We left my parent's house for Norwich airport for our flight to Kilimanjaro via Schipol. A pretty uneventful journey, with the last bird of the day being a Wood Pigeon seen as we taxied for take-off. Large bats were flying around in the late evening as we arrived.

Michelle was first through the rather slow customs and collected our bags (which we could see going around and around!) and met our driver Abdul from Birding and Beyond who seemed like a pleasant chap. Sam sat in the front seat, tired but excited, and our journey to the rather luxurious Korona House in Arusha took about an hour. After a much needed beer and shower we went straight to bed ready for a reasonably early start the next day.

Waking early, I explored the small hotel gardens with Tom and Sam. First bird found by Tom was a Grey-headed Sparrow around a well stocked bird feeder. The gardens also held Tropical Boubou, Speckled Pigeon, Common Bulbul, the first of many Baglafecht Weavers, and, surprising for a garden, African Firefinches. A distant perched raptor proved to be Lanner Falcon.

We took a walk outside and watched the young kids go to school, and added Black Kite, Superb Starling, and Pied Crow to the list. I was also fortunate to see my first tick, when a flock of about thirty Mottled Swifts went over.

After breakfast we had a brief meeting with Anthony from Birding and Beyond who was leading a group of American Ornithologists who were staying at the same place and who had arrived on an earlier flight than ours. He passed on to me a few sites, and gave us all company hats to wear, whilst I settled our bill with him.

We then had a whole load of trouble after breakfast as I’d somehow managed to lock our room with the key to the children’s room! It took about 30 minutes to get in, so we were a bit late getting away to Arusha National Park. Eventually arriving at the gates (adding just Cape Crow on the way), we got out for a brief walk. Here we had Variable Sunbird, an unidentified (but photographed Sunbird), Lesser Striped-Swallow, Wire-tailed Swallow, Red-rumped Swallow, Black Sawwing, African Green Pigeon, and Cape Robin-Chat.

Then into the park, with the first stop being at Little Serengeti where the family enjoyed there first large mammals: Zebra, Giraffe, Warthog, Buffalo, Waterbuck, and Bushbuck.

Continuing on our way, we found our first Little Bee-eaters, and tried to get to grips with our first Cisticola that turned out to be Singing Cisticola. Several out of plumage Weavers were seen and a Moustached Grass-Warbler; Silvery-cheeked Hornbills flew overhead.

Entering the forest, we stumbled upon Olive Baboons, Sykes’s Monkeys, and then these Colobus Monkeys which I managed a few snapshots of through the trees…

And that set the tone for the rest of the day. Just driving around seeing what we could see. We didn’t really target anything apart from Hartlaub's Turaco which I was told could be found at the viewpoint, and with some patience a pair were eventually called in.

Whilst at the viewpoint we also found this squirrel that needs researching…

…and had our first team photo…

We then had our picnic lunch outside the museum which housed a collection of rather faded mounted birds. Not a lot of live birds could be found here and it was now getting very hot.

After lunch we continued driving around the forest before leaving to a more sparsely vegetated area around the lakes. Highlights here were two White-backed Ducks, a species I’ve missed on all previous African trips and White-eared Barbet. The largest lake held tens of thousands of Greater Flamingo and Lesser Flamingo, a line of which stretched for the best part of a mile.

Banded Mongoose, Kirk’s Dik-dik, and Bush Duiker were added to the mammals list as well as well as many more encounters with what had been seen earlier. Birds continued and included six species of raptor, Marabou Stork, Fulvous Whistling-Duck, Palm-nut Vulture, African Yellow Warbler, White-eyed Slaty-Flycatcher, Black-backed Puffback, Brown-crowned Tchagra, and Black-and-white Mannikin. We also struggled for a while with our first Lark, which turned out to be Rufous-naped Lark.

With a final visit to the Small Serengeti, we left at 6pm as the gates were closing. A magnificent first day!

The safari was over, but Sam had undertaken a project at his primary school to raise money for the children of the Cicerly Peace Matunda school and orphanage on the slopes of Mount Meru. Though late, Abdul agreed to take us as we had a bag full of gifts for them (mainly games the children had grown out of). We tried to down-play our visit, as it was getting late and we didn’t want to make a big thing of it anyway, but upon arrival it was insisted that we were given a tour of the school by the very proud caretaker. Though the gifts were small, the children’s faces lit-up when we gave them to them. It was a moving experience for us all and a great way to end the day.

