... I would like the Allaheim River birds at the southern border between The Gambia and Senegal. 2 hours of water-faring allowed us to admire some truly magnificent birds.
This sunset view of these pelicans, each on their own branch, seduced us. It’s surprising to think that these short branches can support such an imposing animal!
They may be “small” pelicans but they nonetheless measure between 1.25m and 1.55m and weigh between 4kg and 7kg.
Along the Allaheim River, we especially saw them grouped together on trunks of dead trees (bottom-middle)
I also managed to observe it from quite up close on Tanji beach and to admire its take-off. The wings need to be strong to make such a large body leave the water. In fact, it has a wingspan of between 2.15m and 2.9m and keeps the same grace during take-off and landing. It can be identified by its greyish back and particularly by its white beak with a yellow tip. The inferior section is slightly greyer and the baby pelican will feed by plunging its beak within.
It most often nests in trees and in groups (top-left). Its nest is made of twigs and is returned to by the pelican every year. If the tree dies and falls, the pelican will make another nest in the same area. They feed on fish and amphibians and don’t go into deep waters. Even if they prefer water with a lower salt-level, Tanji beach is a good place to observe them.
Seeing as they’re quite heavy, if they have to move about, they wait for the heat to rise so that there are hot air-currents to carry them. Who invented the parasail? ☺☺☺
The one that lives on the edge of the water is mostly a fish eater; the waters are abundant with fish and they seem to have an infinite patience to wait for the one that will get close enough to them. Most stick around for the entire year, though some, for example the Common Greenshank, are only there for winter (top-left). They come from afar, even very much afar, as it can be found particularly in sub-arctic areas such as northern Scotland, and the northern reaches of Europe and Asia. “Hey, we may have already met on Staffa or in the Hebrides?” Its plumage changes in summer and turns to brown.
Very common, egrets come in a variety of colours. The Great Egret (Egretta alba) is perfectly white, and can be identified among its species due to its slightly longer neck and the line that goes along the bottom of its beak. This being so close to the eye makes me think of “I put on some khol pencil to go out.” In flight, it pulls back its neck into its shoulders like the grey heron.
Dark grey, which sometimes gives off the impression of being black, belongs to the Western Reef Egret (also known as the Western Reef Heron), Egretta gularis. Common, it can be found on beaches, mangroves or marshes and is of moderate size (55 to 65cm) with a maximum wingspan of 95cm.
It stays in shallow waters to fish and, similar to its long-legged and long-necked relatives, it can remain immobile for hours, waiting for a prey to come by and then impaling it with its powerful beak. It also eats crustaceans, lizards, and worms, and nests in trees in a nest made of twigs and branches.
The Goliath Heron can be found all over Gambia on the edge of rivers or in the mangroves and is timid and solitary. The biggest heron in the world, it can measure between 1.2m and 1.5m, weighs in at around 5kg, and has a wingspan than can reach 2m. It’s a beautiful species from its magnificent wing plumage to its slate-grey back; from its reddish underside and to its white neck, speckled with black. Magnificent!
The Black-headed Heron, common, appears more often during the dry season (winter). Quite big, it measures around 85cm with a width of 1.5m. Its flight (bottom-left) is slow and it pulls back its neck (bottom-right).
When we were looking for the haggis in the far reaches of our dear Scotland, the one with the right leg shorter than the right… or was it the other way around? Do you remember, kids? Well, in those outings, we often heard of the rare “Ospreys” whose eggs were the victims of such a strong trafficking that they being pushed towards extinction. I only ever saw one in mid-flight and the registered nests had to be closely observed and guarded.
Here, no problems, the ospreys are plenty and we saw a few on the Allaheim. They can be spotted close to the coasts in the mangrove and on the riversides, particularly between October and March. They have a funny little head compared to the size of their body and their beak also seems rather small. It’s the Jack Russell of the birds!☺It lives diurnally, weighs between 1.4kg and 2kg and measures between 54cm and 58cm though has a nice wingspan of between 1.5m and 1.8m. It eats fish and has nostrils that it can close when it dives in and talons that have a reversible exterior finger. The other fingers are two by two on the front and the back to better catch the fish.
Me the Mauritian fish aficionado, I think I'm going to dream birds now ☺ ☺ ☺
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