Gambia bird sanctuary
Tanji Bird Reserve
346 bird species recorded; the most from November to February.
Mark Hodson Photos · CC BY 2.0
This month here
303 species in January.291 species in February.266 species in March.241 species in April.166 species in May.165 species in June.177 species in July.115 species in August.50 species in September.236 species in October.303 species in November.305 species in December.
The birds you are most likely to see in the month you choose, those that come for the season first. It opens on today's month.
CR
CR
CR
NTCR
CR
CR
CR
CRNT
CRCR
NT
CRCR- Resident all year
- Summer visitor comes to breed
- Winter visitor comes for the winter
- Passage migrant in spring and autumn
In numbers
346 species, counted.
Our own rating, from the records only: species (50 points), threatened species (20), migrants (20) and protected status — Ramsar, IBA, SPA, observatory (10).
- 346Speciesrecorded more than once
- 143Migrantssummer, winter or passage visitors
- 9ThreatenedVulnerable, Endangered or Critically Endangered (IUCN)
- 44,190Recordsopen records within 4 km
- 30Raptors
- 7Owls
- 35Waders
- 23Gulls & seabirds
- 2Ducks & geese
- 25Herons, ibises & grebes
- 2Storks & cranes
- 138Songbirds
- 84Other birds
From open records (eBird and others, through GBIF, licensed for any use). More birdwatchers mean more records: a quiet place may have more birds than it shows.
The checklist
All 346 species.
By group, with the year in twelve cells: the darker the cell, the more often the bird is recorded that month.
Raptors30 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Hooded VultureNecrosyrtes monachusCR
- Black KiteMilvus migrans
- OspreyPandion haliaetus
- Lizard BuzzardKaupifalco monogrammicus
- African Harrier-hawkPolyboroides typus
- Palm-nut VultureGypohierax angolensis
- Grey KestrelFalco ardosiaceus
- Black-winged KiteElanus caeruleus
- LannerFalco biarmicus
- Red-headed FalconFalco chicqueraNT
- Dark Chanting-GoshawkMelierax metabates
- Western Marsh HarrierCircus aeruginosus
- Wahlberg's EagleHieraaetus wahlbergi
- Gabar GoshawkMicronisus gabar
- African hobbyFalco cuvierii
- Long-crested EagleLophaetus occipitalis
- Beaudouin's Snake EagleCircaetus beaudouiniVU
- Common KestrelFalco tinnunculus
- Tawny EagleAquila rapaxVU
- White-backed VultureGyps africanusCR
- Montagu's HarrierCircus pygargus
- Western Banded Snake EagleCircaetus cinerascens
- Grasshopper BuzzardButastur rufipennis
- Short-toed eagleCircaetus gallicus
- African Fish EagleHaliaeetus vocifer
- Pallid HarrierCircus macrourusNT
- Brown Snake EagleCircaetus cinereus
- Rüppell's VultureGyps rueppelliiCR
- ShikraAccipiter badius
- Lesser kestrelFalco naumanni
Owls7 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- African Great-horned OwlPtilopsis leucotis
- Giant Eagle OwlBubo lacteus
- Pearl-spotted OwletGlaucidium perlatum
- African Scops-owlOtus senegalensis
- Wood OwlStrix woodfordii
- Western Barn OwlTyto alba
- Greyish Eagle-owlBubo cinerascens
Waders35 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Eurasian WhimbrelNumenius phaeopus
- Bar-tailed godwitLimosa lapponicaNT
- Ruddy TurnstoneArenaria interpresNT
- Spur-winged LapwingVanellus spinosus
- SanderlingCalidris alba
- Common GreenshankTringa nebularia
- Common SandpiperActitis hypoleucos
