23 NOVEMBER – 02 DECEMBER 2023
By Dylan Vasapolli
African Pitta – the main target of the tour – showed well in Mana Pools.
Overview
This private tour was specifically designed around seeing the mythical African Pitta, for a couple (Sue and John). While the pitta was the main target, there were several other possibilities that were factored in, like Bronze-winged Courser, Lilian’s Lovebird and African Wild Dog, amongst others. As such, we quickly settled on a custom tour to Zimbabwe, where we would focus our time on the amazing Mana Pools National Park. Mana Pools is located in the Zambezi River valley of far northern Zimbabwe, this big game park is one of Africa’s premier wildlife destinations, and we would base ourselves here for six nights, to give ourselves the best possible chance of success. A few extra days were also added on around Harare, to try for some of the miombo woodland targets that were possible, notably Boulder Chat and Whyte’s Barbet.
Lilian’s Lovebird is a Zambezi River valley special with a limited range. They were delightfully common in Mana Pools.
This tour took place right at the onset of the pitta’s breeding season, in late November – coinciding with the start of the rains. December is also the prime birding time in southern Africa, with many birds breeding and, as such, vocal and generally at their easiest to find. The tour went ahead smoothly, with no complications or adverse weather conditions. Mana Pools especially is stocked full of big game, and while the resident packs of African Wild Dogs eluded us, we enjoyed a great many other mammals, including Lions and African Savanna Elephants.
A detailed daily account can be read below, and the full bird and mammal lists are located at the end of the report.
Detailed Report
Day 1, 23rd November 2023. Arrival into Harare, and local birding
The guests, Sue and John, arrived in Harare without hassle. After checking in to our comfortable guesthouse and freshening up, we headed out for a quick late afternoon birding session at the nearby Monavale Wetlands. This wetland is a famous Harare birding site for hosting secretive rails and crakes in the rainy season. It is typically very dry at this time of the year but nonetheless supports some of our target species. On arriving, we quickly picked up vast numbers of euplectes moving about and found high numbers of both Red-collared and White-winged Widowbirds, along with smaller numbers of Southern Red and Yellow Bishops and the sought-after Yellow-mantled Widowbird. A large flock of the scarce Cuckoo-finches also pitched up, giving us good views. African Yellow Warbler was our main target, and we heard several birds from the appropriate area, but it took much search and effort to locate one bird, which eventually gave us some brief views. We also got our eye in on some typical African species, like Little Bee-eater and Black-winged Kite, before calling it a day.
Boulder Chat showed well in the rocky miombo woodland near Harare.
Day 2, 24th November 2023. Harare miombo birding
We began our morning with an early breakfast, before heading out to the lovely Christonbank hills. The large granite domes blanketed in stunning miombo woodland not only make for a picturesque scene, but also provide easy access to one of the more sought-after Zimbabwe specials – Boulder Chat. It is virtually endemic to the country (though not, as it just spills over Zimbabwe’s borders into its neighboring countries), so it would form our main target for the morning. Soon after arriving, we picked up on the distinct call. We enjoyed superb and extended views of this strange bird as a pair sat calling on the boulders and also moved up into the surrounding trees. We soaked up our views for some time before moving on and trying our luck for our other target, Whyte’s Barbet, in the surrounding miombo. The birding was slow for a while, as is typical of this habitat, but we eventually found some activity that held the likes of Black-headed and African Golden Orioles, Eastern Miombo and Scarlet-chested Sunbirds, Ashy Flycatcher and Black-backed Puffback, amongst others, before two Whyte’s Barbets came barreling in towards us. They alighted and sat for a short while, before disappearing again. We moved on through to the area we suspected they went to and soon found them feeding in a tree. We enjoyed our second round of views before they flew again, moving out of sight. Thrilled with our success, we treated ourselves to some tea and biscuits, before returning back to our guesthouse in the late morning.
