species of the genus), Little Eagle H. morphnoides and Pygmy Eagle H. weisker, the last two-named species occur in the Australasian region.
Source : Bull. Br. Ornithol. Cl. 132, pp. 295-298
Two odd gamebirds are related to New World not Old World species
The taxonomic affinities of two somewhat enigmatic African gamebirds have been investigated by Callan Cohen and others from the Percy Fitzpatrick Institute in Cape Town. Stone Partridge Ptilopachus petrosus, which inhabits rocky areas on the southern boundary of the Sahara, has usually been linked to some Asian forest species, but DNA-based research has recently found it to be closely related to
Nahan’s Francolin Francolinus nahani (sometimes now placed in Ptilopachus) , which species occurs in remnant forests of lowland eastern Democratic Republic of Congo and Uganda. Molecular markers overwhelmingly support this relationship and reveal that actually both are closer to to New World quails, now usually placed in their own family Odontophoridae and not to any Old World gamebird species.
Source: Ibis 154, pp. 768-780
Internet resources
Bull. BOC freely available online
Vol. 1 (1892) up to and including Vol. 127 (2007) of the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists ’ Club are, or should shortly be, freely available on the Biodiversity Heritage Library website at www.biodiversitylibrary. org/bibliography/46639. Many descriptions of African species and papers on African ornithology are published in this journal.
Source: Bull. Br. Ornithol. Cl.
132, p. 137
Madagascar Conservation & Development
The electronic, open-access journal Madagascar Conservation & Development released its latest issue (Vol. 7, no. 3) in December
Announcement Phil Hockey 1956-2013
As this Bulletin went to press, news concerning the death of Phil Hockey was announced by the Percy Fitzpatrick Institute in South Africa. Born in England, Phil first came to the institute in 1976 and moved to South Africa permanently in 1979. Although most of his early research focused on coastal and estuarine bird ecology, Phil was involved in setting the guidelines for the first southern African bird atlas, and was lead author on the bird atlas of the Southwestern Cape. His focus on coastal waders also took him to many other destinations across the globe. As his career developed, his fields of interest broadened to include bird movement and migration, avian life history evolution and the ecology of rarity. By the end of the 1990s, Phil was one of the most experienced ornithologists in southern Africa, and a natural choice to lead the revision of Roberts — Birds of Southern Africa. He became the institute's Director in 2008 and he was awarded the Stevenson-Hamilton Medal by the Zoological Society of Southern Africa in the same year for contributions to the public awareness of science. We hope to publish a full obituary in the next Bulletin.
2012. This peer-reviewed, multi¬ disciplinary journal is devoted to the swift dissemination of current original research in and on Madagascar and the western Indian Ocean islands. Among others, the latest issue contains papers on Madagascar’s deforestation, the conservation of remaining forest fragments, and historical land cover changes in the highlands. All volumes are available free of charge at www. journalmcd.com
Source: Lucienne Wilme in litt.
December 2012
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Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) -19
Results of the seventh winter waterbird census in Libya,
January-February 2011
Essam Bourasf, Nicola Baccettih , Wajih Bashimanf, Ali Berbaslf, Mohamed Bouzainerf , Adriano De Faverih, Ashraf Galidarf , Al Mokhtar Saied \ Jaber Yahia a and Marco Zenatelloh
Resultats du septieme denombrement hivernai d’oiseaux d’eau en Libye, janvier-fevrier 2011. Les
oiseaux d’eau et certains rapaces de 83 zones humides libyennes ont ete denombres en janvier-fevrier 201 1 dans le cadre d un programme de suivi commence en 2003. Au total, 35.890 individus appartenant a 88 especes ont ete recenses. Des details sont fournis pour 28 especes pour lesquelles des differences significatives en nontbre ou en repartition ont ete notees par comparaison avec les donnees des six hivers precedents. La Mouette de Franklin Leucophaens pipixcan est nouvelle pour la Libye, et la Sterne naine Stemula albifrons et l’Aigle criard Aquila clanga n’ont pas ete observes pendant les inventaires hivernaux precedents. Des observations occasionnelles de certaines especes non aquatiques sont egalement rapportees.
Summary. Waterbirds and selected raptor species were counted at 83 Libyan wetlands in January-February 2011 as part of a monitoring programme begun in 2005. In total, 35,890 individuals belonging to 88 species were recorded. Details are provided for 28 species which showed significant differences in numbers or distribution compared with the previous six winters. Franklin’s Gull Leucophaeus pipixcan was new for Libya, and Little Tern Stemula albifrons and Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga had not been recorded during previous Libyan midwinter censuses. Occasional observations of selected non-waterbirds are also reported.
An analysis of the first six waterbird censuses in Libya in the winters of 2005-10, part of the International Waterbird Census programme of Wetlands International, has recently been published (EGA-RAC/SPA Waterbird Census Team 2012). Field activities continued uninterrupted in the following seasons, despite the period of civil unrest and war. Here we present the main results of the seventh census, undertaken by the authors between 29 January and 13 February 2011. Major differences compared to the previous six years’ data are highlighted; for the general aims, organisation and sponsorship of the initiative, see EGA-RAC/SPA Waterbird Census Team (2012).
Site coverage and methods
The survey was particularly extensive in 2011, with 83 sites covered, including 22 new ones, i.e. marked as never visited in the national wetland list and map (EGA-RAC/SPA Waterbird Census Team 2012). From a ‘traditional’ western start point in the Farwah area, the survey of coastal sites reached Al Marj and Sabkhat al Kuz in the east. To also sample some inland sites, we elected to visit the Jutrah region and the Shati Valley (for the fourth and third time, respectively), because a number of promising wetlands had been detected using satellite images. A quick and incomplete visit to the Sarir desert was made by part of the
team, immediately prior to the coastal survey. The ten observers (including one trainee, M. Bouzainen) usually worked in separate teams in two Toyota LandCruisers, meeting each other repeatedly during each day or at sunset, depending on wetland size and location. Only waterbirds, seabirds, kingfishers and some raptor species that depend on wetlands were censused.
Results
In total, 35,890 individuals belonging to 88 species of waterbirds and wetland-dependent raptors were recorded (Appendix 1). The overall number of species was higher than in all years between 2005 and 2010, whereas that of individuals was remarkably low, due to the small number of gulls in the Benghazi area. For 30 species, however, the 2011 total was higher than (or equal to) the maximum of all previous years, whereas it was below the minimum value for just four species. Details of the most noteworthy records are presented below. Unless otherwise stated, records in 2005-10 are from EGA-RAC/SPA Waterbird Census Team (2012).
Ruddy Shelduck Tadorna ferruginea
One at Tabilbah on 4 February. Second record in
our seven-year database. First recorded in 2006
(one).
20 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Seventh winter waterbird census in Libya: Bourass et al.
Mallard Anas platyrhynchos Confirmed as scarce and local in coastal areas, with just six at the Tawurgha complex (where none was found at Wadi al Azrak, a key site for the species in previous years) and four at Wadi Kaam dam. Small numbers (total: 73) possibly belonging to a locally resident population were present at eight wetlands in desert regions, especially in the Jufrah (cf. Cowan 1985 and Hering 2009 for other records in the Fezzan oases). Previous highest total was 42 in 2009.
Garganey Anas querquedula Two at Hijarah Lake, near Sabha, on 10 February. Third record in our database. Previously recorded in 2007 (one) and 2010 (two).
Marbled Teal Marmaronetta angustirostris A record flock of 40 on 2 February at Ayn Tawurgha, the only site where it had been previously recorded in more than one winter. Previously observed in only four years, with one in 2007, 12 in 2008 and 2009 (EGA-RAC/SPA Waterbird Census Team 2012) and one on 27 April 2010 (J. Hering in lift. 2012).
Ferruginous Duck Aythya nyroca Only 13 in the entire coastal region, at three dams (with 1 1 at Wadi Kaam dam on 1 1 February), but 16, possibly belonging to a locally resident population, were found on 9-10 February at four wetlands in the desert regions of the Jufrah, Shati and at Hijarah Lake near Sabha, where breeding and wintering has been reported in the past (Cowan 1983). Previous annual totals: 10-36, wintering at 3-6 sites. Additionally, two males and one female were observed on 6 January 2010 at Al Marj, where, according to reliable information from local residents, the species also breeds (J. Hering in litt. 2012).
Northern Gannet Morns bassanus Thirty-seven individuals of various ages, foraging i on 12 February off Janzour beach at Tripoli, represented the largest concentration recorded so far in the database; 1-2 were also observed at two sites in the southern Gulf of Sirt. Previous highest total was 12 in 2007.
Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax
Twenty-three in total, of which 15 were roosting in reeds at Buhayrat al Majdhub, the westernmost of the Al Maqarin karstic lakes, Benghazi, on 7 February, and five under the nets of a small fish farm near Hun on 8 February.
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis In total, 940 were counted at 15 sites, including 250 in full breeding plumage and on nests in the Bou Dzira reedbed heronry near Benghazi on 6 February {cf. Hering & Fuchs 2010). Close inspection of c. 10 nests revealed that most of them were newly built or had been refurbished with green materials, but none had eggs. An evening count of the Bou Dzira heronry on the same day yielded 800 individuals (versus 547 counted during the day at all of the Benghazi wetlands and on the rubbish tip), raising the 201 1 total to 1,193, the highest since 2005. Other heronries (e.g. at the tobacco factory in Tripoli), which might well have hosted substantial numbers, were not visited. A site visited for the first time, Misratah sewage farm, held 363 birds. Additional counts for sites / periods uncovered by our survey: ten at Sarir on 29 December 2010; 15 at the sewage farm and 30 at the camel market of Al Kufra on 31 December 2010; c.550 roosting at the sewage larm at Al Kulra on 3 January 2011; and 20 in irrigated fields of the Al Kufra government farm on 4 January 201 1 (J. Hering in litt. 2012).
White Stork Ciconia ciconia Beside a lower than average total (12) at wetlands, flocks were observed at two agricultural projects in the desert, 47 north-east of Sabha (at 27°23’32”N 15°02’21”E) on 10 February and 27 at Sarir on 29 January (Fig. 1), where c. 120 had been present one month earlier (J. Hering in litt. 2012). Approximately 160 were also seen at Al Kufra government farm on 4 January 2011 (J. Hering in litt. 2012).
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus The total of 577 individuals was the lowest so far. This was due to a combination of locally unfavourable conditions at key sites such as Sabkhat Abu Kammash (which was totally dry), the Tawurgha complex (little water on the mudflats and only 60 flamingos, including
Seventh winter waterbird census in Libya: Bourass et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) -21
Figure 1. White Storks Ciconia ciconia on irrigated fields in the middle of the desert, Sarir, Libya, 29 January 201 1 (Essam Bourass)
Cigognes blanches Ciconia ciconia dans des champs irrigues au milieu du desert, Sarir, Libye, 29 janvier 20 1 1 (Essam Bourass)
37 at A1 Hishah on 11 February) and Sabkhat Julyanah (lagoon drained; only three flamingos on 6 February). The best sites were Sabkltat al Kuz (214 on 7 February) and Sabkhat Urqub Jawwah, near Marsa al Burayqah airport, a site visited for the first time (108 on 4 February). Outside the surveyed sites and earlier in the same winter, five were recorded in the eastern desert at Lake Arashiyah and 22 at other lakes near Al Jaghbub on 27 December 2010 (J. Hering in lift. 2012).
Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga An immature at Wadi Kaam dam on 1 1 February was the fifth record for Libya and the first in winter (Bundy 1976), as well as a new species for the 2005-10 winter dataset.
Water Rail Rallus aquaticus Total 67 (previous max. 12, in 2006). The higher number is largely due to as many as 63 at five sites in the desert, some of which had not been visited previously, e.g. Quttah-Barqin and Wanzarik, which held 41 and 13 individuals, respectively, on 9 February. See also Massa & Visentin (2006) and Liering (2009) for the presence of this species at Libyan oases.
Common Crane Grus gnis Total for all Libyan wetlands: 910 (the highest since 2005), with 390 at the roosts of Mellahat al Mesherrek and Umm al Ez, in the Tawurgha wetlands complex, on 2 February. Relatively large flocks were also observed at several Jufrah wetlands and in the surrounding desert (333
birds on 8 February) and at Karkurah (147 on 5 February), with lower totals west of Tripoli and in the southern Gulf of Sirt. Away from wetlands, 1,097 were found in irrigated fields at Sarir Government Farm, in the middle of the desert, on 29 January (c. 1,200 there on 29-30 December 2010: J. Liering in lift. 2012). Given the absence of wetlands suitable for roosting both in the Jufrah and at Sarir, these flocks possibly spent the night on open-desert sands.
Eurasian Oystercatcher Haematopus ostralegus Total 56, recorded, as usual, at the westernmost wetlands on the Libyan coast. Previous annual max. 41, in 2008.
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus The overall total of 753 was more than twice the max. count in 2005-10. Previously identified key sites held comparable numbers to other years. The increase was mainly the product of counts at sites surveyed for the first time, including in the desert region (e.g. 66 at Quttah-Barqin lakes in the Shati Valley on 9 February) and by 121 individuals at Al Labadia near Al Marj, where unusually wet grasslands covered most of the former Al Ghariq Lake’s surface (see also Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus).
Greater Sand Plover Charadrius leschenaultii A single ol this very scarce but regular winterer was found at the relatively western location of Sabkhat Qasr Ahmed on 2 February.
22 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Seventh winter waterbird census in Libya: Bourass et al.
Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius Total 30 (previous max. 18, in 2007), 14 ol which were at four wetlands in the desert (e.g. six at Hijarah Lake on 10 February), nine (the largest group) at Ajdabiyah sewage farm on 3 February and seven at two of the Nafusa dams on 13 February.
Northern Lapwing Vanellus vanellus , Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago and Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus
All three species were recorded in unprecedented numbers (Northern Lapwing: 96; Common Snipe: 352; Green Sandpiper: 80) mainly due to large counts in the wet grasslands at A1 Labadia near A1 Marj (69 Northern Lapwings, 263 Common Snipe and 17 Green Sandpipers on 7 February), at wetlands in the Fezzan desert for the latter two species (e.g. 20 Common Snipe at Quttah-Barqin lakes on 9 February) and at Ajdabiyah sewage farm for Northern Lapwing (22 on 5 February). In the previous winter at least 1,000 Common Snipe, with 25 Jack Snipe Lymnocryptes minimus, were present in wet grasslands near A1 Marj on 6 January 2010 (J. Fiering in litt. 2012).
Spotted Redshank Tringa erythropus Total 40 (previous max. 10, in 2007), 31 of which were at Sabkhat al Kuz on 7 February and seven at three wetlands in the desert regions of Jufrah and Shati.
Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola Total 87, 35 of which were in the Sabha and Shati desert regions (previous max. 36, in 2008, when Sabha and the Shati Valley were also visited). As many as 34 were counted at Al Labadia, in north Cyrenaica, where the grasslands were unusually flooded in 201 1 .
Black-headed Gull Chroicocephalus ridibundus
Recorded in the desert (an adult at Fdijarah Lake on 10 February) and sparsely along the coast. The relatively low annual total (7,610) is mainly due to only 3,800 being recorded at Sabkhat Qanfudhah, a wetland adjacent to a refuse tip (numbers in the remainder of the Benghazi wetlands were similar to those of previous years).
»► Jr
Figure 2. Adult Franklin’s Gull Leucophaeus pipixcan , Zuwarah harbour, Libya, 1 February 201 1 (Nicola Baccetti)
Mouette de Franklin Leucophaeus pipixcan adulte, port de Zuwarah, Libye, 1 fevrier 2011 (Nicola Baccetti)
Franklin’s Gull Leucophaeus pipixcan An adult in Zuwarah harbour on 1 February (Fig. 2). First record of this Nearctic gull for Libya. There are six records in Morocco (including one in December 2010) and one in Mauritania, but none in Tunisia and Algeria (Bergier et al. 2012, Isenmann et al. 2000, 2005, 201 Of One observed at Luxor, Egypt, c. 1 month later (http://www. chn-france.org/upload_content/eorc_report_8. pdf) was perhaps the same individual.
Pallas’s Gull Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus Total 14, at just three sites in the Gulf of Sirt (previous max. 8, in 2008). The tiny Sabkhat al Ghbeba, now almost totally dumped with solid waste, was confirmed as the most important Libyan site for this species, with six individuals on 3 February. Several adults were in full breeding plumage.
Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis and Caspian Gull L. cachinnans Total for the two species combined: 945 (previous minimum 1,590). As with Black-headed Gull, small numbers at Sabkhat Qanfudhah were responsible for this low total. A careful scan of 350 michahellis / cachinnans in the Benghazi area (Sabkhat al Tharna and Qanfudhah) on 6 February revealed all to be cachinnans. A further 195 individuals at Benghazi and Sabkhat al Kuz were attributed to cachinnans.
Little Tern Sternula albifrons One at Farwah Lagoon on 1 February. Second published midwinter record for Libya (the first being of one in Tripoli harbour on 22 December 1970: Brehme et al. 2003), but flocks of up to 50 were recorded in the Benghazi urban wetlands on
Seventh winter waterbird census in Libya: Bourass et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 23
Clockwise from top left
Figure 3. Merlin Falco columbarius , Sabkhat Kasr Ahmed, Libya, 2 February 201 1 (Adriano De Faveri)
Faucon emerillon Falco columbarius , Sabkhat Kasr Ahmed, Libye, 2 fevrier 201 1 (Adriano De Faveri)
Figure 4. Thick-billed Lark Ramphocoris clotbey , between Sabha and Jabal as Sawda, Libya, 10 February 2011 (Adriano De Faveri)
Alouette de Clotbey Ramphocoris clotbey , entre Sabha et Jabal as Sawda, Libye, 10 fevrier 2011 (Adriano De Faveri)
Figure 5. Rock Martin / Hirondelle isabelline Ptyonoprogne fuligula , Barqin, Shati Valley, Libya, 9 February 201 1 (Adriano De Faveri)
Figure 6. Isabelline Wheatear / Traquet isabelle Oenanthe isabellina , Sabkhat al Waset, Libya, 4 February 201 1 (Adriano De Faveri)
27 December 2009-7 January 2010 (J. Hering in lift. 2012). Several winter records in Tunisia and one in Algeria; the species overwinters along the West African coast (Isenmann et al. 2000, 2005).
Lesser Crested Tern Thalasseus bengalensis
A higher total than in most winters, with 1 5 roosting at Farwah Lagoon, three at Sabkhat al Manqub (both on 1 February) and one at Sabkhat al Ghbeba in the Gulf of Sirt on 3 February.
Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida Total 128 (previous max. 77, in 2005). As many as 105 were at six sites in the Benghazi area, including at the almost drained Sabkhat Julyanah, with 33 there on 6 February. In the west, 17 were at Wadi Kaam dam on 1 1 February.
Non-waterbirds
Occasional sightings of other species, mainly near wetlands, included five Black-shouldered Kites
Elanus caeruleus at the Mashrua, near Birak, on
10 February; single Merlins Falco columbarius at two sites in the Tawurgha complex on 2 February (Fig. 3); a gathering of 66 Eurasian Collared Doves Streptopelia decaocto at Ajdabiyah sewage farm on 5 February (cf. Brehme et al. 2009, Yahia
6 Hamza 2011); two Common Swifts Apus apus at Misratah sewage farm on 2 February; a Thick¬ billed Lark Ramphocoris clotbey between Sabha and Jabal as Sawda (at 27°55'N 15°28'E) on 10 February (Fig. 4); Rock Martins Ptyonoprogne fuligula in the Shati and near Sabha (max. 40 at Quttah / Barqin on 9 February; Fig 5); >100 Barn Swallows Hirundo rustica at Sabkhat al Kuz and r.50 at Qaryunis near Benghazi on 6-7 February (smaller numbers at ten other sites); Common House Martins Delichon urbicum at 13 sites with max. 20 at Tabilbah; Red-throated Pipits Antlms cervinus at seven sites with max. 5 at Al Labadia on
7 February; three Isabelline Wheatears Oenanthe isabellina at Sabkhat al Waset on 4 February and singles at three sites in the Shati area (Fig. 6); a Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius at Sabkhat Zuwaytinah on 5 February; one or two Fieldfares Turdus pilaris heard in palm trees at Wadi al Azrak on 2 February; two Streaked Scrub Warblers Scotocerca inquieta at Sabkhat al Washkah on 3 February; two Spectacled Warblers Sylvia conspicillata at Sabkhat al Kuz on 7 February; Eurasian / African Reed Warblers Acrocephalus
24 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Seventh winter waterbird census in Libya: Bourass et al.
scirpaceus / baeticatus in full song at 13 sites with the largest total {c. 20) at Quttah-Barqin lakes on 9 February; a Great Reed Warbler A. arundinaceus singing at Wanzarik on 9 February; and two Spotted Flycatchers Muscicapa striata at A1 Labadia on 7 February.
Acknowledgements
The UNEP-MAP Regional Activity Centre for Specially Protected Areas in the Mediterranean (RAC / SPA, Tunis) contributed to the field mission fees (travel expenses of some participants, field activity costs and reporting fees). Our thanks are also due to Saied Younis, Hamza Abd Alkhader and Kamal Abou Zeid, as well as to Salah Dryag (head of the Sirt branch of EGA) and Salah Beki (head of the Misratah branch of EGA), who assisted us in all possible ways in different parts of Libya. Stefan Brehme and Jens Hering commented on a previous version of this manuscript and provided additional records.
References
Bergier, P., Franchimont, J., Thevenot, M. & CHM. 2012. Les oiseaux rares au Maroc. Rapport de la Commission d’Homologation Marocaine, No. 17 (2011). Go-South Bull. 9: 13-32.
Brehme, S., Thiede, W. & Borges, E. 2003. Beitrage zur Vogelwelt Libyens, IV: Scolopacidae bis Pteroclididae. Ornithol. Mitt. 55: 54—66.
Brehme, S., Hering J. & Fuchs, E. 2009. Beginnende Ausbreitung der Tuerkentaube Streptopelia decaocto im Westen Libyens. Vogelwelt 130: 195-199. Bundy, G. 1976. The Birds of Libya: An Annotated Check-list. BOU Check-list No. 1. London, UK: British Ornithologists’ Union.
Cowan, P. J. 1983. Birds in the Brak and Sabha regions of central Libya, 1981-82. Bull. Br. Ornithol. Cl. 103: 44—47.
Cowan, P. J. 1985. Birds in the central Fezzan, Libya, 1982-1983. Gerfaut 75: 21 1-218.
EGA-RAC/SPA Waterbird Census Team. 2012. Atlas of Wintering Waterbirds of Libya, 2005 — 2010. Tunis: Imprimerie COT1M. Temporarily available at: http://www.isprambiente.gov. it/ files/pubblicazioni/pubblicazionidipregio/ ATLAS_OF_WINTERING_WATERBIRD_IN_ LIBYA_20052010.pdf
Hering, J. 2009. Beitrag zur Wintervogelwelt Libyens. Vogelwarte 47: 5-22.
Hering, J. & Fuchs, E. 2010. Mixed breeding colony of Little Egret Egretta garzetta and Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis in Benghazi, Libya. Alauda 78: 1 49— 152.
Isenmann, P. & Moali, A. 2000. Oiseaux d’Algerie / Birds of Algeria. Paris: Societe d’Etudes Ornithologiques de France.
Isenmann, P., Gaultier, T., El Hili, A. Azafzaf, H., Dlensi, H. & Smart, M. 2005. Oiseaux de Tunisie / Birds of Tunisia. Paris: Societe d’Etudes Ornithologiques de France.
Isenmann, P., Benmergui, M., Browne, P., Ba, A. D., Diagana, C. H., Diawara, Y. & El Abidine ould Sidaty, Z. 2010. Oiseaux de Mauritania / Birds of Mauritania. Paris: Societe d’Etudes Ornithologiques de France.
Massa, B. & Visentin, M. 2006. Remarks on the importance of scattered vegetation in desert areas of Libya for migrating and breeding birds. Riv. ital. Orn. 75: 141-158.
Yahia, J. & Hamza, A. 2011. Spread of Eurasian Collared Dove in Libya and first breeding in Tripolitania. Dutch Birding 33: 248-250.
a Environment General Authority, Ganjor Algheran, PO Box 13793, Tripoli, Libya. E-mails: eaburass@yahoo. com, aberbash83@yahoo.com, abuzenine@yahoo.com, ashraf.galidan@yahoo.com, mok405@yahoo.com, jaber. yahia@gmail. com
b 1SPRA, via Ca ’ Fornacetta 9, 1-40064 Ozzano Emilia (Bologna), Italy. E-mails: nicola.baccetti@isprambiente. it, adriano.defaveri@isprambiente.it, marco.zenatello@ isprambiente.it
c Libyan Society for Birds, PO Box 81417 Tripoli, Libya. E-mail: bashwag@yahoo.com
Received 4 June 2012; revision accepted 15 November
2012.
Appendix 1. Waterbird totals recorded at Libyan wetlands in January- February 2011.
For White Stork Ciconia ciconia and Common Crane Gras gras, numbers obtained outside wetlands (see text) are also included.
Annexe 1. Totaux des oiseaux d'eau recenses dans les zones humides libyennes en janvier-fevrier 2011.
