Michael´s Fifth Year

[michael-ibk]

Oh, your eyes are definitely not old. Glad you are starting to appreciate my craft, I thought this one could do the trick. There is some yellow, yes, but colours might be misleading - this is a heavily processed photo, it was just a dark blob in black. And we heard them and tried to lure them out, also guide was sure about this ID. I did check on ebird, some photos from the Usumburas also show this yellowish vent. But I´ve never seen a Shelley´s before (and still would say I never really have. ;-))

 

What do you think it is?

Edited April 2, 2020 by michael-ibk

[Galana]

2 hours ago, michael-ibk said:

What do you think it is?

Well my initial reaction was AFB but now having closely examined all illustrations of Greenbul I note that a large majority do sport vent colours. It was also beneficial to compare Shelley's in both Fanshawe and Sinclair guides.

Given your guide's local knowledge and the location in the Eastern Arc I feel you at least saw and photographed part of Shelley's.

Welcome to the EBC club.

[Peter Connan]

19 hours ago, michael-ibk said:

Thank you everybody! Onwards and upwards with a slightly less exciting chapter of the book:

 

201/T157.) Dark-Capped Bulbul (Pycnonotus barbatus) / Graubülbül

 

Africa´s most disappointing bird. AFB, that´s all I will say about it.

 

 

 

 

 

On behalf of the Bulbul family, I must protest!

It may not be the prettiest or most exciting bird found in Africa, but at least it is easily identifiable!

 

Also, a local organisation (I'm not sure now who it was but I think it was Birdlife SA) held a competition a year or two ago to determine the favorite garden bird call in SA, and this was the winner. Apparently we Saffers like waking up to the sound of this little guy...

 

[Galana]

6 minutes ago, Peter Connan said:

but at least it is easily identifiable!

Not if you from Slovenija and are called @xelas

[michael-ibk]

15 hours ago, Galana said:

Welcome to the EBC club.

 

Hoooooorraaaaaaaaayy!

 

13 minutes ago, Peter Connan said:

On behalf of the Bulbul family, I must protest!

 

Duly noted Peter but restistance is futile.

 

Actually I quite like their song myself, but too often I´ve seen a distant bird, got excited, got closer and then : "oh ... AFB."

[Peter Connan]

Yeah, me too, don't you worry!

[xelas]

I am with @Peter Connan on the front to support this lovely bird. The number of photos taken in Uganda is my evidence !

[michael-ibk]

Good good Alex, you can have them all as far as I am concerned.

[xelas]

18 hours ago, Galana said:

NOW you are getting serious about the EBC cup.

But is it trick of the light or my old eyes being tired that I get an impression of a light coloured belly with a hint of a yellow vent?

 

Lovely photos and the Common Whitethroat is a star.

Bring on the Cisticolas.

 

Not sure that @michael-ibk deserves to be in that category yet. However, he might have his own EBC:  #201 might - Even Bulbul Counts 

Edited April 3, 2020 by xelas

[Galana]

54 minutes ago, xelas said:

The number of photos taken in Uganda is my evidence !

Yes. But you are supposed to know what they are!

 

49 minutes ago, xelas said:

However, he might have his own EBC:  #201 might - Even Bulbul Counts 

I had to read this twice to understand it but I liked it when I did.

[michael-ibk]

20 hours ago, michael-ibk said:

Up next: Everybody´s darling, crowdpleasers numero uno - Cisticolas!

 

Fortunately not too many of them, and truth be told, I was quite excited about two. Not this one:

 

212/T168.) Rattling Cisticola (Cisticola chiniana) / Rotscheitel-Zistensänger

 

Very common in Ruaha. The most common and widespread Cisticola.

 

[michael-ibk]

213/T169.) Croaking Cisticola (Cisticola natalensis) / Strichelzistensänger

 

Just one sighting, or rather the only one we are aware of. We made sure of this ID by comparing it to the song in the app - it certainly got excited about it.