After a bit of rest, we headed out for the afternoon to the wonderful Haka Park. We began with a walk through the miombo section of the reserve, and we quickly found a bird party thanks to some vocal Southern Hyliotas. We rapidly followed the birds, picking up other specials like White-breasted Cuckooshrike, White-crested Helmetshrikes, Green-capped Eremomelas, Red-headed Weavers and African Golden Orioles, before the birds melted back away into the trees. We then progressed to the reserve’s more open areas and scoured the edges of a marsh, successfully, for a fine Pale-crowned Cisticola, though the hoped-for Rosy-throated Longclaw and Marsh Owls were conspicuous only by their absence. Abdim’s Stork and Croaking Cisticola were also present. The upper reaches of the dam held a small group of White-backed Ducks, along with others like African Swamphen, Black Crake and African Jacana. A vocal African Fish Eagle was also present. Other widespread species were seen here as well, before we called it a day and settled in for a lovely dinner.
Southern Hyliota is a key miombo woodland species.
Day 3, 25th November 2023. Transfer to Mana Pools
We had a long drive to get up to Mana Pools National Park – one of Africa’s great game parks. The drive took us the bulk of the morning, with stops along the way delivering a pair of Racket-tailed Rollers – performing their aerial acrobatic display. We also enjoyed other birds like Lizard Buzzard, Little Sparrowhawk and African Harrier Hawk. After completing the formalities, we made the trek deep into the park to our well-appointed (and superb) lodge, and met up with our excellent ranger guide, Jim, who would be with us for our Mana Pools stay.
The main purpose of this trip was to search for the mythical African Pitta. Any chances of seeing this bird were virtually restricted to a small window at the start of their breeding season, when the birds give their strange display calls in their thick forest habitats – allowing birders chances of tracking down this otherwise secretive ghost. We had timed our trip to coincide carefully with this period and had given ourselves five full days to maximize our chances.
After settling in, we began our first afternoon with a walk through some of the prime ‘Pitta thickets’ to get a lay of the land. The air was still, with barely a bird calling, or even moving for that matter. A large party of Southern Crested Guineafowls came moving through the undergrowth, and we eked out others like Tropical Boubou and Crowned Hornbill, but little else. Soon, we were off to our first sundowner spot and arrived with the resident pride of Lions lazing about. As it started to darken, with ice-cold gin and tonics in hand, numbers of Double-banded Sandgrouse began arriving at the nearby pan to drink. We watched the spectacle for a while, and, with darkness truly around, did a short night drive back to the lodge. Almost immediately, we found another of our major targets, Bronze-winged Courser. The bird didn’t hang around for very long, and we enjoyed our first celebratory dinner this evening.
Racket-tailed Roller is an uncommon specialty of southern Africa. Missing from many world birders’ lists, this was a tour target, and fortunately, showed well on a few occasions.
Days 4 – 8, 26th – 30th November 2023. African Pittas at Mana Pools
Our five full days in Mana Pools are discussed as one below, as the similarity of the days all began blurring together.
Our time early on was entirely devoted to searching for African Pitta, and our first morning yielded several calling birds that we were able to get close to, but failed to get any views of, frustratingly. These birds frequent dense thickets that are virtually impregnable and need careful skill to navigate around and through them. Not to mention the fact that this is also prime big game territory, and the possibility of bumping into African Savanna Elephants, Cape Buffalos and others like Lion is very real and necessitates the use of a qualified professional ranger guide to accompany us. Hearing these birds is usually the easy part, as their loud display calls can be heard from some distance. However, it then becomes a game of cat and mouse, as you have to carefully stalk the bird and try to get into a position so you can see it doing its display jump from its favored perch, usually in a tree. After failing on the first morning, we opted to search another prospective area that afternoon, and we struck gold, finding a very obliging African Pitta that put on an excellent show for us! We soaked up our incredible views as this bird displayed from its surprisingly open perch for a while; we then watched as the bird went about its business, hopping and feeding through the leaf litter on the forest floor. After having our initial success, we enjoyed several more views over the days, mostly of these birds being secretive, and feeding on the floor (including a pair clearly getting ready for nest building). In the latter days, the display calls of African Pitta in front of the camp became our alarm clock, and it was an immense privilege to be privy to it. It is safe to say that we thoroughly enjoyed our time with these birds!
An “in-situ” photo of one of the African Pittas we found, showing its camouflage on the ground and the dense thickets they frequent.