Pour la Cigogne blanche Ciconia ciconia et la Grue cendree Gras gras, les nombres obtenus en dehors des zones humides (voir texte) ont egalement ete Indus.
|
Species Ruddy Shelduck |
Tadorna ferruginea |
Totals 1 |
|
Common Shelduck |
Tadorna tadorna |
298 |
|
Eurasian Wigeon |
Anas penelope |
7 |
|
Common Teal |
Anas crecca |
470 |
|
Mallard |
Anas platyrhynchos |
83 |
|
Northern Pintail |
Anas acuta |
156 |
|
Garganey |
Anas querquedula |
2 |
|
Northern Shoveler |
Anas clypeata |
1,146 |
|
Marbled Teal |
Marmaronetta angustirostris |
40 |
|
Common Pochard |
Aythya farina |
197 |
|
Ferruginous Duck |
Aythya nyroca |
29 |
Seventh winter waterbird census in Libya: Bourass et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) -25
|
Med Duck |
Aythya fuligula |
19 |
Little Gull |
Hydrocoloeus minutus |
4 |
|
Yelkouan Shearwater |
Puffinus yelkouan |
5 |
Franklin's Gull |
Leucophaeus pipixcan |
1 |
|
Northern Gannet |
Morus bassanus |
40 |
Mediterranean Gull |
Ichthyaetus melanocephalus |
320 |
|
Great Cormorant |
Phalacrocorax carbo |
1,331 |
Audouin’s Gull |
Ichthyaetus audouinii |
279 |
|
Little Bittern |
Ixobrychus minutus |
1 |
Pallas's Gull |
Ichthyaetus ichthyaetus |
14 |
|
Biack-crowned Night Heron |
Nycticorax nyclicorax |
23 |
Common Gull |
Larus canus |
4 |
|
Cattle Egret |
Bubulcus ibis |
1,193 |
Lesser Black-backed Gull |
Larus fuscus |
3,388 |
|
Little Egret |
Egretta garzetta |
120 |
Yellow-legged Gull |
Larus michahellis |
500 |
|
Great Egret |
Egretta alba |
17 |
Caspian Gull |
Larus cachinnans |
445 |
|
Grey Heron |
Ardea cinerea |
198 |
gulls |
Laridae spp. |
22 |
|
Purple Heron |
Ardea purpurea |
3 |
Little Tern |
Sternula albifrons |
1 |
|
White Stork |
Ciconia ciconia |
86 |
Caspian Tern |
Hydroprogne caspia |
87 |
|
Glossy Ibis |
Plegadis falcinellus |
37 |
Sandwich Tern |
Thalasseus sandvicensis |
314 |
|
Eurasian Spoonbill |
Plataiea leucorodia |
145 |
Lesser Crested Tern |
Thalasseus bengalensis |
19 |
|
Greater Flamingo |
Phoenicopterus roseus |
577 |
Whiskered Tern |
Chlidonias hybrida |
128 |
|
Little Grebe |
Tachybaptus ruficollis |
108 |
Common Kingfisher |
Alcedo atthis |
5 |
|
Great Crested Grebe |
Podiceps cristatus |
170 |
Total |
35,890 |
|
|
Black-necked Grebe |
Podiceps nigricollis |
267 |
|||
|
Marsh Harrier |
Circus aeruginosus |
69 |
Appendix 2. Coordinates of localities mentioned |
||
|
Hen Harrier |
Circus cyaneus |
2 |
|||
|
Pallid Harrier |
Circus macrourus |
1 |
Annexe 2. Coordonnees des localites citees |
||
|
Greater Spotted Eagle |
Aquila clanga |
1 |
Ajdabiyah sewage farm |
30o41'41"N 20°15’32"E |
|
|
Osprey |
Pandion haliaetus |
2 |
Al Jaghbub |
c.29°36N 24°43’E |
|
|
Water Rail |
Ratlus aquaticus |
67 |
Al Kufra |
c.24°12’N 23°16E |
|
|
Common Moorhen |
Gallinula chloropus |
403 |
Al Labadia |
32°30’17"N 20°53'35”E |
|
|
Eurasian Coot |
Fulica atra |
284 |
Al Maqarin karstic lakes |
32°09'33”N 20°08'19”E |
|
|
Common Crane |
Grus grus |
2,007 |
Al Marj |
32°30’17"N 20°53'35”E |
|
|
Eurasian Oystercatcher |
Haematopus ostralegus |
56 |
Ayn Tawurgha |
32°00'50”N 15°06'26”E |
|
|
Black-winged Stilt |
Himanlopus himanlopus |
753 |
Bou Dzira |
32°10’06"N 20°07'55”E |
|
|
Pied Avocet |
Recurvirostra avosetta |
31 |
Farwah Lagoon |
33°05’17”N 1 1 °45'37nE |
|
|
Eurasian Thick-knee |
Burhinus oedicnemus |
12 |
Hijarah Lake |
27°03’32”N 14°28’15’’E |
|
|
Cream-coloured Courser |
Cursorius cursor |
11 |
Hun |
29°09'06"N 15°51’21”E |
|
|
Little Ringed Plover |
Charadrius dubius |
30 |
Jufrah |
c.29°17'N 16°00'E |
|
|
Common Ringed Plover |
Charadrius hiaticula |
101 |
Lake Arashiyah |
2936'38"N 24'51'37"E |
|
|
Kentish Plover |
Charadrius alexandrinus |
873 |
Mashrua |
27°29'48"N 14°20'04"E |
|
|
Greater Sand Plover |
Charadrius leschenaultii |
1 |
Mellahat al Mesherrek |
31°58’00”N 15°08’07"E |
|
|
Eurasian Dotterel |
Charadrius morinellus |
11 |
Misratah sewage farm |
32°19'35"N 1 5°08'43"E |
|
|
Eurasian Golden Plover |
Pluvialis apricaria |
205 |
Nafusa dams |
c.32°07'N 12°48E |
|
|
Grey Plover |
Pluvialis squatarola |
161 |
Quttah-Barqin lakes |
27°32’05”N 13°37'12"E |
|
|
Northern Lapwing |
Vanellus vanellus |
96 |
Sabha |
c.27°01'N 14°26'E |
|
|
Sanderling |
Calidris alba |
100 |
Sabkhat Abu Kammash |
33°05’02”N 1 1 °35'38"E |
|
|
Little Stint |
Calidris minuta |
977 |
Sabkhat al Ghbeba |
31°12'59"N 16°22’22"E |
|
|
Temminck’s Stint |
Calidris lemminckii |
3 |
Sabkhat al Kuz |
32°26'27"N 20°26’00"E |
|
|
Curlew Sandpiper |
Calidris ferruginea |
11 |
Sabkhat al Manqub |
32°54'34”N 12°07'25'E |
|
|
Dunlin |
Calidris alpina |
2,800 |
Sabkhat al Thama |
32°08'58"N 20°06'10”E |
|
|
Small waders |
Calidris spp, |
394 |
Sabkhat al Waset |
30°43’05"N 18°15’05”E |
|
|
Ruff |
Philomachus pugnax |
252 |
Sabkhat al Washkah |
31 °25’56”N 15°35'05"E |
|
|
Jack Snipe |
Lymnocryptes minimus |
4 |
Sabkhat Julyanah |
32°05'25"N 20°03'34”E |
|
|
Common Snipe |
Gallinago gallinago |
352 |
Sabkhat Karkurah |
31°24'04”N 20’03’18'E |
|
|
Black-tailed Godwit |
Limosa limosa |
1 |
Sabkhat Qanfudhah |
32°00'01”N 19°59'19”E |
|
|
Bar-tailed Godwit |
Limosa lapponica |
17 |
Sabkhat Qaryunis |
c.32°04’N 20°02'E |
|
|
Whimbrel |
Numenius phaeopus |
3 |
Sabkhat Qasr Ahmed |
32°09’37"N 15°19’36"E |
|
|
Eurasian Curlew |
Numenius arquata |
678 |
Sabkhat Tabilbah |
30°27'37"N 19°42'58"E |
|
|
Common Sandpiper |
Actitis hypoleucos |
27 |
Sabkhat Umm al Ez |
31 °59'18”N 15°12’04"E |
|
|
Green Sandpiper |
Tringa ochropus |
80 |
Sabkhat Urqub Jawwah |
30°22’47"N 19°32’20"E |
|
|
Spotted Redshank |
Tringa erythropus |
40 |
Sabkhat Zuwaytinah |
30°48'33”N 20°0256”E |
|
|
Common Greenshank |
Tringa. nebularia |
40 |
Sarir |
C.27°39'N 22°30'E |
|
|
Marsh Sandpiper |
Tringa stagnatilis |
5 |
Sarir Government Farm |
27°44'27"N 22°04'15"E |
|
|
Wood Sandpiper |
Tringa glareola |
87 |
Shati Valley |
C.27°29’N 14°00'E |
|
|
Common Redshank |
Tringa lolanus |
792 |
Tawurgha complex |
c.32°00'N 15°06’E |
|
|
Large waders |
Tringa sp. |
69 |
Tripoli harbour |
32°54’06"N 13°H’3T'E |
|
|
Ruddy Turnstone |
Arenaria interpres |
69 |
Wadi al Azrak |
32°0000 "N 15°09'00”E |
|
|
wader spp. |
270 |
Wadi Kaam dam |
32°23'48”N 14°19'45"E |
||
|
Slender-billed Gull |
Chroicocephalus gene/ |
3,732 |
Wanzarik |
27°28'17"N 13°19'19"E |
|
|
Black-headed Gull |
Chroicocephalus ridibundus |
7,610 |
Zuwarah harbour |
32°55’23"N 12°07’17"E |
26 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Seventh winter waterbird census in Libya: Bourass et al.
Tanji River Bird Reserve, The Gambia— a globally important breeding site for Royal Tern Thalasseus maximus
Peter Cosgrove “, Paul DoylC, Robin Cosgrove1’, Roy Goff’, Jan Veen c and Lamin Manned
La Reserve d’oiseaux de Tanji, Gambie — un site de nidification mondialement important pour la Sterne royale Sterna maxima. La Reserve d’oiseaux de Tanji en Gambie abrite un nombre important d’oiseaux de mer nicheurs. Les auteurs presentent les resultats d’un suivi mensuel sur une periode de huit ans ; des donnees plus anciennes sont egalement fournies. Pendant cette periode les nombres de Sternes royales Thalasseus maximus et caspiennes Hydroprogne caspia ont fortement augmente. Le nombre moyen de nids sur les huit ans est de 21.505 pour la Sterne royale et 1.688 pour la Sterne caspienne. Compte tenu de la periode d’incubation moyenne de ces deux especes et de nos inventaires mensuels, le nombre de nids donne une indication approximative du nombre de couples. La colonie de Sternes royales sur Pile Tanji est apparemment la deuxieme plus grande en Afrique. La Reserve d’oiseaux de Tanji, qui abrite jusqu’a 19% de la population nicheuse de l’Afrique de 1’Ouest, est ainsi un site de nidification mondialement important pour l’espece.
Summary. Tanji River Bird Reserve in The Gambia holds important numbers of breeding seabirds. Monthly monitoring over an eight-year period is reported, together with earlier data. During this time substantial increases of Royal Tern Thalasseus maximus and Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia have been recorded. The mean number of nests over the eight years is 21,505 for Royal and 1,688 for Caspian Tern. Given the mean incubation period of these two species and our monthly survey visits, the number of nests provides an approximate index of the number of pairs, making the Royal Tern colony on Tanji Island the second largest in Africa. Tanji Bird Reserve is thus a globally important breeding site for the species, holding up to 19% of the West African breeding population.
The Bijol Islands and the mouth of the Tanji River are the most important sites for gulls and terns in The Gambia and constitute an Important Bird Area (BirdLife International 2011). Foremost amongst these are two islets that lie 2 km offshore (13°23’N 16°48’W) opposite the towns of Brufut and Tanji. In 1993 the Bijol Islands were gazetted and became known as the Tanji River (Karinti) Bird Reserve. The birds of the Bijol Islands were described by Barnett et al. (2001), Veen (2003) and Veen et al. (2003, 2004). Since then bird monitoring by the Department of Parks and Wildlife Management (DPWM) has been regular and systematic counts of breeding seabirds have been undertaken annually, but surprisingly little has been published on the recent status of breeding seabirds there. This paper reports the systematic monthly counts of breeding seabirds over an eight-year period and iocuses on the number of breeding Royal Terns Thalasseus maximus.
Site description
The two tiny, low-lying and unstable islands are accumulations of sand, trapped by laterite
reefs. They were formerly lightly wooded, but disappeared in the 1960s and have gradually reformed since then. The larger island (6,665 nr in 20 1 1 ) is now partially vegetated by the creeping halophytes Ipomoea pes-caprae and Sesuvium portulacastrum (Barnett et al. 2001). The islands are connected by a ridge of reef at low tide. The smaller island (850 mr in 2011) has the remains of a lighthouse but no vegetation. There is one tree c.6 m in height and two bushes 1-2 m tall on the larger island. The tern colony is sited on the exposed sand, mostly on the island’s middle- southern edge, between the high-tide line and the edge of the vegetation, where the beach is more stabilised and sheltered from the Atlantic Ocean (Fig. 1). Other birds, e.g. gulls, breed amongst the vegetation in the centre in the island. The entire area is vulnerable to emersion and change in severe weather.
Regular breeding species in Tanji River Bird Reserve include Royal Tern, Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia , Grey-headed Gull Chroicocephalus cirrocephalus and Slender- billed Gull C. genei. A few pairs of Long-tailed Cormorants Microcarbo africanus and Western
Globally important breeding site for Royal Tern: Cosgrove et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) -27
Figure 1. Royal Tern Tbalasseus maximus and Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia colony, Tanji River Bird Reserve, Gambia, April 2012 (Donald Shields)
Colonie de Sternes royales Tbalasseus maximus et de Sternes caspiennes Hydroprogne caspia , Reserve d’oiseaux de Tanji, Gambie, avril 2012 (Donald Shields)
Reef Heron Egretta gularis nest on the tree and bushes, and Pink-backed Pelicans Pelecanus rufescens formally bred but no longer do so.
Survey methods
Between 2003-10, the Bijol Islands were systematically surveyed throughout the year. Breeding bird surveys were spaced approximately one calendar month apart (although this was not always possible due to adverse weather conditions), as the mean incubation period for the main breeding species is usually < 30 days (e.g. Grey-headed Gull 22-26 days; Slender- billed Gull 22-28 days; Caspian Tern 26-28 days; Royal Tern 30-31 days: Cramp & Simmons 1983). This permits monthly counts of nests to be cumulatively added, to provide an index of annual totals of breeding attempts and apparent numbers of pairs. It should be noted that annual counts were undertaken by different observers and although they followed a standard survey method, observer variability may have influenced the data collected.
