Join the RSPB’s Nick Williams as he follows the migratory birds we share with Senegal.
Perched on the western edge of Africa lies Senegal – a country of more than 18 million people and 560 species of birds. Home to dramatic and varied landscapes from arid plains to vast lagoons and wetlands, and rocky coastal islands to sweeping savannah grasslands, Senegal also plays a particularly important role in the world of bird migration.
248 species migrate to, or through, Senegal each year as they travel along the East Atlantic Flyway – a migration route stretching from Iceland all the way to South Africa and used by millions of birds each year. The UK and Senegal are two of the 75 countries connected by the flyway and both sit in key position along its route. While the UK welcomes northerly breeding birds to escape the harshness of the Arctic winter, Senegal is playing host to many of the birds that breed with us during the summer. That’s why both countries have a key role to play in protecting the birds of the flyway and the habitats they depend on.
Senegal and the UK share many iconic migratory species. These include the charismatic Osprey which comes to the UK each spring to breed along the shores of our lakes and estuaries, perhaps most famously at our RSPB Loch Garten nature reserve, before flying south to wetlands in Senegal, and its neighbour The Gambia, to feed and rest up alongside a very different set of creatures from their summer companions including pelicans, flamingos and even crocodiles!
Among the many other species that we share with Senegal is the Turtle Dove. These birds spend the non-breeding season in dry woodlands and scrub before returning to the lowlands of southern and eastern England in spring. New research has also recently revealed high connectivity between the UK and Senegal for Nightingales, while wading birds found in both countries include Black-tailed Godwits, Redshanks, Turnstones, Avocets and many more.
However, like so many of the world’s birds, the species using the East Atlantic Flyway are under pressure. Changing weather patterns and increasing global temperatures, habitat loss and degradation, infrastructural developments, illegal killing and many other factors are threatening the survival of these remarkable long-distance travellers.
Migratory birds do not recognise international borders. So it is vitally important that we act at an international scale to protect them by working closely with partner organisations elsewhere along our flyway.
That is why the RSPB has been collaborating with Nature-Communautés-Développement (NCD), a fellow member of the BirdLife International family of conservation NGOs, to support and strengthen conservation efforts in Senegal.
We are currently collaborating on a project to strengthen NCD’s capacity as a conservation organisation and support their work with local communities in identifying and protecting key sites for wildlife. This project, funded by the UK Government’s Darwin Initiative, is also focusing on boosting NCD’s ability to act at a national level to bring together multiple stakeholders across Senegal for the benefit of nature.
Darwin grants fund vital conservation work around the world but the UK Government’s spending review could put this key funding stream, and the nature it supports, under threat. We are therefore urging the government to maintain the existing Darwin budget and so protect this key source of funding for international conservation.
Scientific research is at the heart of monitoring and protecting the world’s wildlife. So to properly support conservation efforts in Senegal, and across West Africa, it is crucial that the next generation of research scientists here receive high-quality training. However training opportunities, particularly for French-speaking students, have historically been very limited across the region.
The RSPB, together with NCD as well as Dutch NGO Vogelbescherming Nederland and with the generous support of the A. G. Leventis Foundation, have launched a university Master's course in Ornithology, Conservation & Development. The programme equips students with key ornithological and research skills needed for their future careers.
“I have always loved nature,” explains Mame Diarra, a student on the course. “To observe plants and animals, that has always been my passion. Now I have been able to specialise and make my dreams a reality”.
Hosted by Université Gaston Berger in the northern city of St Louis, the students are based close to some incredible sites where they can practice their skills. These include Langue du Barbarie National Park, important for its large numbers of gulls and terns, and the internationally renowned Djoudj Wetlands, a UNESCO World Heritage site that hosts up to 1.5 million migratory birds – including ducks like Shovelers, Garganeys and Pintails as well as thousands of Greater Flamingos and Great White Pelicans.
This course builds on the success of a pioneering Master's programme in Jos, Nigeria where the A. P. Leventis Ornithological Research Institute (or APLORI) has been training English-speaking students for over twenty years and this Senegalese Master’s is now in place to complement that programme. Nowhere else in West Africa is dedicated ornithological training offered in French, and given that French is spoken in nine out of 16 countries in the region, this is a vital development for supporting future research and conservation efforts.
This year has already seen the first intake of students complete their studies in St Louis and a new group begin the two-year course. We look forward to working closely with our Senegalese and international partners as we continue to develop the Master's programme and play our part in strengthening conservation efforts in Senegal and across West Africa.
Immerse yourself in the sounds and sights of Senegal in this short film.
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