Highland low-down: birding Zimbabwe's Eastern Highlands

Highland 

Low-down 

BIRDING ZIMBABWE’S EASTERN HIGHLANDS 

Text by Penn Lloyd 

Hazy with the smoke of countless wood-fired hearths, 

the lowlands of Mozambique sprawl from the Indian 

Ocean to the foot of an escarpment that runs a wavy 

course from the Drakensberg range of South Africa to 

the Ahmar Mountains of Ethiopia. Here, punctured and 

separated from the highlands to the north and south 

by the mighty Zambezi and Limpopo river valleys, the 

Eastern Highlands of Zimbabwe rise up from 300 metres 

to over 2 500 metres, to form a natural border with 

its more prostrate neighbour. Associated with this 

altitudinal range is a diversity of habitats, from 

lowland evergreen forest to miombo (Brachystegia) 

woodland to Afro-montane evergreen forest, and finally 

montane grassland. Each supports a unique community 

of birds all packed within a relatively small area, 

making the Eastern Highlands one of the subcontinent’s 

premier birding regions. Furthermore, the isolation of 

the mountains means that a number of species, found 

otherwise only in distant South Africa or East Africa, survive 

here as long-isolated populations. 

A view over communal lands at the 

Haroni-Rusitu junction. In the 

background are the Chimanimani 

mountains, rising up from lowland 

evergreen forest on the border 

with Mozambique. 

haroni-rusitu 

junction 

Clinging to the southern foot of the 

Chimanimani mountains, where the 

Haroni and Rusitu rivers meet to flow 

into Mozambique, are Zimbabwe’s last 

fragments of lowland evergreen forest. A 

birding Mecca, these small but luxuriant 

forest patches harbour a list of regulars 

that include Barred Cuckoo, Green 

Coucal, Eastern Honeyguide, African 

Broadbill, Angola Pitta, Pel’s Fishing Owl, 

Slender Bulbul, Black-headed Apalis, 

Vanga Flycatcher, Woodwards’ Batis and 

Chestnut-fronted Helmetshrike. Getting 

there requires some determination 

though. The track, for it cannot be called 

a road over the last 20 kilometres, is harrowing 

at best, impassable at worst. A 

4x4 is advisable, but certainly no guarantee 

that you will make it there (or back 

again!) should rain set in. 

With the forests surrounded by 

communal land, courtesy requires that 

you stop off at the local District 

Administration or the police/military post 

at Vhimba to announce your presence in 

the area. There are also no facilities, so if 

you decide to camp rough, introduce 

yourself to the closest household and 

enquire where you might do so. 

The people here are poor and live a 

simple life. The lands they have cleared 

of forest are highly fertile. A variety of 

fruits, such as avocados, bananas, 

papaws, mangoes and naartjies are sold 

as cash crops to the Zimbabwe Farmer’s 

Union. Sweet potatoes, madumbe (yams) 

and maize are the staples, with indigenous 

sorghums and millets extensively 

cultivated for home-brewing. As the population 

expands, so the pressure on the 

remaining forest increases; the people 

need the land to make a living. 

The borders of the Haroni and Rusitu 

Forest Reserves exist on paper only, and 

most of the former has already fallen to 

a banana plantation. Until the locals 

derive a more direct benefit from the forests, 

the attrition will continue. A farmer 

who invited me in to his humble homestead 

asked me which bird I most wanted 

to see. I indicated the appearance and 

proportions of the Silvery-cheeked 

Hornbill. ‘The Gakamira!’ he exclaimed 

a little incredulously. His advice on how 

to find it: ‘When you walk in the forest, 

look for the pips of my papaws on the 

ground. When you find them, look up 

into the tree and the Gakamira will be 

there’. 

bronwyn lloyd

Let this take nothing away from the 

quality of the birding experience though. 

Wander along the footpaths through the 

more accessible Rusitu forest into a fairyland 

of butterflies and birds. The butterflies 

are simply stunning, bobbing up 

from the path in a kaleidoscope of 

colours and symmetries. The birds are a 

little more elusive, but no less dramatic. 

