Ghana April 2023 Part 2: Rainforests of Ankasa Reserve

Nkulengu Rail 

The next stage of our 21-day tour of Ghana (see following blog post) was a four-night stay at Ashanti’s new lodge at the edge of the Ankasa Conservation Area, a 50,000ha rainforest reserve on the Ivory Coast boarder in the country’s south-west. We had two jeeps with drivers at our disposal here to negotiate the muddy and heavily rutted roads to reach birding sites, the first of which were a couple of pools deep in the forest. 

Ashanti's new Ankasa Lodge

The hoped-for White-crested Tiger-Heron did not materialise at the pools on our first day at Ankasa but a lovely pair of Red-fronted Antpeckers – a difficult target – on their nest did. So did a Hartlaub’s Duck unexpectedly, along with White-bellied Kingfisher.

White-bellied Kingfisher

 Other birds during the day included Blue-headed Wood-Dove, the first of many Yellow-billed Turacos, Great Blue Turaco, Thick-billed Honeyguide and Western Bearded and Yellow-bearded Greenbuls. Grey-throated Tit-Flycatcher was a welcome addition for some. A pair of Red-billed Dwarf Hornbills provided excitement when they were attacked by an immature Black Sparrowhawk. At a late afternoon stop on a ridge overlooking a forest clearing in the afternoon, Congo Serpent-Eagle showed for some, as did a mixed flock of Yellow-casqued and Black-casqued Hornbills. Mixed flocks of Black, Cassin’s and Sabine’s Spinetails were about, joined by a couple of Bates’s Swifts. 

Ankasa Forest Pond

 Nightfall on our first day at Ankasa was to provide a highlight of the trip. Nkulengu Rail was once an especially difficult species to nail but Ashanti’s team have worked out how to find the birds at their nocturnal roosts through playback of their spectacular call, so these days they are pretty much guaranteed. Our drivers and guides tracked down four birds at their roost (below and first image) which showed gloriously in the spotlight as they were buzzed by hordes of tiny insects. 

 A West African Potto spotlighted in the canopy soon after was another welcome find. Red-chested Owlet was heard here and in many other places in the Ankasa and Kakum forests. 

West African Potto

 Around the lodge, Black Bee-eaters were common and nesting in a sand mound by the restaurant. Cassin’s Flycatcher was also plentiful in the lodge grounds while Finsch’s Flycatcher Thrush (now called Finsch’s Rufous Thrush) appeared on the forest edge below the cabins and was calling fairly commonly elsewhere in the forest. 

Black Bee-eater

Cassin's Flycatcher

Our second day in the forest focused on small trails in search of skulkers. Olive Long-tailed Cuckoo showed after a chase while West African Wattle-eye was easier to spot. Rufous-winged Illadopsis took a while to nail, while Forest Robin was more co-operative. Elsewhere birds included Brown-eared Woodpecker, Shining-blue Kingfisher and White-tailed Alethe.

Rufous-winged Illadopsis

 A Nile Monitor (below) appeared on the road. 

 That evening at the lodge I found a magnificant Fraser’s Eagle-Owl perched on a low-hanging branch at the forest edge below the cabins. Others in our group had views of the bird here and elsewhere on the trip but not everyone connected with the species. 

Fraser's Eagle-Owl

 Our third day at Ankasa saw us back at the ponds, checking out a large colony of bats under a road culvert (they were an Old World Roundleaf bat, Hipposideros spp; several possible species here so ID not possible). 

Bat - Hipposideros spp

A Dwarf Bittern flushed from a pond but not much else. Along the road and tracks, birds included Blue-headed Crested Flycatcher and a trio of bristlebirds: Grey-headed, Red-tailed and Green-tailed, the latter a difficult Upper Guinea endemic to nail. Pale-breasted Illadopsis and Brown Illadopsis were seen. 

West African Batis

 Our last morning at Ankasa – Day Nine of the trip - gave us our first Copper-tailed Starlings. We then returned eastwards, our next destination being Brenu Akyinim, a much drier area of open woodland and shrubland near the coast. Here we had our first encounters with common dry country birds like Double-spurred Francolin, Vinaceous Dove, Double-toothed Barbet, Oriole Warbler, Snowy-crowned Robin-Chat and Marsh Tchagra. The highly localised Baumann’s Greenbul was neither seen nor heard; in its scrubby habitat we made do with Simple Leaflove and Black-bellied Seedcracker. In the evening we returned to the Rainforest Lodge in Jukwa for the night.

