Day 9: Awash NP
Monday 16th February 2015
Awash National Park After a good night’s sleep (during which we could hear Hyenas calling around the lodge), we ate our breakfast in the raised dining area, where we could see African Grey Hornbills and Grivet monkeys in the treetops. We spent the morning on a game drive through the acacia woodland of Awash National Park. Mammals could be difficult to spot in the denser patches of thorn bushes and trees but these were interspersed with clearings and wider expanses, where larger acacia trees were widely spaced. Some mammals and birds were seen from the coach, others were found as we walked through the more open areas. Within minutes of leaving the lodge, we saw an adult Hyena walking away from the road; an exciting start to the day! Soon after this, we had great views of a beautiful Black-backed Jackal. We saw several Warthogs as we drove along, often feeding at the roadside. Also close to the road but less obliging were two Lesser Kudu. We saw a total of 15 Harar Dik-diks, an endemic sub-species of Salt’s Dik-dik. These skittish little antelopes have huge eyes and are really tiny; they are a similar weight to the local Scrub Hares! During the morning we saw an outstanding range of new birds, including two species of bustard - Kori and White-bellied. Pygmy Falcons sat up in full view and White-bellied Go-away-birds were equally showy. Much harder to find were Abyssinian Scimitarbill and Three-banded Courser. We were almost overwhelmed with the variety of visually stunning species including Yellow-breasted Barbet, Grey-headed Bushshrike and Rosy-patched Bushshrike. But outshining them all were the sunbirds, especially the gloriously iridescent Nile Valley Sunbird. After a delicious lunch, we spent the afternoon in a more open grassland area of the National Park. Here we found more mammals including several Soemmerring’s Gazelles. We also spent time watching and photographing Beisa Oryx. These are impressively big and muscular with bold, black and white facial markings. They have straight, slender horns, which can be over a metre in length. We saw many of these superb animals during our time in Awash. The most notable birds in this open landscape were a pair of majestic Secretarybirds, stalking across the grass and then flying into the flat top of a large acacia tree, where we thought they might have a nest. After sunset, we set out for a night drive and quickly found several Scrub Hares and more Beisa Oryx. Two more Hyenas were seen and then we saw a Genet close to the coach. Better still, as we returned towards the lodge, two Bat-eared Foxes walked slowly out across the road, providing great views.
Awash National Park After a good night’s sleep (during which we could hear Hyenas calling around the lodge), we ate our breakfast in the raised dining area, where we could see African Grey Hornbills and Grivet monkeys in the treetops. We spent the morning on a game drive through the acacia woodland of Awash National Park. Mammals could be difficult to spot in the denser patches of thorn bushes and trees but these were interspersed with clearings and wider expanses, where larger acacia trees were widely spaced. Some mammals and birds were seen from the coach, others were found as we walked through the more open areas. Within minutes of leaving the lodge, we saw an adult Hyena walking away from the road; an exciting start to the day! Soon after this, we had great views of a beautiful Black-backed Jackal. We saw several Warthogs as we drove along, often feeding at the roadside. Also close to the road but less obliging were two Lesser Kudu. We saw a total of 15 Harar Dik-diks, an endemic sub-species of Salt’s Dik-dik. These skittish little antelopes have huge eyes and are really tiny; they are a similar weight to the local Scrub Hares! During the morning we saw an outstanding range of new birds, including two species of bustard - Kori and White-bellied. Pygmy Falcons sat up in full view and White-bellied Go-away-birds were equally showy. Much harder to find were Abyssinian Scimitarbill and Three-banded Courser. We were almost overwhelmed with the variety of visually stunning species including Yellow-breasted Barbet, Grey-headed Bushshrike and Rosy-patched Bushshrike. But outshining them all were the sunbirds, especially the gloriously iridescent Nile Valley Sunbird. After a delicious lunch, we spent the afternoon in a more open grassland area of the National Park. Here we found more mammals including several Soemmerring’s Gazelles. We also spent time watching and photographing Beisa Oryx. These are impressively big and muscular with bold, black and white facial markings. They have straight, slender horns, which can be over a metre in length. We saw many of these superb animals during our time in Awash. The most notable birds in this open landscape were a pair of majestic Secretarybirds, stalking across the grass and then flying into the flat top of a large acacia tree, where we thought they might have a nest. After sunset, we set out for a night drive and quickly found several Scrub Hares and more Beisa Oryx. Two more Hyenas were seen and then we saw a Genet close to the coach. Better still, as we returned towards the lodge, two Bat-eared Foxes walked slowly out across the road, providing great views.