Ngong Road Forest Birding

Discover a bird-rich forest just six kilometers from Nairobi’s heart. The Ngong Road Forest Sanctuary is a vital green lung for the city and a prime birding hotspot. From its dappled canopy to its quiet trails, this forest is a treasure trove for birders looking to spot elusive woodland specialists without leaving the capital. Ngong Road forest is 1224 hectares, with two seasonal rivers, Mutuini and Ruara. The forest used to be a large continuous one, starting all the way from Nairobi National Park to Ngong Hills.

The construction of the southern bypass has segmented the forest into five sections. Ngong Road Forest is in a unique position between the grasslands to the east and south and the cultivated lands to the north and west.

Ngong Road Forest Birds The forest is not a highland or lowland, but in between. The soil in Nairobi is not very deep, and the rainfall is not very high, so trees don’t grow as big as they do in the tropical forest. Birding in the Ngong forest is done on foot, walking along well-kept nature trails that adorn the beautiful forestland.

Nevertheless, this forest has many diverse species of trees and birds, and it’s easy to walk through because there is not much undergrowth. A pair of African Crowned Eagle has nested and bred in the forest for several years, in the same tree and nest. Suni, the smallest antelope, is seen feeding on the undergrowth. Other mammals in the forest include duikers, bushbucks, and the olive baboons. The birds of Ngong Forest Sanctuary include bird characteristics of the indigenous dry evergreen forest of Nairobi, birds of the surrounding grasslands and gardens, and water birds.

African, Grey, Mountain &Yellow Wagtail, Grassland & Tree Pipits, Yellow-throated Longclaw Slender-billed Greenbul, Cabanis’s and yellow-bellied Greenbul, Common Bulbul, White-starred Robin, Cape & Ruppell’s Robin-Chats, Brown-backed Scrub-Robin, Common Stonechat, Northern & Pied Wheatear, Olive Thrush, Yellow-whiskered Greenbul , Crimson-rumped Waxbill , African Fish Eagle, White-headed Barbet, Grosbeak Weaver, Singing Cisticola, Augur Buzzard, African Citril. Eastern Bronze-naped Pigeons are seen in flocks during the cold season. Golden-tailed Woodpecker, a species seen in the southern part of Kenya, has been sighted in the Ngong Road forest. Butterflies also occur in large numbers, especially after the rains.