Aside from the specials already mentioned, 

you should at least catch glimpses 

of forest regulars such as Delegorgue’s 

Pigeon, Tambourine and Cinnamon 

doves, Livingstone’s Lourie, White-eared 

Barbet and Golden-rumped Tinker 

Barbet, Scaly-throated Honey-guide, Little 

Spotted Woodpecker, Stripe-cheeked and 

Yellow-streaked bulbuls, Gorgeous and 

Black-fronted bushshrikes, and a bevy of 

HARARE• 

Marondera • 

ZimBaBWe 

nyanga national park 

flycatchers that 

include Bluegrey,Bluemantled,Fantailed,Whitetailed 

and Wattle-eyed. As in any forest, 

the real action is in the bird parties, so 

listen out for the noisy Square-tailed 

Drongos that normally accompany them. 

And don’t overlook the high-pitched, 

almost inaudible trilling of Green and 

Red-throated twinspots as they flit 

through the thick undergrowth. 

The forest fringe is the place to scout 

for Yellow-spotted Nicator, Barratt’s and 

Red-winged warblers, Blue-throated 

Sunbird and Grey Waxbill. Unlike the 

sterile monocultures of advanced farm- 

ing, the weedy tangle in and around the 

communal fields hosts a multitude of 

birds, such as Blue-spotted Dove, Broadtailed 

and African Yellow warblers, 

Singing, Red-faced and Short-winged 

cisticolas, Golden Weaver, Fire-crowned 

Bishop, Nyasa Seedcracker, Goldenbacked 

Pytilia, and Cabanis’ Bunting. 

In the scattered trees and woodland 

fragments, the Long-crested Eagle, 

Southern Banded Snake Eagle, Lizard 

Buzzard, Dickinson’s Kestrel, Swallowtailed 

Bee-eater, African Golden Oriole, 

Mozambique Batis, Red-backed Shrike, 

Red-billed Helmetshrike and Purplebanded 

Sunbird may be found. 

Over the tricky-to-cross Haroni River a 

magnificent tract of forest beckons. While 

deriving better protection as part of the 

MUTARE• 

bvumba 

eland sanCtuary • 

• 

Chipinge 

CHirinda forest • 

• 

• Honde valley 

and aberfoyle 

CHimanimani 

nationl park 

Haroni-rusitu JunCtion 

• Espungabera 

moZamBiQue 

Chimanimani National Park, its virgin 

status owes much to rumours of 

unexploded mines. The border with 

Mozambique is a stone’s throw away, and 

a clearing I came across in the forest was 

once used as a forward base by Rhodesian 

helicopter-gunships during the civil war. 

There is much to be explored and discovered 

here, including the multi-tiered 

Mukurupini waterfalls cascading out of 

the Chimanimani mountains. With the 

possibility of old ordnance in mind, you 

would be well advised to hire a local 

guide who knows the footpaths. 

Taking the sting out of Haroni birding 

are organized trips (on request) leaving 

from Heaven backpackers’ hostel in 

Chimanimani, or from Kiledo Lodge 

swynnerton’s robin 

outside Chipinge. The Chipinge area also 

boasts some impressive forests, including 

the Chirinda Forest at Mt Selinda (see 

pages 60–63). 

chimanimani 

national Park 

peter steyn 

Perched on a hill, the village of 

Chimanimani has a sweeping view east 

to the craggy peaks of the Chimanimani 

range. With a variety of comfortable 

accommodation, from the Heaven budget-backpackers’ 

hostel, to the Moriah or 

Frog & Fern self-catering chalets, the 

Chimanimani Hotel, and the up-market 

Muwenji Lodge, it serves as the perfect 

springboard for excursions into the 

national park. The park office is only 

14 kilometres from the village, but the 

last seven kilometres are on a dreadful 

dirt road and take half an hour to negotiate. 

