ZAMBIA. 1 Birdquest Detailed Tour Itinerary: Zambia 2011

Transcription

1 1 Birdquest Detailed Tour Itinerary: Zambia 2011 ZAMBIA Sunday 11th September Monday 26th September 2011 (16 days) Southern Zambia Post-Tour Extension to Saturday 1st October (5 days) Leader: Nik Borrow Group Size Limit: 9 Tour Category: Easy for the most part, occasionally Moderate (and some optional fairly Demanding bog-stomping) Deep in the interior of Central Africa lies Zambia, a huge, stable and friendly country that straddles the Spine of Africa, its barely perceptible watershed separating the vast basins of the Zambezi and the Congo. Although well known for its prolific big game and spectacular scenery, Zambia has a bird species list of over 750 that includes many exciting birds, including a range of endemics and other localized specialities that are impossible or extremely difficult to see elsewhere on the continent. Zambia is the ultimate country to visit in order to see Africa s miombo woodland specialities. Within the borders of this amazing country sprawls a sparsely inhabited landscape. This exciting trip will take us to some of the most remote regions of the country, taking in open mopane Black-cheeked Lovebirds (Nik Borrow) woodlands and dense, dark evergreen mushitus (forests), spectacular miombo wilderness, wide floodplains and dambos (marshes), and, during the optional extension, the mighty Zambezi and the incredible Victoria Falls. We will even be able to see for ourselves how the Zambezi starts from little more than a puddle of water in the forests of far northwestern Zambia! We will begin our journey at Lusaka and from here we head towards the far northwest of Zambia, breaking our stay at a comfortable lodge where Pel s Fishing Owls are regularly seen and where a marvellous selection of miombo birds such as Whyte s and Miombo Pied Barbets, and Chestnut-mantled Sparrow-Weaver can be found. In the Mwinilunga region, a remote area tucked well out of the way in the extreme north-west corner of the country (where we will divide our time between the area around Mwinilunga town and the pleasant Hillwood Farm Estate), lies an area of forest more typical of the huge rainforests of the Congo basin. Here, at the source of the Zambezi itself and in the water-logged dambos and rich, riparian forests known as mushitus, such special birds as Black-backed Barbet, Angola Lark, Black-andrufous Swallow, Grimwood s and Fülleborn s Longclaws, Bocage s Robin-Chat, Bamboo Warbler, Laura s Woodland Warbler, Bannerman s Sunbird and Bocage s Weaver can all be found. The beautiful Cryptosepalum or mavunda woodlands that lie a little to the south are the type locality of the White-chested Tinkerbird, a species that has never been seen since the original specimen was collected in 1964! Here we shall be hoping to be the first to see this mysterious bird, but, more realistically, we shall also be looking for the beautiful Perrin s Bush-shrike and the localized Margaret s Batis. After partly retracing our steps, and looking for Sharptailed Starling along the way, we will turn to the northeast. Miombo is a special Central African habitat that reaches its zenith in Zambia and we shall travel onwards through these marvellous and seemingly endless woodlands with their gnarled, lichen-covered trees until we end come to the spectacular, domed granitic inselberg landscapes of Mutinondo. Here we should encounter the delightful Barwinged Weaver and we will also search for Anchieta s Barbet, Locust Finch and the ultra-secretive Chestnutheaded Flufftail. During the optional extension we will first explore the area around Livingstone and the famous Victoria Falls, for here in the southwest can be found the endangered Black-cheeked Lovebird, an endemic species that only questionably straggles to neighbouring countries. Moving on, we shall stay at one of the cattle ranches of the Kafue basin with its large, spreading fig trees that support Zambia s only other endemic, the striking Chaplin s Barbet. Birdquest has operated tours to Zambia since Itinerary Day 1 The tour begins this morning at Lusaka from where we shall head northwestwards for the Kafue River near Mpomgwe, where we will be based for two nights in a comfortable lodge scenically placed amongst pristine

