Birdwatching in Zanzibar allows enthusiasts to explore diverse habitats and observe various bird species, both resident and migratory. The island’s rich ecosystems, including forests, mangroves, wetlands, and coastal areas, provide ideal habitats for numerous bird species.
Zanzibar, otherwise known in the bird watching community as “The Isles of Paradise,” offers a variety of diverse bird species for those looking to catch a glimpse of them. Over 400 bird species have been recorded from the islands, located just off the coast of East Africa. The Pemba Channel, which runs between the islands of Zanzibar and Pemba, is a mere 50 km wide but nonetheless is a significant divide in terms of the avifauna it separates. The Channel is a recognized barrier to bird movement and hence is an important landmark in the world of ornithology. The differences between the birds of Pemba island and the main Zanzibar island have yet to be fully documented and are one of the many questions for future bird watching enthusiasts on their quest for Zanzibar’s birds. The importance of bird watching and conservation in Zanzibar is paramount for a number of reasons. One reason is the lack of any large mammal species on both Zanzibar and Pemba islands, the elephants and Zanzibar leopards both becoming extinct in the last 100 years. This has meant more land can be set aside for agriculture in contrast to the mainland coastal strip, and since the population of Zanzibar is rapidly expanding this leaves very little intact habitat. This also puts the islands’ endemic and forest species of birds under pressure from increased human activity and effectively means the higher the rate of habitat destruction, the higher the rate of bird extinction. A thorough study on the status and distribution of birds in Zanzibar would provide valuable baselines for understanding the relationships between land use, habitat change, and bird populations. This can aid in educating the people of Zanzibar in the importance of protecting their bird species and take measures toward their conservation.
Top spots for birdwatching while in Zanzibar
Here are some of the top spots for birdwatching in Zanzibar:
- Jozani Forest: Jozani-Chwaka Bay National Park, located in the south of Zanzibar, is home to a variety of bird species, including the endemic Zanzibar red colobus monkey. Birdwatchers can explore the forest trails and spot species such as the Fischer’s turaco, green wood-hoopoe, and various sunbird species.
- Paje Wetlands: The wetlands around Paje on the southeastern coast of Zanzibar are important birdwatching sites, particularly for waterfowl and shorebirds. Visitors can observe species such as the pied kingfisher, African spoonbill, and various wader species in the tidal flats and mangrove forests.
- Menai Bay Conservation Area: This marine protected area off the southwest coast of Zanzibar is not only home to diverse marine life but also offers opportunities for birdwatching. Boat tours in Menai Bay may encounter seabirds such as the white-tailed tropicbird, brown noddy, and sooty tern.
- Ngezi Forest Reserve: Located on the northern tip of Zanzibar, Ngezi Forest Reserve is a haven for birdwatchers seeking forest-dwelling species. Visitors can explore the trails and spot birds such as the Fischer’s lovebird, African paradise flycatcher, and various sunbird and bulbul species.
- Chumbe Island Coral Park: This privately managed marine protected area near Zanzibar offers opportunities for birdwatching, particularly in the island’s coastal forest and on the surrounding coral reef. Visitors may encounter species such as the white-tailed tropicbird, red-billed tropicbird, and various tern species.
- Stone Town: Even in urban areas like Stone Town, birdwatching opportunities abound. The historic city is home to several bird species adapted to urban environments, including the house sparrow, common myna, and Indian silverbill.
Birdwatching tours and guided excursions are available in Zanzibar, allowing enthusiasts to explore the island’s avian diversity with experienced guides. Whether exploring forests, wetlands, or coastal areas, birdwatching in Zanzibar promises unforgettable encounters with the island’s feathered inhabitants.
Birdwatching Tips
Get up early – the first few hours after sunrise are the best time for bird watching as the majority of birds are most active and searching for food. Next best is the last few hours before sunset. Watching from a hide or some form of cover can increase the chances of seeing more birds, as they are less likely to be disturbed. Always be patient and allow birds to come to you. Avoid making quick or sudden movements and keep noise to a minimum. If you do not see the bird you are looking for, sit still for a while and it may show itself. The only essential piece of equipment for bird watching is a good pair of eyes. But binoculars will invariably bring birds that are further away, closer to you, thus increasing the quality of your sightings. For birding, 8×40 or 10×42 binoculars are a good choice as they have enough magnification power and field of view to meet most birding needs. Spotting scopes are a great tool for large areas of open water or wader watching. A camera can be used to capture a record shot of the bird but can be very frustrating when you get into digiscoping! A telescope and a tape recorder/player are valuable for making detailed notes of bird behaviors and calls/songs and Field guide books are essential for identifying and learning about birds.
Best time of day for birdwatching
If birdwatching in the Pemba Channel, the best time is between October and April, which is the little rainy season for this area. Prevailing winds are south-easterlies, which bring cooling breezes and cloud cover to Zanzibar. These conditions keep temperatures down and the best times for birdwatching on Zanzibar are also during the north-east monsoon. This is between early December and late March, when several north European migrants are present. During the early and late part of the year, the prevailing winds are north-westerlies and temperatures are very high. This is the main rainy season and several birds are in breeding plumage at this time. However, birdwatching is more difficult during the long rains. Steppe and coastal birds are the easiest to observe during the late part of the dry season, although many species are present and more widespread during the rains.
