April 13-May 2, 2026 with Tarry Butcher
Namibia and Botswana is a really great tour, focusing on the highlights of both countries. This year we found almost all our major targets, including some great wildlife sightings, fantastic landscapes, and some really great weather. The small group of 4 pax worked really well. Highlights included water in Sossusvlei, Dune Lark, Black Rhino, mating Lions, Hartlaub Spurfowl, Pel’s Fishing Owl, Ground Hornbill, and an awesome Leopard.
Our trip started with an early departure from Johannesburg to Windhoek where, landing at the airport, we had an abundance of swifts and swallows, getting South African Swallow, Little Swift, Bradfield’s Swift, White-rumped Swift and Southern Crag-Martin around the airport buildings. A short drive to our guest house, and then we were off to the Windhoek sewage ponds for the first stop. The ponds were very quiet this year, but we did see Greater Painted-Snipe, Sedge Warbler and Blue-billed Teal. Then it was back to the guest house for lunch, and an afternoon excursion to the nearby Avis dam was very productive, with our first Namibian near-endemic, the Rockrunner, showing really well. A few hours walking along the dam wall and surrounding bush produced Ashy Tit, Crimson-breasted Gonolek, Yellow-bellied Eremomela, Cardinal Woodpecker and Pearl-spotted Owlet.
The next day we made our way southwest into the Namib Desert, making a number of short stops along the way. The quiet gravel roads allow for easy roadside birding. Just after leaving Windhoek we found Marabou Stork, Gabar Goshawk and a friendly Shaft-tailed Whydah. Further down the road, we bumped into a nice Tawny Eagle feeding on road kill and it was soon disturbed by a Lappet-face Vulture. Just before our lunch stop, we connected with Rufous-eared Warbler, Bokmakierie and Chat Flycatcher. Lunch was enjoyed in the shade next to the road close to a dam, and with the recent rains, the dam was extremely full, meaning the waterfowl were spread out across the water. We did manage to see Cape Teal and Maccoa Duck on the water, as well as Ground-scraper Thrush, Bearded Woodpecker and Lark-like Bunting around the lunch table. After lunch we made our way through a rock mountain pass, finding a very confiding roadside Purple Roller and Short-toed Rock-Thrush, and arriving at our desert lodge in the late afternoon.
We had an early start to get into the famous Namib Naukluft National Park at sunrise for the best chance at Dune Lark, Namibia’s only true endemic, and to maximize the amazing morning light in the spectacular sand dunes. After a short walk up some relatively flat sand dunes, we were lucky to find a pair of Dune Larks running between the grass tufts, giving us really good views. We spent some time admiring them and the views as well as some of the tracks in the sand. Then we made our way further along the dune corridor, a road which is surrounded by massive towering sand dunes. At the end of the corridor there is a special pan called Sossusvlei which is normally a dry white pan but this year it had water in it, the first time in 8 years that the pan was full. In the trees around the pan we found a very friendly Familiar Chat, Ashy Tit and lots of Cape Sparrows. Leaving the pan, we found a very lost juvenile Lesser Flamingo, and a nice pair of Red-necked Falcons near the gate. After lunch we made our way back to the desert lodge for some down time during the heat of the day. Our walk later in the afternoon was productive with Swallow-tailed Bee-eater, Pygmy Falcon, Common Scimitarbill, Lesser Grey Shrike and a nice rarity of a single Abdim's Stork walking around the waterhole. After dinner we tried for some nocturnal species, finding a pair of Western Barn Owls flying along the cliff feeding in the spot light.
Next morning we made our way toward the coast, making several spots along the way. Firstly at a tiny fuel station for bathroom and apple crumble. Walking around the area we found some Starks Larks, Greater Kestrel and Red-headed Finch. Further north along the road we got roadside views of Ruppell’s Bustard and Tractrac Chat, and a very surprising juvenile Black Harrier. Our last stop along the desert road was to look at the interesting Quiver Tress where we also found Karoo Long-billed Lark and Gray’s Lark.