2 2 Birdquest Detailed Tour Itinerary: Zambia 2011 miombo, grassy dambos and riverine forest. We will arrive in time for some initial exploration. Day 2 Our lodge is wonderfully situated on the banks of the Kafue River and we will be able to explore the surrounding countryside easily on foot or by taking a boat along the river. There is a good chance of encountering the enormous marmalade-coloured Pel s Fishing Owl here and we will be hoping that the staff will know where the birds are roosting so that we can find them during the day. There are of course plenty of other interesting birds to find around the lodge and the nearby habitats seem to encapsulate Zambia in miniature. The woodlands here will give us our first real chances to see miombo specialists such as the noisy Pale-billed Hornbill, the striking Black-backed Barbet, Bush Pipit, the pretty Black-necked Eremomela, the unassuming Böhm s Flycatcher, Cinnamonbreasted Tit and the handsome Chestnut-mantled Sparrow- Weaver, although we will have further chances for these sometimes elusive species at other locations. The open dambos usually hold a pair of enormous Saddle-billed Storks and other Pel s Fishing Owl (Nik Borrow) birds that we will hope to see include Lesser Moorhen, Three-banded Plover, Ross s Turaco, African Wood Owl, Crowned Hornbill, Yellowrumped Tinkerbird, Greenbacked Honeybird, Goldentailed Woodpecker, African Broadbill, Grey-rumped and Lesser Striped Swallows, Cape Wagtail, Woodland Pipit, White-breasted Cuckooshrike, Miombo Scrub Robin, African Stonechat, Trilling, Luapula and Long-tailed Cisticolas, Green-capped Eremomela, Southern Hyliota, Ashy Flycatcher, Blackthroated Wattle-eye, Whitewinged Black Tit, Common Fiscal, Square-tailed Drongo, Red-headed, Holub s Golden, Dark-backed and Thickbilled Weavers, Red-collared Widowbird, Fawn-breasted Waxbill, Red-throated Twinspot, Orange-winged Pytilia, Brown and African Firefinches, and Red-backed Mannikin. Day 3 Today we will begin the long drive to the far northwest of Zambia, breaking our journey at Solwezi for an overnight stay. Our journey takes us through a sprawling area of industrial towns known as the Copperbelt. During the early part of the 20th century, Zambia was the main supplier of the worlds copper, but economic decline brought the industry to its knees. The tide now seems set to turn again with investment and prosperity returning to these communities. For us there is little to linger for as the apparently scenic mountains are in fact slagheaps! Day 4 Today we will continue our journey towards Mwinilunga, way up in the remote northwest of the country, situated between Angola and the Democratic Republic of Congo, where we will spend the night. The road is reasonably good and, after leaving the towns of the Copperbelt behind us, we will escape into the countryside to find ourselves driving through kilometre after kilometre of glorious woodland. The road crosses a few rivers along the way and at these we will be looking out for Grey-olive Greenbul in the riparian vegetation, while amongst the many Little Swifts we shall look for the Red-throated Cliff Swallows that can sometimes be found nesting beneath the bridges. The pretty Black-faced Canary can be found here and we will make stops at rivers where the mega-skulking Bamboo Warbler may be heard, although we will count ourselves lucky if we see more than a brown shape amidst the grass! Day 5 After Mwinilunga the tarmac road turns to dirt and deteriorates substantially the further north one travels. Our destination is the Hillwood Farm Estate, some two and a half hours drive away, where we will spend four nights. However, we shall spend all day birding along this road, for as soon as we leave Mwinilunga we will pass through Luakera Forest, its tall trees dripping with lichens and moss and holding desirable species such as the notoriously elusive Anchieta s Barbet and the delightful Bar-winged Weaver. In the forest we shall also look out for Little Sparrowhawk, Bluespotted Wood Dove, Afep Pigeon, Thick-billed Cuckoo, the ngamiense form of African Barred Owlet, Green-backed Woodpecker, the reichenowi form of Black Saw-wing, the distinctive stormsi form of African Thrush, Whistling Cisticola, Pale Wren Warbler, Yellow-bellied Hyliota, and Western Violet-backed and Western Olive Sunbirds. Further along the road, the trees become more stunted and eventually open out to expansive plains and marshy dambos that are home to some of the most interesting species of the tour. At the splendid dambo at the Chitunta and Luakela rivers, we shall don rubber boots in order to go bog stomping in search of the rare Grimwood s Longclaw that favours the wettest areas. During our efforts to access this habitat we should find the brightly-coloured Fülleborn s and Rosy-breasted Longclaws that prefer slightly less waterlogged habitat and the sturdy Angola Lark that sings amongst the shorter grass punctuated by strange squat termite mounds. Best of all, this is a reliable locality for the beautiful and restricted-range Black-and-rufous Swallow, which occurs