From here, access to the mountains is 

on foot along a network of hiking trails. 

The initial 400-metre ascent through 

open Brachystegia/Uapaca woodland and 

forested gullies is steep and rocky. 

Common birds to look out for while 

catching your breath are several miombo 

specials, namely the Miombo Rock 

Thrush, Miombo Grey and Rufous- 

bellied tits, Miombo Double-collared 

Sunbird, and Mashona Hyliota. Others 

include Shelley’s Francolin, Freckled 

Nightjar, Grey and White-breasted cuckooshrikes, 

Mocking Chat, Barratt’s 

Warbler, Chirinda Apalis, Red-faced 

Crombec, Green-capped Eremomela, 

Roberts’ Prinia, White and Red-billed helmetshrikes, 

and Yellow-bellied Sunbird. 

A two- to three-hour slog gets you to 

the crest of the Mutserotsero range, 

56 ZIMBABWE’S EASTERN HIGHLANDS 

africa – Birds & Birding 

Above open miombo woodland on the rocky western slopes of the 

Chimanimani mountains. 

often with a rewarding view of Augur 

Buzzards soaring over the undulating 

Bundi River valley to the high peaks of 

the Mawenje range that forms the border 

with Mozambique. Rocky ridges and outcrops 

with Protea bushes and Philippia 

scrub harbour Gurney’s Sugarbird, 

Malachite and Bronze sunbirds, Streakyheaded 

and Black-eared canaries, and 

endemic subspecies of both Bokmakierie 

(discovered as recently as 1965) and 

1997 – volume 2, numBer 6 

Cape Bunting. 

The large mountain hut, which has 

incredible views over the Bundi plain, is a 

great place for hikers to overnight. But 

the ludicrous ‘discounted’ fee of Z$200 

per person ensures that most opt to camp 

au sauvage or to doss down in scattered 

caves, some of which adjoin the waterfalls 

and plunge-pools dotted along the 

sparkling Bundi River. 

After pausing at the strange Mtseritseri 

or 

penn lloyd 

(‘the boiling place’) pool, where a powerful 

spring keeps cones of white sand in 

perpetual motion, I tramped through the 

marshy grasslands of the Bundi plain and 

was lucky to flush a Great Snipe. Other 

birds to look out for here are the Yellowthroated 

Longclaw, and an uncommon 

summer visitor, the Blue Swallow. While 

walking beneath the towering peaks, scan 

the skies for the elusive Taita Falcon and 

Scarce Swift; this is one of the few places 

where these rare species can be seen. 

eland sanctuary 

Fringing Chimanimani village, the small 

Eland Sanctuary reserve offers a peep at 

what the highlands must have looked like 

afriCan broadbill 

before forestry blighted the landscape, 

with pristine Brachystegia/Uapaca woodland 

giving way to evergreen forest on 

the southern slopes. The magnificent 

Bridal Veil waterfall is an idyllic spot to 

picnic. While the birding here is superb, 

the sanctuary suffers from a lack 

of footpaths. 

the BvumBa 

Just 15 kilometres from Mutare, the capital 

of Manicaland province, rise the 

rounded granite domes of the Bvumba, 

the Eastern Highlands’ most popular 

birding destination. 

Humid air rising up from the warm 

Mozambican lowlands condenses around 

this massif to produce the mubvumbi, 

Shona for ‘persistent drizzle’, after 

ZIMBABWE’S EASTERN HIGHLANDS 

peter steyn 

57

which it is named. 

On the lower northern 

slopes, hidden in 

high-rainfall miombo 

woodland, are the 

Inn on the Vumba 

and White Horse Inn. 

