103 41-02. _ _ _
At RICAN
BIRD CLUB V
Bulletin of the African Bird Club Vol 21 No 1 March 2014
ISSN 1 352-481 XISSN 1352-481X
^ African Bird Club
The African Bird Club aims to:
• provide a worldwide focus for African ornithology
• encourage an interest in the conservation of the birds of the region
• liaise with and promote the work of existing regional societies
• publish a twice-yearly colour bulletin
• encourage observers to visit lesser known areas of the region
• encourage observers to actively search for globally threatened and near-threatened species
• run the ABC Conservation Programme
Registered Charity No 1053920
ABC Membership
Membership is open to all. Annual subscription rates are:
Individual Europe & Africa: UK£21 Rest of the World: UK£23
Family Europe & Africa: UK£24 Rest of the World: UK£26
Student Europe & Africa: UK£ 12 Rest of the World: UK£ 14
Supporting UK£35 minimum Life UK£500
To join or for further details please visit the ABC website (where there are secure online payment facilities) or write to the Membership Secretary — see contact information below.
ABC Website
http://www.africanbirdclub.org
Photographers and artists
ABC is always looking for drawings and photos to publish in the Bulletin. If you are interested in contributing, please contact the Graphics Editor, Lionel Sineux, lionel.sinetrx@gmail.com
ABC Council
Keith Betton (Chairman), Nigel Birch (co-opted), Paul Buckley (co¬ opted), John Caddick (Vice Chairman), Richard Charles, Chris Magin (co-opted), Geoff Orton (Secretary), Stephen Pringle (Treasurer) and Danae Sheehan
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, Lionel Sineux (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 Stephen Pringle • treasurer@africanbirdclub.org Bulletin Managing Editor Guy Kirwan • editor@africanbirdclub.org Conservation Officer Chris Magin
• consewation@africanbirdclub.org
Information Officer Keith Betton • info@africanbirdclub.org Membership Secretary Geoff Orton
• membership@africanbirdclub.org Representatives Coordinator Nigel Birch
• reps@africanbirdclub.org Corporate Sponsors Officer Richard Charles
• corporatesponsors@africanbirdclub.org
Natural History Museum Library
300015590
ABC particularly wishes to thank its Corporate Sponsors for their invaluable financial support in 2014: African Affinity, Ashanti African Tours, Birdfinders, Birding and Beyond Safaris, Birding Ecotours, Birdquest, Field Guides, Letaka Safaris, Nature’s Wonderland Safaris, Rockjumper, Safariwise, Safari Consultants, Sunbird and Venture Uganda.
The Bulletin of the African Bird Club
The Bulletin of the ABC provides a forum for news, letters, notices, recent publications, expedition results, reviews and publication of studies on African birds by contributors from throughout the world. Publication of results in the Bulletin of the ABC does not preclude 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) .
©2014 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 21 No 1
News & Comment
Features
2 Club News
Compiled by Keith Betton
9 Corrigenda .
10 Conservation Fund News
15 Advertising information
16 Africa Round-up
Compiled by Ron Demey, Guy M. Kir w an and Peter Lack
93 Recent Reports
Compiled by Ron Demey
112 Reviews
115 Obituaries
120 Notes for Contributors
Photographs
Mark Anderson, Jan Arras, Ruben Barone, Nigel Birch, Bruno Boedts,
Nik Borrow, Ralph Buij, Ken Burton, Caroline Caddick, John Caddick,
Antonio Castelo, David Erterius, Ramon Fernandez, Brian Finch, Kai Gedeon, Lee Gregory, Louise Jasper, Richard Jeanne, Tom Jenner, Aidan Kelly, Adam Scott Kennedy, Grzegorz Kopij, Marc Languy, John Ledger, M. J. McGrady, Charles Ayuk Nsor, Martin Odino, Georges Olioso, Stejfen Oppel, Geojf Orton, Madalena Patacho, William Price, Julien Ramanampamonjy, Adam Riley, Gerard Rocamora, Lionel Sineux, Werner Suter, Keith Valentine, Nigel Voaden, Roger Wilkinson, Jaber Yahia.
4
26
64
72
82
83
85
87
89
91
Front cover
Riippell’s Vulture / Vautour de Riippell Gyps rueppelli (Adam Riley)
Back cover
Three-banded Plover / Pluvier a triple collier Charadrius tricollaris (Mark Anderson)
The African Bird Club— 20 years of working for birds in Africa Bill Quantrill
Raptors in northern Cameroon, December 2005-December 2010 Ralph Buij and Barbara M. Croes
Migration of raptors across the Bab el Mandeb Strait, Djibouti, March 2013 M. J. McGrady, H. A. Rayaleh, A. M. Dara and E. Abdillahi
Observations ornithologiques aux environs d’Antananarivo, Madagascar Bruno Boedts
Unusual concentration of Red-billed Buffalo Weaver Bubalornis niger nests on pylons in northern Namibia Grzegorz Kopij
First documented record of Semi-collared Flycatcher
Ficedula semitorquata for Libya Abdulmaula Hamza and Jaber Yahia
First record of Bamenda Apalis Apalis bamendae for Nigeria
Charles Ayuk Nsor, Elijah Nicodemus and Usman Bashiru
First record of Spur-winged Lapwing Vanellus spinosus for Sao Tome and Principe Simon Valle and Madalena Patacho
Northward range extension for Littoral Rock Thrush
Monticola imerinus in south-west Madagascar Charlie J. Gardner and Louise D. Jasper
First record of Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides for St.
Helena, South Atlantic J. C. Hillman, Gavin Ellick, Kevin George and Dennis Leo
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Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -1
Club News
ABC is 20!
Elsewhere in this Bulletin (see pp. 4-9) you can read how the Club was the brainchild of a small but dedicated band of birders in the early 1990s. We have come a long way since then and probably none of that band could have envisaged that by now the Club would have supported c.170 projects across more than 30 countries in Africa. It has been very satisfying to see how support for our work has grown — and many people have helped along the way.
On Saturday 12 April we will hold our 20th Annual Meeting and AGM in the prestigious Flett Theatre at the Natural History Museum in London. We have contacted most of the 100+ Founder Members who provided extra support at the start and we hope that they and as many as other people as possible will be able to join us for this special milestone. Speakers during the day are Martin Woodcock, Achilles Byaruhanga, Roger Safford, Tim Birkhead, David Pearson and Jim Reynolds.
ABC Trustees
At the 2014 AGM we will be sorry to see two Trustees stand down. Danae Sheehan will be known to many through her work at the Royal Society for Protection of Birds (BirdLife in the UK) and across many African countries.
She has assisted the Club with the regional Representatives network, and has been invaluable in helping us to consider ways to extend the Club’s activities. She joined Council in 2010. John Caddick has been a Council stalwart since 2004 acting as Treasurer in 2004-10 and Vice Chairman since then. But his greatest impact has been in overseeing our website development, incorporating many new features in the process. We shall miss them both, although feel
sure that they will remain close to the Club. Council is always interested to hear from members who feel they may have time to help run the Club’s many activities. If you can help in any way, please contact Keith Betton: chairman@ africanbirdclub.org.
ABC Treasurer
Stephen Pringle has decided to undertake extensive studies as a mature student, meaning that he will need to relinquish his role as Treasurer at the end of 2014. Council is interested to hear from anyone who might wish to be considered for the role. Because ABC’s bank is in the UK this really has to be someone who is UK-based. The key roles are: (1) maintain accurate, detailed and up-to-date records of the Club’s income and expenditure, and financial reserves; (2) undertake or supervise the carrying out of all financial transactions on the Club’s behalf, including the processing of direct debit and credit card transactions, payments by cheque, the collection of refunds from the Inland Revenue under Gift Aid, international money transfers, etc.; (3) advise ABC Council on all aspects of financial policy; (4) prepare an annual budget for approval by ABC Council; (5) prepare the annual accounts and present them to the AGM; and (6) ensure that the Club complies with all obligations arising from its charitable status (including submitting annual returns to the Charity Commission). If you think you may be able to help, please contact Stephen Pringle: treasurer^ africanbirdclub.org
British Birdwatching Fair
Once again the Club attended the annual British Birdwatching Fair held at Rutland Water in August 2013.
Around 20,000 enthusiasts attended over the three days, and we were pleased to meet many members there. Our thanks go to Adam Riley of Rockjumper who bravely represented ABC in the annual ‘Bird Brain of Britain’ contest, winning UKE250 for the Club in the process. In particular, we thank those members who gave their valuable time to help on the stand. The 2014 Birdfair dates are 1 5 — 1 7 August. We look forward to seeing many members there. If you think you can spare a couple of hours helping on the stand, please contact Nigel Birch: reps@ africanbirdclub.org
Corporate Sponsorship 2014
The Club greatly values the support it receives from our Corporate Sponsors, whose membership contributes significantly to the Conservation Fund. This, in turn, awards grants for research on African birds and habitat conservation, a core aim of the Club. During 2013 it became clear that the existing corporate sponsorship package had become outdated and was, in several respects, no longer fit for purpose. After considerable consultation, including members’ opinions and soundings from sponsors, Council has now offered a tiered structure; Bronze, Silver and Gold Corporate membership offer a sliding scale of benefits to both Club and Sponsor. Details can be found on the Club website, and the new structure became active on 1 January 2014.
At the time of writing, the Club is already delighted to welcome back many existing partners to the scheme:
• Gold membership: Ashanti African Tours, Birding Ecotours, Rockjumper.
• Silver membership: Birding and Beyond, Letaka Safaris, Safari Consultants.
2- Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014)
Club News
WORKING l-UK BiKUS IN Af-KICi
Figure 1. Narcisse Ndayambaje receives binoculars and field guides for use by the Nyungwe Bird Watching Club in Rwanda (Caroline Caddick)
Narcisse Ndayambaje re<;oit des jumelles et des guides pour le « Nyungwe Bird Watching Club » au Rwanda (Caroline Caddick)
• Bronze membership: African Affinity, Birdfinders, Birdquest, Fieldguides, Lawson’s Safaris, Nature’s Wonderland Safaris, SafariWise, Sunbird, Venture Uganda.
Coincident with the new Corporate Sponsorship structure has been a significant upgrade to their exposure on our website. Almost every page displays two Sponsors’ advertisements, in miniature, in random order. A click on this image brings up the full-size version, and a further click takes you to the Sponsor’s own website, whilst keeping the ABC site open. We encourage you to explore this most attractive new facility. Fresh adverts and news of exciting forthcoming tour offers will be there to tempt your holiday plans for the year.
Again, it is our pleasure to thank all of our Corporate Sponsors for their invaluable contribution to the Club, and to African birds and their habitats. Anyone interested in
discussing the scheme should contact Richard Charles: corporatesponsors@ africanbirdclub.org.
Contributed by Keith Betton & Richard Charles
Binoculars and books for Rwanda
At the British Birdwatching Fair in August, Birding Africa facilitated a presentation of binoculars and field guides to Narcisse Ndayambaje, a specialist birding guide from Rwanda. These were destined for deserving young members of the Nyungwe Bird Watching Club, established by Narcisse in 2009 for the children of the local village.
The objectives of the Club are to train the guides of the future and to educate the local community as to the importance of protecting their biologically diverse forest, home to 26 Albertine Rift endemics. Narcisse does this entirely out of his own commitment to birds and education. Tim Stowe of the Royal Society for the Protection of Birds presented 22
Figure 2. First prize in the 2013 Conservation Fund Raffle, organised by Richard Charles, was a stunning pair of Swarovski Swarovision 8 x 32EL binoculars, generously donated by Swarovski. Left to right: Richard Charles, Christine Percy of Swarovski Optik UK and Keith Betton at the British Birdwatching Fair, Rutland, August 2013 (Geoff Orton)
Le premier prix de la tombola du Fonds pour la conservation du ABC, organisee par Richard Charles, etait une splendide paire de jumelles Swarovski Swarovision 8 x 32EL, offerte genereusement par Swarovski.
De gauche a droite : Richard Charles, Christine Percy (Swarovski Optik UK) et Keith Betton au British Birdwatching Fair, Rutland, aout 2013 (Geoff Orton)
pairs of binoculars and John Caddick presented four pairs on behalf of ABC (Fig. 1). Nigel Redman of Bloomsbury Publishing presented 20 field guides. If you have spare binoculars that you would like to see used in Africa or on other continents, please e-mail colin. hawkins@rspb. org.uk
Contributed by Marje Hemp & John Caddick
Club News
Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -3
The African Bird Club— 20 years of working for birds in Africa
Bill Quantrill
L African Bird Club fete ses 20 ans. A l’occasion du vingtieme anniversaire de F African Bird Club, son histoire et ses realisations sont brievement presentees. Conqu en 1992 et lance en mars 1994 par un groupe de personnes avec un interet commun pour l’ornithologie africaine, le Club s’est rapidement developpe et compte a present environ 1.250 membres dans 92 pays a travers le monde, dont 42 pays africains. Son Bulletin semestriel au contenu varie et dont les articles sont examines par des specialistes, est devenu une publication respectee qui compte actuellement 256 pages en moyenne par an. Le site web, lance en 1995, quand l’internet etait encore a ses debuts, attirait initialement environ 500 consultations par mois ; en l’espace de dix annees, les consultations ont augmente jusqu’a 36.000 par mois. Des nouveaux elements y ont regulierement ete ajoutes, parmi lesquels la base de donnees « African Bird Image Database (AFBID) », auquel plus de 900 photographes ont contribue > 21.000 photos de 2.127 species. Depuis ses debuts en 1996, le Fonds pour la Conservation a permis a l’ABC de financer une grande diversite de projets de petite a moyenne taille a travers l’Afrique. A la fin de 2013 > UK£ 150,000 avaient ete versees a 161 projets dans 39 pays. Finalement, il convient de remarquer que si l’ABC est un Club florissant, c’est grace a ses nombreux volontaires qui donnent le meilleur d’eux-memes.
Origins
n 12 March 1994 some 180 people gathered at the Friends’ Meeting Ffouse on Euston Road, London, for what was later described, in this Bulletin, as ‘perhaps the largest-ever meeting in the UK to be devoted to African Ornithology’. The main business was to launch a new club that would focus on all things concerned with African birds and birding — namely, the African Bird Club. However, the origins of the Club go back to the summer of 1992, when a group of enthusiasts with a special interest in the continent first conceived the idea of a club that would do for the birds of the Afrotropical region what the Oriental Bird Club had done for Asia.
At the time there already existed several societies covering different parts of Africa, but no birding umbrella organisation for the continent as a whole. Recent political developments, not least in South Africa, meant that certain parts of the continent that had previously been difficult to access were opening up to visiting ornithologists, making it increasingly possible to consider the continent’s ornithology as a whole, rather than a collection of self-contained sub-regions.
A launch committee was established under the chairmanship of Martin Woodcock (at the time deeply involved in producing the plates for the monumental Birds of Africa), with Richard Webb as Secretary and Gary Allport, Mark Andrews, John Fanshawe, Lincoln Lishpool, Paul Green, Annie Harrap, Peter Lack, Duncan Macdonald,
Rod Martins and Iain Robertson as its other members. The committee’s first task was to define the Club’s purpose. To this end, they drew up a series of objectives, which were later reproduced on the inside front cover of the first issue of the ABC Bulletin as follows:
The ABC aims to: provide a worldwide focus for African ornithology; encourage an interest in the conservation of the birds of the region; liaise with and promote the work of existing regional societies; publish a twice-yearly colour bulletin; encourage observers to visit lesser known areas of the region; encourage observers to actively search for globally threatened and near threatened species; and develop a Conservation Research Lund’.
This statement of aims has stood the test of time — the only modification in 20 years has been the re-writing of the final aim as ‘run the ABC Conservation Programme’.
Membership
The committee next addressed the matter of recruiting a core membership to raise the capital needed to float the Club. To achieve this, thev contacted everyone with a known interest in African birds, inviting them to subscribe UK£30 to become founder members: 191 did so by the time of the inaugural meeting in March 1994 and a further 88 joined before the Founder Member scheme closed at the end of the year. More than half of those 279 remain members to this day.
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The African Bird Club at 20: Quantrill
Executive Officers of the African Bird Club 1994-2014
Chairman
Martin Woodcock 1994-98 Phil Atkinson 1998-2005 Richard Webb 2005-08 Keith Betton 2008-
Vice-Chairman
Geoff Randall 1998-2000 Keith Betton 2002-06 Phil Atkinson 2008—10 John Caddick 2010-14
Treasurer
Colin Humpage 1994-97 Jonathan Gibbons 1997-98 Alan Williams 1998-2004 John Caddick 2004-10 Alan Williams 2010-13 Stephen Pringle 2013-
Secretary
Richard Webb 1994-96 Bill Quantrill 1996-2002 Julie Childs 2002-03 Flip Bruce-Lockhart 2003-05 Geoff Randall 2005-10 Sue Walsh 2010-12 Geoff Orton 2012-
By the time of the March 1994 meeting 376 people had joined as members (including founders). Numbers increased steadily from then on, passing the 800 mark in the first year and the 1,000 mark in 1996, before finally peaking at just over 1,300 in January 1999. Since then the total has decreased slightly and in recent years has mostly fluctuated around 1,250. Some 10% of members do not renew each year, to be replaced by a roughly equal number of recruits. Altogether, just fewer than 3,000 individuals have been members of the Club at some stage during its lifetime. A survey of why members choose not to renew their membership revealed that the two principal reasons were (i) financial and (ii) a decision not to plan further visits to Africa. Almost nobody left because of dissatisfaction with the Club.
Members have come from 92 different countries and from all five continents. From
Africa, we have had members in 42 countries including all of the mainland states except Libya, Lesotho, Guinea Bissau, Niger, Chad, Central African Republic and Equatorial Guinea. The 50 non-African countries include 24 in Europe, 19 in Asia, three in Latin America and two each in North America and Australasia. Special efforts have been made to enable African members to join via local payment arrangements and the supported and associate membership schemes.
With such a widely scattered membership, it was always going to be problematic to know how best to engage with members. The original intention was to organise regular meetings, in Africa as well as in the UK and possibly other European countries. In the UK a day¬ long programme has been arranged annually to coincide with the AGM, usually in London. These meetings have generally been successful but they have been accessible to just a small proportion of the membership. There have also been occasional evening meetings held in conjunction with local bird clubs. Arranging meetings in Africa has proved difficult. Members of ABC Council have attended all five Pan African Ornithological Congresses held since the Club was founded, and the 1998 International Ornithological Congress held in Durban, and these events have provided opportunities for some Club members from Africa and elsewhere to meet. But, otherwise, the logistics of organising meetings in Africa have proved to be beyond the Club’s capabilities.
Another opportunity for Council members to interact with the broader membership is provided by the annual British Birdwatching Fair at Rutland Water (Figs. 1-2). ABC has manned a stand at the fair annually since 1 994 and as the fair has expanded in size over the years, so increasing numbers of ABC members, from the UK, Europe, even Africa and elsewhere in the world, have visited the Club’s stand.
Birth of the Bulletin
The original assumption was that the main means of communicating with members would be via written publications, dispatched by post. Such publications, in the form of the twice-yearly Bulletin, have indeed proved important, although the internet has come to be at least equally so, which was unanticipated at the time of the Club’s foundation.
The African Bird Club at 20: Quantrill
Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -5
A African Bird Club
Figure 1. The Club’s stand at the British Birdwatching Fair, Rutland, August 1997, with Martin Woodcock (far left) looking on as the editors of The Birds of Africa sign copies of their work, left to right, Stuart Keith, Hilary Fry and Emil Urban, with (behind) Roy Hargreaves and Barbara Woodcock (photographer unknown)
Le stand du Club au Birdfair de Rutland, Royaume- Uni, aout 1997, avec Martin Woodcock (a l’extreme gauche) observant les redacteurs de The Birds of Africa signant des exemplaires de leur livre, de gauche a droite, Stuart Keith, Hilary Fry et Emil Urban, avec derriere eux Roy Hargreaves et Barbara Woodcock (photographe inconnu). Des ses debuts, le Club a eu un stand au Birdfair, un evenement annuel qui attire des milliers de « birdwatchers ».
The question of publications was inevitably high on the Launch Committee’s agenda. An editorial subcommittee was set up to recommend the type of publications the Club should produce. Initially, it was envisaged that the Club would publish an annual, peer-reviewed journal and a separate bulletin containing news about the Club’s activities and non-scientific material such as site guides and book reviews. Fdowever, this plan met with objections from the editors and publishers of journals such as Ostrich and Malimhus , who argued that there were already sufficient outlets for scientific papers. Thus, the idea of a journal was discarded, in favour of a twice-yearly Bulletin to include members’ news and views, a round-up of recent sightings, species identification guides and site guides, with the possibility of publishing some scientific papers.
The Editorial Team then set about commissioning material for the first issue of the Bulletin, which was published to coincide with the March 1994 inaugural meeting. The fruit of their efforts was a 52-page magazine containing 13 articles, with features on specific species (ground hornbills Bucorvus spp. and Shoebill Balaeniceps rex ) and groups of species (bulbuls of Upper
Figyre 2. Founder member, launch committee member and former Art Editor of Bull. ABC Mark Andrews at the British Birdwatching Fair, Rutland Water, UK, in August 2005 (John Caddick)
Membre fondateur, membre du comite de lancement et ancien editeur artistique du Bull. ABC Mark Andrews au British Birdwatching Fair, Rutland Water, Royaume-Uni, en aout 2005 (John Caddick)
Guinea), a site of special interest (Mount Kupe in Cameroon), book reviews, recent ornithological news from Africa and an article by John Fanshawe summarising the birding infrastructure of all 61 countries and archipelagos included within the Club’s remit.
