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We combine encounters with a multitude of species in true wilderness, which showcase spectacular and vastly changing landscapes. Our journeys cover a range of habitat types, including semi-deserts, deltas, savannas, forests, woodlands, and salt pans, which showcase the region’s rich and varied biodiversity.
Our tour begins at the Zambezi River and the thundering Victoria Falls, one of the Seven Natural Wonders of the World. Here, the Zambezi plummets over 300ft (91.4m) into the Batoka Gorge.
This diverse region includes the Victoria Falls National Park, Kazungula, Mosi-oa-Tunya National Park, Zambezi National Park to the south of the Falls and many other habitats.
The region hosts over 470 bird species, including many sought-after specials, across various habitats, including the rainforest next to the Falls, the Zambezi River, the gorges below the Falls, the miombo woodland surrounds and the National Park. Most of the area is home to large populations of African elephant, African buffalo, lion and hippo, so great care must be taken when on foot.
Kazungula occupies the most westerly corner of the country and habitats include the river, wetlands, floodplains, acacia and open woodland. Zambia lies across the river, with Botswana positioned to the west and the Caprivi Strip to the north.
On the floodplains, we can expect to see the following specials: Slaty Egret, Long-toed Lapwing, Senegal and Coppery-tailed Coucal, Swamp Nightjar, Hartlaub’s Babbler, Greater Swamp-Warbler, Luapula and Chirping Cisticola, Plain-backed Pipit, Southern Brown-throated Weaver and Swamp Boubou.
Shelley’s Sunbird is also a possible sighting together with Basra Reed-Warbler. Other species include Bradfield’s Hornbill, Broad-tailed Paradise-Whydah, Orange-winged Pytilia, Shaft-tailed Whydah, Red-necked Falcon, Olive-tree Warbler in the woodlands of the area, Denham’s Bustard in the National Park, along with occasional and rare Red-headed Quelea between the Falls and Kazungula.
The Victoria Falls region offers White-breasted Cuckooshrike, Brown Firefinch, Schalow’s Turaco, Olive Woodpecker, Northern Grey-headed Sparrow, Collared Palm-Thrush, Lesser Jacana, Baillon’s Crake and many others.
The gorges here are popular for adventure-type safaris and activities, and this has threatened the Taita Falcon, though Peregrine Falcons are more tolerant of disturbance. There are also many other raptors to be seen in the area, including the summer migrants.
African Black Swifts are common in the gorges, and we may even see the Mottled Swift. Naturally, every birder knows to check the local sewage works and the ponds – those at Victoria Falls are no exception. Ross’s Turaco has been reported at the river, as well as Western Banded Snake-eagle and Lesser Sand Plover.
Other target species include:
Augur Buzzard, Bat Hawk, African Skimmer, Rock Pratincole, Half-collared Kingfisher, African Finfoot, White-backed Night-Heron, Rufous-bellied Heron, Grey-headed Parrot, White-crowned and Long-toed Lapwing, Racket-tailed Roller, Red-necked Falcon, Broad-tailed Paradise-Whydah, Mottled and Böhm’s Spinetail, Lesser Jacana, White-breasted Cuckooshrike, Senegal, Coppery-tailed and White-browed Coucal, Grey Tit-Flycatcher, and many others.
Botswana is one of Southern Africa’s most famous and abundant wildlife destinations and home to more than 601 bird species.
The country’s exceptional avifauna includes several range-restricted and highly sought-after species, and it offers remarkable landscape contrasts from the lily-field backwaters of the Okavango Panhandle to the desolate Makgadikgadi Salt Pans.
Our tour commences in the dry area of Maun, where we’ll look for the localised Boulder Chat, the scarce near-endemic Orange River Francolin, and Common Whitethroat. We then head into the Moremi and Okavango Delta in search of the scarce Pel’s Fishing Owl, Slaty Egret and White-backed Night-Heron. This swampy region also offers sightings of African Pygmy Goose, African Skimmer, Western Banded Snake Eagle, Wattled Crane, Lesser Jacana, Southern Pied Babbler and Brown Firefinch.
From here, we’ll head north-east through the renowned Savuti, where our target species include Dickinson’s Kestrel, Burchell’s Sandgrouse, Meyer’s Parrot, Swallow-tailed Bee-eater, Bradfield’s Hornbill, Red-capped Lark, Chestnut-backed Sparrowlark and Grey-backed Sparrowlark.
