- Tanzania Bird Atlas: the Tanzanian atlas site and so much more
- Bahrain Bird News (from the Arabian Gulf)
- British
Links
birdman links
Palearctic birds in Africa
A significant proportion of the population of each of half a dozen Western Palearctic bird species, that could easily become extinct within thirty or forty years, spend a sizeable part of their annual cycle in Tanzania.
The six species of particular concern are: (Endangered) Basra Reed Warbler; (Vulnerable) Lesser Kestrel; (Near threatened) Pallid Harrier, Corncrake, Black-tailed Godwit and European Roller.
Tanzania Bird Atlas
tanzaniabirdatlas.com is the official site for the Tanzania Bird Atlas project.
The project
"...is not just about mapping the distribution of birds in Tanzania. By collecting data on a monthly basis and concentrating on evidence of breeding we hope to understand much more about the seasonality of our birdlife. It is sometimes difficult for people unfamiliar with the tropics to understand how different animal and plant life cycles can be without the all pervasive effect of a harsh winter."
Save the Albatross
Only a few species of Albatross have been recorded, and by even fewer marine birdwatchers, in the warm waters of the tropical Indian Ocean off Tanzania. Yet many of these wonderful creatures are almost certainly present during the South East Monsoon season that coincides with the late austral winter between July and October.For how much longer?
One hundred thousand albatrosses die every year on longline fishing hooks in the southern oceans - that's about one every five minutes!
You don't need a good imagination, or to be good at maths to realise that your children are unlikely ever to see one alive. Who can recount the last days of the once abundant Passenger Pigeon, or of that Indian Ocean island isolate the Dodo, two hundred years ago? In a hundred years will there be anyone around who knows of the fate of the albatross or of the Black Rhino, the African Hunting Dog and the ... ?
Visit the Birdlife International website to see what's happening in the southern oceans and, even more important, what you might do to help turn the tide.
