— Testing the effectiveness of nest-boxes in the conservation of woodland birds: Lake Naivasha nest-box project, Kenya MichaelMainaMacharia La destruction de la foret claire autoiir du Lac Naivasha, Kenya, a reduit le nombre de sites de nidificationpourlesespecescavernicoles.Afind’ameliorerlesuccesdereproductiondecesespeces, le Projet Nichoirs du Lac Naivasha a ete mis en oeuvre. Une approche similaire a ete couronnee de — succesailleurs. Enmai 1999, 45 nichoirsenbois 39petits (1.500cm^)etsixgrands(17.340cmb m ontete places, a 6-8 de hauteur, dansdesarbresauxalentoursdu Elsamere ConservationCentre etduEisherman’sCamp.Unecampagnedesensibilisation,soulignantlavaleurdelaforetclaire,aete lanceeenmemetemps.Troisecolesontregudeladocumentationsurlaprotectiondelanatureetont ete impliquees dans le placement des nichoirs. Des exposes sur la protection des oiseaux ont egalement ete presentees dans les ecoles cibles. Des affiches ont ete placees a des endroits strategiquesafindesensibiliserlepublic.AvecI’aidedeguidesornithologiquesresidents,lesnichoirs sont suivis de fagon permanente. Ala fin octobre 2000, au moins quatre especes d’oiseaux avaient inspecte les nichoirs, mais il n’y avait pas encore eu de tentative d’occupation. Introduction hole-nestingbirdssuchaswoodpeckers,barbetsand L ake Naivasha is well known for its rich and hornbills. This projectaimed(i) touse nest-boxesto diverse birdlife. The lake is cl00 kmnorth-west create extra nest sites for such hole-nesting bird ofNairobi, in RiftValleyProvince. It is a Ramsarsite species, and (ii) generate community awareness of, and an Important Bird Area (IBA)L Several national andinvolvementin,birdconservation.Thegoalsare parksandwildlifesanctuariesaresituatedaroundor toimprovethebreedingsuccessofhole-nestingspe- nearthelake. Itssouthern partislargelysurrounded cies and invoke a positive attitude towards the by tall woodland (c20 m), dominated by Yellow- conservation ofbirds and habitats. barked Acacia Acaciaxanthophloea, with a narrow papyrusfringenearthelake.Thenorthernparthasa Methods and progress broader papyrus fringe, with lower scrub (c2-3 m The project commenced in May 1999 and was de- high) inland. The lake environment isthreatenedby signedtolastfor18months.HereIpresentasummar\- human activities, chiefly horticulture and deforesta- of the developments thus far and anticipated work tion, with substantial ecological changes already still to be undertaken. reported^’L Communityactionandsupportfornature Study sites tceocntsieornvaotfiboinrdcsoualnddphraboivteatsi.ndispensable in the pro- Eorty-fiveboxeswer—eerectedduringMay1999—attv,’o sites. Twenty boxes 15 small and five large were sitedatElsamereEieldStudyCentreinriparianwood- Project aims landdominatedhyAcaciaxanthophloea. Thecentre Some bird species, eg barbets and hoopoes, use is adjacent to the lake, c20 km from Naivasha town cavitiesintreetrunks,earthbanksorwallsfornesting and is a base for environmental research, education and roosting. These cavities can be natural or artifi- and training around Naivasha. cial. Artificial nest-boxes have proved a valuable Another 25 boxes (24 small and one large) were conservation and educational tool in many parts of erected at Eisherman’s Camp. This is a resort. c3 km theworld^buttheiruseiscurrentlylimitedinKenya. fromElsamere StudyCentre, alsobythe lake, which The Naivasha area is one ofthe very few examples isfrequentedbytouristsandbirdv,'atchers. Thehabi- whereseveralfarmshaveerectednest-boxes,though tatisreasonablyundisturbed,beingwellgrassedand the exercise is purely out of casual interest by a wooded compared to the surroundings. Many bird handful ofpeople. species, especially insecth'ores, take ad\antage of DestructionofwoodlandsaroundLakeNaivasha this area. has greatly diminished potential breeding sites for LakeNaivasha nest-hoxproject, Kenya: Macharia BullABC Vo!9No 1 -47 Box preparation Parus alhiveutris and ^'hite-eyed Slaty Elycalcher Twosizesofboxwereconstructed: onesmall, meas- Melaenoniisfischeri. uring 10 cmX 10 cmx 15 cm and one large, 17cmx At Eisherman's Camp. Green Wood-Hoopoe 17 cmX60 cm. Bothwere treated externallywith oil Phoeniciiliispinpiireiis appeared to show greater to prolong their life and prevent ants, termites, rats, interest in the nest-boxes, carrying ne.sting materials snakes and bees from predating any occupantsv into them. But, such activity continued only for one Entryholeswere all atleast3.75 cmfromthe hinged week inJune and then ceased. SuKsequent monitor- roof, thereby leaving a substantial depth below it. ingdidnotre\’ealanyoccupancysuggestingongoing Hole diameter of the smaller boxes was 3.75 cm breeding, and noacti\e nestsoregg-layingactixities (targeted at smaller birds, eg woodpeckers and were obsened. As at Elsamere. no box has been barbets) and6.25 cmforlargerboxes(forhornbills). occupied. But hole diameters were also constructed to the Information is generally scarce concerning the smallest size feasible to avoid predation by African breeding seasons of these bird