- Common Ringed PloverCharadrius hiaticula
- Grey PloverPluvialis squatarolaVU
- African Wattled LapwingVanellus senegallus
- Senegal Thick-kneeBurhinus senegalensis
- RedshankTringa totanus
- Eurasian CurlewNumenius arquataNT
- Eurasian OystercatcherHaematopus ostralegusNT
- Black-winged StiltHimantopus himantopus
- African JacanaActophilornis africanus
- Wood SandpiperTringa glareola
- Black-tailed GodwitLimosa limosaNT
- Green SandpiperTringa ochropus
- Black-headed LapwingVanellus tectus
- Kentish PloverCharadrius alexandrinus
- Greater Painted-snipeRostratula benghalensis
- Little StintCalidris minuta
- DunlinCalidris alpinaNT
- Red KnotCalidris canutusNT
- Curlew SandpiperCalidris ferrugineaVU
- Marsh SandpiperTringa stagnatilis
- RuffCalidris pugnax
- Spotted RedshankTringa erythropus
- American golden ploverPluvialis dominica
- Temminck's CourserCursorius temminckii
- Pied AvocetRecurvirostra avosetta
- Bronze-winged CourserRhinoptilus chalcopterus
- Common SnipeGallinago gallinago
- Cape Thick-kneeBurhinus capensis
Gulls & seabirds23 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Grey-headed GullChroicocephalus cirrocephalus
- Caspian TernHydroprogne caspia
- Lesser Black-backed GullLarus fuscus
- West African Crested TernThalasseus albididorsalis
- Sandwich TernThalasseus sandvicensis
- Slender-billed GullChroicocephalus genei
- Southern Black-backed GullLarus dominicanus
- Lesser Crested TernThalasseus bengalensis
- Common TernSterna hirundo
- Black-headed GullChroicocephalus ridibundus
- Little TernSternula albifrons
- Gull-billed TernGelochelidon nilotica
- Audouin's GullIchthyaetus audouinii
- Arctic SkuaStercorarius parasiticus
- Black TernChlidonias niger
- Pomarine SkuaStercorarius pomarinus
- Northern gannetMorus bassanus
- Royal TernThalasseus maximus
- Yellow-legged GullLarus michahellis
- Whiskered TernChlidonias hybrida
- European Storm-PetrelHydrobates pelagicus
- White-winged TernChlidonias leucopterus
- Mediterranean GullIchthyaetus melanocephalus
Ducks & geese2 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- White-faced Whistling-duckDendrocygna viduata
- Spur-winged GoosePlectropterus gambensis
Herons, ibises & grebes25 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Western Cattle EgretBubulcus ibis
- Grey HeronArdea cinerea
- Western Reef HeronEgretta gularis
- Pink-backed PelicanPelecanus rufescens
- Great CormorantPhalacrocorax carbo
- Long-tailed CormorantMicrocarbo africanus
- Great White EgretArdea alba
- Great White PelicanPelecanus onocrotalus
- Little EgretEgretta garzetta
- Black-headed HeronArdea melanocephala
- DarterAnhinga rufa
- HamerkopScopus umbretta
- Squacco HeronArdeola ralloides
- Egretta intermediaEgretta intermedia
- Striated HeronButorides striata
- Purple heronArdea purpurea
- Black HeronEgretta ardesiaca
- African Sacred IbisThreskiornis aethiopicus
- Black-crowned Night-HeronNycticorax nycticorax
- African SpoonbillPlatalea alba
- Little GrebeTachybaptus ruficollis
- Goliath HeronArdea goliath
- White-backed Night HeronGorsachius leuconotus
- HadadaBostrychia hagedash
- Eurasian SpoonbillPlatalea leucorodia
Storks & cranes2 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Yellow-billed StorkMycteria ibis
- African Woolly-necked StorkCiconia microscelis