The nearby self-catering 

chalet at Cloud 

Seven is surrounded 

by 50 hectares of 

woodland networked starred robin 

with footpaths. In 

this lower altitude woodland, Barred Owl, 

Whyte’s Barbet, Lesser and Sharp-billed 

honeyguides, Little Spotted Woodpecker, 

Miombo Grey, Rufous-bellied and Grey 

Penduline tits, Spotted Creeper, Miombo 

Rock Thrush, African Moustached and 

Red-winged warblers, Striped, Tree and 

Wood pipits, Western Violet-backed 

Sunbird, East African Swee and Cabanis’ 

Bunting may be seen. 

The moister slopes higher up are 

cloaked in montane forest. The idyllic 

Bvumba Botanical Gardens, where you 

are likely to be welcomed by a troop of 

samango monkeys gambolling on the 

lawns, is the place to go if camping. 

Alternative forest-edge accommodation 

includes self-catering chalets at Culemburg 

and Seldomseen, the more up-market 

Eden Lodge, and for those with deep 

pockets, the world-renowned Leopard 

Rock Hotel. Everywhere, paths plunge 

into the gloomy interior of forest patches 

that are unusually rich in birds. 

Born in the Bvumba, Peter Mwadziwana 

has worked at Seldomseen for the 

past 20 years and knows the forest birds 

intimately. A guided 

walk with him is worth 

anyone’s time, particularly 

if you are having 

trouble finding the 

ever-elusive wynnerton’s 

Robin. A quiet 

and gentle man, he will 

lead you on a slow and 

stealthy stroll through 

his neck of the woods. 

As we entered the forest, 

Cinnamon and 

Tambourine doves 

exploded from the 

undergrowth as dark, 

flashing shapes, flutter- spotted Creeper 

ing to rest somewhere 

unseen. A Blue-spotted Dove hooted 

mournfully some distance away. Soon we 

found ourselves in the midst of a bird 

party, heralded by the restlessly flitting 

African White-tailed 

Flycatcher. Yellowstreaked 

Bulbuls clambered 

through the 

foliage, tapping at dry 

leaves, pausing only 

to perform their curious 

habit of flicking 

open one wing. 

Chirinda Apalises, 

easily confusable with 

peter steyn the female of the 

local subspecies of 

Bar-throated Apalis (which lacks a bar on 

the throat), hopped through the canopy 

with Yellow-throated Warblers and a 

Black-fronted Bushshrike. A Scalythroated 

Honeyguide perched unobtrusively 

on a looping liana, while Collared 

and Olive sunbirds twittered around a 

flowering shrub. An Orange Ground 

Thrush rustled the leaf-litter to one side, 

and a party of Roberts’ Prinias chattered 

noisily further off. After two hours of 

pausing and peering hopefully into the 

gloomy undergrowth, I thought 

Swynnerton’s Robin would remain true 

to form. But then, with a soft ‘prrup’ of 

its wings, it appeared before us, a dumpy, 

olive-grey shadow hopping busily about 

and flicking away leaves in search of 

insects. A confiding little bird, it paid no 

attention to us, offering only fleeting 

glimpses of its orange belly and distinctive 

white collar. 

The Bunga Forest is a good spot for 

Delegorgue’s Pigeon, Narina Trogon, 

Starred Robin and, in grassy clearings, 

twinspots and Red-faced Crimsonwing. 

On the forest fringes and in gardens, 

look out for Whiteeared 

Barbet and 

Golden-rumped Tinker 

Barbet, Heuglin’s Robin, 

Bronze, Malachite and 

Yellow-bellied sunbirds, 

and the Gorgeous 

Bushshrike. 

A favoured hang-out 

of the raucous Silverycheeked 

Hornbills is 

the forest bordering the 

magnificent 19-hole 

Leopard Rock golfcourse. 