Our time spent at the coast was really good this year, accompanied with some really good weather. Arriving at Walvis Bay in the afternoon, we made a drive along the edge of the lagoon and through the salt pans, which produced good looks at Damara Tern and Chestnut-banded Plover. En route back through the pans, the light was better and we got some really good looks at thousands of Curlew Sandpipers, Common Ringed Plover, Pied Avocet, Black-bellied Plover, Little Stint and Great White Pelican. The lagoon is a Ramsar site, and was super productive.
The next morning, we started the day at a well-known spot for Orange-river White-eye, which played hard to get this year. Walking back to the guest house, we found a small group of Red-faced Mousebirds, and along the water’s edge, Kelp, Hartlaub’s and Grey-hooded Gulls with a flyby Great Crested Tern and a South African Fur Seal. After packing up, we made another short stop at a different spot along the lagoon, seeing Greater Flamingo, Bar-tailed Godwit, and some rarities of Greater and Tibetan Sand-Plovers. Leaving Walvis Bay, we made a short stop at the guano platform, finding African Oystercatcher and Ruddy Turnstone, as well as Cape and Crowned Cormorants. Our time at the coast was coming to an end but before leaving, we made one final stop at the Swakopmund salt pans where we found Eared Grebe, Common Greenshank and Great Cormorant.
Making our way inland, we headed to our next destination, which is a region known as the Erongo Mountains, an area which has most of the near endemics for Namibia. Our first stop was very productive in a dry river bed just after lunch, seeing Damara Red-billed Hornbill, Carp’s Tit, White-crested Helmetshrike, Brubru, White-browed Scrub-robin and a surprising Eurasian Golden Oriole. A very good start to this area. We arrived at our lodge with enough time to check in and enjoy the sunset views overlooking a waterhole which had lots of Double-banded Sandgrouse coming down to drink, and some Blue Wildebeest and Springbuck hanging around.
The next adventure was the search for the tough to find Herero Chat. We had an early morning walk to the base of a nearby mountain, and with a bit of searching we were successful in finding a single Herero Chat, giving us really good views. Happy with the success, we headed back to the lodge for breakfast, followed by short mid-morning and afternoon walks around the area, producing Green-winged Pytilia, Great Rufous Sparrow, Black-faced and Violet-eared Waxbills, Long-billed Crombec, Pririt Batis, White-tailed Shrike and Red-billed Spurfowl. We also had a very lucky sighting of Bushveld Sengi which sat still for a second.
En route to our next stop, we found a roadside White-quilled Bustard, Pygmy Falcon and Fawn-colored Lark. The best birding of the day was another well-vegetated dry river bed, a spot that always seems to produce something good, and this year it was no exception. On arrival, we heard the drumming of a Bearded Woodpecker, followed by nesting Ruppell’s Parrots, African Cuckoo, Red-billed Buffalo-Weaver, Grey-backed Camaroptera and better views of things seen before. Very happy with the stop, we made our way to the next lodge, seeing a very close herd of Giraffe next to the road. Our next accommodation was a beautiful lodge with tents situated amongst the rocky boulders. This spot was home to hundreds of beautiful Rosy-faced Lovebirds seen at all times. After checking in, we did a short afternoon walk ,finding a roosting Western Barn Owl, Pale-winged Starlings, Black-throated Canary and Cinnamon-breasted Bunting. Our dinner that evening was disturbed by really good views of Freckled Nightjar and a Small Spotted Genet hanging around the restaurant area.
Our best birding for this area was done the next morning with an early pre-breakfast walk. We heard our main target, Hartlaub Spurfowl, as we started our walk, but it took some rock scrabbling to get good views of them, a pair moving effortlessly through the rocky slopes. Breakfast was a treat, with the lodge feeding the birds outside the restaurant window meaning hundreds of beautiful Rosy-faced Lovebirds coming to feed, as well as our best views of Monteiro’s Hornbill, Speckled Pigeon and White-tailed Shrike.
