GHANA 1–16 August 2009 Leaders: Richard White and Vaughan Ashby

Ghana is a friendly and politically stable, English-speaking country. The network of well-protected national and regional parks is served by a good infrastructure and well-developed eco-tourism facilities, including the world-famous Kakum canopy walkway. These factors combined with the wide variety of habitats within this small country make Ghana an unbeatable birding destination. The Upper Guinea forest block, an internationally recognised Endemic Bird Area and a severely threatened habitat, is well represented in southwestern Ghana. In a broad belt across the centre of the country lies an extenive tract of pristine, broad-leaved Guinea woodlands, which, in the far north, gives way to dry Sahelian savanna. A birding tour of Ghana therefore allows a thorough coverage of these core West African habitats, resulting in an impressive bird tally.

Day 1 Departure from London to Katoka International Airport, situated almost within the centre of Accra, the bustling capital city of Ghana. We will transfer to a nearby luxury hotel.

Day 2 We head west along the coastal highway, passing the organised chaos that so typifies West Africa. The first birding site along our route will be a complex of lagoons, mud flats and saltpans, now recognised as a RAMSAR site due to a globally-important wintering wader population. Here we will find common Palearctic waders, gulls and terns and amongst these we should find the resident race of Little Tern and Royal Tern. Western Reef Egrets, mainly of the dark morph, and other herons stalk the shores and several species of cisticola and weaver will be seen in the surrounding vegetation. Further west we will bird a productive grassland reserve on the Winneba Plains. Here we will search for Black-bellied Bustard, Flappet Lark, Moustached Grass-warbler, Red-winged Prinia, Siffling and Croaking Cisticolas, Copper Sunbird, Black-necked Weaver, displaying Orange and Black-winged Bishops, Yellow-shouldered Widowbird, Orange-cheeked Waxbill and African Quailfinch. We will make a concerted effort to find the local sub-species of Black-necked Cisticola and, if we are very fortunate, our efforts may also produce flushed views of the enigmatic Quail-plover and Blue Quail.

Closer to Kakum we hope to find African Pygmy-goose, Allen's Gallinule, Yellow-crowned Bishop and a variety of other water-associated birds at a small lily-covered lake. Finally we will settle into our air-conditioned rooms at Hans Cottage Hotel which will be our base for the next six nights. It is a very birdy establishment situated near to the National Park headquarters with the restaurant built on stilts over the lake affording superb views of nesting Orange, Village and Vieillot's Weavers. A variety of herons can also be seen, including Dwarf Bittern, Black-crowned Night-heron, Striated Heron and the highly-sought-after White-crested Tiger-heron.

Days 3–7 Will be spent in the Kakum National Park and surrounding areas. This 607 km² National Park is the jewel in the crown of Ghana's protected reserve system conserving a critically-important block of primary and secondary upper Guinea forest that is surrounded by a sea of humanity and its resultant deforestation. During our six days in this area, we will explore several sections of this vast protected area as well as a selection of nearby habitats.

Easily accessible from the park headquarters at Abrafo, is the world famous Kakum canopy walkway, the only such structure in West Africa. It is 350m long, 40m high and is suspended between seven emergent forest trees, which support platforms stable enough to allow telescope use. We have made special arrangements for the early opening and late closure of the walkway, thereby allowing us exclusive patronage during these critical birding hours. The superb birding from the walkway certainly justifies the two mornings and afternoons that we plan to spend here. A wide range of seldom-glimpsed canopy species are often in constant view, here displaying little fear of humans and therefore allowing superb eye-level scrutiny. Amongst the many species we expect to see from the walkway are some of West Africa's most sought after forest jewels. Multi-species bird flocks continually move around and regularly include the cotinga-like Blue Cuckoo-shrike, Violet-backed Hyliota, Sharpe's Apalis, Rufous-crowned Eremomela, Lemon-bellied Crombec, Green Hylia, Yellow-mantled Weaver and the beautiful Preuss's Weaver, Little Grey Flycatcher, Cassin's, Thick-billed, Willcock's and (the extremely-rare) Yellow-footed Honeyguides, White-headed and Forest Woodhoopoes, Tit-hylia, Grey Longbill, Red-headed, Red-vented and Crested Malimbe and Grey-headed, White-breasted and Chestnut-breasted Negrofinches.

