11th & 12th July - Bwindi Impenetrable Forest
11th July
Moving on again! Today we moved south again eventually passing through hilly country on our way to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. We did log birds seen en route but most birding was done on the road in Bwindi once we had got there. Notable en-route birds during a ‘bush toilet’ stop on a hillside were spotted by Granger. The first was a Red-throated Wryneck initially sitting on a dead branch, and then dropping down to feed in longish grass. The second was a Red-naped Lark, a large chunky lark feeding on open ground with a few African Pipits, and then unexpectedly, a male Southern Red Bishop. We stopped for our picnic on the edge of a very small village in the hills in the shade of a tree by their quaint church. We aroused much curiosity by passing children, and were delighted when a local man went into the church and brought out a couple of benches for us to sit on. A local family watched us with interest and when we had finished we gave them the excess food from our generous picnics. A daughter of the family was intrigued by the little paper carrier bags we had been given for our lunch. She was delighted to receive a few empty ones when we had finished. Eventually after many more hills and valleys we reached our destination – the intriguingly named Ride for a Woman lodge. It’s a long story but basically Ride for a Woman was set up by a husband and wife from the local village of Buhoma. It began by hiring out bikes for tourists, then when repairs were needed, training women to do the repairs, then some Aussie tourists offered to start a training program for sewing and so it expanded. Basically the idea was to provide means for local women to be able to earn some money. The accommodation is in Mwepesa House and provides 16 beds in comfortable rooms, with excellent food being served in an adjacent dining area.
Moving on again! Today we moved south again eventually passing through hilly country on our way to Bwindi Impenetrable Forest National Park. We did log birds seen en route but most birding was done on the road in Bwindi once we had got there. Notable en-route birds during a ‘bush toilet’ stop on a hillside were spotted by Granger. The first was a Red-throated Wryneck initially sitting on a dead branch, and then dropping down to feed in longish grass. The second was a Red-naped Lark, a large chunky lark feeding on open ground with a few African Pipits, and then unexpectedly, a male Southern Red Bishop. We stopped for our picnic on the edge of a very small village in the hills in the shade of a tree by their quaint church. We aroused much curiosity by passing children, and were delighted when a local man went into the church and brought out a couple of benches for us to sit on. A local family watched us with interest and when we had finished we gave them the excess food from our generous picnics. A daughter of the family was intrigued by the little paper carrier bags we had been given for our lunch. She was delighted to receive a few empty ones when we had finished. Eventually after many more hills and valleys we reached our destination – the intriguingly named Ride for a Woman lodge. It’s a long story but basically Ride for a Woman was set up by a husband and wife from the local village of Buhoma. It began by hiring out bikes for tourists, then when repairs were needed, training women to do the repairs, then some Aussie tourists offered to start a training program for sewing and so it expanded. Basically the idea was to provide means for local women to be able to earn some money. The accommodation is in Mwepesa House and provides 16 beds in comfortable rooms, with excellent food being served in an adjacent dining area.
Once settled in we birded along a track that ran into the forest from right by the lodge, accompanied by a local guide. Before we set off, a Mackinnon’s Shrike perched obligingly on a fence by our cabins. The first good forest bird was a Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater, a specialist of high forests, followed closely by Bocage’s Bushshrike, a forest edge canopy species. Moving on to smaller birds, a Pink-footed Puffback was a good find, and still on a shrike-type theme, Lühder’s Bushshrike. Both African Blue and White-tailed Blue Flycatchers showed, allowing comparison, and a Black-throated Apalis also showed very well. We continued to discover new birds, with Grey-winged and Red-capped Robin-chats soon added to the list, plus Green-throated Sunbird, Northern Double-collared Sunbird, Black- necked Weaver, and Brown-capped Weaver acting just like a colourful Nuthatch. It had been a pretty good afternoon as we got back to the lodge for the usual checklist and evening meal.
