Itinerary:

 After arrival at Antananarivo (Tana), we will find our first common endemics before we fly north-west to Mahajunga, and drive on to Ampijoroa. Residents include Lesser Vasa Parrot, Crested Drongo, Madagascar Magpie Robin, Sakalava Weaver, Madagascar Hoopoe, Madagascar Paradise Flycatcher, Madagascar Green Pigeon and Madagascar Turtle Dove. Sickle-billed and Madagascar Blue Vangas move along the forest fringes, and Torotoroka Scops Owl calls at night. Other denizens include White-breasted Mesite, Schlegel’s Asity, Van Dam’s Vanga, and Red-capped and Coquerel’s Couas. Eight species of Lemur occur here. We will also visit Betsiboka Delta, home to two of Madagascar’s rarest birds, Bernier’s Teal and Bernier’s Ibis.

The moist rainforest at Perinet hosts such specials as Madagascar Flufftail, the elusive Madagascar Wood Rail, Madagascar Blue Pigeon, Greater Vasa Parrot, Madagascar Cuckoo, Madagascar Spinetail, Madagascar Pygmy Kingfisher, Madagascar Cuckoo-shrike, Ward’s Flycatcher, Tylas, Madagascar Starling, Long-billed and Spectacled Greenbuls, White-throated Oxylabes, Nelicourvi Weaver and Souimanga Sunbird. Of the five charismatic endemic families, some, such as the ubiquitous Madagascar Cuckoo-Roller, Pitta-like Ground-Roller, Common Sunbird-Asity and a number of the Vangas are reasonably common and regularly encountered. We will make a special effort to find as many others as possible, including Red-fronted and Blue Couas, Velvet Asity, and flocks of Vangas that may include White-headed, Chabert’s, Madagascar Blue, Red-tailed, Hook-billed, Pollen’s, or the bizarre Nuthatch Vanga.

If we are lucky, we may locate forest rarities such as Dusky Greenbul or Red-tailed Newtonia. Highland marshes support the very rare Slender-billed Flufftail. Madagascar Rail, Madagascar Snipe and Madagascar Swamp Warbler are more likely, and we may find Madagascar Partridge and Buttonquail in scrubby areas. At nearby Mantadia, we will look for the restricted-range Red-breasted Coua and Scaly Ground-Roller.

At Anjozorobe, we will search for the secretive Madagascar Wood Rail, Red-tailed Newtonia, Pitta-like and Short-legged Ground Rollers, Brown Emutail, Crossley’s Babbler, Grey-crowned Greenbul, Yellow-browed Oxylabes and Common Sunbird Asity. In the afternoon we will visit the wetlands, where we have a good chance of finding the rare Meller’s Duck, Madagascar Little Grebe, Snipe and Rail. If we are very fortunate we may even find the extremely rare Slender-billed Flufftail.

Returning to Tana, we fly to Fort Dauphin and then on to Berenty, the famous Lemur reserve. After close-encounters with the mammals here, we move on to Ifaty, in the bizarre spiny-forest, in search of such spectacular endemics as Banded Kestrel, Running and Green-capped Couas, Archbold’s Newtonia, Thamnornis, Subdesert Brush Warbler and Lafresnaye’s Vanga. Two very special birds here are the near mythical Sub-desert Mesite, which we may find adopting its strange, cryptic posture on a thorny branch, and the Long-tailed Ground-Roller. Flocks of noisy Sickle-billed Vangas are another feature.

Our next locations are the offshore island of Nosy Ve and its adjacent coastline, and La Mangrove. Here we will seek out Madagascar Heron, Littoral Rock Thrush, Verreaux’s Coua and the recently discovered Red-shouldered Vanga, as well as breeding Red-tailed Tropicbirds. The highly endangered Appert’s Greenbul will be sought at Zombitse, as we head for Isalo, home to Madagascar Harrier-Hawk, White-throated Rail, small flocks of Grey-headed Lovebirds, Stripe-throated Jeries and the region’s special bird, Benson’s Rock Thrush. Before returning to Tana, we also visit Ranomafana for the highly localised Yellow-bellied Sunbird-Asity. In the lower elevation forest, we hope to find Madagascar Crested Ibis, Henst’s Goshawk, the elusive Brown Mesite, Common Sunbird-Asity, Grey-crowned Greenbul, Yellow-browed Oxylabes, Forest Rock Thrush, Wedge-tailed Jery, and Rufous and Pollen’s Vangas. We shall also bird some stunted ridge-top forest where we may locate Red-fronted Coua, the elegant Rufous-headed Ground-Roller, the highly elusive Brown Emutail, Rand’s and the recently discovered Cryptic Warblers, Pollen’s Vanga and, if we are lucky, Madagascar Cuckoo Hawk.