Senior Leader James Lidster writes from Ghana:

I’ve just found time to catch up on my e-mails after a hugely successful first tour to Ghana–so successful that the second group is arriving this evening! Ghana is a beautiful country, with good hotels, friendly people, and some terrific habitat and birds.

Violet Turaco, photo by James Lidster.

The obvious highlight for those who made the walk were five Yellow-headed Picathartes. Ghana remains the best place in the word to see this species, and our afternoon visit to The Cave was one few will ever forget. To see this enigmatic bird after a reasonable walk was fantastic. Then, as we walked back to the bus in darkness, groups of local children came out of their houses, singing and dancing: what an afternoon!

In addition to the picathartes, our highlights included Fraser’s and Grayish Eagle Owls, Brown and Standard-winged Nightjars, African Finfoot, White-spotted Flufftail, Black and Blue-headed Bee-eaters, ten species of hornbill, Saddle-billed Stork, Congo Serpent Eagle, Bateleur, Black Sparrowhawk, Afep Pigeon, Blue-headed Wood Dove, and Forest Robin–not to mention the turacos, parrots, umpteen sunbirds, rollers, kingfishers, African Elephant (ok, it’s not a bird, but it was a highlight!), flocks of wintering shorebirds, Preuss’s Cliff Swallows, Preuss’s Golden-backed Weavers…

Writing this short list of highlights just makes me realize how many great birds there are here. And now comes the difficult part: writing the tour report, which could go on for pages and pages, and making sure that the second group sees the same wonderful selection. Birds are birds, of course, but it can’t fail to be equally superb!

Bateleur, photo by James Lidster.