My name is Kenneth Gbengba from Fact Finding Tours of Sierra Leone. I have been a bird guide for 18 years, guiding birding tours all over West Africa. I am recognised as Sierra Leone’s top birdwatcher and I run the only indigenous eco tourism handling agency in the name of Fact Finding Tours. My office is situated on Lumley Beach Road at the National Tourist board Information and Business Centre.

I was the expert guide for H’s bird watching trip to Sierra Leone, which was for six days bird watching over a one week period. I designed an itinery which included his particular wishes to see the White-Necked Picathartes (Bare Headed Rock Fowl) and Tiwai Isaland. Luckily I have particular knowledge about a Picathartes colony which which is reasonably easily accessible and where I can ensure a certainty of a sighting. It is a protected area.  I have closely monitoring this nesting area over a number of years. It is little known to other people which fact has helped to protect the colony. The idea is to protect the security of the colony whilst at the same time encouraging only those with shared interest in the conservation of this rare species, a chance to spot it in its natural habitat.  Below are some of the bird species spotted on each day of the trip including a first sighting of the Spur-winged Goose on Tiwai Island: 

 Day 1 Guma Valley Nature Trail.

White-necked Picathartes (Bare -headed rock fowl), Rufous-winged Illadopsis, White-tailed Alethe, Red-cheeked Wattle-eye, Yellow-casqued Wattled Hornbill, Forest scrub Robin, Great blue Turaco, Fanti saw-Wing, Lowland Akalat, Puvel’s Illadopsis, Brown-chested Alethe, Kemp’s Longbill.

Day 2 Banana Island

Royal Tern, Sandwich Tern, White- breasted Cormorant, Johanna’s Sunbird, Variable Sunbird, Senegal Coucal, Red-billed Firefinch, Village Weaver,Garden Boubou, Grey Plantain Eater, Grey Plover

Day 3, 4 & 5  Tiwai Island and journey to and fro

Tit Hylia, Green Hylia, Spur-winged Goose (a first spotting of this species on the island), White-breasted Guinea Fowl, Western-wattled Cuckoo Shrike, White-crested Hornbill, African Finfoot, Egyptian Plover, White- fronted Plover, Blue Cheecked Bee- eater, Palm-nut Vulture, African Emarald Cuckoo, Red-billed Helmet-Shrike, Chocolate-backed Kingfisher, Red-vented Malimbe, Red-headed Malimbe, Blue-billed Malimbe, Black Bee-eater, Fire-bellied Woodpecker.

Day 6 Regent Forrest

Capuchin Babbler, Forest Robin, Wood Warbler, Grey Longbill, Pied-winged Swallow, Little Grebe,  Dybowski’s Twinspot, Western Bronze-naped Pigeon, Blue-headed Wood Dove.