15 Days Kenya Coastal Birding Tour

The 15-day Kenya Coastal Birding Tour begins with an early departure from Nairobi, heading southeast toward Amboseli National Park. Along the way, we may stop at Lukenya Hills, just 30 km from Nairobi, to enjoy a first taste of Kenya’s diverse birdlife and perhaps spot some mammals migrating from Nairobi National Park.

As we travel the scenic, bird-rich roads to Amboseli, we’ll make multiple birding stopovers to seek out species such as:

• White-headed Mousebird
• Pygmy Batis
• White-tailed Lark
• Somali Short-toed Lark
• Short-tailed Lark
• Three-banded Courser
• Pale-chanting Goshawk
• Golden Pipit

               Water Thick-knee

Upon arrival at our lodge, enjoy lunch before venturing into the park for an afternoon birding session. Amboseli National Park is one of Kenya’s premier birding destinations, with a rich variety of species thriving alongside impressive wildlife. Keep an eye out for huge herds of Savanna Elephants feeding in the park’s swamps, a truly iconic Amboseli sight.

Birding full day in  Amboseli National Park which is crowned by Mount Kilimanjaro, Africa’s highest peak and the highest free-standing mountain in the world Kilimanjaro has three volcanic cones, Mawenzi, Shira, and Kibo. Mawenzi and Shira are extinct but Kibo, the highest peak, is dormant and could explode again.

The most recent activity was about 200 years ago; the last major eruption was 360,000 years ago. It measures up to 40 kilometers across. The base has an area of about 388,500 hectares. The best views of Mount Kilimanjaro are encountered in Amboseli National Park, early morning before the summit is covered by clouds. Amboseli National Park is one of Kenya’s most popular parks. The name “Amboseli” comes from a Maasai word meaning “salty dust”, and it is one of the best places in Africa to view large herds of elephants up close. Nature lovers can explore five different habitats here ranging from the dried-up bed of Lake Amboseli, wetlands with springs, the savannah, and woodlands. Amboseli National Park is a top birding destination in Kenya, bird species are abundant. Amboseli National Park also hosts a huge number of Elephant herds, with a population of more than 1500 individuals, birdwatching in Amboseli will be confined in the safari vehicle, but there is an observation point inside the park, where alighting from the car is permitted and birds are always plentiful.

After breakfast leave for Taita Hills (Ngangao Forest). The Taita Hills form a green island in the dry bush of southern Kenya. The hills are relatively isolated and therefore a very interesting area for birding. The birdlife is a mix of three distinct zones: the central highlands, the coastal forests, and the northern Tanzanian mountains.

The Taita Hills cover an area of 1000 square kilometers and they form the northernmost part of the Eastern Arc- a term used to describe the forest-capped ancient crystalline mountains of eastern Tanzania and south-east Kenya, which are under the influence of the Indian Ocean climatic pattern and thus encompass anticipated local climates. The mountains are acclaimed in Africa for high concentrations of endemic species of animals and plants.

The Taita hill forests form a green island in the dry bush of southern Kenya. This small rocky outcrop hosts a trove of unique biodiversity, due to several million years of stable, wet climate and complete ecological isolation. Several plants, reptiles, amphibians, invertebrates, and three species of birds are endemic to the Taita Hills namely; Taita Thrush, Taita Apalis, Taita White Eye

Other Taita forest birds;

Lemon Dove, Stripe-cheeked Greenbul, Taita Falcon, Hartlaub’s Turaco, Silvery-cheeked Hornbill, Orange Ground Thrush, Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher, Evergreen Forest Warbler, Yellow-throated Woodland Warbler, Placid Greenbul, Moustached- Green Tinkerbird. Later in the afternoon drive to Tsavo East National Park.

We shall have a full day of birding in the boundless Tsavo East, National Park. The whole day birdwatching tour will be filled up of both bird and mammal highlights as we search for Egyptian, Hooded, White-headed, White-backed, Rüppell’s and Lappet-faced Vultures,  Kori, Buff-crested and White-bellied Bustards, Black-faced and Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse, Somali Courser, the brilliant Golden Pipit, Somali Ostrich, Black-headed Lapwing, Olive and Somali Bee-eaters, Lilac-breasted, Purple and European Rollers, Abyssinian Scimitarbill, Northern Red-billed, and Von der Decken’s Hornbills, Nubian, Bearded and Cardinal Woodpeckers.

