We have just enjoyed a beach-based, family holiday on Boa Vista, Cape Verde. After spending our previous 2 Easter holidays on Tenerife we decided to try somewhere different that could guarantee warmth and be reached with a fairly short flight. We chose the Riu Karamboa hotel in the north of the island near the airport, rather than the Riu Touareg in the south. Despite modest expectations, this turned out to be an excellent birding location.
In the hotel grounds there were Iago Sparrow, Spanish Sparrow, a family of Alexander’s Kestrel and the occasional Brown-necked Raven. Around the hotel there were Brown Booby and Osprey over the sea and Hoopoe Lark, Bar-tailed Desert Lark and Spectacled Warbler in the adjacent dunes and dry grassland. The excellent Rabil Lagoon was a 15 minute walk along the coast. Daily visits produced a Western Reef Heron (present since early April), several Spoonbill, Caspian Tern (2), a variety of waders and a Blackcap.
Two whale watching trips from Sal Rei produced Humpback Whale (1 and 2), but surprisingly few birds - Cape Verde Shearwater and Red-billed Tropicbird (3). Cape Verde is one of only 2 places in the North Atlantic where Humpbacks give birth. The whales are present during March and April.
On our last full day I teamed up with Bjorn Wester who was staying in the same hotel and hired a guide and vehicle for the day. The reservoir near the Riu Touareg was fantastic – Squacco Heron, lots of Cattle Egret, lots of waders, House Martin (2), Black-crowned Finch Lark (1) and Bar-tailed Desert Lark. The sewage pool there was even better with Gull-billed Tern, lots of waders including a Lesser Yellowlegs. Later we walked along the coast and scoped the island of Ilhéu de Curral Velho. It was covered with nesting Brown Booby and a pair of Red-billed Tropicbird flew past. Sadly, there was no sign of the last 2 female Magnificent Frigatebirds in the Western Palaearctic. The drive back through the centre of the island produced a Spoonbill, plenty of Hoopoe Lark and Bar-tailed Desert Lark and 6 Helmeted Guineafowl, but despite much searching we failed to find any Cream-coloured Courser. A small flock of Cape Verde Swift south of Rabil was a welcome end to the trip.
Other wildlife interests included 3 species of butterfly around the hotel (Citrus Swallowtail (Papilio demodocus), Plain Tiger (Danaus chrysippus) and Black-bordered Babul Blue (Azanus moriqua)), a single Praying Mantid (Tenodera superstitiosa), a single Convolvulus Hawk-moth (Agrius convolvuli) and small numbers of Wild Donkey.
Although I hadn’t realised it until after we had booked the holiday, Cape Verde is in the Western Palaearctic. This gave me the opportunity to add a few species to my stagnating Western Pal list in the form of 3 endemics - Cape Verde Shearwater, Cape Verde Swift, Iago Sparrow and 3 non-endemics - Red-billed Tropicbird, Helmeted Guineafowl and Black-crowned Finch Lark.
During the holiday I found a few species described as vagrants to Cape Verde – a Squacco Heron, 2 Caspian Terns, a Gull-billed Tern and a Lesser Yellowlegs and saw another vagrant - Western Reef Heron – that was already present.