Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia




Day 4: Full Day to Explore Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Day 4: Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

We drive to the Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve, now turned in to Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, in the southern part of the Afar Region, which we will explore for the rest of day. The plains and Acacia woodlands here offer us our best chance of finding the Arabian Bustard, and are also home to the endangered Grevy’s Zebra, the largest of Africa’s three zebra species.

We will also search for Dark Chanting-Goshawk, Black-headed Lapwing, Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse,Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse, and Menetries’s Warbler, Secretairy Bird, and again will have the opportunity to see many of the bird and mammal species that we sought in Awash National Park.

Night at the Genet hotel in Awash Town.



Wednesday 23rd of October 2019 and we will drive to Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park some 30 minutes or so away from Genet hotel in Awash Town. We left around 6 o´clock and we arrived to the main gate about an hour later. We had bought fresh bread along the road before leaving Awash Town and I was happy to have got breakfast.

We picked up one armed guard when we reached the National Park. There are Cheetah and lions in the area. And several lions are shoot and killed every year. All the Shepard are carrying machine guns and when the lion attack the cattle they get shoot by the Shepard.

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
On the way to Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
On the way to Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
At the Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
At the Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
The village

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Trucks driving through the village

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Trucks driving through the village

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Trucks driving through the village

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Coffee before the bird watching (NO TEA AVAILABLE)

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Coffee before the bird watching (NO TEA AVAILABLE)

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Coffee before the bird watching (NO TEA AVAILABLE)

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Coffee before the bird watching (NO TEA AVAILABLE)

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Classical Endemic Birding Tour Ethiopia
Coffee before the bird watching (NO TEA AVAILABLE)

They didn´t had any tea at the coffee house, but they had an excellent bread the made over open fire. So I was full by the time we left the coffee house. We drove a few minutes north on A1 and we left the paved road getting in to the wilderness following a dirt track through the savanna. And we had been driving for a few minutes before we spotted the first few Somali Ostriches. Two females and one male, but they were very scared and ran away.

We were soon seeing hundreds of Somali Ostriches on the savanna. We drove along passing a Common Buzzard but the bird took off before I could get out of the car. The sky was full of Cattle Egrets, must have been thousands of them.

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Female Somali Ostrich

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Male Somali Ostrich

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Driving along the dirt track

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Driving along the dirt track

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
One of many Cattle Egret groups

Isabelline Wheatear, Oenanthe isabellina

Isabelline Wheatear, Oenanthe isabellina
Isabelline Wheatear

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Northern Carmine Bee-eater, Merops nubicus
Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Listen to the Northern Carmine Bee-eater

Remarks from the Recordist

A few birds sitting in a tree and I manage to sneak up to get a sound recording


www.xeno-canto.org

We pass a tree with a few beautiful Northern Carmine Bee-eater. I get out of the car and I was kind of surprised on how close I could get to the birds. There was an Isabelline Wheatear sitting next to the tree and I managed to get a picture of the wheatear as well.

I also managed to get a sound recording of the Northern Carmine Bee-eater. So I was very happy when I was back at the car.

We continued along the dirt track and we pass a few birds of prey but no pictures. We drive by a Crowned Lapwing and I manage to get a picture before the bird takes off. We continue along the dirt track and we leave the road to check out a tree full of nesting Wattled Starlings. There is a terrible noise from all the birds. Adults flying in to the tree with the bill full of food.

And I guess most of the noise was from the babies inside the nest when waiting for food.

Crowned Lapwing or Crowned Plover, Vanellus coronatus
Crowned Lapwing or Crowned Plover

Wattled Starling with food for the babies

Wattled Starling with food for the babies

Wattled Starling with food for the babies

Wattled Starling with food for the babies

Wattled Starling, Creatophora cinerea

Listen to the Wattled Starling

Remarks from the Recordist

A tree full of nests and parents flying in with food to feed the young


www.xeno-canto.org

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Looking at Wattled Starlings

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Looking at Wattled Starlings

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

We left the Wattled Lapwing tree area and we were soon back on the dirt track driving further in to the National Park. Our armed guard tell us to leave the dirt track and we get off road to look for Bustards. The first thing we see off the road is a wild hog family.

No fighting and no tusks to be seen anywhere in the area. Anyway, the pictures of the wild hogs didn't turned out any good and I was disappointed. We continued out in the wilderness and after driving around for a while we spotted one Arabian Bustard.

We stopped hundred meter from the bird and I got out so I could try to sneak up on the bird.

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Wild hogs

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Wild hogs

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Arabian Bustard, Ardeotis arabs

Arabian Bustard, Ardeotis arabs
Arabian Bustard

Arabian Bustard, Ardeotis arabs
Arabian Bustard

The bird was very scared and the bird started to walk away and I walked after the bird. I never managed to get close enough for any good pictures. I was soon giving up and I walked back to the car and I was very disappointed with the Arabian Bustard.