Beach at Brenu Akyinim

The morning of Day 10 had us back in the Abrafo Forest for a while, adding the smart Red-billed Helmetshrike to the list at last, while Blue Cuckoo-shrike showed well. Sunbirds included Little Green, Johanna’s and Buff-throated. We headed north a bit to the Pra River, where Rock Pratincoles perched on rocks in the fast-running stream. A large nesting colony of Preuss’s Cliff Swallow here could not be located due to extensive roadworks but we had encountered plenty of the birds in the Kakum area.

Rock Pratincoles

 Locals in a small village by the river showed us how they processed palm oil from surrounding plantations (below).

Ghana April 2023 Part 1: Accra to Kakum

 

Rufous-sided Broadbill

Four years ago, I began planning a 21-day private tour of Ghana in West Africa in association with Ashanti, a highly regarded tour company based in the Ghanaian city of Cape Coast, to be held in April 2020.Then Covid-19 intervened. The trip finally happened from April 1 to April 21, 2023. We were ably assisted throughout the trip by our excellent guide Victor Owusu, his highly capable assistant guide Ibrahim Entsie, and our formidable driver Christian. A full trip report listing all participants, species lists and the like is to follow a series of blog posts.of which this is the first.  En route to Ghana I spent a couple of days in Singapore, where I indulged the shenanigans of a group of Smooth-coated Otters that have become used to people in Bishan Park.

Smooth-coated Otter in Singapore

Some of us arrived in the Ghanaian capital, Accra, a day early, so we opted for an exploratory morning session in the Accra (Legono) Botanic Gardens. A good start was the recently split Olive-naped Weaver by the pool at the hotel.

Olive-naped Weaver

The gardens were alive with birds, among them our first Senegal Thick-knee, Wattled Lapwing, Guinea Turaco, Western Plantain-eater, Woodland Kingfisher, Brown Babbler and Green Wood-Hoopoe. An African Cuckoo, a Grey-headed Bush-shrike and Northern Red-billed Hornbill were unexpected. 

Guinea Turaco

Senegal Thick-knee

Woodland Kingfisher

A group of Lesser Spot-nosed Monkeys was seen.

Lesser Spot-nosed Monkey

The first morning of the tour saw us at Winneba Lagoon west of Accra. A Brown (Mangrove) Sunbird showed well - potentially a tricky target. Good numbers of Black Herons were doing their oddball thing, using wings as canopies while fishing. Western Reef-Heron was common and muddy pools hosted a smattering of shorebirds including Kittlitz’s and Grey Plover.

Black Herons fishing

Brown Sunbird

We headed north to the Rainforest Lodge in Jukwa, our home for the next three nights. In the afternoon we had our first foray in the rainforests of southern Ghana, the haunt of numerous West African and Upper Guinea bird specialties. We visited a relatively new logging road in Abrafo Forest near Kakum National Park. One of our first birds was Yellow-footed Honeyguide, a much-wanted and difficult target.

Yellow-footed Honeyguide

The group in Abrafo Forest

Others to follow as we walked the road included Yellow-billed Turaco, Black Spinetail, African Pied Hornbill, Brown-cheeked Hornbill, Fanti Drongo, White-tailed Alethe and Yellow-spotted and Hairy-chested Barbets. An absolute stonker was a Long-tailed Hawk that showed nicely as it passed overhead.

African Pied Hornbill

Our second day was occupied by the famous canopy walk in Kakum National Park. We were there at first light and spent the morning on platforms above the rainforest canopy.

Victor on the canopy walkway

Rainforest in Kakum National Park

 A Willcocks’s Honeyguide put on a show as it landed above our heads catching what appeared to be bees from a small hive. Sunbirds included Yellow-chinned (recently split from Green), Blue-throated Brown and Olive. Other birds included Tit-Hylia, Ussher’s Flycatcher, Rufous-crowned Eremomela, West African Wattle-eye, Fanti Sawing, Sharpe’s Apalis, and Melancholy and Fire-bellied Woodpeckers.

Willcocks's Honeyguide

 Small Sun Squirrels were fairly common.

Small Sun Squirrel

We then walked a small track, finding a stunning Rufous-sided Broadbill (first image in this post). A late afternoon visit to the canopy walkway offered little more although Palmnut Vultures passed close by. 

Palmnut Vulture

As dusk fell we heard Brown Nightjar and saw a superb mammal – Pel’s Anomalure ()below).

The next morning saw us in farm bush and secondary growth in the Antikwaa area. White-spotted Flufftail was seen at a couple of sites. Red-cheeked Wattle-eye, Puvel’s Illadopsis and Kemp’s Longbills were among the specialties that showed for most of the group although a few failed to get on to these skulkers. A large flock of Rosy Bee-eaters was more co-operative.

