Bats and Birds Research, Mt Moroto

From January 23rd to 30th 2025, a team of international biodiversity scientists conducted a survey of bats, birds at the Moroto Conservation Zone initiated by Kara-Tunga Foundation on the western slopes of Mountain Moroto. The extended research period allowed for more comprehensive data collection and a wider range of species encountered.

Scope

The research encompassed species identification, sex differentiation, age estimation, and habitat documentation for bats, birds, and frogs. The geographical scope included St Lawrence River, Apostles of Jesus Seminary located in Nadiket Parish of Katikekele Sub County in Moroto District.

Objective

• To create a avian and bats inventory of the research area
• To gain key insights for development of a conservation strategy
• To build capacity of Kara-Tunga’s field team to conduct monitoring of avian and bats

The research team

The team was led by Chris Ketola and 14 other volunteers from Fauna Forever International which is a Peruvian non-profit organisation combined with Ugandan scientists and students of Makerere University.

Methodology

The primary method for birds and bats remained mist netting, with regular monitoring. Frog surveys were conducted at night along the St Lawrence River. The team also used cameras (both dedicated and phone cameras) for documentation, trekking to locate habitats, and phones for researching unknown species.

Key findings

The team noted the diversity of sunbird species. Thee researchers also identified numerous bat, bird, and some frog species. New species were observed in the various locations. The research also revealed community knowledge gaps regarding bat diversity and highlighted the abundance of certain bird species in the research area. Snake sightings added another dimension to the study.

Lessons Learned

The Kara-Tunga team gained practical field research skills, improved species identification abilities, and learned about animal handling. They gained a deeper understanding of the local biodiversity, including the presence of specific bird species and the diversity of bats. They also learned about different frog species and their habitats and how to differentiate sexes in bats and birds, estimate ages, handle specimens, and identify key anatomical features. The researchers recommend the team to continue personal practice, consultation with experts, and the provision of learning equipment.

Preliminary species sightings list

It’s important to note that I cannot provide IUCN status for all species. IUCN status assessments require extensive research and are constantly being updated. We provide the information we can, and for others we indicate “Data Deficient” (DD). “Least Concern” (LC) which is the most common and often assumed unless there’s evidence to the contrary, or leave it blank, suggesting further research is needed to confirm. It’s also possible some of these identifications may be incorrect, as identification is still ongoing.

#	Taxonomy	Common Name	Scientific Name	IUCN Status
1	Birds	White-browed Coucal	Centropus superciliosus	LC
2	Birds	Barn Owl	Tyto alba	LC
3	Birds	Red-cheeked Cordon Bleu	Uraeginthus bengalus	LC
4	Birds	Slate-colored Boubou	Laniarius funebris	LC
5	Birds	African Thrush	Turdus pelios	LC
6	Birds	Black Bishop	Euplectes gierowii	LC
7	Birds	Black-winged Weaver	Euplectes melanotis	LC
8	Birds	Rattling Cisticola	Cisticola chiniana	LC
9	Birds	Spot-flanked Barbet	Tricholaema melanocephala	LC
10	Birds	Speckled Mousebird	Colius striatus	LC
11	Birds	Marico Sunbird	Cinnyris mariquensis	LC
12	Birds	Amethyst Sunbird	Chalcomitra amethystina	LC
13	Birds	Green-backed Camaroptera	Camaroptera brachyura	LC
14	Birds	African Pygmy Kingfisher	Ispidina picta	LC
15	Birds	Tawny-flanked Prinia	Prinia subflava	LC
16	Birds	Emerald-spotted Wood-Dove	Turtur chalcospilos	LC
17	Birds	Tambourine Dove	Turtur tympanistria	LC
18	Birds	Speckled Weaver Bird	Ploceus cucullatus	LC
19	Birds	White-browed Robin-Chat	Cossypha heuglini	LC
20	Birds	Brown-crowned Tchagra	Tchagra australis	LC
21	Birds	Variable Sunbird	Cinnyris venustus	LC
22	Birds	Black-winged Bishop	Euplectes hordeaceus	LC
23	Birds	Green-winged Camaroptera	Camaroptera brachyura	LC
24	Birds	Gray-headed Kingfisher	Halcyon leucocephala	LC
25	Birds	Baglafecht Weaver	Ploceus baglafecht	LC
26	Birds	Common Bulbul	Pycnonotus barbatus	LC
27	Birds	Little Rock-Thrush	Monticola rufocinerea	LC
28	Birds	Vitelline Masked-Weaver	Ploceus vitellinus	LC
29	Birds	Northern Red Bishop	Euplectes franciscanus	LC
30	Birds	Pale Flycatcher	Muscicapa pallens	LC
31	Birds	Spectacled Weaver	Ploceus ocularis	LC
32	Birds	African Firefinch	Lagonosticta rubricata	LC
33	Birds	Northern Brownbul	Andropadus hypoxanthus	LC
34	Birds	Rufous Chatterer	Turdoides rubiginosa	LC
35	Birds	African Scoops Owl	Otus senegalensis	LC
36	Birds	Augur Buzzard	Buteo augur	LC
37	Birds	Common Buzzard	Buteo buteo	LC
38	Birds	European Honey-buzzard	Pernis apivorus	LC
39	Birds	Cabanis’s Greenbul	Phyllastrephus cabanisi	LC
40	Birds	Green-backed Twinspot	Mandingoa nitidula	LC
41	Birds	Mountain Wagtail	Motacilla clara	LC
42	Birds	White-crested Turaco	Tauraco leucolophus	LC
43	Birds	Boran Cisticola	Cisticola boranensis	LC
44	Birds	African Paradise Flycatcher	Terpsiphone viridis	LC
45	Birds	Cinnamon-chested Bee-eater	Merops oreobates	LC
46	Bats	Egyptian Fruit Bat	Rousettus aegyptiacus	LC
47	Bats	Peters’s Epauletted Fruit Bat	Epomophorus labiatus	LC
48	Bats	Livingstone’s Flycatcher	Scotophilus livingstonei	EN
49	Bats	Theban Tomb Bat	Nycteris thebaica	LC
50	Bats	Lesser Horseshoe Bat	Rhinolophus fumigatus	LC
51	Bats	Geoffroy’s Horseshoe Bat	Rhinolophus clivosus	LC
52	Bats	Heart-nosed Bat	Cardiocrinia sp. (or similar)	DD
53	Bats	Guinean Whispering Bat	Neoromicia guineensis	LC
54	Bats	Horseshoe Bat	Rhinolophus sp.	LC
55	Bats	African Roundleaf Bat	Hipposideros cafer	LC
56	Bats	Welwitsch’s Mouse-eared Bat	Myotis welwitschii	DD
57	Bats	Kirinyaga Laephotis	Laephotis kirinyaga	DD
58	Bats	Lander’s Horseshoe Bat	Rhinolophus landeri	LC
59	Bats	Mops Free-tailed Bat	Mops nanulus	LC
60	Herps	Graceful Chameleon	Chamaeleo gracilior	LC
61	Herps	Anchieta’s Grass Frog	Ptychadena anchietae	LC
62	Herps	Nutt’s River Frog	Amietia nutti	NE
63	Herps	Steindachner’s Toad	Sclerophrys steindachneri	LC
64	Herps	Nile Frog	Ptychadena nilotica	LC
65	Herps	Common Toad	Sclerophrys regularis	LC