Norfolk Birders

                                                                                                                                   Senegal and The Gambia Trip Report                    by Sue Bryan

Dec 5th – Dec 21st 2022

Sue Bryan

 John Geeson

Alessio Chiusi

Linda Arthur

Introduction

This trip was planned with one bird in mind. Twenty five years ago I had visited The Gambia, which was my first adventure to Africa and its wonderful birdlife. I was bowled over by the vivid colours that many of the birds exhibited, but time was short and I never made it up the Gambia River as far as Basse where a stunning wader was meant to be able to be seen. I made myself a promise that I would return to Africa one day and put the nagging omission to my world list right. I also like to get away from the awful winter weather in the U.K. and get some much-needed sun. As it turned out I could not have chosen a better time slot as John and I bathed in 40 degree celsius heat, whilst the UK suffered day-time temperatures of minus 7 degrees celsius. I did not want to repeat the experience that I had 25 years ago just birding in The Gambia but wanted to explore a different area. Birding Ecotours www.birdingecotours.com offered us the perfect trip which would take us to Senegal for the main part of the trip but return via Wassadou on the Gambia River in The Gambia where the stunning Egyptian Plover could be seen.

We wanted to travel with Dylan Vasapolli as our guide as we had enjoyed his company in Mozambique so much. Birding Ecotours sorted our trip out, also using a local guide and driver and we were joined by Alessio and Linda who were good company as well as being very knowledgeable.

Guides: Dylan Vasapolli, Kebba

Driver:Baba

Itinerary

5th Dec    Heathrow – Brussels – Dakar –Banjul

6th Dec    Banjul – ferry across Gambia River – Barra – Toubakouta

7th Dec    Toubakouta – Misirah – Toubakouta

8th Dec    Toubakouta – boat trip to Saloum Delta – Kaolak

9th Dec    Kaolak

10th Dec  Kolak – Tip – St. Louis

11th Dec  Kaolak - Mbantou

12th Dec   Mbantou – Djoudj

13th Dec Djoudj

14th Dec Djoudj - Kaolak

15th Dec Kaolak - Simenti

16th Dec Sementi (Niokolo National Park)

17th  Dec Sementi - Wassadou

18th Dec Wassadou –Sabi – Basse - Janjanbureh

19th  Dec Janjanbureh – Soma - Banjul

20th July Banjul – Abuko National Park – Banjul - Brussels

21st Dec Brussels -Heathrow

Flights

International return flights to Banjul via Brussels and Dakar with Brussels Airlines was booked through Trailfinders www.trailfinders.com at a cost of £711 each.

Costs

The final tour price was £3554 each as we had an extra night in Banjul at the start of the tour. We also had an evening flight out of Banjul and Dylan kindly arranged for us to spend the morning in Abuko National Park.

Visa

U.K. nationals do not require a visa for The Gambia or Senegal.

Money

We obtained some money (£130 each) for alcoholic drinks and sundries from an ATM in Senegal. (The ATM in Banjul airport was broken.) We settled a bar bill in The Gambia with Dylan at the end of the tour.

Climate

It was extremely hot nearing 40 degrees every single day with wall to wall sunshine and blue skies. We had some thin cloud near the end of our stay for a few hours in The Gambia.

Habitat

Senegal has a semi-arid climate and is largely desert but south of the Gambia River the rainfall is higher and the terrain consists of savannah grassland and forest. The country is fairly flat and below 500 m. There are some low, rolling hills in the southeast of the country. The northern half of the coast is sandy and flat, whereas south of Dakar can be muddy with some swamps.

Daily Log

4th Dec

John and I drove to Heathrow where we spent part of the night in a Heathrow hotel.

5th Dec

John and I boarded a flight to Brussels in the early hours having left the car at the hotel. Later we flew on to Dakar and onto Banjul. We were met at the airport by Dylan, who had had his luggage mislaid by his airline in Banjul and taken to the Senegambia Hotel for the night.

We made our way to the ferry port where chaos reigned. It was now very hot and it was soon apparent that we would be here for hours as there was little organisation and it seemed to be every man for himself. We jumped the queue with the minibus but it was still several hours wait. We made the most of it and watched the chaos as well as airborne birds adding Little Swift, Red-necked Falcon, Common Tern and Sandwich Tern at the port. Linda and I saw a Beautiful Sunbird and a Red-cheeked Cordonbleu in a small tree as we wandered around the port.