Other species which we hope to see include Black Dwarf Hornbill, Fiery-breasted Bushshrike, West African Batis, Black Bee-eater, Yellow-spotted and Hairy-breasted Barbet, Chestnut-bellied Helmetshrike, Chestnut-capped Flycatcher, Leaflove, Large-billed Puffback, Maxwell's Black Weaver and Western Bluebill. The tree platforms also provide a fabulous vista over unbroken forest and forest edge thereby providing a unique opportunity for sighting passing birds. Raptor watching is particularly productive, and previous trips have produced unbeatable views of the rarely seen Cassin's Hawk-eagle, good numbers of Red-necked Buzzard, Banded Snake-Eagle, Palm-nut Vulture, African Harrier-hawk, African Cuckoo-hawk and African Hobby. Other birds which we hope to see include Black-casqued, Black-and-white-casqued, Brown-cheeked, Piping and Yellow-casqued Hornbills, Brown-necked, Red-fronted and Grey Parrots, Black-collared Lovebird, Rosy Bee-eater and mixed flocks of swifts which often include Cassin's, Sabine's and Black Spinetails. Velvet-mantled Drongos are in constant attendance, as are a wide variety of sunbirds including Blue-throated Brown, Buff-throated Collared, Green, Little Green, Olive-bellied, Scarlet-tufted, Superb, Tiny, Western Olive and the rarely seen Johanna's.

We will also walk forest trails deep into the forest. This is the realm of the greenbul and species we hope to find include Ansorge's, Golden, Grey, Honeyguide, Icterine, Little, Plain, Red-tailed, Slender-billed, Swamp, Yellow-whiskered, White-throated, Western-bearded and the endangered Yellow-bearded Greenbul as well as Common and Grey-headed Bristlebills and Yellow-spotted Nicator. Whilst exploring the forest interior we hope to find Red-chested Goshawk, Red-thighed Sparrowhawk, Long-tailed Hawk, White-spotted Flufftail, Blue-headed Wood-dove, Guinea and Yellow-billed Turacos, Olive Long-tailed Cuckoo, Black-throated Coucal, Red-billed Dwarf and the bizarre White-crested Hornbill, Red-rumped Tinkerbird, Rufous-sided Broadbill, Finsch's Flycatcher-thrush, African and White-browed Forest-Flycatchers, Blue-headed Crested-flycatcher, Black-headed Paradise-flycatcher, Blue-shouldered Robin-chat, Blackcap and Pale-breasted Illadopsis, Western Black-headed Oriole and Shining Drongo.

Forest streams support Spot-breasted Ibis, African Finfoot and Shining-blue and White-bellied Kingfishers. We will take notice of Safari Ant activity, not only in order to avoid their painful bites, but also as they provide us with our best opportunity for viewing shy ant-attending birds such as the three species of bristlebill, Fire-crested and Brown-chested Alethe, Forest Robin and White-tailed Ant-thrush. Rarities, which we will be on a constant lookout for, include Congo Serpent-eagle, Forest Francolin, the near-mythical White-breasted Guineafowl, Grey-throated Rail, Spotted Honeyguide, African Pitta, Grey Ground-thrush, Forest Scrub-robin, Capuchin Babbler and Jameson's Antpecker. These all occur in Kakum but we would be extremely fortunate to find any of them!

The forest edge is also very productive and supports a different cast of bird species including Ahanta Francolin, the seldom seen Yellow-throated Cuckoo, Bristle-nosed and Yellow-billed Barbets, Yellow-rumped, Speckled and Yellow-throated Tinkerbirds, Buff-spotted, Brown-eared, Melancholy and Fire-bellied Woodpeckers, the sought after Kemp's Longbill, Yellow-browed and Olive-green Camaropteras, Green Crombec, Dusky Blue, Ussher's and the rare Tessmann's Flycatchers, Black-and-white Shrike-flycatcher, Black-winged Oriole, Splendid and Copper-tailed Glossy-starlings, Chestnut-winged and Narrow-tailed Starlings, Gray's Malimbe and Magpie Mannikin. We also have a nocturnal agenda and from the canopy walkway itself, we hope to attract Red-chested Owlet, African Wood-owl, Fraser's Eagle-owl and the rare Brown Nightjar. Other potential species include Sandy Scops-owl, Shelley's and Akun Eagle-owls and Rufous Fishing-owl although we would be extremely lucky to score any of these mega-birds! Another species that requires a nocturnal excursion is the Nkulengu Rail. These large forest rallids roost high in trees and emit their loud "Congo-drum" duets after dusk and in the pre-dawn. We will attempt to track down a roost and watch these secretive birds as they descend from their nocturnal hideout.

