Go Back  Fodor's Travel Talk Forums > Destinations > Africa & the Middle East
Reload this Page >

Ngamba Island Pictures Posted -- Need Help With Some Bird IDs

Ngamba Island Pictures Posted -- Need Help With Some Bird IDs

Old Jan 29th, 2007, 07:43 PM
  #1  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 705
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Ngamba Island Pictures Posted -- Need Help With Some Bird IDs

I have just put up the gallery of pictures from Ngamba Island Chimpanzee Sanctuary, including lots of very cute chimpanzee pictures. The pictures are at www.pbase.com/cwillis.

There are several unlabeled bird pictures in the gallery. I don't know much about birds, so if any of the birders in the group can help with identification, I would really appreciate it.

Thanks for looking and thanks in advance for any bird identifications you can provide!

Chris
Chris_GA_Atl is offline  
Old Jan 29th, 2007, 09:24 PM
  #2  
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,252
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Nice pictures, and with a quiz too! If I get only one wrong I will be happy but my best effort as a fellow non-birder is as follows. Please someone help to confirm this.

I am pretty sure your first unidentified one (after the chimp with milk) is a Spur-Winged Plover. The second one I would bet a White Wagtail to win with a smaller each way bet on a Pied Wagtail - looks similar to me. The third (and what a great photo!) is probably a Northern Masked Weaver but there are a few other weavers which look quite similar and I would need to see more of the chest - others possibly have better ways of identifying it..... Then a Little Egret. The next is a water thick-knee which you can identify by the crazy eyes and thick knees (and the water of course). Then the next two are Great Egret, ..... because of the yellow socks.

kimburu is offline  
Old Jan 29th, 2007, 10:26 PM
  #3  
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 641
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Here's what I think, no offense to kimburu though. I'm no expert at birds but I do enjoy them very much.
1. Black-Headed Weaver (male)
2. Female Black-Headed weaver
3-4 Egyptian geese
5. Hadada Ibis
6. Spur-winged Plover
7. African Pied Wagtail
8. Black-Headed Weaver
7. Cattle Egret
8. Water Thick-knee aka Dikkop
9-10. I think it’s a Dimorphic Egret and not a Little Egret (it doesn’t have a tuft of feathers on the back of the head). The Great Egret has black legs and feet.
11 Egyptian goose in flight
safarimama is offline  
Old Jan 30th, 2007, 05:24 AM
  #4  
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 453
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thanks for sharing these, Chris! I really want to go there sometime. Did you get to walk with them or are they too big for that now? Did they seem to take on the care of the little bitty one? Did they seem happy?

Thanks again, you got some really nice photos in there!
Sharon
cooncat2 is offline  
Old Jan 30th, 2007, 05:30 AM
  #5  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 705
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thank you both for helping me with the bird identifications. If it is helpful in trying to narrow down to a particular species, here is the island's "official" bird list:
http://www.ngambaisland.org/birdlist.htm

Sharon -- yes, we did get to do the forest walk, and the caregivers seemed to believe that the forest walks would continue for the foreseeable future. The chimps that participate in the walk are all relatively big and heavy -- my wife and I were both pushing through the dense forest with a 50-pound chimp on our backs and it was a little difficult!

The chimps overall seemed very happy and seemed to have a lot of affection for the caregivers. The very young chimp featured in several of the pictures is definitely cared for by some of the older ones -- they groom him, let him ride on their backs, and when one of the older males was having a violent outburst, they grabbed the youngster and moved him away from the action.

Chris
Chris_GA_Atl is offline  
Old Jan 30th, 2007, 05:52 AM
  #6  
 
Join Date: Aug 2005
Posts: 453
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
That's all good to know. Thanks, Chris!
cooncat2 is offline  
Old Jan 30th, 2007, 06:31 AM
  #7  
 
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 371
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Chris, we loved reading your trip report and looking at your stunning galleries. What an adventure you had! We were especially thrilled to see your pictures from Ethiopia since we are considering a trip there in the next year or so.