only in Zambia and Angola, departing from nothwestern Zambia by October. Also to be found in the tall grasses are Short-tailed Pipit and Dambo, Ayres s, Tinkling and Stout Cisticolas. There is usually an active colony of Bocage s Weavers to be found in the area and we shall be hoping that we can find this little-known species (which completely disappears outside the breeding season!). Dickinson s Kestrels stand sentinel on the bare snags, Banded Martins hawk insects and African Marsh Harriers quarter grasslands that hold such species as Black-rumped Buttonquail, Denham s and Black-bellied Bustards, Marsh Owl, Swamp Nightjar, Blue-breasted Bee-eater, Rufous-breasted Wryneck, Plain-backed Pipit, Fan-tailed Grassbird, Moustached Grass Warbler, Anchieta s (split from Marsh) Tchagra, Red-headed Quelea, Hartlaub s Marsh

3 3 Birdquest Detailed Tour Itinerary: Zambia 2011 Widowbird, Black-chinned Quailfinch, Locust Finch or perhaps even a migrant Great Snipe. Days 6-8 Nchila Wildlife Reserve lies on the Hillwood Farm Estate and comprises over 40 square kilometres of pristine countryside in which over 400 species of birds have been recorded. The attractive Black-collared Bulbul is relatively easy to see here and we shall also be looking for the charming Laura s Woodland Warbler and the localised Bannerman s Sunbird. In the thick forest patches we may also find Crested Guineafowl, Black Sparrowhawk, Western Bronze-naped Pigeon, Olive Long-tailed Cuckoo, Blue Malkoha, Blue-breasted Kingfisher, Least and Pallid Honeyguides, Little and Honeyguide Greenbuls, Yellow-throated Leaflove, Grey-winged and Redcapped Robin-Chats, Fraser s Rufous Thrush, Evergreen Forest Warbler, Buff-throated Apalis, White-chinned Prinia, Salvadori s Eremomela, Redbellied Paradise Flycatcher, Green-throated and Bates s Sunbirds, Splendid Glossy Starling and Black-bellied Seedcracker. The roads are slow going in this area and getting anywhere fast is not easy, but we will try to explore a little further afield. We should be able to reach the African Finfoot (Michael Hodgson) Zambezi Rapids, where we will search for Forbes s Plover and Cassin s Flycatcher (which nests over the water), and we may also be able to reach the area around Jimbe in order to look for the skulking Spotted Thrush Babbler, its cacophonous duets sounding like a gong concert! In the latter area we may find one or two species more typical of the huge Central African rainforests to the north, such as White-spotted Flufftail, Brown-eared Woodpecker, Sooty and Shrike Flycatchers, Chestnut Wattle-eye or Orange-tufted Sunbird. Day 9 Today we will retrace our steps to Mwinilunga for a two nights stay, looking for anything that we may have missed en route and making a small detour to the source of the Zambezi. This rarely-visited place is the humble beginning of the mighty river that we have previously marvelled at as we stood amongst the spray and rainbows at Livingstone. Here, in the damp and dark mushitus where Cabanis s Greenbul, Red-tailed Bristlebill, African Dusky Flycatcher, and Bluemantled Crested Flycatcher can be found, is a small leakage from beneath a fallen tree that proudly proclaims itself The Source of the Zambezi! It is indeed hard to link the two sights as being of the same river. Day 10 This morning we will make a pre-dawn start, looking out for Spotted Eagle-Owl on the way, for an excursion southwards into very remote country. Our destination is the area where the type specimen of the White-chested Tinkerbird was obtained on 6th September This species remains something of an enigma, as it has never been seen since! We may have little hope of seeing this mysterious bird in the thick, unspoilt and very beautiful Cryptosepalum or mavunda woodland where few paths penetrate and people are remarkably absent, but we should be able to find the gorgeous Perrin s Bush-shrike and we will be searching hard for the localized Margaret s Batis. The vegetation here is thick and often impenetrable, and so we will be hoping for bird parties passing close by to the road. Most of the constituent species will be very familiar to us by now, but there is also the chance that we might add species such as Purplethroated Cuckoo-shrike, White-tailed Blue Flycatcher, Black-fronted Bush-shrike or Grey Waxbill to our growing list. Day 11 Today we will begin the long journey back to the south of Zambia, making an overnight stay at Chimfunshi. We should have time to try again for Bamboo Warbler or anything else that we may have missed en route. Day 12 Chimfunshi is a large private farm and is perhaps best known for its chimpanzee orphanage, but it also has much to offer the birder as the land contains