5 Porini camps. October 2 to October 16

[offshorebirder]

@CDL111 - I am really impressed with the photos of the Fischer's Sparrow-Lark nest!

 

And I'm really enjoying following this TR.  Thanks for taking the time to prepare it.

[amybatt]

Excellent rhino sightings and very close too!  You were lucky.  I also love the baby birds, how sweet!!

[CDL111]

Thanks @offshorebirder, the fisher’s sparrow-lark was probably within a metre of the road, unfortunately it was not there the next day,  Nicholas was positive that the female would have moved the chicks.

[CDL111]

Thanks @amybatt, yes they were quite close, it does help with having a bridge camera (Sony DCS HX400V) which has a 1200 zoom besides a Canon 700D with a16-300 lens, the wife took my canon because it’s far quicker on zoom.

[pomkiwi]

@CDL111 Thank-you for this lovely and detailed report. From another Banburian 

[CDL111]

@pomkiwi it took me some time to find out how to add text, which obviously helps. Just my opinion, it gets better.

[CDL111]

Day 6 Porini Rhino

Afternoon drive.

For us our drive started late as the other guests had taken the opportunity to go on a guided walk, as Stephanie has polio in her left leg it is not an option for her.

(very helpful at immigration though)

 

Eles

 

Black backed jackels

 

Nicholas then found the three lionesses from the pride and there was no sign of the cubs so we watched them for a while.

 

A herd of impala are seen, but another vehicle arrives whose guests must have been having a political debate, rather noisy to say the least, but these things happen.

 

Buffalo arrive behind the lionesses on their way to the watering hole.

 

Nicholas suggested that we leave and go and have a sundowner or two, good idea!

 

 

Having had a sundowner (singular) we thought we were heading back to camp when Nicholas just turned off the road and in a very short time we were at a hyena den with a quantity of access holes. We finished up seeing six cubs.

 

Nicholas initially thought that this was the mother returning to the den, but was wrong, it just walked past and sat down just beyond the den.

 

It was once again a pleasant surprise to the end of the drive, so back to camp for a top up.

 

 

[CDL111]

Day 7 Porini Rhino

Morning drive.

We thought that we had seen a substantial quantity of rhino at Nairobi NP, but we exceeded it at  Ol Pejeta, our total of individual sightings this morning was fourteen white and 4 black. Not all the sightings were within camera range and unlike Nicholas we had to use binoculars to see some of the rhino, and I had just had an eye test back home and was told my eyesight was good, Nicholas is obviously rated brilliant.

So for us it was a very good game drive, pleasant surprise to find the wetland area and the quantity of birds.

 

 

Giraffe on breakfast

 

 

 

Lets dance

 

Mini dust bowl

 

Eurasian bee-eater

 

Marabou stork and sacred ibis

 

Top of the morning to you

 

Dafassa waterbuck

 

 

Baboon

 

The next two pics show the differential between the zoom, canon first and then the sony bridge camera, but it does take a long time to zoom in with the sony. Anybody know the name of the butterfly?

 

Lilac-breasted roller

 

Hartebeest

 

Glossy ibis

 

Hammerkop

 

Saddle-billed stork

 

Yellow-billed duck

 

Yellow-billed egret

 

Grey-crowned crane plus a few egrets

 

Sacred ibis, egret and one spoonbill

 

Hammerkop

 

Warthog

 

Orynx

 

Little bee-eater

 

kingfisher

 

Pic from yesterday, candle bush

 

Fish eagle

 

Brown parrot

 

Another fish eagle

 

Black backed jackal

 

Impala

 

Must be the wife's perfume!

 

Three ringed plover

 

Lilac-breasted roller

 

Black-headed heron juvenile?

 

Brown parrot

 

Sacred Ibis

 

Mating marabou

 

Black backed jackals, four

 

[amybatt]

Yes you did well with rhinos in Ol Pejeta.  I only saw one very skittish black rhino when I was there.  Not even long enough to lift the camera for a photo.  And the horn on that one white rhino is crazy!

 

What Sony bridge are you using? I have the RX10 iii and love it!

[CDL111]

Thanks @amybatt, more on day 8 on our way to the airport. The Sony that l now have to use is a DSC HX400V.

[CDL111]

Day 7 Pironi Rhino

Afternoon game drive.