It is recognised that annual breeding attempts may not be directly transposed into breeding pairs, as some pairs may be double-counted if they fail and then re-lay. It is also possible that some birds will lay eggs just after one survey visit and hatch before the next, and thus be missed. The opposite may also occur if birds lay eggs that are incubated longer than 30 days, hatching after the second visit and therefore double-counted. However, it is highly unlikely that this was an important source of error as the maximum incubation period of Royal Tern is 31 days and counts are spaced one month apart. Although the proportion of early and late hatchers in the population is unknown, it has been assumed for the purpose of population estimates that these are roughly equal and therefore cancel each other out. Future work is planned to test this assumption.
Surveys are conducted in two ways. Early in the season all nests containing eggs are located by walking and counting each nest and the number of eggs contained therein. If a nest has a chick and eggs then these are also counted. Nests
28 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Globally important breeding site for Royal Tern: Cosgrove et al.
Table 1. Number of Royal Tern Thalasseus maxims nests recorded during monthly surveys on Bijol Islands, Gambia, 2003-10.
Tableau 1 Nombre de nids de la Sterne royale Thalasseus maximus recenses pendant les inventaires mensuels sur les ties Bijol, Gamble, 2003-10,
|
Year |
March |
April |
May |
June |
July |
August |
|
2003 |
0 |
25 |
12,871 |
3,500* |
0 |
0 |
|
2004 |
0 |
No data |
15,375 |
0** |
0 |
0 |
|
2005 |
0 |
10,500*** |
8,809 |
230 |
0 |
0 |
|
2006 |
0 |
22,855 |
565 |
371 |
0 |
0 |
|
2007 |
0 |
6,561 |
25,515 |
16 |
0 |
0 |
|
2008 |
0 |
5,372 |
12,096 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
2009 |
0 |
13,202 |
7,350 |
70 |
0 |
0 |
|
2010 |
0 |
10,000 |
16,356 |
397 |
0 |
0 |
‘Possibly repeat clutches following high tide.
“High tide after May count washed away all nests. "‘Estimated count due to bad weather disrupting surveys.
Table 2. Number of Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia nests recorded during monthly surveys on Bijol Islands, Gambia, 2003-10.
Tableau 2. Nombre de nids de la Sterne caspienne Hydroprogne caspia recenses pendant les inventaires mensuels sur les ties Bijol, Gambie, 2003-10.
|
Year |
January |
February |
March |
April |
May |
June |
|
2003 |
N/D* |
N/D* |
N/D* |
72 |
26 |
31 |
|
2004 |
N/D* |
251 |
199 |
N/D* |
141 |
0 |
|
2005 |
N/D* |
N/D* |
300 |
N/D* |
208 |
0 |
|
2006 |
0 |
208 |
737 |
14 |
0 |
0 |
|
2007 |
0 |
213 |
1,086 |
325 |
101 |
34 |
|
2008 |
308 |
1,232 |
427 |
308 |
101 |
0 |
|
2009 |
178 |
2,163 |
532 |
166 |
6 |
0 |
|
2010 |
442 |
1,323 |
1,485 |
503 |
382 |
0 |
N/D* - No data collected.
containing only chicks or chicks already out of the nest are not counted. Each team consists of two people, one examining the nests and the other recording the details. This method is used for Caspian Terns, Grey-headed Gulls and Slender- billed Gulls, as these nests are at relatively low density and the spacing of nests permits easy and safe access to the colony.
Royal Terns are monitored differently due to the large numbers and density of the nests. A minimum of ten random 1 nr quadrat squares are established in the colony and all of the eggs within the quadrats are counted, with the mean number of nests per quadrat then calculated. The total area ol the nesting colony is estimated in square
metres (using marker pegs and a tape measure) and multiplied by the mean number of nests per 1 nr in the quadrats to produce an estimate for the entire colony. Occasionally, poor weather during visits has hampered surveys.
Survey results
Royal Terns breed on the Bijol Islands in April— |une each year, with peak nesting activity in April-May (Table 1). Caspian Terns breed on the Bijol Islands during any of the first six months of the year, with peak activity usually in February- March (Table 2).
The annual number of Royal and Caspian Tern nests varies, but they have shown a general increase during the monitoring period (Fig. 2). The mean number of Royal Tern nests over the eight-year period is 21,505 and the mean number of Caspian Tern nests 1,688, although the latter is probably an underestimate because the 2003-05 data were based on partial counts.
Discussion
The numbers of breeding seabirds on the Bijol Islands have been occasionally reported since 2000, when at least 7,360 Royal Tern nests / pairs and 150 Caspian Tern nests / pairs were recorded (Barnett et al. 2001). In 2001, the Royal Tern colony had increased by >1,000 pairs to 8,500 pairs (F. Barnett & C. Emms in Bull. ABC 9: 9). There has been a substantial increase in the number of nests / pairs of both species since then, although it should be noted that Royal Tern numbers show large annual fluctuations (Fig. 2).
It is unclear to what extent regular boat patrols by the DPWM have contributed to this rise in nesting terns because egg collecting has occasionally occurred. Terns are known to switch colonies between years, but it is unlikely that birds from the nearest colony at lie aux Oiseaux in Senegal (13°37'36”N 16°38’21”W) have moved as there is no evidence of a decrease in numbers at this site (JV pers. obs.). Thus, increasing numbers probably result from successful breeding and / or birds relocating from other colonies further afield.
Royal Tern is not globally threatened (being categorised by the IUCN as Feast Concern), but declines have been reported in several areas in the Americas (Gochfeld & Burger 1996). The species has a very large world range and occurs in the Americas and on the Atlantic coast of Africa,
Globally important breeding site for Royal Tern: Cosgrove et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 29
Figure 2. Annual number of Royal Tern Thalasseus maximus and Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia nests on the Bijol Islands, Gambia, 2003-10 (note that data include some partial counts, when bad weather disrupted surveys).
Nombre annuel de nids de Sternes royales Thalasseus maximus et de Sternes caspiennes Hydroprogne caspia sur les lies Bijol, Gambie, 2003-10 (noter que les donnees comprennent quelques denombrements partiels, quand le mauvais temps a perturbe les inventaires).
where it breeds from Mauritania (Banc d’Arguin) to Guinea. There are rwo subspecies, American maximus and West African albididorsalis. The world population is estimated to be 375,000 mature individuals; the West African subspecies is estimated at 225,000 individuals (Wetlands International 2006). In 2003-06 JV checked 14 West African colonies and numbers of breeding Royal Terns always exceeded 1,000 breeding pairs and in 1 1 cases more than 10,000 pairs (with those colonies on the Banc d’Arguin sited on different islands treated as one).
Historically the largest colony has been the 43,000 nests on lie aux Oiseaux in the Saloum Delta, Senegal, in 1999 (Veen et a/. 2003). Taking the mean Bijol Islands annual count, the 21,505 Royal Tern pairs would not only be the second- largest colony in Africa, but with an assumed 43,010 mature individuals, Tanji Bird Reserve holds at least 19% of the West African Royal Tern population.
Acknowledgements
We thank all of the surveyors who have conducted bird counts under the direction of Lamin Manneh, Head Warden, Tanji Bird Reserve, on the Bijol Islands, and Alpha O. Jallow, Director of the Gambian Department of Parks and Wildlife Management. We also thank Clive Barlow for useful background information and
Tim Dodman for his comments on a previous draft of this paper.
References
Barnett, L. K., Emms, C. & Camara, A. 2001. The Birds of Bijol Island, Tanji River (Karinti) Bird Reserve, The Gambia. Bull. ABC 8: 39-43. BirdLife International. 2011. IBA Factsheet GM005, Tanji River (Karinti) Bird Reserve, www.birdlife. org (accessed December 2011).
Cramp, S. & Simmons, K. E. L. (eds.) 1983. The Birds of the Western Palearetic. Vol. 3. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Gochfeld, M. & Burger, J. 1996. Family Sternidae (terns). In del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Sargatal, J. (eds.) Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 3. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions.
Veen, J. 2003. Fieldwork and training for monitoring fish bio-diversity along the coast of West Africa using seabirds as indicators: report from a training course in The Gambia in May 2003. Unpubl. report. Wageningen: Wetlands International, VEDA Consultancy.
Veen, J., Peeters, J., Leopold, M. F., Van Damme, C. J. G. & Veen, T. 2003. Les oiseaux piscivores comme indicateurs de la qualite de l’environnement marin : suivi des effets de la peche littorale en Afrique du Nord-Ouest. Alterra report 666. Wageningen. Veen, J., Dallmeijer, H. J. & Mullie, W. 2004. Fieldwork and training for monitoring fish bio¬ diversity along the coast of West Africa using seabirds as indicators: report from a training course in The Gambia in May 2004. Unpubl. report. Wageningen: Wetlands International.
Wetlands International. 2006. Waterbird Population Estimates. Fourth edn. Wageningen: Wetlands International.
“Alba Ecology Ltd.} South Meiklemoss, Collieston, Ellon, Aberdeenshire AB41 8SB, UK. E-mail: petercosgrove@ albaecology. co. uk
b Wildlife and Conservation Trust, The Gambia, PMB 723, Serrekunda, The Gambia. E-mail: roy.goff@ hotmail. com
' VEDA Consultancy, Wieselseweg 110, 7345 CC Wenum Wiesel, Netherlands. E-mail: dallmeijer@planet. nl d Department of Parks and Wildlife Management. Dept, of State for Parks and Wildlife, MOFEN, Banjul, The Gambia.
Received 6 January 2012; revision accepted 28 November 2012.
30 -Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Globally important breeding site for Royal Tern: Cosgrove et al.
Surveys of Emerald Starling Lamprotornis iris in Sierra Leone
John Bowlef, Janet HunteJ and James Sesaf
Inventaires du Choucador iris Lamprotornis iris en Sierra Leone. En fevrier-mars 2012, des inventaires du Choucador iris Lamprotornis iris , espece « Insuffisamment connue », ont ete realises sur trois zones au nord de la Sierra Leone : Bumbuna, le Lac Sonfon / Kabala, et la section Outamba du Parc National d’Outamba-Kilimi. L’espece a ete observee en nombre variable dans les trois zones (des comportements territoriaux ont ete notes sur deux de celles-ci), suggerant que le Choucador iris est toujours assez bien repandu dans l’habitat approprie au sein de son aire de repartition dans le pays. Des recommendations sont donnees pour continuer les recherches sur l’espece en Sierra Leone.
Summary. Surveys of the Data Deficient Emerald Starling Lamprotornis iris were conducted in three areas of northern Sierra Leone in February-March 2012. The species was observed in variable numbers in all three areas (with apparent territorial behaviour witnessed in two of them), suggesting that it remains reasonably widespread in suitable habitat within its known range in the country. Recommendations are given for follow-up work on the species in Sierra Leone.
The Emerald Starling Lamprotornis iris , sometimes placed in the monotypic genus Coccycolius , remains a poorly known West African endemic and is classified as Data Deficient by BirdLife International (2011a), because a lack of knowledge of its ecology, movements and population size currently hampers an accurate assessment of its conservation status. Recent records are confined to western and south-eastern Guinea, northern Sierra Leone and eastern Cote d’Ivoire (Borrow & Demey 2004), countries which are not always easily accessible, whilst the lightly timbered habitats it prefers lie apart from the remaining blocks of Upper Guinea rainforest where most recent birding effort and conservation work has been focused. The starling occurs in wooded and open savannas, and orchard bush, where it keeps to the tops of tall trees. It shuns closed forest but is occasionally found at the edge of gallery forest (Butchart 2007). Emerald Starling is a very attractive species with predominantly brilliant green plumage and purple patches around the eye and on the belly; it is unsurprising, therefore, that the bird trade may represent a threat to this species in some parts of its range (e.g. large numbers, thought to have originated from Guinea, were kept by bird traders in Monrovia, Liberia, in 1981-84: Craig & Feare 2009). In Sierra Leone, where travel has been easier in the last decade, the species has been recorded at several locations in the north of the country, with most recent observations by visiting foreign birders coming from track-edge habitats in
the Bumbuna area (e.g. Ryan 2006, Hornbuckle 2007; Birdquest tour reports 2008 and 2010, Rockjumper tour reports 2007, 2008 and 2009).
Very little is known about the ecology of the Emerald Starling. Nesting has not been described in the wild, although captive birds nest in tree holes (Feare & Craig 1998). A male collected with enlarged testes in February (Feare & Craig 1998) and a bird coming into breeding condition in Sierra Leone in March (Fry et al. 2000) are the only indications of the timing of breeding. These records suggest that nesting occurs towards the end of the dry season (November-April) but prior to the rainy season (May-October). The species is not always present at given locations, indicating at least local movements (Feare & Craig 1998). Emerald Starlings are generally encountered in groups of 4—10 birds but also in larger flocks of up to 20-50, whilst observations of captive birds suggest that pairs are territorial during nesting and the presence of helpers may indicate co-operative breeding (Feare & Craig 1998, Craig & Feare 2009). The species appears to have a rather catholic diet, feeding on the pulp and seeds of small fruit, including Ficus and Harungana madagascariensis , as well as on insects, including ants, which it takes from the ground (Fear & Craig 1998, Craig & Feare 2009).
The survey work reported here aimed to gather more data on the species. The team was invited by Dr Sama Monde, Executive Director of the Conservation Society of Sierra Leone (CSSL), in collaboration with the Royal Society
Surveys of Emerald Starling in Sierra Leone: Bowler et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) -31
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Estimated range of Emerald Starling in Sierra Leone
Figure 1. Location of the three study areas in northern Sierra Leone and the estimated range of Emerald Starling Lamprotornis iris.
