Bird watching in Senegal - July 2025

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Jiffy (also jiff)

noun [in SING.] informal a moment: we'll be back in a jiffy.

ORIGIN late 18th cent.: of unknown origin.

So as you understand, in a jiff pretty much depends on your internet.

So I put a “Next” button here and I hope that there isn't any problem to understand how to use that one. So just CLICK the “Next” button on your left hand side and you will be on the next page in a jiff!

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คุณพูดภาษาไทยได้ไหม ไม่มีปัญหา ถ้าคุณต้องการไปหน้าถัดไป ให้กดปุ่ม “Next” ข้างบนนี้

Вы говорите по-русски? Просто нажмите синюю кнопку "Next" с левой стороны и Вы моментально переместитесь на следующую страницу!

E ni Svenskar och inte förstår Engelska så ska ni skämmas. J och Björn, med det menar jag inte att alla mina stavfel ska ältas varje gång vi träffas.

Well, the flag of Skåne, just a BONUS flag.

July 2025

Day 3: Birding in Podor

So, we are heading Northwards to Richard Toll and Podor. In Podor we are pretty much at the edge of the Sahara Desert, the landscape is mainly composed of acacias.

Here we can see species: Tawny-Flanked Prinia, flocks of Sudan Golden Sparrow, Cricket Warbler, Sennar Penduline Tit, Grey Woodpecker, Black Scrub Robin and so on.

Lunch in Richard Toll and we drive to be close to The Djoudj Birds Park .

Dinner and overnight at Hotel Diamarek.

Friday 25 ^th of July 2025 and I was fully recovered when I woke up in my room and I was really looking forward to the breakfast for the first time since arriving to Senegal.

Two reasons:
1) The hotel was clean and the omelette was excellent yesterday
2) I was hungry.

I was in a glorious mood when I went for breakfast, the Driver and the Guides were already at the table. I asked for a Spanish omelette while pouring a cup of tea.

They did not have any Spanish omelette. What the? I ordered two for dinner yesterday that they did not make. I asked for milk for my tea. They came back and told me that they did not have milk and I protested. Now the milk was bad and I poured out my tea and I left the table.

Now they had milk, no way I was going to have any milk from here and I went to my room to get my luggage to put in the car. From good mood to bad mood in zero point one.

Courtyard at Hotel La cour du fleuve

Time to leave Hotel La cour du fleuve

We pack everything in to the back of the car. I load the seat pocket in front of me with water and diet drinks and I am ready to take on the birding adventure. We take off towards Richard Toll and we will visit some places on the way.

We leave Podor behind and I really liked the town. The old houses were beautiful, but we will spend the night back on Saint Louis and the Hotel Diamarek. Saint Louis is for sure not a beautiful town, buildings looking to fall apart garbage all over the place.

Leaving Podor

Leaving Podor

Leaving Podor

Driving along the highway

Long-tailed Glossy Starling

Northern Anteater-Chat

Driving along the highway heading towards Doui but I ask our Driver to stop every now and then to check out some birds we spot along the road.

One new bird, the Northern Anteater-Chat. We turn off the paved road at Doui at 08:49 and I start my eBird app. we continue along the dirt road and we are soon stopping to watch a couple of Eurasian Hoopoes foraging on the ground next to the road.

There were four Red-cheeked Cordonbleus and the Guide discovered one Verreaux's Eagle Owl sitting in top of a tree. One Abyssinian Roller was sitting in the tree above the car and I managed to get a recording.

One White-throated Bee-eater was sitting under the Abyssinian Roller and I got a picture.

White-throated Bee-eater

Abyssinian Roller

Abyssinian Roller

Listen to the Abyssinian Roller

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

The bird sitting just above me next to the gravel road

Eurasian Hoopoe

We get out of the car to see if we can get pictures of the Verreaux's Eagle Owl. The owl sitting in top of a tree and there are several smaller birds mobbing the owl and the bird takes off before I can come close enough for any pictures.

We continue along the dirt road and we see some birds that I can report to eBird. And not many good pictures, I got a picture of the beautiful Greater Blue-eared Starling.

Not any good pictures and I told my Guide that we need a good picture before I go to Gambia.

Spur-winged Lapwing

Chestnut-bellied Starling

Greater Blue-eared Starling

Driving along the dirt road

Driving along the dirt road

Driving along the dirt road

Turning off my eBird app and we continue on the paved road and after about 40 minutes we turn off the paved road and I start my eBird app at 09:53.

The dirt road turned in to two-wheel tracks on the dust field. We reached a green area with some goats grazing on the greenery on the dust field. We could see the huge White-billed Buffalo-Weaver nests, and we could hear the birds.

Very noisy birds and I went over to make a recording. I tried to get pictures of the birds, but it was impossible. The birds were covered with branches and sticks.

I go back to the tree where we spotted the White-billed Buffalo-Weaver first. There were two Blue-cheeked Bee-eater sitting in the tree and I got both pictures and a sound recording.

The dirt road ends and we continue on dust fields

Listen to the White-billed Buffalo-Weaver

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

Birds busy building nest and they make a lot of noise

Listen to the White-billed Buffalo-Weaver

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

Birds busy building nest and they make a lot of noise

XC1022011 and XC1022010 recorded at the same tree.

Listen to the Blue-cheeked Bee-eater

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

We can hear the White-billed Buffalo-Weaver from the next tree in the background. Same bird as in recording XC1022011 and XC1022010.