Since then the Bulletin has gone from strength to strength. The first seven issues were produced by the editorial subcommittee, but as the workload increased it became clear that production was proving too big a commitment for a voluntary team working in their spare time. In 1997 a decision was taken to appoint a professional editor to manage the production, with the Editorial Board providing guidance. Guy Kirwan was appointed to this role, subsequently supported by Ron Demey, and since then they have together been responsible for bringing out on schedule 14 further volumes of ever-increasing size — a typical recent volume consists of 256 pages with more than 40 features and articles.
Over the years the Bulletin has filled an invaluable role in publishing a steady flow of new information about the distribution and behaviour of Africa’s birds — additions to national lists, range extensions and even the discovery of new species. The first issue contained the ’unofficial background story’ to the discovery, by Thomas Lehmberg and Lars Dinesen (both founder members of ABC), of Udzungwa Forest Partridge Xenoperdix udzungwensis, a species and genus new
6- Bull ABC Vo! 21 No 1 (2014)
The African Bird Club at 20: Quantrill
to science (their first sight of it was of ‘two small chicken-like feet.... at the bottom of the pot’ in which their evening meal had been cooked — the amazing story can be read in Bull. ABC 1: 24-25, available on the Club website if you do not have the original publication).
ABC on the web
The Club first launched an internet site in May 1995, at a time when the web was still so much of a novelty that, in announcing the news to the membership in Bull. ABC 2(2), it was thought necessary to explain what the internet was! Our first website, containing brief background information about the Club and a downloadable membership application form, was shared with the three other UK-based international bird clubs, Oriental Bird Club, Neotropical Bird Club and the Ornithological Society of the Middle East. It initially attracted c.500 hits a month, a rate that grew to 36,000 ‘page views’ a month within ten years. By 1997, it had become obvious that the Club needed more capacity. So, in November 1997, we entered into a new agreement that gave us much-expanded web space and our own domain name, www.africanbirdclub.org.
Since then the site has expanded with new features being added regularly. In September 2003 a secure payment facility was added to permit subscriptions and purchases of Club merchandise online. Next, a searchable database of African ornithological literature was developed and a start was made on constructing individual pages for every African country with detailed information on local services relevant to the needs of visiting birders plus information on the local avifauna. Later, in 2004, the quarterly African bird ID challenge was started and in 2005 the African Bird Image Database (AFBID) was launched as a joint operation funded by Bird Explorers and with help from Birding Africa. Within three months, 117 photographers had contributed 2,314 images of 930 species. Most recently, more than 900 photographers have contributed >21,000 images of 2,127 species. In 2008, ABC participated in the creation ol a website devoted to African bird vocalisations, in partnership with Xeno-canto, which had previously developed a similar website of Latin American bird sounds.
Other features of the website have included downloadable checklists for every country in
Africa and translations of key pages into French and Portuguese. An e-mail discussion group, AfricanBirding@yahoogroups.com, initiated and moderated by ABC, has some 1,600 members and has proven very popular. It is used to disseminate new information quickly and acts as a question- and-answer forum for topics such as species identification and travel.
By 2012 the website was becoming more difficult to maintain, lacked a consistent structure throughout and was looking dated. A professional website development company was commissioned to construct a new website and to migrate all of the existing content, some 1,500 pages. This brought together all of the features of the previous site in a logically constructed, simple-to-navigate and easy-to-use site. The redesigned site became operational in March 2013.
Particular credit should be given to Alan Wilkinson, who set up the first website and steered it through the early years, and to Phil Atkinson and John Caddick who have developed it into the multi-featured resource that exists today.
Conservation
From the outset, the Club’s founders were determined that ABC should not just be a club for people who wanted to observe and study birds in Africa, but that it should promote the conservation of birds and their habitats — that the Club should be seen to be, in the words of its logo, ‘Working for birds in Africa’. To this end, the Club has sought to increase awareness of threats to birds in Africa, to encourage people to visit some lesser known areas of the continent and to gather data about the state of birds in them, to support local birding and conservation organisations, and to generally promote knowledge of and concern for bird populations.
Specifically, the Club operates the Conservation Programme, financed via the Conservation Fund. Establishing such a fund was anticipated in the original statement of the Club’s objectives in 1994 and was formally launched at the 9th Pan African Ornithological Congress (PAOC) in Ghana in late 1996, with an initial allocation ol UK£2,000 from the Club’s reserves, followed by another UK£8,000 in 1997. Since then resources have come from profits from sales of Club merchandise, donations from Club members and sponsorship by companies and individuals of selected projects.
The African Bird Club at 20: Quantrill
Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -7
Figure 3. The first ABC Conservation Tour group on the rocky escarpment, home to the endemic Angola Cave Chat Xenocopsychus ansorgei , overlooking Kumbira Forest, Angola, October 2005 (John Caddick). Subsequent tours have visited Gabon (2006), Rwanda (201 1) and Zimbabwe and Mozambique (2012).
Le groupe du premier « ABC Conservation Tour » sur l’escarpement rocheux, habitat de Fendemique Cossyphe des grottes Xenocopsychus ansorgei , surplombant la foret de Kumbira, Angola, octobre 2005 (John Caddick).
Ces voyages ont pour but de visiter des endroits qui ne sont generalement pas inclus dans les itineraires ornithologiques ; les organisateurs acceptent de ceder une partie des benefices au Fonds pour la Conservation. Tes voyages suivants ont visite le Gabon (2006), le Rwanda (201 1) et le Zimbabwe et le Mozambique (2012).
ABC Conservation Tours (Fig. 3), initiated in 2005, have proved to be another useful source of funding. Under the scheme, tours are arranged to parts of Africa not covered by the standard African birding itineraries, with the organisers donating a share of the profits to the Conservation Fund. The fund has also benefited from income raised by local payment schemes. In countries where these have been established, subscription income in local currency has been used to finance in-country conservation projects.
The first expenditure from the fund was UK£800 to help pay for the attendance of Africans at the PAOC in Ghana. This was followed by a grant of UK£770 to the Ornithological Association of Zimbabwe, to help cover the costs of a training course for 1 5 A-level or undergraduate students interested in birds and their conservation. In 1998 seven projects were financed, covering a wide range of activities from environmental education to research on endangered species. Further projects followed as the programme gained momentum. By the end of
Figure 4. The ABC representative in Madagascar, Julien Ramanampamonjy (right), welcomes the Director- General of the Ministry of Environment, Water and Forests, and the Director for National Education and Scientific Research to the ABC stand at the Malagasy Birdfair in October 2006 (Julien Ramanampamonjy)
Le representant du ABC a Madagascar, Julien Ramanampamonjy (a droite), accueille le Directeur general du Ministere de Environnement, Eaux et Forets et le Directeur de FEducation nationale et de la Recherche scientifique au stand du Club au Malagasy Birdfair en octobre 2006 (Julien Ramanampamonjy)
2006, ten years after the its launch, >80 projects in 27 countries had been supported to a total value of more than UK£50,000. Since then the programme has continued to accelerate, thus by the end of 2013 >UK£1 50,000 had been distributed among 161 projects in 39 countries. Twenty-one awards totaling in excess of UK£3 1,000 were made in 2013 alone. Much of this has been made possible by the generous sponsorship of companies and private individuals — some 40% of expenditure in 2013 came from this source.
1999 saw the launch of the ABC / NFJBS Book Awards, a collaboration between the Club and the Natural FJistory Book Service whereby the latter provided up to five UK£100 vouchers annually for three years, to be redeemed against books from their catalogue, while ABC identified suitable recipients. Awards were made in the first year to Aride Island Nature Reserve (Seychelles), Makerere University (Uganda) and the Ethiopian Wildlife & Natural Flistory Society. Altogether, 13 awards were made during the three years of the scheme.
Also launched in 1999 was the ABC Expedition award under which an award of UK£1000 was made available annually for ornithological
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The African Bird Club at 20: Quantrill
expeditions to or within Africa. Unlike standard awards, which are available only to residents of African countries, expedition awards are open to anyone. The first award, in 2000, supported the costs of a multidisciplinary expedition to the island of Annobon in Equatorial Guinea, undertaken by a joint team of Spanish and local biologists. Among other work, the team censused seabird populations and researched the habitat requirements of five passerine species endemic to the Gulf of Guinea islands.
Subsequent awards have included contributions to the costs of an Oxford University expedition in collaboration with the Rare & Endangered Species Trust to determine population densities of three vulture species in the Waterberg Plateau Park in Namibia, a Glasgow University expedition to study two rare endemics in southern Ethiopia in collaboration with the Ethiopian Wildlife & Natural History Society, and an expedition organised jointly by Cambridge University and the Society for the Conservation of Nature in Liberia to search for the Liberian Greenbul Phyllastrephus leocolepsis , a species known only from the type specimen taken in 1984.
For the development of the impressive conservation programme, we are much indebted to the members of the Conservation Committee, chaired initially by Rob Lucking (1998-2002), then by Steph Tyler (2002-10) and currently by Chris Magin.
The African Bird Club at 20
That small band of optimists who in 1992 first dreamed of the ABC can look back with justified pride at the Club’s achievements. Today, ABC is thriving and has three particular strengths: the Bulletin, the conservation programme and the website. All of this has been achieved largely through the unpaid efforts of the many volunteers who have given freely of their time to make the Club the success it is today. More than 60 individuals have at one time or another served on ABC Council. Others have helped man ABC stands
at bird fairs, promoted sales of Club merchandise and generally acted as ambassadors for the Club. And, we should not forget the contribution made by our overseas representatives — 42 of them at the latest count, although others have also served in the past — working to maintain our membership, to keep us informed of developments in their countries and to offer support to visiting ABC members if requested. With support like that, there is no doubt that the Club will flourish for decades to come.
Finally a tribute to our Presidents: Martin Woodcock, who contributed so much to the Club in its early days and has maintained a close interest ever since, became the first President after stepping down as Chairman in 1998 and continued in the post for the full ten years permitted under the Club’s Constitution. As his successor we are privileged to have Tasso Leventis, a Founder Member of ABC, a director of the worldwide Leventis Group of companies and an active participant in international efforts to encourage sustainable development.
do BirdLife International, Wellbrook Court, Girton Road, Cambridge CB3 ONA, UK.
Corrigenda
Bull . ABC 20(2)
In the paper on ‘Bird observations around Juba, South Sudan’, Figs. 5-7 were transposed; Fig. 5 should be labelled 7, Fig. 6 should be 5 and Fig. 7 should be 6.
In the reference list of the same paper, ‘Mallalieu, M. in press’ should read:
Mallalieu, M. 2013. 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. Bull. ABC 20: 71-74.
The African Bird Club at 20: Quantrill
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^ African Bird Club Conservation Fund
New awards
The Conservation Committee reviewed 27 proposals ahead of the October 2013 Council meeting and recommended eight for funding. Council approved all eight projects and ABC funds totalling UK£9,339 were allocated to six; the other two were generously sponsored in their entirety by Tasso Leventis. A total of £12,280 was therefore released as follows.
Grey Crowned Crane in the Doho wetlands, eastern Uganda
Sarah Nachuha of the Islamic University in Uganda received UK£1,500 to investigate the current status of the Vulnerable Grey Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum at Doho wetlands, an Important Bird Area. The last study was conducted by Gumony and Mafabi in 1989. The project intends to: (1) assess the current population size and distribution of the species; (2) target schools and local communities to improve local stakeholders’ understanding of wetland ecosystem functions as well as the ecology of Grey Crowned Crane; and (3) develop a comprehensive site-specific conservation strategy for this crane to inform subsequent research and interventions.
Grey Crowned Crane / Grue royale Balearica regulorum (Adam Riley)
Bird survey in Dzombo Hill Forest, Kenya
Dzombo Hill Forest in Kwale District covers 293 ha and is among the larger fragments of the biodiversity rich coastal forests of East Africa. It is home to c. 33 forest-dependent species including the Endangered Sokoke Pipit Anthus sokokensis and three Near Threatened species. Ten coastal forest biome species of the 30 known to occur in Kenya and two restricted-range species occur in the forest, although it is suspected more may be present including the Endangered Spotted Ground Thrush Geokichla ( Zoothera ) guttata. Increasing human encroachment has probably had an adverse effect on bird populations at this site over the past few decades. Esther Wangui of the National Museums of Kenya received an Expedition Award of UK£ 1,996 to assess the avifaunal diversity, threats, and document the presence or absence of all bird species of conservation concern in the forest.
Discovering the lost jewel of Sierra Leone: searching for the Emerald Starling
Emerald Starling Lamprotornis iris is a beautiful but poorly known bird species endemic to the Upper Guinea region of West Africa, where it is known from just a few sites in Sierra Leone, Guinea, Liberia and Ivory Coast; it is categorised as Data Deficient on the IUCN Red List. Because the lack of knowledge of its ecology, movements and population size hampers an accurate assessment of its status, Sama Monde of the Conservation Society of Sierra Leone (CSSL) was awarded UK£1,500 — generously sponsored by Tasso Leventis — to review the species’ conservation status in Sierra Leone and Guinea. The project aims to: (1) increase understanding of the species’ distribution, habitat associations and conservation status; (2) better understand threats to the species; (3) improve capacity of West African conservation organisations to undertake surveys, monitoring and species protection work, via a transboundary project; and (4) increase awareness and monitoring of potential trade issues.
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Long-billed Tailorbird / Couturiere de Moreau Artisornis moreaui (Adam Scott Kennedy)
Tailor-made forest management for Long-billed Tailorbird in Tanzania
Long-billed Tailorbird Artisornis moreaui is considered Critically Endangered. Two disjunct subpopulations are known, one in Tanzania and the other in Mozambique, c. 1 ,000 km apart. Their taxonomic relatedness requires further attention. The East Usambara Mountains in Tanzania hold c.80% of the species’ known population. Nsajigwa Kyonjole, working with Norbert Cordeiro, received UK£1,500 to investigate the effects of reduced human disturbance at forest edges in the Amani Nature Reserve. The project aims to increase understanding of the habitat requirements of this species; improve the quality of forest edge habitat for it; engage local stakeholders in supporting this work; and build capacity for nature conservation in Tanzania.
Survey in Congo-Brazzaville
Tchimpounga Nature Reserve in the Lower Kouilou basin, Republic of Congo, one of BirdLife’s Important Bird Areas (IBAs) and home to several globally threatened and poorly known bird species, is managed by the Jane Goodall Institute but is closed to visitors and no ornithological research has been conducted there despite the area’s significance for birds. Dr Stuart Sharp of Lancaster University received
UK£ 1,441 — kindly sponsored by Tasso Leventis — to conduct baseline surveys over two weeks at Tchimpounga together with Malcolm Wilson of African Affinity, in order to quantify the reserve’s importance for avian biodiversity, assess the potential for long-term ornithological research, and provide basic training in bird identification and survey techniques to the local Congolese reserve staff.
Conservation education in the Taita Hills, Kenya
Lawrence Wagura of the National Museums of Kenya was awarded UK£ 1,347 to implement environmental education for school students via guided nature walks. He will target schools near the remnant forest fragments around Wundanyi, which have high endemicity and harbour small populations of the Critically Endangered Taita Apalis Apalis fuscigularis.
Impact of fire on birds in Serengeti
The use of fire as a management tool is widespread in Tanzania, both by conservationists and pastoralists. Elliot Kinsey of the Percy FitzPatrick Institute in South Africa was awarded UK£ 1,300 to further his research into the
Fisher’s Lovebird / Inseparable de Fischer Agapornis fischeri (Nik Borrow)
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impact of different fire regimes on birds in the savannahs of the Serengeti. His key research question is: how does avian species composition change with fire frequency and seasonality across a range of habitat conditions? Management of fire has conservation implications for many species, particularly for birds such as Grey¬ breasted Spurfowl Pternistis rufopictus , the Near Threatened Fischer’s Lovebird Agapornis fischeri, Usambiro Barbet Trachyphonus darnaudii usambiro , Rufous-tailed Weaver Histurgops ruficaudus and Grey-crested Helmetshrike Prionops poliolophus.
Conservation of Anyiko wetland in Kenya
Anyiko wetland lies c. 90 km north-east of Kisumu, in Nyanza province, and is potentially home to many different birds including Grey Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum, Papyrus Gonolek Laniarius mufumbiri , Carruthers’s Cisticola Cisticola carruthersi, Papyrus Yellow Warbler Calamonastides ( Chloropeta ) gracilirostris, White-winged Swamp Warbler Bradypterus carpalis and Papyrus Canary Crithagra koliensis. Zeph Migeni of the Tembea Youth Centre for Sustainable Development was awarded UK£ 1,496 to support a community- based conservation project. Planned activities
include a comprehensive survey of the birds present and the threats facing them, establishing regular bird walks in the area, educational outreach, including awareness-raising activities, and introducing sustainable methods of papyrus harvesting.
Reports received
Survey of Red-shouldered Vanga in Madagascar
Red-shouldered Vanga Calicalicus rufocarpalis is a Malagasy endemic classified as Vulnerable. First described in 1997, it inhabits a small area of the spiny forest in south-west Madagascar. In 2011 Sama Zefania was awarded UK£991 for a survey within the species’ known distribution. Field work was conducted on 21 August-22 December 2011. A total of 129 vangas were observed, but the species occurred at low densities (1-3 individuals / ha of transect) throughout the surveyed regions. New locations for the species were identified in remote parts of Tsimanampetsotsa National Park, increasing its known range. However, increased human disturbance to the forest near the Ankilibe road to St. Augustin appears to have caused a decline in the species’ density at the northern limit of its range.
Papyrus Gonolek / Gonolek des papyrus Laniarius mufumbiri (Nik Borrow)
Sokoke Pipit survey
Arabuko-Sokoke forest is the largest remnant of a once-contiguous mass of East African coastal forest. Part of the Eastern Arc Mountain and Coastal Forest biodiversity hotspot and regarded as the one of the most important habitats for bird conservation in Africa, it harbours nine globally threatened and four regionally threatened species. However, the forest is threatened by encroachment and degradation from the adjacent human community, which relies heavily on it for various resources. In 2011, Nickson Otieno received UK£1,165 for a survey of Sokoke Pipit Anthus sokokensis, an Endangered species, and to examine the effect of tree removal in three blocks of Brachystegia woodland (Narasha, Kararacha and Jilore) on the species' density and distribution. Over a period of two weeks in November 2011 and two
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weeks in February 2012, six transects totalling 6 km were used to survey pipit’s population and sample key vegetation structure, depth of leaf litter and the main forms of human activity. The species’ overall density was 0.72 ±0.15 birds / ha, with an estimated population of 5,544 in Brachystegia woodland. Logging had a significant negative effect on pipit density, especially the removal of small trees. The species was positively correlated with deeper leaf litter. Overall, the intensity of human activity had little influence on the species’ spatial occurrence despite selective logging constituting an important part of this activity. Nickson and his colleagues concluded that logging is not the only cause of tree removal and suggested that elephant activity might be a significant contributor to this form of habitat degradation for Sokoke Pipit, since Arabuko-Sokoke is believed to harbour 100-200 African Elephants Loxodonta africana. Long term, Sokoke Pipit will require continued control of illegal logging as well as regulation of elephant damage across the forest especially in Brachystegia woodland.
Lesser Flamingo disease in Kenya
In February 2012 Juliet Kinyua, a Kenyan Ph.D. student based at Texas Tech University in the USA, received UK£ 1,430 for her project ‘Investigating the dynamics of mosquito vector populations within lake ecosystems: the case of East African Rift Valley lakes Nakuru, Bogoria and Lesser Flamingo ( Phoeniconaias minor ) mass-die offs’. In the last two decades, East Africa has experienced episodic mass die-offs of Lesser Flamingos at the Rift Valley lakes of Nakuru, Elementaita and Bogoria in Kenya, and Manyara and Natron in Tanzania. The episodes include c.40,000 mortalities in 1993, 20,000 in 1995 and 50,000 in 2000. In 2004 >50,000 Lesser Flamingos died in Tanzania. Currently, the species is categorised as Near Threatened by IUCN and is undergoing a ‘moderately rapid reduction’ in numbers. Numerous factors have been linked to these die-offs including heavy metal poisoning, cyanobacterial toxins, pesticide residues, septicemia and avian tuberculosis. One of the neglected factors in the investigation of the mass die offs is vector borne
zoonotic diseases, particularly mosquito-borne arboviruses. The study involved the collection of mosquitoes around Nakuru and Bogoria in December 2012-January 2013. Using EVS C02 baited traps, 2,212 mosquitoes were collected from four genera Culex , Aedes , Mansonia and Anopheles. They were identified with the help of entomologists at the Kenya Medical Research Institute. The samples were to be sent to Texas Tech Vector laboratory for screening. Prior to travelling to Kenya, with the help of staff at the Institute of Environment and Human Health at Texas Tech University, all necessary permits to ship biological samples from Kenya to the USA were obtained and correct field work procedures identified and followed. However, despite this, the US Centre for Disease Control prevented the samples from leaving Kenya because the species listed are possible vectors for Biosafety Level 3 and 4 agents. The samples therefore remain unanalysed, but the information gathered has been sufficient to spark further interest into mosquito populations at the Rift Valley Lakes.
Situation getting tighter for a Kenyan apalis
Also in February 2012, Luca Borghesio was awarded UKL900 — sponsored by Tasso Leventis — to survey the Critically Endangered Taita Apalis Apalis fnscigularis in the Taita Hills, Kenya. Field work concentrated on Msidunyi, a 7.1 -ha forest fragment only recently discovered to support the species. Eight territorial pairs were estimated to occur there as of May 2013, or 2. 4-5. 2% of the global population (c.310- 654 individuals) or 3. 7-7. 6% of the estimated 210-430 mature individuals. This confirmed the site as a stronghold for Taita Apalis. Other endemic and globally threatened taxa such as the trees Dasylepis integra (Eastern Arc endemic; Vulnerable) and Prunus africana (Vulnerable) were also recorded, and the field work underlined the extreme urgency of preventing the destruction of the tiny area of remaining forest. Damage caused by logging, which is not illegal as the area is not government-owned, was considerable. If this continues, little forest soon will soon be left.