With the pressure having come off after our superb views of African Pitta early on, we could also enjoy other parts of the reserve, and additionally explore the incredible Zambezi River floodplain. The pitta thickets held other exciting birds and gave us good views of birds like African Broadbill, Retz’s Helmetshrike, Livingstone’s Flycatcher, Eastern Nicator, Bearded Scrub Robin and Red-throated Twinspot, amongst others. Exploring the mosaic of mixed woodland, baobab-dominated hills, and mopane woodlands further away gave us further specials like flocks of roving Lilian’s Lovebirds, Meyer’s Parrot, Southern Ground Hornbill, Mottled and Böhm’s Spinetails, Racket-tailed and Broad-billed Rollers, Greater Honeyguide, Arnot’s Chat and Meves’s Starling. We also found a pair of Boulder Chats, somewhat surprisingly – beyond their known range. Several enormous colonies of Southern Carmine Bee-eaters were nesting in the area, and we spent some time enjoying the antics of the now fairly large chicks around their nesting burrows.
African Broadbill is another prized species occurring in the same thickets as the pitta.
Raptors were well represented, and we managed to pick up charismatic birds like Bateleur and Brown Snake Eagle, to scarcer birds like Hooded Vulture, Lesser Spotted Eagle, African Hawk-Eagle and Amur Falcon. Our nighttime explorations gave us a few excellent looks at the incredible Pennant-winged Nightjars, with males resplendent in their long wing plumes dancing about, along with other birds like Southern White-faced Owl and the scarce Three-banded Courser. The Zambezi River region added many further birds, and while much of the floodplain was bone dry, the mighty Zambezi River proved to be a source of life to the surrounds. Water birds were well represented, from Knob-billed Ducks and Spur-winged Geese to the likes of Saddle-billed, Marabou, Yellow-billed and African Woolly-necked Storks, African Openbills to African Spoonbills, Black and Squacco Herons to Great and Yellow-billed Egrets. We were also able to pick up a few African Skimmers on some distant sandbars while strange-looking White-crowned Lapwings were found much closer to the shore. The riverine woods held new birds like Collared Palm Thrush and Western Banded Snake Eagle, while it was good to see the Bat Hawks had not changed their preferred tree in many years. It is difficult to mention every species, but in our five days, we notched up over 200 species in the park, with a wide range of typical African species, like bee-eaters, woodpeckers, bushshrikes, flycatchers, sunbirds, weavers and waxbills all represented.
Three-banded Courser showed well during our nighttime excursions in Mana Pools.
African Wild Dog was another target on the trip, and try as we might, we were unable to locate any of the resident packs of these animals during our time here. The resident pride of Lions was a regular feature and seen on most days, including giving us a fabulous send-off by walking down the dry riverbed right in front of the lodge. African Savanna Elephants were commonly seen, as were Cape Buffalo, along with a wide range of plains game, including Klipspringer, Waterbuck, Common Eland, Greater Kudu and Southern Bushbuck. A lone Spotted Hyena was also seen.
Day 9, 1st December 2023. Transit back to Harare
We enjoyed our final morning with a leisurely breakfast, before saying our goodbyes and departing the wonderful Mana Pools, and our comfortable lodge, which had been home for the past six nights. Most of the rest of the day was spent transiting back to Harare, though we did stop off for some birding on a private farm. Here, we successfully tracked down Marsh Owls (which roosted in the nearby marshes en-masse) and picked up other birds like Senegal Coucal, Garden Warbler and Yellow-throated Longclaw. A nesting pair of Bat Hawks was an equally good surprise. We arrived back in Harare in the afternoon and settled in for the evening. Our final celebratory dinner was spent reveling in the success of the trip, with African Pitta (amongst many others) firmly under our belt.
Day 10, 2nd December 2023. Departure
The morning was spent at leisure, before the group departed from Harare in the late morning.
A sunset vista over Mana Pools (and the pitta thickets) as seen from our comfortable lodge.
Sue and John overlooking the huge Zambezi River.
Bird List – Following IOC 13.2
Birds ‘heard only’ are marked with (H) after the common name, all other species were seen.