Songbirds138 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Pied CrowCorvus albus
- Common BulbulPycnonotus barbatus
- Village WeaverPloceus cucullatus
- Beautiful SunbirdCinnyris pulchellus
- Red-billed FirefinchLagonosticta senegala
- Yellow-crowned GonolekLaniarius barbarus
- Red-cheeked Cordon-bleuUraeginthus bengalus
- Turdus peliosTurdus pelios
- Brown BabblerTurdoides plebejus
- Olive-naped WeaverPloceus brachypterus
- Splendid SunbirdCinnyris coccinigastrus
- Bronze MannikinLonchura cucullata
- Variable SunbirdCinnyris venustus
- Northern Grey-headed SparrowPasser griseus
- Blackcap BabblerTurdoides reinwardtii
- Fanti SawwingPsalidoprocne obscura
- Long-tailed Glossy-StarlingLamprotornis caudatus
- Lavender WaxbillEstrilda caerulescens
- Green-backed CamaropteraCamaroptera brachyura
- Tawny-flanked PriniaPrinia subflava
- Black-headed Paradise-flycatcherTerpsiphone rufiventer
- Yellow-billed ShrikeCorvinella corvina
- Fork-tailed DrongoDicrurus adsimilis
- Orange BishopEuplectes franciscanus
- Yellow-throated LeafloveAtimastillas flavicollis
- Little WeaverPloceus luteolus
- Western Black FlycatcherMelaenornis edolioides
- Orange-cheeked WaxbillEstrilda melpoda
- Snowy-headed Robin-ChatCossypha niveicapilla
- Red-chested SwallowHirundo lucida
- Northern CrombecSylvietta brachyura
- Yellow-fronted CanaryCrithagra mozambica
- PiapiacPtilostomus afer
- Oriole-WarblerHypergerus atriceps
- African Paradise-FlycatcherTerpsiphone viridis
- Black-winged Red BishopEuplectes hordeaceus
- Copper SunbirdCinnyris cupreus
- African Golden OrioleOriolus auratus
- Green-backed EremomelaEremomela pusilla
- White-billed Buffalo-WeaverBubalornis albirostris
- Singing CisticolaCisticola cantans
- Northern PuffbackDryoscopus gambensis
- House SparrowPasser domesticus
- Black-crowned TchagraTchagra senegalus
- Western Yellow WagtailMotacilla flava
- Village IndigobirdVidua chalybeata
- Purple Glossy-starlingLamprotornis purpureus
- Scarlet-spectacled Wattle-eyePlatysteira cyanea
- Melodious WarblerHippolais polyglotta
- Little GreenbulEurillas virens
- BlackcapSylvia atricapilla
- Western Olivaceous WarblerIduna opaca
- White WagtailMotacilla alba
- Northern Yellow White-eyeZosterops senegalensis
- Crested larkGalerida cristata
- White-crowned Robin-chatCossypha albicapillus
- Greater Blue-eared StarlingLamprotornis chalybaeus
- Pied-winged SwallowHirundo leucosoma
- Pin-tailed WhydahVidua macroura
- Western BluebillSpermophaga haematina
- Wire-tailed SwallowHirundo smithii
- Vitelline Masked WeaverPloceus vitellinus
- Orange-breasted BushshrikeChlorophoneus sulfureopectus
- Zitting CisticolaCisticola juncidis
- Scarlet-chested SunbirdChalcomitra senegalensis
- Western Subalpine WarblerCurruca iberiae
- Common ChiffchaffPhylloscopus collybita
- Woodchat ShrikeLanius senatorNT
- Willow WarblerPhylloscopus trochilus
- Lesser Blue-eared StarlingLamprotornis chloropterus
- Yellow-breasted ApalisApalis flavida
- Whistling CisticolaCisticola lateralis
- Red-tailed LeaflovePhyllastrephus scandens
- Grey-headed BristlebillBleda canicapillus
- Barn swallowHirundo rustica
- Violet-backed SunbirdAnthreptes longuemarei
- Red-winged WarblerHeliolais erythropterus
- Black-headed WeaverPloceus melanocephalus
- Common NightingaleLuscinia megarhynchos
- Senegal BatisBatis senegalensis
