Uganda - 2018 part 2

Uganda is a relatively small country and our three main sites are to the north of Lake Albert (Budongo and Nile Safari in Murchison) and to the south of the Lake (Sunbird Hill adjacent to Kibale), as you can see from the map all in the far west of the country.

Malcolm first ringed at Nile Safari in 1996. Great to catch a White-browed Robin-Chat that was ringed 7 years ago.
 

The Robin-chat above was perhaps our most significant retrap of the c30 recaptures during the trip.


Species ringed during the trip November 2018

 

LITTLE GREENBUL	34
WHITE THROATED GREENBUL	9
SPECTACLED WEAVER	3
YELLOW-STREAKED GREENBUL	2
RED-BILLED FIREFINCH	6
WILLOW WARBLER	10
GREEN TWINSPOT	5
BUFF-BELLIED WARBLER	2
SPECKLED MOUSEBIRD	2
RED-TAILED ANT-THRUSH	1
WHITE-BROWED ROBIN-CHAT	2
BROWN-CHESTED ALETHE	4
FIRE-CRESTED ALETHE	6
PYGMY KINGFISHER	13
DARK-CAPPED BULBUL	15
BLACK-HEADED GONOLEK	2
AFRICAN THRUSH	5
RED-TAILED BRISTLEBILL	2
PUVEL'S ILLADOPSIS	2
BROWN-EARED WOODPECKER	1
BROWN-CROWNED TCHAGRA	2
KLASS'S CUCKOO	2
BUFF-SPOTTED WOODPECKER	1
SNOWY-HEADED ROBIN-CHAT	3
NARINA'S TROGON	1
WESTERN NICATOR	1
VEILLOT'S BLACK WEAVER	6
WHITE-BROWED COUCAL	3
SCARLET-CHESTED SUNBIRD	5
GREEN-HEADED SUNBIRD	9
BRIMSTONE CANARY	1
RED-BELLIED FLYCATCHER	5
FOREST ROBIN	4
RED-THROATED BEE-EATER	19
GABON NIGHTJAR	1
BROWN ILLADOPSIS	2
GREEN HYLIA	4
BROWN TWINSPOT	3
REED WARBLER	6
AFRICAN PARADISE FLYCATCHER	1
GREEN-WINGED PYTILLA	1
GREY-THROATED FLYCATCHER	1
CARDINAL QUELEA	2
BROWN-THROATED WATTLE-EYE	2
YELLOW-RUMPED TINKERBIRD	2
RED-WINGED GREY WARBLER	1
LITTLE WEAVER	1
RATTLING CISTICOLA	2
OLIVE SUNBIRD	4
BRONZE SUNBIRD	5
WHITE-CHINNED PRINIA	7
GREEN CROMBEC	4
BLACK-BILLED WOOD-DOVE	1
SHIKRA	1
YELLOW-BILLED BARBET	1
TAMBOURINE DOVE	3
AFRICAN FIREFINCH	1
BLACK-CHEEKED WAXBILL	1
COPPER SUNBIRD	1
AFRICAN BLUE FLYCATCHER	1
BLACK-NECKED WEAVER	4
SLENDER-BILLED GREENBUL	1
RED-HEADED BLUEBILL	2
TORO OLIVE GREENBUL	1
GREY-HEADED NEGRETA	7
BLUE-SHOULDERED ROBIN-CHAT	1
COMPACT WEAVER	1
YELLOW WHITE-EYE	1
BROWN-BACKED SCRUB ROBIN	1
COMMON WAXBILL	1
BRONZE MANNIKIN	1
BLUE-SPOTTED WOOD-DOVE	1
BARN SWALLOW	3
STEPPE BUZZARD	1
GREY KESTREL	2
DARK CHANTING GOSHAWK	1
LONG-CRESTED EAGLE	1
LIZARD BUZZARD	2
WESTERN BANDED SNAKE-EAGLE	1
Total new birds ringed	363

Reed Warblers, Willow Warblers and Barn Swallows were the Palearctic migrant species caught.
Always interesting to see birds in moult - especially a species whose wing moult we don't see at home.

Reed Warbler in wing moult.

Barn Swallow in wing and body moult.

The smaller ring sizes we use in Africa, the Porzana range supplemented with rings sourced elsewhere

 A good start at Sunbird Hill involved 90 birds including 5 species of  Greenbul !
 We had some retraps and a few new species for me, here a Toro Olive Greenbul.

Greenbul identification  in the hand, tricky for visiting birders !

Sunbird Hill is adjacent to Kibale Forest NP. This is Chimpanzee and Elephant forest, with the Gorillas a little way further into the mountains. We were based here for our final four days. Plenty of variety in the forest here...very different species from the lower drier grassland and scrub of  Murchison.

Bronze Sunbird - the largest Sunbird in the area and they loved feeding on the flowers around the camp.