Localisation des trois zones d etude au nord de la Sierra Leone et repartition estimee du Choucador iris Lamprotornis iris.
tor the Protection ot Birds (RSPB) International, to conduct systematic surveys of Emerald Starlings in areas of the country where it had been previously recorded. Over the period 26 February-10 March 2012 we surveyed three areas of northern Sierra Leone to obtain baseline data on the species’ distribution, density and habitat use, as well as to train relevant personnel in bird-monitoring techniques. The three areas chosen were: 1) Bumbuna, including the roads to Makeni, Magburaka, Bendugu and Bassaia, 2) Lake Sonfon and environs Important Bird Area (IBA; see BirdLife 2011b) / Kabala, including the roads to Koinadugu and Falaba, and 3) the Outamba section of Outamba-Kilimi National Park (OKNP; see BirdLife 2011b), including the road to Kamakwie (see Fig. 1).
Methods
The latter part of the dry season was chosen for survey work because many tracks are impassable during the wet season, whilst February-March is also believed to mark the start of the species’ breeding season. Simple, repeatable distance sampling was conducted (Buckland et al. 1993), so that direct comparison of starling encounter rates could be made with future survey data. Survey points were selected using standardised random sampling by stopping every 1 km when driving along tracks / roads, or 1 km apart along footpaths where no driveable tracks were available (OKNP). Although habitats closer to tracks may be more degraded and disturbed than those further away, these were sampled as their ease of access permitted more points to be surveyed
32 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Surveys of Emerald Starling in Sierra Leone: Bowler et al.
Figure 2. Emerald Starling Lamprotomis iris habitat near Bumbuna, Sierra Leone, February 2012 (John Bowler)
Habitat du Choucador iris Lamprotomis iris pres de Bumbuna, Sierra Leone, fevrier 2012 (John Bowler)
Figure 3. Emerald Starling Lamprotomis iris habitat near Lake Sonfon, Sierra Leone, March 2012 (John Bowler)
Habitat du Choucador iris Lamprotomis iris pres du Lac Sonfon, Sierra Leone, mars 2012 (John Bowler)
Figure 4. Emerald Starling Lamprotomis iris habitat along the Outamba entrance track, Sierra Leone, March 2012 (John Bowler)
Habitat du Choucador iris Lamprotomis iris le long de la piste d’ entree d’Outamba, Sierra Leone, mars 2012 (John Bowler)
in the limited time available, whilst visibility over the rather open habitats was generally very good. Where villages were encountered at survey points, we continued along the road / track until beyond the village edge. Numbers of all bird species present within a radius of 400 m calculated by eye of each survey point (an area of 0.5 km2) were recorded, in order to calculate comparable encounter rates, along with details of habitats present. Each point-count was 15 minutes long and was conducted between 07.00 and 11.30 hrs when birds were most active. The clock was stopped whenever Emerald Starlings
were located in order to permit more detailed observations on the birds and restarted again to complete a comparable 15-minute sample each time. Whenever Emerald Starlings were sighted, flock size, behaviour, food items and perch-choice were recorded. An attempt was made to cover all main habitat types at each sampling point for comparable bird count data, although Emerald Starlings were generally easily located by their distinctive calls. Counting was stopped after 15 minutes and the team moved to the next survey point. Up to nine survey points were covered per day. Attempts were made to trial survey work in the late afternoon, but bird activity was low at this time. Starling encounter rates in the afternoon would not, therefore, be directly comparable to those from the morning. Instead, more general monitoring was undertaken in the afternoon. During the survey, all observations were made using 8-10x binoculars and occasionally a 20-60x telescope. A GPS (Garmin Etrex) was trialled to obtain co-ordinates for each survey point but locating sufficient satellites to obtain an accurate fix was found to be very time-consuming. Maps and odometer readings were used to record locations of survey points.
Results
Bumbuna
A total of 42 survey points was completed over five days in the Bumbuna area (Table 1), all at 100-300 m a.s.l. Sixty-one Emerald Starlings were
Surveys of Emerald Starling in Sierra Leone: Bowler et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 33
Table 1. Numbers of Emerald Starlings Lamprotornis iris recorded during 15-minute point counts in northern Sierra Leone, 2012.
Tableau 1. Nombre de Choucadors iris Lamprotornis iris recenses pendant des comptages par point de 15 minutes au nord de la Sierra Leone, 2012.
|
Site |
Date |
Sub-site |
1 |
2 |
3 |
4 |
Survey point 5 |
6 |
7 |
8 |
9 |
|
Bumbuna |
26 Feb |
Magburaka road |
0 |
12 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
- |
|
11°45'W 08°55’N |
27 Feb |
Bendugu road |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
- |
|
28 Feb |
Makeni road |
32 |
0 |
0 |
11 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
|
29 Feb |
Bassaia road |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
- |
|
|
1 Mar |
Magburaka road south |
0 |
0 |
6 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
|
|
Lake Sonfon / |
2 Mar |
Makakura to Kondembaia |
0 |
0 |
0 |
58 |
0 |
20 |
4 |
18 |
3 |
|
Kabala |
3 Mar |
Kondembaia to Yara |
15 |
14 |
4 |
0 |
10 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
0 |
|
11°30’W09°30'N |
4 Mar |
Kabala to Koinadugu |
2 |
6 |
3 |
2 |
2 |
1 |
0 |
2 |
- |
|
5 Mar |
Falaba road |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
1 |
3 |
3 |
- |
|
|
Outamba |
7 Mar |
Kamakwie-Outamba |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
- |
|
12°10'W 09°40’N |
8 Mar |
Outamba entrance track |
0 |
3 |
2 |
0 |
2 |
0 |
1 |
- |
- |
|
9 Mar |
Outamba track east |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
- |
|
|
10 Mar |
Outamba track north-east |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
0 |
- |
- |
- |
|
|
recorded at |
four (9.5%) of the survey points. |
All |
(Table |
1). |
Emerald |
Starlings |
were |
observed |
were observed in flocks of 6-32 birds; there were no obvious territorial pairs. Habitats included wooded savannah, taller more intact forest that was restricted to hillsides and gallery forest along rivers, interwoven with a patchwork of farmbush and cultivation including small rice fields along streams and scattered patches of oil-palms, plus more open grassy savannahs often with tall palms. Many areas of wooded savannah showed recent evidence of burning and selective felling of trees for timber, along with more extensive removal of smaller trees for poles and firewood. In addition, large areas of wooded habitat have been lost in recent years to open-cast iron-ore mines and their associated tailings, roads, railways and mining camps, whilst dust put up by heavy lorries from the mines coats all vegetation within 20 m of the roads. We recorded 151 bird species in this region, including the Near Threatened Yellow-casqued Hornbill Ceratogymna data, as well as many Palearctic migrants that are currently undergoing population declines such as Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis, Whinchat Saxicola rubetra and Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca.
Lake Sonfon / Kabala
Thirty-four survey points were completed over four days in the Lake Sonfon / Kabala area at 200-500 m. A total of 178 Emerald Starlings was recorded at 22 (64.7%) of the survey points
both in flocks (numbering up to 58 individuals) and as territorial pairs (at least seven noted). Habitats in the area included extensive areas of wooded savannah encompassing large patches of taller more intact forest, a patchwork of farmbush and cultivation including small rice fields along streams and scattered patches of oil- palms. Many areas of wooded savannah showed recent evidence of burning, although this was mostly at herb-layer level to stimulate growth of fresh grass for cattle grazing. There was also evidence of localised selective felling of timber trees and removal of smaller trees for poles and firewood. Density of villages was higher along the Falaba road, particularly south of Dogoloya, and habitats were generally less intact here than towards Lake Sonfon. We recorded 159 species, including several not recorded at Bumbuna, such as Red-thighed Sparrowhawk Accipiter erythropus , Black Bee-eater Merops gularis, Black Wood- hoopoe Rhinopomastus aterrimus. Yellow-bellied Hyliota Hyliota flavigaster and Blackcap Babbler Turdoides reinwardtii , as well as a lone singing Near Threatened Black-headed Rufous Warbler Bathmocercus cerviniventris.
Outamba
Twenty-nine survey points were completed over four days in the Outamba area at 100-200 m. A total of eight Emerald Starlings was recorded
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Figure 5. Emerald Starling / Choucador iris Lamprotornis iris , Bumbuna, Sierra Leone, February 2010 (Nik Borrow)
at four (13.8%) of the survey points (Table 1). Emerald Starlings were only observed in territorial pairs during the timed survey work, although larger groups of up to 20 were seen outside this period. Habitats in the area were rather varied. Outside the national park there were extensive areas of wooded savannah, occasional patches of disturbed gallery forest, a patchwork of farmbush and cultivation including small rice fields along streams, plus larger areas of more open grassy savannah closer to Kamakwie. Almost all of the wooded savannah showed recent signs of burning with many dead and dying trees. There was also much evidence of selective felling of timber trees and removal of smaller trees for poles and firewood. Within the park, habitats were much more intact, although there was still evidence of recent extensive burning. The wooded savannahs were generally denser with a more intact canopy, whilst the tall gallery forest along the Little Searcies River appeared to be relatively intact. The extensive wooded savannahs and gallery forest at Outamba produced a total of 152 bird species, including White- crested Tiger Heron Tigriornis leucolopha, African
Finfoot Podica sengalensis. Standard-winged Nightjar Macrodipteryx longipennis, Yellow- casqued Hornbill and Spotted Creeper Salpornis spilonotus, as well as large numbers of Turati’s Boubous Laniarius turatii , which were much easier to observe here than at Bumbuna.
All sites
The overall encounter rate at all three sites was 9.4 Emerald Starlings per hour of survey effort (« = 26.25 hours) with encounter rates of 5.8 at Bumbuna [n = 10.5 hrs), 20.92 at Lake Sonfon/ Kabala [n = 8.5 hours) and 1.08 at Outamba [n = 7.25 hours). Mean flock size was lower at Outamba (2.0) than at both Bumbuna (15.3) and Lake Sonfon / Kabala (4.8), since all birds encountered at Outamba appeared to be paired, although larger groups were also noted at this site but not during surveys. Flock size was highest at Bumbuna, where starlings were seen only in groups of six or more, and intermediate at Lake Sonfon, where they were seen in both territorial pairs and in larger groups. The presence of territorial pairs at Lake Sonfon and Outamba is suggestive of breeding activity at what is believed to be the start of the nesting season. All 30 survey points where Emerald Starlings were observed included areas of tall (10-25 m) savannah trees and 17 (57%) of these sites involved areas of grassy understory that had recently been burnt.
Emerald Starlings were mostly encountered in monospecific groups, but Violet-backed Starlings Cinnyricinclus leucogaster were recorded commonly at all three study sites and were sometimes seen in the company of Emerald Starlings. At Bumbuna, 60 Violet-backed Starlings were recorded at ten survey points including groups of six and ten birds that associated with two of the four Emerald Starling flocks. At Lake Sonfon / Kabala, 61 Violet-backed Starlings were recorded at 14 survey points, including 1 1 where Emerald Starlings were also present, but the only observed interactions between the two species were of five Violet-backed Starlings among a flock of 58 Emerald Starlings on 2 March and three more in a flock of ten Emerald Starlings on 3 March. At Outamba, 43 Violet-backed Starlings were recorded at 1 1 survey points and Emerald Starlings were observed to actively chase Violet-backed Starlings at two survey points on 8 March. The association between the two species took the form of mixed flocking at
Surveys of Emerald Starling in Sierra Leone: Bowler et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 35
Bumbuna and Lake Sonfon / Kabala, whereas at Outamba, some of the interactions appeared to be more territorial in nature (see below).
The only other starling species recorded during the survey included two Lesser Blue-eared Starlings Lamprotornis chloropterus at one survey point along the Koinadugu road east of Kabala on 4 March, plus a single and a pair of this species in the Outamba section of OKNP on 10 March, none of which interacted with Emerald Starlings. A pair of Chestnut-bellied Starlings L. pulcher was observed along the entrance track to Outamba on 8 March but these did not interact with a pair of Emerald Starlings perched nearby. A group of five Bronze-tailed Glossy Starlings L. chalcurus was observed further west along the Outamba entrance track on 8 March and although these did not interact with Emerald Starlings during the survey work, the same group was subsequently observed in a mixed starling flock that included at least six Emerald Starlings and four Violet-backed Starlings.
Emerald Starling activity
The majority of Emerald Starlings (60%) were encountered either perched high in mostly open trees of 10-25 m height or flying between perch sites, often calling as they did so. Although 21% of birds encountered were feeding on the ground, it is probable that the true proportion may have been higher, since birds on the ground rarely called and could have been overlooked. Birds were observed feeding on insects on recently burnt ground or, more rarely, on cultivated ground, and in trees on various berries and fruits including figs, although the latter was only observed directly in the Lake Sonfon area. Three birds were observed carrying large insects, one of which was eaten by the bird carrying it after perching on a high branch, indicating that food-carrying may not necessarily relate to pair-bonding or nesting. Aggressive behaviour was noted at Bumbuna where two Emerald Starlings were observed fighting within a flock and at Outamba where one bird was seen to repeatedly chase a pair of Violet- backed Starlings that appeared to be nesting in a tree hole, while another pair appeared to chase a pair of Violet-backed Starlings from a dead tree. Birds were only recorded singing in the Lake Sonfon area, including one bird that was perched high in a tree apparently guarding another bird
that was quietly feeding on figs below it. None of the Emerald Starlings observed in the field showed any obvious signs of juvenile plumage, presumably either because juveniles raised during the 2011 wet season (April-June) had already moulted into adult-type plumage by late February 2012, or because no juveniles were present in the areas visited.