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Grey Crowned Cranes in Kampala
In May 2012 Dylis Ndibaisa of A Rocha Uganda was awarded UK£1,500 to undertake the first-ever survey of the Endangered Grey Crowned Crane Balearica regulorum in Kampala. Four wetlands within the city — Walufumbe, Nakivubo, Kansanga and Lubigi — were surveyed weekly between September 2012 and August 2013. At Kiteezi landfill, 33-86 birds were found, five juveniles and 50-81 adults. By day, the cranes fed at the landfill and in nearby Walufumbe; at night they roosted on electricity pylons sited in the wetland. Key threats to the Kiteezi flock included limb injuries at the landfill and wetland reclamation. The largest number of cranes recorded at Kansanga was six, including one juvenile. At Lubigi, three cranes including one young were found. They fed at several places and roosted on trees within the wetland. Two cranes were found at Nakivubo. These fed along the railway line and roosted on a pylon in the wetland. There was little evidence of successful breeding. On 29 February 2013, two birds copulated on an electricity pylon. No nests were discovered, but on 10 July 2013, three chicks estimated to be just three days old were observed at Walufumbe. Unfortunately, one week later the wetland was burned following a change in the land’s ownership. Three weeks later, one of the chicks was killed by dogs. The lack of breeding success underlines the need for greater efforts to make people aware of the importance of protecting Uganda’s national bird.
Djibouti raptor migration
The Bab el Mandeb Strait between Djibouti and Yemen forms part of the Rift Valley / Red Sea flyway, the second-most important route for migrant soaring birds in the world. More than 1.5 million birds of 37 species use the strait each year to move between Eurasia and Africa, as it represents the shortest water crossing south of Suez; the Djibouti side is an Important Bird Area (IBA), but has been little studied. In 2010 Houssein Rayaleh of Djibouti Nature received UK£1,000, sponsored by Julian Francis, for a study of the Djibouti Francolin Pternistis ochropectus in the Mabla Mountains (see Bull. ABC 17: 8-9). However, continued insecurity
Egyptian Vulture / Percnoptere d’Egypte Neophron percnopterus (Nik Borrow)
meant that it was impracticable to conduct field work, so in February 2013 Houssein requested the funds support a raptor migration survey, supplemented with an additional UK£347 from ABC (Bull. ABC 20: 134). The survey took place on 2-10 March 2013 at Ras Siyyan on the Djibouti side of the Bab el Mandeb. The observers were particularly interested in the movements of Egyptian Vultures Neophron percnopterus (Endangered). ABC is grateful to Julian Francis for allowing the funds to be transferred. A full report on the survey appears elsewhere in this issue (see pp. 64-71). In addition, with the assistance of Mike McGrady from International Avian Research, Krems, Austria, the Djibouti Nature team caught an adult Egyptian Vulture at the town of Tadjourah. In a collaborative venture with Hawk Mountain Sanctuary, the bird — named Assamo — was fitted with a 40-g GPS-PTT using a backpack harness. The transmitter is solar powered and has a theoretical life of several years. It is programmed to acquire eight GPS locations per day and send data via satellite every 2.5 days (see http:// egyptianvulturedjibouti.blogspot.co.at/). By the end of December 2013 Assamo was still transmitting and had mainly been in Djibouti and the Ethiopian town of Adigala, close to the Somali border, with one foray into Eritrea.
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Hooded Vulture survey in Accra
Vulture populations are declining throughout Africa. This led to the reclassification (in 2012) of Hooded Vulture Necrosyrtes monachus from a conservation status of Least Concern to Endangered. In 2013, Japeth Roberts of the Ghana Wildlife Society received UK£ 1,430 to survey the species in the Ghanaian capital Accra. A total of 237 vultures was counted at 14 roosts within the Accra Metropolitan Area of 300 km2. Bombax was the preferred roost tree, with all known roosts using this genus. Trees were 19-28 m high, with diameter-at-breast height of 110-163 cm. Roosts were all within green zones in the city. Based on interviews, there was a lack of knowledge of the species’ threatened status, with some hunting for body parts (for use in traditional medicine) ongoing and one collector was encountered who supplied Nigerian buyers. The felling of roost trees is the major threat, with trees being most frequently cut because faecal waste from the roosting vultures is a nuisance to local people.
Poisoning of Southern Ground Hornbill in South Africa
Lucy Kemp of the Mabula Ground Hornbill Project was awarded UK£ 1,300 to part-fund a workshop to raise awareness of the threat to
Southern Ground Hornbills Bucorvus leadbeateri from poisoning. According to the South African Bird Atlas Project 2, Southern Ground Hornbill has had the swiftest range contraction of any bird species in South Africa over the last 20-30 years. Now listed as Vulnerable globally, the species is considered Endangered nationally with just 400-450 groups in the country. The workshop was held on 16 October 2013, facilitated by Dr Gerhard Verdoorn, and the 13 participants agreed an action plan to combat the threat of poisoning from sources such as deliberate predator baiting, agricultural applications and disused cattle-dipping tanks. Council thanks the Puffback Fund for kindly sponsoring this award.
Dr Chris Magin, Conservation Officer, on behalf of the Conservation Committee
The ABC website (www.africanbirdclub.org/ conservation-fund-past-projects) 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 UK£ 165,000 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 hyper¬ links on the webpage.
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Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -15
Africa Round-up
Compiled by Ron Demey, Guy M. Kinuan and Peter Lack
General
International response to the fate of migrant birds in North Africa
Over the last few months, the indiscriminate and unsustainable killing of migrant birds in North Africa has become an issue of public concern in a growing number of countries, although the widespread hunting and trapping of migratory birds in Egypt and also Libya, especially using mist-nets along large stretches of the Mediterranean coast, has been known for some years. In response, the BirdLife Partnership, government agencies, the Convention on Migratory Species and the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds are addressing the situation. “Bird trapping in these countries is an ancient tradition. The main target species, Common Quail Coturnix coturnix , is a local delicacy”, said Marcus Kohler, BirdLife’s Senior Programme Manager for Flyways. “It’s a legitimate way for local people to supplement their diet. However, the indiscriminate nature and scale of the trapping has now reached worrying proportions and is having an impact upon other species.” It’s not only quail that are caught; many other species, such as European Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur and Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio, are trapped as ‘bycatch' in significant numbers. The increasing use and magnitude of mist net-trapping is a new and worrying development. Current estimates are that millions of birds are caught each autumn en route from Eurasia to their wintering grounds in sub-Saharan Africa. In response, an international meeting brought together key people and organisations, including participants from both the government and non¬ governmental sectors from Egypt and Libya. The meeting was convened
in late 2013 in Bonn, Germany, and included representatives from the BirdLife Partnership, NABU (BirdLife in Germany), Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (BirdLife in the UK) and Nature Conservation Egypt (the BirdLife Partner) and the Secretariats of the Convention on Migratory Species (CMS) and African-Eurasian Waterbird Agreement. The meeting agreed a detailed plan of action to accurately measure the scale and impact of the problem, and to examine the socio-economic and legal aspects of bird trapping. It was also agreed that there is a need to ensure that effective legislation and regulations are in place and being adequately enforced while building capacity of local government, NGOs and communities to effectively address indiscriminate trapping in the region. “The illegal and unsustainable killing of birds is a global issue that BirdLife Partners are committed to tackling. While there have been significant and encouraging improvements in several countries over the last 20 years, many others need to step up and deal with this increasing and unsustainable practice. It is heartening to see commitment from the Egyptian and Libyan governments. The BirdLife Partnership is fully committed to support them in their efforts”, said Dr Marco Lambertini, BirdLife International’s Chief Executive.
Source: BirdLife International press release, December 2013
Migration routes of Montagu’s Harriers revealed
A ten-year study of satellite-tagged Montagu’s Harriers Circus pygargus , initiated by a Dutch working group, has revealed the migration routes, stopover sites and wintering areas of this raptor. Through international cooperation, researchers succeeded in tagging 50 Montagu’s Harriers
from five north European countries, from the Netherlands and Denmark to Belarus. It appears the harriers possess three migration routes: a western route via Spain, a central route via Italy and a hitherto undescribed eastern route via Greece. Western populations winter mainly in the western Sahel, whilst eastern populations generally winter in the central and eastern Sahel, but there is some overlap and populations are not strictly separated at this season. Individual birds exhibited strong site fidelity. Counts of locusts and grasshoppers, the staple diet of harriers in the Sahel, revealed that the birds followed the highest densities of these insects. The study also found that, during their return journey, many harriers stop in north-west Africa, where breeding larks constitute welcome prey. The importance of north-west Africa for migrating Montagu's Harriers of the western populations was previously unknown.
Source: Montagu ’s Harrier Workmg Group press release, 1 5 January 2014
...and of Long-tailed Skuas
Olivier Gilg and co-workers tracked the movements of eight adult Long-tailed Skuas Stercorarius longicaudus fitted with small light- level geolocators on their breeding grounds in the Arctic, on Svalbard and north-east Greenland. Being the most strongly pelagic of the three smaller skua species, little was known of its migration and the individual wintering areas. On their southbound journey, most birds arrived off Mauritania and Senegal in early September, with several following the West African coast to the Gulf of Guinea. Five travelled further offshore between Cameroon and Angola, which is remarkable as the species is almost unknown in this region. The others
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Africa Round-up
remained in the central Atlantic or crossed to the Brazilian coast, but in December-March all eight used wintering grounds in the Southern Hemisphere at 0-40°S, between the Gulf of Guinea and waters south of Madagascar. On their return migration, which commenced in early March-April, most used a more westerly route. Over one year, the skuas flew between 43,900 and 34,200 km, and travelled as far as 10,500-13,700 km from their breeding grounds.
Source: PLoS ONE 8: e646l4. doi: 1 0. 1371 /journal, pone. 0064614
Black-tailed Godwit improves distance record
A satellite-tracked female Black¬ tailed Godwit Limosa limosa that successfully bred in Noord Holland, the Netherlands, reached Sierra Leone on 27 July 2013, 5,400 km from her breeding site — the longest distance ever recorded for a godwit breeding in the Netherlands. She left her stopover site in the Coto Donana, southern Spain, on 14 July and reached Morocco’s southern border next day. Like many Black¬ tailed Godwits, she also paused in north Senegal’s wetlands, where she remained for three days. On 27 July she alighted in Yawri Bay, on Sierra Leone’s west coast. Yawri Bay forms part of the Important Bird Area and Ramsar site ’Sierra Leone River Estuary’, a wetland of c.295,000 ha that is of international importance for Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus , Common Ringed Plover C. hiaticula , Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola , Sanderling Calidris alba, Curlew Sandpiper C.
Black-tailed Godwit / Barge a queue noire Limosa limosa (John Caddick)
ferruginea and Common Redshank Tringa totanus, and is also important for terns, including Lesser Crested Tern Thalasseus bengalensis.
Source: Vogelbescherming Nederland press release, 31 July 2013
Endless flight...?
It has often been suggested that Common Swifts Apus apus spend most of their entire lives airborne, but proof of such a claim has been lacking. Recently, however, a group of Swiss researchers has presented unequivocal evidence that an individual Alpine Swift Tachymarptis melba can remain aloft throughout the non-breeding period for in excess of 200 days. To date, such long-lasting locomotive activities had been reported only for birds at sea. Six swifts at a breeding site in Switzerland were fitted with tags logging light for information on their whereabouts; after their return to the same site in the following spring, three of the six were recaptured and the stored data were used to reconstruct their non-breeding movements and activity patterns over a period ol at least seven months. Because the nest sites are inside a building (in the dark), nest visits during daytime were easily detectable by the abrupt change in the light level. When the birds are exposed to natural light conditions, light levels change gradually during twilight. The light-based geolocation confirmed the supposed winter quarters as being in West Africa and, in spring, after crossing the Sahara, the birds spent some time in North Africa and southern Spain, but most exciting was the confirmation that the birds really had spent the entire period away from the breeding grounds without landing!
Source: Nature Communications 4, 2554, DOI: 10.1038/ncomms3554
The ongoing plight of the African Elephant...
The latest analysis of poaching data estimates that in 2012 c. 15,000 African Elephants Loxodonta africana were illegally killed at 42 sites across 27 African countries, which could translate to an estimated 22,000
elephants illegally killed continent¬ wide in 2012, a slight reduction on the estimated 25,000 elephants poached in 201 1 (see also Bull. ABC 20: 139-140). “With an estimated 22,000 African Elephants illegally killed in 2012, we continue to face a critical situation. Current elephant poaching in Africa remains far too high, and could soon lead to local extinctions if the present killing rates continue. The situation is particularly acute in Central Africa — where the estimated poaching rate is twice the continental average’’ said John E. Scanlon, CITES Secretary-General. The IUCN / SSC African Elephant Specialist Group estimates the entire population to be c.500,000 animals. High poaching levels mean that even the large populations in southern and East Africa are at risk unless the trend is reversed. The poaching levels are mirrored by the ivory trafficking figures compiled via the Elephant Trade Information System (ETIS) database, which suggest that illicit trade in ivory rose in 2011 to the highest levels in at least 16 years, persisted at unacceptably elevated levels through 2012 and that even higher levels of illicit trade may have been reached in 2013. Although incomplete, the raw data for large- scale ivory seizures in 2013 (involving at least 500 kg in a single transaction) already represent the greatest quantity of ivory confiscated over the last 25 years for this type of seizure.
In response, key states along the illegal ivory value chain have recently committed to urgent measures to halt the illegal trade and secure elephant populations across Africa. The agreement was reached at the African Elephant Summit convened by the government of Botswana and IUCN, which was the first-ever meeting focused on the dynamics of the entire ivory value chain. The measures were agreed by range states including Gabon, Kenya, Niger and Zambia, ivory transit states Vietnam, Philippines and Malaysia and ivory destination states, including China and Thailand. One of the 14 measures the delegates committed to involves classifying wildlife trafficking as a ‘serious crime’. This will unlock
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Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -17
international law enforcement cooperation provided under the UN Convention Against Transnational Organized Crime, including mutual legal assistance, asset seizure and forfeiture, extradition and other tools to hold criminals accountable for wildlife crime. Other measures agreed include engaging communities living with elephants in their conservation, strengthening national laws to secure maximum wildlife crime sentences, mobilising financial and technical resources to combat wildlife crime, and reducing demand for illegal ivory.
Sources: IUCN SSC Species e-bulletin November 2013; IUCN SSC Species e-bulletin December 2013
...Africa’s vultures
The recent death of up to 600 vultures that had fed on a poisoned elephant carcass near Namibia’s Bwabwata National Park in July 2013 has confirmed that the indiscriminate use of poison is one of the major causes of the ongoing decline in vulture populations across most of Africa. This is particularly evident in West Africa where an average decline of 42% in vulture numbers has been recorded over the past 30 years, with Ruppell’s Vulture Gyps rueppelli declining by up to 85%. It is now common practice for poachers killing elephants and other large mammals to lace carcasses with poison to kill vultures. Vultures congregating at these carcasses in large numbers are often used by law enforcement officials in many parts of Africa as an indication of poaching activity and as a way to pursue the
Riippell’s Vulture / Vautour de Ruppell Gyps rueppelli (Werner Suter)
offenders. “By poisoning carcasses, poachers hope to eradicate vultures from an area where they operate and thereby escape detection,” said Leo Niskanen Technical Coordinator, IUCN Conservation Areas and Species Diversity Programme. “The fact that incidents such as these can be linked to the rampant poaching of elephants in Africa is a serious concern. Similar incidents have been recorded in Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Zambia in recent years”.
Most of the birds killed in the recent incident were White-backed Vultures G. afrricanus , currently listed as Endangered by IUCN / BirdLife International. Two dead tagged birds recovered from the incident were found 1,000 km away, graphically illustrating the possible range of impact on vulture populations. The use of poison also negatively affects other large raptors such as Tawny Eagle Aquila rapax and Bateleur Terathopius ecaudatus , as well as lions, hyenas and jackals. Africa’s vulture populations cannot sustain such losses and the current decline may have serious ecological and human health consequences in the longer term. Many countries in Africa lack appropriate legislation and other measures to control or prevent the indiscriminate use of poisons. Penalties in cases where those responsible are apprehended are often minimal and do not act as a deterrent to the perpetrators. “We believe that crimes of this nature should have the same priority and be subject to similar penalties as those ascribed to incidents of poaching of the mega¬ fauna such as elephant and rhino,” said Andre Botha, Co-chair of the IUCN Species Survival Commission Vulture Specialist Group.
Sources: IUCN SSC Species e-bidletin August 2013; World Birdwatch
35(4), p. 2
...and Palearciic migrants wintering in Africa
Compelling evidence now exists that Afro-Palearctic migrant bird populations have declined in Europe in recent decades, often to a greater degree than resident or short-distance
migrants. There appear to have been two phases of decline. The first in the 1960s- 1970s, and in some cases into the early 1980s, largely affected species wintering predominantly in the arid Sahelian zone, and the second since the 1980s has mostly affected species wintering in the humid tropics and Guinea forest zone. Potential drivers are diverse and spread across and interact within the migratory cycle. Knowledge of declining species is generally better for the breeding than the non¬ breeding parts of their life cycles, but there are significant gaps in both for many species. On the breeding grounds, degradation of breeding habitats is affecting the demography of the largest number of species, particularly in agricultural systems and woodland. In the non-breeding areas, the interacting factors of anthropogenic habitat degradation and climatic conditions, particularly drought in the Sahel zone, appear to be the most important factors. Based on a synthesis of existing information, Juliet Vickery and her co-authors have suggested four priorities for further research: (1) use of new and emerging tracking technologies to identify migratory pathways and strategies, understand migratory connectivity and enable field research to be targeted more effectively; (2) undertake detailed field studies in sub-Saharan Africa and at staging sites, where understanding of distribution patterns, habitat use and foraging ecology is particularly poor; (3) make better use of the wealth of data from the European breeding grounds to explore spatial and temporal patterns in demographic parameters and relate these to migratory pathways and large-scale patterns of habitat change and climatic factors; and (4) make better use of remote sensing to improve our understanding of how and where land cover is changing across these extensive areas and how this impacts Afro-Palearctic migrants. Such research is necessary to inform and underpin a flyway approach to conservation, evaluating drivers across the migratory cycle and combining this with an understanding of land
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Wryneck / Torcol fourmilier Jynx torquilla (Georges Olioso)
management practices that integrate the needs of birds and people in these areas.
Source: Ibis 156, pp. 1-22
Wrynecks winter further north than thought
Seven Eurasian Wrynecks Jynx torquilla equipped with geolocators during the breeding season of 2011, six in Switzerland and one in eastern Germany, and recaptured in 2012, spent the winter in the Iberian Peninsula (five) or Morocco (two), although Central European populations of the species are usually assumed to winter in Sahelian Africa. Source: Ibis 155, pp. 886-890
North Africa
New species for Egypt and the Western Palearctic
Two male Yellow Bitterns Ixobrychus sinensis were trapped in 2012 in mangroves at Hamata, on the Egyptian coast of the Red Sea, the first record for the Western Palearctic. This discovery led to follow-up work and to the finding in the same area of at least three nests in 2013; Yellow Bittern breeds commonly throughout southern Asia but the nearest known breeding areas to Egypt are in coastal Oman and Seychelles.
Source: Limicola 26, pp. 253-278
Black-necked Grebe population in Morocco on the increase...
A five-year study of the Black¬ necked Grebe Podiceps nigricollis population on three Middle Atlas wetlands in Morocco — Aguelmam Afennourir, Dayet Aoua and
Yellow Bittern / Blongios de Chine Ixobrychus sinensis (Werner Suter)
Black-necked Grebe / Grebe a cou noir Podiceps ruficollis (Mark Anderson)
Dayet Ifrah — showed a spectacular increase from 372 pairs in 2009 to 1,100 in 2013 — an annual increase of 62%. Several other waterbird species breeding in Morocco are also increasing, including Little Tachybaptus ruficollis and Great Crested Grebes Podiceps major. A ten-year survey at the well-known Ramsar site of Sidi Boughaba, revealed an increase in breeding populations ol Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina , Common Pochard Aythya ferina , Ferruginous Duck A. nyroca and White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala. This positive trend appears to be mirrored over most of the country’s wetlands.
Source: Wetlands Ecol. Manag. 21, DOI 10. 1 007/s 1 1273-013-9321-7
...and Northern Bald ibis enjoys record year
The 2013 breeding season of Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita in Morocco appears to have been the second most successful on record, with 148 young fledging, thereby bring the total population in country to 443 birds. The 60 pairs in the Tamri colony fledged 71 young (in contrast to the complete failure there in 2012), with the other 77 being
produced by 53 pairs in Souss Massa National Park (an additional six pairs there failed to nest, as a result of continued disturbance by a Lanner Falcon Falco biarmicus overflying their breeding ledges).
Source: World Birdwatch 35(4), p. 5
Common Quail found breeding in Libya
In May 2008, breeding of Common Quail Coturnix coturnix was established in agricultural areas at Sarir, in the Libyan Desert, where 4-6 birds were observed. In March 2009, calling birds were recorded at three sites in cereal and fodder croplands in Fezzan, south-west Libya, and a quail egg was found. Common Quail had previously only been reported on passage and in winter, but the recent records prove that it breeds in the country and suggest that the species is probably a regular and not uncommon breeder. The population presumably increased with the establishment of radial oases in the 1970s. Breeding in desert oases in neighbouring Tunisia and Algeria has been known for some time.