We will also visit nearby coastal grasslands, woodlands, mangroves and wetlands where we will search for Grey Kestrel, Blue-spotted Wood-dove, Western Grey Plantain-eater, Senegal Coucal, Mottled Spinetail, White-throated Bee-eater, African Pied Hornbill, Vieillot's and Double-toothed Barbets, Ethiopian, Red-chested, Mosque, Pied-winged and Preuss's Swallows, Simple Greenbul, Common Gonolek, Tropical Boubou, Snowy-crowned Robin-Chat, Greater Swamp-Warbler, Singing, Red-faced, Winding and Whistling Cisticolas, Brown-crowned Tchagra, Compact and Slender-billed Weavers, Bar-breasted and African Firefinches and their respective brood parasites, Pale-winged and Village Indigobirds.

Day 8 After a final morning's birding in the Kakum area, we will drive inland to Ghana's second largest city, Kumasi. We drive through a patchwork of cultivation cleared from rainforest. Fortunately, some small forest tracts in close proximity to Kumasi have been saved from the destruction and are managed as reserves. If time permits, we may visit one of these. The higher altitude here results in marginally different forests, yet the bird community is similar to Kakum and we therefore have a further opportunity to search for any species we may have missed. We will stay overnight at a comfortable modern hotel in Kumasi.

Day 9 Today will be a day filled with new birds as we head into a new biome, the Guinea Savanna Belt. This broad-leaved woodland zone superficially resembles the Miombo woodlands of south-central Africa and is inhabited by similar yet different birds, which in many cases represent northern sister-species. There are several sites along the route that we will bird as we progress northwards and we will stop at riparian forests, wetlands and woodlands before finally reaching the Mole Park Headquarters and checking into the Mole Hotel which is scenically situated on a 250m high escarpment, within the National Park and overlooks a seemingly endless vista of broad-leaved woodlands and wetlands. Three nights at Mole Hotel.

Days 10–11 At 4840-km² Mole National Park is large enough to support elephants. Here they are renowned for their tolerance and on foot it is possible to get extremely near to them. From the viewing platform at the lodge it is also possible to scan over the marsh and see herds of Defassa Waterbuck, Common Bushbuck and colourful Kob. The lodge itself is a superb place to begin birding. Seedeaters abound and here we should find mixed flocks of Lavender and Orange-cheeked Waxbills, Red-cheeked Cordonbleu, Red-billed and Bar-breasted Firefinches, Pin-tailed and Long-tailed Paradise-whydahs, Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-Weaver, Grey-headed Sparrow and Yellow-fronted Canary. We will explore the rocky escarpment below the lodge and here we hope to find family groups of Stone Partridge, Double-spurred Francolin, Freckled Nightjar, Abyssinian Ground-hornbill, Rock-loving and Red-pate Cisticola, White-fronted Black-Chat and Cinnamon-breasted Bunting.

The moist woodland surrounding the swamp is home to some special birds and in particular we will search for Oriole Warbler. Colourful birds are the rule rather than the exception here and even the most hardened birder will be dazzled by one gem after another; Bruce's Green-pigeon, Violet Turaco, Blue-breasted and Grey-headed Kingfishers, Red-throated and Northern Carmine Bee-eaters, Abyssinian, Rufous-crowned, Broad-billed and Blue-bellied Rollers, Bearded Barbet, Western Violet-backed, Green-headed, Scarlet-chested, Beautiful and Splendid Sunbirds, Sulphur-breasted and Grey-headed Bushshrikes and Greater Blue-eared, Lesser Blue-eared, Bronze-tailed, Purple and Long-tailed Glossy-starlings. Other target species in these woodlands are White-throated Francolin, Vinaceous Dove, Green Woodhoopoe, Black Scimitar-bill, Yellow-fronted Tinkerbird, Greater and Lesser Honeyguides, Fine-spotted, Golden-tailed, Grey and Brown-backed Woodpeckers, Fanti Sawwing, White-breasted and Red-shouldered Cuckoo-shrikes, Yellow-throated Greenbul, African Thrush, Senegal Eremomela, Northern Crombec, Yellow-bellied Hyliota, several species of over-wintering Palearctic warblers, Northern Black, African Blue, Collared and Swamp Flycatchers, White-crowned Robin-chat, Brown-throated Wattle-eye, Senegal Batis, Blackcap and Brown Babblers, White-winged Black-Tit, Spotted Creeper, African Golden Oriole, Northern Puffback, Yellow-billed Shrike, Brubru, Red-headed Weaver, Black-faced Firefinch and Brown-rumped and Cabanis' Buntings.

