Birds of Masai Mara National Reserve
Birds of Masai Mara National Reserve: Masai Mara national reserve is a recognized worldly famous tourist destination located in Kenya in the Rift valley province, Narok County, the reserve is in a distance of about 306 kilometers from Nairobi and borders Serengeti national park of Tanzania.

Masai Mara national reserve is popular for being a grand habitat for ecosystem including vegetation, birdlife, wildlife and many more. Another aspect which makes Masai Mara national reserve one of the most visited destinations in the world is the annual wildebeest migration, Annual wildebeest is annual migration of thousands wildebeest of zebras, wildebeests and gazelles from and to Serengeti national park found in Tanzania.
Masai Mara national reserve is one of the recognized important birding areas in Kenya hosting over 500 bird species, these birds thrive in various vegetation zones of the park and they are various types. Bird species in Masai Mara national reserve include water birds, forest birds, near endemic species, endemic species, near-threatened species and vulnerable species.
Below is the list of bird species found and sighted in Bwindi impenetrable national park
OSTRICH
- Common Ostrich

Grebes
- Little Grebe
Pelicans, cormorants & darter
- Long-tailed (Reed) Cormorant
- African Darter
Herons, egrets and bitterns
- Little Bittern
- Dwarf Bittern
- Black-crowned Night-Heron
- Cattle Egret
- Little Egret
- Common Squacco-Heron
- Rufous-bellied Heron
- Striated (Green-backed) Heron
- Intermediate (Yellow-billed) Egret
- Great (White) Egret
- Grey Heron
- Purple Heron
- Goliath Heron
- Black-headed Heron
Hammerkop and shoebill
- Hammerkop
Storks
- Little White Stork
- Black Stork
- Abdim’s (White Bellied) Stork
- Woolly-necked Stork
- Saddle-billed Stork
- Marabou Stork
- African Open bill Stork
- Yellow-billed Stork
Ibises and spoonbill
- Sacred Ibis
- Hadeda Ibis
- Glossy Ibis
- African Spoonbill
Ducks and geese
- White-faced Whistling-Duck
- Spur-winged Goose
- Egyptian Goose
- Comb (Knob-billed) Duck
- Northern Pintail
- Red-billed Teal
- Hottentot Teal
Secretary bird
- Secretary bird
Vultures
- African White-backed Vulture
- Ruppell’s Vulture
- Lappet-faced Vulture
- White-headed Vulture
- Egyptian Vulture
- Hooded Vulture
Eagles, kites, harriers and hawks
- African fish
- eagle
- lesser spotted eagle
- tawny eagle
- steppe eagle
- Wahlberg’s eagle
- Verreaux’s eagle
- African hawk-eagle
- booted eagle
- long-crested eagle
- martial eagle
- crowned-eagle
- black-chested snake-eagle
- short-toed eagle
- brown snake-eagle
- western banded snake-eagle
- Bateleur
- black-winged kite
- black kite
- European honey-buzzard
- African cuckoo-hawk
- bat hawk
- African harrier-hawk
- pallid harrier
- Montagu’s harrier
- African marsh harrier
- Eurasian marsh harrier
- Gabar goshawk
- African goshawk
- little sparrow hawk
- black sparrow hawk
- lizard buzzard
- common buzzard
- augur buzzard
Falcons and kestrels
- Lanner falcon
- peregrine falcon
- Eurasian hobby
- grey kestrel
- lesser kestrel
- common kestrel
- amur falcon
Quails, buttonquails, francolins and Guinea fowl
- common quail
- harlequin quail
- common buttonquail
- coqui francolin
- Shelley’s francolin
- scaly francolin
- red-necked spurfowl
- crested francolin
- helmeted guinea fowl
Rails, crakes, moorhens and coot
- African rail
- African crake
- spotted crake
- Baillon’s crake
- corn crake
- black crake
- common moorhen
- African purple swamp hen
Cranes and bustards
- grey crowned crane
- Kori bustard
- white-bellied bustard
- black-bellied
Jacana and stilt
- African jacana
- black-winged stilt

