Resident Himantopus himantopus
Pink legs longer than seems sensible, wading the soda lakes among the flamingos.
The Black-winged Stilt is an elegant wader found on shallow alkaline lakes across Tanzania. Its legs are proportionally the longest of any bird, and it uses them to wade where other shorebirds cannot.
The soda lakes of the Rift Valley are full of them, often in the same bays as flamingos and avocets. They are a good introduction to the waders for anyone new to birding.
Lake Manyara, the Momella Lakes and Lake Magadi on the crater floor.
Guide’s tipStilts nest on open mud and defend their chicks loudly. If one is calling at you, back off and look for the young.
Sightings are never guaranteed: these are wild animals in wild places. What we can promise is a guide who knows where to look.
Destinations
The parks and reserves where our guides look for it, each with its own best season and safaris.
Montane forest, the Momella Lakes and Hartlaub’s Turaco, just 45 minutes from Arusha.
The Rift Valley soda lake where East Africa’s Lesser Flamingos breed.
Seasonal soda lake with flamingos, waterbirds and quiet dry bush.
Tree-climbing lions, groundwater forest and a soda lake full of waterbirds.
A volcanic caldera with black rhino, lions and big grassland birds.
Keep exploring
Chersomanes beesleyi
Fewer than a hundred birds left, all on one patch of plain north of Arusha. Nowhere else on earth.
Tauraco hartlaubi
A flash of crimson wings in the forest canopy. Arusha National Park is the easiest place to see one.
Tauraco fischeri
The coastal and Usambara forests’ turaco, with a red crest tipped white. A target bird for every East Usambara trip.
Sagittarius serpentarius
A raptor that hunts on foot, stamping snakes to death in the grass. Unmistakable striding across the plains.
Balearica regulorum
The golden crown, the dance and the bugling call. Endangered, but still a daily sight on the crater floor.
Ardeotis kori
The heaviest flying bird in the world, pacing the plains with its neck puffed up in display.
Phoeniconaias minor
Pink crowds on the soda lakes. Numbers rise and fall with the water, so your guide checks before you go.
Lamprotornis unicolor
Tanzania’s own starling: long-tailed, dusty grey and common around the baobabs of Tarangire.
Tell us your dates and the birds or animals you most want to see. We’ll reply within 24 hours with a route and a full quote.
