Dear Avi,

I would strongly encourage a trip to Kenya - I have no experience in
Tanzania but by all accounts you can't go far wrong in east Africa -
the birds are wonderful and readily accessible, there is a wide
variety of local tour guides with flexible itineraries and there is a
great variety of habitats.

I can't recommend any particular individual guides or companies though
I'd say that you could you drop a line to Nature Kenya - they should
be able to point you in the right direction - the NK home page is at:
http://www.naturekenya.org/.

There are a lot of similar groups throughout eastern Africa and you
can get more information from birding-specific sites including
FatBirder:http://www.fatbirder.com/ and Surfbirds:
http://www.surfbirds.com/.

I haven't been to Tanzania but by all reports the birding and
facilities are near to the standard in Kenya.

I picked up a copy of "The Birds of East Africa: Kenya, Tanzania,
Uganda, Rwanda, Burundi" by Terry Stevenson & John Fanshawe in Nairobi
- as far as I know it is available from NBHS and Amazon.

Cheers and best - enjoy your trip - I'm planning on being back there
later next year.

Robert Gosford
ERSG moderator
--- In Ethnoornithology@..., "Avi Sabavala"
<jodhpur58@...> wrote:
>
> Hi Robert,
> found your account of the kenya visit very interesting.
>
> I would like to visit it in 2008. Can you let me know details of
> people who can make the local arrangements. do you also think a trip
> to neighbouring Tanzania would add to the charm of the trip
> best wishes for the Chrismas & New year to all of you on the group
>
> Avi
>
>
> --- In Ethnoornithology@..., "Robert Gosford"
> <robertgosford@> wrote:
> >
> > Dear all,
> >
> > Picking up where I left off from the previous message...my trip to
> > Kenya was memorable for a number of reasons - it was my first trip
> to
> > Africa, it provided an opportunity to renew acquaintances with
> > researchers and students from Kenya in their home country - rather
> > than at conferences and meetings scattered across the globe - and I
> > was looking forward to seeing how ethnoornithology 'worked' in a
> > country generally considered to be economically poor but
> biologically
> > and culturally and linguistically rich.
> >
> > In all of these matters I was more than pleasantly surprised -
> people
> > in Kenya were friendly and welcoming, the climate in Nairobi was
> > amenable - with warm days and cool nights in October (so different
> > from Darwin in Australia where in October the days are hot and
> humid
> > and the nights only slightly less so).
> >
> > I arrived in Nairobi a week or so before the meeting so after a
> day or
> > so recovering from my long flights I was looking forward to
> exploring
> > the city and surrounds. On the Saturday morning I met up with Fleur
> > Ng'weno, a veritable encyclopedia of things ornithological in Kenya
> > and who runs the highly-recommended Wednesday morning bird walks
> > around Nairobi city. She told me that we should head to Nairobi
> > National Park, just a few miles from the city centre.
> >
> > I had no idea of what to expect but was absolutely stunned by the
> > sheer variety of the birds and mammals we saw in a few short
> hours -
> > virtually in the shadow of Nairobi's high-rise buildings we saw
> dozens
> > of birds (all new to me) and a bewildering variety of ungulates,
> > baboons, and a few of the 'big five' - all accompanied by Fleur's
> > knowledgeable commentary.
> >
> > The next day we went to Lake Naivasha, a fresh-water lake in the
> Rift
> > Valley an hour or so's drive from Nairobi. We went with a group of
> > students, tour-guides and others interested in birds and the mix of
> > Acacia woodland (so familiar to me from the savannah country across
> > northern Australia) and lake-side habitat delivered another
> > bewildering variety of birds and mammals - the sight of a group
> > (herd?) of hippos lolling around in the shallows a few metres off
> > shore was unforgettable.
> >
> > Then down to the business I was in Kenya for - the 1st
> > Ethnoornithology Conference for Kenya. I've been impressed for some
> > time with the vigour and interest shown by Kenyan and east African
> > researchers involved in ethnoornithology and was looking forward to
> > meeting people I'd only heard or read of.
> >
> > The meeting - like the rest of Kenya - was impressive and exciting.
> > About 50 people gathered for the conference and represented all
> > sectors of ethnoornithological interests in the country - young
> > students interested in the practical application of cultural bird
> > knowledge to species and habitat conservation, senior researchers,
> > including Dr. George Matute and Dr. Hussein Isak, birders and
> > professional ornithologists from the National Museums of Kenya,
> > international guests, including Dr John Fanshawe and Dr Leon Bennun
> > from Birdlife International, local bird-guides (interested in
> > incorporating traditional bird knowledge to value-add to their
> work)
> > and members of local support groups for the many Important Bird
> Areas
> > (IBAs) throughout the country.
> >
> > Mercy Njeri has prepared a comprehensive report of the conference
> and
> > I look forward to posting that on the ERSG site soon. I will also
> look
> > to post copies of the presentations to the conference and some
> > photographs of participants.
> >
> > I can't stress the importance of this meeting enough - I believe
> that
> > it is important not only for the future of ethnoornithology in
> Kenya
> > and east Africa but it also serves as a model and example for
> others
> > interested in running similar conferences elsewhere - I'm sure that
> > planning has started for the next one in the near future!
> >
> > That's all for now - must get the Xmas presents out, have breakfast
> > and prepare for the day.
> >
> > Best to you all,
> >
> > Robert Gosford
> >
>