We had decided to spend the morning birding the Kirindy Forest Reserve before heading back to Morondava around lunchtime, where we would spend the afternoon preparing for our flight back to the capital tomorrow. Our morning in Kirindy actually started fantastically well, with a small female Fossa appearing around camp nice and early, before the crowds arrived. Because of this, we had a little more time with the animal and it wasn’t being pushed around so much. It did spend quite a bit of time eating garbage, which somewhat shattered the illusion, but it was certainly a much better experience than the last time we saw the animal here.
On the birding front, we did have a few nice birds around camp. The France’s Sparrowhawk was present again, showing nicely low down in the woods. We took a two-hour walk around the forest and did find our main target for the day, White-breasted Mesite. They were absolutely fantastic, as they walked along the ground in completely horizontal gait, flicking leaves as they went. Without a doubt the best bird of the trip thus far. They were fantastic. Other good birds we encountered included a Banded Kestrel, Giant Coua, Coquerel’s Coua and a day-roosting Torotoroka Scops Owl.
Our drive back to the capital passed without much incident. We drove through the alley of the Baobabs, although in the heat of the late morning sun we did not stop for long. We eventually arrived in the city of Morondava early afternoon, where we sorted out a hotel and grabbed a bite to eat at a nearby restaurant.
In the afternoon we explored the beach to try to find Madagascar Plover, one of the few birds we had skipped on our itinerary to try and save time in the south, knowing we would have another chance to find one here. We walked a good distance on the beach and encountered many waders, all common species, except for a single Terek Sandpiper that was always frustratingly distant.
And we did also find ourselves our main target with a very nice Madagascar Plover. The bird was very confiding, and we had truly brilliant views, much better than we would have expected for the species. With that wrapped up, and it being a Saturday night, we headed to a local bar for a few drinks to celebrate a very successful second phase of our trip now being completed.
Kirindy Forest Reserve: Malagasy Turtle Dove, White-breasted Mesite, Crested Coua, Coquerel's Coua, Giant Coua, Madagascar Cuckoo, Madagascar Buttonquail, Frances's Sparrowhawk, Torotoroka Scops Owl, Madagascar Hoopoe, Olive Bee-eater, Broad-billed Roller, Banded Kestrel, Lesser Vasa Parrot, Madagascar Cuckooshrike, Common Newtonia, Chabert Vanga, Madagascar Blue Vanga, Hook-billed Vanga, Rufous Vanga, Crested Drongo, Malagasy Paradise Flycatcher, Common Jery, Long-billed Bernieria, Malagasy Bulbul, Madagascar Magpie-Robin, Souimanga Sunbird, Sakalava Weaver,
Morondava: Namaqua Dove, Grey Plover, Common Ringed Plover, Greater Sand Plover, Madagascar Plover, White-fronted Plover, Eurasian Whimbrel, Terek Sandpiper, Common Sandpiper, Common Greenshank, Ruddy Turnstone, Curlew Sandpiper, Sanderling, Pied Crow, Madagascar Lark, Common Myna,
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