The following notation after species names is used to show conservation status following the IUCN Red List:
CR = Critically Endangered, EN = Endangered, VU = Vulnerable.
| Common name | Scientific name |
| Ducks, Geese, Swans (Anatidae) | |
| White-backed Duck | Thalassornis leuconotus |
| Spur-winged Goose | Plectropterus gambensis |
| Knob-billed Duck | Sarkidiornis melanotos |
| Egyptian Goose | Alopochen aegyptiaca |
| Guineafowl (Numididae) | |
| Helmeted Guineafowl | Numida meleagris |
| Southern Crested Guineafowl | Guttera edouardi |
| Pheasants & Allies (Phasianidae) | |
| Crested Francolin | Ortygornis sephaena |
| Natal Spurfowl | Pternistis natalensis |
| Swainson’s Spurfowl | Pternistis swainsonii |
| Nightjars (Caprimulgidae) | |
| Fiery-necked Nightjar (H) | Caprimulgus pectoralis |
| Pennant-winged Nightjar | Caprimulgus vexillarius |
| Swifts (Apodidae) | |
| Mottled Spinetail | Telacanthura ussheri |
| Böhm’s Spinetail | Neafrapus boehmi |
| African Palm Swift | Cypsiurus parvus |
| Common Swift | Apus apus |
| Little Swift (H) | Apus affinis |
| Horus Swift | Apus horus |
| Turacos (Musophagidae) | |
| Grey Go-away-bird | Crinifer concolor |
| Cuckoos (Cuculidae) | |
| Senegal Coucal | Centropus senegalensis |
| White-browed Coucal | Centropus superciliosus |
| Levaillant’s Cuckoo | Clamator levaillantii |
| Jacobin Cuckoo | Clamator jacobinus |
| Diederik Cuckoo | Chrysococcyx caprius |
| Klaas’s Cuckoo | Chrysococcyx klaas |
| African Emerald Cuckoo (H) | Chrysococcyx cupreus |
| Sandgrouse (Pteroclidae) | |
| Double-banded Sandgrouse | Pterocles bicinctus |
| Pigeons, Doves (Columbidae) | |
| Rock Dove | Columba livia |
| Red-eyed Dove | Streptopelia semitorquata |
| Ring-necked Dove | Streptopelia capicola |
| Laughing Dove | Spilopelia senegalensis |
| Emerald-spotted Wood Dove | Turtur chalcospilos |
| Namaqua Dove | Oena capensis |
| African Green Pigeon | Treron calvus |
| Rails, Crakes & Coots (Rallidae) | |
| Common Moorhen | Gallinula chloropus |
| African Swamphen | Porphyrio madagascariensis |
| Black Crake | Zapornia flavirostra |
| Stone-curlews, Thick-knees (Burhinidae) | |
| Water Thick-knee | Burhinus vermiculatus |
| Stilts, Avocets (Recurvirostridae) | |
| Black-winged Stilt | Himantopus himantopus |
| Plovers (Charadriidae) | |
| Blacksmith Lapwing | Vanellus armatus |
| White-crowned Lapwing | Vanellus albiceps |
| Crowned Lapwing | Vanellus coronatus |
| African Wattled Lapwing | Vanellus senegallus |
| Three-banded Plover | Charadrius tricollaris |
| Jacanas (Jacanidae) | |
| African Jacana | Actophilornis africanus |
| Sandpipers, Snipes (Scolopacidae) | |
| Ruff | Calidris pugnax |
| Little Stint | Calidris minuta |
| Common Sandpiper | Actitis hypoleucos |
| Marsh Sandpiper | Tringa stagnatilis |
| Wood Sandpiper | Tringa glareola |
| Common Greenshank | Tringa nebularia |
| Coursers, Pratincoles (Glareolidae) | |
| Three-banded Courser | Rhinoptilus cinctus |
| Bronze-winged Courser | Rhinoptilus chalcopterus |
| Gulls, Terns, Skimmers (Laridae) | |
| African Skimmer | Rynchops flavirostris |
| Storks (Ciconiidae) | |
