Sharpe’s Longclaw Macronyx sharpei
Magumu (north of Nairobi), Kenya. June 2008

Occasionally I get a ’sharp’ reminder that while I’m flying around the world having a great time and building up a reasonable year-list, some of the very birds that I’m fortunate enough to go looking for are declining rapidly and are seemingly heading unstoppably towards extinction.

One such species is a bird I saw in a small area of high altitude tussock-grassland outside Nairobi, Kenya on my trip there a few weeks ago: the Endangered* Sharpe’s Longclaw. A medium-sized pipit-like species, there are estimated to be between just 10,000 - 19,000 individuals left and the entire world range of this lovely bird is the rapidly disappearing native grasslands of south-western Kenya (see map left): in fact, according to BirdLife International, the bulk of the population is now centred in just three locations.

‘Almost nothing is known about this species outside the Kinangop plateau, meaning that virtually nothing is known about the longclaw in about 90% of its (theoretical) range. The Bird Atlas of Kenya lists a small number of records from various locations (Mt Kenya, the Aberdares, Mt Elgon, Mau Narok, Eldoret), but almost all these records are more than 50 years old and have not been confirmed in recent decades’ (Luca Borghesio, Sharpe’s Longclaw researcher, pers comm August 2008).

A Sharpe’s Longclaw stands amongst the tussocks of a field

The causal factor behind the decline of the Sharpe’s Longclaw is - almost inevitably - human: ie habitat clearance for livestock and timber production by farmers. The longclaw’s grassland habitat (currently estimated to now cover between just one-third and half of its historical extent) is being replaced by cultivation and woodlots, driven by the settlement of small-scale farmers. Where the grasslands are left to grow, the tussocks which the birds use for nesting are often grubbed out as they are unpalatable to the cattle the farmers rear. Again according to the BirdLife website around 60% of tussock grasslands are highly fragmented because they are found in small land parcels (2-10 ha) divided amongst small-holders: populations of Sharpe’s Longclaw are themselves therefore increasingly fragmented, which effects breeding success.

Turning around the decline of grassland birds like Sharpe’s Longclaw is extremely difficult. It requires finding out exactly where the remaining birds are, raising awareness at the local level, and preserving the extant habitat (which generally means purchasing the land for reserves, or entering into costly management programmes with land-owners) - and ultimately restoring heavily grazed or cleared habitat to its original state, something that must be almost impossible giving the rapid growth of human populations in the region and the demands for meat and wood for fuel and housing.

There seems to be few photographs of this little-known bird on the net, so hopefully the images that follow may act to raise awareness of the species:

It’s a sobering thought that I might be amongst the last generation of birders to see a Sharpe’s Longclaw wandering around its natural habitat outside the boundaries of a reserve, as it has done for thousands of years previously.

(*Reference 2007 IUCN Red List of Threatened Species)

There are of course organisations working to protect or to promote awareness of Sharpe’s Longclaw and the following websites will be of interest:

• BirdLife International
• Nature Kenya - the BirdLife partner in Kenya
• Nature Kenya/Friends of Kinangop Plateau
• African Bird Club

Also see http://www.africanbirdclub.org/feature/maunarok.html

I’m also personally convinced that if overseas birders would like to see a Sharpe’s Longclaw hiring local guides is the best way to do it. Not only do they know where the birds are of course, but they have a personal involvement in protecting the species. I saw this bird with Shailesh Patel and George Kamau both of whom spent time explaining to the young Kenyan lads who were watching me watching the longclaw why I was there and how important ‘their’ field was to its survival. To me this added to the experience immensely, and I’d like to recommend both guides to anyone visiting Nairobi.

Photographs copyright Charlie Moores
Range-map copyright BirdLife International

UPDATE August 2008:
Just six weeks after seeing this beautiful and very rare bird I’m very proud to announce that 10,000 Birds has become an official partner with the National Museums of Kenya in a fund-raising effort to both survey and promote awareness of the Sharpe’s Longclaw.

We’re aiming to raise 2000USDollars, and it’s interesting to note that if every visitor to 10,000 Birds were to each donate just ONE dollar we could raise the total amount in two days!