Discussion
From the survey results it would appear that Emerald Starling is still reasonably widespread in suitable habitat in northern Sierra Leone, although occurring in widely different densities according to location. The species appeared to be very localised in the Bumbuna area, with all but six being observed feeding, often with Violet- backed Starlings, in more open areas of wooded savannah with burnt ground and scattered tall trees within 5 km of Bumbuna town itself, which accords with other recent records of the species in the area (e.g. Hornbuckle 2007, Rockjumper tour reports 2007-09). Birds were absent from denser hill and gallery forest and the more open savannahs east along the Bendugu road, as well as from more disturbed wooded habitats south-east along the Bassaia road and in areas with denser oil-palm plantations south along the Makeni road. Clearly, Bumbuna remains a stronghold for the species. However, habitats in the surrounding area are fast being modified as a result of ongoing open-cast mining, and the species’ future here must be considered uncertain. The Bumbuna to Makeni road, described as ‘slow’ as recently as 2006 (Hornbuckle 2007), is now a resurfaced dusty highway busy with lorries. A flock of c. 100 Emerald Starlings was recorded in the Ferengbaia Hills south-east of Bumbuna within the last five years, in an area ear-marked for the tailings of adjacent open-cast mines (A. Okoni-Williams in litt. 2012). Other reports from the area include several large flocks along the Makeni-Magburaka road in early February 2012 (CSSL pers. comm.) although we failed to locate any on 25 February and 1 March 2012.
Emerald Starlings were both most numerous and most widespread in the Lake Sonfon / Kabala area, with the largest numbers along the Makakura-Yara road within the Lake Sonfon and environs IBA. This area of rolling hills appeared to have the best mix of habitats for
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Surveys of Emerald Starling in Sierra Leone: Bowler et al.
the species, comprising large areas of relatively intact wooded savannah currently untouched by large-scale mining activity, with scattered village clearings and cultivated patches with frequent tall trees. Flocks of Emerald Starlings, occasionally mixed with Violet-backed Starlings, were recorded in wooded savannah on the edge of small-scale cultivation, feeding on figs and other fruits, as well as insects, in areas where the grass understorey had been recently burnt by Fula cattle herders to encourage new growth. Pairs were also observed behaving in a territorial manner, including males in sub-song and mate guarding, which was suggestive of potential breeding at the start of the presumed nesting season. Wilkinson (2000) states that Emerald Starlings are loosely colonial breeders, so it may be that they also flock during the nesting season. Starlings were also widespread east of Kabala along the Koinadugu road and have recently been observed at Sinikoro, a further 30 km south-east of Koinadugu in the foothills of the Loma Mountains (R. Demey in lift. 2012). The species was found at lower density in more disturbed wooded savannah north of Kabala along the Falaba road, whilst at least three individuals were observed at the edge of cultivation along the Kabala-Makeni road, in the wooded hills south¬ west of Fadugu on 1 and 6 March 2012.
Emerald Starlings were very local in the Outamba area. Small numbers were restricted to open wooded savannah with recently burnt grassy understorey along the park’s entrance track. These birds appeared to be engaged in territorial activity and spent much time chasing apparently nesting pairs of Violet-backed Starlings. We failed to locate Emerald Starlings at any of the 14 survey points within the more intact habitats in the main section of the park, where the species was apparently replaced by Lesser Blue-eared Starling. Another suitable patch of habitat holding Emerald Starlings apparently exists much further east into the park (Outamba forest guards pers. comm.). The separate Kilimi section of OKNP lies 30 km west of Outamba and apparently supports the extensive open wooded savannah habitat preferred by Emerald Starlings, but was unreachable due to a shortage of petrol north of Makeni. Recent reports of Emerald Starlings in significant numbers in OKNP (e.g. Forget & Langhendries 2010) may reflect their apparent abundance along the Outamba entrance track or may refer instead
to the Kilimi section of the park. Unfortunately, the Outamba section of OKNP has recently been invaded by hundreds of illegal gold miners, who have set fire to some areas and forced some of the park’s big game to move into adjacent agricultural areas, creating further problems for villagers and forest guards there.
Using these and previous observations, it is possible to estimate the current range of Emerald Starling in Sierra Leone (Fig. 1). The southernmost records are from just north of Magburaka and south-east of Makeni, whilst the north-westernmost records are from the Kilimi section of ONKP and the north-easternmost from the foothills of the Loma Mountains near Sinikoro, with Bumbuna, Kabala and the Lake Sonfon IBA lying within the core of this range. It seems probable that the species is patchily present, at least seasonally, in suitable habitat throughout this area north to Falaba and its range is potentially contiguous with populations in similar habitats north of the border in Guinea, where Emerald Starling is known from Balandougou IBA at 12°35’W 10U27’N (BirdLife International 2011b). The species faces threats from anthropomorphic habitat change throughout this area, particularly large-scale clearance of wooded savannah for open-cast mining and agriculture, but its ability to survive and even thrive in patchy wooded savannah interspersed with cultivation and farmbush gives some hope for its long-term survival.
Recommendations
At the end of our survey we hosted a seminar on our findings through the STEWARD organisation in Freetown, attended by representatives from local NGOs, including CSSL, and the Forestry Division of the Ministry of Agriculture. Key recommendations are:
• Upgrade Lake Sonfon and environs IBA to National Park status to prevent the develop¬ ment of large-scale mining activity there.
• Remove illegal gold miners from the Outamba section of OKNP before they create more extensive damage, and conduct a survey of the Kilimi section for Emerald Starlings.
• Repeat surveys of the areas surveyed in February-March 2012 to investigate between- year and seasonal differences in Emerald Starling numbers.
Surveys of Emerald Starling in Sierra Leone: Bowler et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) -37
• Conduct surveys of other areas of similar habi¬ tat to more completely determine Emerald Starling distribution.
• Use the results from this and follow-up surveys to produce an estimate of the Emerald Starling population in Sierra Leone by 2015.
• Monitor bird markets in Freetown and else¬ where in Sierra Leone to check if the species is being caught for the bird trade.
Acknowledgements
We thank the team in the CSSL office in Freetown for their assistance with logistics, access requirements and the seminar workshop, especially Dr Sama Monde, Eddie Aruna and Celia Jawah. We also thank Edwin Conteh and Hassan Kamara for their excellent driving skills, assistance with logistics and companionship in the field. The Ministry of Agriculture, Forestry Division, is thanked for permitting surveys in OKNP, and the STEWARD organisation for hosting our seminar workshop in Freetown. We are very grateful for the assistance and information given to us by the forest guard team at OKNP. We also thank Arnold Okoni- Williams, Ron Demey, Lincoln Fishpool (BirdLife International), Adrian Long (BirdLife International) and Jeremy Lindsell (RSPB) for preliminary discussions concerning our survey work. Thanks also to Rob Sheldon and Nicolas Tubbs (RSPB) for making this work possible and to Hugo Rainey and Lincoln Fishpool for helpful comments on an earlier draft of this paper.
References
BirdLife International. 2011a. Species factsheet: Coccycolius iris, www.birdlife.org (accessed 9 November 2011).
BirdLife International. 201 lb. Important Bird Areas factsheets: Lake Sonfon IBA and Outamba-Kiiimi National Park, www.birdlife.org (accessed 9 November 201 1 ).
Borrow, N. & Demey, R. 2004. Field Guide to the Birds of Western Africa. London, UK: Christopher Helm. Buckland, S. T., Anderson, D. R., Burnham, K. P. & Laake, J. L. 1993. Distance Sampling: Estimating Abundance of Biological Populations. London, UK: Chapman & Hall.
Butchart, S. 2007. Birds to find — a review of lost, obscure and poorly known African bird species. Bull. ABC 14: 139-157.
Craig, A. J. F. K. & Feare, C. J. 2009. Family Sturnidae (starlings). In del Hoyo, J., Elliott, A. & Christie, D. A. (eds.) Handbook of the Birds of the World. Vol. 14. Barcelona: Lynx Edicions.
Feare, C. & Craig, A. 1998. Starlings and Mynas.
London, UK: Christopher Helm.
Forget, B. & Langhendries, R. 2010. Sierra Leone birding trip report 27/12/2009 - 22/01/2010. Unpubl. rep.
Hornbuckle, J. 2007. Sierra Leone birding, 1-16 December 2006. Unpubl. rep. www.worldtwitch. com/sierra_leone_hornbuckle_2 006.htm.
Ryan, P. 2006. Toughing it out: birding Sierra Leone.
Africa — Birds & Birding 10(6): 32-38.
Wilkinson, R. 2000. Lamprotornis iris. In Fry, C. H., Keith, S. & Urban, E. K. (eds.) The Birds of Africa. Vol. 6. London, UK: Academic Press.
“RSPB Scotland , Pairc na Coille, Balephuil, Isle ofTiree, Argyll PA77 6UE, UK E-mail: john.bowler@rspb.org.uk h Pairc na Coille, Balephuil, Isle of Tiree, Argyll PA77 6UE, UK. E-mail: janetmhunter@clara.co.uk ‘c/o CSSL, 18-B Becklyn Drive off Main Motor Road, Congo Cross, PO Box 1292, Freetown, Sierra Leone. E-mail: jameswilliamsesay@yahoo. com
Received 28 May 2012; revision accepted 12 November
2012.
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Schotia brachypetala— a nectar cornucopia for birds
Craig T. Symef and K Yoganandab
Schotia brachypetala — corne d’abondance de nectar pour les oiseaux. Schotia brachypetala fleurit au printemps et en debut d’ete et produit copieusement du nectar qui attire de nombreux nectarivores aviens specialistes et opportunistes. Vingt-huit especes d’oiseaux ont ete observees en septembre-octobre 2011 se nourrissant du nectar de deux arbres en fleur, fun dans la province de Limpopo et l’autre dans la province de Gauteng, en Afrique du Sud. Grace a nos observations, augmentees par une recherche de la litterature et des donnees complementaires d’autres observateurs, on denombre maintenant 54 especes d’oiseaux qui s’alimentent du nectar de S. brachypetala. Cette note souligne une fois de plus la diversite des nectarivores generalistes et opportunistes en Afrique australe.
Summary. Schotia brachypetala flowers in spring and early summer and produces copious nectar that attracts numerous specialist and opportunistic nectar-feeding bird species. Twenty-eight bird species were observed feeding on the nectar of two flowering trees, one in Limpopo province and another in Gauteng province, both in South Africa, during September-October 2011. Together with our observations, a literature search and additional reports from other observers brings the total number of bird species recorded feeding on S. brachypetala to 54 species. This note further emphasises the diversity of generalist or
opportunistic nectarivores in southern Africa.
Schotia brachypetala Sond. (family Fabaceae or Leguminosae) is a widespread tree species in southern African savannas. The common name, Weeping Boerbean, most aptly describes the tree that produces copious amounts of nectar that even drips out of the flowers. The flowering period occurs during spring and in any individual tree is generally short (c. 2 weeks) (van Wyk & van Wyk 1997, Boon 2010). This appears to be slightly different to S. afra var. afra which occurs in south-eastern South Africa; it flowers mainly during July-October, although flowers have been collected in every other month of the year (van Wyk & van Wyk 1997; B. van Wyk pers. comm.). These two flowering strategies may benefit birds in different ways; the longer flowering period of S. afra may provide smaller amounts of nectar to birds over a longer period (Skead 1967) whilst an abundance of nectar in S. brachypetala over a shorter period may supply birds with food following a lean winter period.
The nectar of S. brachypetala is described in many field guides as an important food for birds, particularly sunbirds (e.g. van Wyk & van Wyk 1997). However, reports describing specific feeding accounts are few or are hidden in ‘grey literature’. Skead (1967) reported specifically on the importance of Schotia spp. nectar for sunbirds and Palmer & Pitman (1972) reported broadly on the importance of four Schotia species for animals. Here we report nectar feeding by birds at two
S. brachypetala trees in South Africa, and collate additional records of feeding on this species, and on other Schotia spp. as reported by Skead (1967).
During 23-2 6 September 2011 a single flowering tree at Wits Rural Facility (WRF), Limpopo province (24°33’1 1”S 31°05’48”E), was observed opportunistically during daylight hours for nectar- feeding visitors. During the observation period the tree was covered profusely in mature flowers and nectar literally dripped from the tree. We also made additional opportunistic observations at a S. brachypetala tree flowering at the University ol the Witwatersrand campus in central Johannesburg, Gauteng province (26°11’27”S 28°0r56”E), during 27 September-18 October 2011.
