Conservationists begin bird census exercise around Lake Ol-Bolosat

The 14 teams comprise volunteers, experts and officers from the Kenyan Wildlife Service (KWS) who are conducting these counts through careful observation and identification of waterbirds in their natural habitats within the lake and its shores.

According to Nyandarua KWS Game Warden Paul Wambugu and George Ndung’u, a bird expert, the exercise is meant to track population sizes, biodiversity, and habitat health, aiding conservation efforts for threatened species.

Bird watchers, also called birders, are observing birds in their natural habitats using tools such as binoculars and just their eyes and ears to identify species and learn behavior.

Conservationists rely on bird censuses as a critical, science-based tool to track population trends, species distribution, and ecosystem health, providing early warnings on environmental degradation.

These are structured surveys and data collection uses methods like point counts and transects to monitor breeding of resident and migratory birds.