Tag Archives: Lovebirds

Red-headed Lovebird (Agapornis pullarius)

Posted on by
Reply

The Red-headed Lovebird (Agapornis pullarius) also known as the Red-faced Lovebird is a member of the genus Agapornis, a group commonly known as lovebirds. Like other lovebirds it is native to Africa.  Although I have seen them in foliage in both Accra and Entebbe, I wasn’t able to get a photo so I will have to use Wikipedia’s.  I don’t know why these beauties are so bashful but at least it’s not me as I couldn’t find many other pics or videos of them in the wild.

Their range covers a swathe through central Africa but only Ghana and Uganda are easy to get to for eco-tourists on a budget.  I got glimpses of them in Accra and Entebbe Botanical Gardens.

LEARN MORE ABOUT RED-HEADED LOVEBIRDS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

VIDEOS

Once again, I had a hard time tracking down clips of wild birds on Youtube.  This is an older one.

And a close up of captive birds just to show the gorgeous colours.

 

Yellow-collared Lovebird (Agapornis personatus)

Posted on by
Reply

The yellow-collared lovebird (Agapornis personatus), also called masked lovebird or eye ring lovebird, is a monotypic species of bird of the lovebird genus in the parrot family Psittaculidae. They are native to northeast Tanzania and have been introduced to Burundi and Kenya.

I took these photos at Whistling Thorn Camp near Tarangire.

IMG_6745 IMG_6746 IMG_6755 IMG_6757 IMG_6759 IMG_6760 IMG_6765They are near endemic to Tanzania and are very easily seen at the northern end of Tarangire National Park.  They frequent a well at Whistling Thorn Camp and were the first birds to welcome us in!

yhlb rangeLEARN MORE ABOUT YELLOW COLLARED LOVEBIRDS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

Xeno-Canto

 

VIDEO

I had to search through a lot of captive bird videos to find some in the wild!

This is why they are called lovebirds!

The World’s Most Interesting Car Park – Ankarafantsika NP, Madagascar

Posted on by
Reply

How many people come to an eco-tourism blog and expect to have a car park recommended as a birding hotspot?  Now what if I told you that you could see not only several endemic species of birds but several species of lemur?  Yes please, drive on in to the Ankarafantsika NP’s car park!

Let’s start with the birds.  These photos were taken over two days, some in the morning, some around lunch time and some in the evening, just whenever we weren’t in the actual park.

White-headed Vanga

IMG_5296

Sickle-billed Vanga

IMG_5344

Broad-billed Rollers

IMG_5355 IMG_5356

Crested Drongo

IMG_5364 IMG_5373

Sickle-billed Vanga

IMG_5375 IMG_5376

Malagasy Paradise Flycatcher

IMG_5381

Magpie-robin

IMG_5384

Malagasy Coucal

IMG_5386

Madagascar Turtle-dove

IMG_5519 IMG_5533

Grey-headed Lovebirds

IMG_5539 IMG_5543 IMG_5546 IMG_5562

A Madagascar Hoopoe checks out his appearance, maybe he has a hot date?

IMG_5649 IMG_5651

Satisfied he is looking his best, he’s off and running.

IMG_5652

Broad-billed Rollers

 

 

IMG_5654

Meanwhile, has the Hoopoe been stood up?

IMG_5659

A Crested Drongo looks on

IMG_5661

A Magpie-robin on a post

IMG_5666

The Grey-headed Lovebirds are there throughout the day.

 

IMG_5730 IMG_5732 IMG_5735

Helmeted Guineafowl

IMG_5743

Across the street, an amorous and shameless pair of Vasa Parrots.

IMG_5756 IMG_5760

Another Crested Drongo

IMG_5764

Finally the Hoopoe’s date shows up – fashionably late!

IMG_5765

The Sickle-billed Vanga can’t help but be a sticky beak!

IMG_5768

And the Hoopoe is alone again, but at least he looks great!

IMG_5769 IMG_5770 IMG_5772 IMG_5773

In tomorrow’s post, we meet the lemurs!

Grey-headed Lovebird (Agapornis canus)

Posted on by
Reply

The Grey-headed Lovebird or Madagascar lovebird (Agapornis canus) is a small species of parrot of the lovebird genus. It is a mainly green parrot. The species is sexually dimorphic and only the adult male has grey on its upper body. They are native on the island of Madagascar and are the only lovebird species which are not native on the African continent. They are the smallest of the lovebird species.