Source: Alauda 81, pp. 229-231
Atlantic Ocean islands
Macaronesian Bulwer’s Petrels satellite tracked
To record their foraging and post¬ breeding movements, five Bulwer’s Petrels Bu'lweria bulwerii were fitted with satellite transmitters in August 2010 on Alegranza, an islet off Lanzarote, in the Canary Islands, where >150 pairs breed.
On average, foraging trips lasted 5.6 days, whilst the distance covered ranged from 1,168 to 1,364 km, and foraging areas were located over the continental slope and adjacent pelagic waters, up to 350 km from the colony. In the post-breeding period, the birds dispersed south- westwards to the tropical central Atlantic, >2,000 km from the colony. The speed of travel away from the colony, initially quick, slowed down shortly before the signal was lost, indicating that their wintering areas may have been reached. This is in
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Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -19
agreement with the hypothesis that the Macaronesian population of Bulwer’s Petrel might winter in the central Atlantic between 20°N and
10°S.
Source: Bird Study 60, pp. 270-274
A new breeding locality of Madeiran Storm-petrel
Santa Luzia is the smallest island in the Cape Verde archipelago and currently uninhabited. Unlike the remainder of the islands, which are generally rather important for their breeding seabirds, none is known to nest on Santa Luzia. However, a recent survey has uncovered reasonably strong evidence of the presence of Madeiran Storm- petrels Oceanodroma castro on the island’s north-west coast, which is of significance given that the Cape Verde population numbers just c. 1,000 pairs and has been treated at specific level by some recent authorities as Cape Verde Storm- petrel 0. jabejabe.
Source: Zool. Caboverdiana 4(1),
pp. 17-20
Mice problem on Gough being addressed
Since the discovery that introduced House Mice Mus musculus were killing large numbers of chicks of Tristan Albatrosses Diomedea (i exulans ) dabbenena and other birds on Gough Island ( Bull ABC 17: 155 & 20: 144) there have been calls to address the problem. The Royal Society for the Protection of Birds (BirdLife in the UK) worked with Tristan’s Conservation Department to bring two New Zealand eradication specialists to Gough in September 2013. One of the specialists had been involved with the apparently successful eradication of mice, rats and rabbits on Australia’s subantarctic Macquarie Island in 2011, using aerial application of poisoned bait. On Gough, non-toxic bait was dropped on coastal cliffs in a try-out. The results were encouraging and a plan has been devised for the eradication, which could take place as early as 2015. All that is needed are funds to finance 180 tons of
poisoned bait and the logistics to deliver it safely.
Source: African Birdlife 2( 1 ), pp. 10-12
West and Central Africa
High concentrations of Wilson’s Storm-petrels found off Mauritania
In July 2005, a research expedition to the Mauritanian upwelling zone c.50-150 km west of Cape Timiris, an important feeding area for resident and migratory seabirds, enabled the seabird assemblage in midsummer to be assessed for the first time and discovered an unprecedented concentration of Wilson’s Storm- petrels Oceanites oceanicus. Flocks of up to 600 birds were encountered at the boundary between warm surface waters and cooler upwellings. These flocks formed an aggregation of at least 5,000 birds. Previous pelagic trips to the region in winter and spring had revealed important concentrations of species such as Cory’s Shearwater Calonectris diomedea, Northern Gannet Morns bassanus , Pomarine Skua Stercorarius pomarinus , Long-tailed Skua S. longicaudus, Sabine’s Gull Xema sabini, Common Tern Sterna hirundo and Black Tern Chlidonias niger. In July 2005, the commonest seabird species in the shelf-edge ‘mixing zone’ was Wilson’s Storm-petrel, but several thousand Black Terns (roughly 80-90% of which were first-summer birds) and hundreds of Cape Verde Shearwaters Calonectris edwardsii , Royal Terns Thalasseus
Wilson’s Storm-petrel / Oceanite de Wilson Oceanites oceanicus (Adam Riley)
Greyish Eagle Owl / Grand-due du Sahel Bubo ( africanus ) cinerascens (Adam Riley)
maximus and Common Terns were also recorded, most of them, but not the storm-petrels, associating with fishing vessels or moving between vessels.
Source: Seabird 25, pp. 47-53
Occurrence of Greyish Eagle Owl in Mauritania confirmed...
Although Greyish Eagle Owl Bubo {, africanus ) cinerascens had been claimed for southern Mauritania, Isenmann et al. (2010. Birds of Mauritania), sensibly, did not retain it in their list of species confirmed for the country because the species had been reported by a single observer without supporting details. This has prompted three other observers to document records at three different sites in the south of the country, up to r.l8°40’N. The occurrence of Greyish Eagle Owl in the country is thus confirmed.
Source: Malimbus 35, pp. 147—148
...but African Palm Swift might not occur in northern Mauritania
A single report of African Palm Swift Cypsiurus parvus in northern Mauritania, in July 1999, has been regarded as the only viable record for the Western Palearctic, based primarily on the observer's familiarity with the species further south in the country (see Bull. ABC 17:
153). However, the lack of physical documentation in support of the record, and absence of other reports
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from localities in the northern half of the country, have led to the suggestion that the species should, after all, be omitted from the list of birds reliably recorded in the Western Palearctic region.
Source: Dutch Birding 35, pp. 249-250
Lesser Flamingos finally breed successfully in West Africa
Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor has just one breeding colony in West Africa, at Aftout es Saheli, in south¬ west Mauritania. Several attempts at breeding have been documented since the late 19th century, but none was successful until very recently. In 2011, most threats were identified and averted, and consequently nearly 5,000 Lesser and just over 10,000 Greater Flamingos Phoenicopterus roseus were recorded incubating and approximately 10,000 chicks fledged. Deterring and trapping natural predators (mostly jackals and warthogs) and preventing the activities of poachers were the main interventions required, but even so nearly 5,000 juveniles were lost.
Source: Bird Conserv. Intern. 23,
pp. 426-436
First Pacific Golden Plover for Senegal documented
The first record of Pacific Golden Plover Pluvialis fulva for Senegal has been documented. The bird, which was in near-complete breeding plumage, was photographed on the ‘lie aux oiseaux’ in Saloum Delta National Park on 10 May 2012.
There are just two previous definite records in West Africa, both ol singles in coastal Cote d’Ivoire, in December 1987 and October- November 1989, although ‘golden plovers’ claimed as probable P. fulva have been reported from Ghana,
Togo and Nigeria.
Source: Malimbus 35, pp. 139-140
Aberrant Aquatic Warbler trapped in Senegal
In February 2011, an aberrant pale-coloured Aquatic Warbler Acrocephalus paludicola was trapped in Djoudj National Park, north-west Senegal. The bird had been ringed in
France in August 2009 and was thus almost two years old. This is the only aberrantly coloured Aquatic Warbler among the 7,083 individuals ringed in France in 1982-2011. The bird is presumed to have originated from the breeding population in western Poland. The Djoudj and the Inner Niger Delta in Mali are now known to be two major wintering areas of this globally threatened species, which appears to exhibit high site fidelity.
Source: Malimbus 35, pp. 142-146
Birds of the Tristao and Alcatraz islands, Guinea, surveyed
An ornithological survey of the coastal archipelago of the Tristao and Alcatraz islands, Boke Prefecture, north-west Guinea, in February- May 2007, with additional records made in November-December 2012, produced a list of 236 species, amongst which one was new to Guinea: Madeiran Storm-petrel Oceanodroma castro , of which c. 20 individuals were observed at sea on 26 April. A White-backed Night Heron Gorsachius leuconotus was photographed in riparian forest — this is only the second site in the country where the species has been recorded, the first being Haut Niger National Park. Unexpected and highly remarkable was the observation of two Grey-throated Rails Canirallus oculeus , the westernmost record to date, fortunately proved by a good photograph. The archipelago is especially important for >20,000 wintering Palearctic waders, among them c. 1% of the global population of Common Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula. The rocky island of Alcatraz also harbours West Africa’s largest colony ol Brown Boobies Sula leucogaster (2,200 pairs) and a nearby sandy islet supports 3,700 pairs of Royal Terns Thalasseus maximus.
Source: Malimbus 35, pp. 93-130
West Africa’s lions face extinction
The Lion Panthera leo population in West Africa has undergone a catastrophic collapse in recent years and only c.400 animals survive, representing 250 mature individuals.
Lioness / Lionne Panthera leo (Adam Riley)
This is the alarming conclusion of a recently published study conducted by Philipp Henschel and co-workers. Surveys were conducted in 13 large protected areas (of >500 km2) and evidence of lion presence/absence was compiled in a further eight. In 2005 lions were still present in 12 protected areas. Now their presence was confirmed in just four, of which three harbour <50 individuals. In these three areas, which are isolated from each other — Niokolo-Koba National Park (Senegal), Kainji Lake National Park and Yankari Game Reserve (Nigeria) — lions are expected to become extinct soon.
The only large population is in the W-Arly-Pendjari complex, at the borders of Benin, Burkina Faso and Niger, with an estimated 356 individuals. West African lions once ranged continuously from Senegal to Nigeria, but their present range is estimated at just 1.1% (or 49,000 km2) of what it once was. In the rest of Africa the lion’s range has also severely contracted, but not as dramatically as in West Africa.
All but a few of the areas surveyed were in fact paper parks, with no management budgets or patrol staff, and had already lost all of their other large mammals. Black Rhino Diceros bicornis was officially declared extinct in West Africa in 2013; Cheetah Acinonyx jubatus. Wild Dog Lycaon pictus and Giant Eland Tragelaphus derbianus are imminently threatened with the same fate. Molecular and morphological data show that West and Central African lions are genetically distinct from other extant African populations and are closely related to the extinct
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Bull ABC Mol 21 No 1 (2014) -21
‘Barbary Lions’ that once occurred in North Africa, as well as to the last Asiatic lions surviving in India. The authors of the study therefore recommend to recognise the West African lions as a separate subspecies to highlight their potentially unique conservation value. Lion declines are mainly due to large-scale habitat destruction, prey base depletion through unsustainable poaching, and the retaliatory killing of lions due to perceived or real human-lion conflict. Today, fewer than 35,000 lions remain in Africa, as opposed to 100,000 in the 1960s.
Source: PLoS ONE 9: e83500. doi:10. 1371 /journal, pone. 0083500
Birds from the Lagoa Carumbo area, north-east Angola
During five days of field work, in April-May 2011, Michael Mills recorded 175 bird species in the Lagoa Carumbo area, an ornithologically poorly known Important Bird Area (IBA) in Lunda Norte province, north-east Angola. These included many new provincial records, range extensions and rare species, as well as two species new to the country: South African Cliff Swallow Petrochelidon spilodera and Red-tailed Leaflove Phyllastrephus scandens (documented in Bull. ABC 20: 200-203). The total number of species confirmed for the area, which lies at the interlace of the Guinea- Congo Forests and Zambezian biomes, now stands at 196, among them 1 5 species restricted to the latter biome. Lagoa Carumbo thus harbours the highest number of Zambezian biome species known for any IBA in Angola.
Source: Malimbus 35, pp. 77-92
East Africa
‘Killer’ power line to go
Since its construction in the 1950s a 31 km-long power line near Port Sudan has been estimated to have killed perhaps thousands of Egyptian Vultures Neophron percnopterus alone. In March 2013 a workshop was convened by the Sudanese Wildlife Society to discuss ways of mitigating
its effects, given that Egyptian Vulture is now considered globally threatened. Surprisingly, the director of the responsible electricity company promised to build a parallel and replacement power line replete with special conductors, and to remove the original line as soon as the new one is completed.
Source: World Birdwatch 35(4), p. 11
Northern Bald Ibis wintering ecology in Ethiopia
The relict eastern population of Northern Bald Ibis Geronticus eremita discovered in Syria in 2002 has been declining ever since. It is known to winter on the central Ethiopian plateau and a new study by Gianlucca Serra and others has assessed the conditions the birds meet when they are there. The area is agro- pastural land inhabited by a settled community. The birds’ core area and extended range areas were c.20 and 60 times, respectively, smaller than the equivalent in the breeding season. They preferred to forage in pasture and recently cut hayfields, and avoided tall grass, uncut fields and cultivation. Human disturbance was minimal. The main threat is probably the potential conversion of pasture to croplands and the use of fertilisers and pesticides.
Source: Bird Conserv. Intern. 23,
pp. 399-413
Oldest wild Lesser Flamingo found in Kenya
A Lesser Flamingo Phoeniconaias minor ringed as a chick at Lake Magadi, Kenya, in 1962 was found dead at Lake Bogoria in February 2013. The bird lived for 50 years and almost four months, making it the oldest-known wild flamingo.
In 1961-62 the soda mudflats of Natron were underwater making the site unsuitable for nesting, thus that year breeding temporarily shifted to Lake Magadi. Of the 8,000 flamingos ringed, over ten recoveries have been made since 1962, notably one in West Africa, 6,197 km from Lake Magadi.
Source: www. birdlife.org/africa/news/
pink-ring-safari-ends-lake-bogoria
Farmland birds receive more attention
Farmland birds have been the subject of a large amount of research in Europe but studies in Africa have concentrated mainly on natural habitats. However, two new studies on what is important in the farmland environment in eastern Africa have just been published. The first by P. Kariuki Ndang’ang’a et al. examined the effects of vegetation composition and structure on birds in the highland agricultural landscape of Nyandarua in Kenya. Bird diversity increased with increasing density of woody plant species and vegetation structural variability. Increasing structural heterogeneity (particularly closed-canopy cover and increasing fallow and cultivation of grassland / pasture cover) were the most important influences on overall diversity and, as expected, most of the species that were studied exhibited some benefit from structurally rich landscapes. The second study by David Douglas and colleagues looked specifically at the importance of native trees for forest birds in central Ugandan farmland. Neither total bird species nor richness of non-forest dependent species was related to any measure of tree cover, but richness of forest- dependent species was positively related to numbers of native trees (especially large ones), and native tree variables typically had a greater effect than those for exotic tree species. The latter contributed little even though they comprised f.40% of trees available.
Sources: Ostrich 84, pp. 171-179 ;
Anim. Conserv. online
Southern Africa
New study reveals lack of genetic diversity in Black Harrier
Black Harrier Circus maurus is one of the three rarest endemic bird species in South Africa and certainly the rarest endemic raptor. The global population is currently estimated at fewer than 1 ,000 mature individuals, mostly in Northern and Western Cape provinces. Recent satellite-
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Black Harrier / Busard maure Circus maurus (Mark Anderson)
tagging work has revealed that birds in Western Cape move east post-breeding and may spend the summer in Lesotho and Free State (www.blackharrierspace.blogspot. com/), suggesting that the Eastern Cape and Free State population is not independent of that in the Western Cape, and that the world population may be smaller than assumed. A recent genetic study has confirmed that there appears to be no genetic variation in the species across most of its breeding range; two hypotheses exist to explain this finding, one being that the lack of diversity is not due to selection but rather to drift and fixation of alleles at small population sizes, as might be expected to occur during a bottleneck. If confirmed, this might provide even more worrying news for this globally threatened (Vulnerable) bird.
Source: Ibis 156, pp. 227-230
Avifauna of Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve, Malawi
The meticulous work of Fran<;oise Dowsett-Lemaire and Bob Dowsett has left Malawi among the best- known countries in Africa in terms of bird distributions, with a fine atlas-like avifauna ( The Birds of Malawi , 2006). Nevertheless, gaps in coverage remain to be filled. One such was Vwaza Marsh Wildlife Reserve, which was surveyed by Josh Engel and colleagues over 12 days in October 2009, prior to the wet season, and two days in November 2009, after the first rains, in the process of which they documented six new species for the reserve — Red¬ chested Flufftail Sarothrura rufa ,
Augur Buzzard / Buse augure Buteo augur (Ken Burton)
African Pitta Pitta angolensis , African Broadbill Smithornis capensis , African Reed Warbler Acrocephalus baeticatus , Marsh Tchagra Bocagia minuta ( = Pellagra minutus ) and African Yellow Warbler Iduna (= Chloropeta :) natalensis — and recorded 56 new quadrat records, filling in distributional gaps in the country’s bird atlas.
Source: J. East Afr. Nat. Hist. 101,
pp. 223-240
Augur Buzzard recorded in South Africa
On 5 June 2013, an adult Augur Buzzard Buteo augur was photographed in Richtersveld sandplain, r.30 km south of the Namibian border, Northern Cape, South Africa. This appears to be the first record for South Africa of this species, which has an isolated population in south-west Angola and north-west and central Namibia. Augur Buzzard is normally resident, with occasional nomadism linked to prey availability.
Source: African Birdlife 1(6), p. 12
Taxonomic proposals
More on Macaronesian petrel relationships
The north-east Atlantic archipelagos of the Azores, Madeira, the Canaries and Cape Verdes have been host to complex patterns of colonisation and differentiation in many groups of birds including gadfly petrels (Pterodroma) . Despite considerable interest, the taxonomic status of the three gadfly petrel taxa breeding in Macaronesia (all of which were
long treated as subspecies of the Southern Ocean Soft-plumaged Petrel P. mollis) remains a Tot potato’, with various authors advocating the recognition of three, two or just one species and prevailing wisdom over the past two decades generally favouring two species-level taxa, Zino’s Petrel P. madeira and Fea’s Petrel P. feae (the latter also comprising P. f deserta , which some more recent authors have suggested also merits specific status). These birds have already been the subject of genetic studies with only one mtDNA gene and relatively modest sample sizes. The most recent investigation, by a multi-author team, sampled a total of five genes (two mitochondrial genes and three nuclear introns) from the petrel populations breeding on the Madeira and Cape Verde archipelagos. Although the team was able to confirm complete lineage sorting in mtDNA, analyses of nuclear material failed to reveal any population structuring and Isolation with Migration analysis revealed the absence of gene flow during the differentiation process of these populations, which apparently diverged in the late Pleistocene, within the last 150,000 years, i.e. ten times more recently than previous estimates based solely on a single mtDNA gene. The other contrast with previous results was the suggestion that the Madeira petrel population is ancestral rather than that on the Cape Verdes.
Source: Mol. Ecol. 22, pp. 495-507
Cyrenaic Partridge, a new North African endemic species?
A short paper by Silvio Spano and colleagues has suggested that the barbata subspecies of Barbary Partridge Alectoris barbara , which is endemic to north-east Libya and north-west Egypt, is sufficiently different in morphology and mtDNA to be treated either as an Evolutionary Significant Unit, or a separate species. The level ol genetic differentiation uncovered by the authors, 0.6%, is reasonably significant at this locus, as other wider studies of Alectoris partridges
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have found generally rather small differences in mtDNA in this genus. Source: Avocetta 37, pp. 145-148
Relationships among hornbills established
Although molecular studies of the hornbills (Bucerotidae) have been conducted in the past, these were based solely on mtDNA and a limited sampling of species diversity. Juan-Carlos Gonzalez and co-workers have now reconstructed relationships among all extant hornbill species and established a comprehensive molecular phylogeny for this distinct family. The resulting phylogenetic trees closely match vocal variation across the family but conflict with current taxonomic treatments. Concerning African species, they reveal that the genus Tockus as currently defined is divided into two major groups, each representing different vocal types (‘whistlers’ and ‘cluckers’). This supports the splitting of Tockus into two genera, with the name Lophoceros being revived for the ‘whistlers’.
The latter include seven species: Bradfield’s Lophoceros bradfieldi, Crowned L. alboterminatus , African Pied L. fasciatus , Hemprich’s L. hemprichii, African Grey L. nasutus. Red-billed Dwarf L. camurus and Pale-billed Hornbills L. pallidirostris. Additionally, nuclear and mtDNA trees provide some support for the splitting of Red-billed Hornbill T. erythrorhynchus into several species, by confirming substantial genetic divergence among lineages in this complex.The most important and quite unexpected find, however, was that Black Dwarf Hornbill ‘ Tockus ’ hartlaubi does not belong to Tockus at all but is sister to White-crested Hornbill Tropicranus albocristatus. This placement actually makes sense on the basis of phenotype, as both species share several diagnostic characters, such as crest structure and a graduated tail. If T. hartlaubi is merged with Tropicranus , the latter name becomes a junior synonym of Horizocerus , which thus has priority over the characteristic and well- established Tropicranus. The species pair proposed as congeners should
Madagascar Lark / Alouette malgache Mirafra hova (Keith Valentine)
therefore be named Horizocerus hartlaubi and H. albocristatus.
Sources: Mol. Phyl. & Evol. 67, pp. 468-483-, 68, p. 715
A new classification of larks
Per Alstrom and others have undertaken a major analysis of relationships within the larks (Alaudidae). The family is cosmopolitan but reaches its greatest diversity in Africa. Based on the results of rvvo mtDNA and three nuclear loci, they propose a revised generic classification, some of which supports existing relationships and others not. It was also clear that larks are extraordinarily adaptable morphologically with numerous examples of parallel evolution and also some cases where an unrelated species has come to look like those of another genus, for example Madagascar Lark Mirafra hova seems actually to be closer to Eremopterix , although morphologically very unlike the latter genus. Some other relationships thought to be close from a morphological standpoint turn out not to be and vice versa. Indeed, as a whole larks show more disagreements between morphological taxonomy and phylogenetic relationships (from DNA) than almost any other family.