Here are our bird IDs:
5927/5931/6300 - Black Headed Weaver (aka Village Weaver)
6045 - Hadada Ibis
6294 - Spur-winged Plover (aka Spur-winged Lapwing)
6295 - African Pied Wagtail
6309 - Cattle Egret
6318 - Water Thick-knee
6329/6344 - Little Egret
ovenbird is offline  
Old Jan 30th, 2007, 07:04 AM
  #8  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 705
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Thank you very much for the bird identifications. I am eventually going to write a real trip report -- after I get done dealing with all of the pictures! Ethiopia is a fascinating destination, but it takes a traveler with a certain constitution to enjoy it, I think. It is definitely not ready for mass-market tourism, but on the other hand, traveling there gives you the feeling of discovering a closely-held secret. If you like that, it's a great destination to consider, and very different from other African destinations.
Chris
Chris_GA_Atl is offline  
Old Jan 30th, 2007, 05:16 PM
  #9  
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,252
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
No offence taken safarimama... I didn't do that well thanks to the confident egret identification being a complete blowout ...back to school on that one - I should at least have checked to my books

How did you identify the female Black-headed Weaver - or by deduction from the birdlist?

Well done ovenbird - the early bird doesn't always get the worm!

Carrying a 50lb chimp, Chris? I guess they don't take no for an answer either?


kimburu is offline  
Old Jan 30th, 2007, 06:09 PM
  #10  
 
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 371
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
kimburu: We were in Uganda in Nov on a birding tour, so the IDs are fairly fresh in memory! The female Black-headed Weaver was a deduction on my part. I think it's the only black billed, red-eyed female weaver found in that area of Uganda. Stunning photo, isn't it?
ovenbird is offline  
Old Jan 30th, 2007, 07:36 PM
  #11  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 705
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Kimburu, you aren't required to carry them -- you can put them down with a little persuasion if you feel like you need to. The chimps were very calm, relaxed, and not aggressive or pushy in any way whatsoever. If you don't carry them, sometimes they will walk next to you on two legs, holding your hand!

BTW your guess on the female black-headed weaver must be correct. It was in the same tree as the one with the black head, along with about 50 other of the same kind of weaver. One of the really interesting things is that they fly into and out of the forest in groups together, so you will see this line of 50 yellow weavers fly into the forest, which was a really interesting sight.
I've thanked the Fodors community on the gallery now for the bird identifications. If any of you are in the mood to identify a few more, there are some vultures and eagles (I think) in the Gondar gallery that I don't know the identification for. I have a few more galleries to put up with some more birds as well.

Anyway, thanks again for the help with the birds. I really appreciate it.
Chris
Chris_GA_Atl is offline  
Old Jan 31st, 2007, 05:53 PM
  #12  
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,252
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Both the male and female weaver photos are great.

It's fun to try to identify them... bring them on! Ovenbird and safarimama and others will keep us in line. Good to know the chimps don't insist on being carried.
kimburu is offline  
Old Jan 31st, 2007, 06:09 PM
  #13  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 705
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
OK, here are the Gondar bird pictures I could use help with:

Vultures:
http://www.pbase.com/cwillis/image/73515261
http://www.pbase.com/cwillis/image/73515275

Eagles(?):
http://www.pbase.com/cwillis/image/73515283
http://www.pbase.com/cwillis/image/73515287

When I get the Mgahinga and Bwindi pictures up there will be some more bird ID requests coming. Meantime, thanks for any help you can give me with these vultures and eagles.

Chris
Chris_GA_Atl is offline  
Old Jan 31st, 2007, 07:56 PM
  #14  
 
Join Date: Aug 2006
Posts: 641
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
No offense to ovenbird, but I think I was the one to identify the female Black-headed Weaver. I use my bird book bibles to help me as I'm really anal about my birds. I would love to go on a bird safari to Uganda. Who did you go with?

Here's my guess on the birds:
Vultures:
http://www.pbase.com/cwillis/image/73515261
Adult White-backed Vultures

http://www.pbase.com/cwillis/image/73515275
Hooded Vulture, adult with pink or red face; wooly head.

Eagles(?):
http://www.pbase.com/cwillis/image/73515283
I think this is a Yellow-Billed Kite (not the same as the Black Kite). If it's an Eagle it's the Tawny Eagle, maybe the Steppe eagle, but I don't think so. I have to see the eye to tell.

http://www.pbase.com/cwillis/image/73515287
I would guess this is a Tawny Eagle. The gape isn't long enough to be a Steppe Eagle.
safarimama is offline  
Old Jan 31st, 2007, 11:52 PM
  #15  
 
Join Date: Jan 2006
Posts: 1,252
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Why do you think Yellow-billed Kite rather than eagle for that first picture? I can see that it COULD be, but I wonder why you plumped for kite as first choice. Tawny eagle was my guess after referring to the books but I didn't dare to say because I am not sure that the birds in Ethiopia are the same as those I know. Does East Africa cover Ethiopia as far as birds goes?