Now dark, we drove through Arusha to the Outpost Lodge where we enjoyed drinks and kebabs before crashing out exhausted.

Other birds noted throughout the day not included above:

Little Grebe
Long-tailed Cormorant
Black-headed Heron
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Sacred Ibis
Glossy Ibis
Egyptian Goose
Spur-winged Goose
Cape Teal
Southern Pochard
Maccoa Duck
African Fish-Eagle
African Cuckoo-hawk? – looked good for this species
African Harrier-Hawk
Eastern Chanting-Goshawk
Gabar Goshawk
Augur Buzzard
African Hawk-Eagle
Common Moorhen
Red-knobbed Coot
African Jacana
Black-winged Stilt
Blacksmith Plover
Common Sandpiper
Gull-billed Tern
Rock Dove
Dusky Turtle-Dove
Red-eyed Dove
Ring-necked Dove
White-browed Coucal
African Swift
Speckled Mousebird
Plain Martin
Rock Martin
African Pied Wagtail
Tawny-flanked Prinia
Yellow-breasted Apalis
Zitting Cisticola
Red-faced Crombec
African Dusky Flycatcher
Red-backed Scrub-Robin
African Stonechat
Malachite Sunbird
Common Fiscal
Fork-tailed Drongo
Red-winged Starling
Red-billed Oxpecker
Yellow Bishop
Yellow-fronted Canary
House Sparrow

Edit (06/09/2011): The Sunbird was Tacazze Sunbird.

Edit (16/11/2011): The Squirrel is Ochre Bush-Squirrel.

Myself and Tom awoke early and left the others sleeping as we drove north on the Nairobi Road to the Lark Plains. Tom was exhausted and slept all the way. I stayed awake but didn’t see too many new birds en-route, just White-necked Raven, Tawny Eagle, and Capped Wheatear.

After about an hours drive, we pulled off the tarmac road and Abdul pronounced that this was the Lark Plains. I awoke Tom as we drove down a sandy track, and quickly came across our first Larks: Rufous-napped Lark and Red-capped Lark, shortly followed by Fisher’s Sparrow-Lark. We continued down the track where we were due to meet our Maasai guide, scanning along the way and finding more of the same Larks as well as Yellow-bellied Eremomela. Before too long however, we stumbled upon two interesting Larks that turned out to be Beesley’s Larks! We managed to get very close to the birds as they seemed reluctant to fly and managed some reasonable snapshots of one of the world’s rarest birds…

With the pressure off, we met with our guide (a young kid who failed to find anything – fortunately we had found the Beesle'y’s!) and went on a walk across the plains for another couple of hours. Unfortunately only one other Lark species could be found, Foxy Lark, though we did manage three more Beesley’s, several Yellow-throated Sandgrouse, and a Greater Kestrel.

It was now getting very hot, so we decided to drive around for a while to see what we could see, managing a few new species for the trip: Ostrich, Black-shouldered Kite, Rueppell's Griffon Vulture, Martial Eagle, Desert Cisticola, Schalow’s Wheatear, White-headed Buffalo-Weaver, Grassland Pipit, and a Scrub Hare.

With time pressing on, we made a dash back to Arusha to meet the others for lunch. We arrived behind schedule, and Sam also wanted a dip in the pool so we were late getting away. Michelle also wanted to visit a couple of markets, so our drive south to Manyara was fairly quick. We did manage a few roadside stops, picking up Red-bellied Parrot, Hartlaub's Bustard, Black-faced Sandgrouse, and Yellow-necked Francolin.

From the car we also managed Crowned Lapwing, Lilac-breasted Roller, African Grey Flycatcher, and Red-billed Quelea. We arrived at the Twiga Budget Lodge shortly after dusk, and soon found out why the village we were staying in was named Mto Wa Mbu, Swahili for Mosquito River.

Lake Manyara - fantastic place! On safari from dawn until dusk, seeing just under one hundred species of bird starting with Giant Kingfisher on the short drive to the entrance. Whilst walking around here, several Vervet Monkeys got into our car and pinched our breakfast of bread and bananas! No breakfast for us! The day consisted of just driving around, seeing what we could see. Birding highlights (for me) included Purple-crested Turaco, Fischer's Lovebird, Crowned Hornbill, Collared Palm-thrush, Northern Pied-Babbler, White-bellied Tit, Blue-capped Cordonbleu, and Peters's Twinspot, and Cardinal Quelea. And finally, on our drive out we finished with views of Verreaux's Eagle-Owl by the park entrance.