Source: Mol. Phyl. & Evol. 69, pp. 1043-1056
Exit Long-tailed and Kimberley Pipits
In 1996, the late Richard Liversidge described a new species of pipit from Kimberley, Northern Cape, South Africa, and named it Long-tailed Pipit Anthus longicaudatus. Amazingly
he, with evolutionary biologist and geneticist Gary Voelcker, described a second new pipit from the same Kimberley sports fields in 2002, which was named Kimberley Pipit A. pseudosimilis. Since then, Kimberley has seen birders from all over the world trying to get to grips with the pipits present in winter. This proved to be much harder than expected and over the next decade scepticism gradually grew. However, no reassessment of the new species was conducted. In a recent article Faansie Peacock does just that. Having examined a long series of skins, including a syntype and two paratypes of Long-tailed Pipit and the holotype of Kimberley Pipit, Peacock and his collegue Greg Davies came to a sobering conclusion. The Long¬ tailed Pipit material proved identical to Buffy Pipit A. vaalensis, except one female paratype, which was a Long-billed Pipit A. similis, whilst the Kimberley Pipit holotype was in fact an African (= Grassland) Pipit A. cinnamomeus. Five of the other specimens identified as Kimberley Pipits were Long-billed Pipits, whilst one was a Mountain Pipit A. hoeschi. Liversidge maintained that Long-tailed Pipit exhibited distinctive behaviour, vocalisations and habitat preferences, but this is also convincingly refuted by Peacock. Based on the limited evidence available, it was hypothesised that Long-tailed Pipit was a non-breeding winter visitor from breeding grounds in the central African tropics, but Peacock questions this highly unusual strategy and asks why a subtropical breeding bird would winter in the dry, dusty and bitterly cold plains around Kimberley. Results of genetic analyses presented by Voelcker unsurprisingly revealed Long-tailed to be sister to Buffy Pipit, whilst Malindi Pipit A. malindae, an East African endemic, was unexpectedly identified as the closest relative of Kimberley Pipit. Subsequent sampling added considerably to the confusion, as further Kimberley Pipit specimens were found to genetically overlap with Plain-backed and African Pipits. This, together with other odd patterns in Voelcker's
24- Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014)
Afi-ica Round-up
phylogenetic tree, actually suggested that the specimens were originally misidentified. Based on their thorough examination, Peacock and Davies reject the validity of both Long-tailed and Kimberley Pipits.
Source: African Birdlife 2(1), pp. 61-66
Mourning Wheatear: an ongoing taxonomic headache
The Mourning Wheatear Oenanthe lugens complex has been investigated from a genetic standpoint previously, but studies have not covered all of the various recognised forms. Normally the complex is split into a north-east African group ( lugubris ), lugentoides in southern Arabia and lugens in North Africa and the Middle East (in each case there may be more than one subspecies). Now, Manuel Schweizer and others have analysed the entire complex and found that the group is certainly polyphyletic and should be split into at least three species corresponding broadly to these three groups. O. lugens {sensu stricto) is certainly the most disparate being more closely related to the Red-tailed O. chrysopygia / Kurdish Wheatear O. xanthoprymna complex, although the other two groups are each other's closest relatives. Overall, the results of this and previous genetic studies indicate that morphology appears to be a particularly poor predictor of relationships within Oenanthe.
Source: Mol. Phyl. & Evol. 69, pp. 450-461
Two sympatric lineages of Common Raven on the eastern Canaries
Recently, based on genetic analysis, a distinct lineage of Common Raven Corvus corax on the Canary Islands has been described and assigned to C. c. tingitanus. However, all sampled birds originated from just one island (Fuerteventura). Additional samples from other islands in the archipelago, as well as from other populations in North Africa and Europe, have now been used to confirm the occurrence of a distinct lineage on the two easternmost islands of the Canaries, whereas most specimens
on other islands are closely related to birds from Africa, Europe and the Mediterranean islands. However, on at least one of these islands, the researchers found that the Canarian and Holarctic lineages coexist.
The distribution patterns of the genetically distinct Canarian lineage match the subspecies C. c. jordansi, which was previously described from morphological characters such as small size and brownish feathering. The authors of the study recommend that the distinct mtDNA lineage (C. c. tingitanus) and the morphological subspecies C. c. jordansi from the eastern Canary Islands should be considered as referring to the same population and that the latter name has priority.
Source: J. Ornithol. 155, pp. 243-251
Genetic variation in Trumpeter Finch populations
A recent study has used nuclear and mitochondrial markers to investigate the phylogeography and to estimate chronology of colonisation events in Trumpeter Finches Bucanetes githagineus. Microsatellite and mitochondrial data showed the clearest differentiation as being between Maghreb and Canary Islands and between Maghreb and Western Sahara populations, and mtDNA alone suggests differentiation between different Maghreb populations, among Maghreb and Near East populations, between the Iberian Peninsula and Canary Islands, and between the Western Sahara and Maghreb. The species appears to have colonised North Africa during the humid Marine Isotope Stage 5 period of the Sahara region 125,000 years ago, and that its current range reflects this finch’s responses to Pleistocene climatic changes, which would have led to alternate expansions and contractions of its range.
Source: Mol. Ecol. doi: 10.1111/
mec. 12588
Internet resources HBW Alive
HBW Alive represents an online comprehensive reference resource
for all the birds of the world and comprises the contents of the acclaimed 17-volume Handbook of the Birds of the World — the first of which appeared in 1992 and the last in June 2013. Now, the cumulative total of 13,367 pages (the product of 277 authors), 1,030 plates (by 33 artists), 20,617 figures, 10,200 maps and c. 100,000 bibliographical references are available online via subscription, and all of the contents, including texts, maps and artwork, are constantly updated via a combination of professional editors and moderated user participation. Links to videos, photographs and sound-recordings are used to complement the texts and HBW Alive also provides many other features, including the capacity to make various lists, with geographical filtering and personal notes. There are two membership categories (basic, which costs €29.95 / year, and supporting, at €44.95 / year, which provides additional features), both of which also require a one-off registration fee of €20.
Sources: http://www.hbw. com/; https:// www. youtube. com/user/HB W Alive
Africa’s avian cheats get their own website
Cuckoos, cuckoo finches, honeyguides, indigobirds and other brood parasitic birds exploit the care ol other species to raise their young. In doing so they make ideal studv systems for field research on coevolution — the process by which two or more species affect each other’s evolution. Claire Spottiswoode and her colleagues have been studying brood parasites in the field at Choma, Zambia, since 2006. The researchers form part of the Behavioural Ecology Group in the University of Cambridge’s Department of Zoology, and now have their own website dedicated to their research, where you can follow their work and download some of their publications.
Source: http://www2.zoo.cam.ac. uk/ africancuckoos/home. html
Africa Round-up
Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -25
Raptors in northern Cameroon, December 2005-December 2010
Ralph Buija'b & Barbara M. Croef
Rapaces au Cameroun du nord, decembre 2005-decembre 2010. Les rapaces des principaux habitats du Cameroun du nord ont ete recenses entre decembre 2005 et decembre 2010. Une analyse est presentee de 60 especes de rapaces. Parmi celles-ci, six especes n’avaient pas ete documentees au nord du Cameroun avant 2005. Des informations sont presentees sur plusieurs especes afrotropicales regionalement rares ou peu etudiees telles que le Messager sagittaire Sagittarius serpentarius , le Baza coucou Aviceda cuculoides , le Circaete de Beaudouin Circaetus beaudouini , l’Aigle d’Ayres Hieraaetus ayresii , l’Epervier de Hartlaub Accipiter erythropus , l’Epervier de FOvampo A. ovampensis et le Faucon de Cuvier Falco cuvierii. Des donnees sont egalement fournies sur le comportement, le cycle de reproduction, la mue, le succes de reproduction, F alimentation, les modalites et le succes de chasse, la migration saisonniere, et la dispersion de nombreuses especes, ainsi que des observations de 12 migrateurs palearctiques peu observes. L’Aigle des steppes Aquila nipalensis , l’Aigle imperial A. heliaca , la Buse feroce Buteo rufinus et le Faucon de Barbarie Falco ( peregrinus ) pelegrinoides semblent etre plus courants dans la zone d’inondation de la region de FExtreme-Nord que precedemment rapporte. En conclusion les menaces qui pesent sur cette riche communaute de rapaces sont examinees.
Summary. We conducted raptor surveys in all major habitats of northern Cameroon between December 2005 and December 2010. Details for 60 raptor species are presented. Of these, six had not been documented in northern Cameroon prior to our survey. Information is presented on regionally rare or little-studied Afrotropical raptors such as Secretary-bird Sagittarius serpentarius , African Cuckoo Hawk Aviceda cuculoides , Beaudouin’s Snake Eagle Circaetus beaudouini, Ayres’s Eagle Hieraaetus ayresii. Red¬ thighed Sparrowhawk Accipiter erythropus, Ovambo Sparrowhawk A. ovampensis and African Hobby Falco cuvierii. Details are given on the behaviour, breeding cycle, moult, reproductive success, diet, foraging, prey capture success, seasonal migration and dispersal of many species. Records further include details for 12 infrequently observed Palearctic migrants; Steppe Eagle Aquila nipalensis, Eastern Imperial Eagle A. heliaca, Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus and Barbary Falcon Falco {peregrinus) pelegrinoides appear to be commoner visitors to the inundation zone in the Far North Region than previously reported. We conclude with a discussion of threats to this rich raptor community.
isolated records of new or rare species based on short visits (e.g. Girard & Thai 1996, Dowsett & Dowsett-Lemaire 2000, Languy et al. 2005), including raptors (Mills et al. 2003). The lack of knowledge is especially pronounced for the vast Benoue Valley, one of the few large conservation complexes in western Africa and potentially of great importance to disturbance-sensitive large raptors. To fill some of this knowledge gap, we present information on the raptor community of northern Cameroon, collected between December 2005 and December 2010.
Study area and Methods
Surveys were mostly conducted in the Far North and North Regions of Cameroon, but extended into the Adamawa Region (Fig. 1). Rains occur between April into October, peaking in June—
Information on raptor abundance, movements and breeding in many western African countries is scarce (but see Thiollay 1 977, 1989 and references therein), although repeated country-wide surveys between the late 1960s and 2003-04 show that many raptors have significantly declined over vast areas (Thiollay 2006). Northern Cameroon has been relatively well visited by ornithologists compared to some other countries in the region (see Louette 1981, Dowsett et al. 2013). The avifauna of the Waza-Logone floodplains in particular has been relatively well documented (Fry 1970, Mundy 1972, Robertson 1992, Sorensen et al. 1996, Scholte et al. 1999), including surveys that focused specifically on raptors (Thiollay 1978a, 2001, Scholte 1998). However, few recent publications cover the savanna region south ol the Waza-Logone area, most providing merely
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Raptors in northern Cameroon : Buij & Croes
u zu
Figure 1. Study area in northern Cameroon, and map with location of road transects. Dotted lines indicate the boundaries of the inundation zone (1), the Sudan zone (2) and the Benoue Valley (3).
Zone d’etude au Cameroun du nord et carte indiquant les routes des transects. Les lignes en pointilles indiquent les limites de la zone d’inondation (1), la zone soudanienne (2) et la vallee de la Benoue (3).
12
12
15
18
September in the north and in May-October in the south. Mean annual temperatures vary from 24°C in the south to 28°C in the north, and peak in March-May, when they reach 47°C in the inundation zone.
Road surveys covered three biogeographical zones, which are representative of three main savanna types between the 450-1,600 isohyets in western Africa (White 1983) differing in productivity and vegetation composition. The
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Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -27
inundation zone in the Far North Region encompasses the 8,000-km2 Waza-Logone floodplains fringed by dry woodlands on higher ground. It is dominated by a Sahelian climate, and located at the transition of the Sahel and Sudan climatic zones (rainfall: 450-700 mm / year), in the southern Lake Chad Basin. Habitat is dominated by the partially flooded grasslands of the Waza-Logone area, with communities of Acacia and broad-leaved trees (White 1983), notably Sclerocarya birrea woodland with Anogeissus leiocarpus , Balanites aegyptiaca and Acacia seyal. Agriculture is mainly dry-season sorghum, millet and rice. The 1,700-km2 Waza National Park (NP) and 45-km2 Kalamaloue NP protect part of the floodplains, but poaching is a serious threat to wildlife (Scholte 2003, Tumenta et al. 2010).
The Sudan savanna zone to the south (rainfall: 700-1,100 mm / year) is characterised by hilly terrain that rises to the Mandara Mountains in the west (500-1,000 m in the highest parts), with undifferentiated Sudanian woodlands (‘North Sudanian zone’: White 1983). Heavily exploited forest reserves and Mozogo-Gokoro NP support trees such as Isoberlinia doka , Balanites aegyptiaca , Piliostigma reticulatum and Combretum erythrophyllnm. Local people grow sorghum, millet, maize, beans, cotton and groundnut.
The Benoue Valley is situated in the area of highest rainfall (1,100—1,600 mm / year). It lies on undulating terrain with some scattered rocky outcrops, south to Ngaoundere on the Adamawa Plateau (‘South Sudanian zone’: White 1983), and has often been referred to as the Northern Guinea savanna belt (e.g. Thiollay 1989). The Benoue Valley encompasses a large river system and three national parks (Benoue, Bouba Ndjida and Faro) covering c.7,600 km2 with Isoberlinia dbAz-dominated wooded savanna and Anogeissus leiocarpus- dominated riparian forests along watercourses. Twenty-eight sport-hunting zones cover an additional 16,000 km2 and are managed as protected areas, with hunting quotas for larger mammals and gamebirds (Mayaka 2002). Cultivation consists of traditional crops such as millet, but increasingly cotton.
Most survey time was in the form of road transects (cf. Buij et al. 2013b for details), as well as point counts (e.g. for harriers; see Buij et al. 2012 for details), from December 2005 to December 2010, and while studying land-
use effects on raptors as part of a Ph.D. study conducted in northern Cameroon from March 2007 (cf. Buij 2013 for details). Surveys covered all major habitat types, including cultivated land, national parks (Waza, Kalamaloue, Mozogo- Gokoro, Benoue, Faro and Bouba Ndjida), hunting zones (Benoue Valley) and forest reserves (FR; Kalfou and Mayo Louti). To determine the relative abundance of raptors in the dry and wet seasons, eight road transects each of 35-115 km were surveyed in each zone, totalling 425 km in the inundation zone, 897 km in the Sudan zone and 603 km in the Benoue Valley ( cf. Buij et al. 2013b). These were surveyed eight times, once every six-month period between March 2007 and December 2010, by both authors, from a slow-moving vehicle. We repeated surveys four times in the dry (15 October- 15 April) and four times in the wet seasons (15 April- 15 October). In the Benoue Valley, 90 km of transect (the area east of Tchollire) was inaccessible in the wet season and therefore was surveyed only during the dry season. Repeat transects were initiated from opposite directions to reduce time bias in raptor detectability in response to increasing air temperatures. Apart from repeated transects, an additional 675 km of road surveys were driven in the inundation zone during the dry season (October-December, February-March) and 327 km during the wet season (April-May, August- September); and in the Sudan zone, 1,040 km during the dry season (October-December, March-April) and 110 km during the wet season (July). These counts were used to examine monthly variations in abundance at different latitudes (i.e. not average dry- and wet-season estimates). Road transects started at 06.30-07.30 hrs and ended before 12.30-13.30 hrs.
Transect counts provided an index of relative abundance (N / 100 km), which was averaged lor the entire survey period, separately for dry and wet seasons, or provided as monthly values for separate transects. Road counts were augmented by opportunistic observations, one-hour point counts (in 2006 and 2009-10) , whereby all raptors in view were recorded, and stationary counts during other field studies, in the Waza-Logone area and Benoue Valley. These covered all months, but some areas were more extensively covered during the dry than the wet season, notably the floodplains west ol the Logone River and the eastern Benoue Valley.
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Birds were identified based on available literature (e.g. Forsman 1999, Ferguson-Lees & Christie 2001) and various species-specific publications (e.g. Shirihai & Forsman 1991, Forsman 1995, 1998, Clark 1996, 2004, Clark & Schmitt 1998). Plumage descriptions follow Clark (2004), e.g. juvenile is that plumage retained until first annual moult.
Results and Discussion
We recorded 60 raptor species, as follows. Species of conservation concern (IUCN 2013) are indicated by EN = Endangered, VU = Vulnerable and NT = Near Threatened. Sequence and taxonomy follow Dickinson & Remsen (2013).
Secretary-bird Sagittarius serpentarius VU Sedentary. Mostly seen in woodland within Waza NP (often drinking at waterholes in February- May), but also on the floodplain, and near the Logone River 60 km south of Maga (one, 2 June 2007). Singles or 1-2 pairs noted annually in Waza NP, in all months except September. One pair often foraged on burnt grasslands in the western section of Waza NP in November- December 2007, 2008 and 2010. A pair with a dependent juvenile in Waza NP in February 2007 were possibly indicative of (nearby) breeding (Fig. 2). One in Waza NP in February 1973 (Thiollay 1978a, who attributed the species’ rarity there to seasonal flooding), and one in the hills south
Figure 2. Adult and juvenile Secretary-bird Sagittarius serpentarius , Waza National Park, Cameroon, 22 February 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Messagers sagittaires Sagittarius serpentarius adulte et juvenile, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 22 fevrier 2007 (Ralph Buij)
of Mora in 1971 (Holmes 1972), but regular observations in Waza and Kalamaloue NPs in the 1990s (Scholte et al. 1999). Rare south of the inundation zone, with two records in Bouba Ndjida NP, both in April (2007/2010), possibly indicative of southward movement during the dry season (Thiollay 1978b). A specimen from Boki (van den Elzen 1975). Has strongly declined throughout West Africa and is on the brink of regional extinction (Hofmeyr et al. in prep.).
Osprey Pandion haliaetus
Palearctic migrant. Twenty-one recorded, mostly observed hunting over the Logone River, Lake Maga or canals of the Maga rice scheme, in October-April, but occurs throughout the study area south to Poli. A juvenile often roosted on a pruned Acacia near Maga town in October- November 2007. Max. on or near Lake Maga just three; in comparison, seven reported near Maga on 16 January 1993 (Scholte et al. 1999) and five during a census on and around the lake in January-Lebruary 2000 (Thiollay 2001). further, along 23 km of the Logone River, between Pousse and Tikele, 0.13 birds / km were recorded in January 2001 (Zwarts et al. 2009); mean abundance along the same stretch of river was 0.03 birds / km in 2005-10 (six counts in October-May; range: 0-0.10 birds / km). Along another 45-66 km of the Logone River and adjoining floodplains between Pousse and Yagoua, mean abundance was 0.02 birds / km (seven counts in November-May; range 0-0.07 birds / km). These data suggest a decline; Osprey may be vulnerable to shooting, trapping, contamination of surface water and reduced lish stocks in Sahelian floodplains, including the Lake Chad Basin (Zwarts et al. 2009). Earliest date: 27 October 2007, near Maga; latest: 29 May 2008, over the Logone near Yagoua. None recorded during the boreal summer, but one on 29 August 1994 in the Waza-Logone region had presumably over-summered (Scholte et al. 1999), and ringing recoveries from West Africa reveal that small numbers do so (EURING database).
Black- winged Kite Elanus caendeus
Recorded year-round in most areas, but local movements in the Ear North Region. This rodent specialist increased threefold in northern Cameroon between 1973 and 2000 (Thiollay
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Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -29
2001) and appears to be one of the few species that has benefitted from deforestation and expanding cultivation. Common throughout the north, particularly in the inundation zone (mean density 7.9 birds / 100 km), but scarce in continuous woodlands of the Benoue Valley and absent from parts of the floodplain during the inundation: abundance peaks in February-March (10.9 birds / 100 km), but gradually declines from the early rains (May-June: 6.8 birds / 100 km) to October (1.2 birds / 100 km), following which an influx occurs in November-December (7.6 birds / 100 km). This suggests exodus from the inundation zone during the rains, when high grass cover and flooding depress prey availability. Thiollay (1977) noted a four to eightfold increase in abundance in the Sahel in July-November, so such movements may be northwards. However, the species is observed year-round in other areas, such as rice fields and cultivated areas in the Sudan zone (dry season: 3.2 birds / 100 km; wet: 2.4 birds / 100 km) and the Benoue Valley (dry season: 2.9 birds / 100 km; wet: 4.6 birds / 100 km). Courtship and mating in the Far North Region observed in December-January, and pairs at nests in January- April. Five nests were in Faidherbia albida trees among sorghum (2) and rice fields (3, but up to five breeding pairs) in the inundation zone.
African Swallow-tailed Kite Chelictinia riocourii
Intra-African migrant. Common in dry wooded grasslands of the inundation zone, especially in December-June (abundance: 28.3 birds / 100 km), after which moves north into the Sahel; few linger to late July, none seen mid August- October, when present in small numbers further north (Gustafsson et al. 2003). Unlike in Nigeria, where this species is nowhere common and regular (mainly February in the Far North Region, also June-July: Elgood et al. 1973), it occurs regularly at the Waza-Logone floodplain, where it breeds singly or in colonies of 2-13 nests in woodlands and around cultivated fields and settlements, in April-July (mean 0.6 nests / km2; Buij et al. 2013a). Much less numerous in the Sudan zone, where 2.33 birds / 100 km in the dry and 1.06 birds / 100 km in the wet season. Two adults south of Garoua on 9 March 2008 (09°10’N 13°49’E) and 23 December 2008 (08°98’N 13°53,E). A single group of 211 individuals flying high over the centre of Waza NP in
Figure 3. Juvenile African Swallow-tailed Kite Chelictinia riocourii swallowing a skink (Scincidae sp.), near Mora, Cameroon, 31 March 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Elanion naucler Chelictinia riocourii juvenile avalant un lezard (Scincidae sp.), pres de Mora, Cameroun, 31 mars 2007 (Ralph Buij)
the morning of 13 January 2009 was perhaps indicative of a nearby roost (cf. Buij et al. 2013a), and comparable in size to a group of 200 in April 1966 in Waza NP (De Greling 1972). Reptiles important in diet during breeding season (Buij et al. 2013a), but in non-breeding season takes mostly grasshoppers, and few reptiles (Fig. 3). No significant decline reported in northern Cameroon between 1973 and 2000 (Thiollay 2001), contrary to the situation outside protected areas in central West Africa (Thiollay 2006). Appears to adapt to modified habitats but may be impacted by loss of tree cover; nesting success in northern Cameroon rather low at 17% (Buij et al. 2013a).
European Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus Palearctic migrant. Observed between 1 September and 16 June (17 in the Far North Region and 14 in North Region). Eighteen (58%) were seen 22 April- 16 May, including six adults (five males, one female) circling north at low altitude in Waza NP on 5 May 2010 and an adult female perched and later flying through riverine woodland at Benoue NP on 22 April 2006 (Fig. 4). Eleven (35%) were recorded 1 September- 1 December. Most were flying high or rapidly gaining height, which together with the boreal spring and autumn peaks in records indicate that Cameroon’s savannas are mostly crossed en route to the main wintering range in the forest zone (cf Thiollay 1977). This is supported by observations of satellite-tracked birds from Sweden, which reached their West African wintering grounds at a mean latitude
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Raptors in northern Cameroon: Buij & Croes
Figure 4. Adult female European Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus , Benoue National Park, Cameroon, 22 April 2006 (Ralph Buij)
Bondree apivore Pernis apivorus , femelle adulte, Parc National de la Benoue, Cameroun, 22 avril 2006 (Ralph Buij)
of 06°24’N in September— November (Hake et al. 2003), although immatures may remain at relatively northerly latitudes, between 09°54’N and 13°33’N, before moving further south in November (Strandberg et al. 2012). All previous records in the Waza-Fogone area were in the boreal autumn: three in October, two in November (Scholte et al. 1999) and five on 10-11 September 1975 (Thiollay 1978a); two were seen in the Lake Chad region of Nigeria on 14 September 2000 (Gustafsson et al. 2003).
African Cuckoo Hawk Aviceda cuculoides
Sedentary, but local movements cannot be excluded (cf. Elgood et al. 1973). Recorded year- round but most frequently during the rains, when pairs are presumably breeding and therefore more conspicuous (Brown 1970). Uncommon in the Benoue Valley (15 birds; December, April- September) in woodland, riverine forest and at woodland edge, also over cultivation. Twice an adult pair was observed hunting; in both cases the birds perched 5-100 m from each other 3-6 m above ground while scanning the surrounding trees and ground for prey. A pair performed an undulating display flight (no calls heard) on 27 July 2009, c. 5 km south of Banda. A pair circling over Kalfou FR on 25 July 2008 and an adult there on 3 October 2008. A juvenile circling in Waza NP on 2 July 2010 is the northernmost record for Cameroon; a second-year was seen perched in Eucalyptus near Maga on 8 December 2007. Other records of single adults in flight
in May and July, near Maroua and Rhumsiki. These are the first published records north of Ngaoundaba (07°08’N) and suggest that the species has previously been overlooked in northern Cameroon.
African Harrier Hawk Polyboroides typus
Throughout the north in small numbers, but commonest in the Benoue Valley (mean 1.0 bird / 100 km). No evidence of seasonal movements northwards with the rains (cf. Thiollay 1978b) and the only record north of Waza was in August. Observed predating weaver (Ploceidae spp.) nestlings in trees along the Benoue River, African Swallow-tailed Kite nestlings in the Far North Region (Buij et al. 2013a) and two adults were observed probing cavities in Waza Rock (probably for bats, possibly lizards). Individuals of all ages at waterholes in Waza NP in March-April. Two adults found dead after pesticide poisoning of a waterhole in Waza NP by local poachers in February 2010.
Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus EN Palearctic migrant and local resident. Groups of 2-19 (mean: 8.8 birds ± 5.9) were observed each year between 27 November and 24 April in Waza NP, where most were recorded in December- March (90%; n = 118). One adult on 8 May 2007, another on 1 June 2008 and a third-year on 3 July 2010 in Waza NP. Of aged birds in 2006-10, 44% were adults (fourth-year plumage or older; n = 115). Often in groups near waterholes (Fig. 5) and twice at carcasses (goat Capra aegagrus hircus , Giraffe Giraffa Camelopardalis) with Ruppell s Gyps rueppelli , Fappet-faced Torgos tracheliotos and White-backed Vultures Gyps africanus ; also seen consuming grasshoppers. Other Waza records include up to four daily in December 1990 (Robertson 1992), ten on 15 November 1993 (Sorensen et al. 1996) and a group of 21 on 14 December 1996 (Scholte 1998). Past Nigerian occurrences have also been mainly in December- February (Elgood et al. 1966). Apart from these birds, probably of Palearctic origin ( cf. Thiollay 1977, 1989), presumed residents were recorded in the Mandara Mountains near Rhumsiki at 1,100 m above sea level, in November and July- August. An adult pair was frequently seen at this locality, once three adults near a dead donkey Equus asinus , but no juveniles. Scholte (1998)
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Figure 5. Egyptian Vultures Neophron percnopterus at waterhole, Waza National Park, Cameroon, 14 January 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Percnopteres d’Egypte Neophron percnopterus a un point d’eau, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 14 janvier 2007 (Ralph Buij)
concluded that breeding occurred here in 1997, based on a juvenile apparently with two adults on 21 September 1997. Also reported breeding elsewhere in the region (e.g. northern Nigeria: Elgood et al. 1994).
Bateleur Terathopius ecaudatus NT Sedentary and local. Most common in national parks (Fig. 6), where encountered at carcasses of Giraffe, Topi Damaliscus korrigum and
Waterbuck Kobus ellipsiprymnus. Five seen in the Mandara Mountains. Its relative rarity outside national parks corresponds with a significant decline in northern Cameroon in 1973-2000 and away from protected areas in central West Africa since the 1970s (Thiollay 2001, 2006). Threats inside parks include poisoning of carcasses and waterholes, nest disturbance and declining food supplies. Often seen flying repeatedly over recently burnt grasslands, especially in the Benoue Valley. Relative abundance highest during the rains, with 4.4 birds / 100 km in the inundation zone (dry season: 1.9 birds / 100 km) and 3.2 birds / 100 km in the Benoue Valley (dry season: 2.4 birds / 100 km). Family groups of adults with juveniles in Waza NP in August-October. A roost of six discovered in Bouba Ndjida NP in April 2010.
Short-toed Snake Eagle Circaetus gallicus
Common Palearctic migrant in the inundation zone, October-June. Abundance: 0.7 birds / 100 km in October, 6.7 in November, 4.0 in December, 7.6 in January, 3.8 in February, 2.9 in March and 1.1 in April. Earliest record: 11 October 2008, near Kousseri. Fast dates: 24 June 2009 (second-year) and 3-6 May 2010 (two of unknown age), in Waza NP. Widespread but scarcer in lowland grasslands, cultivation and hills south of the inundation zone (one in the Mandara Mountains at c.900 m above sea level). Only snakes recorded as prey (twice), but monitor
□ %
outside
NP
■ % inside NP
Figure 6. Percentage of Afrotropical eagles and vultures (n indicated) counted in and outside the national parks of northern Cameroon, 2006-10. *) only presumed sedentary birds.
Pourcentage d'aigles afrotropicaux et de vautours ( n indique) recense a Pinterieur et en dehors des pares nationaux au nord du Cameroun, 2006-10. *) oiseaux presumes sedentaires uniquement.
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lizards apparently also important (Thiollay 1977). Three records near Koum, in December (two) and February (one). Wing moult in adults in December-February.
Beaudouin’s Snake Eagle Circaetus beaudouini VU
Intra-African migrant. Declined in central West Africa in 1969-2004 (Thiollay 2006), and breeding densities are low but dry-season numbers are traditionally under-recorded due to confusion with Short-toed Snake Eagle (e.g. Elgood et al. 1973). Juveniles and (fewer) subadults are widespread but scarce in the inundation zone during the dry season (mean 0.3 birds / 100 km), when gallicus is almost ten times more numerous. During this period C. beaudouini is widespread and uncommon in the Benoue Valley (0.1 birds / 100 km), where there are probably no more than c.30 pairs, and in extensive woodlands further south: during the dry season, two were seen on the Adamawa Plateau, south of Ngaoundere, and records exist south to Mount Cameroon (M. Languy in litt. 2013), but no nests have been found. From May (some in April; Fig. 7), adults move north to join juveniles and subadults; the species is then also observed in the Mandara Mountains, but is commonest in the inundation
Figure 7. Adult Beaudouin’s Snake Eagle Circaetus beaudouini drinking, Waza National Park, Cameroon, 13 April 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Circaete de Beaudouin Circaetus beaudouini adulte en train de boire, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 13 avril 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 8 (top). Adult Beaudouin’s Snake Eagle Circaetus beaudouini in moult, Waza National Park, Cameroon,
20 July 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Circaete de Beaudouin Circaetus beaudouini adulte en mue, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 20 juillet 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 9 (bottom). Juvenile Beaudouin’s Snake Eagle Circaetus beaudouini , Waza National Park, Cameroon,
25 July 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Circaete de Beaudouin Circaetus beaudouini juvenile,
Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 25 juillet 2007 (Ralph Buij)
zone where there is an almost fourfold increase to 1.9 birds / 100 km during the rains (adults then outnumber juveniles / subadults 4:1). Migrants congregate in Sclerocarya woodlands south-west of the floodplain, where seasonal pools and patchy, still rather low, grass offer an abundance of accessible prey, especially in June-July. Snakes (30-60 cm) were caught on three occasions in Waza NP, where up to five (juveniles and adults) foraged over a 3-ha area in July. Distance analysis (, cf Buij 2013) of 160 km of transect surveys in July 2007-08 in the southern woodlands of the inundation zone (Waza village-Andirni-Pete-
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Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -33
Waza village) produced c.0.19 birds / km2, or c.266 individuals if extrapolated to the total area of similar habitat where surveys were conducted (c. 1,400 km2). Three were seen hunting in August in the Far North Region, south of Kousseri. In contrast, none was detected on road transects in June-August in the Benoue Valley, where four moved north in May. Southbound migration was noted from September, with one adult 10 km south of Garoua. No adults in the Far North Region after November. A nesting record of ‘C. gallicus / beaudouim in December-February in Waza NP by Scholte et al. (1999) is unusual in light of these observations. Most adults moulting in July-September (Fig. 8) and fresh juveniles in July (Fig. 9).
Brown Snake Eagle Circaetus cinereus Most common year-round in the Benoue Valley (mean 2.1 birds / 100 km); often seen perched high above ground on electricity pylons, in shrublands or cultivated areas and relatively few in national parks (Fig. 6). Pairs are widespread but less common in the Sudan zone (0.4 birds / 100 km). Observed in the inundation zone only during the rains (July-August), mostly juveniles. Thiollay (1977) reported it bred frequently at 10-13°N in Nigeria in the 1970s. An adult caught a c.50-cm snake in cultivated fields west of Tchollire on 21 March 2009, and another was seen with a snake near Ngaoundere on 25 June 2008.
Western Banded Snake Eagle Circaetus cinerascens
Secretive but frequent in the Benoue Valley, where year-round resident in savanna and riverine woodlands of Benoue and Bouba Ndjida NPs, and surrounding hunting zones (year-round abundance: 0.6 birds / 100 km). Single adults and juveniles seen hunting over cultivated areas at the edge of woodland in the Benoue Valley, especially during the rains, when high grass probably limits prey accessibility. One pair in Benoue NP was most vocal in June-July, often calling during early morning from a dead tree in riverine forest, but also quite vocal during the dry season (January- April), mainly singing during aerial displays; also heard in March in Faro NP (Dowsett-Lemaire & Dowsett 1999). Only one was observed north of the Benoue Valley: an adult perched at the edge of woodland near Guider on 15 July 2008. None
in the inundation zone, where three were noted in February / April 1973 (Thiollay 1978a), and two in the 1990s (Kalamaloue NP, February and June: Scholte et al. 1999).
White-headed Vulture Trigonoceps occipitalis VU Rare resident in the inundation and Sudan zones (records in October, November, January, February, April-July). Two pairs and second- to fourth-year birds were regularly seen in the woodland zone of Waza NP, where a pair bred in 1969 (Fry 1970) and which was considered part of the small, fragmented western African breeding range by Mundy et al. (1992). Single juveniles in Waza NP on 30 November 2008 and 31 December 2006 suggest one or more pairs might still nest in the Far North Region. Other pairs were seen throughout the north, over wooded valleys in the Mandara Mountains, but most commonly in the Benoue Valley (where on average 0.4 birds / 100 km and recorded in December, February, March, May and August).
Hooded Vulture Necrosyrtes monachus EN Sedentary. Together with Black Kite the commonest raptor in northern Cameroon, where highest abundance year-round in the Sudan savanna zone (36.9 birds / 100 km); several nests in Maroua and near Mokolo, where it breeds in December-June (cf. Scholte 1998). Often associated with human settlements, permanent or temporary, few seen in Waza NP, none in the protected areas of the Benoue Valley but seen in Benoue and Faro NPs in March 1999 (Dowsett- Lemaire & Dowsett 1999). Mean abundance in the Sudan zone was 38.7 birds / 100 km in January-April vs. 28.4 birds / 100 km in July- September, possibly indicative of some seasonal movements with the rains (cf. Thiollay 1977). However, no wet-season influx noted further north. Congregates at slaughterhouses in large towns throughout the region (Maroua, Garoua, Ngaoundere), where several tens (max. 81 together; Fig. 10), and at termite swarms during the rains also in large towns (e.g. Maroua). Three and a Riippell’s Vulture feeding on a human corpse near Maroua in 2007. Declined 67% in northern Cameroon in 1973-2000 (Thiollay 2001); in 1996 >100 Hooded Vultures died of an unknown cause as some literally fell out of the trees' in the town of Maroua (Scholte 1998). Frequently
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Figure 10. Hooded Vultures Necrosyrtes monachus at slaughterhouse, Maroua, Cameroon, 13 October 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Vautours charognards Necrosyrtes monachus pres d un abattoir, Maroua, Cameroun, 13 octobre 2010 (Ralph Buij)
sought for consumption and traditional medicine trade, especially with the disappearance of larger vulture species, and dried individuals, eggs and parts are sold at markets in Garoua and Maroua (Ogada & Buij 2011).
White-backed Vulture Gyps africanus EN
Sedentary, but more were seen in the south during the rains. Recorded throughout the region, in groups of up to 37 in the inundation zone, where apparently resident and common year- round with a mean 3.3 birds / 100 km. Declined 60% in 1973-2000 in northern Cameroon (Thiollay 2001). Three pairs nested in Waza NP in December 1971 (Mundy 1972) and it was apparently still ‘common to abundant’ in the Lake Chad Basin in the 1990s, when six nests with young were found in Waza and Kalamaloue NPs (Scholte 1998). Two occupied nests, one with a fully feathered nestling, in Waza NP in January-April 2006, but none thereafter despite intensive surveys in 2009-10. Interviews with local communities indicate that up to 40 vultures were poisoned at a Waza waterhole in the early 2000s, mostly Gyps spp., mainly to supply the traditional medicine trade in Nigeria (Buij & Mohamadou unpubk). Increased intrusion by poachers and livestock herders may have negatively impacted disturbance-sensitive breeding pairs. According to local reports, nests have been set on fire and poles used to facilitate collection of chicks. At the start of
the rains groups are associated with transhumance nomads and livestock herds moving through the inundation zone, but more commonly associated with the human-populated alluvial plains of the Logone than with the protected woodlands of Waza NP in October-July (Buij & Croes 2013). Also regular year-round throughout the Benoue Valley, but more common during the wet season (dry season: 0.8 birds / 100 km, wet season: 1.7 birds / 100 km), feeding on carcasses of wild herbivores (e.g. five at a dead Hippopotamus Hippopotamus amphibius). Locally common south ol Ngaoundere (cultivation, grasslands, settlements including intensive cattle farms): five in March, eight in May, seven in June, 13 in July, 26 in August and 17 in December.
Riippell’s Vulture Gyps rueppelli EN
Sedentary in the Sudan zone; commonest in the south during the rains and in the north in the dry season. The commonest vulture away from protected areas after Hooded Vulture, but it declined 87% in 1973-2000 (Thiollay 2001). Nests were found during the dry season in the Mandara Mountains, especially on and near the peaks at Rhumsiki (at least 17 pairs) and near Mindif (max. 8-10 pairs), where most nests are inaccessible to humans. None was recorded on the more easily accessible Waza Rock or elsewhere in Waza NP. At least 12 pairs nested on Waza Rock in the 1970s (Mundy & Cook 1972), 20-30 pairs in 1993 (Scholte 1998), with two additional pairs at nests in Acacia trees and one brooding bird in November-December 1993 (Sorensen et al. 1996), but only four nests on Waza Rock in 1997 (Scholte 1998). More common in the dry (4.2 birds / 100 km) than the wet season (1.7 birds / 100 km) in the inundation zone, with large groups in Waza NP in December-April (up to 18 together). Similar numbers year-round in the Sudan zone (6.6 birds / 100 km) suggest breeding pairs there are more sedentary. Counts on 36-km road transect on the Adamawa Plateau south of Ngaoundere higher during the rains: five in December, 20 in May, 27 in June, nine in August; numbers also higher in the Benoue Valley during the wet (1.4 birds / 100 km) than the dry season (0.3 birds / 100 km). Groups gathered at wild herbivore (Waza, Benoue NPs) and livestock carcasses (e.g. 13 on a dead donkey near Guider on 4 June 2008).
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Lappet-faced Vulture Torgos tracheliotos VU Almost exclusively seen in the inundation zone, where present year-round (mean 1.6 birds / 100 km), with highest numbers in the dry season. Singles further south near Faro and Bouba Ndjida NP, both in May (another in Faro in March 1999; Dowsett-Lemaire & Dowsett 1999). Observed with Flooded Vultures near nomad settlements, and seen feeding on cow carcasses three times, but a relatively large proportion were inside national parks (Fig. 6). Bred at Waza Rock in the 1970s (Louette 1981), but none thereafter in Waza NP (Scholte 1998). Two pairs bred in Waza NP in 2009-10 atop Balanites aegyptiaca trees, with large nestlings in June (Fig. 11) and a fledgling mid July; this suggests that breeding may have either gone unnoticed for a period or has resumed. Three pellets at a nest in Waza NP contained goat hairs; breeding pairs were often seen on foraging trips outside the park. Thiollay (2001) recorded too few to establish a trend in Cameroon, but noted a significant decline in central West Africa
in 1973-2000, with none seen outside protected areas during recent surveys (Thiollay 2006). An exceptional group of 26 was near Kingueroua waterhole in Waza NP on 27 February 2008 (Fig. 12).
Bat Hawk Macheiramphus alcinus Sedentary. Patchily recorded in small numbers throughout the study area; however, probably under-recorded due to the species being mainly active at dawn and dusk. Three pairs and 1-2 juveniles were seen hunting bats at dusk (twice at dawn) year-round above rivers and the tourist camps of Benoue, Faro and Bouba Ndjida NPs. A minimum of 14 bats caught by two adults during 18 minutes at dusk in February 2008 at Benoue NP. Previously published records in the Benoue Valley were from Benoue NP (several at two localities at least: Robertson 1992, Dowsett- Lemaire & Dowsett 1999), Koum (Louette 1981) and two in Faro NP, including one drinking in mid afternoon (Dowsett-Lemaire & Dowsett 1999). Another adult was seen flying low above ground and on an exposed perch one hour after sunrise in Bouba Ndjida NP in December (Fig. 13). Further north, one flew low over the canopy during the day in Kalfou FR after heavy rains, on 31 August 2009. Juveniles were seen in Waza NP during the day on 3 December 2009 (2), 4 January 2010 (1), and 28 November 2010 (1; Fig. 14). A pair was twice seen hunting bats and circling above Waza village at dusk in July 2010. These complement five records at Waza NP in the 1990s (Scholte et al. 1999).
Figure 11 (top). Nestling Lappet-faced Vulture Torgos tracheliotos , Waza National Park, Cameroon, 16 June 2009 (Ralph Buij)
Jeune Vautour oricou Torgos tracheliotos au nid, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 16 juin 2009 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 12 (bottom). Group of 26 Lappet-faced Vultures Torgos tracheliotos with Riippell's Gyps rueppelli and White- backed Vultures G. africanus at Kingueroua waterhole, Waza National Park, Cameroon, 27 February 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Groupe de 26 Vautours oricous Torgos tracheliotos avec Vautours de Riippell Gyps rueppelli et Vautours africains G. africanus au point d’eau de Kingueroua, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 27 fevrier 2008 (Ralph Buij)
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Figure 13 (top). Adult Bat Hawk Macheiramphus alcinus , Bouba Ndjida National Park, Cameroon, 28 December 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Milan des chauves-souris Macheiramphus alcinus adulte, Parc National de Bouba Ndjida, Cameroun, 28 decembre 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 14 (bottom). Juvenile Bat Hawk Macheiramphus alcinus , Waza National Park, Cameroon, 28 November 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Milan des chauves-souris Macheiramphus alcinus juvenile, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 28 novembre 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Martial Eagle Polemaetus bellicosus VU Sedentary. Rare throughout. Mostly recorded in the Benoue Valley, where year-round mean abundance 0.7 birds / 100 km, south to c. 40 km north of Ngaoundere. Of 22 aged birds in the Benoue Valley, 73% were adults. Based on these results and distance sampling along road transects
(Buckland et al. 1993) for large (>3 kg) raptors in these savannas (Buij et al. 2013c), 106-131 pairs are estimated to occur in the 30,800 km2 Benoue Valley, or one pair per 233-290 km2. No adults seen in the inundation zone, where the species was considered an uncommon resident in the 1990s (Scholte et al. 1999), but single juveniles, twice seen stooping at groups of Helmeted Guineafowl Numida meleagris, were observed in Waza NP in May-July 2009 and 2010. At least two pairs in the Mandara Mountains and one pair at Kalfou FR (where also recorded in 2000: Thiollay 2001), and one pair in the hills c. 17 km north-west of Maroua between May and August 2007-09. The species’ often large nest, visible from afar, and its habit of occasionally preying on livestock (Buij & Mohamadou unpubh), increases its vulnerability to persecution and nest disturbance (J.-M. Thiollay pers. comm.).
