Surely the highlights of any birding tour are to see the true endemic and near=endemic birds in your birding destination. Well, Namibia has a wonderful bird list of almost 700 species, with one true endemic and 15 near-endemics, along with many other spectacular species. A lot of the Namibian endemics and other specials can be found quite close to the capital of this vast country.
One of those being the Rockrunner Achaetops pycnopygius.
We have been fortunate to see the striking terrestrial babbler-like Rockrunner on several of our tours and again so on our latest.
And what a beautiful bird it is with the chest peppered black and white, heavily streaked dark back, with tawny flanks and rump, and a rufous belly. The face is similarly richly striped and patterned.
Watching it hopping or flying from boulder to boulder is mesmerizing. This behaviour aids in identification together with the distinctive Rockrunner’s song, a rich, robin-like warbling song.
You can join us to find the Rockrunner in Namibia on one of our next birding tours. Read more on the itineraries of our Namibia Endemics Birding tour or the Short Namibia Endemics tour to see what to expect on our personalised birding tours and what other wonderful birds we will find. Get in touch at info@naturetravelbirding.com