Eventually we boarded the ferry and sailed across the river watching West African Crested Terns, African Fish Eagles and Pomarine Skuas joining hundreds of passengers all crammed on the top deck giving us wonderful views of the river. I had views of an unidentified petrel but could not get the others onto it. Grrr

7th December

We had a pre-breakfast walk around our lodge at Toubakouta where Dylan and I had an excellent view of a pair of Stone Partridges running down a small woodland track. It was already very warm as we watched six Broad-billed Rollers displaying above our heads whilst an Abyssinian Roller sat on a tree above us.  Bearded Barbet gave us an excellent view whilst a Grey Woodpecker flew through whilst we tried to locate it on a tree.   We had been advised to wear long trousers and shoes or boots so that we could walk through scrub and sharp grass. We added Grey-backed Camaroptera and Piapiac  to our lists.  

After breakfast we drove for a short while and birded a scrubby wooded area at Missirah. Here we watched Bruce’s Green Pigeon and two pairs of Yellow-crowned Gonoleks. It was now nearing 38 degrees in the sun! The birds came thick and fast as I took a photo of a pair of Western Plantain-eaters sat on the top of a tree in wonderful light. We continued birding adding many birds to our lists including  Scarlet-chested Sunbird, Mourning Dove, Lizard Buzzard, Variable Sunbird, Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird, Giant Kingfisher, and two waxbills, Black-rumped Waxbill and Lavender Waxbill. In the skies above us we watched  Mottled Spinetail, Wire-tailed Swallow, Red-chested Swallow before admiring Northern Anteater Chat, Grey Kestrel and Namaqua Dove.  

It was now exceedingly hot and we returned to the lodge for lunch where I took the opportunity for a swim in the pool to cool down.

8th December

We had a pre-breakfast walk watching Double-spurred Francolin and Greater Honeyguide. Once again the birding was good here and we enjoyed the morning’s wander as a Yellow-billed Shrike, Fine-spotted Woodpecker, Broad-billed Roller, African Grey Hornbill, Reed Cormorant and a Black Stork were enjoyed. We said our goodbyes and packed up the vehicle. We had quite a journey to do but stopped several times at various sites but failed to find the expected bustard. However we did see Whinchat, Short-toed Snake Eagle, Northern Wheatear, White-billed Buffalo Weaver, Northern Red Bishop and Desert Cisticola before arriving at Kaolack. Here we got badly caught up in traffic before arriving at the Relais Hotel which was located over-looking the riverside. Here we watched Slender-billed Gulls and Black-headed Lapwings as we checked in.

After checking in at the riverside hotel we drove to Ndiaffate where the birding was excellent. You cannot have too many Abyssinian Rollers and African Green Bee-eaters. The scrubby area yielded Woodchat Shrike, Chestnut-bellied Starling and African Silverbill too.

9th December

After yesterday’s phenomenal sighting we were up before first light and motored north for a couple of hours for a remote spot near the village of Tip on the R60. Here we walked up and down the scrubby area for several hours looking for the near-mythical and elusive Quail Plover. This is one of Africa’s enigmatic and sought-after species.  We kept at it until it reached 40 degrees and we returned back to the van deflated after all our efforts without a sniff of one. John thought he saw a Common Quail at one stage but we enjoyed Chestnut-backed Sparrow Lark, Crested Lark, Great Grey Shrike, Woodchat Shrike, Sudan Golden Sparrow, Western Subalpine Warbler, Common Whitethroat,  White-backed Vulture , Singing Bush-lark, Northern Anteater Chat, Cut-throat Finch and an Orphean Warbler. I then spotted a couple of Temminck’s Coursers which pleased the rest of the group. As it was so hot and a lot of trudging was required I only took my small bridge camera with me, hence only a few photos today! We spent the next few hours in the van picking off nasty prickles which had bedded themselves into our socks (and fingers afterwards). Some decided to throw away their socks all together!

After returning to the hotel I had a swim in the pool before watching many Slender-billed Gulls out on the riverside as well and Pink-backed Pelicans and Western Reef Herons.