These huge, 

eye-catching birds are 

peter steyn nowhere common, as 

they range about in 

search of fruiting trees. Vestiges of montane 

grassland are home to breeding Blue 

Swallows in summer. With this habitat 

under no formal protection and 

Systematic list of bird species 

mentioned in this article 

Long-crested Eagle Lophaetus occipitalis 

Brown Snake Eagle Circaetus cinereus 

Southern Banded Snake Eagle C. fasciolatus 

Palm-nut Vulture Gypohierax angolensis 

Augur Buzzard Buteo augur 

Lizard Buzzard Kaupifalco monogrammicus 

Taita Falcon Falco fasciinucha 

Dickinson’s Kestrel F. dickinsoni 

Shelley’s Francolin Francolinus shelleyi 

Great Snipe Gallinago media 

Delegorgue’s Pigeon Columba delegorguei 

Blue-spotted Dove Turtur afer 

Tambourine Dove T. tympanistria 

Cinnamon Dove Aplopelia larvata 

Livingstone’s Lourie Tauraco livingstonii 

Barred Cuckoo Cercococcyx montanus 

Green Coucal Ceuthmochares aereus 

Barred Owl Glaucidium capense 

Pel’s Fishing Owl Scotopelia peli 

Freckled Nightjar Caprimulgus tristigma 

Scarce Swift Schoutedenapus myoptilus 

Narina Trogon Apaloderma narina 

Swallow-tailed Bee-eater Merops hirundineus 

Silvery-cheeked Hornbill Bycanistes brevis 

White-eared Barbet Stactolaema leucotis 

Whyte’s Barbet S. whytii 

Golden-rumped Tinker Barbet Pogoniulus bilineatus 

Scaly-throated Honeyguide Indicator variegatus 

Lesser Honeyguide I. minor 

Eastern Honeyguide I. meliphilus 

Sharp-billed Honeyguide Prodotiscus regulus 

Little Spotted Woodpecker Campethera cailliautii 

African Broadbill Smithornis capensis 

Angola Pitta Pitta angolensis 

Blue Swallow Hirundo atrocaerulea 

Eastern Saw-wing Swallow Psalidoprocne orientalis 

White-breasted Cuckooshrike Coracina pectoralis 

Grey Cuckooshrike C. caesia 

Square-tailed Drongo Dicrurus ludwigii 

African Golden Oriole Oriolus auratus 

Miombo Grey Tit Parus griseiventris 

Rufous-bellied Tit P. rufiventris 

Grey Penduline Tit Anthoscopus caroli 

Spotted Creeper Salpornis spilonotus 

Yellow-streaked Bulbul Phyllastrephus flavostriatus 

Slender Bulbul P. debilis 

Stripe-cheeked Bulbul Andropadus milanjensis 

Yellow-spotted Nicator Nicator gularis 

Orange Ground Thrush Zoothera gurneyi 

Miombo Rock Thrush Monticola angolensis 

Mocking Chat Thamnolaea cinnamomeiventris 

Heuglin’s Robin Cossypha heuglini 

Starred Robin Pogonocichla stellata 

Swynnerton’s Robin Swynnertonia swynnertoni 

Mashona Hyliota Hyliota australis 

African Yellow Warbler Chloropeta natalensis 

Barratt’s Warbler Bradypterus barratti 

58 ZIMBABWE’S EASTERN HIGHLANDS 

africa – Birds & Birding 

Broad-tailed Warbler Schoenicola brevirostris 

Yellow-throated Warbler Seicercus ruficapillus 

Bar-throated Apalis Apalis thoracica 

Chirinda Apalis A. chirindensis 

Black-headed Apalis A. melanocephala 

Red-faced Crombec Sylvietta whytii 

Green-capped Eremomela Eremomela scotops 

African Moustached Warbler Melocichla mentalis 

Singing Cisticola Cisticola cantans 

Red-faced Cisticola C. erythrops 

Short-winged Cisticola C. brachyptera 

Red-winged Warbler Heliolais erythroptera 

Roberts’ Prinia Prinia robertsi 

Blue-grey Flycatcher Muscicapa caerulescens 

Fan-tailed Flycatcher Myioparus plumbeus 

Vanga Flycatcher Bias musicus 

Mozambique Batis Batis soror 

Woodwards’ Batis B. fratrum 

Wattle-eyed Flycatcher Platysteira peltata 

Blue-mantled Flycatcher Trochocercus cyanomelas 

African White-tailed Flycatcher T. albonotatus 

Long-tailed Wagtail Motacilla clara 

