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Are we seeing the ecological demise of Arusha National Park?

Buffalo near seasonal streams water in Serengeti Ndogo, Arusha National Park, in 2008 (photograph by Anabel Harries).

Nowadays there's never any water here at Serengeti Ndogo - even in the wetter seasons like this one - so who has taken it all?

It's painfully obvious that indefatigable encroachment threatens the park in every way and from all sides.

I was there last week with NatureTrek (UK) after a long absence - it was truly shocking how dry parts of the park have become.

Only freshwater Lake Longil approached its former glory.

A dainty Dusky Flycatcher expertly captured by Anabel Harries (2008)

At least the delightful Dusky Flycatchers remain common in Arusha NP. It's hard to believe this species was once lumped with Asian Brown Flycatcher but that was back in the Cold War on "Russian Terror"!

Anyway, now we are all flycatchers living in an 'adjusting' world!

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Submitted by admin on Tue, 2013-02-05 13:13.

Developing the Wealth of Nature is an Individual Endeavour

Our Wealth of Nature

the house and carefully maintained nature garden of my friends Joanna and Derek in the EU-subsidised sheep-grazed deserts of the west of Eire (summer 2012)

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Submitted by admin on Sun, 2013-02-03 06:53.

Africa - Wet, warm, wet … (cooler off Natal)

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Submitted by admin on Thu, 2013-01-31 08:08.

Temperate air streaming south across East Africa to join Felleng

31/01/13

Two Pied Crows enjoy temperate 'Palearctic air' beside Mount Meru (at 1,400 metres in Tanzania) whilst a Cha'an Chora Man snaps 'em.

" Thank You for bringing us such a deliciously temperate feeling for this last day of January my honourable friend - Cyclone Felleng !

This is - Pied Crow Two, at Mount Meru Bird Observatory, Moist, Wired and Stream-Lined, O & O."

After a very windy and temperate night, with "highly unusual for here" northwesterly winds, there are birds galore in our garden (all but two hidden in the middle picture, whereabouts scarcely known!).

Yet hopefully the following three images, if viewed holistically, might be self-explanatory especially to any africophiles?

If not, but you're interested in climate, weather and Afro-Palearctic birds (which, of course, you really should be) you might go to :

http://wxmaps.org/pix/af.fcst.html

In my opinion wxmaps provide the best medium range forecasts for Africa and they remain freely available on the web.

See the full gallery on Posterous

Submitted by admin on Thu, 2013-01-31 07:59.

Climate change 'delivering' coastal rarities to southern Ivory Coast?

From AFBID Moderator Jason Anderson -

"Lionel Sineux has recently uploaded some interesting images to AFBID (the African Bird Image Database) from Assouinde on the southern coast of Ivory coast in the last few days. They include Ivory Coast's first record of Eurasian Wigeon, a record of Pintail, one of African Darter and one of Collared Pratincole. It's interesting that at least 3 of these 4 species, if not all are very rare on the coast, and therefore probably vagrants.

They are all, interestingly, more common (according to available distribution maps) further north in the Sahel zone, especially for example along the Niger River in Mali.

Images can be seen by looking at the Latest Images page on AFBID: http://www.birdquest.net/afbid/latestimages.php

Over much of western Africa the rains of the ITCZ "Monsoon" (aka Inter-Tropical-Front) during the Boreal Summer of 2012 were not only very productive but also advanced a few hundred kilometres farther north during June- July than is considered usual.

I myself saw many silvery wadi rivers flowing through the deserts of south-east Mauritania on July 1.

This surely prompted vigorous growth of herbaceous, or field layer, vegetation in many habitats and across whole regions. It could have rendered some traditional "wintering" sites unsuitable for the species you have mentioned.

Moreover, at the beginning of December, the Harmattan northerly air-flow, coming out of the Sahara, became very well-established. This was after only a very brief transition period, or none at all in some places, e.g. northern Sierra Leone. By all accounts the Harmattan has remained vigorous until now.

These two contrasting eco-climatic phenomena may have contributed to the out-of-control "farm-bush fires" that are now being reported across some parts of Guinea, Sierra Leone, Benin and perhaps elsewhere in western Africa. It is likely that these factors combined are at least partly responsible for some Palearctic birds appearing farther south than records would suggest.

One certainly hopes that French military technology has not been targeting too many wetlands in their recent campaign in Mali!

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Submitted by admin on Wed, 2013-01-30 09:27.

