Two more Tuti Island visits

On the 4th and 5th September I was able to make a couple more trips to Tuti Island and the birding was again excellent, with 92 species. On Saturday I was out with Mark Mallalieu and on Sunday I went with Mark Boyd. Both have a lot more African experience than me, plus the ability to pick up birds by call - which is something I have never been able to do properly.
Passerine migration is already underway and there were good numbers of warblers, flycatchers and shrikes both days. Waders and terns have been coming through for a few weeks now and were to be seen on the flooded areas beside the river. The lack of a telescope both days reduced the number of waders identified, but we were still able to enjoy distant Kittlitz's Sandplover with binoculars.
Best find was probably a couple of Little Swifts, as Nikolaus shows no records near Khartoum in his 1987 distribution Atlas. Our cameras were packed away and by the time we had them out we were only able to get record shots, but sufficient to show that they lacked a tail fork so were not Horus Swifts. Nikolaus describes Great Reed Warbler as "Uncommon to rare" away from the Red Sea Coast, but there were several around on both days. Groups of White-headed Babblers were regularly encountered along the main trail. These common resident birds have a lot of character and are always good to watch.

Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus

Little Swift Apus affinis

White-headed Babbler Turdoides leucocephala

Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix

	4.9.10	5.9.10
Reed Cormorant Phalacrocorax africanus	2
Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides	2	1
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis	c20	c20
Striated Heron Butorides striata	c8	c4
Little Egret Egretta garzetta	c5	2+
Great Egret Egretta alba		2
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea	1
Grey Heron Ardea cinerea		1
Black-headed Heron Ardea melanocephala		1
Abdim's Stork Ciconia abdimii	6	2
Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus	2
Garganey Anas querquedula	2	c10
Yellow-billed Kite Milvus (migrans) aegyptus	c20	c20
Western Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus		1
Gabar Goshawk Micronisus gabar	1
Shikra Accipiter badius	1
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus	c20	c10
Egyptian Plover Pluvianus aegyptius	1
Common Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula	2
Kittlitz's Plover Charadrius pecuarius	2
Black-headed Lapwing Vanellus tectus		4
Spur-winged Lapwing Vanellus spinosus	c15	c15
Ruff Philomachus pugnax	c10	c15
Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa	c6	2
Marsh Sandpiper Tringa stagnatilis	c10
Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus	2	2
Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola	c5	c6
Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos	2	2
Gull-billed Tern Sterna nilotica	c10
White-winged Tern Chlidonias leucopterus	c4
African Skimmer Rynchops flavirostris	1
Black-billed Wood Dove Turtur abyssinicus	1	1
Namaqua Dove Oena capensis	c4	1
African Mourning Dove Streptopelia decipiens	c10	c15
African Collared Dove Streptopelia roseogrisea		2
Laughing Dove Streptopelia senegalensis	c15	c15
Rose-ringed Parakeet Psittacula krameri	2	2
Common Cuckoo Cuculus canorus	2
White-browed Coucal Centropus superciliosus	3	3
African Palm Swift Cypsiurus parvus	c15	c20
Little Swift Apus affinis	2+
Blue-naped Mousebird Urocolius macrourus	c25	c15
Pied Kingfisher Ceryle rudis	c4
Little Bee-eater Merops pusillus	c10	c5
White-throated Bee-eater Merops albicollis	1
Little Green Bee-eater Merops orientalis	1
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater Merops persicus	2+
Hoopoe Upupa epops	c8	c8
Red-billed Hornbill Tockus erythrorhynchus	c6	c4
African Grey Hornbill Tockus nasutus	2	2
Vieillot's Barbet Lybius vieilloti		1
Eurasian Wryneck Jynx torquilla	1
Crested Lark Galerida cristata	2+	4
Plain Martin Riparia paludicola	c20	c15
Ethiopian Swallow Hirundo aethiopica	1+
Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica	2+	2
Tree Pipit Anthus trivialis	1
Common Bulbul Pycnonotus barbatus	c30	c25
Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin Cercotrichas galactotes	1
Black Scrub Robin Cercotrichas podobe	3	c5
Whinchat Saxicola rubetra	1
Isabelline Wheatear Oenanthe isabellina		1
Eurasian Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus	1	2
Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus	3	2
Eastern Olivaceous Warbler Hippolais pallida	3+	5+
Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus	c8	4+
Wood Warbler Phylloscopus sibilatrix	2+	2+
Garden Warbler Sylvia borin		1
Zitting Cisticola Cisticola juncidis	2	2
Graceful Prinia Prinia gracilis	c5	c6
Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata	c6	c6
Semi-collared Flycatcher Ficedula semitorquata		2
White-headed Babbler Turdoides leucocephala	c10	c20
Beautiful Sunbird Cinnyris pulchellus	c10	c15
Masked Shrike Lanius nubicus	c4
Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor	c5
Southern Grey Shrike Lanius meridionalis	c10	3
Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio	1	2
Greater Blue-eared Starling Lamprotornis chalybaeus	c50	c40
Lesser Blue-eared Starling Lamprotornis chloropterus	c5	c5
House Sparrow Passer domesticus	c100	c150
Sudan Golden Sparrow Passer luteus	1
Northern Masked Weaver Ploceus taeniopterus	c10	2+
Vitelline Masked Weaver Ploceus vitellinus	c4	2+
Village Weaver Ploceus cucullatus	1	1
Northern Red Bishop Euplectes franciscanus	c5	1
Crimson-rumped Waxbill Estrilda rhodopyga	c10
Red-billed Firefinch Lagonosticta senegala	c10	c10
Cut-throat Finch Amadina fasciata	c6	1
African Silverbill Lonchura cantans	c8	c5
Pin-tailed Whydah Vidua macroura	2
Village Indigobird Vidua chalybeata	2+	c4