It is grass land for long as I can see and even though it is only dry grass it is a very beautiful area. There are big groups of gazelles out in the grass land and hundreds of Somali Ostrich.

We get in to the car again and we continue out in the grass land looking for excitements.

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Grass land for long as we can see

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
We continue out in the grass land

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
We continue out in the grass land

We pass another tree full of Wattled Starlings and we stop to have a look. But I see a few Crowned Lapwings that I start to follow trying to get some pictures. I see two of them on a termite stack and I get both a video and a sound recording. And of course, a couple of pictures so I was quite happy by the time I went back to the car.

We left the area after having checked out a dead animal that I had found when I was chasing the lapwings. I thought it was strange with a dead animal and no birds of prey having a feast. It turned out to be a new born deer or gazelle.

Wattled Starling, Creatophora cinerea
Wattled Starling

Crowned Lapwing or Crowned Plover, Vanellus coronatus
Crowned Lapwing or Crowned Plover

Crowned Lapwing or Crowned Plover, Vanellus coronatus
Crowned Lapwing or Crowned Plover


Listen to the Crowned Lapwing

Remarks from the Recordist

2 birds on top of a termite house giving alarm call when I approach to take a video.


www.xeno-canto.org

We had been driving a few minutes when we spotted a European Roller in a tree. I have never seen any European Roller before so I was very excited when I got out of the car. I sat my foot on the ground and BOOM! The bird took off and the picture I managed to take turned out to nothing good. We continued and we passed a Jacobin Cuckoo, well, it was 2 and I got out to try to get a picture.

Jacobin Cuckoo is a very scared bird and they were gone before I got out of the car. I tried to follow the birds but I never spotted them again. But I saw a Grey-headed Kingfisher before I went back to the car. Our armed guard and his family owns a lot of camels and we passed them on the way to the park exit.

The Shepard had Kalashnikovs and I was advised not to take any pictures of the camels as the Shepard could get upset. But our armed guard told them that I would take a few pictures with the baby camel. The baby was really cute and I approached carefully.
Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
European Roller

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve
Grey-headed Kingfisher

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve

Bird watching/ birding in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia
Today´s track at Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park

eBird

eBird Report

Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve, Afar, ET Oct 23, 2019 07:16 - 11:00
Protocol: Traveling
22,54 kilometer(s)
Comments: 20 day Ethiopian birding tour with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia. Birding with my Guide
16 species

Somali Ostrich X Hundreds
Namaqua Dove X
Arabian Bustard 1
Black-headed Lapwing 3
Crowned Lapwing 3 2 birds on top of a termite house giving alarm call when I approach to take a video.

Video at: http://www.aladdin.st/bird-watching/maps/crowned_lapwing.mp4
Cattle Egret 1000 At least 1000 flying
Dark Chanting-Goshawk 1
Montagu's Harrier 1
Common Buzzard 1
Grey-headed Kingfisher 1
Northern Carmine Bee-eater 17 A few birds sitting in a tree and I manage to sneak up to get a sound recording
European Roller 1
Chestnut-backed Sparrow-Lark 3
Barn Swallow X
Wattled Starling 100 A tree full of nests and adults flying in to feed the young
Isabelline Wheatear 8

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S60860622



We left Hallaydeghe Asebot National Park, former Aledeghi Wildlife Reserve. More or less just to cross the paved road and we were on a dust road driving towards the Animalia Lodge. We drive in the wilderness and this is Cheetah and lion land. So all the Shepard are carrying the, maybe the most famous rifle in the world, the Kalashnikov.

Kalashnikov

A Kalashnikov rifle is any one of a series of automatic rifles based on the original design of Mikhail Kalashnikov. They are officially known in Russian as "Avtomat Kalashnikova" ("Kalashnikov's Automatic Gun"; Russian: Автома́т Кала́шникова), but are widely known as Kalashnikovs, AK47s, or in Russian slang, as a "Kalash". They were originally manufactured in the Soviet Union, primarily by Kalashnikov Concern, formerly Izhmash, but these rifles and their variants are now manufactured in many other countries.

The Kalashnikov is considered as one of the most pervasively used guns in the world, with an estimated 7.5 million to 200 million rifles in circulation around the world (accounting for roughly 20 percent of the entire global stock of firearms as of 2015) and present in almost 100 countries.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

And several lions are shoot every year when they attack the cattle. We drove along the dust road and we kept our eyes out for birds along the way. And of course, we would not mind to see any lions on our way. We drive up the mountain to Animalia Lodge that was beautifully located at the edge of the mountain side with a view over the savanna.

