Scopus: Journal of East African Ornithology

Gonadosomatic index infers the breeding season of the House Crow Corvus splendens in Dar es Salaam, Tanzania

2020-01-29T13:30:59+00:00

The House Crow Corvus splendens is native to the Indian subcontinent but also has a broad invasive range which includes the coast of East Africa. House Crows (HC and HCs throughout this paper) were introduced in Zanzibar in the 1890s from where they later spread to mainland Tanzania. Their negative socioeconomic and ecological impacts have necessitated the instigation of population control programmes using avicides and trapping. Although knowledge on the reproductive biology of HCs, in particular the breeding status, is important for successful control programmes, little is known about it in Dar es Salaam. To establish the HC breeding status, a total of 83 female and 100 male birds were collected from August 2013 to July 2014 from traps operated by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Tourism population control programme. All birds were euthanized, dissected, and sex determined by gonad examination. The gonadosomatic index (GSI) was determined as the ratio of gonad weight upon total body weight. The GSI, which is an index of gonad development relative to the bird’s sexual maturation, peaked from October to December suggesting that this period is the main breeding season. The HC population control could be intensified during the onset of gonad development when the demand for resources is high.

Keywords: breeding season, gonadosomatic index, House Crow, Dar es Salaam

Recent survey of birds in Gishwati Forest, Rwanda

2020-01-29T13:31:00+00:00

We conducted a general avian survey in and around the Gishwati Forest of Rwanda’s Gishwati-Mukura National Park between 6 June and 7 August 2019, using stationary point counts and opportunistic observations along approximately 300 km of transects and trails. Of the 155 bird species recorded, one is Critically Endangered (Hooded Vulture Necrosyrtes monachus), two are Endangered (Gray Crowned-Crane Balearica regulorum and Grauer’s Swamp Warbler Bradypterus graueri), one is Vulnerable (Tawny Eagle Aquila rapax), and two are Near-Threatened (Mountain Buzzard Buteo oreophilus and Lagden’s Bushshrike Malaconotus lagdeni). We recorded three Afrotropical migrants and 20 species endemic to the Albertine Rift (though two of these are only recognized at the subspecies level). Within this avian community, 41 species are forest specialists, 55 are forest generalists, and 25 are forest visitors.

Keywords: conservation, Gishwati Forest, Gishawati-Mukura National Park, montane forest birds, Rwanda

Short Communications: Birds of the college of African wildlife management, Mweka, Tanzania

2020-04-30T09:14:06+00:00

No Abstract

Short Communications: The breeding of the Woolly-necked Stork Ciconia episcopus in Tanzania

2020-04-30T09:13:59+00:00

No Abstract

Short Communications: Breeding of the Giant Kingfisher Megaceryle maxima at Lake Naivasha, Kenya

2020-04-30T09:11:52+00:00

No Abstract

Short Communications: Ashy Starling Lamprotornis unicolor a new host for Greater Honeyguide Indicator indicator

2020-04-30T09:13:19+00:00

No Abstract

Short Communications: Silvery-cheeked Hornbill Bycanistes brevis in Kenya

2020-04-30T09:10:20+00:00

No Abstract