10th December

After a hotel breakfast we drove once again to the village of Tip stopping off en-route at a small pond surrounded by scrub. Here we added Sahel Paradise Wydah to our lists, a lifer for me. We also saw Griffon Vultures and a White-backed Vulture at the side of the road at Louga which were feeding on a kill.  Once we had arrived at Tip we walked in an organized fashion through the scrub once again in 40 degree heat. We saw several Greater Blue-eared Starlings sitting in trees when all of a sudden Dylan shouted that he had a Quail Plover in front of him which ran straight for cover into a bush. We surrounded the bush and at last we all managed to have a view of the bird before it flew out and promptly disappeared. One of target birds seen at last! We were all relieved after spending 5 hours yesterday searching for one! On our way back to the van we watched a Common Buttonquail, Great Grey Shrike, Abyssinian Roller, Sudan Sparrow and a Wryneck to name but a few.

After our victory we motored on for several more hours northwards and arrived in the city of St. Louis at the Mauritanian border. Brimming with people everywhere, we watched all the multi-coloured fishing boats and the Barn Swallows flying over them as they pulled up onto the beach. After being allocated our room at the hotel, I had a delightful swim in the hotel’s pool by the sea. It was good to enjoy a sea breeze in the heat.

11th December

We motored on in the searing heat stopping off at places and added White Pelican at Ndiongo and near Richard Toll we added Black-winged Kite, Gabar Goshawk, White Wagtail, Village Inigobird, Yellow-billed Oxpecker and Little Weaver to our trip lists. We also watched a Red-throated Pipit for some time trying to get its photograph.

At Podor we added Comb Duck and Glossy Ibis. After some confusion over our hotel booking we ended up in an unexpected camp and had to double back to the Golden Nightjar site which had been absolutely trashed by unexpected road construction. Here we added Red-billed Firefinch, Green Sandpiper and House Martin. However our local guide suggested that we try his location where the scrub was better and Dylan soon had us watching a Golden Nightjar at dusk. We also had excellent views of two Long-tailed Nightjars.

We made our way back to the alternative camp at Mbantou which was in a delightful setting on a tributary of the Senegal River which forms the boundary of Senegal and Mauritania. We watched a Black Scrub Robin before watching the sunset over the swimming pool and river as we sat on the terrace to eat our evening meal in the warm African night.

12th December  

We had an early morning walk around the cabins at Mbantou (a 2km drive off the main road to Podar from Richard Toll) after breakfast and discovered some sunken concrete bird hides at the lodge. Here we saw many Sudan Golden Sparrows, African Collared Dove as food had been put down. A Senegal Thick-knee and a Kestrel was also seen well as we walked to the hides. Red-cheeked Cordon-bleus also joined in the scene as a water channel had been installed feeding a huge concrete water bowl. Why this place is not advertised as a good birding lodge we did not know. One of our group also saw a Golden Nightjar before first light here!

We drove onto Mourkadie where we soon found Cricket Warbler, Little Grey Woodpecker, Vitelline Masked Weaver, Yellow-fronted Canary, Yellow-billed Oxpeckers, Abyssinian Roller, African Grey Woodpecker, Black-headed Lapwing, Black-crowned Sparrow Lark and Black Scimitarbill.

We had a short stop at Gamandi Gare to watch a colony of Horus Swifts which were a disjunct population here.

After a two hour drive we arrived at Djoudj National Park where we watched many water birds on the lake, including Greater Flamingoes,  Lesser Flamingoes, White-faced Whistling Ducks in their thousands as well as Painted Snipe, Black Crake, Dunlin, Little Stint, Yellow-billed Stork, Shoveler, Whiskered Tern, Avocet, Spoonbill, Sedge Warbler, Kittlitz’s Plover and several Squacco Herons. We stopped for the night in some small cabins where we were fed and ate out in the wonderfully warm night listening to a Barn Owl calling.

13th December

After breakfast, since we were staying in the park we drove to the wetlands of Djoudj. After picking up our park ranger we walked by a swampy area where we watched Greater Swamp Warbler, Reed Warbler, Winding Cisticola, Stonechat, Purple Heron, Malachite Kingfisher and River Prinia.

We drove out to the reserve proper where we searched in vain for the Arabian Bustard. Unfortunately we were obliged to have a park ranger in our vehicle who took over control of where we went. He insisted taking us to lakeside hides instead of stopping frequently to scan for the bustard. He really didn’t understand our birding needs but wanted to show us familiar waterbirds that we had already seen. Grrrrr.....

