Bird Watchers Supporters Gambia

Kuloro Bird Club (KBC)

The KBC was instrumental in the conservation of Farasuto Forest and it’s chairman (Baba, above) and vice-chairman (Yaya, below) are the key Gambian contacts in the Farasuto project team. The KBC organised the first Open Day at Farasuto on 25 October 2008, a landmark date for the reserve. The KBC is the cornerstone of the home end of the Farasuto project team.

Babagelleh Bah
Baba introduced John Tucker to the site. He was one of the first to appreciate the importance of Farasuto and organise, with Yaya (see below) and the Kuloro Bird Club (KBC), the first Open Day there on 25 October 2008. Baba is the president of KBC and vice-chairman of the Gambia Bird Guides’ Association and is a key contact with Farasuto’s Gambian team. Baba’s role will be crucial during the coming year gathering information for Part 1 of the Management Plan. All Baba’s input to Farasuto is gratis and involves taking time from his bird guide business.

Phil Randell – Halcyon Gambia
Phil and Clare Randell operate this very successful and popular birding holiday company from the Gambia during the dry season and from the UK during the rains. Halcyon Gambia’s bird guide is Mustapha Manneh (‘Mus’), among the best in the country and, yes, also a prominent member of the Kuloro Bird Club. Farasuto is well known to Halcyon Gambia (Phil is a long-time personal friend of Peter Tucker). Halcyon Gambia will be funding the reserve’s notice-board.

John Hughes
John is Development Manager at Shropshire Wildlife Trust and knows the grant-giving world very well. He has kindly advised on potential sources of funding for the work at Farasuto.

Jon Hughes
Jon is now resident in the Gambia, knows Farasuto, was present at the community meeting on 20 January 2009 and is helping to sort out things there. He has a particular interest in the educational potential of Farasuto.

John Tucker – Lanius Ornithology                                                                                                   John is the prime mover on the Management Plan initiatives having been introduced to Farasuto by Baba (see above) on 10 January 2009. As a professional nature conservationist in England for 30 years (now early-retired) John is well-versed in preparing Management Plans and he has written the texts for this web site. John is the primary contact for the UK Farasuto team and will draft the Management Plan over the coming 12 months or so. To email John with information, ideas or suggestions click here. All Lanius’s input of time to Farasuto is gratis. This may change as Management Plan preparation advances.

Mike Slater
Mike Slater is a butterfly specialist living in England, a member of Butterfly Conservation and Chair and Conservation Officer for the Warwickshire Branch. He was on holiday in the Gambia at the same time and John and Peter, visited Farasuto independently and coached a member of KBC (Mamadou W Jallow) in the skills of butterfly identification and behaviour such as egg laying, roosting and caterpillar food-plant identification. While there Mike produced the Farasuto butterfly list under Flora + Fauna. The most spectacular Gambian find was the overnight colonial roosting sites for the African Tiger Danaus chrysippus near Kotu. All Mike’s input to Farasuto has been gratis.

Peter Tucker
Holbrook is Peter and Alex Tucker’s company, based in Oxford providing a complete design service for the publishing industry, print-design and computing sectors. Peter is the brother of John Tucker of Lanius Ornithology (above). They were together in the Gambia for three weeks in January 2009, were introduced to the site by Baba and Yaya and things have developed since then. See the link in the navigation panel. Peter’s key role early on at Farasuto was to create this web site and through a companion company, Holbrook Hosting, who host the website and to design the sign for the reserve. All Holbrook Design’s input to Farasuto is gratis.

Rob Low
Rigare Ltd is Dr. Rob Low’s groundwater and wetland science consultancy, based in Cardiff but undertaking projects throughout the UK and further afield. Regarding the key ingredient of wetlands, water, he offers a complete service in investigation, characterisation and management of wetland hydrology, and he has a range of associates offering additional fields of expertise such as ecology and socioeconomics. Rob is a one-time professional contact of John Tucker and is now a friend of Farasuto having kindly offered, gratis, his advice on the hydrological monitoring regime soon to be put in place there.

Saihou Colley
Mr Colley is a Gambian and the senior meteorologist at Banjul International Airport and John and Peter had the pleasure of meeting him at the airport on their way back to England in late January 2009. They discussed water issues at Farasuto and Mr Colley kindly agreed to support for the Gambian team there. He was able to assure access to the soil auger necessary to drill many metres down and place the plastic pipe ‘dip-wells’ or piezometers, see Hydrology, as well as offering access to the Gambia’s rainfall and associated hydrological records. Mr Colley’s help is gratefully acknowledged.

Yaya Barry
Yaya is the chairman of the Gambia Bird Guides’ Association and vice president of the Kuloro Bird Club. He is one of the prime movers for the conservation of Farasuto and, along with Baba and the KBC (see above), they are the key contacts in the Farasuto team in the Gambia. Yaya also has a vehicle, which is very handy. All Yaya’s input to Farasuto is gratis and involves taking time from his bird guide business.

Bird Watching in Gambia

Farasuto reserve is a place where many varied species of birds can be found including
Lizard Buzzard, a dark phase Gabar Goshawk, Black-rumped Waxbill, Western Grey Plantain-eater (which surely should be called the Grey Turaco?), Brown-necked Parrot, African Goshawk, Village Weaver, a Pin-tailed Whydah male still sporting a long tail, Shikra, African Grey Hornbill, African Harrier-hawk [=Gymnogene], Blue-cheeked Bee-eater and Sulphur-breasted Bush Shrike.

Farasuto Forest Community Nature Reserve

Kuloro, Western District, the Gambia

Farasuto Forest is a relict patch of what might best be described as ‘wet evergreen forest’ though the place is only really wet during the rains – broadly from June to October.

“‘About a century ago most of the Gambia … was reported to be covered by dense and almost impenetrable forest even after large areas had been cleared for groundnut cultivation. At that time the forests were rich in wildlife … [and] habitat for a variety of large mammals which are nowadays rare (such as hippopotamus, waterbuck, roan) or extinct (such as buffalo, giraffe, elephant, lion etc.)”.

Birdwatching Gambia Farasuto Forest Community Nature Reserve

The Violet Turaco, Musophaga violacea; with open wings the scarlet of the flight-feathers is striking. Not wholly dependent on climax forest but certainly typical of it – the reason the bird was chosen locally for the logo of Farasuto Forest Community Nature Reserve

Local Children Learn About Conservation

John from farasuto mangement project visited the local junior school on 23 April 2009 and he and Baba, along with two other members of the KBC, presented the headmaster with a famed copy of the colour painting of the nature reserve’s logo bird, the Violet Turaco – as in the photograph.

The head was very appreciative of the gift and keen to work with the KBC to ensure that the children are made aware of both their local forest and of the wider environmental implications of its conservation.