8 May 2019: Tundavala
- vagranttwitcher
- May 8, 2019
- 2 min read
Rob de Rover, who had previously birded Angola with Michael Mills, had sent me a birding route to follow in Angola. My GPS took me through Lubango, where I bought an Angolan sim card and airtime from a vendor who spoke no English. I again realised that with a smile, bad playacting and frequent “obligardos” I will be able to navigate most of the language pitfalls of this country.
The sun was setting as I arrived at the Tundavala viewpoint, some 20 kilometres outside Lubango. Tundavala is a protected nature area, high on an escarpment of rocky outcrops, sheer cliffs, rolling grassland and small patches of Afromontane forest. Again the pantomime, and a lonesome security guard indicated that he had no problem with me camping in the area.
I found a good campsite behind a small hill, out of sight from the public road. As I was setting up camp, an Angola Cave Chat started calling on an outcrop right above me. It was an appropriate welcome to the Angolan bush!
The next day I explored the area, finding the Angola Swee Waxbill in a gully. The rocky hillsides produced an abundance of Cinnamon-breasted Buntings, Lark-like Buntings, some Rock Kestrels and a Lanner Falcon, but the Angolan endemics kept a low profile. I did, however, find more Angolan Cave Chats, Short-toed Rock Thrushes, Rockrunners, and a group of out of range Stark’s Larks. In a narrow kloof I came across some Landana Firefinches, a subspecies of the widespread African Firefinch, but I still need to confirm this ID from the photos I had taken.
The evening was spent at the same campsite, contemplating life in general. The conclusion – I am blessed, and life is good!
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