Long-crested Eagle Lophaetus occipitalis Sedentary. Widespread, but commonest in the Benoue Valley, where mean 2.7 birds / 100 km; in the inundation zone 1.1 birds / 100 km. Several breeding pairs south and east of Waza NP, and in well-forested parts of the Mandara Mountains. Often perch-hunts in cultivated areas (sorghum, rice, cotton), occasionally near human habitation but close to woodland, and individuals were seen catching rodents on three occasions (near Maga, Tchollire). An adult caught two frogs within a 23-minute period in July 2009 at Waza NP. Begging fledglings in October in the Benoue Valley indicates breeding during the rains.
Lesser Spotted Eagle Clanga pomarina
Rare Palearctic migrant to the Waza-Logone floodplains with 0-2 individuals observed per dry season. Three over Waza NP, on 23 December 2006 (juvenile), 16 January 2008 (adult) and 5 December 2009, and one over the Logone floodplains north of Maga on 15 March 2010. Previous records: one at Maga on 14 June 1994 (Scholte et al. 1999). Thiollay (1978a, 1989) considered it ‘quite numerous’, but of 82 claimed individuals recorded in the 1970s in northern Cameroon (Thiollay 1978a), most on the Waza- Logone floodplains, an unknown but possibly large proportion were misidentified Steppe Eagles Aquila nipalensis (J.-M. Thiollay in litt. 2012).
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Greater Spotted Eagle Clanga clanga
Rare Palearctic migrant. Adult at close range, gaining height near Anane waterhole in Waza NP, on 17 December 2006. Another tentative record in January 2008 in the inundation zone. Only previous records in Cameroon: four in Waza- Logone area in January / April 1973 and four in January / February 2000 (Thiollay 2001), an adult at Maga in February 2000 (M. Languy in litt. 2013) and a juvenile in Waza on 11 April 2003 (A. Riley et al. in Bull. ABC 11: 169).
Tawny Eagle Aquila rap ax Partial migrant. Occurs throughout, commonest in the inundation zone, where mean 3.1 birds / 100 km. More than 30% were in national parks (Fig. 6). Least common in the Benoue Valley during the rains (0.2 birds / 100 km), but more numerous in dry season (0.9 birds / 100 km). Only three seen in August-September in the Far North Region, and none in June-September in the Benoue Valley suggest northward movements during rains (as in Nigeria: Elgood et al. 1973, Thiollay 1977). In groups of up to eight at waterholes in Waza in March-April, four together in rice fields north of Maga in April (both times with Steppe Eagles), and three at a Lion Panthera leo kill in Waza NP in May. Four nests in Waza NP, one in Kalamaloue NP, one east of Maroua in farmland, and two (on rocky outcrops and in woodland) in the Mandara Mountains, occupied November-May. Scholte et al. (1999) also recorded breeding in Waza and Kalamaloue NPs in December-April. Declined significantly in northern Cameroon in 1973-2000 (Thiollay 2001).
Steppe Eagle Aquila nipalensis Frequent Palearctic migrant to the inundation zone (mean 3.7 birds / 100 km; Figs. 15-16). Of 36 aged birds in October-May, two were juveniles, eight second-years, four third-years, six fourth-years and 16 adults. First arrivals: two juveniles on 24 October 2010; first adult 12 November 2009 in Waza NP. Latest: third-year on 20 May 2008, in Waza NP. Commonly occurs around rice fields in the inundation zone (Buij & Croes 2013), with six together in December 2009 north of Lake Maga, twice seen catching rodents. Rare away from floodplains: one 40 km west of Yagoua on 15 December 2007. Southernmost
records: three together on 21 January 2008 south¬ west of Tchollire (08°13’N) and a juvenile in Bouba Ndjida NP on 27 December 2008. These records and those further north (see Ottosson et al. 2002) suggest it is a rather common winter
Figure 15 ( top). Adult and second-year Steppe Eagles Aquila nipalensis at roost, Waza National Park, Cameroon, 31 December 2006 (Ralph Buij)
Aigles des steppes Aquila nipalensis adulte et de deuxieme annee au dortoir, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 31 decembre 2006 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 16 (bottom). Fourth-year Steppe Eagle Aquila nipalensis in flight over Maga rice fields, Cameroon, 25 December 2006 (Ralph Buij)
Aigle des steppes Aquila nipalensis de quatrieme annee en vol au-dessus des rizieres de Maga, Cameroun, 25 decembre 2006 (Ralph Buij)
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visitor to the Lake Chad Basin. However, only two juveniles were noted in the Waza-Logone area in the 1990s, in February and May (Scholte et al. 1999), with nine there in 2000 (Thiollay 2001).
Eastern Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca VU
Rare Palearctic migrant. Nine records in the inundation zone, eight ol them in Waza NP, involving at least five birds: adult over Douroubatassa waterhole on 23 December 2003; juvenile in the western section of Waza NP on
30 December 2006, 22 February and 18 March 2007 (Fig. 17); juvenile in Waza NP on 13 and 17 January and 29 February 2008 (Fig. 18), pirating food from a Pied Crow Corpus albus ; fourth- year there on 17 January 2008; and juvenile or second-year north of Lake Maga on 2 February 2009. Previously published records in Cameroon: singles in Waza NP in November 1993 (Sorensen et al. 1996), Kalfou FR in February 2000 (Bobo & Njabo 2000) and Tchabal Ngandaba in April 2000 (Njabo et al. 2000). Another juvenile was seen at Lake Chad on 14 November 2001, in Nigeria, just west of the border with Cameroon (Velmala & Gustafsson 2003).
African Hawk Eagle Aquila spilogaster Sedentary. Scarce throughout, commonest in the Benoue Valley {cf. Robertson 1992, Sorensen et al. 1996, Dowsett-Lemaire & Dowsett 1999), where 0.8 birds / 100 km, often in national parks (Fig. 6), along river courses, and in surrounding ecotone of farmland and woodland. A few pairs perhaps still breed throughout the Sudan zone in hilly terrain with forest remnants, such as the lower Mandara Mountains, where nest sites and small game (guineafowl, francolins, hyrax) are more secure from human hunting. No adults seen in the inundation zone but up to four juveniles recorded annually (1 June-28 November; Fig. 19), often hunting (young) Rock Hyrax Procavia
Figure 19. Juvenile African Hawk Eagle Aquila spilogaster, Waza National Park, Cameroon,
28 November 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Aigle fascie Aquila spilogaster juvenile, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 28 novembre 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 17 (top). Juvenile Eastern Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca, Waza National Park, Cameroon, 18 March 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Aigle imperial Aquila heliaca juvenile, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 18 mars 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 18 (bottom). Juvenile Eastern Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca chasing Pied Crow Corvus albus, Waza National Park, Cameroon, 15 January 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Aigle imperial Aquila heliaca juvenile poursuivant un Corbeau pie Corvus albus, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 15 janvier 2008 (Ralph Buij)
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Bull ABC Vol 21 No 1 (2014) -39
capensis and birds, also eating wild figs on rocky outcrops near Waza NP, particularly in July- August. Few previous records in the Waza-Logone area: two in February / April 1973 (Thiollay 1978) and two in the 1990s, in September and December (Robertson 1992, Scholte et al. 1999). Primary moult in an adult in March and another in April.
Wahlberg’s Eagle Hieraaetus wahlbergi Short- and long-distance intra-African migrant. Found throughout in the dry season, most commonly in the inundation zone (3.8 birds / 100 km), south to 07°19’N in December (but dry- season records to the coast) and mostly outside national parks (Fig. 6). Numbers increase during the rains (Fig. 20), when migrants from southern Africa visit the region, as revealed by two satellite- tracked females from Namibia and South Africa that reached northern Cameroon / north-east Nigeria and south-east Chad, respectively, in late April-May, remaining until mid August (Meyburg et al. 1995). Other examples of trans-equatorial migration are of birds ringed in southern Africa recovered in Sudan in April and in Democratic Republic of Congo in August-September (Oatley et al. 1998). In the Benoue Valley, numbers peak with the arrival of short- and long-distance migrants (May), but thereafter decrease sharply,
subsequently peaking in the Sudan zone (June) and the inundation zone (July— August; Fig. 20) corresponding with the later start to the rains at higher latitudes. Numbers decline in November- April in the inundation and Sudan zones, but gradually increase in the Benoue Valley during this period, while most records in the savanna- forest transition zone and all those from the south-east are in the dry season (M. Languy in litt. 2013), supporting the hypothesis that local birds move to southern savannas in the dry season. Wahlberg’s Eagle breeds from June in Sclerocarya woodlands of the inundation zone at a mean density of one pair per 13 km2 (40 km2 surveyed). Aerial displays in the inundation zone were mostly observed from June. Four occupied nests were found, one in a large Faidherbia albida among cotton fields near Mora on 9 August 2009. One eagle was <100 m from the nest, the other on the nest rim. Three occupied nests with 1-2 adults in attendance, two containing one egg each (12 and 17 July 2010), were within and just south of Waza NP. Given a c.4-month period from laying to fledging (Ferguson-Lees & Christie 2001), nestlings fledge in late September-early November when fires increase accessibility of abundant terrestrial vertebrate prey (Thiollay 1978). All nests were lined with green leaves and sited below the canopy of tall Sclerocarya birrea
••^Inundation zone - •- - Sudan zone Benoue Valley — Average 3 zones
Figure 20. Wahlberg’s Eagle Hieraaetus wahlbergi monthly abundance in the three savanna zones of northern Cameroon, and mean abundance for the three zones, based on transect counts 2007-10. The grey block indicates the approximate period spent in northern Cameroon and Nigeria by a satellite-tracked Wahlberg’s Eagle that bred in Namibia (source: Meyburg et al. 1995)
Abondance mensuelle de l’Aigle de Wahlberg Hieraaetus wahlbergi dans les trois zones de savane au nord du Cameroun, et abondance moyenne pour les trois zones, basee sur les recensements le long des transects en 2007-10. La partie en gris indique la periode approximative passee au nord du Cameroun et au Nigeria par un Aigle de Wahlberg muni d une balise Argos qui avait niche en Namibie (source: Meyburg et al. 1995)
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trees, which is typical for Wahlberg’s Eagle but does not exclude Long-crested Eagle Lophaetus occipitalis (R. Simmons & W. Tarboton in litt. 2013). Thiollay (1977) recorded nesting pairs in western Africa during the rains at 12°-l4°N and saw birds on nests or bringing prey (J.-M. Thiollay in litt. 2013), but did not publish details. Two breeding records in Nigeria (by P. Ward & M. Dyer) perhaps best considered uncertain (Brown et al. 1982; F. Dowsett-Lemaire in litt. 2013), while a record of an occupied nest (female present in June-July) during the rains at Makalondi, south-west Niger, observed over a 1 4-year period, is unpublished (Souvairan 1990). Two pairs defending seemingly exclusive territories, with two adults accompanied by a begging juvenile, displaying and calling on the Obudu Plateau in south-east Nigeria (06°38’N), just west of the border with Cameroon, in February 2001 (Bijlsma 2001) indicate that dry-season records at southerly latitudes include adults and juveniles. We conclude that Wahlberg’s Eagles breeding in the Sahel are unlikely to originate from southern Africa, but instead perform shorter-distance seasonal movements entirely within the region (cf. Meyburg et al. 1993), visiting the forest-savanna mosaic or further south in the dry season and moving north after the first rains to breed. Food: congregates at alate termite or ant swarms in June and in larger groups at fires during the dry season in the Benoue Valley. Seen with an Agama Agama agama near Mora on 13 January 2008 and with a lizard on 23 July 2008 in Kalfou FR.
Booted Eagle Hieraaetus pennatus At least 370 observations of this, the second- commonest Palearctic migrant, with a mean dry-season abundance of 9.3 birds / 100 km in the inundation zone. First arrival on 1 1 October 2008; latest date: 21 April 2007 (two). Relative abundance in the inundation zone: 0.6 birds / 100 km in October, 9.4 in November, 9.9 in December, 10.5 in January, 8.1 in February, 7.0 in March and 2.7 in April. The commonest Palearctic migrant in the Sudan zone during the dry season (3.9 birds / 100 km), and in the Benoue Valley south to Ngaoundere. Often seen hunting over rocky outcrops (where abundant reptiles, francolins, doves etc.), near villages (pigeons, lizards, poultry, rodents) and at waterholes (birds); numbers relatively high in rice fields in the
Figure 21. Booted Eagle Hieraaetus pennatus with rodent, south of Waza National Park, Cameroon, 15 January 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Aigle botte Hieraaetus pennatus avec un rongeur, au sud du Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 15 janvier 2007 (Ralph Buij)
inundation zone (Buij & Croes 2013), where observed catching rodents (. Arvicanthis , Mastomys spp.) seven times (Fig. 21), typically by hanging into the wind and dropping down in a (staggered) stoop or shallow dive on closed wings. One caught a chicken south of Waza, with another two unsuccessful attempts observed on poultry near villages, in January-March. Thiollay (2001) recorded a significantly higher abundance in northern Cameroon in 2000 compared to 1973. Once recorded during the Palearctic summer, on 21 June 1994 (Scholte et al. 1999).
Ayres’s Eagle Hieraaetus ayresii
Partial migrant. Fifty individuals recorded; no dark morphs. Two to three pairs in the Benoue Valley and the Mandara Mountains. Compared to other Afrotropical eagles, a relatively large proportion was seen outside national parks (Fig. 6). In the dry season, records in October (one), November (three), December (three), January (two), March (three) and April (two), near Bouba Ndjida NP, Poli, Tchollire and in the Mandara Mountains. More common and widespread during the rains (6 May-1 September; 36 individuals): in the surroundings of Garoua (14), the Mandara Mountains (seven) and the Benoue Valley (eight), with singles in Waza NP on 20 June, 22 July and 27 July 2010 (first published records this far north), near Maroua on 24 July 2010, near Kaele on 31 July 2008, Moutourwa on 1 September
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2008, and 10 km north of Ngaoundere on 27 July 2007. Of birds of known age, 17 were adults and eight juveniles / immatures. The presence of adults in the inundation zone during the rains suggests that birds from the forest zone, where the species is fairly common and probably under-recorded (Clark 1999), move north with the rains in the non-breeding season. Often seen hunting over farmland, villages and deforested hillsides, also large towns (e.g. Garoua, Figuil); an adult was captured in a village north-east of Garoua and brought to Garoua Zoo where it later died (collection Ecole de Faune, Garoua). One subadult attempted to capture feral pigeons Columba livia in a small village north of Garoua on 24 June 2007 (Fig. 22) and an adult stooped at a group of six domestic pigeons in a village north¬ west of Tchollire on 28 December 2008. An adult stooped at unseen prey in Acacia woodland of Waza NP in July 2010 (Fig. 23). Another adult stooped at a group of 12 Cattle Egrets Bubulcus ibis in the Mandara Mountains and was subsequently harassed by a Fox Kestrel Falco alopex and a Dark Chanting Goshawk Melierax metabates on 1 9 June 2008. Primary moult in three adults in the north in June-August.
Figure 22 (left). Second-year Ayres’s Eagle Hieraaetus ayresii, north of Garoua, Cameroon, 24 June 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Aigle d’Ayres Hieraaetus ayresii de deuxieme annee, au nord de Garoua, Cameroun, 24 juin 2007 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 23 (right). Adult Ayres’s Eagle Hieraaetus ayresii , Waza National Park, Cameroon, 25 July 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Aigle d’Ayres Hieraaetus ayresii adulte, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 25 juillet 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Lizard Buzzard Kaupifalco monogrammicus Sedentary. Recorded throughout but most frequently in the Benoue Valley (0.8 birds / 100 km), where more commonly detected (more vocal, also in flight) during the rains, perched in dense woodland or in cultivated fields, or circling high. Two in the Mandara Mountains and one circling near Yagoua. First records in the Waza-Logone area: singles on 23 December 2006, 2 March 2007, 24 November 2009 and 14 May 2010, perched in Sclerocarya woodland of Waza NP and once drinking at Louloumbaya waterhole. One near Mora on 22 March 1990 (Robertson 1992).
Dark Chanting Goshawk Melierax metabates Sedentary. Throughout the region, commonest in the inundation zone (mean 12.9 birds / 100 km) and declining southwards (mean 2.3 birds / 100 km in the Benoue Valley). Highest densities occur on raised areas with Faidherbia albida , Hyphaene thebaica and Borassus aethiopum trees surrounded by seasonally flooded grasslands along the Logone River (Buij & Croes 2013), but also frequently seen over rice fields and dry Sclerocarya and Acacia woodlands to the south and west. Adult males in dry woodlands had mean dry-season ranges of 1.5 km2 (range: 0.57-2.52 km2; significantly larger outside than in Waza NP: Buij 2013), but evidence suggests that range size is much larger in the less productive wooded grasslands of the higher Sudan zone (c.7 km2 for a male south of Mora: unpubl. data). Nest building and courtship feeding of female by male from February / March in the Far North Region, vocal in early morning hours in January- April. Fledgling near nest on 2 May 2009 in Waza NP, a nest with one nestling of c. 2 weeks on 8 May 2009, four nests with one egg each on 7-13 May 2010, and two nests with one nestling (1-2 weeks) on 17 May 2010 ( contra Scholte et al. 1999, who assumed breeding during August-November). Dependent fledglings (food begging) until mid August in the inundation zone. Nest trees: Balanites aegyptiaca (six nests), Faidherbia albida (three) and Sclerocarya biirea (two). Food in the Far North Region mainly reptiles (lizards, some snakes) and rodents, few birds and insects (Buij 2013). Parasitic attacks noted by adults on Black-winged Kites and Booted Eagles with rodent and bird prey. Mean weight of 17 males 553 ± 26 g (range: 518-612 g) and of 12 females 660 ± 55 g (587-767 g). Declined 62%
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in 1973-2000 in northern Cameroon (Thiollay 2001), possibly due to increased nest disturbance and declining vegetation cover and prey biomass in unprotected areas (Buij 2013).
Gabar Goshawk Micronisus gabar
Sedentary. Commonest in the inundation zone (3.8 birds / 100 km) and especially associated with seasonally flooded plains along the Logone (Buij & Croes 2013), with smaller numbers further south (0.7 birds / 100 km in the Benoue Valley). Dark and grey morphs recorded throughout. On average one occupied nest per 3 km2 in the protected and cultivated woodlands in and around Waza NP (40 km2), April-July 2010. Also breeds in the centre of villages (nests recorded in Maroua, Rhumsiki and Kousseri). An adult observed catching a young domestic chicken G alius gallus in a village south of Mora, in January 2008. Nestlings at three nests (Fig. 24), and two nests with eggs (1-3), in Sclerocarya birrea trees in and south of Waza NP, in May 2009 and 2010, and begging juveniles in Kousseri in June. Congregates at waterholes in Waza in the dry season, where it is one of the commonest raptors (up to seven together), drinking, and two to three simultaneously chasing Red-billed Quelea Quelea quelea flocks.
Western Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus
Commonest Palearctic raptor, noted in all months except July- August with a mean dry-
Figure 24. Nestling Gabar Goshawk Micronisus gabar , Waza National Park, Cameroon, 10 May 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Jeune Autour Gabar Micronisus gabar au nid, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 10 mai 2010 (Ralph Buij)
season abundance of 23 birds / 100 km in the inundation zone, but far less numerous in the drier Sudan zone and Benoue Valley (0.4 and 0.6 birds / 100 km, respectively). Together with Booted Eagle Hieraaetus pennatus exceptionally stable in terms of abundance in Sudan and Sahel zones of central West Africa and northern Cameroon in 1969-2004 (Thiollay 2001, 2006). Exploits moist or shallowly flooded grasslands in September-November, but thereafter fires, grazing and retreating floods concentrate food resources, for example near water or in crops (e.g. rice; Buij et al. 2012) and numbers shift in response to spatio-temporal variations in food availability (Buij & Croes 2013). Common from 13 September, when 22 birds / 100 km in moist, partially cultivated grasslands south of Kousseri (southernmost record: 15 September 2009, five at 1 1°84’N 14°6TE), 99 birds / 100 km in October, declining to 37 birds / 100 km in November and 7-11 birds / 100 km in December-March. From November, with drying of grasslands and increasing fires, Western Marsh Fiarriers exploit crop fields and rich grasslands of the seasonally inundated floodplain along the Logone River, and the margins of wet depressions and Lake Maga, where they feed primarily on diurnal rodents, but also on grasshoppers, reptiles and birds (Buij et al. 2012). Over the course of the dry season, more strongly associated with extensive rice cultivation than grassland habitats in the Waza-Logone floodplain (Buij & Croes 2013), but also frequents drier habitats away from it. Observed hunting frogs in October-November and scavenging dead fish twice in the late dry season. Apart from small passerines (notably Red-billed Quelea Quelea quelea ), avian prey included a Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago and adult male Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus , with failed attempts to predate Ruff Philomachus pugnax and White-faced Whistling Duck Dendrocygna viduata observed. Of 804 individuals aged and / or sexed in the Waza-Logone area in January-March 2009-10, 21% were adult males, 27% adult females and 52% juveniles. Late records: juvenile / female high over Maroua on 30 May 2010, two juveniles quartering rice fields near Maga on 2 June 2007, and two juveniles near Kousseri on 12 June 2008. Last record of an adult male was 17 March 2010, near Maga, but adult males do over-summer in the Sahel (Thiollay 1977).