Other new birds, mammals, and interesting things below, as well as photos from a great day...

Grey Heron
Great Egret
Little Egret
Squacco Heron
Rufous-bellied Heron
Cattle Egret
Yellow-billed Stork
Woolly-necked Stork
Hadada Ibis
White-backed Vulture
Bateleur
Red-necked Francolin
Helmeted Guineafowl
Grey Crowned-Crane – a tick for me, but unfortunately distant and in heat-haze.
Double-banded Courser – Tom’s 1000 bird!
Collared Pratincole
Spur-winged Plover
Kittlitz's Plover
Marsh Sandpiper
Little Stint
Ruff
Water Thick-knee
White-winged Tern
Laughing Dove
Emerald-spotted Wood-Dove
Pearl-spotted Owlet
African Palm-Swift
Little Swift
Blue-naped Mousebird
Grey-headed Kingfisher
Striped Kingfisher
Von der Decken's Hornbill
African Grey Hornbill
Red-and-yellow Barbet
Bearded Woodpecker
Barn Swallow
Long-billed Pipit
Rüppell’s Robin-Chat
Chinspot Batis
Spotted Morning-Thrush
Kenya Violet-backed Sunbird
African Golden Oriole
White-rumped Shrike
Wattled Starling
Greater Blue-eared Glossy-Starling
Violet-backed Starling
Lesser Masked-Weaver
Vitelline Masked-Weaver
Red-headed Weaver
Green-winged Pytilia
Red-cheeked Cordonbleu
Yellow-spotted Petronia
African Elephant
Hippopotamus
Eland
Thompson's Gazelle
Bridled Gnu
Tortoise sp.

Edit (31/10/2011): This photo identified as a Black Bishop. The only one seen on the trip…

Edit (10/11/2011): This is an African Helmeted Turtle…

Another fantastic day! I woke before dawn so went for a brief stroll on my own around some paddy-fields. Saw a few new bits and bobs, including a couple of new birds for the trip: Black Crake and Bronze Mannikin. Returning for breakfast, a photogenic Rüppell’s Robin-Chat was posing in nice light. I returned to the paddy-fields with Tom an hour or so later as it had been quite birdy at dawn, but it was much quieter, so after he’d seen the Crake, we pressed on as we had a few hours drive to the luxurious Gibbs Farm.

The first stop was only a short distance away at a view-point where we had a last look at Lake Manyara and the park that we had had such a great time in the day before. Elephants could be seen in the distance and a Green Mamba rather more closely.

The drive took about two and a half hours, with a couple of stops on the way. A new mammal was seen, Smith’s Red Rock Hare, as well as a few new bird trip-ticks: Long-crested Eagle, Greenshank, and Green Sandpiper. The scenery was interesting, becoming gradually dryer and dustier as we climbed towards the farm. On arrival at the rather grand and expensive lodge (Michelle asked why we didn’t stay a night there!), we immediately saw several new birds, including Arrow-marked Babbler and Cardinal Woodpecker.

Leaving Michelle and Sam to walk around the coffee plantation and relax in the luxurious gardens, myself and Tom went on a guided walk along a hilly trail. This proved excellent, and a number of new birds were seen. The obvious highlight was African Broadbill but other great birds including Hildebrandt's Francolin, Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater, Moustached Tinkerbird, Scaly-throated Honeyguide, Lesser Honeyguide, Eastern Mountain-Greenbul, Red-faced Cisticola, Black-throated Wattle-eye, White-tailed Blue-Flycatcher, African Hill Babbler, Brown-headed Apalis, Abyssinian Crimson-wing, and Southern Citril. Others included Tambourine Dove, Nubian Woodpecker, Black Cuckoo-shrike (female), Green-backed Camaroptera, Ashy Flycatcher, Olive Thrush, Collared Sunbird, Broad-ringed White-eye, Yellow-bellied Waxbill, Spectacled Weaver, and Streaky Seedeater. Tom also saw Greater Honeyguide.

Meeting the others later than scheduled, we had an excellent lunch and walked or relaxed in the gardens as well as used what must be the grandest wash-facilities in the whole of Africa! Whilst sitting in the gardens, admiring the view, sipping a beer, and watching the Baglafecht Weavers and Speckled Mousebirds feeding on the bird table, we were lucky enough to record both species of Yellow Warbler (African Yellow Warbler and Mountain Yellow Warbler)!