In the first of these photos I took at Ankarafantsika NP, you can see a pair of lovebirds and the distinctive grey head on the male.

IMG_5735 IMG_5732 IMG_5730 IMG_5562 IMG_5543 IMG_5339Grey-headed Lovebirds’ range is all around Madagascar except for the interior.  The easiest place to see them is Ankarafantsika NP where they are all over the trees surrounding the car park.  You don’t even have to enter the park!  This turned out well as we couldn’t enter anyways until the office opened and we bought tickets and hired a guide.  The lovebirds are there all day, you can see them even during lunch time although they are much quieter then.

GHLB Range

LEARN MORE ABOUT GREY-HEADED LOVEBIRDS

Wikipedia

World Parrot Trust

Birdlife

VIDEO

My Top Thirty Bird Sightings Of 2014

Posted on by
1

Most other years this would be a top ten, but with 3 major birding trips this year I am struggling to make it a top thirty!  If you want to see last year’s birds click here.   There is no way I could single out one top bird with so many to choose from so they are being presented in chronological order.  I haven’t finished blogging the Queensland road trip or the African Adventure so I have to cheat a bit with the photos.  They are my photos but just pasted in.

1.  Carnaby’s Cockatoo – seen at several places in Western Australia, Feb 2014.

.

2.  Western Rosella – seen at Dryandra and Stirling Range in Western Australia, Feb 2014

.

3.  Purple-crowned Lorikeet – seen near Fitzgerald National Park, Western Australia, Feb 2014

.

4.  Western Bowerbird – seen at Nallan Station, Western Australia, Feb 2014

.

5.  Splendid Fairy-wren – seen at Yanchep, Western Australia, Feb 2014

.

6.  Orange-bellied Parrot – seen at Melaleuca, Tasmania, March 2014

.

7.  Eastern Ground Parrot – seen at Melaleuca, Tasmania, March 2014

.

8.  Swift Parrot – seen on Bruny Island, Tasmania, March 2014

.

9.  Major Mitchell Cockatoo – seen at Bowra Station, QLD, March 2014

.

10.  Cockatiels – seen at Bowra Station, QLD, March 2014

.

11.  Satin Bowerbird – seen at Girraween, QLD, March 2014

.

12.  Ultramarine Lorikeet – seen on Ua Huka, Marquesas, French Polynesia, June 2014

.

13. Rimatara Lorikeet – seen on Rimatara, French Polynesia, June 2014

.

14.  Cape Parrot – seen in King William’s Town and Magoebaskloof, South Africa, Nov 2014

.

15.  Lilac-breasted Roller – seen in Kruger Park, South Africa, Nov 2014

.

16.  Echo Parakeet – seen at Black River Gorges, Mauritius, Nov 2014

.

17.  Vasa Parrots – seen at Ankarafantsika, Madagascar, Nov 2014

.

18.  Schlegel’s Asity – seen at Ankarafantsika, Madagascar, Nov 2014

.

19.  Hoopoe – seen at Ankarafantsika, Madagascar, Nov 2014

.

20.  Paradise Flycatcher – seen in Kakum National Park, Ghana Nov 2014

.

21.  Red Malimbe – seen in Kakum National Park, Ghana Nov 2014

.

22.  African Grey Parrot – seen (fleeting glimpse) in Kakum National Park, Ghana Nov 2014

Didn’t click fast enough!

23.  Senegal Parrot – seen in Shai Hills, Ghana Nov 2014

.

24.  Tacazze Sunbird – seen at Addis Ababa Hilton, Ethiopia, Nov 2014

.

25.  African Red-bellied Parrot – seen at Tarangire, Tanzania, Nov 2014

.

26.  Cordon Bleu Waxbill – seen at Tarangire, Tanzania, Nov 2014

.

27.  Meyer’s Parrot (Brown Parrot) – seen at Tarangire, Tanzania, Nov 2014

.

28.  Red-and-yellow Barbet – seen at Tarangire, Tanzania, Nov 2014

.

29.  Superb Starling – seen all over Tanzania, Nov 2014

.

30.  Lovebirds – seen in Madagascar (Grey-headed), Tarangire (Yellow-collared) and Ndutu (Fischer’s).  Just couldn’t choose between them!  Nov 2014

.

These aren’t necessarily the rarest birds but they were birds that made a major impression on me.  Maybe for their rarity, maybe for their beauty or maybe for their behaviour! Apologies for not having profiles up on about half the birds but I still have a lot more to blog about!