After the Erongo Mountains, it was off to Etosha National Park and the best game viewing of the Namibian portion of the trip. We spent 3 nights at various camps through the park, getting the absolute best out of the park. Game viewing was a bit tough due to the large amount of rain the country had recently had, but we still managed some really good sightings. Around the Okaukuejo area, we headed north, finding Spike-heeled Lark, Pink-billed Lark, Grey-backed Sparrow-lark, Double-banded Courser, Lanner Falcon and Kori Bustard. While heading further east, we flushed some Harlequin Quail and Namaqua Sandgrouse at the first waterhole. At our second camp, we had some great lodge birding, with Bare-faced Babbler, Southern White-crowned Shirke, Violet Wood-hoopoe and Golden-tailed Woodpecker during the day, with Pearl-spotted Owlet, Western Barn Owl, African Scops-Owl and Southern White-faced Owl in the evening, plus a bonus Black Rhino in the evening.
Moving further east, we found Greater Painted-Snipe, Lilac-breasted Roller, Red-crested Bustard, Pale Chanting Goshawk, Buffy Pipit, Bateleur, African Hawk-eagle and Eastern Paradise Whydah.
Moving to the far eastern side of the park, we came across a mating pair of lions, lots of Plains Zebra as well as Temminck’s Courser and Crowned Lapwings, but the star of the show was good views of a Martial Eagle. Just before leaving the park, at lunch we made a lucky short detour, finding a breeding pair of Blue Cranes, a bird with a tiny population in Namibia. Our lunch stop had really great food but also great birds, getting Black-faced Babbler, Yellow-breasted Apalis, Black-backed Puffback and Southern Red-billed Hornbill. We had enough time after lunch to head back into the park for one final drive, finding Spotted Hyena at a den, Damara Dik-Dik, a massive Scorpion crossing the road and a bonus Dusky Lark. That evening in the parking lot we managed to rustle up a Fiery-necked Nightjar, ending our time in Etosha.
The next section of the trip was up to the northern part of Namibia, and into the panhandle of Botswana. Here the habitat changes drastically, meaning an entirely different selection of birds on offer. Our final lodge in Namibia, on the Okavango River, was flooded, which meant an extra boat cruise in and out of the lodge and a good opportunity to add to an Angola list. A short walk around the lodge grounds that afternoon and the following morning produced Gabon Boubou, Hartlaub’s Babbler, Hartlaub’s Golden Weaver, Rufous-bellied Heron, African Golden Oriole, Pygmy Goose, Water Thick-knee and a surprise Dwarf Bittern. With just the one night there, we made our way towards Botswana with two major stops. First was a communal farm drinking trough, which was empty, but birding was still good, getting Racket-tailed Roller, a first for this trip, Southern Black Tit, Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird and Violet-backed Starling. And our second stop was a slow drive through the Mahango National Park. This park was really good this year, with great views of Wattled Crane, Meves’s Starling, Verreaux’s Eagle-owl, Saddle-billed Stork, Sulphur-breasted Bushshrike, Grey-headed Kingfisher, Meyer’s Parrot, African Fish-Eagle, White-headed, Hooded & White-backed Vultures eating on a fresh carcass. Mammal sightings were good as well, with Red Lechwe and African Elephant, and Nile Crocodile.
Leaving the park, it was quickly over the border into Botswana and to Droktsky’s Cabins. During our morning and afternoon boat cruises, we found White-backed Night Heron, African Marsh Harrier, Greater Swamp Warbler, Chirping Cisticola, African Jacana, Malachite Kingfisher, Little and White-fronted Bee-eaters, but the absolute star of the show was outstanding views of Pel’s Fishing Owl. Morning walks around the grounds at Drotsky’s were also very productive, seeing African Green Pigeon, Terrestrial Brownbul, White-browed Robin-Chat and the cute Collared Sunbirds. After dinner, we did a short walk through the camp grounds and after much effort we were rewarded with great views of African Wood Owl and African Barred Owlet.