 African Blue Flycatcher

This Narina Trogon caused a stir, not only a great species to see, but caused Malcolm to run when he saw the bird in a net !

This juvenile Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat was a surprise too. They breed in the nearby Kibale NP but this juvenile providing breeding evidence for breeding at Sunbird Hill.

This Brown-backed Scrub Robin a highlight too.

Yellow White-eye, common in the mixed flocks.

Guides from the locality and Kibale NP always showed fascination and a hunger to learn.

Julia Lloyd is developing Sunbird Hill as a base camp for further studies. A couple of the locals have limited ringing experience, most are excellent local guides, both for birds and Chimpanzee tracking.

Malcolm is planning further ringing training visits with the objective of Sunbird Hill becoming a regular ringing site with local trained staff becoming part of the East Africa Ringing Scheme.

Julia is  developing accommodation and facilities to encourage visiting by other birding and ringing parties.

The communal area

The site has recently taken part in the Uganda Big Day - the Sunbird Hill team recording 152 species, the highest and winning total for a non National Park based team

See these links for  more about  Sunbird Hill     
                            and    Diary of a Muzungu


A couple of fine biting beaks, Yellow-billed Barbet - the largest of the Barbets and Tinkerbirds we caught.

Compact Weaver, of the c100 species captured the only species Malcolm hadn't ringed.

The  trip focused on the 4 ringing sites and we did have some opportunity for raptors.

This an adult Long-crested Eagle caught on an afternoon break whilst at Sunbird Hill

Many thanks to all on the trip, Graeme Dunlop provided the ringing totals above, photos from Graeme, Natasha, Roly, Malcolm or myself. Malcolm and Ambrose provided the local expertise and the driving.
Another stunning visit to Africa, many animals and birds seen, great hospitality from our hosts and  fun with all the enthusiastic guides, local trainees and staff from the Uganda Wildlife Authority, Nature Uganda and staff from Sunbird Hill Kibale Forest Edge.

Dawn at Nile Safari...... with the next team we visit South Africa with Malcolm in February

Uganda - 2018

Wendy, Dawn and I made a very successful ringing trip to Uganda 6 years ago and experienced a once in a life time visit to see the Mountain Gorillas.
See several posts about the trip in February 2012

Shoebill - photo Graeme Dunlop

I have just returned from another ringing based visit with Malcolm Wilson of African Affinity.
Team members also included Graeme Dunlop, Natasha Stonestreet  from the Cuckmere Haven RG, along with their birding guest Roly Hayes, and our local guide and trainee ringer Ambrose. One objective of this trip was  to introduce ringing and some training of local staff, and we also birded along the Nile to help assess wildlife guides.

A visit during "our northern winter" gives us the opportunities to see our summer migrants on their wintering grounds. Below a Barn Swallow in moult, a stage we don't see in the UK.

Reed Warblers too - more photos in a following post. - as there will be on most subjects that follow.

On these trips we have the opportunity to use different catching methods. In Africa we use bal chatri traps to catch raptors, here a Western Banded Snake-Eagle being photographed as part of wing moult and ageing study.

On arrival we stayed as is customary at Kathy's magic garden in Kampala, a chance to acclimatise and a first introduction to African bird families. Here a Black-headed Gonolek one of the vocal garden birds.

A male Olive-bellied Sunbird, one of  14 Sunbird species that visit the garden

Coucals are related to Cuckoos and they are nice large birds for ringers new to Africa. You are more likely to handle larger birds in Africa than at home in general site ringing. These are White-browed Coucals.

We moved on from Kathy's after two days to one of our major study sites - Budongo Forest.
As well as continuing to monitor species here we had three days of introduction and in some cases developing existing training with staff of the Uganda Wildlife Authority, Nature Uganda and a few students eg Judith Mirembe who is doing her PhD studying aspects of Shoebill biology.

The Budongo team .....

At Kaniyo Pabidi we had the chance to study Puvel's Illiadopsis at it's only known site in Uganda

This is a west / central African species and is one several species whose distribution enter east Africa only in this region of Uganda.

Interested discussion and learning with these two species, the lower bird is a Red-tailed Ant-thrush, the upper bird Rufous Flycatcher-Thrush.

Very similar plumages in these individuals and much discussion in separation of the species in hand, including the value of measuring the tarsus width.

Moving north...
The mighty Murchison Falls...and Rock Pratincoles.

On our afternoon travels we did take the opportunity to ring some Red-throated Bee-eaters at one of several roadside colonies

Here Lilian from Nature Uganda processing a Red-throated Bee-eater.

Our next site was again a return visit for me to Nile Safari Lodge. Here we were joined with guides and staff mainly from Wild Frontiers, to watch us ring over the three days and for Malcolm to assess their guiding from boats on the Nile.

A taste of birds here - again more to follow....