some excellent miombo where the localized Sharptailed Starling is relatively easy to find and where we may also find Whyte s Barbet. After some early morning birding we shall leave Chimfunshi and head southeast, breaking our journey with an overnight stay at Mkushi. Day 13 This morning we shall continue to the awesome Mutinondo Wilderness Reserve for a two nights stay. This afternoon we will begin our exploration of the area. Day 14 Mutinondo Wilderness is a privately owned 10,000 hectares reserve situated in prime miombo habitat where, under panoramic skies, amazing domed granite hills rise up between the dambos and forests. This beautiful place is a horse-riders and walkers paradise and the temptation is there to simply sit and watch as the shadows of the clouds ebb and flow, dappling the rocks and trees in an everchanging light show. Most of the chalets that we stay in have no walls as such and are open to the magnificent views during the day and amazing star-spattered skies at night, so that one can lie in bed stargazing whilst listening to the sounds of Freckled Nightjars echoing over the rocks. Our hosts are truly welcoming and friendly, while Mutinondo is probably the ultimate miombo site in the whole of Zambia, so this is certainly a most memorable place! Here we have our best chance for Barwinged Weaver and Anchieta s Barbet. The weaver favours Usnea or old man s beard lichen and can be found creeping along the branches of trees that are festooned with it. For the barbet, we shall have to try to find a fruiting or flowering tree that the birds are favouring, although this can seem like searching for a needle in a haystack at times. We should take care because the extremely similar Whyte s Barbet also occurs here. The sublime Anchieta s Sunbird is much easier to find, and we should also check the Miombo Double-collared Sunbirds here carefully as an undescribed, look-alike form has recently been discovered that probably belongs to the Greater Double-collared Sunbird complex. The males of this form have longer bills, broader breast bands and a

4 4 Birdquest Detailed Tour Itinerary: Zambia 2011 Chaplin s Barbet (Nik Borrow) different song. We shall also be trying to locate the megaskulking Chestnut-headed (or Long-toed) Flufftail. Although this is a little early in the season for this species (they like it really wet!), we shall be hoping that some calling birds will be lurking in the damper dambos. The problem will be actually setting eyes on this bird as it seems to use the runnels underneath the matted vegetation as escape tunnels! In the moister, more mature forests we will look for Bocage s Akalat and White-tailed Crested Flycatcher. Other birds of this splendid area include African Black Duck, Augur Buzzard, Verreaux s Eagle, Coqui Francolin, Blue Quail, Coppery-tailed Coucal, Fiery-necked Nightjar, Mountain Wagtail, Striped Pipit, Familiar Chat, Mocking Cliff Chat, Pale-crowned and Lazy Cisticolas, Bar-throated Apalis, White-necked Raven, Reichard s Seedeater and Cinnamon-breasted Bunting. Day 15 This morning we will reluctantly leave the wide horizons of Mutinondo behind us and head back to the Lusaka area for an overnight stay at another cattle ranch guesthouse. Here we will have a chance to look for the uncommon Zambezi Indigobird. Day 16 The tour ends this morning at Lusaka. Southern Zambia Extension Itinerary Day 16 We will take a morning flight to Livingstone, situated on the Zambian bank of the Zambezi River at Victoria Falls. On arrival we shall drive through the Mosioa-Tunya Game Park that flanks the town in order to reach our comfortable lodge, idyllically situated on the banks of the Zambezi, for a two nights stay. The lodge has a jetty affording views across the waters to the mammal-rich Zambezi National Park on the Zimbabwean side of the river, where large numbers of African Elephants can be watched coming down to the waterside to drink in the evening. Around the lodge we can familiarize ourselves with some of the more common species such as Long-tailed Cormorant, African Darter, Black-crowned Night Heron, Squacco Heron, Western Cattle, Little, Yellow-billed and Great Egrets, Hamerkop, African Openbill, Hadada Ibis, White-faced Whistling Duck, Egyptian and Spurwinged Geese, African Pygmy Goose, Yellow-billed Kite, African Fish Eagle, Black Crake, African Jacana, Water Thick-knee, Rock Pratincole, White-headed Lapwing, Common Sandpiper, Emerald-spotted Wood Dove, Red-eyed and Ringnecked Doves, African Palm and White-rumped Swifts, Brown-hooded, Malachite and Pied Kingfishers, Little Bee-eater, Sand Martin (or Bank Swallow), Wire-tailed and Barn Swallows, African Pied Wagtail, Yellow-bellied