Our time in Botswana only got better once we left the panhandle, heading deeper into the delta, starting with an awesome small aircraft flight from Drotsky’s over the Okavango Delta and landing on a tiny airstrip with a short drive to Splash Camp. With the large amount of rain recently, the water levels of the delta were rising drastically with some areas filling with water overnight, meaning a lot of exciting water crossing. It was fascinating watching the speed of the rising water and the response of the wildlife to the water levels. Our game drives from Splash Camp were in an open safari vehicle, giving us great views of the birds and animals. Our top wildlife sightings were seeing African Wild dogs on a hunt, a mating pair of lions, numerous elephant and a very relaxed Leopard which we followed for a while.
With most of our target species already in the bag, everything here was just a bonus. Along the waterways, we found Slaty Egret, Yellow-billed Stork, Wattled and Spur-winged Lapwings, Hamerkop, Lesser Jacana and Sacred Ibis. Driving through the grassy areas, we had Southern Ground Hornbill, Quailfinch, Woodland and Striped Kingfisher, Bennett’s Woodpecker, Bradfield’s Hornbill, Common Ostrich and Plain-backed Pipit. Whilst overhead, the skies were full of raptors, including Ovambo Sparrowhawk, Brown Snake-Eagle, African Harrier Hawk and numerous vultures. During our sundowners out in the field, we were entertained by Square-tailed Nightjars and the amazing stars.
Birding around the camp was good as well. Walking along the paths we saw several small seedeaters, including Southern Cordonbleu, Brown Firefinch and a resident Crested Barbet, with brief views of Black-bellied Bustard and Green Woodhoopoes.
Overall it was a fantastic tour, and I am looking forward to the next one. Thanks to everyone involved making it such a success.
Mammals seen on the trip:
Peters's Epauletted Fruit Bat (Epomophorus crypturus)
Southern Lesser Galago (Galago moholi)
Grivet Monkey (Chlorocebus aethiops)
Chacma Baboon (Papio ursinus)
Scrub Hare (Lepus saxatalis)
South African Ground Squirrel (Geosciurus inauris)
Damara Ground Squirrel (Geosciurus princeps)
Smith's Bush Squirrel (Paraxerus cepapi)
Xeric Four-striped Grass Rat (Rhabdomys pumilio)
Noki (Petromus typicus)
Black-backed Jackal (Lupulella mesomelas)
African Wild Dog (Lycaon pictus)
Common Genet (Genetta genetta)
Common Slender Mongoose (Herpestes sanguineus)
Banded Mongoose (Mungos mungo)
Yellow Mongoose (Cynictis penicillata)
Spotted Hyena (Crocuta crocuta)
Leopard (Panthera pardus)
Lion (Panthera leo)
Afro-Australian Fur Seal (Arctocephalus pusillus)
African Savanna Elephant (Loxodonta africana)
Rock Hyrax (Procavia capensis)
Plains Zebra (Equus quagga)
Black Rhinoceros (Diceros bicornis)
Desert Warthog (Phacochoerus aethiopicus)
Common Hippopotamus (Hippopotamus amphibius)
Southern Giraffe (Giraffa camelopardalis)
Southern Bushbuck (Tragelaphus scriptus)
Greater Kudu (Tragelaphus strepsiceros)
Cape Buffalo (Syncerus caffer)
Waterbuck (Kobus ellipsiprymnus)
Southern Lechwe (Kobus leche)
Southern Reedbuck (Redunca arundinum)
Gemsbok (Oryx gazella)
Tsessebe (Damaliscus lunatus lunatus)
Red Hartebeest (Alcelaphus buselaphus caama)
Blue Wildebeest (Connochaetes taurinus)
Steenbok (Raphicerus campestris)
Kirk's Dik-dik (Modoqua kirki)
Impala (Aepyceros malampus)
Springbok (Antidorcas marsupialis)
Dwarf Mongoose (Helogale Parvula)
Serval (Leptailurus serval)
Sitatunga (Tragelaphus spekii)
South African Springhare (Pedetes Capensis)
You can see my complete trip report on eBird at this link: https://ebird.org/tripreport/505298
You can see my iNaturalist report of non-avian taxa at this link: https://www.inaturalist.org/projects/namibia-botswana-2026
You can download a combined PDF of this page and the eBird report at this link: https://fieldguides.com/triplists/nam26aTRIPLIST.pdf
-- Tarry Butcher