Travelling up into the Chobe National Park, our target species in the riverine and forested areas are many:
Bat Hawk, African Skimmer, Rock Pratincole, Long-toed Plover, Rufous-bellied Heron, Slaty Egret, White-backed Night-Heron, Rosy-throated Longclaw, Dwarf Bittern, Tropical and Swamp Boubou, Red-necked Falcon, Pennant-winged Nightjar, Wood Pipit, Racket-tailed and Broad-billed Roller, Hartlaub’s Babbler, Collared Palm-Thrush, Grey-backed Camaroptera, Grey Penduline-Tit, Tinkling Cisticola, Pririt Batis, Red-faced Crombec, Shaft-tailed Whydah and Cut-throat Finch.
Namibia is a unique destination with extraordinary landscapes, making it a must-visit African country. It’s a birding hotspot, home to a multitude of birds that can only be found here or in neighbouring Angola.
Over 620 species have been recorded, of which 14 are endemic, and 8 are reportedly from the Etosha region. Additionally, you can expect to see a host of magnificent wildlife.
Namibia features the oldest desert on Earth, lining the coast with the tallest dunes in the world, the rugged desert mountains of the Namibian escarpment, home to desert elephant and rhino, and the vast Etosha National Park, which ranks as one of Africa’s top game reserves.
Our tour leads you through diverse habitat types, including coastal shores and estuaries, broad-leaved woodland, riverine forest, floodplains, grass plains, papyrus swamps, mountains, gravel and sandy deserts. We visit Windhoek and surrounds, the Namib Desert dunes around Sossusvlei, Spitzkoppe, Etosha, and the Caprivi Strip.
Target species include:
Many Lesser and Greater Flamingos, Ludwig’s and Kori Bustard, Rüppell’s and Northern Black Korhaan, Hartlaub’s Spurfowl, Rüppell’s Parrot, Monteiro’s, Damara and Bradfield’s Hornbill, Rockrunner, White-tailed Shrike, Herero Chat, Violet Wood-Hoopoe, Rosy-faced Lovebird, Shelley’s and Copper Sunbird, Carp’s Tit, Bare-cheeked and Black-faced Babbler, Barlow’s, Dune, Gray’s and Benguela Long-billed Lark, Chestnut-banded Plover, Damara Tern, Cape, Bank and Crowned Cormorant, Burchell’s Courser and Double-banded Courser, African Black Oystercatcher, Crimson-breasted Shrike, Bradfield’s Swift, Bokmakierie, Rufous-eared Warbler, Black-faced Waxbill, Orange River White-eye, Dusky Sunbird, and Cape Vulture.
Eastern Zimbabwe, combined with central Mozambique, offers more than 400 bird species. The combined region also has the highest diversity on the planet of 30 avian orders and shares the second-highest count of different families together with coastal West Africa, Tanzania and Uganda.
This exciting tour for avid birders leads you through extremely beautiful and diverse scenery. It departs from Harare for the Mashonaland Plateau in search of south-central African endemics, confined mainly to miombo woodland, including Miombo Rock Thrush, Miombo Tit, Miombo Double-collared Sunbird, and many others.
We then head eastwards to the magnificent Eastern Highlands near the Mozambique border. En route, we seek out the Boulder Chat and explore the evergreen forests for localised endemics, such as Chirinda Apalis and Roberts’ Warbler, and other great species easily found here, including Swynnerton’s Robin. We scour the mountain grasslands for the vulnerable Blue Swallow and, if we are fortunate, we may find Striped or Buff-spotted Flufftail, Scarce Swift, and many others.
Our focus areas include the Harare wetlands and woodlands, Gosho Park, Honde Valley, the Nyanga National Park mountains and forests and the Bvumba Highlands.
We then head to the Zambezi Valley and enter Mozambique through the Forbes Border Post in Mutare. The main reason we travel to Mozambique is because of its significant number of new birds. Approximately 105 species are either endemic to this region or are most easily seen here, such as Ayre’s Eagle and Racquet-tailed Roller.
Here, our focus areas are the mountains, deltas and coastline, and include Panda, Unguane, Mount Gorongosa, Rio Savane, Caia and Mphingwe (Coutadas 11 and 12).
In Mozambique, we can spot several highly sought-after species, including: Crab Plover, Great Knot, Great Snipe, Great Bittern, Blue Quail, Madagascar and Barred Long-tailed Cuckoo, Silvery-cheeked Hornbill, Pallid Honeyguide, Speckle-throated and Green-backed Woodpecker, African Pitta, Tiny Greenbul, White-chested Alethe, East Coast Akalat, Black-headed Apalis, Short-winged Cisticola, Red-winged Warbler, Black and White and Livingstone’s Flycatcher, Anchieta’s Tchagra, Chestnut-fronted Helmet-Shrike, Western Violet-backed Sunbird, Black-winged Bishop, Locust Finch, Broad-tailed Paradise Whydah, Twinspot Indigobird, Red-throated Twinspot and Lesser Seedcracker.
Note: Zimbabwe offers good infrastructure while conditions in Mozambique are continually improving.