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Rosy-faced Lovebirds were some of the first birds we saw in Namibia. We had wonderful looks at these colorful and charming little parrots at several locations, including the Erongo Wilderness Lodge. Photo by guide Joe Grosel.

Our November 2018 Namibia and Botswana tour followed the established 18-day itinerary which incorporates an extraordinary assemblage of contrasting habitats. These included the Namib Desert's magnificent red dunes, the coastal region around Walvis Bay with its cold but very prolific Benguela current, the towering granite inselbergs of the Spitzkoppe and Erongo hills, the 'Great White' Etosha Pan with its numerous strategic waterholes supporting large concentrations of game, the tranquillity of Botswana's papyrus-lined Okavango River and the beautiful wilderness of the Okavango Delta.

After a relatively short flight from Johannesburg, the tour started in earnest in Namibia's capital, Windhoek. No birding tour would be complete without at least one visit to a sewage works, and so we kicked off this tour on a first afternoon at the Gammams water purification works, which provided some good water and 'bushveld' birds. South African Shelduck, Hottentot Teal, Red-billed Duck, Southern Pochard, Red-knobbed Coot, African Gallinule, Common and Wood sandpipers, Great Cormorant, and a lone African Jacana were just some of the aquatic species seen. In the surrounding Acacia woodland there were Gray Go-away-birds, Rufous-vented Warbler, Pied Barbet, Cardinal Woodpecker, Brubru, Burnt-neck Eremomela, Yellow Canary, Cape Sparrow, Mariqua Flycatcher, and Scarlet-chested and Mariqua sunbirds, while in the reed beds we spotted Southern Red Bishop, African Reed Warbler, and Lesser and Southern masked-weavers. On the way back to our lodgings we had good sightings of Rosy-faced Lovebirds and the near-endemic Bradfield's Swift.

The following day there was time for a quick walk around a hotel resort on the outskirts of Windhoek, where the likes of Crimson-breasted Gonolek, Bearded Woodpecker, Pririt Batis, Cape Crombec, Groundscraper Thrush, White-breasted Sunbird, Yellow-bellied Eremomela, Black-faced and Violet-eared waxbills, and Black-chested Prinia were quickly notched up before we set off on a lengthy drive to the Namib Desert. The route via the Khomas Hochland and the Remhoogte Pass was very scenic and geologically spectacular. Several birding stops were made along the way, during which we encountered Tawny Eagle, Pygmy Falcon, Lesser Honeyguide, Cape Crow, Pale-chanting Goshawk, Chat Flycatcher, Dusky Sunbird, and Pale-winged Starling. At two seasonal pans at the edge of the desert there were Great White Pelican, Cape Teal, Pied Avocet, and Black-winged Stilt, while deeper into the Namib we had our first looks at Social Weavers and their impressive 'haystack' nests in large 'Camel-thorn' trees.

A day trip into the Sossusvlei area of the Naukluft National Park with its massive red dunes and spectacular desert vistas was one of the highlights of the tour for many. The main target bird here is Dune Lark, and after a short walk through some low hammock dunes we managed to get some great looks at this Namib endemic. Other significant birds seen here were Ludwig's and Rueppell's bustards, Common Ostrich, Greater Kestrel, Lappet-faced Vulture, and Ashy Tit. The iconic image of majestic Southern Oryx Antelope against the backdrop of red dunes was enjoyed, as were other large mammals in the form of Blue Wildebeest, Southern Giraffe, and Springbok. A late-afternoon walk near our lodge produced a few good dry-country birds in the form of Namaqua Sandgrouse, Red-necked Falcon, Gray-backed Sparrowlark, Stark's Lark, Tractrac Chat, and Rufous-eared Warbler.

The next stop on our itinerary was the town of Walvis Bay on Namibia’s desert-flanked coastline. The cool air blowing off the cold Benguela current was quite a contrast after experiencing the baking hot plains of the Namib. Once we'd settled into our guesthouse, we took a drive along Walvis Bay's famous lagoon and through the local salt works ponds ending off on the Atlantic seaboard. The lagoon and salt works produced great numbers of Palearctic migrant shorebirds with Little Stint, Curlew Sandpiper, Ruff, Sanderling, Ruddy Turnstone, and Common Greenshank being the most numerous. Thousands of Lesser and Greater flamingos added some color to the scene, while the diminutive and localized Chestnut-banded Plover and Damara Terns put in a special appearance. Other birds worth mentioning for the Walvis Bay area included Whimbrel, Bar-tailed Godwit, Hartlaub's and Kelp gulls, Caspian, Common, Great Crested and Sandwich terns, White-fronted Plover, Eared Grebe, and an unexpected Parasitic Jaeger flying over the breakers near Paaltjies beach.