| African Openbill | Anastomus lamelligerus |
| Marabou Stork | Leptoptilos crumenifer |
| Yellow-billed Stork | Mycteria ibis |
| Saddle-billed Stork | Ephippiorhynchus senegalensis |
| Abdim’s Stork | Ciconia abdimii |
| African Woolly-necked Stork | Ciconia microscelis |
| White Stork | Ciconia ciconia |
| Anhingas, Darters (Anhingidae) | |
| African Darter | Anhinga rufa |
| Cormorants, Shags (Phalacrocoracidae) | |
| Reed Cormorant | Microcarbo africanus |
| Ibises, Spoonbills (Threskiornithidae) | |
| African Sacred Ibis | Threskiornis aethiopicus |
| Hadada Ibis | Bostrychia hagedash |
| Glossy Ibis | Plegadis falcinellus |
| African Spoonbill | Platalea alba |
| Herons, Bitterns (Ardeidae) | |
| Striated Heron (H) | Butorides striata |
| Squacco Heron | Ardeola ralloides |
| Western Cattle Egret | Bubulcus ibis |
| Grey Heron | Ardea cinerea |
| Black-headed Heron | Ardea melanocephala |
| Great Egret | Ardea alba |
| Intermediate Egret | Ardea intermedia |
| Black Heron | Egretta ardesiaca |
| Little Egret | Egretta garzetta |
| Hamerkop (Scopidae) | |
| Hamerkop | Scopus umbretta |
| Ospreys (Pandionidae) | |
| Osprey | Pandion haliaetus |
| Kites, Hawks, Eagles (Accipitridae) | |
| Black-winged Kite | Elanus caeruleus |
| African Harrier-Hawk | Polyboroides typus |
| African Cuckoo-Hawk | Aviceda cuculoides |
| Hooded Vulture – CR | Necrosyrtes monachus |
| White-backed Vulture – CR | Gyps africanus |
| Brown Snake Eagle | Circaetus cinereus |
| Western Banded Snake Eagle | Circaetus cinerascens |
| Bateleur – EN | Terathopius ecaudatus |
| Bat Hawk | Macheiramphus alcinus |
| Long-crested Eagle | Lophaetus occipitalis |
| Lesser Spotted Eagle | Clanga pomarina |
| Wahlberg’s Eagle | Hieraaetus wahlbergi |
| Tawny Eagle – VU | Aquila rapax |
| African Hawk-Eagle | Aquila spilogaster |
| Lizard Buzzard | Kaupifalco monogrammicus |
| Gabar Goshawk | Micronisus gabar |
| Little Sparrowhawk | Accipiter minullus |
| Yellow-billed Kite | Milvus aegyptius |
| African Fish Eagle | Icthyophaga vocifer |
| Barn Owls (Tytonidae) | |
| Western Barn Owl | Tyto alba |
| Owls (Strigidae) | |
| African Barred Owlet (H) | Glaucidium capense |
| Southern White-faced Owl | Ptilopsis granti |
| Marsh Owl | Asio capensis |
| Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl (H) | Ketupa lactea |
| African Wood Owl (H) | Strix woodfordii |
| Mousebirds (Coliidae) | |
| Red-faced Mousebird | Urocolius indicus |
| Hoopoes (Upupidae) | |
| African Hoopoe | Upupa africana |
| Wood Hoopoes (Phoeniculidae) | |
| Green Wood Hoopoe | Phoeniculus purpureus |
| Common Scimitarbill | Rhinopomastus cyanomelas |
| Ground Hornbills (Bucorvidae) | |
| Southern Ground Hornbill – VU | Bucorvus leadbeateri |
| Hornbills (Bucerotidae) | |
| Southern Red-billed Hornbill | Tockus rufirostris |
| Crowned Hornbill | Lophoceros alboterminatus |
| African Grey Hornbill | Lophoceros nasutus |
| Trumpeter Hornbill | Bycanistes bucinator |
| Rollers (Coraciidae) | |
| Racket-tailed Roller | Coracias spatulatus |
| Lilac-breasted Roller | Coracias caudatus |
| European Roller | Coracias garrulus |
| Broad-billed Roller | Eurystomus glaucurus |