Guinea's Burning! - Recent fires in Upper Guinea zones

http://thewatchers.adorraeli.com/2013/01/20/west-africa-veiled-by-dust-and-smoke/

Lance/Modis - Guinea's Burning - track the prevalence of Fire upon Upper Guinea's " forests " ...

Fires across Western Africa captured by MODIS/Aqua on January 16, 2013 (Credit: LANCE/MODIS)

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Submitted by admin on Wed, 2013-01-30 07:20.

Africa Weather Website - well-presented analyses that Africa deserves

http://wxmaps.org/pix/af.fcst.html

29 January 2013

GFS Medium Range Forecasts of
850mb Temperature, Humidity and Winds

Issued: See Image Titles for Initial and Valid Times

Forecasts are issued by the National Centers for Environmental Prediction (model documentation) and are presented as a set of seven panels for each 24 hour interval from 0 (analysis) to 144 hours.

Submitted by admin on Tue, 2013-01-29 17:47.

Fish Eagle Point - Nature's Lodge near Tanga in northern Tanzania

Sunrise at Visitor's Bay Fish Eagle Point, north of Tanga, in late November 2011

Unspoiled and unpretentious Fish Eagle Point is easily the best place along the coast of Northern Tanzania for some relaxed and undisturbed 'natural birding'. It's also the perfect place to get all that Masai dust (or Tan-roads bumps) out of your system after a motorised safari jolting around Tanzania's famous northern circuit.

And thanks to the diligence of Chinese road engineers it's now very easy to get to from both Tanga and the adjacent, yet far more crowded, coastline of Southern Kenya.

The owners of Fish Eagle Point have gone to great pains to minimise the impact of their lodge. In fact, by setting-up here, they have successfully protected a small area of spray-bevelled coral rag forest, into which the few bandas (the 'delightfully rustic' accommodation) have been lovingly secreted.

So, as regards "Sustainable Biodiversity Tourism" it's a shining example.

There are even a few observable medium-sized terrestrial mammals - Blue Monkeys, Yellow Baboons, Galagos and even the diminutive secretive and retiring Sunni antelope.

In truth this small strip of forest continues to support a very pleasing variety of coastal wildlife.

The canopy community includes the nationally scarce Green Tinkerbird and on the forest floor there are such localised butterflies as the Gold-banded Forester. It appears that this elfin coastal woodland currently delineates the northern edge of the distribution of some southern bird species - such as the Kurrichane Thrush.

More conspicuous are the Black-bellied Starlings and Purple-banded Sunbirds present all day, all year, in the trees all around the lodge.

Whilst close looks at BIG choosy birds, like Woolly-necked Stork and African Fish Eagle, remind you that you are still residing in a patch of what's left of our Earthly paradise!

Over the Indian Ocean there are good numbers of terns, of at least four species, offshore at all seasons. Uniquely wonderful, Crab Plovers may number up to 250 individuals in the varied shorebird roost, especially on neap tides, and in the south-facing bay throughout the northern winter.

An hour's cruise offshore, in the lodge's motorised dhow, will get you out into the deep waters of the Pemba Channel. Here a variety of southern seabirds and northern migrants and vagrants, such as Long-tailed Jaeger, occur in season. There are adrenalin-inducing cetaceans here too! Occasionally, especially just after sunrise, on very calm mornings during the South-east Monsoon (August onward) Humpback Whales may be observed, engaged in fluke-slapping courtship, less than a kilometre from land.

Recommendation: If you can, go there asap!

http://www.fisheaglepoint.com/

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Submitted by admin on Wed, 2013-01-23 13:27.

And Quiet Flows the Hao - ( not her real name )

Chuang Tzu and Hui Tzu were strolling along the bank of the Hao river when Chuang Tzu said:

See how the minnows come out and dart around where they please. That's what fish really enjoy.

Hui Tzu replied, You're not a fish - so how do you know what fish enjoy?

Chuang Tzu went on, You're not I, so how do you know that I don't know what fish enjoy?

Hui Tzu retorted, I'm not you, so I certainly don't know what you know. On the other hand, you're certainly not a fish - so that still shows that you don't know what fish enjoy.

Chuang Tzu replied to this, Let's go back to your original question. You asked me HOW I know what fish enjoy - so you already knew it when you asked the question. I know it by standing here beside the Hao !

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Submitted by admin on Wed, 2013-01-23 11:44.