The next morning we had to first track down the resident Orange River White-eyes before heading north via the 'Victorian' town of Swakopmund and then inland for three nights in the Erongo Mountains, first a two-night stay in the south and then a single night in the north. Just north of Swakopmund we found the range-restricted Gray's Lark in the seemingly barren white gravel plains that this species calls home. En route to Erongo, we stopped off at the Spitzkoppe Reserve, where a picnic lunch was enjoyed in the company of Mountain Wheatears, Pale-winged Starlings, Monteiro's Hornbill, Cape Bunting, a handsome Bokmakierie, and a very pregnant Damara Ground Squirrel. During our post-lunch walk amidst the towering granite outcrops of Spitzkoppe we picked up another Namibia speciality, the much sought-after Herero Chat, along with Karoo Long-billed Lark and a very confiding Layard's Warbler. The Erongo granite hills gave us several more near-endemics in Rockrunner, White-tailed Shrike, and Hartlaub's Francolin, along with some interesting small mammals in Dassie Rat, Rock Hyrax, and three Elephant Shrew (Sengi) species, namely Round-eared, Bushveld, and Western Rock. Walks in two large, dry river beds produced Violet Woodhoopoe, Short-toed Rock-Thrush, White-crowned Shrike, Damara Red-billed Hornbill, Rueppell's Parrot, Southern Pied Babbler, and Burchell's Starling.

Our next port of call was the world-famous Etosha National Park, where we spent three nights (Okaukuejo camp for one night and Halali camp for two). In this wildlife haven we enjoyed no fewer than seven Lion sightings, many Elephant sightings, at least 20 Black Rhinos, three Cheetahs, several Spotted Hyaenas, and numerous Black-backed Jackals. The park was extremely dry, so the waterholes were particularly busy with hordes of Gemsbok (Oryx), Springbok, Common Zebra, Blue Wildebeest, Giraffe, and Red Hartebeest. As usual, a large variety of birds was seen in Etosha. In the karroo-like habitats to the north of Okaukuejo Camp there was a plethora of larks including Spike-heeled, Sabota, Red-capped, Pink-billed, and Stark's, along with Double-banded Courser, White-quilled Bustard, Capped Wheatear, and Southern Anteater-Chat. The large, open grassy plains on the southern edge of the Etosha Pan held Kori Bustard, Ostrich, Secretary-bird, Desert and Zitting cisticolas, Spotted Thick-knee, Crowned Lapwing, and a pair of stately Blue Cranes at one of the smaller waterholes. Birding in the wooded camp compounds is always productive, and in the two camps visited we notched up many good species including Violet Woodhoopoe, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Pearl-spotted Owlet, Red-billed and Swainson’s francolins, Southern Red-billed, Southern Yellow-billed, and Gray hornbills, Common Scimitarbill, Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver, Red-headed Weaver, and Southern Cordonbleu. Raptors in Etosha were well represented with many Pale-chanting Goshawks, Greater Kestrel, Black-shouldered Kite, a good number of Lappet-faced and White-backed vultures, Bateleur, and Tawny Eagle.

The final leg of the Namibian section of the tour was spent in the far-north of the country at a lodge on the banks of the Kavango River overlooking the country of Angola. An afternoon walk to a floodplain and pan outside our lodge provided some exceptional birding with no fewer than 20 Lesser Jacana dodging their larger African cousins while African Pygmy Geese, Rufous-bellied Heron, Wattled Lapwing, Red-winged Pratincole, African Snipe, and Coppery-tailed Coucal also gave us excellent views during the 'golden hour.'

Our last morning in Namibia included a lengthy drive eastwards through the Caprivi and a visit to the Mahango National Park before entering into Botswana. A quick birding stop in some teak woodland along the Caprivi road produced Chinspot Batis, Green Woodhoopoe, Meyer's Parrot, and brief views of the seldom-seen Sharp-tailed Starling. Despite it being very hot, the Mahango Park was as productive as ever with several sightings of Elephant breeding herds and a good variety of antelope including Lechwe, Roan, Tsessebe (Topi), Southern Reedbuck, and the impressive Sable Antelope. Birdlife along the floodplain in Mahango was just as varied, with African Fish-Eagle, Yellow-billed Stork, Spur-winged Goose, Wattled Crane, and African Spoonbill being the highlights.