| Kingfishers (Alcedinidae) | |
| Grey-headed Kingfisher | Halcyon leucocephala |
| Brown-hooded Kingfisher | Halcyon albiventris |
| Woodland Kingfisher | Halcyon senegalensis |
| Malachite Kingfisher | Corythornis cristatus |
| Pied Kingfisher | Ceryle rudis |
| Bee-eaters (Meropidae) | |
| Little Bee-eater | Merops pusillus |
| White-fronted Bee-eater | Merops bullockoides |
| Blue-cheeked Bee-eater | Merops persicus |
| European Bee-eater | Merops apiaster |
| Southern Carmine Bee-eater | Merops nubicoides |
| African Barbets (Lybiidae) | |
| Whyte’s Barbet | Stactolaema whytii |
| Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird | Pogoniulus chrysoconus |
| Black-collared Barbet (H) | Lybius torquatus |
| Crested Barbet | Trachyphonus vaillantii |
| Honeyguides (Indicatoridae) | |
| Lesser Honeyguide | Indicator minor |
| Greater Honeyguide | Indicator indicator |
| Woodpeckers (Picidae) | |
| Golden-tailed Woodpecker | Campethera abingoni |
| Cardinal Woodpecker | Dendropicos fuscescens |
| Caracaras, Falcons (Falconidae) | |
| Lesser Kestrel | Falco naumanni |
| Amur Falcon | Falco amurensis |
| Eurasian Hobby | Falco subbuteo |
| African & New World Parrots (Psittacidae) | |
| Meyer’s Parrot | Poicephalus meyeri |
| Old World Parrots (Psittaculidae) | |
| Lilian’s Lovebird | Agapornis lilianae |
| African & Green Broadbills (Calyptomenidae) | |
| African Broadbill | Smithornis capensis |
| Pittas (Pittidae) | |
| African Pitta | Pitta angolensis |
| Wattle-eyes, Batises (Platysteiridae) | |
| Chinspot Batis | Batis molitor |
| Bushshrikes (Malaconotidae) | |
| Grey-headed Bushshrike | Malaconotus blanchoti |
| Orange-breasted Bushshrike (H) | Chlorophoneus sulfureopectus |
| Brown-crowned Tchagra | Tchagra australis |
| Black-backed Puffback | Dryoscopus cubla |
| Tropical Boubou | Laniarius major |
| Vangas & Allies (Vangidae) | |
| White-crested Helmetshrike | Prionops plumatus |
| Retz’s Helmetshrike | Prionops retzii |
| Cuckooshrikes (Campephagidae) | |
| White-breasted Cuckooshrike | Ceblepyris pectoralis |
| Black Cuckooshrike (H) | Campephaga flava |
| Figbirds, Old World Orioles, Piopios (Oriolidae) | |
| Black-headed Oriole | Oriolus larvatus |
| African Golden Oriole | Oriolus auratus |
| Drongos (Dicruridae) | |
| Fork-tailed Drongo | Dicrurus adsimilis |
| Monarchs (Monarchidae) | |
| African Paradise Flycatcher | Terpsiphone viridis |
| Shrikes (Laniidae) | |
| Southern Fiscal | Lanius collaris |
| Lesser Grey Shrike | Lanius minor |
| Red-backed Shrike | Lanius collurio |
| Crows, Jays (Corvidae) | |
| Pied Crow | Corvus albus |
| Tits, Chickadees (Paridae) | |
| Southern Black Tit (H) | Melaniparus niger |
| Nicators (Nicatoridae) | |
| Eastern Nicator | Nicator gularis |
| Larks (Alaudidae) | |
| Rufous-naped Lark (H) | Mirafra africana |
| Bulbuls (Pycnonotidae) | |
| Yellow-bellied Greenbul | Chlorocichla flaviventris |
| Terrestrial Brownbul | Phyllastrephus terrestris |
| Dark-capped Bulbul | Pycnonotus tricolor |
| Swallows, Martins (Hirundinidae) | |
| Black Saw-wing | Psalidoprocne pristoptera |
| Grey-rumped Swallow | Pseudhirundo griseopyga |