Raptors are particularly prolific in Mole and regularly encountered species include White-backed, White-headed and Hooded Vultures, Short-toed and Brown Snake-Eagles, Bateleur, several species of migrant harrier, Lizard Buzzard, Wahlberg's, Martial and Long-crested Eagles, Ayres' and African Hawk-eagles, Lanner Falcon and African Hobby.

Day 12 We will depart for Mole after some final early-morning birding, heading north across the White Volta and finally reaching the most distant frontiers of Ghana. The dry Sahelian Zone extends a finger down to this remote region on the Burkina Faso border, and we can therefore expect to find some birds that are seldom encountered in Ghana. We will stay for 2 nights at the comfortable, air-conditioned guesthouse of the Tono Dam Irrigation Project.

Day 13 The large Tono Dam is home to a healthy population of water birds and we should see a variety of herons, egrets, waders (including White-headed and Spur-winged Lapwings) and waterfowl. Furthermore, it supports one of Africa's most sought after birds, the seasonally-resident Egyptian Plover. Our target species in the dry woodlands include Gabar Goshawk and Dark Chanting-goshawk, Grasshopper Buzzard, Beaudouin's Snake-eagle, Stanley and White-bellied Bustards, Black-headed Lapwing, Forbes' Plover, Four-banded Sandgrouse, Swallow-tailed Bee-eater, Rufous-rumped and Sun Larks, Rufous Cisticola, Pygmy Sunbird, Piapiac, Chestnut-bellied Starling, Bush Petronia, Speckled-fronted Weaver, Red-winged Pytilia, African Silverbill and White-rumped Seedeater.

A nocturnal excursion around Tono Dam is likely to be a highlight of our time in Ghana, for here the incredible Standard-winged Nightjar is seasonally common. We also have the chance of finding Greyish Eagle-owl, African Scops-owl, Northern White-faced Owl and Long-tailed and Plain Nightjars. Of particular interest in this seldom-visited region are the fascinating mud homesteads of the local Farafara tribespeople.

Day 14 Today we will drive south to the nearest large town of Tamale, where we will board a flight back to Accra, thus saving us a 12 hour drive! In the afternoon we will make an excursion to the nearby Shai Hills Resources Reserve, an expanse of grassland and woodland, dominated by the steeply rising Shai Hills, less than an hour's drive away. Although the birding here is superb, the species generally overlap with those we would have encountered in Mole National Park. However, in such a productive area, we are bound to turn up something new and interesting. This is the only accessible site in Ghana for Mocking Cliff-chat. If time allows we will visit Sakumono Lagoon to look for waders, terns and other waterbirds. Overnight in Accra.

Day 15 We will use 4x4 vehicles for an excursion to an infrequently-visited forest. Atewa Range is situated on the South Volta Scarp and is one of the only higher-lying areas in Ghana. We once again have the opportunity of seeing many of the species mentioned in the Kakum account, in addition to several key species we are likely to encounter only here. Atewa is the only site in Ghana for the dazzling Blue-headed Bee-eater, and we also hope to find Western Bronze-naped Pigeon, Great Blue Turaco, Narina Trogon, Little Green Woodpecker, Square-tailed Sawwing, Black-capped Apalis, Olivaceous and Dusky Crested-Flycatchers, Chestnut and Red-cheeked Wattle-eyes, Brown and the endangered Rufous-winged Illadopsis, Bates' Sunbird, Many-coloured Bushshrike and Green-backed Twinspot. In the late afternoon we will return to Accra for the evening flight back to London.

Day 16 Early morning arrival back in London at the end of the tour.

General Information The temperature will generally be warm to hot and rain may be experienced despite the fact that we will be travelling during the dry season. Humidity can be high in the south and central regions. The pace is easy, but the heat can be uncomfortable at times. Some days we will split the birding into two sessions, with a break at the hotel in the middle of the day, so we can relax. There are a number of health requirements and you must consult your GP in this respect. Insects are not a major problem. Accommodation is in twin-bedded rooms in medium-standard hotels with private facilities and air-conditioning, except at Mole Motel where we will have fans.

Group size Minimum number for tour to go ahead: 8; maximum group size: 14 with 2 leaders.

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