Greater and Lesser Honeyguides, D’Arnaud’s and Red and yellow Barbets, Eastern Olivaceous and Barred Warblers, Pink-breasted, Red-winged, Foxy, and Flappet Larks, Chestnut-headed and Chestnut-backed Sparrow-Larks, Rosy-patched Bushshrike, Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin, Yellow-necked Spurfowl, Blue-naped Mousebird, Grey-headed Kingfisher, Slate-colored Boubou, Red-tailed Shrike, Red-fronted and Pale Prinia, Grey Wren-Warbler, Pied Wheatear, wandering family groups of Vulturine Guinea fowl and the impressive Eastern Violet-backed Sunbird among many other incredible dry-country birds. Mammal highlights in the vast Tsavo East National Park may include the maneless Lion, Cheetah, Common Zebra, the odd-looking Gerenuk, Grant’s Gazelle, tiny Kirk’s Dik Dik, and African Cape Buffalo, the specialized Lesser Kudu, massive East African Eland, Waterbuck, Impala, Warthog, and Giraffe. The Tsavo East complex is home to the largest population of African  Red elephants in Kenya and a population of the critically endangered Hirola.

Morning breakfast drive to Arabuko Sokoke Forest via Sala Gate, The road has some interesting bird species too, so we will do birding slowly before checking out of the park at around midday. Bird species notable in Tsavo East include; the Red-winged Lark, Friedmann’s Lark (if it’s wet enough) Vulturine Guineafowl, Red-naped Bushshrike, Golden Pipit, Somali Bee-eater, Somali Courser, Heuglin’s Courser, Quail Plover, Somali Ostrich, Ashy Cisticola, Shelly’s Starling, Golden-breasted Starling, Tsavo Sunbird, Scaly Chatterer, Bare-eyed Thrush, Bronze-winged Courser, Gambaga Flycatcher.

On this day will have an early breakfast and drive to the forest for a morning birding session.

Arabuko Sokoke Reserve covers 420 square kilometers of coastal forest consisting of Brachystegia woodland, dense Cynometra forest, and Afzelia lowland forest that offers some of the finest birding in East Africa. Birding in the forest can be difficult and patience is required to find the shyer forest dwellers.

Species of birds to keep an eye for may include Green Malkoha, Thick-billed Cuckoo, Mombasa Woodpecker, Scaly-throated and Pallid Honeyguides, Fischer’s and Lowland Tiny Greenbuls, the captivating Little Yellow Flycatcher, Black-headed Apalis, Eastern Nicator, Bearded Scrub Robin, Red-tailed Rufous Thrush, Blue-mantled Crested Flycatcher, Pale and Forest Batis, Retz’s and Chestnut-fronted Helmetshrikes, and the gorgeous  Four-colored Bushshrike. Dry trees are preferred perches of many bird species and worth checking for Green Tinkerbirds, White-eared and Green Barbet, and raptors including the Southern Banded Snake Eagle. Flocks of Bohm’s Spinetail and Ethiopian Swallow may be seen soaring overhead while the scarce Forbe’s-Watson’s Swift is another species to watch out for. Along the forest edge, we may find the Fischer’s Turaco, Mangrove Kingfisher, the dazzling Red-throated Twinspot, and the elusive and skulking Scaly Babblers always in small groups, which feed by hopping across the ground.

Spend the morning hours birding in the forest looking for rare birds such as the near-endemic Sokoke Pipit which creep across the forest floor and are hard to see amongst the leaf litter. The elegant East Coast Akalat is a shy undergrowth lurcher and other bird species include the endemic and little-known Kilifi Weaver, fully restricted to the East Coast of Kenya Forest, and the extremely localized Amani Sunbird. In the afternoon with the help of the local guide drive to Cynometra forest and the thickets to search for the tiny Sokoke Scops Owl in their roosting trees. On our way back in the evening, we may see the African Wood Owl feeding on the road, Mammals we hope to see in the Arabuko Sokoke forest include the Blue Monkey, the tiny Blue Duiker, and the Golden-rumped Elephant-Shrew, Caracal, and African Civet.

Mida Creek has wide, healthy beds of seagrass and coral, home to many species of fish and feeding sea turtles, while in the mangroves smaller streams and inlets provide a refuge for crabs and birdlife. Mida Creek is a must-go if you are doing the Kenya Coastal Birding tour due to the huge multitude of waders. Mida is a stopover point for many migratory birds and an essential protected area for their survival. This makes it one of the most important and beautiful natural attractions on the Kenyan coast. Counts of over 6,000 waders have been made on Mida Creek including seven species that are regionally threatened. The mangroves around the edge of the creek are also important roosting places. The populations of Greater and Lesser Sandplover and Crab Plovers at Mida Creek are internationally important. The creek is a significant feeding area for Dimorphic Egrets, Lesser Crested, and Roseate Terns. Common migrant shorebirds here include Sanderling, Curlew Sandpiper, Little Stint, Whimbrel, Grey Plover, and Greater and Lesser Sandplover.

