Species List: An Update

Just thought that I would repost the species list – because it has grown considerably.  This past weekend we traveled to the eastern coast.  I expected to see a slew of different bird species, but I only came across a handful, probably due to the decimation of the forested regions and the ever-increasing human population (including an influx of tourists).  We now realized how lucky we are to be living in the Laikipia Plateau – one of the most diverse regions of Kenya outside of the big national parks.  All species otherwise not labeled are species we have seen within the Laikipia Plateau.  Species found outside of this vicinity are labeled according to the region they were seen.  Many were seen at the Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage located in Nanyuki.  The orphanage takes in animals for rehabilitation and eventual release (condition dependent). They also have a very successful bongo breeding-program.  Their aim is the release of the population onto their native slopes of Mt. Kenya, although they are encountering resistance from scientists/geneticists who would like the bongos to remain confined so as to more easily access them/utilize them for their own purposes. Those found outside of the orphanage are wild/free-roaming.

The pictures below were taken yesterday of a giraffe we encountered on our drive from Daraja into the bush - and just a minute down the road from where we were staying! I think the giraffe is one of the most spectacular animals to see in the wild - something about their silhouette against the expansive African sky.  When they run,  it seems like they are doing so in slow motion, due to their size and exaggerated strides.

I am  becoming more acquainted with the troop of baboons that I will hopefully be researching.  Around 9 AM they migrate onto our land and spend a good deal of the daytime hours foraging here - often congregating outside our trash pits, extracting large pieces of discarded vegetable matter.  Fortunately (for their health) we do not produce much waste here other than a minimal amount of organic matter, but still it is not favorable that they learn to rely on our garbage as a supplement to their regular diet.  Although, the baboon is one of the most adaptable non-human primate species, and during times of drought they would diversify their diet to include different species (animal and plant) not normally exploited (even small monkeys, such as the vervet - which we also find along our river banks).  So, if the garbage produced at any time diminishes, they will soon find something else to replace the lost calories.  Troop size appears to be around 18-22 individuals (group size fluctuates frequently as adult males migrate in and out of the groups, females remain in their natal group for life - their dominance rank remains stable as well, meaning that females are born into their place in life and have no opportunity of advancement.  This female life-situation seems kind of dour but studies show that the males fluctuating ranking and continuous attempts to dominate all, causes much higher stress levels).  I flanked the troop this morning and was able to observe a linear progression of them (18 on this occasion, including 2 infants aged 4 months and under, riding dorsally on adults.  They are not habituated, and so this currently does not permit close and sustained observations.  Anyway, enough on animals - will post a blog soon on our recent trip to Mombasa and around, and some more on human culture and behavior.

Maria

SPECIES LIST

Birds

1. White-bellied go away bird: Criniferoides leucogaster

2. Von der Decken’s hornbill: Tockus deckeni

3. Red-billed hornbill: Tockus e. erythrorhyncus

4. Superb starling: Lamptotorns superbus 

5. Pied crow: Corvus albus

6. Wood warbler: Phylloscopus ibikatrix

7. Grey-capped social weaver: Pseudonigrita arnaudi

8. Red-billed quelea: Quelea quelea aethipica 

9. Somali ostrich: Stuthio (camelus) molybdophanes

10. Vulture guinea fowl: Acryllium vulturinum 

12. Ring-necked dove: Streptopelia capicola semalica

13. White-browed scrub robin: Cercotrichas leurophrys

14. Speckled mousebird: Colius striatus kikuyuensis

15. Greater blue-eared starling: Lamprotornis c. chloropterus (larger and more uniformed colored glossy starling, sympatric with superb starling)