When you plan your day, remember that birds are most active in the early morning and late afternoon. They spend the middle part of the day resting and avoiding the heat, making birdwatching at this time less rewarding. But if you must go birdwatching during the middle part of the day, head for the forests or thick bush, as many species are more active in these habitats and will still be seen. Beach forests, found at Uzi and around the beaches of the east coast and north-west coast of Unguja, are particularly good areas to look for birds at any time of the day. Birds are generally less shy and easier to observe on islands or on the edges of water, so try to spend some of your birdwatching time near the coast. Early morning and late afternoon boat trips can also be very productive.
Essential equipment for birdwatching
Decent optics, such as binoculars, are crucial for birdwatching. It is impossible to accurately identify a bird in the field if only fleeting glimpses are caught. Seven by thirty-five binoculars are the minimum that should be used; anything less will not provide enough detail to confirm the identity of a bird. Binoculars of this specification provide a good field of vision and enough magnification to identify a bird at a reasonable distance. However, many veteran birders prefer something in the range of eight by forty-two; handiness is sacrificed for a marked increase in detail. The downside to this is that higher magnification often means a reduced field of vision, and it is something worth considering when choosing a pair of binoculars. Another piece of equipment that is very handy for someone who is not confident in their bird ID skills is a camera with a good zoom lens. This provides the opportunity to take a photograph of a bird and identify it later at the photographer’s leisure. However, it is important to remember to use the viewfinder of the camera. Crouching with one eye closed and the camera to the other eye is a giveaway to any nearby birds, and this technique will not yield good sightings! Step one is to notice the bird, and step two is to identify it. Notebooks and field guides are probably the most essential items for birdwatching because information cannot be retained in a memory that will only recall what a bird looks or sounds like once it has been identified! A field guide should correspond to the local avifauna, and there are many excellent guides available for various countries and regions across the globe. Step number three in birdwatching is the often rewarding and sometimes frustrating process of bird call and song identification. Recording equipment is another option but not something to take into the field if traveling light is your goal.
Behaviour observation techniques
When any birdwatcher watches birds for an appreciable length of time, the birds become accustomed to his presence and often ignore him. They then behave much more naturally, giving a more realistic impression of their real behavior. Admittedly, some species are very sensitive to disturbance, and it is essential to recognize this and to keep the necessary distance. As a general rule, however, bird behavior is so varied and interesting that the best way to study it is to watch familiar species even when their identity is unknown. By learning to recognize the representative behavior patterns of a wide range of species, the worker provides himself not only with a rewarding field of study in its own right, but also with a useful background against which special behavior patterns can be assessed. During the study of behavior it is often necessary to locate the same species in a variety of different situations, and here the technique of following is invaluable. This often necessitates slow movement through thick cover, and the good field worker quickly learns to regulate his speed and direction according to the bird’s movements and his relative visibility. A bird that is given the impression of being followed by a potential predator will behave in a way that is unrelated to its real behavior in the same situation. For this reason the study of escape and normal flight. The worker risks and refinding, mostly in driven birds, is made the same mean further following.
Bird identification resources
A comprehensive field guide is essential to identifying birds with confidence. Two guides cover the area, the first is the Field Guide to the Birds of East Africa by Williams and Arlott, a book with several excellent colour plates which covers all the birds of Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda, Rwanda and Burundi. This guide is easy to use and many of the birds can be identified from it. Unfortunately, not all of the Zanzibar birds are covered and some of the East African birds are non-migratory and do not occur on the island. A second guide covering a smaller area is Bird of the Indian Ocean Islands by Sinclair. This book is aimed specifically at beginners and covers all the birds of Madagascar and the other Indian Ocean islands, in addition to 60 species which are also found on the East African mainland and known to occur in Zanzibar. Roughly half of the Zanzibar birds can be identified with this guide. In 2000, Nigel Collar edited What the Birds of Africa. This is a two-volume set in which Volume 1 covers the non-passerines and Volume 2 covers the passerines. Each species has an excellent colour plate and the distribution is indicated. Unfortunately, both these volumes cover the whole of Africa and many of the birds are not found on Zanzibar. Volume 1 contains 34 of the non-passerine species, which is 38% of the total species known to occur on Zanzibar, so it is possible to identify some birds with this guide. Volume 2 contains 27 of the Zanzibar passerines and an additional plate for 1 of these species, covering 35% of the total species, so it is also quite useful for identifying birds. It is very important to have an up-to-date checklist of the birds of Zanzibar. With research still being done on the island’s avifauna, it is possible that new species and new records may be added and old records may need to be removed. An updated electronic version of the Zanzibar checklist is found on the Tanzanian Bird Atlas web page. A printer-friendly version of the checklist can be downloaded so that it can be taken into the field. This is only a list of birds and gives no descriptions or pictures, so a field guide must still be used to identify the birds.