Overall we recorded 28 bird species feeding on nectar, 20 of which were photographed (Table 1). An additional five species were recorded in the tree at WRF, but not seen directly probing for nectar. Three of these species, Green Wood- hoopoe Phoeniculus purpureas, Southern Boubou Laniarius ferrugineus and Southern Black Tit Parus niger are known to be nectar feeders but were not recorded feeding on S. brachypetala , whilst two species, Cardinal Woodpecker Dendropicos fuscescens and Chinspot Batis Batis molitor, were seen in the tree during the flowering period but not seen (or previously recorded) feeding on nectar. In addition we also observed several Tree Squirrels Paraxerus cepapi feeding on nectar and
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Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) -39
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Schotia brachypetala — a nectar cornucopia for birds: Symes & Yoganand
Figure 1. Some species feeding on nectar of Schotia brachypetala (a) Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird Pogoniulus bilineatus; (b) Black-headed Oriole Oriolus larvatus ; (c) Terrestrial Brownbul Phyllastrephus terrestris; (d) Arrow- marked Babbler Turdoides jardineii\ (e) Tawny-flanked Prinia Prinia subflava; (f) Kurrichane Thrush Turdus libonyanus; (g) Collared Sunbird Hedydipna collaris ;
(h) Lesser Masked Weaver Ploceus intermedins ; (i) Red¬ headed Weaver Anaplectes rubriceps; (j) Thick-billed Weaver Amblyospiza albifrons; (k) Yellow-fronted Canary Serinus mozambicus ; (1) Tree Squirrel Paraxerus cepapi (K. Yoganand)
Quelques especes s’alimentant du nectar de Schotia brachypetala (a) Barbion a croupion jaune Pogoniulus bilineatus ; (b) Loriot masque Oriolus larvatus-, (c) Bulbul jaboteur Phyllastrephus terrestris-, (d) Craterope fleche Turdoides jardineii ; (e) Prinia modeste Prinia subflava ;
(f) Merle kurrichane Turdus libonyanus; (g) Souimanga a collier Hedydipna collaris; (h) Tisserin intermediate Ploceus intermedius; (i) Tisserin ecarlate Anaplectes rubriceps ; (j) Amblyospize a front blanc Amblyospiza albifrons; (k) Serin du Mozambique Serinus mozambicus ; (1) Ecureuil des bois Paraxerus cepapi (K. Yoganand)
Schotia brachypetala — a nectar cornucopia for birds: Symes & Yoganand
Bull ABC Vol20No 1 (2013) -41
5, 6, WRF
Table 1. Bird species recorded feeding on nectar in flowers of Schotia brachypetala.
Tableau 1. Especes d’oiseaux observees s’alimentant de nectar des fleurs de Schotia brachypetala. L'ordre et la taxonomie suivent Hockey et at. (2005).
Sources: 1 = Skead (1967) attributes some records to S. afra and Schotia in general: 2 = Stidolph (1969); 3 = Palmer & Pitman (1972); 4 = Berruti (1989); 5 = Johnson (1989); 6 = Dinkelmann & Dinkelmann (1998); 7 = Hoddinot (1998); 8 = A. Craig pers. comm.; 9 = G. Nichols pers. comm.; 10 = M. Kriek pers. comm.; 11 = S. Boardman pers. comm.; WRF = observed feeding on S. brachypetala nectar during this study at Wits Rural Facility (Limpopo province) ; Jhb = birds observed feeding on S. brachypetala nectar at University of the Witwatersrand campus in Johannesburg (Gauteng province). Sequence and taxonomy follow Hockey et al.
(2005).
Species Source
Lybiidae
Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird Pogoniulus bilineatus WRF
Red-fronted Tinkerbird Pogoniulus pusillus 5
Black-collared Barbet Lybius torquatus 5, WRF
Crested Barbet Trachyphonus vailtantii 1 1
Phoeniculidae
Green Wood-hoopoe Phoeniculus purpureus 9
Rhinopomastidae
Common Scimitarbill Rhinopomastus cyanomelas WRF
Coliidae
Speckled Mousebird Colius striatus WRF
Red-faced Mousebird Urocolius indicus 8
Psittacidae
Brown-headed Parrot Poicephaius cryptoxanthus 6, 7
Oriolidae
Black-headed Oriole Oriolus larvatus 8,11, WRF
Dicruridae
Fork-tailed Drongo Dicrurus adsimilis WRF
Malaconotidae
Southern Boubou Laniarius ferrugineus 1 1
Pycnonotidae
Dark-capped Bulbul Pycnonotus tricolor 5, 1 1 , WRF
Sombre Greenbul Andropadus importunus 5, WRF
Terrestrial Brownbul Phyllastrephus terrestris WRF
Sylviidae
Long-billed Crombec Sylvietta rufescens WRF
Arrow-marked Babbler Turdoides jardineii WRF
Zosteropidae
African Yellow White-eye Zosterops senegaiensis 9
Cape White-eye Zosterops capensis 2, 5, 8, WRF, Jhb
Cisticolidae
Tawny-flanked Prinia Prinia subflava 5, WRF
Yellow-breasted Apalis Apalis flavida
Muscicapidae
Kurrichane Thrush Turdus iibonyanus 5, WRF
Karoo Thrush Turdus smith! Jhb
African Dusky Flycatcher Muscicapa adusta 5
Cape Robin Chat Cossypha catfra 5
Sturnidae
Red-winged Starling Onychognathus morio 6, Jhb
Black-bellied Starling Lamprotorrtis corruscus 5, 6
Cape Glossy Starling Lamprotornis nitens 5, 6, WRF
Burchell’s Starling Lamprotornis australis 3
Wattled Starling Creatophora cinerea 6
Common Myna Acridotheres tristis 1 0
Nectariniidae*
Eastern Olive Sunbird Cyanomitra olivacea 9
Grey Sunbird Cyanomitra veroxii 1 , 2, 6
Amethyst Sunbird Chalcomitra amethystina 1,5,8
Scarlet-chested Sunbird Chalcomitra senegaiensis 1 , 2, 5, 6, 1 1
Collared Sunbird Hedydipna collaris 2, 5, 6, WRF
Southern Double-collared Sunbird Cinnyris chalybeus 1
Greater Double-collared Sunbird Cinnyris afer 1
Neergaard’s Sunbird Cinnyris neergaardi 2, 4
White-bellied Sunbird Cinnyris talatala 1 , 2, 5, 6, WRF
Marico Sunbird Cinnyris mariquensis 1 , 5, 6, 1 1
Purple-banded Sunbird Cinnyris bifasciatus 2, 5, 6, 1 1
Ploceidae
Lesser Masked Weaver Ploceus intermedius 5, WRF
Spectacled Weaver Ploceus ocularis 5, WRF
Cape Weaver Ploceus capensis 5, 8
Southern Masked Weaver Ploceus velatus Jhb
Village Weaver Ploceus cucullatus 5, WRF
Red-headed Weaver Anaplectes rubriceps WRF
Thick-billed Weaver Amblyospiz a albifrons WRF
Estrildidae
Red-backed Mannikin Spermestes bicolor 2
Passeridae
Southern Grey-headed Sparrow Passer diffusus WRF
Fringillidae
Forest Canary Serinus scotops 1 1
Yellow-fronted Canary Serinus mozambicus WRF
Streaky-headed Seedeater Serinus gularis 1 1
3 The number of sunbirds feeding on S. brachypetala nectar may be under¬ represented but this summary reviews only the published litereature of birds specifically feeding on nectar of S. brachypetala.
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Schotia brachypetala — a nectar cornucopia for birds: Symes & Yoganand
Vervet Monkeys Chlorocebus pygerythrus nearby. Vervet Monkeys and Chacma Baboons Papio hamadryas ursinus have been recorded feeding on Aloe marlothii nectar, and South African Large Spotted Genet Genetta tigrina on Maranthes polyandra-, so S. brachypetala , like other nectar- abundant plants, may be an important food and / or water source for other mammal species (Lack 1977, 1978, Symes et al. 2008, Symes 2010, Symes et al. 2011).
A literature search for the occurrence of nectar feeding by birds, observations from other competent birders, and our own observations brings the total number of bird species recorded feeding on S. brachypetala to 54. However, this list is by no means exhaustive, and we suggest, given further investigation, that many more species will be added to it. Some of the species on the list may be questionable, especially those cited by only one reference. However, given that they may either (1) belong in a family where many other members are recorded nectar feeders (on nectar of S. brachypetala or other species, e.g. African Dusky Flycatcher Muscicapa adusta), or (2) they are recorded feeding on the nectar of other plant species, e.g. Red-backed Mannikin Spermestes bicolor feeding on Callistemon viminalis nectar (G. Nichols pers. obs.), we have retained them in the list.
Only 1 1 of the observed species are specialist nectar feeders, i.e. sunbirds, suggesting that generalist or opportunistic nectarivores (which comprise >80% of these nectar-feeding species) may also be important pollinators for S. brachypetala. The presence of six species of starlings, including Burchell’s Starling Lamprotomis australis which has been recorded feeding on flowers (Palmer & Pitman 1972) suggests that the nectar is fructose dominated (members of two lineages, the Sturnidae-Mimidae-Turdidae-Muscicapidae and Furnariidae, appear to lack the enzyme sucrase and therefore cannot assimilate sucrose: Martinez del Rio & Stevens 1989, Martinez del Rio et al. 1992, Lotz & Schondube 2006). Because the flowers are relatively exposed, and nectar that does not drip out can potentially evaporate, measurements of nectar volume and concentration were expected to vary. In samples collected early in the morning at a tree in the University of the Witwatersrand campus, Johannesburg, in a position where it is seldom artificially watered, nectar concentration
in flowers with large volumes of nectar (volume >150 pi, n = 3) measured 15-19% w/w (mass sugar / mass water %; measured with a hand-held refractometer; Bellingham & Stanley, Tunbridge Wells, UK). Nicolson (2002) confirmed that the nectar contains 0% sucrose and that mean nectar concentration was 11.3 ± 2.5% (mean + SD, n = 21). This compares favourably with the hypothesis that plants producing nectars of high volume (40- 100 pl/flower) and low concentration (8-12% w/w) attract generalist bird pollinators (Johnson & Nicolson 2008). In flowers where nectar may have become evaporated or reabsorbed, volumes were much lower (<100 pi, n - 3) and concentrations higher (37% w/w).
This article furthermore highlights the diversity of opportunistic nectar-feeding bird species in southern Africa. Aloe marlothii has previously been shown to be an important food source for a diverse range of bird species (Symes 2010, Symes et al. 2011). In addition, several trees with red flowers, e.g. Bombax, Erythrina, Parkia , similarly attract large numbers of birds elsewhere in Africa (Pettet 1977, Jacot Guillarmod et al. 1979; F. Dowsett-Lemaire in lift. 2012). Equally the nectar of flowering S. brachypetala and the attraction it has for many species of birds may suggest that it is an important food and / or water source for numerous species; these interactions warrant further attention from researchers.
Acknowledgements
Greg Davies (Ditsong National Museum of Natural History, Pretoria) is thanked for providing summarised references and access to his annotated ornithological index (Davies 2010). Adrian Craig, Geoff Nichols, Mostert Kriek and Sheila Boardman reported additional observations of birds feeding on S. brachypetala nectar. Braam van Wyk (University of Pretoria), Fran^oise Dowsett-Lemaire and an anonymous reviewer made comments that improved the paper.
References
Berruti, A. 1989. Birding in Zululand. Albatross 300: 14-15.
Boon, R. 2010. Pooley’s Trees of Eastern South Africa: A Complete Guide. Second edn. Durban: Flora and Fauna Publications Trust.
Davies, G. B. P. 2010. Annotated Ornithological Index of News sheet of the Natal Bird Club , Albatross, Newsletter of the Natal Midlands Bird Club, Blue Swallow and KZN Birds (1951-2006). Ditsong
Schotia brachypetala — a nectar cornucopia for birds: Symes & Yoganand
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National Museum of Natural History, Bird Section Research Rep. No. 1. Pretoria: Ditsong National Museum of Natural History (formerly Transvaal Museum).
Dinkelmann, T. & Dinkelmann, P. 1998. Mkuzi and good friends. Albatross 335: 23-24.
Hockey, P. A. R., Dean, W. R. J. & Ryan, P. G. (eds.) 2005. Roberts — Birds of Southern Africa. Seventh edn. Cape Town: Trustees of the John Voelcker Bird Book Fund.
Hoddinott, D. 1998. Interesting sightings. Blue Sivalloiv 1 1(3): 21.
Jacot Guillarmod, A., Jubb, R. A. & Skead, C. J. 1979. Field studies of six southern African species of Erythrina. Ann. Miss. Bot. Gard. 66: 521-527.
Johnson, S. 1989. Tree of the month. Natal Midlands Bird Club Newsletter 2(3): 3-4.
Johnson, S. D. & Nicolson, S. W. 2008. Evolutionary associations between nectar properties and specificity in bird pollination systems. Biol. Lett. 4: 49-52.
Lack, A. 1 977. Genets feeding on nectar from Maranthes polyandra in northern Ghana. E. Afr. Wildl. J. 15: 233-234.
Lack, A. 1978. The ecology of the flowers of the savanna tree Maranthes polyandra and their visitors, with particular reference to bats. J. Ecol. 66: 287-295.
Lotz, C. N. & Schondube, J. E. 2006. Sugar preferences in nectar- and fruit-eating birds: behavioral patterns and physiological causes. Biotropica 38: 3-15.
Martinez del Rio, C. & Stevens, B. R. 1989. Physiological constraint on feeding behavior: intestinal membrane disaccharidases of the Starling. Science 243: 794-796.
Martinez del Rio, C., Baker, H. G. & Baker, I. 1992. Ecological and evolutionary implications of digestive processes: bird preferences and the sugar constituents of floral nectar and fruit pulp. Exp erientia 48: 544—551.
Nicolson, S. W. 2002. Pollination by passerine birds: why are the nectars so dilute? Comp. Biochem. & Physiol. Part B 131: 645-652.
Palmer, E. & Pitman, N. 1972. Trees of Southern Africa.
Vol. 2. Cape Town: A. A. Balkema.
Pettet, A. 1977. Seasonal changes in nectar-feeding by birds at Zaria, Nigeria. Ibis 119: 291-308.