16. Purple grenadier: Uraeginthus ianthinogasta

17. Marico sunbird: Nectarinia mariquensis snarelica 

18. D’Arnaud’s barbet: Trachyphorus darnaudii

19. Hadada ibis: Bostrychia hagedash brevivostis 

20. Cardinal woodpecker: Dendropicos fuscescens

21. Sprosser (or thrush) nightingale: Luscinia luscinia

22. Yellow-necked spurfowl: Francolinus leucoscepus 

23. Green-capped Eremomela: Eremomela scotops kikuyensis

24. Grey headed sparrow: Passer griseus 

25. Common bulbul: Pycnonotus barbatus tricolor 

26. Grey-wren warbler: Calamonastes simplex 

27. Slate-coloured bou bou: Laniarius funebris 

28. Grey-backed camaroptera: Camaroptera brachyura tincta 

29. Black-capped social weaver Pseudonigrita cabanisi

30. Wire-tailed swallow: Hirundo r. rustica

31. Southern black flycatcher: Melaenornis pammelaina

32. Fan-tailed raven: Corvus rhipidurus 

33. Common drongo: Dicrurus a. adsimilis

34. Lappet-faced vulture: Torgos t. tracheliotus

35. Laughing dove: Streptopelia s. senegalensis

36. Emerald –spotted wood dove: Turtur chalcospilos   

37. Speckle-fronted weaver: Sporopipes frontalis emini

38. Vitelline masked weaver: Ploceus velatus uluensis

39. Kori bustard: Ardeotis kori struthinunculus  

40. Speckled pigeon: Columba g. guinea (Daraja Academy, Nanyuki)

41. Rufous Chatterer: 

42. Long-toed lapwing (plover): Vanellus crassirostris 

43. Crowned lapwing (plover): Vanellus conronatus 

44. Helmeted guineafowl: Guttera pucherani

45. Pied wheatear: Oeanthe p. pleschanka 

46. Spotted morning thrush: Chichladusa g. guttata 

47. Marabou stork: Leptoptilus crumeniferus (Nairobi, Nanyuki, Watamu)

48. Egyptian goose: Alopochen aegyptiacus

49. Grey-crowned crane: Balearica regulorum gibbericeps (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage)

50. Red-winged starling: Onychognathus morio (Daraja Academy, Nanyuki)

51. Lilac-breasted roller: Coracias caudata

52. White-bellied bustard: Eupodotis senegalensis canicollis

53. Three banded plover: Charadrius t. tricollaris (Watamu)

54. Whimbrel: Numenius p. phaeopus (Watamu)

55. Angola swallow: Hirundo s. splendes (Daraja Academy, Nanyuki)

56. House crow: Covus s. splendes (Shanzu)
57. Black saw-wing or rough wing: Psalidoprocne a. albiceps

58. African firefinch: Lagonosticta rubricata hildebrandti

Reptiles & Amphibians

1. Striped skink: Mabuya striata

2. Red-headed rock agama: Agama agama

3. Rainbow skink: Mabuya margaritifer

4. Great plated lizard: Gerrhosaurus major

5. Leopard tortoise: Geochelone pardalis

6. Sharp nosed rocket frog or Mascarene rocket frog: Ptychadena oxyrhynchus or Ptychadena mascareniensis

7. Tropical house gecko: Hemidactylus maboula

8. Nile monitor: Varanus niloticus

9. Galapagos tortoise: (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage. Native only to the Galapagos.)

Mammals

1. Dwarf mongoose: Helogale parvula

2. Impala: Aepyceros melampus

5. Giraffe: Giraffa camelopardalis

6. Vervet monkey: Cercopithecus aethiops

7. Olive baboon: Papio anubis

8. Grevy’s zebra: Equus grevyi

9. Burchell’s zebra: Equus burchelli

10. Kirk’s dik dik: Madoqua kirkii

11. Rock hyrax: Procavia capensis

12. Thomson’s gazelle: Gazella thomsoni

13. Warthog: Phacochoerus aethiopicus

14. Spotted hyena: Crocuta crocuta

15. Elephant: Loxodonta Africana

16. Black-backed jackal: Canis mesomelas

17. Scrub hare: Lexus saxatilis

18. Squirrel: Xerus sp.

19. Gerenuk: Litocranius walleri

20. Bush buck: Tragelaphus scriptus (spotted a solitary one across river – seemed a deep reddish color, rounded rump, short tail)

21. Blue/sykes monkey: Cercopithecus mitis (Gedi)

22. Patas monkey: Erythrocebus patas (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage. Native to Kenya.)

23. Guereza black and white colobus: Colobus guereza (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage. Native to Kenya.)

24. Bongo: Tragelaphus (Boocercus) euryceros (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage and Breeding Center. Native to Kenya.)

25. Pigmy hippopotamus: Hexoprotodon liberiensis (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage – not native to Kenya or Eastern Africa. Found only in Western Africa coastal areas)

26. Cape or savanna buffalo: Syncerus c. caffer (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage. Native to Kenya.)

27. Lichtenstein’s hartebeest: Sigmoceros (Alcelaphus) lichtensteini (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage. Not native to Kenya but found in Tanzania and south.)

28. Blue wildebeest (brindled gnu): Connochaetes taurinus (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage. Native to Kenya.)

29. Cheetah: Acinonyx jubatus (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage. Native to Kenya.)

30. Caracal: Caracal caracal (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage. Native to Kenya.)

31. North African porcupine: Hystrix cristata (Mt. Kenya Safari Club Orphanage)

32. Oryx: Oryx gazella beisa

33. Grant’s gazelle: Gazella granti

34. Camel: (Domesticated)