Rosy Bee-eaters

In the heat of the day some of us ventured to the Cape Coast Castle, an historic site 30 minutes south of Jukwa. Built by the British in the 17^th Century, an estimated 3 million slaves passed through this horrendous prison, torn from their homes in shackles to be shipped as slave labour to the Americas. Half died before getting there. As many as 1000 men would be held in a cell area (image below) barely 150m long with a trough in the middle serving as a urinall they slept in their own waste. Dissidents were locked in airless cells to die of starvation. 

This barbaric practice continued for centuries, the ships departing from what is today a scenic harbour (below) adjacent to the fort. Visiting this place was a sobering experience; these things should never be forgotten.

In the afternoon we returned to the logging road we visited two days earlier. Birds included Chocolate-backed Kingfisher, Purple-throated Cuckoo-shrike, White-tailed Alethe and Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher. Mixed greenbul flocks included Yellow-bearded and Western Bearded. We chased key nocturnal targets after sunset. The first to fall was Brown Nightjar, always a diffcult bird, which flew in and showed well enough, although somewhat distant. Next was an Akun Eagle-Owl which perched high in a tree, offering everyone a look if again not as close as we would have liked. Finally, a Fraser’s Eagle-Owl showed briefly for a few of a group. All three night birds were in the same area.

Akun Eagle-Owl

Brown Nightjar

Our last morning in the Kakum area – Day Five of the trip – found us back in the Abrafo Forest. We saw Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, Buff-throated Sunbird, Blue-spooted Wood-Dove, Sabine’s Puffback, Dusky-blue Flycatcher, Blue-throated Roller and Black Casqued Hornbill. African Piculet was a delightful addition to the list (second image below).

Black Casqued Hornbill

We then headed east to the famed Ankasa Forest, stopping along the way to check out, among other things, African Pygmy Goose, Allen’s Gallinule and White-browed Forest Flycatcher.

African Pygmy-Goose

As everywhere with Ghana, sights along the road provided plenty of entertainment.

Papua New Guinea Cruise Part 3 – The Conflict Islands

 

Louisiade White-eye

On the return leg of our cruise to Papua New Guinea we stopped for the day on February 3 in the Conflict Islands, a chain of small islands that are part of the Louisiade Archipelego. The Louisiades extend from the south-eastern end of PNG where the Coral Sea meets the Solomon Sea. 

They have several endemic bird species and four of these (plus two future splits) occur in the Conflict Islands. We were moored off Panasesa, the largest of the Conflict group, and transferred by tender boat from the Coral Princess to an island wharf. A path from the jetty crosses the island, passing through rainforest. 

The Conflict Islands are privately owned by an Australian businessman, which seems an incongruous state of affairs for such a scenically spectacular destination. It appears that nobody is resident here and that people are brought in when a cruise ship is berthed. Native artefacts were absurdly expensive, and many passengers had been denied the opportunity to acquire much cheaper souvenirs a day earlier on Kiriwina Island to the north when the captain decided not to land there. 

Panasesa may be the largest in the group, but the island can be walked around and across within a couple of hours. I spent an enjoyable and productive morning here in lush rainforest and along beautiful beaches, scoring all 6 specialties. I had not left the jetty upon arrival when I saw my first White-chinned Myzomela (below) endemic to the Louisiades, and there were plenty of these rather drab honeyeaters about.

Next off the list was Louisiade White-eye (below) the commonest bird on the island and all over the place in noisy little flocks, often associating with the myzomelas. 

The recently split Islet Kingfisher (below) with its distinctive call could be heard easily enough but it took some tracking to eventually locate a pair.

Last of the endemics was a Louisiade Whistler, with a male showing well but briefly, with one poor image having to do. 

The distinctive subspecies of Spectacled Monarch and White-bibbed Fruit-Doves also showed nicely. 

Spectacled Monarch

White-bibbed Fruit-Dove

Other nice birds included numbers of Island (Floury) Imperial-Pigeons.

Island Imperial-Pigeon

SPECIES (* denotes lifer):

Black-naped Tern, Brown Noddy, Crested Tern, Ruddy Turnstone, Grey Plover (the last two species I didn’t see but they were photographed by Colin Palethorpe),

Lesser Frigatebird, Great Frigatebird,

Eastern Reef Heron, White-bellied Sea-Eagle, White-bibbed Fruit-Dove (subsp strophium),

Island (Floury) Imperial-Pigeon, *Islet Kingfisher,

Singing Starling, Spectacled Monarch (2 subsp melanopterus), Willie Wagtail, *Louisiade Whistler, *Louisiade White-eye, *White-chinned Myzomela.

Total 18 species (4 lifers)

Ebird list here.

Black-naped Tern