| Wire-tailed Swallow | Hirundo smithii |
| Barn Swallow | Hirundo rustica |
| Western House Martin | Delichon urbicum |
| Red-breasted Swallow | Cecropis semirufa |
| Mosque Swallow | Cecropis senegalensis |
| Lesser Striped Swallow | Cecropis abyssinica |
| Crombecs, African Warblers (Macrosphenidae) | |
| Long-billed Crombec | Sylvietta rufescens |
| Yellow Flycatchers (Erythrocercidae) | |
| Livingstone’s Flycatcher | Erythrocercus livingstonei |
| Leaf Warblers (Phylloscopidae) | |
| Willow Warbler | Phylloscopus trochilus |
| Reed Warblers & Allies (Acrocephalidae) | |
| Lesser Swamp Warbler (H) | Acrocephalus gracilirostris |
| African Yellow Warbler | Iduna natalensis |
| Cisticolas & Allies (Cisticolidae) | |
| Lazy Cisticola (H) | Cisticola aberrans |
| Rattling Cisticola (H) | Cisticola chiniana |
| Levaillant’s Cisticola | Cisticola tinniens |
| Croaking Cisticola | Cisticola natalensis |
| Zitting Cisticola | Cisticola juncidis |
| Pale-crowned Cisticola | Cisticola cinnamomeus |
| Tawny-flanked Prinia | Prinia subflava |
| Yellow-breasted Apalis (H) | Apalis flavida |
| Grey-backed Camaroptera | Camaroptera brevicaudata |
| Green-capped Eremomela | Eremomela scotops |
| Sylviid Babblers (Sylviidae) | |
| Garden Warbler (H) | Sylvia borin |
| White-eyes (Zosteropidae) | |
| Southern Yellow White-eye | Zosterops anderssoni |
| Laughingthrushes & Allies (Leiothrichidae) | |
| Arrow-marked Babbler | Turdoides jardineii |
| Hyliotas (Hyliotidae) | |
| Southern Hyliota | Hyliota australis |
| Starlings, Rhabdornises (Sturnidae) | |
| Common Myna | Acridotheres tristis |
| Cape Starling | Lamprotornis nitens |
| Meves’s Starling | Lamprotornis mevesii |
| Red-winged Starling | Onychognathus morio |
| Oxpeckers (Buphagidae) | |
| Red-billed Oxpecker | Buphagus erythrorynchus |
| Thrushes (Turdidae) | |
| Boulder Chat | Pinarornis plumosus |
| Kurrichane Thrush | Turdus libonyana |
| Chats, Old World Flycatchers (Muscicapidae) | |
| Bearded Scrub Robin (H) | Cercotrichas quadrivirgata |
| White-browed Scrub Robin | Cercotrichas leucophrys |
| Ashy Flycatcher | Fraseria caerulescens |
| Spotted Flycatcher | Muscicapa striata |
| White-browed Robin-Chat | Cossypha heuglini |
| Red-capped Robin-Chat | Cossypha natalensis |
| Collared Palm Thrush | Cichladusa arquata |
| African Stonechat | Saxicola torquatus |
| Arnot’s Chat | Myrmecocichla arnotti |
| Sunbirds (Nectariniidae) | |
| Scarlet-chested Sunbird | Chalcomitra senegalensis |
| Eastern Miombo Sunbird | Cinnyris manoensis |
| Purple-banded Sunbird | Cinnyris bifasciatus |
| Variable Sunbird | Cinnyris venustus |
| Old World Sparrows, Snowfinches (Passeridae) | |
| Yellow-throated Bush Sparrow | Gymnoris superciliaris |
| Southern Grey-headed Sparrow | Passer diffusus |
| House Sparrow | Passer domesticus |
| Weavers, Widowbirds (Ploceidae) | |
| White-browed Sparrow-Weaver | Plocepasser mahali |
| Southern Masked Weaver | Ploceus velatus |
| Village Weaver | Ploceus cucullatus |
| Red-headed Weaver | Anaplectes rubriceps |
| Red-billed Quelea | Quelea quelea |
| Southern Red Bishop | Euplectes orix |
