We started with another game drive into the park and were greeted by an unusually quiet group of stone partridges. Not long after William spotted a large roan on my side of the road with a few mates on the other side deep in the thicket. Robert guessed it would cross the road and it did - squeezing out of the minibus window and running the gauntlet of the horse flies I was able to click some photos and got a couple of reasonable ones - but was thwarted somewhat by the angle of the van and the being wedged in the window!
The drive also produced more olive baboons, waterbuck, kob and hartebeest. As we got nearer the base we did the circuit infront of the hotel and saw two types of monkeys - patas, with the male showing off his impressively coloured bright blue and red genitalia and the more sedate callithrix monkeys ( part of the vervet or green monkey family). We got out by one of the pools and walked around looking for yellow winged bats - and found a couple as today's photograph shows. The trees were also full of the red throated bee-eaters. We were back in camp before 11am so I was able to have a good swim before lunch and we relaxed during the heat of the day before going out again at 4pm. John had 15 minutes to get ready as he had to be roused from a deep sleep after not sleeping too well last night.
Our first stop was more of a cultural excursion to nearby Larabanga and the 14th century mud and stick mosque which was built by one of the early Arabian warriors as he secured lands and settlements for his people. We were greeted by a young lad who was our guide, at the entrance to the village was the imam, who had to have respects paid to him which was done by the guide on behalf of us all. We toured the outside of the bright white mosque which stood our amongst the drab brown mud huts around it. There were 4 doors, one for men, women, the man who calls people to prayer and the imam. We weren't allowed inside as its used for pray but were taken to a house which had been mocked up to resemble the inside of the mosque to some degree. At the start we were prewarned by the guide that the cost of the short tour would be a signature in the visitors book and a donation to the school fund - William was skeptical about where the money ended up but it was definitely a poor village so I am sure the 50 cedis or £10 we left will go to good use as long as it's not just in the pocket of the church.
We then left to do some birding along the side roads and saw a white throated francolin, and brown babblers at our first stop, we then passed a village on the edge of the park who, with the support of the park, produce honey - we passed their beehives- as we drove to a river for some more bird spotting.
I noted the village were also supported by a Japanese project regarding health and sanitation. That said the huts were all mud, lots of goats and chickens running around, people were poorly clothed but the school was a well constructed concrete building and there was solar powered street lights. I also saw a young girl with a mobile phone - indeed this is a phenomena of most places despite the housing and living conditions many people have mobile phones. The village was a real mix of ancient and modern!
The bird spotting by the river revealed Bruce's green pigeon, western plantain eaters, thick billed cuckoo,which flew past, and several doves. I watched in admiration as a lady with an enormous bundle of wood on her head made her way back to the village, another also passed us with cashew nut fruits on her head - she gave Robert some which was very kind - we declined Roberts offer of one as although they were ripe the taste is an acquired one.
It was now dusk so time to look for owls and nightjars but this was to no avail although I did see my first Senegal gelago - a small nocturnal furry animal which lives in the trees ( it looks like a cross between a chinchilla and a squirrel and was grey in colour.)
Back at the hotel our normal routine of dinner, checklist and bed followed.