Mid-afternoon we pressed on towards the Ngorongoro crater, arriving at the entrance a couple of hours or so before dusk. After the formalities of entering the park were carried out we took a slow drive, to the crater rim looking for Schalow's Turaco on the way, but failing. We did however manage to see Bar-throated Apalis, African Black-headed Oriole, and Black-crowned Tchagra.

An hour or so before dusk we reached the crater rim where we had what must possibly be the best view in the whole world! Certainly the most magnificent view I have ever witnessed. Using binoculars we could see the herds of mega-fauna in the crater below, waiting for us, as we would be in the crater tomorrow.

From here we made the short journey to our overnight accommodation, the Rhino Lodge. A beautiful and very atmospheric place to stay, with Marabou Storks on the lawn, and with wonderful views and sounds of the forest.

Our back balcony overlooked a small grassy area where there had been Waterbuck when we arrived. Myself and Sam sat out after dinner and were treated to torch views of a Spotted Hyena before we turned in for the night.

A full day in the crater. Amazing. Mainly looking at mammals (family saw Lions for the first time!) but lots of good birds seen as well. List of new stuff with some photos of the day below…

Purple Heron
African Spoonbill
Lappet-faced Vulture
African Marsh-Harrier
Coqui Francolin (heard only)
Kori Bustard
Black-bellied Bustard
Long-toed Lapwing
Senegal Lapwing? – a very good candidate, but unfortunately too far to confirm, so could have been Black-winged Lapwing.
Olive Pigeon
Schalow's Turaco
Hoopoe
White-headed Barbet
Grey Woodpecker
Singing Bushlark
Banded Martin
Common House-Martin
Silverbird
Hunter's Cisticola
Stout Cisticola
African Reed-Warbler
Northern Black-Flycatcher
Northern Anteater-Chat
African Paradise-Flycatcher
Bronze Sunbird
Golden-winged Sunbird
Eastern Double-collared Sunbird
White-breasted White-eye
Brubru
Hildebrandt's Starling
Rufous-tailed Weaver
Red-billed Firefinch
Purple Grenadier
Common Waxbill
Lion
Black-backed Jackal
Grant's Gazelle
Impala

Edit (31/10/2011): A flock of Widowbirds taken in the Ngorongoro proved to be Fan-tailed Widowbird.

We set the alarm for an hour or so later today as there was no plan for a dawn start, and after a leisurely breakfast at the Rhino Lodge, headed off west towards the Serengeti. The drive could be done in a couple of hours, but we took it slowly, with several stops. The first stop was on the edge of the crater rim where we successfully called in Wailing Cisticola and also managed Jackson’s Widowbird. Another long stop was made a a Massi village which everyone enjoyed and was very educational.

The last part of the drive before reaching the park proper was through the “Endless Plains” (which I believe is what the Serengeti may mean anyway). This treeless plain stretched for miles. Little was on offer for the non (or general) birders (stuff like Capped Wheatear and Pectoral-patch Cisticola seemed abundant) until the first Secretary-bird was seen.

We picnicked at the park gates and had a few new birds: Black-lored Babbler, Kenya Rufous Sparrow, Black-faced Waxbill, Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver, Rueppell's Glossy-Starling, Speckle-fronted Weaver, Speke’s Weaver, White-bellied Canary, and the first definite (they had almost certainly been overlooked) African Mourning Dove.

A great afternoon was spent driving around the central section of the park. A sleeping Leopard in a tree and a few Topi were added to the mammal list. New birds included White-headed Vulture, Coqui Francolin, Grey-breasted Francolin, Temminck's Courser, Meyer's Parrot (in the same tree as the sleeping Leopard), Red-billed Hornbill, White-browed Robin-Chat, Rattling Cisticola (had this been overlooked before?), Winding Cisticola, Grey-backed Fiscal, Long-tailed Fiscal, and Magpie Shrike.

We had intended to head to our accommodation earlier than usual but as usual there was just too much to see. In the end we made a made dash out of the park to get to there before dark, having brief drive-by views of several White-bellied Bustards on the way. The best bird of the day (for me at least) was saved until last thing when a Bat Hawk was see hawking bats on the edge of a rocky escarpment near to our camp.

After an amazing meal (by any standards) we went to our tents.

Edit (10/11/2011): The Rats around Serengeti picnic site were African Grass Rats…

Another fantastic day! Our drive into the park first thing produced Tabora Cisticola, followed by Slate-coloured Boubou at the park gate. We had breakfast at the Hippo Pool, where funnily enough, there were lots of Hippos. I also took a few snaps of thes and of some Wire-tailed Swallows…

We spent most of the morning concentrating on the extreme western edge of the park, and after much searching managed to pick up a pair of Karamoja Apalises. The first Crocodiles were also seen whilst birding highlights included Usambiro Barbet and Yellow-throated Longclaw.