| Yellow Bishop | Euplectes capensis |
| Yellow-mantled Widowbird | Euplectes macroura |
| White-winged Widowbird | Euplectes albonotatus |
| Red-collared Widowbird | Euplectes ardens |
| Waxbills, Munias & Allies (Estrildidae) | |
| Bronze Mannikin | Spermestes cucullata |
| Black-and-white Mannikin (H) | Spermestes bicolor |
| Common Waxbill | Estrilda astrild |
| Cut-throat Finch | Amadina fasciata |
| Orange-breasted Waxbill | Amandava subflava |
| Blue Waxbill | Uraeginthus angolensis |
| Green-winged Pytilia | Pytilia melba |
| Red-throated Twinspot | Hypargos niveoguttatus |
| Red-billed Firefinch | Lagonosticta senegala |
| Jameson’s Firefinch | Lagonosticta rhodopareia |
| Indigobirds, Whydahs (Viduidae) | |
| Village Indigobird | Vidua chalybeata |
| Pin-tailed Whydah | Vidua macroura |
| Long-tailed Paradise Whydah | Vidua paradisaea |
| Cuckoo-finch | Anomalospiza imberbis |
| Wagtails, Pipits (Motacillidae) | |
| African Pied Wagtail | Motacilla aguimp |
| Yellow-throated Longclaw | Macronyx croceus |
| African Pipit | Anthus cinnamomeus |
| Striped Pipit | Anthus lineiventris |
| Finches, Euphonias (Fringillidae) | |
| Yellow-fronted Canary | Crithagra mozambica |
| Buntings (Emberizidae) | |
| Cinnamon-breasted Bunting | Emberiza tahapisi |
| Species seen: | 225 |
| Species heard: | 19 |
| Total recorded: | 244 |
Mammal List
The following notation after species names is used to show conservation status following the IUCN Red List:
EN = Endangered, VU = Vulnerable.
| Common name | Scientific name |
| Elephants (Elephantidae) | |
| African Savanna Elephant – EN | Loxodonta africana |
| Hyraxes (Procaviidae) | |
| Bush Hyrax | Heterohyrax brucei |
| Old World Monkeys (Cercopithecidae) | |
| Vervet Monkey | Chlorocebus pygerythrus |
| Chacma Baboon | Papio ursinus |
| Hares and Rabbits (Leporidae) | |
| African Savanna Hare | Lepus microtis |
| Squirrels (Sciuridae) | |
| Smith’s Bush Squirrel | Paraxerus cepapi |
| Felids (Felidae) | |
| Lion – VU | Panthera leo |
| Mongooses (Herpestidae) | |
| Common Slender Mongoose | Herpestes sanguineus |
| White-tailed Mongoose | Ichneumia albicauda |
| Common Dwarf Mongoose | Helogale parvula |
| Banded Mongoose | Mungos mungo |
| Hyaenas (Hyaenidae) | |
| Spotted Hyena | Crocuta crocuta |
| Civets, Genets, and Oyans (Viverridae) | |
| Rusty-spotted Genet | Genetta fieldiana |
| Equines (Equidae) | |
| Plains Zebra | Equus quagga |
| Bovids (Bovidae) | |
| Impala | Aepyceros melampus |
| Blue Wildebeest | Connochaetes taurinus |
| Klipspringer | Oreotragus oreotragus |
| Waterbuck | Kobus ellipsiprymnus |
| Cape Buffalo | Syncerus caffer |
| Common Eland | Tragelaphus oryx |
| Greater Kudu | Tragelaphus strepsiceros |
| Southern Bushbuck | Tragelaphus sylvaticus |
| Giraffes and Okapi (Giraffidae) | |
| Southern Giraffe | Giraffa giraffa |
| Suids (Suidae) | |
| Common Warthog | Phacochoerus africanus |
| Hippopotamuses (Hippopotamidae) | |
| Common Hippopotamus – VU | Hippopotamus amphibius |
| Species seen: | 25 |
| Total recorded: | 25 |
This is a sample trip report. Please email us ([email protected]) for more trip reports from this destination.