Striped Pipit Anthus lineiventris 

Tree Pipit A. trivialis 

Wood Pipit A. nyassae 

Yellow-throated Longclaw Macronyx croceus 

Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio 

Bomakierie Telophorus zeylonus restrictus 

Gorgeous Bushshrike T. quadricolor 

Black-fronted Bushshrike T. nigrifrons 

White Helmetshrike Prionops plumatus 

Red-billed Helmetshrike P. retzii 

Chestnut-fronted Helmetshrike P. scopifrons 

Gurney’s Sugarbird Promerops gurneyi 

Malachite Sunbird Nectarinia famosa 

Bronze Sunbird N. kilimensis 

Purple-banded Sunbird N. bifasciata 

Miombo Double-collared Sunbird N. manoensis 

Yellow-bellied Sunbird N. venusta 

Olive Sunbird N. olivacea 

Collared Sunbird Anthreptes collaris 

Blue-throated Sunbird A. reichenowi 

Western Violet-backed Sunbird A. longuemarei 

Golden Weaver Ploceus xanthops 

Fire-crowned Bishop Euplectes hordeaceus 

Golden-backed Pytilia Pytilia afra 

Green Twinspot Mandingoa nitidula 

Red-faced Crimsonwing Cryptospiza reichenovii 

Nyasa Seedcracker Pyrenestes minor 

Red-throated Twinspot Hypargos niveoguttatus 

Grey Waxbill Estrilda perreini 

East African Swee E. quartinia 

Streaky-headed Canary Serinus gularis 

Black-eared Canary S. mennelli 

Cabanis’s Bunting Emberiza cabanisi 

Cape Bunting E. capensis smithersii 

1997 – volume 2, numBer 6 

threatened by forestry, the spread of invasive 

alien trees, and general development, 

their days here must be numbered. 

With a checklist of over 250 species, the 

Bvumba area offers the best of highland 

birding in comfortable surrounds. 

honde valley 

and nyanga 

Should you fancy some forest birding 

off the beaten track, wend your way 

down the Honde River valley to the 

Above roberts’ prinia, an eastern Highlands ‘special’. 

Aberfoyle Tea Estate, whose club operates 

as a small and rustic hotel. Here, 

rolling hills of neatly clipped tea-bushes 

give way to luxuriant montane forest on 

the eastern slopes of the Nyanga mountains. 

Paths more often frequented by 

bushpigs follow rushing mountain 

streams where Long-tailed Wagtails bob 

on glistening rocks. A local oddity is 

Zimbabwe’s only Palm-nut Vulture, 

which has appeared each evening for 

the past three years to roost in a grove 

of tall eucalypts. 

The Nyanga National Park, which 

is not unlike a dull section of the 

Drakensberg foothills, conserves an 

expanse of montane grassland particularly 

important for Blue Swallows, and is one of 

the few localities where Scarce Swifts may 

be seen. Unfortunately, extensive areas are 

suffering rampant invasion by alien pine 

and wattle trees from the green cancer of 

forestry that surrounds the park. 

A showcase of avian diversity, the 

Eastern Highlands nonetheless face the all 

too familiar threats associated with devel- 

opment and a burgeoning population. 

The persistence of many species in habitats 

that were never very extensive, and 

are now much fragmented, will depend 

on the extent to which ecotourism can 

realize an alternative income from the 

land they occupy. With its diversity of 

habitats, natural wonders, large bushveld 

wilderness areas and healthy wildlife populations, 

Zimbabwe has immense potential 

as a tourist destination. The Eastern 

Highlands are an important component 

of that diversity and allure. 

 

ZIMBABWE’S EASTERN HIGHLANDS 

peter steyn 

59

Highland low-down: birding Zimbabwe's Eastern Highlands

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