Jebel Kujur

On Saturday I climbed part of Jebel Kujur with Andrew and a Belgian colleague of his, Tina, who was visiting from the Karamoja region of Uganda.  This post predates the one below as Andrew had to email me some photos since I did not take my camera with its big telephoto lens in case it raised security concerns - though in the event I need not have worried, at least on our route.

I was looking for a partridge-type bird, perhaps Stone Partridge, that Laura had seen recently on the Jebel, as well as Cinnamon-breasted Rock Bunting, which Bram Piot (a birder who visits Juba from time to time) had seen.  A few minutes after starting our climb, Andrew pointed out a small bird a few metres away, and sure enough this was the bunting, the only one of the day.  The partridge eluded us, but at the summit we saw eight or so Red-winged Starlings, a classic bird of rocky hills in East Africa and yet another new Juba species for me. Down below there were plenty of Hooded Vultures, Pied Crows, Northern Red Bishops and some Bronze Mannekins but there were not many  birds higher up. We did see a Common Kestrel and a Wahlberg's Eagle, possibly a juvenile, near a large nest in a big tree near the summit.  As noted in the post below, Wahlberg's Eagle was not considered by Nikolaus to breed around Juba.

Wahlberg's Eagle

We saw a dozen or so Vervet Monkeys and a Rock Hyrax.  Andrew identified and photographed the butterflies, including Orange Tip Butterfly Colotis antevippe and the delighfully named Striped Policeman Coliades forestan.

Orange-tip Butterfly

Striped Policeman

Andrew also photographed this puffball fungus.

Puffball fungus