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Pallid Harrier Circus macrourus NT The least common Palearctic harrier in October- April in the inundation zone, where mean 3.2 birds / 100 km, but also further south. Southernmost record: south of Mbe (07°48’N 13°33’E), 7 March 2008. Earliest and latest records of juveniles: 10 October 2008, near Maroua, and 14 April 2007, Waza NP. Earliest and latest records of adult females: 16 November 2008, near Moutourwa, and 3 April 2006, Waza NP; and of adult males: 12 October 2008, near Mora, and 17 March 2008, Waza NP. First arrival reported by Scholte et al. (1999) on 18 September 1994. Of 364 birds aged and / or sexed in 2005-10, 25% were adult (> second-year) females, 21% adult males and 54% juveniles. Juveniles dominate winter populations in early and late dry season (Fig. 25a). Of those juveniles sexed (n = 112), 53% were females and 47% males. Rice fields with abundant rodents are an important foraging habitat in November-April (Buij & Croes 2013) and the species is relatively more frequent in dry grasslands than other harriers (Buij et al. 2012). Detailed observations in January-March revealed that adult males foraged more frequently over seasonally flooded grasslands than dry rice fields, whereas adult females not only foraged more often but also for longer periods over rice than flooded grasslands, probably reflecting intersexual dietary differences (Buij et al. 2012). Food: grasshoppers (on freshly burnt grasslands) and birds (more frequently targeted by males: Buij 2012), including Ethiopian Swallow Hirundo
a
aethiopica , also reptiles, but biomass dominated by rodents (Buij et al. 2012). No significant decline in northern Cameroon in 1973-2000 (Thiollay 2001), but few seen in both periods (16 and 11 individuals, respectively), making trends difficult to evaluate and decline was noted further west (Thiollay 2006). Previously reported rarity in comparison to Montagu’s Harrier Circus pygargus (which see) suggests that numbers may have been under-estimated due to identification difficulties and, possibly, lower detectability of Pallid Harrier, which often hunts closer to the ground, sometimes in ditches (rice fields) or through denser vegetation (pers. obs.) than Montagu’s Harrier.
Montagu’s Harrier Circus pygargus
Palearctic migrant, October-April. More common than Pallid Harrier, with mean 5.2 birds / 100 km in the inundation zone, where abundance along transects: 0.2 birds / 100 km in October, 2.7 in November, 1.8 in December, 10.0 in January, 8.4 in February, 4.7 in March and none in April. One satellite-tracked adult female from Belarus frequented the inundation area in December (arrival: 1 0— 1 2th) to February 2007/08, 21-29 November 2008 and December (arrival: 4th) to February 2009/10, but not in 2010/11 (Dutch Montagu’s Harrier Foundation unpubl.). Numbers four times greater than C. macrourus (65 vs. 16) along road transects in northern Cameroon in the 1970s (Thiollay 2001). However, C. pygargus comprised 59% of combined numbers in northern Nigeria in 1968-73 (Thiollay 1977),
b
OCT SCT.' DEC JAN FEB f.WR APR
Figure 25. Age and sex composition of (a) Pallid Circus macrourus ( n = 564 birds) and (b) Montagu's Harriers C. pygargus (n = 805) wintering in northern Cameroon in October-April. Birds were recorded throughout the study area in 2005-10.
Composition par age et sexe des (a) Busards pales Circus macrourus [n - 564 individus) et (b) Busards cendres C. pygargus (n = 805) hivernant au nord du Cameroun en octobre-avril. Les oiseaux ont ete recenses sur route la zone d’etude en 2005-10.
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which is comparable to the proportion along road transects in northern Cameroon in 2007-10 (67% pygargus\ n = 168). Other reports from Waza NP probably over-estimated relative abundance of pygargus: up to 15 daily vs. only two macrourus in December 1990 (Robertson 1992) and 20 daily vs. four macrounis in November 1993 (Sorensen et al. 1996). Southernmost record: juvenile on 24 December 2008 south of Mbe (07°49’N). Of 808 birds aged and / or sexed in 2005-10, 20% were adult females, 42% adult males and 38% juveniles; males consistently commoner than females throughout the dry season (Fig. 25b). Of those juveniles sexed (n = 153), 52% were males and 48% females. Pellet analysis reveals that prey comprises mainly grasshoppers, but also reptiles, birds and rodents (Buij et al. 2012). First arrival of juveniles: 11 October 2008, Waza NP (one). Latest dates for juveniles (all single males): 6 May 2007 and 25 May 2009, Waza NP, and 30 May 2010, near Maroua. Earliest and latest records of adults: females on 15 November 2007, Waza NP, and 15 April 2007, near Maroua; males on 20 October 2007 and 2 April 2006, both in Waza NP. No wet-season records though known to over-summer (Thiollay 1977). West African floodplains are important wintering grounds (Thiollay 1977), and females are attracted to dry rice fields but embankment of the Logone River has probably negatively impacted foraging conditions especially for males (Buij et al. 2012). Abundance in 1973-2000 similar (Thiollay 2001), but declined further west during approximately same period (Thiollay 2006).
Shikra Accipiter badius
Intra-African migrant. Observed year-round at all latitudes but movements probably most evident north and south of the study area (Elgood et al. 1973, Thiollay 1978b). Commonest in the Benoue Valley, where mean dry-season abundance 2.4 birds / 100 km, and in wet season 2.1 birds / 100 km. More commonly seen during rains (May-August) in the inundation zone (wet-season abundance: 0.6 birds / 100 km, dry season: 0.3 birds / 100 km) and Sudan zone (1.0 bird / 100 km vs. 0.3 birds / 100 km in dry season), indicating an influx from the south. Breeds in the Benoue Valley during the dry season, where courtship, mating and three nests with one, two and two eggs, respectively, in January-February.
Also breeds in May-July in the Far North Region, where fledglings recorded in July- August. Five nests in the centre of large towns (e.g. Maroua) during the rains. These observations support the theory that the region’s Shikras have an extended breeding season covering both seasons (Elgood et al. 1973): some move north with the rains and breed when the rains start in the north, whereas others breed at more southerly latitudes in the dry season. Individuals caught agamas and skinks on and near houses in Maroua, Figuil and Waza. Adults and juveniles seen foraging together on alate termites, ants and grasshoppers in June-July in the Far North Region.
Levant Sparrowhawk Accipiter brevipes
Rare Palearctic migrant. Two adult females, circling near Poli and over Benoue NP on 14 and 15 April 2010, were identified by their dark brown upperparts, densely barred rusty brown underparts including lower belly (darker than Shikra), rather narrow ‘arm’ and pointed ‘hand’ compared to Shikra, with dark cheeks and dark iris of one female seen clearly. A juvenile near Guider on 23 April 2010 and another at the entrance to Bouba Ndjida NP on 17 April 2010 were also tentatively identified as this species. A male claimed from Waza NP in October 1992 (Skeen 1993) and another tentatively identified there in January / February 2000 (Thiollay 2001). Other published records in the region: Niger, 19 February and 27 May (Thiollay 1977).
Red-thighed Sparrowhawk Accipiter erythropus Rare sedentary Accipiter. One seen at close range in typical AccipiterAdkz flight 5 m above the ground, on 27 December 2008 in open woodland near a large seasonal river within Bouba Ndjida NP. Northernmost record in Cameroon, the nearest being from the Bamenda Highlands (Louette 1981), but reported to nearly 10°N in Nigeria (Elgood et al. 1994). In Ghana occurs in the forest zone but is especially well represented in the forest / savanna transition zone, north to 08°-08°30’N, mainly in riparian forest (F. Dowsett-Lemaire in litt. 2013).
Ovambo Sparrowhawk Accipiter ovampensis Probably sedentary. Five adults seen, all in the Benoue Valley in February-June, coinciding with the breeding season (Mills et al. 2003) when the
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Figure 26. Adult Ovambo Sparrowhawk Accipiter ovampensis circling with prey, near Poli, Cameroon, 8 March 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Epervier de fOvampo Accipiter ovampensis avec une proie pres de Poli, Cameroun, 8 mars 2008 (Ralph Buij)
species is perhaps more conspicuous. Records as follows: one drinking in the Benoue River on 14 February 2007; one circling over savanna woodland near Tchollire on 13 May 2007; a dark morph r.60 km south of Banda on 7 March 2008 (catching a swallow Hirundo sp. and subsequently harassed by a Fox Kestrel Falco alopex) ; one in flight with prey east of Poli on 8 March 2008 (indicative of breeding; Fig. 26); and one r.30 km north of Banda on 24 June 2008. Previous records include a pair nest building in Benoue NP in March 2003 (Mills et al. 2003), and a specimen from Poli, dated September 1936 (Louette 1981). Records considered doubtful by us include one in Kalamaloue NP in April-May 1992 (Scholte et al. 1999) and two near Yagoua in 2000 (Thiollay 2001).
African Fish Eagle Haliaeetus vocifer Sedentary. Most frequent along large rivers in the Benoue Valley, where mean 0.3 birds / 100 km along road transects under-estimates abundance along rivers; a nest was occupied during the dry season in 2008-10 near the Benoue River c.30 km north-west of Tchollire. Most records in the Far North Region were inside Waza NP, where two pairs were attending nests in December- May and juveniles and subadults were present in April-June 2007-09. Subadult and juvenile near Kousseri and Double (July), probably reflecting dispersal from Waza NP, and an adult near Maga (December), but relatively few outside national parks (Fig. 6). A lack of large trees may explain its rarity near Lake Maga (Thiollay 2001). Has declined significantly outside protected areas in
the Sudan and Sahel zones of central West Africa since the 1970s (Thiollay 2006), when declines were already apparent (Thiollay 1977). Thiollay (2001) observed 48 individuals on 466 km of road transects, i.e. 10.3 birds / 100 km, in northern Cameroon’s inundation zone (Waza NP, Mora-Waza, Pousse-Yagoua) during the dry season of 1973 vs. a drv-season abundance of
j
1.0 bird / 100 km in the same area in 2000 (January-February); abundance on the same transects in 2007-08 (January-February) was 1.6 birds / 100 km, suggesting numbers remained stable in 2000-08 but at a much lower level compared to 1973. Throughout, but notably also within Waza NP, pairs are under threat from overfishing of waterholes by local communities, as well as increased disturbance at nest sites and contamination of water sources {cf African Harrier Hawk Polyboroides typus).
Black Kite Milvus migrans
Common to locally abundant intra-Africa migrant (M. m. parasitus , Yellow-billed Kite), throughout the Far North Region but south of Garoua only in small numbers in cultivated habitats, villages and towns (e.g. Ngaoundere). Although it remains common today, a significant decline was noted between 1973 and 2000 in northern Cameroon (Thiollay 2001). A small number of Palearctic Black Kites (nominate migrans , <1% of total numbers) was identified, November-April, mostly in the inundation zone; possibly under¬ recorded due to difficulties in distinguishing between races. Relative abundance highest during the dry season in the inundation zone, when 108 birds / 100 km, but a mean 43 birds / 100 km in the wet season, when most abundant on the partially flooded grasslands north of Waza NP (166-386 birds / 100 km in Julv-September between Waza and Kousseri). During the dry and early wet season (October-July), which coincides with the breeding season in the inundation zone, more commonly associated with dry, protected woodlands, with sufficient nest-site availability, than cultivated grasslands, rice crops or flooded grasslands (Buij & Croes 2013), although large groups of non-breeders may forage over burnt rice fields and floodplains. Few remain in the Sudan zone in August-September, and the Benoue Valley is completely vacated in May-September, indicating northwards movement with the rains
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into the Sahel as previously described (Elgood et al. 1973, Thiollay 1977). Two large roosts with several hundred birds each in Waza NP and north of Lake Maga, December-February, and 2-3 roosts with several tens north of Waza in August- September. Exploits alate termites and ants in foraging groups of 200-300 birds at the start of the rains in May-June in the inundation zone, insects and small vertebrates in October-January at fires, meat scraps at slaughterhouses (Mokolo, Maroua, Ngaoundere, Garoua) and fish remains at markets (Maga). Breeds in dry woodlands within and (less commonly) around Waza NP in March-July (one occupied nest per 6.7 km2 in 2009/10), but breeding may start earlier; one nest with two eggs on 2 May 2009 in Waza NP, another with two eggs there on 27 May 2010 and two nests with one 4-5 week old-nestling each, 10 and 20 May 2009. Nests were lined with plastic bags, cloth and pieces of dry livestock skin.
Grasshopper Buzzard Butastur rufipennis
Intra- African migrant, between c.08°30 and 12°N (Thiollay 1977). Commonest raptor in northern Cameroon after Black Kite and Hooded Vulture (Buij et al. 2013b), with 29.6 birds / 100 km in the dry season and 36.4 birds / 100 km during the rains in the inundation zone, where it comprises 9% and 24% of the raptors in the dry and wet seasons, respectively (Buij et al. 2013b). Vacates the Benoue Valley from April (dry-season abundance: 15.3 birds / 100 km), although some linger until June, when five were observed; none in July, when the entire population has moved north. Breeds in high densities at the start of the rains, in April-July, in Sclerocarya birrea woodland inside (mean nest density: 3.3 nests / km2) and around Waza NP (2.4 nests / km2; Buij et al. 20 1 3e); between October-July, more strongly associated with dry woodlands inside and outside Waza NP than flooded grasslands or rice fields (Buij & Croes 2013), because nest site and terrestrial prey availability are comparatively high in woodlands. Soon after breeding, the entire population moves north into the Sahel (July— September). Returns south in October-November with decreasing vegetation cover due to fires and grazing, which improves prey accessibility (Thiollay & Clobert 1990), south to the forest zone, but observed in the inundation zone until January. Feeds on reptiles, insects, rodents, birds,
amphibians and arachnids during the breeding season (Buij et al. 2013d). Insects comprise mainly (large) grasshoppers: of 118 pellets examined, 25% contained remains of large-bodied bird locusts Ornithacris cavroisi. Non-breeding diet consists mainly of grasshoppers, alate termites and other insects, with one carrying a lizard on 2 May 2008 in Benoue NP. Nest success at a sample of 244 nests in 2009-10 was comparable between woodlands of Waza NP and surrounding cultivated dry woodlands, suggesting Grasshopper Buzzards cope well with habitat modification (Buij et al. 20 1 3e). However, loss of tree and grass cover in important breeding areas, possibly in addition to changing rainfall patterns, may threaten future productivity, and nestling condition is negatively affected by anthropogenic land use (Buij et al. 2013d). During the non-breeding season, appears to benefit from disturbance regimes (cultivation, fires, grass-cutting) that improve prey availability. Inner primary moult in breeding adult females noted in June-July, in males probably later, indicating that birds shed flight feathers during migration.
Red-necked Buzzard Buteo auguralis Intra-African migrant. Breeds during the dry season in the Benoue Valley (2.5 birds / 100 km) and Sudan zones (1.1 birds / 100 km), often in well-wooded areas, on rocky hills but also in woodland on undulating hills (Benoue NP). Entire population moves north with the rains, when the highest mean abundance is in the Sudan zone (4.3 birds / 100 km). During this influx, abundance increases in the inundation zone from 0.4 birds / 100 km in the dry season (none in January-April) to 1.4 birds / 100 km in the wet season, north to Kousseri, with numbers peaking in June-September (majority juveniles / subadults). None in the Benoue Valley in July-September. These movements north with the rains are similar to those previously described from Nigeria (Elgood et al. 1973). Diet in the inundation zone lizards, rodents, eggs (e.g. of Grasshopper Buzzard: Buij et al. 20 1 3e), nestlings and wild figs. Juveniles moulting inner primaries and rectrices in April.
Common Buzzard Buteo buteo
Rare Palearctic migrant. Singles of race vulpinus
between Waza and Kousseri on 23 December
Raptors in northern Cameroon: Buij & Croes
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Figure 27 ’. Juvenile Common Buzzard Buteo buteo vulpinus , Waza National Park, Cameroon, 17 October 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Buse variable Buteo buteo vulpinus juvenile, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 17 octobre 2010 (Ralph Buij)
2007 (not aged) and 10 October 2008 (juvenile), and a juvenile flew over a rocky outcrop just west of Waza village on 17 October 2010 (Fig. 27). Finely barred whitish secondaries and rufous body and tail in two birds; juveniles have indistinct dark trailing edge to wings. Smaller than Long-legged Buzzard B. rufinus , with more rapid flight action, relatively thickset body and shorter wings, lacking the contrasting dark carpal patch of most adult Long-legged Buzzards. Claimed on at least three previous occasions in Cameroon (Holyoak & Seddon 1990, Slabbekoorn & Ellers 1999, Bobo & Languy 2000), but none documented.
Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus Regular Palearctic migrant to the Waza-Logone floodplains, November- April, south to Maroua. Twenty to 30 records each dry season, most in rice fields near Maga (Buij & Croes 2013), where up to five within 2-knT area in December-March (Fig. 28), catching rodents on at least four occasions. At least three dark morphs characteristic of B. r. rufinus observed near Maga. One photographed and individually recognisable adult returned three consecutive winters (2008-10) to an area of sorghum cultivation east of Maroua (Fig. 29), where it hunted rodents (two captures seen) and grasshoppers, often from electricity pylons (earliest and latest dates: 9 November, 2 April). Latest records: one on 20 April 2008 in Waza NP and another on 14 April 2006 just north of Maroua. Previously recorded in the inundation zone by Thiollay in 1973 (11 individuals) and 2000 (seven, three near Maga; Thiollay 2001), but only five in total in the 1990s (Sorensen et al. 1996, Scholte et al. 1999) suggest it may have been overlooked; also a frequent migrant further
Figure 28 (top). Juvenile Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus , Maga, Cameroon, 25 December 2006 (Ralph Buij)
Buse feroce Buteo rufinus juvenile, Maga, Cameroun,
25 decembre 2006 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 29 (bottom). Adult Long-legged Buzzard Buteo rufinus , near Maroua, Cameroon, 9 January 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Buse feroce Buteo rufinus adulte, pres de Maroua, Cameroun, 9 janvier 2008 (Ralph Buij)
north in the Lake Chad Basin (Gustafsson et al. 2003).
Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni Palearctic migrant. Thirty-one records, most in the inundation zone in and north of Waza NP in November-February. Southernmost: one on 1 1 November 2008 in a grassland with sorghum fields 4 km north-east of Maroua and three there on 21 November 2009. The contribution of naumanni to overall kestrel numbers appears to have declined in 2007-10: 9% naumanni vs. 91% tinnunculus (n = 192; Buij 2013), whereas 22.5% were naumanni of 80 well-identified kestrels
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Raptors in northern Cameroon : Buij & Croes
in 1973 (Thiollay 2001). Several in January / February 2000 (Thiollay 2001), but just three published records in and around Waza NP in the 1990s, all in November-January (Sorensen et al. 1996, Scholte et al. 1999), which might also reflect identilication problems. The occurrence of at least several tens in the February / April 1973 counts compared to just 31 during five years of counts suggests that the species has declined considerably in northern Cameroon. However, larger numbers have fairly recently been reported further north, e.g. 60 on 14 April 1999 near Lake Chad in north-east Nigeria (Gustafsson et al. 2003).
Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus Palearctic migrant (A. t. tinnunculus) and resident breeder (A. t. rufescens). Ten times more numerous than A naumanni. Commonest in the inundation zone, where A. t. tinnunculus occurred at a mean abundance of 0.3 birds / 100 km in October, 4.0 in November, 3.4 in December, 7.6 in January, 7.4 in February, 6.8 in March and 1.6 in April. Thiollay (2001) recorded significantly lower kestrel numbers in January-February 2000 compared to February 1973 in northern Cameroon, but Lesser Kestrels may have comprised a large proportion of earlier counts. First recorded arrival on 1 1 October 2008, involving one just south of Kousseri. Palearctic birds occurred in farmland and grassland, often catching grasshoppers and drinking at Waza’s waterholes in April. The resident subspecies rufescens (paired adults and juveniles) was recorded year-round in mountainous terrain or near isolated rocky outcrops (38 records), most commonly in higher parts of the Mandara Mountains (rocky escarpment with short grass and bushland; >900 m above sea level), where it perched on electricity poles in small villages (Rhumsiki); others south of Maroua, near Waza NP and Poli. A. t. rufescens was found breeding in March-June in Nigeria (Elgood et al. 1973).
Fox Kestrel Falco alopex
Sedentary. Common in broken terrain, breeding in loose colonies in the Mandara Mountains and in isolated pairs on rocky outcrops elsewhere; also on buildings (e.g. Garoua airport). Commonest in the Sudan zone, where mean 8.4 birds / 100 km and the commonest raptor after Hooded
Figure 30 (top). Fledgling Fox Kestrel Falco alopex several hours after its first flight, Waza National Park, Cameroon, 10 June 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Jeune Crecerelle renard Falco alopex quelques heures apres son premier vol, Parc National de Waza, Cameroun, 10 juin 2010 (Ralph Buij)
Figure 31 (bottom). Adult Fox Kestrel Falco alopex eating termites in flight, Mandara Mountains, Cameroon, 10 July 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Crecerelle renard Falco alopex adulte mangeant des termites en vol, Monts Mandara, Cameroun, 10 juillet 2008 (Ralph Buij)
Vulture at both seasons; less common in the Benoue Valley south to small rocky outcrops just outside Ngaoundere (but also recorded further south: Borrow & Demey 2001). Hunts in a variety of open habitats, including short grassland, shrubland, cultivated fields, at the edge of or in towns (e.g. Tchollire), but not in woodland in the Benoue Valley; never far from rocky terrain. Large groups gather in the evening near Rhumsiki to hawk insects; also in small groups hunting termite alates after rain (Fig. 31) and roosts on volcanic peaks, e.g. at least 32 in July 2009 and 43 in August 2008. In the dry season, when
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some (probably mostly non-breeders) disperse to lower areas (cf Thiollay 1978b), recorded in groups of up to 22 (more commonly <10) at fires, taking grasshoppers and other fleeing insects (a gathering