However we all enjoyed the Greater Flamingoes and Lesser Flamingoes as well as Great White Pelicans and dozens of Spoonbills amongst the White-faced Whistling Ducks. A Fulvous Whistling Duck flew over as Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters flew all around us. It was soon very hot again but there was quite a strong breeze blowing which made the air fill with sand making all today’s photos a bit hazy. We saw several Golden Wolves (Jackals) and Common Warthogs.

At the bird hides we saw thousands of Garganey, Shoveler and Pintail ducks before we inadvertently disturbed a Barn Owl sitting on to two eggs which was using the bird hide as a nest box! Black-crowned Cranes flew over us along with a Purple Heron as we watched Kentish Plover, Kittlitz’s Plover, Curlew Sandpiper, Wood Sandpiper, Garganey, Black-tailed Godwit, Intermediate Egret, Pintail and Little Stint along with Yellow Wagtails.

On the ground we saw thousands of Sand Martins as we tried to make the most of the few stops that we had for scanning for the bustard.

We returned to our cabins for lunch and a short snooze and walked through the village to re-visit the wetlands where once again we watched thousands of White-faced Whistling Ducks and watched the sun set on the day.

14th December

15th December

We turned into the park at Niokolo-Koba and motored down the track for the next two hours through the forest, stopping to take a photo of a perched Bateleur. Helmeted Guineafowl, Four-banded Sandgrouse, Little Grebe, White-crowned Lapwing and African Pigeon were observed from our lofty view point as we motored through the park wondering if we were ever going to reach our accommodation after such a long day of travel.

16th December

After breakfast we drove around Niokolo-Koba National Park and stopped at Gue-de-Damantan camp. Here on the river were another two Egyptian Plovers but they were difficult to take photos of without getting wet feet. I tried the best that I could balancing on various stones and twisting to avoid infringing vegetation getting in the way. Oh the joys of the photographer! I managed a few photos before we drove onto Lion camp where after a brief stop we got out of the safari vehicle and watched Violet Turaco, African Goshawk, Red-throated Bee-eater, White-crested Helmetshrike, Short-winged Cisticola, Adamawa Turtle Dove, Senegal Eremomela, Willow Warbler, Brown-throated Wattle-eye and African Paradise Flycatcher.

We also watched a Green Vervet Monkey and a Kob along the track in the park.

We stopped by the river where we eventually added a Singing Cisticola but little else. It was a shame that a bird hide had been burnt down. We stopped again to watch a golden oriole that flew off very quickly but it wasn’t until we looked at my photograph that we realised that it was an African Golden Oriole.

We returned to camp for lunch and a snooze in the now very hot middle of the day but there was a knock on my cabin door by one of the camp staff who was in an agitated state and beckoned me outside. John had gone for a walk and was nowhere in sight. I followed the member of staff who said that there was a Lion roaming around the camp and he wanted to show me! Aghast I wasn’t too sure what to do but Alessio was ahead of me and so was Dylan.

I followed them to the river and we could hear a lion roaring. After a while I spotted another Lioness on the other side of the river to the delight of all the camp staff who looked through my scope at it. However the member of staff was insistent that one Lion was still around the camp which we could still hear as well as watching a Hippopotamus in the river.

17th December

Luckily it did not take us too long to arrive at Wassadou where we had a delightful lunch over-looking the river in the hot sun.

The afternoon was destined to be an amazing river trip one of the best that I have ever done in my life, due to the quality of birds seen. We walked down to the jetty full of expectation. I just love boat rides for the relaxation that they offer, watching all the wonderful birds that come your way.

We boarded the canoe and set off downstream towards a bank in the cliff and admired all the nesting Northern Carmine Bee-eaters before arriving at the sand bank that had Egyptian Plovers running around on it. We shifted around to make sure everyone had an opportunity for seeing the plovers well and getting a photograph. Sitting on the Gambian River in the hot sun watching Egyptian Plovers on the sand bank whist Northern Carmine Bee-eaters, Red-throated Bee-eaters, Little Bee-eaters, Pied Kingfishers, Giant Kingfishers, Blue-breasted Kingfishers, Woodland Kingfishers, Grey-headed Kingfishers and Malachite Kingfishers pose for photographs is just stunning.