The Botswana stage of the tour began with a two-night stay at the beautiful Xaro riverside lodge in the Okavango 'panhandle.' Most of our birding here was done from a very comfortable boat, allowing us to negotiate the myriad waterways and channels lined with papyrus and dense riparian thicket. Top birds seen on the boat cruises were the impressive Goliath Heron, colorful White-fronted, Blue-cheeked, and Little bee-eaters, the secretive White-backed Night-Heron, a nice variety of kingfishers including Malachite, Pied, and the noisy Giant, and some papyrus skulkers in the form of Greater and Lesser swamp-warblers and Chirping Cisticola. Walks within the lodge grounds and beyond gave us many more special birds with Black Cuckooshrike, African Wood-Owl, Meves's and Violet-backed starlings, Crested and Black-collared barbets, Broad-billed Roller, Gabon Boubou, Hartlaub's Babbler, Southern Brown-throated Weaver, Holub's Golden-Weaver, White-browed Robin-Chat, Mourning Collared-Dove, and Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike being the most notable. One of the highlights of the tour was seeing a pair of the very special Pel’s Fishing-Owl in a dense riparian forest after having to work our way past a group of bull elephants that had moved through our lodge a few hours earlier.

Our final destination of the tour was the Macatoo Camp, situated in the north-western part of the Okavango Delta and reached by private charter plane. We had three nights at this lovely tented camp, situated on the edge of a floodplain channel and where there is wildlife literally on our doorstep, as several members of our group discovered. Due to the very dry conditions in the delta, only a few of the floodplains had water in them, so most of our birding and game viewing was done from the back of a very comfy 4x4 safari vehicle. We had morning and afternoon excursions seeing fantastic wildlife. Mammal highlights were lion prides on zebra and buffalo kills, countless elephant sightings, noisy 'pods' of Hippopotamus, a beautiful Caracal, Cape Buffalo (many bulls and a large breeding herd), a wide variety of antelope, and a stunning male Leopard using our game drive vehicle as cover while stalking two Warthogs. From a birding point of view, the favorites in the Macatoo concession were Slaty Egret (at least 20 birds seen), numerous Lilac-breasted and Rufous-crowned rollers, African Barred Owlet, Verreaux’s Eagle-Owl, Greater Honeyguide, the full suite of southern-African egrets, Red-billed and Yellow-billed oxpeckers, Rufous-naped Lark, Hooded and White-headed vultures, Bennett’s Woodpecker, Southern Ground-Hornbill, Square-tailed Nightjar, Striped and Woodland kingfishers, and Rufous-chested Swallow. Four reptile species seen that are worth mentioning were some very large Nile Crocodiles, Water Monitor Lizards, a very dusty Leopard Tortoise, and a young African Rock Python.

On the final morning of the tour we took another charter aircraft which flew us over a large section of the delta before landing in the town of Maun, from where we boarded a commercial flight back to Johannesburg.

Thanks must go to our local guides, Vernon in Namibia, and Thomas and Thabo in Botswana, and to all the lodge staff throughout the tour for making it a very special visit to great African countries.

--Joe Grosel

KEYS FOR THIS LIST
One of the following keys may be shown in brackets for individual species as appropriate: * = heard only, I = introduced, E = endemic, N = nesting, a = austral migrant, b = boreal migrant

We had excellent views of the endemic Dune Lark near Sossusvlei. Photo by guide Joe Grosel.

Participant Don Taves took this shot of our group.

This Rueppell's Bustard posed nicely for guide Joe Grosel.

This Leopard used our vehicle as a blind while stalking Warthogs near Macatoo Camp in Botswana. Photo by guide Joe Grosel.

One of the highlights of our tour was seeing a pair of Pel's Fishing-Owls near Xaro Lodge. Participant Don Taves got this great shot of one of them in flight.

The dunes near Sossusvlei are one of the iconic landscapes of Namibia. We saw some wonderful birds and mammals in this area. Photo by participant Don Taves.

The gorgeous Lilac-breasted Roller was one of the favorite birds of the trip. Guide Joe Grosel got this lovely portrait of one near Macatoo Camp.

Macatoo Camp was our last stop, and we had some great birding opportunities there. Here, we are enjoying the view of the Okavango Delta. Photo by participant Don Taves.

Cape Buffalo and Yellow-billed Oxpeckers were some of our sightings in the Okavango delta. Photo by guide Joe Grosel.

We delighted in many views of the great mammals of Africa, including this parade of Common Giraffes crossing the floodplain at Macatoo. Photo by guide Joe Grosel.

We saw a number of Double-banded Coursers in Etosha. These two posed nicely for guide Joe Grosel.

We found three species of Elephant Shrews, also known as Sengi. This one, a Western Rock Elephant Shrew, was seen in the Erongo Wilderness. Photo by guide Joe Grosel.

Slaty Egret is a local species in the Okavango; we saw a number of these unusual herons, including this immature. Photo by guide Joe Grosel.

We had a great time birding in the Erongo Hills, where we found some fine Namibian speciality birds,  including Hartlaub’s Francolin and Rockrunner. Photo by participant Don Taves.

This Namibian Rock Agama is as colorful as some of the birds we saw! Photo by guide Joe Grosel.

ADDITIONAL COMMENTS

Totals for the tour: 362 bird taxa and 49 mammal taxa