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  • Where to watch BIRDS and

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  • Photograph of Seychelles Blue-pigeon

    Seychelles Blue-pigeon on Mahe by Brian Field.

  • Where to watch birds and wildlife in
  • The SEYCHELLES

    Best Birds and other wildlife in the Seychelles

    Birds

    Endemics 12
    Seychelles Blue-pigeon, Seychelles Swiftlet, Seychelles Scops-owl, Seychelles Kestrel, Seychelles Parrot (Praslin and Curieuse), Seychelles Paradise-flycatcher (mainly La Digue and Denis), Seychelles Warbler, Seychelles Bulbul, Seychelles White-eye (Mahe and Conception), Seychelles Magpie-robin, Seychelles Sunbird and Seychelles Fody.

    Near-endemics

    Seychelles and Madagascar 2
    Souimanga Sunbird and Madagascar Cisticola.

    Seychelles, Madagascar and Comoros 2
    Madagascar Turtle-dove and Madagascar Bulbul.

    Seychelles, Madagascar, Comoros and Mayotte 1
    Madagascar White-eye.

    Other specialities
    Crab Plover and White Tern.

    Others
    Audubon’s and Wedge-tailed Shearwaters, Yellow Bittern, Black-crowned Night-heron, Striated Heron, Great and Lesser Frigatebirds, White-tailed Tropicbird, Brown and Lesser Noddies, and Bridled, Great Crested, Roseate and Sooty Terns. Also an outside chance of Red-footed Booby and Red-tailed Tropicbird. Introduced species include Zebra Dove, Common Myna and Madagascar Fody.

    Mammals
    Seychelles Fruit Bat.

    Reptiles, Amphibians and Fish
    Whale Shark (mostly September, and best looked for with the help of The Marine Conservation Society Seychelles who use spotter planes), coral reef fish, Green (mostly Apr-Sep) and Hawksbill (mostly Nov-Feb) Turtles, and Giant Tortoise (reintroduced).

    Photograph of Powder-blue Surgeonfish

    Powder-blue Surgeonfish in the Seychelles by Marie-France Grenouillet.

    Plants
    Over 100 plant species are endemic including the Coco de Mer (a palm tree which bears a fruit with the largest nuts of any plant in the world), the Seychelles Pitcher Plant and the Seychelles Vanilla Orchid.

    Best Sites for Birds and other wildlife in the Seychelles

    Best Times for Birds and other wildlife in the Seychelles

    The best time for Whale Sharks is usually September and most seabirds nest from May to September during the southeast monsoon, which is breezier, cooler, drier and less humid than the northwest monsoon which usually lasts from November/December to February/March and can be particularly wet from December to February. So the optimum time to visit for most birds is October when it is normally less wet and windy.

    Recommended Bird Books etc. for the Seychelles

    Wildlife of Seychelles by J Bowler. PUP, 2006.

    Birds of Seychelles by A Skerrett and T Disley. Helm, 2011 (Second Edition).

    Birds of Madagascar and the Indian Ocean Islands by F Hawkins et al. Helm, 2015.

    Birds of the Indian Ocean Islands by I Sinclair and O Langrand. Struik, 2013 (Revised Edition).

    The Birds of Africa Volume 8: The Malagasy Region by R Safford and F Hawkins. Helm, 2013.

    Underwater Guide to the Seychelles by C Mason-Parker and R Walton. John Beaufoy Publishing, 2015.

    Reef and Freshwater Fish of Seychelles: A Field Guide by O, J and R Gerlach. Phelsuma Press, 2014 (Second Edition).

    Birding and Wildlife Trip Reports for the Seychelles

    Many trip reports, some for the Seychelles, are posted on the websites listed here. On some of these websites some reports are independent and some are posted by tour companies who organize tours to the Seychelles. These tour companies and others also post their own reports on their websites, which are listed under 'Some Organized Tours to the Seychelles' below.

    Local bird and wildlife guides in the Seychelles

    The costs of organized tours partly reflect the quality of the tour leaders. Some leaders are certainly better than others and many companies claim their leaders are the best but even the best rely at least to some extent on the exceptional skills of the local guides they employ. If you are travelling independently, employing such local guides will greatly increase your chances of seeing the wildlife you wish to see.

    Accommodation for birders in the Seychelles

    Some Organized Tours for birds and other wildlife to the Seychelles

    There are many tour companies who organize tours to see mammals, birds, other wildlife and other natural wonders. The cost of these tours vary considerably according to such variables as the airlines used, the number of days the tours last, the number of sites visited, the number of people in the group (an important consideration if you wish to see such wildlife as rainforest mammals and birds), the number of tour leaders, the standard of accommodation and transport, and the percentage profit the company hopes to make. Generally, where the number of days tours last and the number of sites visited are similar, the cheapest tours are those that use the cheapest airlines, accommodation and local transport, that have the largest groups with the least number of leaders, and that make the least amount of profit. The most expensive tours tend to be those which are exceptionally long, use the most expensive accommodation (ridiculously lavish in some cases, even for single nights) and which make the most profit. Some tour costs partly reflect the quality of the tour leaders. Some leaders are certainly better than others and many companies claim their leaders are the best but even the best rely at least to some extent on the exceptional skills of the local guides they employ.

    While tour companies organize tours with set itineraries many also organize custom tours for individuals and private groups who instead of taking a tour with a set itinerary want to follow their own itinerary to suit their own personal tastes, whether it be mammals, birds, other wildlife, other natural wonders or even man-made attractions, or a mixture of them all. Many organized tours with set itineraries are also fast-paced and target as many species as possible, whether they are mammals, birds or other wildlife or everything, which usually leaves little time to enjoy the best sites and individual species, but on a custom tour those taking part can specify the pace and the sites and species they wish to concentrate on. Custom tours also suit people who like to travel with people they already know, rather than with a group of strangers, and they are popular with people with partners with different interests. Individuals, partners and small groups will almost certainly have to pay more for a custom tour than an organized tour with a set itinerary but a large group of friends may be able to travel for less than the price quoted for a set tour.

    Tour companies who run organized tours to the Seychelles include the following. Many of these also offer custom tours.