Greenbul, Dark-capped Bulbul, White-browed Robin-Chat, Lesser Swamp Warbler, Tawny-flanked Prinia, Grey-backed Camaroptera, African Paradise Flycatcher, Arrow-marked Babbler, Black-backed Puffback, Pied Crow, White-browed Sparrow-Weaver, Southern Masked Weaver, Blue Waxbill, Red-billed Firefinch, Bronze Mannikin and Yellow-fronted Canary. At night we may find Pearl-spotted Owlet, African Wood Owl and Square-tailed Nightjar. Day 17 We shall leave early this morning and head westwards before leaving the good tarmac for bumpy dirt roads that cross the sandy cotton soils and enter into the mopane woodlands that are home to the Black-cheeked Lovebird. This delightful little parrot is a Zambian endemic, as any valid records outside the country are now thought to refer either to vagrants or else to feral birds. The species particularly favours mopane woodland and it has a patchy distribution in southwestern Zambia, being restricted to an area between the Zambezi and Kafue Rivers, with a total population numbering no more than 10,000 individuals. The dry season flocks should be breaking up at this time of the year, as the seasonal pools will be filling up and drinking water becoming more available, so we may have to work quite hard to find this rarity. The habitat here encompasses part of the Zambezi floodplain and shallow pools, thorny thickets and stands of mopane are characteristic of the area, so there will be much to distract us along the way. Other species to look out for during our travels include Little Grebe, Marabou Stork, Blackshouldered Kite, Hooded and African White-backed Vultures, Black-chested and Brown Snake Eagles, Bateleur, Gabar Goshawk, Dark Chanting Goshawk, Shikra, Steppe (split from Common) Buzzard, Martial, Tawny and Wahlberg s Eagles, Helmeted Guineafowl, Crested and Swainson s Francolins, Blacksmith and Crowned Lapwings, Namaqua Dove, Double-banded Sandgrouse, African Mourning Dove, Brown Parrot, Grey Go-awaybird, Jacobin, Klaas s and Diderick Cuckoos, Whitebrowed Coucal, Verreaux s Eagle-Owl, Red-faced Mousebird, Woodland and Striped Kingfishers, Bluecheeked, Swallow-tailed and Southern Carmine Beeeaters, Lilac-breasted and Broad-billed Rollers, Green Wood-hoopoe, Common Scimitarbill, African Hoopoe, Southern Ground Hornbill, Southern Red-billed and African Grey Hornbills, Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird, Black-collared and Crested Barbets, Lesser Honeyguide, Bennett s and Cardinal Woodpeckers, Flappet Lark, Mosque, Red-breasted and Pearl-breasted Swallows, Black Cuckoo-shrike, Whitebrowed Scrub Robin, Rattling and Chirping Cisticolas, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Burnt-necked Eremomela, Long-billed Crombec, Southern Black Flycatcher, Grey Tit-flycatcher, Hartlaub s Babbler, Southern Black Tit, Scarlet-chested, Marico, Copper and White-bellied Sunbirds, African Yellow White-eye, Magpie Shrike, Orange-breasted Bush-shrike, Brown-crowned and Blackcrowned Tchagras, Tropical Boubou, Brubru, White and Retz s Helmet-shrikes, African Golden Oriole, Fork-tailed Drongo, Meves s, Burchell s and Violet-backed Starlings, Yellow-billed and Red-billed Oxpeckers, Northern Greyheaded Sparrow, Red-billed Buffalo Weaver, Lesser Masked and Village Weavers, Green-winged Pytilia, Village Indigobird, Pin-tailed Whydah and Golden-breasted Bunting. The area borders on the much drier country to the west marking the beginning of a

5 5 Birdquest Detailed Tour Itinerary: Zambia 2011 rather different avifauna, and so there is always the chance of a few surprises. Day 18 This morning, just as the sun is rising, we will take a boat trip on the Zambezi River. There is a cool freshness to the air at this time of day and a peaceful early morning cruise along the river edge will give us a good chance of encountering an African Finfoot or perhaps Whitebacked Night Heron or Halfcollared Kingfisher, as well as any common riverine species that we may have missed such as Striated (or Green-backed), Purple and Black-headed Herons, Knob-billed Duck and Giant Kingfisher. On rare occasions, even a Pel s Fishing Owl is seen. As we cruise along the Zimbabwean side we may also see Black Heron, Black Stork, Western Banded Snake Eagle and Ruff, as well as mammals such as Vervet Monkey, Hippopotamus and Impala. Returning to the hotel, we shall eat a hearty breakfast and then retrace our steps to Livingstone in order to visit the Victoria Falls. This spectacular and breathtaking place still has a stunning impact even after one has seen innumerable films or photographs. The falls themselves are magnificent and, as David Livingstone himself once declared, On sights as beautiful as this, angels in