Last week the Duchess (wife) and myself were off to Cape Verde to celebrate a friends 60th birthday; it was going to be a relaxing 7 days in the sun, but having never been to Cape Verde before, and after a bit of research, I found that there were a couple of birds there I had not seen - Iago Sparrow (Cape Verde sparrow) - which is an endemic, and the other was Black-crowned Sparrow Lark, so, on the 26th of November, and after a 6 hour non eventful flight, we found ourselves on Boa Vista - one of the islands in this archipelago 350 miles off the West coast of Senagal Africa. Our hotel - the Riu Touareg (which I can certainly recommend) is on the SE coast of the island. On our 30 minute transfer to the hotel, it was noticeable just how sparse the vegetation was - the first image (below) was taken from outside the hotel - and this what it was like as far as the eye could see - with just a few bushes scattered here and there.
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The hotel is very isolated apart from a tiny smallholding just north of the hotel; there are no other
habitable buildings - or for that fact, no other buildings what so ever! but on exploring, the
following morning, the Duchess and and I were amazed just how much bird life was about - we
first noticed small flocks of Spanish Sparrows feeding in the gardens of the hotel, and our first view
of the many Spectacled Warblers we would see
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Spectacled Warbler
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Spectacled Warbler
Spanish Sparrows
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Just walking down the road adjacent to the hotel there were lots of Hoopoe Larks and then I came
across one of my target birds - the endemic Iago Sparrow - feeding a youngster. I never managed
to get a decent image of the male, but I think the female is quite a nice bird for a sparrow! Also in
this arid habitat were lots of Bar-tailed Larks.
Iago Sparrow
Bar-tailed Lark
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Hoopoe Lark
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We went out most mornings and my second target bird - a Black-crowned Sparrow Lark -was found on the third day - again just feeding at the side of the road. At one end of the hotel was a
bit of a muddy area on which were a couple Kentish Plovers, also, a lot further away, was a Whimbrel and few Brown Boobies flying North up the beach
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Black-crowned Sparrow Lark
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Kentish Plover
About 600 yards to the north of the hotel there is a settling pool from the sewage management plant, where a few waders feed. I never tried getting close for any images as the birds were busily feeding and I did not want to interrupt them. Sanderling, Curlew Sandpipers, Ruff and Little Stint along with a couple of Greenshank were noted, also a few Wood Sandpipers, and Black-winged Stilts were the main birds. As I was leaving the pool, a single Turnstone was noted. Leaving this area on the fourth day, the duchess and I watched a bird glide over our heads - with it's sandy body with black tipped wings, it could only be Cream-coloured Courser! What a lovely bird, but sadly no images! The bird I did want to get an image of was the Brown-necked Raven, just because it was always around the hotel but never when I had my camera with me, so on the last day it was great to see this one land right in front of me 
Brown-necked Raven
Black-winged Stilt
Altogether, I had 23 species of bird just from around the hotel, including 2 'lifers' - not a bad return for a chillaxing week!
Hope you have enjoyed your visit to my blog!
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