With around 330 species recorded, Lengwe National Park offers good birding opportunities. In low-key parks such as Lengwe, there is more emphasis on birding as there are fewer flagship animal species around. General woodland bird species are plentiful, and some specials can be found in the dense low-lying thickets, including the noisy crested guineafowl and the tambourine dove. There is a good variety of raptors, which include all three snake eagles found in Malawi: black-chested snake eagle, brown snake-eagle and western banded snake eagle.
Birding Specials Treats for Avid Birders
- Barred long-tailed cuckoo
- Black-and-white flycatcher
- Böhm’s bee-eater
- Böhm’s spinetail
- Cabanis’s greenbul
- Crested guineafowl
- Eastern nicator
- Green-backed woodpecker
- Grey sunbird
- Grey-olive greenbul
- Lemon-breasted canary
- Livingstone’s flycatcher
- Pale-billed hornbill
- Racket-tailed roller
- Retz’s helmet-shrike
- Rudd’s apalis
- Square-tailed drongo
- Tambourine dove
- Trumpeter hornbill
- Woodwards’ batis
- Woolly-necked stork
Best Time for Bird Watching
There’s good birdlife in Lengwe year-round. However, migratory birds are present in the Wet season (November to April), which makes it the best time for bird watching. General wildlife viewing is best in the Dry season (May to October), with ideal conditions from July to September.