Thick-knees
- Water thick-knee
- spotted thick-knee
Coursers
- three-banded courser
- Temminck’s courser
Plovers, lapwings and painted snipe
- ringed plover, Kittlitz’s plover
- three-banded plover, Caspian plover, blacksmith lapwing, spur-winged lapwing, Senegal lapwing, black-winged lapwing, crowned lapwing, African wattled lapwing and greater painted snipe
Sandpipers and relatives
- Little Stint
- Curlew Sandpiper
- Ruff, Spotted Redshank
- Common Redshank
- Marsh Sandpiper
- Common Greenshank
- Green Sandpiper
- Wood Sandpiper
- Common Sandpiper
Terns
- Gull-billed Tern
- Sterna
- White-winged Tern
Pigeons and doves
- African Green Pigeon
- Tambourine Dove
- Emerald-spotted Wood-Dove
- Blue-spotted Wood-Dove
- Namaqua Dove
- African Olive Pigeon
- Speckled (Rock) Pigeon
- Red-eyed Dove
- Ring-necked Dove
- Dusky Turtle Dove
- Laughing Dove
Parrots
- Meyer’s Parrot
Turacos
- Ross’ Turaco
- Schawlow’s Turaco
- Bare-faced Go-away-bird
- Eastern Grey Plantain-eater
Cuckoos and coucals
- Jacobin Cuckoo
- Levaillant’s Cuckoo
- Great Spotted Cuckoo
- Black Cuckoo
- Red-chested Cuckoo
- Common Cuckoo
- African Cuckoo
- African Emerald Cuckoo
- Klaas’s Cuckoo
- Diderick Cuckoo
- White-browed Coucal
- Black Coucal
Owls
- Little Barn Owl
- Spotted Eagle-Owl
- Verreaux’s Eagle Owl
- Pel’s Fishing Owl
- Pearl-spotted Owlet
- African Wood-Owl
- Marsh Owl

Nightjars
- Montane Nightjar
- Eurasian Nightjar
- Square-tailed Nightjar
- Dusky Nightjar
- Swamp Nightjar
- Pennant-winged Nightjars
SWIFTS
- African Palm Swift
- Common Swift
- African Black Swift
- Horus Swift
- Nyanza Swift
- Mottled Swift
- Alpine Swift
- White-rumped Swift
- Little Swift
Mouse birds
- Speckled Mouse bird
- Blue-naped Mouse bird
Trogons
- Narina Trogon
Kingfishers
- Grey-headed Kingfisher
- Woodland Kingfisher
- Striped Kingfisher
- Malachite Kingfisher
- African Pygmy Kingfisher
- Giant Kingfisher
- Pied Kingfisher
Bee-eaters
- European Bee-eater
- White-throated Bee-eater
- White-fronted Bee-eater
- Little Bee-eater
- Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater
Rollers
- European Roller
- Lilac-breasted Roller
- Broad-billed Roller
Hoopoe and wood hoopoes
- African Hoopoe
- Green Wood Hoopoe
- Common Scimitar bill
- Abyssinian Scimitar bill.
Hornbills
- Southern Ground Hornbill
- Von der Decken’s Hornbill
- Crowned Hornbill
- African Grey Hornbill
- Black-and-white-casqued Hornbill
Barbets and Tinker birds
- Yellow-rumped Tinkerbird
- Red-fronted Tinkerbird
- Spot-flanked Barbet
- White-headed Barbet
- Double-toothed Barbet
- Usambiro Barbet.
Honey guides
- Scaly-throated Honeyguide
- Greater Honeyguide
- Lesser Honeyguide
Woodpeckers and wryneck
- Rufous-necked Wryneck
- Nubian Woodpecker
- Golden-tailed Woodpecker
- Cardinal Woodpecker
- Bearded Woodpecker
- Grey Woodpecker
Larks & sparrow-larks
- White-tailed Lark
- Rufous-naped Lark
- Flappet Lark
- Fawn-coloured Lark
- Red-capped Lark
- Fischer’s Sparrow-Lark
Swallows and martins
- Banded Martin
- Brown-throated Sand Martin
- Common House Martin
- Grey-rumped Swallow
All the above colorful bird species can easily be sighted in Masai Mara national reserve on a birding safari, birding safaris in Masai Mara national reserve can be done throughout but the best experience is got period from November to April.
