The Gambia

17th-23th January 2003

Senegambia Hotel

Bijilo

Kotu Sewage Ponds

Abuko

Casino Cycle Track

Pirang

Kotu Sewage Ponds

After a quick bite to eat back at the hotel, we took a taxi to Kotu Sewage Ponds and spent the rest of the day there photographing the very approachable shorebirds and herons that were foraging at the margins of the ponds.

Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus)

Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus)

Bizarrely, Kotu Sewage Ponds are advertised as a general tourist attraction. Personally, I have no idea why anyone who was not interested in birds would ever wish to visit a sewage pond!

If on the other hand you are interested in birds, it is an excellent place for getting close to many species that are normally quite wary, such as Black-winged Stilts and Squacco Herons.

Squacco Heron (Ardeola ralloides)

Spur-winged Plover (Vanellus spinosus)

Spur-winged Plover (Vanellus spinosus)

Western Grey Plantain-eater (Cranifer piscator)

Apart from the exotic species, Kotu Ponds is also an excellent location for getting very close to shorebirds that breed in northern Europe, such as the Common Greenshank and Wood Sandpiper.

Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola)

Common Greenshank (Tringa nebularia)

Senegambia Hotel

Bijilo

Kotu Sewage Ponds

Abuko

Casino Cycle Track

Pirang