Brown-throated Wattleye, named after the plumage of the female as the plumage of the males in these related species are too similar.

I plan to post more photos and further discussion soon.

Out on the hills

Wind is really hampering opportunities to open mist nets but at least it is good for getting our winter lamping underway.

There aren't many birds roosting on our study fields yet but we have ringed some Woodcock, Snipe, Golden Plover, Fieldfare and the first Lapwing for several years.
For anyone not familiar with this work, we track our route each night and mark with gps where each Woodcock is caught. It is always fascinating how a Woodcock can return to the same field after migrating to Russia and back. This is a typical walk of about 3km, varying from visit to visit depending on where sheep, foxes or Badgers are and whether the field has been cultivated that year instead of being left to pasture. Several of our best fields have either been resown with grass or planted with winter beets so no good for finding roosting birds at the moment.

The tracker we use also includes altitude which shows that the fields above aren't flat at all so mean walking uphill a fair amount and it feels like a good workout. Only 130 calories apparently though so the hot chocolate and cake afterwards isn't really justified!

Because of the need to be as quiet as possible it isn't really a group activity but we try to take out at least one trainee to learn the technique and experience species not caught in mist nets.

Note Andrew obeying the strict rule of non rustling clothing!

We had hoped to be able to catch a lot of Blue Tits this November for a new national BTO project looking at variation in moult in juvenile Blue Tits. Hopefully the next 10 days will be a bit less windy to give us a chance but we have made a start with a few.

The project is described in the latest issue of Lifecycle Autumn 2018

Meanwhile, Richard is looking at moult in rather larger birds and in warmer weather. He is ringing in Uganda with African Affinity.

Here, looking at primary moult to age a Western Banded Snake-Eagle.

Charlie is continuing to catch Redwings in short sessions before the wind picks up each morning. He caught a very dark bird this week with a wing of 124mm which always raise the possibility of being a different subspecies.There are two subspecies of Redwing - those that we normally see in winter are Turdus iliacus iliacus which breed in Eurasia while the other subspecies is Turdus iliacus coburni that breeds in Iceland and the Faroe Islands. The coburni birds are marginally larger and noticeably darker in their plumage.

Charlies comparison photos with the typical pale bird on the left and the darker bird on the right

Some useful comparison pictures are on Peter Alker's blog post about Redwings "Two in a bush"

October summary

The highlight of October was the return of Redwings.

The first this year was caught on the Teifi Marsh on the 15th October. The following morning, Charlie also caught one at his Llanfynydd site and noted the consistency of the usual dates of his first each autumn.
15/10/2015
15/10/2016
17/10/2017
16/10/2018
It has been a good year for them with a total of 200 for Charlie so far. His sites at Fygyn Common and Llanfynydd have provided good variety and experience for our trainees in a generally quite quiet month. 506 birds processed in the month at the two sites.

When weather has allowed we have been ringing on the Teifi Marsh but with key members of the group busy with other things the number of sessions has been limited.  The expected mix of Goldcrests, Chiffchaffs, Thrushes, decreasing numbers of Blackcaps and a variety of Tits. Amongst the birds that had been ringed in previous years was a Blue Tit ringed in 2011.

According to BTO birdfacts the average lifespan of a Blue Tit is only 3 years so this one 7 years is doing well.
The best news of the autumn though is that after not catching, seeing or hearing any Cetti's Warblers on the Teifi Marsh throughout the breeding season we have now ringed 5 compared with 41 last year  and a retrap from last May 2017.  What we don't know is whether our birds died in the freezing weather in April or moved away. Hopefully we will start to catch more of our previously ringed birds once the unsettled weather passes and we can open some nets again.


Recent news of several recoveries of our birds, the first three on their first migration south

ABE1835 Reed Warbler ringed Teifi Marsh 17/09/18 re-encountered Oxwich Marsh 7/10/18
                  67km 20days  

AED8273 Sedge Warbler ringed Teifi Marsh 15/07/18 re-encountered Uskmouth 04/08/18
                   131km 20days

KJL620 Chiffchaff ringed Teifi Marsh 12/08/18 re-encountered Durlston Country Park 30/09/18
                  251km 49 days

AHA4081 Blue Tit ringed Fygyn Common 18/10/17 re-encountered nr Rhandirmwyn 24/05/2018
                 26km 218 days

We have previously exchanged birds with this site adjacent to Dinas RSPB when a Great Tit ringed in a nest box there in 2015 was caught in St Dogmaels  137 days later  
      
S574122 Goldfinch ringed Llanfynydd 03/07/2017 re-encountered Strad, nr Stroud 30/09/2018
                134 km  484 days

November has started with wind and rain. We have lots of plans and enthusiasm but need the weather to settle. Rock Pipits number have increased in the estuary so we will again be using spring traps on the shore. Woodcock are returning so our long term monitoring of those and other species that roost on sheep pasture will start again.