Meet up with the pride again, but there is one less cub and Nicholas and Hesbon were of the opinion that it has died as one of the cubs that we saw on day 5 had been injured.

 

The next few pics were taken whilst I was sitting on the veranda after lunch and overlooking the watering hole.

 

Adult male baglafecht weaver

 

 

Adult female baglafecht weaver- not sure if it's non-breeding

 

Buffalo

 

Impala waiting to come to the watering hole

 

 

Kept waiting for this giraffe to have a drink of water but it never happened

 

Out on the game drive,this little chap kept getting a helping foot to get up even though it preferred to stay down

 

 The pride of 3 females and 9 cubs.

 

No sooner had we got there they were spooked by something, and having a look round, notice 2 people in another vehicle bobbing up and down, you can see this in later photographs. Managed to get the 9 cubs in this pic.

 

They didn't travel far so Nicholas moved the vehicle to the other side of the pride

 

Managed to get all 12 in this one.

 

Kori bustard

 

Black backed jackal

 

Drinks with a view

[CDL111]

Day 10

Porini Rhino morning game drive.

 

As our flight was 0845hrs the game drive was on our way to the Nanyuki airport. However it was rewarding. and started off with seeing black rhino.

 

Warthog

 

Nicholas then spotted this black headed heron trying to swallow a bird

 

Nicholas was now able to see that it was a yellow-billed oxpecker, we stayed for a few minutes watching the heron try to swallow the oxpecker and then having to reject it, after a few attempts it was time for us to move on.

 

As we were getting close to the park gates two cheetah were sighted

 

And a photograph of Mount Kenya whilst we were waiting for the pilots.

[CDL111]

Day 10

Porini Cheetah

We arrived at the airstrip for Cheetah camp having had to call in at three other locations.

As the camp is some 6km from the airstrip, we had a short drive to the camp. Our guide and tracker was Nelson and Jacob.

 

Thompsons Gazelle

 

Little bee-eater

 

Wildebeest

 

Lilac-breasted roller

 

Superb starling

 

Three wildebeest found shelter from the sun

 

And so did the giraffe

 

Grants gazelle

 

We then arrived at the camp which is the latest addition to the Porini camps. As you would expect, the rooms have a slightly different design compared to the other camps and therefore an improvement. We were in room one which gave us a good view of the rocks and the rock hyrax.

This is the view of the rocks from our room, and if you use a little imagination, can see an animal (?) with a youngster on its back with its leg hanging down.

 

[CDL111]

Firstly, apologies, Day 10 should read Day 8.

Day 8

Porini afternoon game drive, Nelson who tried his best to find wildlife for us, eventually had to accept that they were just not there on that afternoon and to try another day.

 

Rock hyrax, taken from our tent.

 

Dik Dik

 

Giraffe taking it easy

 

One of few eles that we saw

 

African white-backed vulture

 

 

Marabou stork

 

Lappet-faced vulture

 

I think this is a grey kestrel, so if l am wrong please say what the bird is.

 

Double-banded courser also known as the two-banded courser, according to Wikipedia in not normally resident in Kenya, so that is the reason l could not find it in the two bird books that l have. Stephanie has to be given credit for this as the pic was taken on the canon camera. Large G&T back home!

 

Grey-backed fiscal

 

Mating marabou

 

Bat-eared fox, not the best of pics

 

Black-faced vervet monkey

 

Baboon
 

It was then back to camp for a pre dinner drink at the camp fire where we met other guests, Nirmalya and Jui (hosts) were also there and attended dinner with the guests and must add that they are the perfect hosts.

 

[CDL111]

Here we go, apologies once more, the double banded courser is in fact a common bird in Kenya, Wikipedia got it wrong, the wife has already had the G&T.

The grey-backed fiscal is a Northern White-crowned shrike. The wife just said stay retired, l will never make a tracker.

[CDL111]

Day 9

Porini Cheetah camp.

Morning game drive.

 

Buffalo

 

Lappet-faced vulture

 

It didn't take long to find the lions and something we noticed was that there was no radio system in the vehicle and as there were other Porini vehicles from Mara camp already there, how did the guides contact each other. Modern technology, text by mobile phone was the answer. It would seem that the system worked well as there were occasions when we were there first there with lions and it was not too long before another vehicle arrived.