You both identified the Black-headed Weaver as a female safarimama - you explicitly and ovenbird implicitly (assuming I am correct that it couldn't be a male?)
kimburu is offline  
Old Feb 1st, 2007, 05:42 AM
  #16  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 705
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Safarimama, to answer your question, the Uganda and Rwanda portions of our trip were with Volcanoes Safaris, and they were excellent. When I write my full trip report, I will give more details, but suffice it to say for the moment that everything was perfect with them.

We encountered some birders in southwestern Uganda -- three Germans who were in Mgahinga Gorilla NP who went to go see the Rwenzori Turaco (and found it). Then we encountered them again along with a load of other birders at a place in Bwindi called Ruhija, which supposedly is a really good place for birds.

There were also a whole lot of birds in Ethiopia, particularly in Gondar.

If it helps with the eagle/kite debate at all, the picture of the bird in flight was taken within minutes of the one in the tree. There were dozens of these birds -- whatever they are -- flying around, and then they all came and landed in a couple of trees right next to the hotel where we were staying. This was as the sun was going down, so the light wasn't great, but that made me believe that the ones in the trees were the same ones I had seen in the air. They were relatively large birds, probably the size of a really big red-tailed hawk (to relate it to a domestic bird we probably have all seen).

Thanks again for everyone's help with the birds. When I post some more unidentified birds, I will post a new thread.

Chris
Chris_GA_Atl is offline  
Old Feb 1st, 2007, 06:37 AM
  #17  
 
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 371
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
safarimama: No offense taken! We went to Uganda with Borderland Tours (Arizona) who used Rockjumper Birding Tours (South Africa) to set it up. We've birded with both companies several times and would highly recommend both.

I haven't been to Ethiopia but I think many of the raptors are the same as those in East Africa, and I definitely am not an expert in bird ID! But I think you are spot on with your vulture IDs.

But based on Chris' subsequent behavior description and the fact that the beak looks all yellow in the second raptor pic, I would guess both pics are of Yellow-billed Kites. Chris, did you notice if these birds had deeply forked tails?

Chris: If you were at Ruhija on Nov 16, that big group of birders could have been us!
ovenbird is offline  
Old Feb 1st, 2007, 06:48 AM
  #18  
 
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 1,715
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I believe both pictures are of yellow-billed kites. There are 72 species of raptors in Ethiopia and I don't have an east Africa guide so I could be missing something but I'm fairly certain both are of yellow-billed kites.

The in-flight pic you can clearly see banding on the tail as expected with the kite, neither Tawny or Steppe eagles show narrow bands in flight like that. More importantly the outer tail feathers are longer than the middle consistent with kites, eagles and soaring hawks tend to have tails in a fan shape where feathers appear shorter due to spreading as you move away from the middle. It also appears the bill is all yellow, although the tip is hard to distinguish. It could be a black kite as well since the yellow-billed tends to show more forking of the tail but due to the appearance of the bill it seems to be the yellow-billed as tail position can vary a good deal in flight.

In the perched picture the entire cere/bill area is yellow. Virtually every other raptor in that region, including the Tawny and Steppe eagles have black/grey tips to their bills.

Add the behavior info: yellow-billed kites often flock together communally, sometimes with black kites mixed in. They are also close in size to a red-tailed hawk.
PredatorBiologist is offline  
Old Feb 1st, 2007, 06:50 AM
  #19  
 
Join Date: May 2004
Posts: 1,715
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
I took too long typing, Ovenbird beat me to it.
PredatorBiologist is offline  
Old Feb 1st, 2007, 06:54 AM
  #20  
Original Poster
 
Join Date: Aug 2003
Posts: 705
Likes: 0
Received 0 Likes on 0 Posts
Ovenbird,
These birds definitely had forked-looking tails, with feathers longer on either side than in the middle. It is one of the first things I noticed when I saw them.
We ate lunch at Ruhija on January 7, 2007 and then passed through it again on January 9. On the 9th, we saw a very large group of birders headed into the woods with spotting scopes and other gear. So I missed you by a couple of months!

Chris
Chris_GA_Atl is offline  

Thread Tools
Search this Thread

Contact Us - Manage Preferences - Archive - Advertising - Cookie Policy - Privacy Statement - Do Not Sell or Share My Personal Information -