Ranomafana National Park offers good bird watching, with more than 110 species recorded. Famously, it is home to four types of ground roller, a family of birds that consists of just five living species and is endemic to Madagascar. The striking pitta-like ground roller is quite easily observed over September to early January, when it is most vocal. Rufous-headed, short-legged and scaly ground rollers are also present. Forest birding is never easy, but the main road leading through the forested slopes of Ranomafana allows level viewing into the canopy.
Birding Specials Treats for Avid Birders
- Blue vanga
- Brown emu-tail
- Brown mesite
- Collared nightjar
- Common sunbird-asity
- Crested drongo
- Cuckoo roller
- Forest rock thrush
- Grey emu-tail
- Grey-crowned tetraka
- Henst’s goshawk
- Madagascar cuckoo-shrike
- Madagascar serpent eagle
- Madagascar snipe
- Madagascar yellowbrow
- Pitta-like ground roller
- Pollen’s vanga
- Red-fronted coua
- Rufous-headed ground roller
- Scaly ground roller
- Short-legged ground roller
- Tylas vanga
- Velvet asity
- Wedge-tailed jery
- Yellow-bellied sunbird-asity
Best Time for Bird Watching
Bird watching in Ranomafana is good throughout the year, but the best time is from September to January. Many birds tend to be silent and inactive in the cold dry months of May to August. This is especially true for the sought-after ground rollers. Migratory birds are present in the wet summer months from November to April.