Nelson told us that the lioness did have two small cubs, but they must have been killed. They male was one of three and we do see the other two whilst here.

 

White-bellied bustard

 

Ostrich

 

Tawny eagle

 

Wildebeest

 

Topi

 

Female agama lizard

 

Black backed jackal

 

Warthog

 

Egyptian geese

 

Blue-breasted bee-eater (?)

 

Three-banded plover

 

Black-faced vervet monkey

 

Juvenile (?) male agama lizard

 

The first of two hippo pools that we saw this morning, not the best pics because of the sun.

 

Seeing these two young crocs was a surprise.

 

African pied wagtail (?), what is confusing is the black band on the chest is larger that that shown in the bird books.

 

Male agama lizard, again sun does not help.

 

Female agama lizard

 

Hyena in the shade

 

Spur-winged plover

 

Yellow-billed storks

 

 

African grey hornbill

 

Four sub adults

 

Second hippo pool

 

Zebra

 

Lonely impala

 

Tawny eagle

 

Giraffe

 

Baboon

 

Topi

 

Eles

 

Zebra

 

This isn't my best pose

 

This is

[michael-ibk]

Really enjoying your report and the abundance of wildlife you saw. You have a Little Bee-Eater there, and yes, that is a Pied Wagtail.

[CDL111]

Thank you @michael-ibk, there was never a dull day and at Pironi Lion we saw something that neither the people we were sharing the vehicle with (eight safaris) or us (six safaris) had ever seen before or unlikely to see again.

[JakeGC]

Great selection of pictures!  Regarding your question mark by the Agama lizard: it's not a juvenile but a Blue-headed Tree Agama (Acanthocerus atricollis) and your photo shows it on a tree. The rock agama found in the Mara, with the red head, is the Mwanza Flat-headed Agama (Agama mwanzae). We recently had herpetologist Stephen Spawls at our camps in the Mara training our guides on recognition of lizards, snakes and frogs and have published a guide by him to Amphibians and Reptiles of the Maasai Mara which includes these two. 
 

[CDL111]

Many thanks  @JakeGC, the book l have is very limited and only shows five types of lizard, we do however see and photograph this type of lizard again.

[plambers]

I have never been to Amboseli but it seems there are less eles than I imagined and way more variety at Ol Pej, where I have been. Am I correct? Love the pic with the oxpeckers in the giraffe's ear!

[CDL111]

Hi @plambers, there was a lack of else at Amboseli compared to our time there in January, but the guides were sure that this was caused by lack of rain in and the eles had moved to Tanzania. Having watched many nature programmes l am hopeful that they will return.

[CDL111]

Day 9

Porini Cheetah

Afternoon game drive. there was to be no eles seen on this drive and l asked Nelson did he have any thoughts as to why, he said that in the last few weeks herd sizes of 70+ and one of 200+ had been seen, so just keep looking.

 

Rock hyrax from outside our room.

 

Red-cheeked cordon-bleu, couldn't get close for a good photo

 

Banded mongoose

 

Lappet-faced vulture

 

Africa white-backed vultures at an old kill

 

Helmeted guineafowl

 

Hyena with a misaligned tooth

 

Then it back to the mating couple in recovery mode.

 

Action

 

And rest

 

Grants gazelle

 

Von Der Decken's Hornbill

 

Tawny eagle

 

White-bellied bustard

 

Bare-faced go-away-bird

 

Brown parrot

 

Grey-backed fiscal shrike

 

Topi

 

Auger buzzard

 

It was then back to camp, and whilst having the compulsory G&T sat at the camp fire Nirmalya asked if we would like to try a Dowa after dinner. Stephanie and l felt  it was only polite to try this drink. It consisted of fresh lemon and lime crushed, honey, vodka (quantity judgmental, LOTS) and hot water, it was superb. Didn't hear any of the wildlife that came through the camp that night.

[Alexander33]

10 hours ago, CDL111 said:

 

 

That poor misaligned tooth makes this hyena look a lot less sinister, in my opinion!

 

Great shots of the Von der Decken's Hornbill and the Brown Parrot. 

[CDL111]

Sorry for the late response @Alexander33, initially l thought a chunk had be taken out of it's lip, but then on closure inspection its the tooth that is out of alignment