- Violet-backed StarlingCinnyricinclus leucogaster
- Bronze-tailed Glossy-StarlingLamprotornis chalcurus
- WhitethroatSylvia communis
- Black-rumped WaxbillEstrilda troglodytes
- Red-billed QueleaQuelea quelea
- Yellow-billed OxpeckerBuphagus africanus
- Green-headed SunbirdCyanomitra verticalis
- Eurasian Reed WarblerAcrocephalus scirpaceus
- Sahel Bush SparrowGymnoris dentata
- Common RedstartPhoenicurus phoenicurus
- White-crested HelmetshrikePrionops plumatus
- Mosque SwallowCecropis senegalensis
- Grey-headed BushshrikeMalaconotus blanchoti
- Red-shouldered CuckooshrikeCampephaga phoenicea
- Collared SunbirdHedydipna collaris
- Yellow Penduline TitAnthoscopus parvulus
- Chestnut-crowned Sparrow-WeaverPlocepasser superciliosus
- WhinchatSaxicola rubetra
- BrubruNilaus afer
- Common House MartinDelichon urbicum
- African SilverbillEuodice cantans
- Northern WheatearOenanthe oenanthe
- Garden WarblerSylvia borin
- Tree PipitAnthus trivialis
- Pygmy SunbirdHedydipna platura
- Mangrove SunbirdAnthreptes gabonicus
- European Pied FlycatcherFicedula hypoleuca
- Western Bonelli's WarblerPhylloscopus bonelli
- Yellow-crowned BishopEuplectes afer
- Yellow-bellied HyliotaHyliota flavigaster
- Red-breasted SwallowCecropis semirufa
- Splendid StarlingLamprotornis splendidus
- Sand MartinRiparia riparia
- Siffling CisticolaCisticola brachypterus
- Heuglin's Masked-WeaverPloceus heuglini
- Yellow-throated LongclawMacronyx croceus
- Pentholaea albifronsPentholaea albifrons
- Chestnut-bellied StarlingLamprotornis pulcher
- Rufous CisticolaCisticola rufus
- Cut-throat FinchAmadina fasciata
- Black-necked WeaverPloceus nigricollis
- Estrilda coerulescensEstrilda coerulescens
- Red-faced CisticolaCisticola erythrops
- Green CrombecSylvietta virens
- Parus guineensisParus guineensis
- Plain-backed PipitAnthus leucophrys
- Spotted FlycatcherMuscicapa striata
- Bar-breasted FirefinchLagonosticta rufopicta
- QuailfinchOrtygospiza atricollis
- Winding CisticolaCisticola marginatus
- Chestnut-backed Sparrow-LarkEremopterix leucotis
- Northern Anteater-chatMyrmecocichla aethiops
- Sudan Golden SparrowPasser luteus
- Lead-coloured FlycatcherMyioparus plumbeus
- Hylia prasinaHylia prasina
- Vieillot's Black WeaverPloceus nigerrimus
- Dorst's CisticolaCisticola guinea
- White-rumped SeedeaterCrithagra leucopygia
Other birds84 species
JFMAMJJASOND
- Laughing DoveSpilopelia senegalensis
- Western Grey Plantain-eaterCrinifer piscator
- Red-eyed DoveStreptopelia semitorquata
- Western Red-billed HornbillTockus kempi
- Black-billed Wood DoveTurtur abyssinicus
- Little Bee-eaterMerops pusillus
- African Grey HornbillLophoceros nasutus
- Senegal CoucalCentropus senegalensis
- African Palm SwiftCypsiurus parvus
- Pied KingfisherCeryle rudis
- Vinaceous DoveStreptopelia vinacea
- Long-tailed NightjarCaprimulgus climacurus
- Senegal ParrotPoicephalus senegalus
- Swallow-tailed Bee-eaterMerops hirundineus
- Blue-spotted Wood-doveTurtur afer
- Speckled PigeonColumba guinea
- Yellow-fronted TinkerbirdPogoniulus chrysoconus
- Mourning Collared DoveStreptopelia decipiens
- Double-spurred SpurfowlPternistis bicalcaratus
- Broad-billed RollerEurystomus glaucurus
- Violet TuracoMusophaga violaceaNT
- African Pygmy KingfisherIspidina picta
- Green WoodhoopoePhoeniculus purpureus
- African Grey WoodpeckerDendropicos goertae
