Birds Of Minziro Forest - By Marc Baker Bsc.

Minziro Forest Reserve is located in Bukoba District, Kagera Region, north western Tanzania, the reserve was gazetted in 1947 covering an area of 24,841 ha contiguous with Malabigambo Forest Reserve in Uganda. Of the 24,841 ha, an estimated 19,000 ha can be broadly classified as Baikiaea-Podocarpus seasonal swamp forest.

The aims of this survey were to provide baseline data on the avifauna of Minziro and its associated habitats. A series of techniques were employed to establish this baseline data. Mist netting at the same site as a previous ornithological visit in 1987 was aimed at gathering valuable data on species longevity and movement through recaptures of individual birds. Direct observation in different areas of the reserve allowed for a complete overall survey of Minziro. Sound recording was carried out, enabling the confirmation and identification of some of the more inconspicuous forest species.

The survey was carried out over a 12-day period, from the 24^th July 2000 to the 4^th August 2000, resulting in 36,417 net-metre-hours. A total of 365 birds were caught and processed, representing 59 different species. A total of 245 bird species have now been recorded in Minziro Forest Reserve, of which 96 are forest dependent specialists. Of the 365 birds processed, 7 were re-captures from the 1987 visit.


Yellowbill Ceuthmochares aereus	Blue-breasted Kingfisher Merops variegatus

Purple-throated Cuckoo Shrike Campephaga quiscalina. An African forest endemic with a scattered and fragmented distribution throughout its range, from Liberia through West, Central and Eastern Africa to Central Zambia

Yellowbill Ceuthmochares aereus	Forest Francolin Francolinus lathami. Adult Male. First recorded for Tanzania from Minziro in 1987

Marc Baker fitting a ring to a Blue-breasted Kingfisher while Njano Mbilinyi receives instruction from Terry Oatley	From left to right; Richard Miller, Lauren Persha and Terry Oatley hard at work!!



Grey-headed Sunbird Anthreptes axillaris	Blue-shouldered Robin-Chat Cossypha cyanocampter