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater

I turn off my eBird app by mistake and I restart the app when we are back in the car. We continue out in the dust field and we are soon stopping to take a picture of an African Green Bee-eater sitting on the ground.

We see many Namaqua Doves, a beautiful dove. But very hard to get on picture and I gave it several times before a got one picture that I could use.

We pass a group of Sudan Golden Sparrows foraging on the ground and we stop to try to get some pictures. It is a very small bird, and very shy so it is very hard to come close.

I manage to get a recording and I was very happy when we continued. The Sudan Golden Sparrow are moving around in huge groups of birds.

African Green Bee-eater

Namaqua Dove

Kittlitz's Plover

White-throated Bee-eater

Sudan Golden Sparrow

Listen to the Sudan Golden Sparrow

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

A group foraging on the ground.

'

We continue in the desert like landscape and my guide spot one Fork-tailed Drongo and we try to get in position to take pictures.

The Fork-tailed Drongo was sitting in the shadow at the bottom of a bush. Sun light made it very hard to get a picture and I tried to over expose the bird and I managed to get a picture.

We spotted one Vieillot's Barbet calling from the top of a tree, far away and my recording did not turn out as something I could use. I kept the picture for ID purpose, but the bird was too far away for any good pictures.

Fork-tailed Drongo

Vieillot's Barbet

Listen to the Dideric Cuckoo

Sound from www.xeno-canto.org

Remarks from the Recordist

Recorded with my mobile phone using my JBL microphone with the Merlin app. High Pass Filter applied with Audacity.

Sitting in the top of a tree, quite far away.

We turn around to drive back to the paved road and we keep an eye out for birds on the way. I have reported this stretch to eBird already so I can only report birds I have not reported coming here.

I get a picture of an Hamerkop when we pass a small pond. And the Hamerkop had company with two Wood Sandpipers. I got a few pictures before we continued along the dirt road.

Closing in one the paved road and I ask the Driver to stop, I had spotted one Western Plantain-eater sitting in the foliage next to the road. I only had poor pictures of the bird from Conakry.

Very poor lightning conditions with the bird sitting in the shadow but I gave it my best try.

Hamerkop

Wood Sandpiper

Western Plantain-eater

Western Plantain-eater

Continuing towards Richard Toll when we are back on the paved road. We will have our lunch at Richard Toll and i am getting hungry after the disappointment for breakfast.

We drive for almost an hour when we leave the paved road to get out in the dust at Taredji. We will have a look for nightjars and we spot three Long-tailed Nightjars. Almost impossible to see them on the ground, even though you are just a few meters away from them.

Also managed to get a picture of an Vitelline Masked-Weaver before we continued.

Long-tailed Nightjars

Long-tailed Nightjars

Long-tailed Nightjars

Long-tailed Nightjars

Vitelline Masked-Weaver

Vitelline Masked-Weaver

We call the restaurant in Richard Tolland we order the food. I ask for omelette, Spanish omelette if they have. At least cheese omelette and I hope they have tea.

We drive through an interesting landscape and I am busy in the back taking pictures and drinking diet drinks. Getting more and more hungry by the minute.

We stopped in a village and our Guide went to look for fresh bread, but I stopped him. Thinking about my diet and we are soon in Richard Toll and we can have the omelette.

We did not make any more stops for bird watching, but we will do some birding in Richard Toll after our lunch in Richard Toll.

On our way to Richard Toll

On our way to Richard Toll

On our way to Richard Toll

On our way to Richard Toll

On our way to Richard Toll

On our way to Richard Toll

On our way to Richard Toll

On our way to Richard Toll

On our way to Richard Toll

We reach the restaurant

Ready to have lunch

We reach the restaurant in Richard toll and they deliver disappointment after disappointment. No tea, and when the omelette is coming to the table, I discover that it is not omelette.

The omelette is fried eggs, in a style I have never seen before.

Cheese and, well, it was not so good. But the fries was the best, like home fried potato and it was very good. We finished our lunch and we left to look for birds at the eBird hotspot: Richard Toll--zone aéroport

It was a couple of minutes’ drive from the restaurant and I started my eBird app at 15:09 and the first bird I can report is the Cricket Longtail and at the same time the White-throated Bee-eater sitting in the same bush.

Cricket Longtail

White-throated Bee-eater

Driving along the run way

Driving along the run way

Woodchat Shrike

The old terminal

Chestnut-backed Sparrow-Lark

Bird watching at eBird hotspot: Richard Toll--zone aéroport

We leave Richard Toll and the last bird I report is one Pied Kingfisher sitting on a wire when we cross the bridge over the river. Next stop, the Supermarket in Saint Louis before going back to Hotel Diamarek.

And I am really not looking forward to Hotel Diamarek. But we must stay there as we are going to the Djoudj Birds Parks tomorrow morning.

We drop our extra Guide reaching Saint Louis and we will pick him up tomorrow morning again. We say good bye and we continue to the supermarket.

On our way to Saint Louis

On our way to Saint Louis

On our way to Saint Louis

On our way to Saint Louis

On our way to Saint Louis

On our way to Saint Louis

Checking in to Hotel Diamarek and I was not happy, but I was soon in a good mood. Very nice guy checking us in and he followed me to my room to see what was needed. I had complained about my room I had last time.

But this room was very nice and there was a table so I can work with my computer, after a full day taking pictures of the birds you want to check out the pictures in the evening.

We are off to the Djoudj Birds Parks, just click HERE to find out if we see any birds.

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