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.