We had our picnic at a visitors centre where there was a very informative short trail to walk. Here we had Kenrick's Starling, Dwarf Mongoose, and Black-necked Rock Hyrax. The afternoon was spent mainly looking at mammals. It started with views of a Leopard (again sleeping in a tree), but soon after leaving that I spotted a much smaller cat walking in the tall grass which turned out to be Serval! We watched this beautiful animal on our own for about half an hour, eventually gaining great views.

After the Serval had eventually slipped away in the tall grass we carried on a few minutes along the road and came across a Cheetah! Views were distant, but we were all happy to have got one under the belt.

The rest of the afternoon was just spent driving around seeing what we could see. As well as lots more sightings of the usual Lions, Elelphants, and so on, we added one new mammal in the form of Steinbuck. Two male Giraffes sparing were also good to watch.

We also had the usual array of good birds, and had the following new ones for the trip…

Dark Chanting-Goshawk
Grey Kestrel
Three-banded Plover
Wood Sandpiper
Bare-faced Go-away-bird
Green Woodhoopoe
Abyssinian Scimitar-bill
Beautiful Sunbird
Mariqua Sunbird
Flappet Lark
Bush Pipit
Taita Fiscal
Grey-headed Social-Weaver
Grey-headed Silverbill
Chestnut Sparrow

We returned to our tented camp a little before dusk (so missed out on a second chance of Bat Hawk) in order to eat and prepare for our night-drive that had been arranged. Things looked ominous during dinner (again fantastic!) as there was a heavy downpour (we had noticed distant lightning when exiting the park). Fortunately the rain eased and the trip went ahead with just the occasional light drizzle. We’d been very much looking forward to the drive and it didn’t disappoint, scoring the following…

Ostrich – one bird sleeping on the ground
Square-tailed Nightjar – nearly caught it, but flew at last moment
Senegal Bushbaby – excellent views
Zebra
Bohor Reedbuck
Common Genet – excellent views of probably two different individuals
Scrub Hare
Jackson's Chameleon x 2 (one in the hand)

Edit (29/09/2011): I think the Nightjar may actually be Slender-tailed Nightjar, not Square-tailed.

I awoke just before dawn as I wanted to take some photos of the sun rising above the plains and I was told of just the place to do so. Unfortunately the clouds that produced last night's rain were still around, so the views never materialised. I therefore birded on my own on foot for a bit until the others were awake, picking up Rufous Chatterer, Amethyst Sunbird, and Scarlet-chested Sunbird as trip-ticks.

After a great breakfast (the food here was something else!) we said goodbye to the Ngome tented camp staff and headed for another safari. Today we headed for the much drier south. On the way we were fortunate to have yet another Leopard sighting and throughout the day had great views of many of the mammals we had been seeing over the last few days as well as one new one, Hartebeest.

In general the dry plains were quieter, but it was great to be on our own in the vast emptiness with not another vehicle in sight. New birds for the trip included the following…

Hooded Vulture
Crowned Hawk-Eagle
Pygmy Falcon – one of Tom’s most sought after birds eventually fell!
Crested Francolin
Black-winged Lapwing
Rufous-crowned Roller
Red-fronted Barbet
Buff-bellied Warbler
Yellow-billed Oxpecker
Blue-breasted Cordonbleu
Reichenow's Seedeater

We finished the day watching Baboons just outside our in-park accomodation, the rather luxurious Seronera Wildlife Lodge. The first tick-less day for me, but wonderful all the same.

Our last full day in the Serengeti so we all thought it best to take the option of a pre-dawn start, returning to the lodge for breakfast, and collecting a picnic lunch. This proved to be a good choice as the three hours before breakfast were full of action! A Slender-tailed Nightjar was calling (but unfortunately couldn’t be lured in); a Lion posed in beautiful light; some young Spotted Hyenas investigated the jeep; a lone Cheetah was found exceptionally close; a herd of Elephants were seen in great light and then charged a nearby jeep; a Cheetah family was seen; and finally a pack of Hyenas were seen with a freshly dead Thompson’s Gazelle. Amazing stuff.

The rest of the day continued in a similar way as previous days: Just driving around seeing what we could find. Geat fun! Trip Leopard counts reached double figures(!) but the mammal highlight (until the evening – see below) was undoubtedly two female Lions stalking a family of Warthogs. The final chase led to much loud squealing, but with no kill.