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Animalia Lodge
Driving along the dust road

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Animalia Lodge
View from the Animalia Lodge

Birding/ Bird watching in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia - Animalia Lodge
View from the Animalia Lodge

We park the car and I walk around to look for birds. I had ordered spaghetti and tea and I was looking for birds while waiting for food. There were quite a few gorgeous sunbirds in the area but no pictures. Yellow-breasted Barbet sitting in the tree and I spot a Roller. I think it is a Liliac Roller but I see the long tail on the pictures and I changed the ID to an Abyssinian Roller.

Walking around and it was very hot and dry in the compound. No water around and my Guide filled a bowl behind the kitchen trying to attract birds. But this felt like cheating so I skipped the water bowl. I had my food and it was, well, OK for being in the middle of nowhere.

African Silverbill, Euodice cantans

African Silverbill, Euodice cantans
African Silverbill

Yellow-breasted Barbet, Trachyphonus margaritatus

Yellow-breasted Barbet, Trachyphonus margaritatus
Yellow-breasted Barbet

Speckled Pigeon, Columba guinea, African Rock Pigeon

Speckled Pigeon, Columba guinea, African Rock Pigeon
Speckled Pigeon

Abyssinian Roller, Coracias abyssinicus

Abyssinian Roller, Coracias abyssinicus
Abyssinian Roller

I was looking for birds while my Guide settled the bill and I ended up at a tree with the White-browed Sparrow-Weavers. This is really a very noisy bird and I managed to get a recording of a bird on the ground making noise together with a bird sitting in the entrance to a nest hanging in the tree. So they kept calling each other or singing for each other.

I got the recording and I went back to the restaurant and we left the Animalia Lodge driving back towards the paved road on the dust road.

Listen to the White-browed Sparrow-Weaver

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my ZOOM H5 Handy Recorder. High pass filter applied with Audacity

2 birds, one on the ground and one sitting at a nest in the tree and they were calling or singing.


www.xeno-canto.org

Bird watching/ birding in Ethiopia with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia
Today´s track at Animalia Lodge

eBird

eBird Report

Animalia Lodge, Afar, ET Oct 23, 2019 11:22 - 13:24
Protocol: Traveling
17,5 kilometer(s)
Comments: 20 day Ethiopian birding tour with Flamingos Tours Ethiopia. Birding with my Guide
9 species

Speckled Pigeon 4
Laughing Dove 1
African Grey Hornbill 1
Abyssinian Roller 1
Yellow-breasted Barbet 1
Shining Sunbird 4
White-headed Buffalo-Weaver 3
White-browed Sparrow-Weaver 10
African Silverbill 9

View this checklist online at https://ebird.org/checklist/S60860326



We drove back to Awash Town and the Genet hotel. Last night at Genet Hotel and it will be nice to leave. No water in the bathroom and I really hope there is a shower at the next hotel. Well, anyway, we will drive through the desert tomorrow going from Awash to Dulecha. And along the escarpment (the wall of the Great Rift Valley) from Dulecha to Debre Birhan via Ankober. Click HERE to see if we find any birds during our drive.




       
                  
OK, it has come to my knowledge that we have senior citizens visiting my web page. How hard can it be? So it's not very easy for them to see the blue coloured links to the next page.
Jiffy (also jiff)

noun [in SING.] informal a moment: we'll be back in a jiffy.

ORIGIN late 18th cent.: of unknown origin.

So as you understand, in a jiff pretty much depends on your internet.
So I put a “Next” button here and I hope that there isn't any problem to understand how to use that one. So just CLICK the “Next” button on your left hand side and you will be on the next page in a jiff!

Marunong ka mag-tagalog? Walang problema! Magpunta sa kabilang pahina pindutin ang “NEXT” button sa itaas

Faites vous parlez le français? Pas de problème! Pour arriver à la page suivante faites s'il vous plaît un déclic le bouton “Next” ci-dessus!

Haga usted dice el español? No hay problema! Ver la siguiente página sólo hacer clic el botón “Next” encima!

Farla parla l'italiano? Non problemi! Per vedere la prossima pagina lo scatto per favore giusto Il bottone “Next” sopra

Sprechen sie Deutsch! Kein problem! Wenn Sie die folgende Seite sehen wollen gerade klicken der Knopf “Next” oben!

คุณพูดภาษาไทยได้ไหม ไม่มีปัญหา ถ้าคุณต้องการไปหน้าถัดไป ให้กดปุ่ม “Next” ข้างบนนี้

Вы говорите по-русски? Просто нажмите синюю кнопку "Next" с левой стороны и Вы моментально переместитесь на следующую страницу!

E ni Svenskar och inte förstår Engelska så ska ni skämmas. J och Björn, med det menar jag inte att alla mina stavfel ska ältas varje gång vi träffas.

Flag of Skåne / Skånska flaggan Well, the flag of Skåne, just a BONUS flag.


                                       

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