Birding South Africa | Birding Johannesburg/Pretoria | About us | Contact us | HOME
|
Bird Tours | Guiding |
Birding and Tour News | Features Birding South Africa | Birding Johannesburg/Pretoria | About us | Contact us | HOME Indicator Birding ccErectile Dysfunction | |
Mozambique Lite - Southern Itinerary, Summer 2008Introduction |
||
|
If you are interested in this trip, please Book/Ask for information here. Our normal Mozambique trips are 16 days in length due to the distance and challenge in covering all the good birding habitats in Mozambique south of the Zambezi (Southern and Central Mozambique). And if one is going that far, it makes sense to also include a day in the Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe, where the birding is excellent too! Our "Mozambique Lite" trips are designed to provide a more compact experience of the best birding Mozambique has to offer. The Moz-Lite summer trip focuses on the superb Woodlands in the Panda region, Xai Xai and the Limpopo floodplain and Inhambane. As such this is a shorter trip (distance-wise) than typical Mozambique Itineraries and thus enables one to see a lot of birds with relatively less travel! If you are interested in this trip, please Book/Ask for information here. Mozambique Lite South - Friday 21 November to 30 November 2008Itinerary Outline Day 1 Meet at Letaba Camp and drive through to Giriyondo Border Post and on to Massingir Dam We will then travel together through the Giriyondo Border Post, and through the Parque Nacional do Limpopo, birding en-route. We camp overnight at the Campismo Aguia Pesueira on the banks of Massingir dam. Day 2 Massingir Dam to Chidinguele Early morning birding around Massingir Dam and at the superb Limpopo floodplain area between Canicado and Chibuto. This is an excellent area for Rosy-throated Longclaw and other floodplain birds. After birding there for a few hours we depart to our overnight stop on the beach at Chidinguele, with excellent snorkeling opportunities. Day 3 Chidinguele to Inhambane With low tide in the early morning, we take a break from birding to snorkel in the Indian Ocean, before heading north to Inhambane. We hope to arrive in good time to bird some of the extensive mangroves and forest patches in the area. Day 4 Birding Inhambane The main focus of the birding here is the excellent wader watching which may include Greater Sand Plover and Lesser (Mongolian) Sand Plover, Terek Sandpiper, Bar-tailed Godwit and Crab Plover. Other birds which may be seen include Sooty Falcon, Pale Batis, Purple-banded Sunbird, Rufous-winged Cisticola and Magpie Mannkin. Day 5 Inhambane to Rio Save Game Reserve This is a long drive - and after some early morning birding we head northwards up the EN1 and stop off at Baobabs north of Massinga to look at the flocks of Mottled and Bohm's Spinetail which occur here. Rio Save Game Reserve offers open woodland, palm savannah and Baobab forest. We stay overnight in the superb Papagaio camp, set amidst giant baobabs. Day 6 Rio Save GR to Vilanculos Full morning birding in the Rio Save Game Reserve - this is a 350 000 hectare concession which includes a staggering variety of habitat types. Species on offer here include Collared Palm-thrush, Thick-billed Cuckoo, Arnot's Chat, Lemon-breasted Canary, Grey-headed Parrot, Dickinson's Kestrel, Southern Banded Snake-eagle and Racquet-tailed Roller. We leave in the late morning ,and en route, we may stop in at Save Pan, where Livingstone's Flycatcher, Plain-backed Sunbird and Chestnut-fronted Helmet-Shrike occur. The Vilanculos area offers Madagascar Bee-eater, Sooty Falcon, African Hobby, Rosy-throated Longclaw and many others. Day 7 Vilanculos to Hyliota Camp This is a long driving day, and the latter part is on a 45km sand track, so we will leave plenty of time for the trip, but may have the chance to stop in the woodlands and enjoy the rich bird parties which may occur. Day 8 Panda Area Full day birding in the Panda Woodlands. The main target species is Olive-headed Weaver, but bird parties are good and we can expect to see Southern (Mashona) Hyliota, Pale Batis and White-breasted Cuckoo-shrike and Green-backed Honeybird. Different woodlands nearby harbour other interesting birds, including Chestnut-fronted Helmet-shrike. Other species possible include Stierling's Barred Warbler, Grey Penduline Tit, Racket-tailed Roller and Fawn-coloured Lark. Near the camp there are areas of sand forest where African Broadbill, Crested Guineafowl and Gorgeous Bush-shrike occur. Day 9 Panda to Xai-Xai After some early morning birding in the vicinity of Hyliota Camp, we head southwards towards Xai-xai - an overnight stop on the way home. Day 10 Xai Xai to South Africa Tour Ends Book/Ask for information here. | ||