I had one main target species – Red-throated Tit – that I especially wanted to see. I’d glimpsed one earlier in the lodge gardens but hadn’t had a proper view. Fortunately we found two of these as well as other good birds including Southern Ground-Hornbill and, in particular, Pangani Longclaw. Other new birds included Red-billed Duck, Black-breasted Snake-Eagle, Wahlberg's Eagle, White-bellied Go-away-bird, Nyanza Swift, Plain-backed Pipit, Banded Warbler, Golden-breasted Bunting, and Swaheli Sparrow, the last being a new bird for me also.

The day’s highlight came last thing: We were driving back to the lodge a little bit earlier than usual for several reason (we’d been up before dawn; Sam wanted a swim; I was happy to check out birds in the gardens whilst having a beer). However, on the way back I yelled stop as, very close to the road, a Cheetah had just killed a Thomson’s Gazelle! It took it into cover and then rested in full view for several minutes, exhausted. We guessed it was a female and hopped it may have cubs nearby. Sure enough, after it had recovered it started calling them in. With no response it went to find them whilst we manoeuvred the jeep in prime position for their return. The female walked quite some distance and out of view, but after a while we spotted her returning and then a few minutes later noticed two cubs some distance behind. They then slowly made there way to the carcass, walking a short distance and then hiding in cover, repeating the process many times. Each time they stopped and hid, the mother would raise her head and look around for several minutes before walking slowly closer. Eventually, after about an hour, they arrived at the carcass where they devoured it, with the female waiting until the cubs had had their fill. Fascinating to watch something that may seem rather run-of-the-mill when watching on a television documentary, but to witness it first hand is something else. With the light gone, and the show over, we headed back to the lodge in the dark. Sam wasn’t fussed about the swimming!

Started the day as yesterday: Out before dawn for a few hours before returning for breakfast and to pack. Not as exciting as yesterday but clear skies led to a beautiful sunrise. As well as the usual mammals, we also saw a Golden Jackal. We then saw the first Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse of the trip before we found several hundred Sandgrouse drinking at a pool. It consisting mainly of Yellow-throated Sandgrouse, but a few Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse as well.

After breakfast, whist the car was being loaded, Sam managed a quick swim, and Tom found a Red-fronted Tinkerbird (which I missed). We then took a slow drive eastwards out of the Serengeti, seeing more mammals (including Lions with cubs), before stopping for lunch at the gates as on our way in. A Spotted Thick-knee was found in the plans, making it the last new bird for the Serengeti.

We then made our way back to the Ngorongoro crater, again admiring the views. I also made a few stops there to try and call in Grey-capped Warbler (which I’d fully expecting to see) but failed. Then out of Ngorongoro and back to the Twiga, where we arrived at dusk. It was then just a case of packing for the plane and a day bag for our last day. All a bit sad really, as we didn’t want to leave, but we’d had an amazing few days in the Serengeti.

Edit (16/11/2011): This is an Agama species, probably a female Mwanza Flat-headed Agama…

The last day. As usual we were out before dawn, but this time on a long drive (just under two hours) to Tarangire. A lovely park, visited mainly for birds, though this didn’t stop us seeing the usual array of mammals including, surprisingly, another Leopard and more Lions. The non-birders also managed to add a Leopard Tortoise and a Monitor Lizard to their lists. We didn’t really target anything, just drove around in our usual manner, seeing what there was to be seen.

The park was very birdy, and a good number of new birds were added to the trip-list, including a few new ones for me…

Great White Pelican
Intermediate Egret
Hamerkop
African Openbill
Saddle-billed Stork
Brown Snake-Eagle
Namaqua Dove
Yellow-collared Lovebird
Mottled Spinetail
Malachite Kingfisher
D'Arnaud's Barbet
Mosque Swallow
African Penduline-Tit
Grey-crested Helmetshrike
Ashy Starling
Steel-blue Whydah
Pin-tailed Whydah

Later than we should have been we made a made dash to the airport for our evening flight. We seemed to hit the Arusha rush-hour which delayed us more and then came very close to a having crash which Abdul very skilfully avoided. With time running out, and the light fading fast, we made a stop for our last tick; something that we'd obviously missed on our night-time arrival: Kilimanjaro. A fitting end to a wonderful trip.

Edit (17/11/2011): Monitor Lizard was Nile Monitor Lizard.