12th July
High forest birding today so we set off along the track with the local guide and Abia. Herbert would join us later. The plan was to bird along the track all day, during which we logged 76 species. Three new raptors were added – a high circling Crowned Eagle, Cassin’s Hawk-eagle and African Goshawk. Black-billed Turaco was good to see, although a trifle shy, as was Bar-tailed Trogon, which we eventually got when I spotted its bright red breast when scanning the dense trees. Next up was a sought after species – Black Bee-eater – picked out by our guide on the top of a tall dead tree – a high forest specialist. It certainly looked a little incongruous compared to where most of us are used to seeing Bee-eaters. New smaller birds comprised Grey-throated Barbet, Willcock’s Honeyguide, Thick-billed Honeyguide, Tullberg’s Woodpecker, Elliot’s Woodpecker, Many-coloured Bushshrike, Lühder’s Bushshrike, Petit’s Cuckooshrike, Mountain Oriole, Kakamega Greenbul, Ansorge’s Greenbul, Yellow-whiskered Greenbul, Cabani’s Greenbul, Red-tailed Greenbul [we would have struggled with all these look alike greenbuls were it not for our guides’ knowledge of the calls], Red-tailed Bristlebill, Black Sawwing, Red-faced Woodland Warbler [an endemic to the area], Grey Apalis, Black-faced Rufous Warbler, Narrow- tailed Starling, White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher, Chapin’s Flycatcher [a rare and little known flycatcher only known in the Bwindi forest and 1 other location in W Uganda], Equatorial Akalat, Grey-headed Sunbird, Green-headed Sunbird, Blue-throated Brown Sunbird, and Purple-breasted Sunbird. We birded along the track taking a picnic lunch, until around 2:45 p.m. then birded our way back again. Getting images of any of these birds was virtually impossible due to the dense cover and low light, so I concentrated on seeing and enjoying them. We had time for a cuppa in the dining area to relax, then after dinner and the checklist got an early night in preparation for the Gorilla trek tomorrow which we anticipated with a mixture of excitement and trepidation!
High forest birding today so we set off along the track with the local guide and Abia. Herbert would join us later. The plan was to bird along the track all day, during which we logged 76 species. Three new raptors were added – a high circling Crowned Eagle, Cassin’s Hawk-eagle and African Goshawk. Black-billed Turaco was good to see, although a trifle shy, as was Bar-tailed Trogon, which we eventually got when I spotted its bright red breast when scanning the dense trees. Next up was a sought after species – Black Bee-eater – picked out by our guide on the top of a tall dead tree – a high forest specialist. It certainly looked a little incongruous compared to where most of us are used to seeing Bee-eaters. New smaller birds comprised Grey-throated Barbet, Willcock’s Honeyguide, Thick-billed Honeyguide, Tullberg’s Woodpecker, Elliot’s Woodpecker, Many-coloured Bushshrike, Lühder’s Bushshrike, Petit’s Cuckooshrike, Mountain Oriole, Kakamega Greenbul, Ansorge’s Greenbul, Yellow-whiskered Greenbul, Cabani’s Greenbul, Red-tailed Greenbul [we would have struggled with all these look alike greenbuls were it not for our guides’ knowledge of the calls], Red-tailed Bristlebill, Black Sawwing, Red-faced Woodland Warbler [an endemic to the area], Grey Apalis, Black-faced Rufous Warbler, Narrow- tailed Starling, White-eyed Slaty Flycatcher, Chapin’s Flycatcher [a rare and little known flycatcher only known in the Bwindi forest and 1 other location in W Uganda], Equatorial Akalat, Grey-headed Sunbird, Green-headed Sunbird, Blue-throated Brown Sunbird, and Purple-breasted Sunbird. We birded along the track taking a picnic lunch, until around 2:45 p.m. then birded our way back again. Getting images of any of these birds was virtually impossible due to the dense cover and low light, so I concentrated on seeing and enjoying them. We had time for a cuppa in the dining area to relax, then after dinner and the checklist got an early night in preparation for the Gorilla trek tomorrow which we anticipated with a mixture of excitement and trepidation!