An Agricultural Fair and some birding

With Jenny away for a few days I had a very quiet last weekend at home - mostly keeping an eye on the African Goshawk nest to see if I could detect chicks.  Still not sure!

Last Friday I went with ECHO colleagues to Karatu (-3.3398, 35.6682) for an Agricultural Fair (seed and food were the main themes).  About a dozen NGOs were showing their skills and services and there were lots of speeches, music and noise.  Everyone chipped in so there was no cost to the public and we probably had 500 people come through on the day.  My favourite thing was a chap who had a team building game where you had to cooperate with your colleagues to move assorted blocks onto a stack.  Lots of laughter.

Assorted herbs that can cure anything from a cold to cancer and HIV (apparently).

I've never seen this before but lots of fun.

Phillip (a semi-retired tractor engineer from Canada) and Harold Msanya (Echo's chief designer of low-tech farm equipment) discussing improvements.

ECHO has taken a tried and tested Ethiopian plough and added a seed/fertiliser sewing system.

Yesterday I went birding with our friends from the Birding for Life group and Alex Rees (an English chap with great bird photography skills).

Alex took the photo.

We went to an area called Danish Forest up above Usa River.  Mostly forest trees along streams coming off Mount Meru with some village farm areas.   We saw about 50 species in all and I saw Green Malkoha (aka Eastern Yellowbird) and Retz's Helmetshrike as lifers plus Mountain Wagtail and Black-throated Wattle-eye as new for Tanzania.  I left my camera in the bag as it was drizzly and overcast and I didn't think I would have much success.    I did take a picture of our group on the trail and a large Flap-necked Chameleon on the arm of Joseph Sikawa.

On a trail through towering remnant forest trees.

Flap-necked Chameleon - one of the biggest species in East Africa.