- Green TuracoTauraco persa
- Rose-ringed ParakeetPsittacula krameri
- Bearded BarbetLybius dubius
- Blue-bellied RollerCoracias cyanogaster
- African Pied HornbillLophoceros fasciatus
- Blue-cheeked Bee-eaterMerops persicus
- Greater HoneyguideIndicator indicator
- Little SwiftApus affinis
- African Green-pigeonTreron calvus
- Stone PartridgePtilopachus petrosus
- Fine-spotted WoodpeckerCampethera punctuligera
- Abyssinian RollerCoracias abyssinicus
- Vieillot's BarbetLybius vieilloti
- Cardinal WoodpeckerDendropicos fuscescens
- Klaas's CuckooChrysococcyx klaas
- Rock DoveColumba livia
- Blue-breasted KingfisherHalcyon malimbica
- Giant KingfisherMegaceryle maxima
- Lesser HoneyguideIndicator minor
- Four-banded SandgrousePterocles quadricinctus
- Striped KingfisherHalcyon chelicuti
- Striped CuckooClamator levaillantii
- Purple RollerCoracias naevius
- Mottled SpinetailTelacanthura ussheri
- Woodland KingfisherHalcyon senegalensis
- Namaqua DoveOena capensis
- Malachite KingfisherCorythornis cristatus
- Pallid SwiftApus pallidus
- Black CrakeAmaurornis flavirostra
- Grey-headed KingfisherHalcyon leucocephala
- Black ScimitarbillRhinopomastus aterrimus
- Diederik CuckooChrysococcyx caprius
- Eurasian HoopoeUpupa epops
- European SwiftApus apus
- Pardipicus nivosusPardipicus nivosus
- Brown-backed WoodpeckerDendropicos obsoletus
- Standard-winged NightjarCaprimulgus longipennis
- Yellow-rumped TinkerbirdPogoniulus bilineatus
- Blue MalkohaCeuthmochares aereus
- Spotted HoneyguideIndicator maculatus
- African Collared DoveStreptopelia roseogrisea
- Common MoorhenGallinula chloropus
- Golden-tailed WoodpeckerCampethera abingoni
- Bruce's Green-PigeonTreron waalia
- African Grey CuckooCuculus gularis
- Western SwamphenPorphyrio porphyrio
- WryneckJynx torquilla
- Ahanta SpurfowlPternistis ahantensis
- European Turtle DoveStreptopelia turturVU
- Great spotted cuckooClamator glandarius
- Jacobin CuckooClamator jacobinus
- White-throated Bee-eaterMerops albicollis
- Pterocles exustusPterocles exustus
- Black-bellied KorhaanLissotis melanogaster
- Red-throated Bee-eaterMerops bulocki
- Bee-eaterMerops apiaster
- Egyptian PloverPluvianus aegyptius
- African Green Bee-eaterMerops viridissimus
- Common ButtonquailTurnix sylvaticus
- Abyssinian Ground-HornbillBucorvus abyssinicusVU
Monthly presence relative to all bird records that month, so a busy month does not inflate every species.
When to go
The most species from November to February.
Species recorded in each month, with the usual temperature and rain.
- Jan27°/19°2 mm
- Feb27°/18°2 mm
- Mar27°/18°16 mm
- Apr26°/19°4 mm
- May27°/21°2 mm
- Jun28°/25°45 mm
- Jul28°/26°169 mm
- Aug28°/26°290 mm
- Sep28°/26°224 mm
- Oct30°/27°67 mm
- Nov30°/24°6 mm
- Dec28°/21°2 mm
- Bar: species recorded that month.
- Temperature: average maximum / minimum (NASA, 1991–2020).
- Rain: monthly total.
The place
Tanji Bird Reserve.
Protected area
Tanji Bird Reserve is a bird sanctuary in Gambia.
346 bird species have been recorded here more than once, in 44,190 open records.
The most recorded are the Grey-headed Gull, the Caspian Tern and the Pied Crow.
32 species come for the summer, 102 for the winter and 9 only pass through.
9 are threatened worldwide, including Hooded Vulture, Grey Plover and Beaudouin's Snake Eagle.