species, with most HarrierHawkPolyhoroidestypus,whichhaslonglegs perhaps nestingalmostyear-round""'. Most probably andcaneasilytake eggs ornestlingfromboxeswith the lack of interest in the boxes was related to the largeholes.Hornbillstypicallysealtheirnest-holesto birds being unfamiliar with such structures, rather a minimum followingegg laying, makingthis less of thanalackofinterestinbreeding. Euturemonitoring a problem. Moreover, the preseiwative used, being work should clarify this. dark, enhanced the boxes camouflage. Community awareness work Setting up nest boxes Boxes atElsamere were 6-8 m above ground, while I visited two primary schools, two high schools and thoseatEisherman’sCampwereusuallyhigher(above the local community, gixing talks concerning the projectandbirdconsenation ingeneral. Inaddition. 8 m) due to the availability ofa taller ladder. Boxes wereoftenplacedfacingawayfromthelake,inorder I issued books and magazines dealing with enxiron- mental con.senation issues. Wildlife Clubs at the toshieldtheentrancefromwindsthatregularlyblow fromthelatter, andtoprovidesomeshelterfromsun sptruidmyaisyitsecshwoiotlhs smheowaendd sfroemeelyianstseriesstti,ngx'mi)si’tiwngortkh,e and rain. Based on the growth ofgreen moss, it was especially siting the boxes. Eurthermore. they in- possible to determine where rainwater mainly ran down the trunk, making it possible to assess those fimopromretdatnhceelioncaelnxc'oimrmounnmietn)ta'lacboonustertxheatpiroonj.ecTthaencdhiilt-s trees and which side best suited placement of the dren’senthusiasmfortheprojectresultedinanumber nest-box. ofadults questioning me as to how they could con- Monitoring the boxes struct their own nest-box, and what measures they Icheckedeachboxforbreedingactivityatleastonce could take to curb (and possibly reverse) woodland every two days over the three-month period (June- destruction. Lastly, I erected ten posters, with rel- August 1999) that I was permanently stationed in evant information concerning the project, its aims Naivasha, observations being made at the two sites and detailing local conseiwation problems, at con- onconsecutivedays.Iusedbinocularstoobseiweany spicuous places around the study sites and public activity around the boxes from a hide cl5 m distant market places. fromthe relevanttree, forat least 15-20minutes per box. AfterAugust 1999, 1visitedeitheronceortwice Future work and monitoring a month, checking all boxes on each visit. Since Eachnest-boxhasbeenaccordeda numberthatwill January2000,boatmen-cum-birclguidesatbothstudy make for easy and accurate monitoring in future. sites have unsystematically checked the boxes for Observations are scheduled to continue for at least any signs ofbreeding activity. nine months. All activities by any bird species in or ResultsatElsameredemonstratethatseveralbird around the boxes will be recorded. Ifany breeding species showed some interest in the boxes, peering occurs, detailed obseiwations will be undertaken to into them from outside and occasionally entering. ascertain fledging success. I will also continue to However,noneasyethasoccupiedanyoftheboxes. surveyotherareas,educatepeopleaboutbirdsandit SpeciesobservedinvestigatingboxesincludeWhite- is hoped enhance awareness ofconservation issues headed Barbet Lyhiiis leucocephalus, Nubian affectingbirdsspecificallyinNaivashawherecavities Woodpecker Campethera nuhica, White-bellied Tit or nest-trees are scarce. 48-BullABC Vol9No 1 LakeNaivasha nest-hoxproject, Kenya: Macharia Acknowledgements References IthanktheAfricanBirdClubfortheawardtoestablish 1. Bennun, L.A and Njoroge, P. 1999. ImportantBird the project, and Elsamere Conservation Centre and AreasinKenya. Nairobi: EastAfricaNaturalHistory Fisherman’sCampfortheirsupport. DrLeonBennun Society. and Colin Jackson offered encouragement and ad- 2. DuFeu,C. 1993.Nestboxes.BTOGuide23.Thetford: vice. Special thanks to Mwangi Githiru, Paul Kariuki British Trust for Ornithology. and Anthony Kuria for their help in compiling this 3. Everard, M. 1998. Lake Naivasha expeditionarysci- report. Bernard Chege and Samuel Njoroge (local ence. FBANewsletter5. 4. Everard, M. 1999. ReturntoNaivasha.FBANewslet- bird guides) offered continuing monitoring assist- ter1. ance atElsamere and Fisherman’s Camp, and pupils 5. Fry, C.H., Keith, S. andUrban, E.K. (eds) 1988. The fromMvukeandDCKPrimarySchools,andNaivasha BirdsofAfric2i.Vol3. London, UK:AcademicPre.ss. Mixed Boarding Secondary School played various 6. Fry, C.H., Keith, S. andUrban, E.K. (eds) 2000. The roles. Finally, thisworkwouldhavebeenimpossible BirdsofAfrica.Vol6. London,UK:AcademicPress. without the special training offered to myself and 7. Urban,'E.'k., Fry, C.H. andKeith, S. (eds) 1997. The otherupcomingornithologistsbythe Departmentof BirdsofAfrica.Vol5. London,UK:AcademicPress. Ornithology, National Museums ofKenya, f) OrnithologyDepartment, NationalMuseums ofKenya P.OBox40658, Nairobi, Kenya. ^ Supported by ABC ConservationFund LakeNaivasha nest-boxproject, Kenya:Macharia BullABC Vol9Not -49