In the afternoon drive to the Arabuko swamp to search for Malindi Pipit, Golden Pipit, Hooded Vulture, and Northern Carmine Bee-eater

This morning the birding tour will visit the Sabaki Estuary River Mouth, an excellent birding site in the Kenya coastal birding circuit. Here in Sabaki Estuary, we will bird in a variety of habitats that include sandbanks, mud banks, dunes, freshwater pools, and marshes at the river mouth. The Sabaki Estuary is Kenya’s second longest river and the state and size of the estuary vary seasonally depending on the water level. Just north and south of the Sabaki River mouth are grassy dunes that conceal permanent or temporary pools of fresh water.

Here we hope to see species like the Sooty, Black-backed, and Grey-headed Gull, Greater Crested, Lesser Crested, Sandwich, Roseate and Saunders’s Terns, Zanzibar Red Bishop, Greater Snipe, Malindi Pipit, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Whimbrel and a variety of other species like Water Thick-knee, Marsh and Wood Sandpiper, African Spoonbill and Spur-winged Lapwing. Other species that occasionally turn up in the surrounding Sabaki woodlands and scrub include the little-known Violet-breasted Sunbird, Eastern Black-headed Batis, and Scaly Babbler

In the afternoon drive to Lake Jilore North of Arabuko Sokoke Forest, Lake Jilore is a seasonal freshwater pool that attracts large numbers of waterbirds an impressive area for birding. It is surrounded by bushland and open woodland which also hold interesting species. Birdwatching will be done while walking, birds to look for in Lake Jilore include Black-bellied Plover, Mottled Spinetail, Pale Flycatcher, Red-fronted Tinkerbird, Black-winged Bishop, Yellow Flycatcher, Madagascar Pratincole, Fischer’s Turaco.

Morning drive to Tana River Primate Research, birdwatching will be enjoyed along the route

Tana River Primate Reserve comprises the lowland evergreen forests of Wenje, Kipende, and Kimbu. The forest patches along the lower Tana River are remnants of a vast tropical forest that extended from the East Coast of Africa

The Tana Forest is similar to the Kakamega forest in Kenya as both are rich in biodiversity and have a high level of endemism making the area an important conservation site for endemic and unique species that occur here. Lower Tana forest and the Tana delta provide a unique ecosystem that is the Northern limit of the Eastern Arc Mountains and Coastal Forests biodiversity hotspot.

Tana Forests hosts at least two globally threatened bird species, along with at least two and possibly three of the species in the East African Coastal Forests Endemic Bird Area, and at least 19 of the 30 Kenyan species in the East African Coast biome. Primates likely to see, Tana River Red Colobus (specialized feeders, their stomachs can only digest leaves) and the Tana River Crested Mangabey (ground feeders) are endemic to the patches of forest along the floodplain of the lower Tana River.

Early morning departure heading to  Shimba Hills Reserve if time allows we shall have some stop-overs along the way Tana Forests are riparian forests along the meandering course of the lower Tana River, some 350 kilometers east of Nairobi and 240 kilometers north of Mombasa. Tana River Primate had a unique weather pattern, a perfect combination that brings in over 200 bird species

Spend the whole day in the park birding, walking is allowed in Shimba Hills Reserve but not far from the vehicle

Shimba Hills National Reserve is a favorite birding destination among bird watchers on Kenya’s coast. Bird species in Shimba Hills include several coastal endemics, restricted to the area, such as the Green-headed Oriole, Afrotropical migrants such as the  African Pitta, Mangrove Kingfisher, the rare Forbes-Watson’s Swift, and the Spotted Ground Thrush. The grasslands hold localized bird species such as Red-necked Spurfowl, Croaking Cisticola, and Zanzibar Red Bishop. Other bird species of concern include the Southern Banded Snake Eagle, Fishers Turaco, Sokoke Pipit, East-coast Akalat, and Plain-backed Sunbird. From the months of October to April, the migratory birds arrive and add to the already interesting collection of species. Regarding the weather, be aware that November and April are peak months for rainfall

On this day, we shall drive slowly through the reserve, searching for the missed species as we head to the Mombasa International  Airport for your flight back home