their flight must have gazed. Here the mighty Zambezi widens to nearly two kilometres broad before plunging vertically downwards. As we approach the falls, dense clouds of water vapour hang over the area and the sound of millions of tons of water dropping into chasms over 100m deep is awe-inspiring. Rock Martins and Red-winged Starlings fly through rainbows that arch across the fine spray before vanishing into the gloom of the gorges. The area protected by the national park is not as extensive as on the Zimbabwean side and bird song is difficult to hear above the deafening rumble and pounding of cascading water. The falls were known as a regular haunt of the rare Taita Falcon, but these days, with increased disturbance, the birds have retreated to the inaccessible gorges downstream. Perhaps the most interesting birds that live here are the African Black Swifts of the paler race hollidayi that is endemic to Victoria Falls. After lunch we will head east towards Choma for a two nights stay in the Nkanga Conservation Area. We will be staying in stylish and comfortable accommodation and join our hosts in the main house each evening for our meals, an experience that makes for a most welcoming and friendly stay. We should arrive in time for some initial exploration. Day 19 The Nkanga Conservation Area contains several cattle ranches and farms that have been actively protecting the local wildlife and are involved in mammal reintroduction schemes. Our interest here lies primarily with Zambia s only other endemic, the striking Chaplin s Barbet. This threatened barbet occurs only in a restricted area that is probably as small as a few hundred square kilometres! The bird needs plenty of Ficus sycomorus fig trees for its source of food and it is threatened when these are cleared for cultivation. We shall be scanning the fig trees scattered across the open grasslands in search of bright white dots that could ultimately prove to be the bird itself. The ranch house overlooks an attractive small dam surrounded by dense thickets and beautiful open miombo woodland, and this mosaic typifies the area. Other species that may well be found here include Little Bittern, Rufous-bellied and Grey Herons, African Spoonbill, White-backed and Yellow-billed Ducks, Red-billed and Hottentot Teals, African Cuckoo-Hawk, African Harrier-Hawk, African Goshawk, Lizard Buzzard, Long-crested Eagle, Shelley s and Natal Francolins, Rednecked Spurfowl, African Crake, Lesser Moorhen, Lesser Jacana, African Wattled and Blacksmith Lapwings, African Green Pigeon, Grey-headed Parrot, Schalow s Turaco, Redchested and Black Cuckoos, Black and Senegal Coucals, the spectacular Pennantwinged Nightjar, Narina s Trogon, White-fronted Bee-eater, Racket-tailed Roller, Trumpeter Hornbill, Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird, Miombo Pied Barbet, Brownbacked Honeybird, Greater Honeyguide, Bearded Woodpecker, Rufous-naped Lark, Terrestrial Brownbul, Collared Palm Thrush, Sooty and Arnott s Chats, Miombo Rock Thrush, Groundscraper and Kurrichane Thrushes, Red-faced, Croaking, Shortwinged and Zitting Cisticolas, Neddicky, Stierling s Wren Warbler, Yellow-bellied Eremomela, Red-capped Crombec, Pale Flycatcher, Chinspot Batis, Miombo Grey Tit, Grey Penduline Tit, Spotted Creeper, Amethyst and Collared Sunbirds, Souza s Shrike, Grey-headed Bushshrike, Brubru, Eastern Blackheaded Oriole, Greater and Miombo Blue-eared Starlings, Yellow-throated Petronia, Spectacled Weaver, Southern Red and Yellow Bishops, Yellow-mantled Widowbird, Common and Orangebreasted Waxbills, Cuckoo Finch (previously known as Parasitic Weaver), Black-eared Seedeater and Cabanis s Bunting. Day 20 After some early morning birding at Nkanga we will return to the Lusaka area for an overnight stay. Day 21 The extension ends this morning at Lusakla. Accommodation & Road Transport: The hotels and lodges are mostly of normal Birdquest standard. At Mwinilunga town we will stay for a total of three nights in a basic resthouse with shared bathroom facilities and two or more people in each room. At Chimfunshi we will stay one night at a simple but pleasant field centre on a private farm (bathroom facilities are shared and basic). We will be travelling in 4x4 vehicles or minibuses on a mixture of well-surfaced tarred roads and dirt roads. Walking: The walking effort is easy almost throughout, although there will be some optional fairly strenuous bogstomping in order to look for a few of the special birds. Climate: The weather is normally hot with a mixture of sunny and overcast conditions at this season. Rain can be expected at times and it can be heavy. Bird Photography: Opportunities are quite good.