The most species are recorded from November to February.
Get there and watch
- Kebb'Smilingcampsite · 2.4 km · 2 within 10 km
- Houseplace to stay · 0.7 km · 69 within 10 km
- Tanjinearest town · 2.0 km in a straight line
- Banjul International Airport (BJL)nearest airport with scheduled flights · 16 km in a straight lineCar hire at DSS airport (Dakar)Discover Cars · sponsored link↗
Plan the visit
A guided walk, a bed nearby, a car.
Some links above are affiliate links: if you book through them we may earn a commission, at no extra cost to you. It never changes what the data on this page says.
From above
The place and its surroundings.
The satellite image of the 6 × 6 km around the place, with the bird hides, towers and trails that OpenStreetMap shows.
Around, in OpenStreetMap
- 1observation towers within 6 km
- 1viewpoints within 5 km
- 1car parks within 3 km
- 4restaurants and cafés within 3 km
- 2campsites within 10 kmKebb'Smiling, Camping Sukuta
- 69places to stay within 10 kmHouse, Taf estate: Ya Yassin Jobe House, Sheraton Gambia and 66 more
- bird hides within 6 km
- marked trails within 4 km
- visitor centres within 6 km
Counted in OpenStreetMap, the map anyone can edit. A low number may just mean nobody has mapped it yet.
Photographs
The place, as people saw it.
Other places nearby.
Tanji Bird Reserve
Gambia
- 87Birdyas Score
- 346Species
- 143Migrants
- 9Threatened
Bao Bolong Wetland Reserve
Gambia · 102 km
- 66Birdyas Score
- 131Species
- 60Migrants
- 6Threatened
Where these figures come from
| Name and type | Wikidata (Q980234) · CC0 |
|---|---|
| Birds | 44,190 open bird records within 4 km (GBIF, CC0 and CC BY 4.0 only; mostly eBird, Cornell Lab of Ornithology) |
| See these records | gbif.org |
| Species | GBIF Backbone Taxonomy · CC BY 4.0; Wikidata (CC0); Wikimedia Commons |
| Altitude | Copernicus DEM GLO-30 · © DLR e.V., © Airbus Defence and Space GmbH, Copernicus/ESA |
| Temperature and rain | NASA POWER (CERES SYN1deg, 2001–2020; MERRA-2) |
| What is around | © OpenStreetMap contributors · ODbL |
| Images | EOX Sentinel-2 cloudless 2016 · CC BY 4.0; Wikimedia Commons |
Every figure is an average, an estimate or a count from a public dataset. Licences and methods: data sources.
The family
Do you prefer beaches, lakes, mountains, waterfalls, islands, rivers, canyons, caves, dark skies, viewpoints, birdwatching or forests?
Same idea, other landscapes: field atlases built on open data, in seven languages.
beaches
Find your beach: sea temperature, sun and swimming month by month.Visit 
lakes
Every lake on Earth: water temperature, ice, depth and the shore.Visit 
mountains
Every summit in 3D: summit weather, the 0 °C line, huts and trails.Visit 
waterfalls
Every waterfall: height, flow month by month and when it roars.Visit 
islands
Every island from the sea up: size, sea temperature, ferries and 3D.Visit 
rivers
Every river from source to sea: the journey, the flow and the basin in numbers.Visit 
canyons
Every canyon cut to scale: depth to the floor, rim and floor temperatures, trails and viewpoints.Visit 
caves
Every cave with its real depth and length: the rock above, the temperature inside all year, and how to visit.Visit 
dark skies
Where the night is still dark: the sky of every place, the Milky Way month by month, the Moon, eclipses and auroras.Visit 
viewpoints
Every viewpoint with its real 360° panorama: the peaks you can name, how far you see and where the sun sets.Coming soonVisit 
birdwatching
Every bird sanctuary and wetland with the species recorded month by month: who is resident, who comes for the summer, who only passes through.You are here
forests
Every forest with its land-cover rings, what grows and lives in it, and the best months to walk it.Coming soonVisit