 

Edited April 3, 2020 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

214/T170.) White-Tailed Cisticola (species undescribed) / Weißschwanz-Zistensänger

 

You might notice there´s no Latin name here - this Cisticola is still awaiting formal scientific description. It´s a Tanzanian endemic restrained to a very small area only discovered in 1986. Neil Baker, the mastermind behind the Tanzania Birding Atlas, first alerted the birding community to this species and told me it´s quite a complicated but still ongoing process getting "recognition". But "Birds of East Africa" is treating it as a good species - good enough for me. The people working on the fields around the Udzungwas were quite puzzled what we were doing out here looking for such a common thing - for them.

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

215/T171.) Kilombero Cisticola (species undescribed) / Kilombero-Zistensänger

 

Very similar story to the White-Tailed Cisticolaa, also "discovered" in the 80ies by Neil Baker. Prefers slightly wetter habitat than its cousin. BTW, I made up the German names for these two. And I´ve wondered before - who actually "decides" about translated names?

 

Edited April 3, 2020 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

216/T172.) Tawny-Flanked Prinia (Prinia subflava) / Rahmbrustprinie

 

The default Prinia mostly everywhere in Africa. Common in the fields surrounding the Udzungzwas.

 

[michael-ibk]

217/T173.) Green-Backed Camaroptera (Camamroptera brachyura) / Meckerbogenflügel

 

A very widespread and familiar bird. Part of its success is probably how happy they are with very different habitats. They were equally common in the Udzungwas and on the Coast.

 

 

Edited April 3, 2020 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

218/T174.) Miombo Wren-Warbler (Calamonastes undosus) / Miombobindensänger

 

One sighting in Ruaha. A bird with quite complicated taxonomy. It used to be one species but now there´s Miombo and Stierling´s, and both seem to occur in the area, so I´m not quite sure which one it is actually.

 

[michael-ibk]

219/T175.) Yellow-Breasted Apalis (Apalis flavida) / Gelbbrust-Feinsänger

 

Seen regularly now and then throughout the trip. Photo from Ruaha. I was a bit disappointed we did not get any new Apalis species in the Udzungwas where a lot of them do occur.

 

[michael-ibk]

220/T176.) Spotted Flycatcher (Muscicapa striata) / Grauschnäpper

 

The most common bird of all our Palearctic migrants. Still waiting for them to return here.

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

221/T177.) African Grey Flycatcher (Bradornis microrhynchus) / Strichelkopfschnäpper

 

All these brown Flycatchers look frustratingly similar in the book but whenever I saw one of these in Ruaha (where they are common) I thought, Hm, that´s not a Spotted! Something about their general appearance is decidedly different even if you don´t see all the defining features.

 

 

Edited April 3, 2020 by michael-ibk

[michael-ibk]

222/T178.) Pale Batis (Batis soror) / Kinnfleckschnäpper

 

Probably a lifer. Probably because I´m not completely sure it´s not the more familiar Chin-Spot Batis. The males are probably not safely separable in the field, and this here is a very heavy crop of a distant bird. But Pale is more of a Coastal lowland species than its cousin (which should not even be in the Selous according to "Birds of East Africa" but as discussed before those ranges are often inaccurate) so I think Pale is more likely.

 

[michael-ibk]

223/T179.) Eastern Black-Headed Batis (Batis minor) / Keniaschnäpper

 

Definitely a lifer but only because Black-Headed was split in Eastern and Western (which I´ve seen in Ethiopia). And a safer ID because the lady was also around.

 

 

[michael-ibk]

224/T180.) African Paradise-Flycatcher (Terpsiphone viridis) / Graubrust-Paradiesschnäpper

 

Quite common in the Coastal areas, here from Chole Island.

 

 

 

[michael-ibk]

225/T181.) Arrow-Marked Babbler (Turdoides jardineii) / Braundrossling

 

A few sightings in Ruaha. Pretty scruffy but freshly bathed.

 

[PeterHG]

You make even Cisticolas sound interesting. Perhaps you are just making them up as you go, but I'll take anything these days !