Skead, C. J. 1967. The Sunbirds of Southern Africa.
Cape Town: A. A. Balkema.
Stidolph, P. 1969. Diet records. Natal Bird Club News Sheet 172: 2.
Symes, C. T. 20 1 0. The sweet option: the importance of Aloe marlothii for opportunistic avian nectarivores. Bull. ABC 17: 178-187.
Symes, C. T., McKechnie, A. E., Nicolson, S. W. & Woodborne, S. M. 2011. The nutritional significance of a winter-flowering succulent for opportunistic avian nectarivores. Ibis 153: 1 lO- ^l.
Symes, C. T., Nicolson, S. W. & McKechnie, A. E. 2008. Response of avian nectarivores to the flowering of Aloe marlothii: a nectar oasis during dry South African winters./ Ornithol. 149: 13—22. van Wyk, B. & van Wyk, P. 1997. Field Guide to the Trees of Southern Africa. Cape Town: Struik Publishers.
“ School of Animal, Plant and Environmental Sciences, University of Witwatersrand, Private Bag 3, Wits, 2050, South Africa. E-mail: craig.symes@wits.ac.za 4 WWF— Malaysia, Sabah Office, Suite 1-6-Wll, 6th Floor, Centre Point Complex, No. 1, Jalan Centre Point, 88000 Kota Kinabalu, Sabah, Malaysia.
Received 25 November 2011; revision accepted 5 October 2012.
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Schotia brachypetala — a nectar cornucopia for birds: Symes & Yoganand
Counting Macrodipteryx nightjars for monitoring purposes
Derek Pomeroy', George Kaphuh and Michael Opigd
Denombrer des engoulevents Macrodipteryx pour leur ‘monitoring. De 2004 a 2012 nous avons denombre les engoulevents sur une piste d’atterrissage et les routes avoisinantes dans le Parc National de Murchison Falls, Ouganda. Les denombrements ont ete realises a partir d un vehicule roulant a faible vitesse, pendant une courte periode de 10-30 minutes apres le coucher du soleil, quand les engoulevents etaient les plus nombreux. Les oiseaux etaient detectes principalement a l’aide des phares du vehicule. Les totaux des Engoulevents a balanciers Macrodipteryx longipennis et porte-etendard M. vexillarius varient considerablement selon les annees mais n’affichent pas de tendance generale. Nous recommandons cette methode de monitoring comme etant facile a utiliser sur des sites abritant un nombre relativement eleve d’engoulevents.
Summary. We counted nightjars on a grass airstrip and nearby roads in Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda, between 2004 and 2012. Counts were made from a slow-moving vehicle, mainly using the headlights to spot birds, and spanned the times of highest numbers, which were limited to a brief period 10-30 minutes after sunset. Numbers of Standard-winged Macrodipteryx longipennis and Pennant-winged Nightjars M. vexillarius varied considerably between years but showed no overall trend. We recommend this method of monitoring as being easy to use at sites harbouring relatively large numbers of nightjars.
Both Standard-winged Macrodipteryx longipennis and Pennant-winged Nightjars M. vexillarius are spectacular and, at least until recently, often common species over much of tropical Africa (Fry et al. 1988). On their breeding grounds, males often form leks, and the birds frequently migrate in flocks (Cheke & Walsh 2000, Jackson 2004). Nightjars in general also have the habit of resting on roads and other open areas, especially at dawn and dusk, which can make them easy to count (Fry et al. 1988, Cleere & Nurney 1998, Holyoak 2001, Jackson 2003). This presumably gives them a clear view of the sky, compared to more vegetated areas (Cleere & Nurney 1998, Jackson 2003, 2004). There appear to be few cases of Macrodipteryx nightjar counts being made along roads, but Fry et al. (1988) quote two, 108 males on 30 km of road in Zambia, and 45 on 10 km of road in Chad — both averaging more than 3.5 males per km (cf. below). Jackson (2002), in a major review of nightjar mortality, particularly on roads, also cites a few counts, although none of live birds in Uganda.
We made systematic counts of both Standard¬ winged and Pennant-winged Nightjars in Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda, between 2004 and 2012. Both species have been the subject of several studies in various countries (Cleere & Nurney 1998, Cheke & Walsh 2000, Holyoak 2001). Although not Red-Listed, they are at risk, partially because of their habit of
perching on roads at night, where they are often killed by vehicles. Jackson (2002) lists Standard¬ winged as at high risk of being killed on roads, and Pennant-winged as very high. Interestingly, despite covering c. 1,000 km of road counts in Murchison Falls National Park, during which over 500 live nightjars were seen, we recorded no road-kills. Traffic is not heavy at night, but some vehicles do use these roads after dark. It would be positive to think that the birds are learning, although that seems unlikely. We also have records showing that Standard-winged Nightjar occurs widely across rural areas of Uganda, where night-driving is rare. It therefore seems likely that, at least nationally, road-kills are a minor problem.
So far as is known, both species are migrants in Uganda, although there are historical records of Standard-winged Nightjar breeding (Carswell et al. 2005); the same authors also report a probable decline of that species, for which there are fewer recent records than for Pennant-winged. Our counts of Standard-winged Nightjar were around the end of January in each year, and of Pennant¬ winged in late July, when they are probably on passage to breeding grounds further south.
Both species are particularly active for a short period at dusk (see below), after which they commonly perch on roads or tracks. We made counts in Murchison Falls National Park, in northern Uganda: on an airstrip with a compacted soil surface, similar to park roads, c. 8 km south of
Counting Macrodipteryx nightjars for monitoring purposes: Pomeroy et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 45
Figure 1. Counts of the two Macrodipteryx nightjar species at Murchison Falls National Park, Uganda, obtained by combining maximum counts from each section.
Denombrements des deux especes d’engoulevents Macrodipteryx au Parc National de Murchison Falls, Ouganda, obtenus en combinant les totaux maximaux de chaque section.
Figure 2. Results of successive counts on the Murchison Falls National Park airstrip, Uganda, for Standard-winged Nightjars Macrodipteryx longipennis. Sunset was at about 19.08 hrs. The vertical axis shows the numbers of males recorded during each count.
Resultats des denombrements successifs sur la piste d’atterrissage du Parc National de Murchison Falls, Ouganda, pour l’Engoulevent a balanciers Macrodipteryx longipennis. Le soleil se couchait a environ 19.08 hrs.
L’axe vertical montre le nombre de males observes pendant chaque denombrement.
Paraa, and along the main park roads from the airstrip to Paraa and from near Sambiya Lodge to Paraa, a distance of 23 km. On the airstrip, which is c.2,000 m long and 30 m wide, our procedure was to drive from one end to the other, zigzagging to obtain the widest coverage, and then
back, covering the complete length 4-6 times. Some birds were seen in flight, whilst others were observed on the ground; the latter were harder to detect as they sat tight unless approached very closely.
The first count was made as it was beginning to get dark, and the last after the peak numbers had been seen (see below). Males were frequently and conspicuously displaying, sometimes attracting females to join them. Counts on the main stretch of road, Sambiya to Paraa, were made so that the mid-point of the route was passed at about the same time that peak numbers had been recorded on the airstrip, usually the previous day. For airstrip counts, two observers stood at the back of a pick-up truck or on the roof of a Land-Rover. Until it became too dark, towards the end of the counting period, birds were typically seen silhouetted against the sky, whilst others were picked up by the vehicle headlights whilst on the ground. In most years, the airstrip was counted twice or three times, but Sambiya to Paraa was usually counted only once. Since the airstrip was also counted several times each day, we took the highest of all counts for the purposes of this communication. Other species of nightjar were also recorded, but their numbers were too low to permit analysis.
The results of these counts are presented in Fig. 1, which shows the combined totals of the various routes used. Both species increased between 2005 and 2008, but then varied widely. Obviously, one cannot deduce too much from these relatively small samples from just one area, but if others were to use similar methods elsewhere, a broader and more reliable picture might emerge, and in any case we recommend that these counts be continued indefinitely in Uganda.
It is typical of nightjars that they vocalise mainly at dawn and dusk, but also during the night when moonlit (Fry et al. 1988). The activity patterns at the airstrip followed a similar pattern, with most departing after a short time. Thus counts must be made during the brief period
Legend to figures opposite
Figure 1. Pennant-winged Nightjar / Engoulevent porte- etendard Macrodipteryx vexillarius (Jon Hornbuckle)
Figure 2. Pennant-winged Nightjar / Engoulevent porte- etendard Macrodipteryx vexillarius (Phil Palmer)
46 - Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013)
Counting Macrodipteryx nightjars for monitoring purposes: Pomeroy et al.
Counting Macrodipteryx nightjars for monitoring purposes: Pomeroy et al.
Bull ABC Vol 20 No 1 (2013) - 47
Figure 3. Standard-winged Nightjar / Engoulevent a balanciers Macrodipteryx longipennis (Bruno Portier)
Figure 4. Standard-winged Nightjar / Engoulevent a balanciers Macrodipteryx longipennis (Ian Fulton)
of time when the birds are most active. Fig. 2 shows typical counts for male Standard-winged Nightjars in relation to the estimated time of sunset. Females were also counted but their numbers are less reliable, since without good views they can resemble other species present. Fdowever, taking the most probable counts ol females, their numbers were comparable to those of males, despite Fry et al. (1988) stating that the sexes migrate separately. For Standard-winged, activity of males was mainly between 19.25 and 19.45 hrs, peaking c. 25 minutes alter sunset (Fig. 2). Female numbers peaked at c. 19.50 hrs, some 15 minutes after the males. Pennant-winged Nightjars were active rather earlier, mainly between 19.10 and 19.30 hrs for males, c. 15 minutes after sunset. As with Standard-winged, female activity peaked a few minutes later than the males. There were no obvious differences in results between clear and cloudy evenings.
We conclude that our method is a satisfactory way of monitoring these two species, and could be applied to other sites where they are common. These data lor Uganda are already included in Uganda’s official set of biodiversity indicators.
Acknowledgements
We acknowledge the support of the Royal Society for Protection of Birds (UK), mainly through Natun fUganda, and the co-operation of the Uganda Wildlife Authority in permitting us to drive at night and use the airstrip for this research. As well as the authors, some 12 other people took part in the various counts, and we are indebted to them. Des Jackson kindly commented on a draft of this article.
References
Carswell, M., Pomeroy, D., Reynolds, J. & Tushabe, H. 2005. Bird Atlas of Uganda. Oxford: British Ornithologists’ Club & British Ornithologists’ Union.
Cheke, R. A. & Walsh, J. F. 2000. Behaviour of Standard-wing Nightjars in Togo. Ostrich 71: 349-350.
Cleere, N. & Nurney, D. 1998. Nightjars. A Guide to the Nightjars and Related Nightbirds. Robertsbridge: Pica Press.
Fry, C. H., Keith, S. & Urban, E. K. (eds.) 1988. Birds of Africa. Vol. 3. London, UK: Academic Press. Holyoak, D. T. 2001. Nightjars and Their Allies: The Caprimulgiformes. Oxford: Oxford University Press.
Jackson, FI. D. 2002. A review of Alrotropical nightjar mortality, mainly road kills. Ostrich 73: 147—161. Jackson, H. D. 2003. A field survey to investigate why nightjars frequent roads at night. Ostrich 74: 97-101.
Jackson, H. D. 2004. Courtship displays of the Pennant-winged Nightjar, Semeiophorus vexillarius. Ostrich 75: 1-4.
" Dept, of Biological Sciences, Makerere University, PO Box 7298, Kampala, Uganda.
b Uganda Wildlife Authority PO Box 3530, Kampala, Uganda.
‘ NatureUganda, PO Box 27034, Kampala, Uganda.
Received 14 September 2011; revision accepted 9 November 2012.
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Counting Macrodipteryx nightjars for monitoring purposes: Pomeroy et al.
Birds of Dindefello Nature Reserve, south-east Senegal
Jose Maria Fernandez-Garcia;1 , Nerea Ruiz de Azua“ and Liliana Pacheco1’
Les oiseaux de la Reserve Naturelle de Dindefello, sud-est du Senegal. Nous presentons les resultats d un inventaire ornithologique de la Reserve Naturelle de Dindefelo, une zone de 13.150 ha dans la region de Kedougou, au sud-est du Senegal. Le travail de terrain a ete effectue principalement au cours de trois visites en 2011. Au total, 220 especes ont ete recensees, 16 d’entre elles presentant une extension de 1’ aire connue de repartition. Six especes de rapaces diurnes sont d’interet pour la conservation. La Reserve Naturelle de Dindefello est le seul endroit connu actuellement au Senegal pour six especes, en raison de la presence de falaises et de forets galeries dans les ravins — des habitats qui sont rares dans le pays. L’Amarante du Mali Lagonosticta virata, rarement enregistre au Senegal, a egalement ete observe.
Summary. We present the results of a bird survey in Dindefello Nature Reserve, a 13,150 ha area in the Kedougou region, south-east Senegal. Field work was mainly conducted during three visits in 2011. A total of 220 species was recorded, 16 of them extending previously known ranges. Six diurnal raptors are of conservation concern. Dindefello Nature Reserve is the only currently known location in Senegal for six species, due to the occurrence of cliffs and gallery forests in ravines — habitats that are rare in the country. Kulikoro Firefinch Lagonosticta virata, rarely recorded in Senegal, was also found.
The avifauna of the coastal strip of Senegal is relatively well known, as estuaries and wetlands associated with the