[IMAGE1] Let me make one thing clear. I am not, never have been and never will be a bird nerd. You will never find me posting smug field notes on the Internet. Nor would I stake my soul on the merest glimpse of that one elusive species that would bring my tally of sightings up to champion twitcher level. Yet here I am, deep in the Gambian bush, binoculars in hand, striding (as silently as I can manage) through grasses spiked with evil burrs, buzzing with excitement because I was able to identify (without even referring to the "bird bible" that's weighing down my bag) the precise species of hornbill that just flapped and glided across the path.

My companion and mentor in all things ornithological is a walking version of said bible - he co-wrote it. Clive Barlow is a professional ornithologist who came to The Gambia from Britain in 1985 and decided to stay. His book on Senegambian birds is referred to by everyone with any serious interest in the subject. More recently, he and his associates have created a set of CDs of Senegambian bird calls, and while talking about this, Clive whistles to himself, endearingly, halfway through a sentence. It's a bit like chatting to a bilingual who keeps, absent-mindedly, throwing a phrase from his other language into the conversation. The birdsong CDs are the result of seven years' worth of field recordings and include the characteristic calls of 265 of the 560-odd species found in this part of West Africa. While about two-thirds of these breed in The Gambia, around 150 are migrants which, like their human counterparts, head down from Europe to this hospitable country in the winter months. I've begun to understand why The Gambia feels little need to apologise for its lack of big game. The country may not be blessed with sweeping savannahs teeming with elephant, lion and wildebeest, but it does have gorgeous, conspicuous birds in abundance. And the absence of dangerous predators makes the countryside accessible to enthusiasts wishing to explore on foot.

The Gambia's attraction for birdwatchers is sealed by the fact that this tiny country contains a remarkable diversity of habitats, many within easy travelling distance of each other. It's possible to take in mangrove creeks, riverine forest, rice fields, the Atlantic shore and the interesting middle reaches of the River Gambia, all during a short stay. Your explorations can be as rugged as you choose, but wherever you end up there'll always be a village within ten miles and, with few hills, no jungle (just tropical woodland) and only nine dangerous species of snake, the terrain is pretty easy-going.

It's not unusual for tourists to come for a beach holiday and leave with a brand new interest in birds. If you choose a hotel with a bird-friendly garden, getting into birdspotting is as easy as stepping onto your verandah. As long as there's water, food, flowers or just a convenient perch nearby, there will always be a cheerful showing of jewel-bright birds fluttering and twittering about, as tame as sparrows.

Just about every such garden is visited by little gems like the tiny red and brown Firefinch and its frequent companion the Red-cheeked cordon-bleu, which looks the same model but with a different paint job (sky blue with a jaunty scarlet spot on each cheek). Dipping into the hibiscus flowers will be sunbirds, West Africa's answer to the hummingbird, with delicate curved beaks and gorgeous plumage. Hanging from tall bamboo stands or palm fronds may be the knot-like nests of weavers: scruffy, gregarious black and yellow birds of which The Gambia has several species. Then there are the raucous gaggles of long-tailed glossy starlings, which look a bit like common starlings dressed for a night out, with fabulous iridescent blue-green wings and show-off tails. With a little patience, you're very likely to see more. Serious birdwatchers will typically clock up sightings of over a dozen different species within an hour of arriving at their hotel.

The next step is to head out into the countryside. Rich though it is in species, the Gambian bush is not a-flutter with rarities, so if you've reached the point where firefinches, cordon-bleus and starlings seem mundane, the answer is to seek the assistance of somebody who knows where to go, and when, and what you're likely to find there. With over a third of The Gambia's visitors expressing an active interest in birds, it's hardly surprising that there are plenty of resourceful individuals keen to offer their services as guides. A good guide will know exactly which species are most likely to be feeding or roosting in which location, and how to get you there.

Apparently a good way to suss out guides' credentials is to get them to call a specific bird with a whistle that mimics the bird's call. If a guide can call up a particular species in just a few minutes and can throw calls back and forth with the bird in a convincingly conversational sort of way, then he or she may be worth hiring. Obviously they need to be able to communicate well with you too - some guides are brilliant birders but hesitant English-speakers.

If all goes superbly and you're well and truly bitten by the birdwatching bug, your next plan might be to return to The Gambia on a birdwatching tour. Some organised trips offer tempting predictions of the total number of species (generally in the hundreds) likely to be spotted over the course of the week or fortnight, in the hope, presumably, of making themselves irresistible to diehard bird nerds. If you're not into ticking things off on lists then don't be put off - if you decide you'd like to study the behaviour of just a handful of species, then a well-run trip may be able to accommodate this. And of course there's more to birding in The Gambia than just birds - you also get to walk, breathe fresh air, enjoy the wilderness and mess about in boats.

As The Gambia's drive to promote itself as an eco-tourism destination gathers pace, it's hopeful that opportunities for birding will increase. Habib Drammeh, Director General of the Gambia Tourism Authority, believes that "encouraging more tourists to visit upcountry Gambia, beyond the coastal resorts, could bring major benefits in terms of poverty alleviation".

Birdwatchers, in turn, have a vital role to play in the preservation of habitats that are under threat. One of Clive Barlow's contributions to the long-term health of his adoptive environment is that he was instrumental in setting up The Gambia's first gazetted bird reserve, near Tanji. Its future depends on the ongoing commitment of both Gambians and foreign visitors. For now, The Gambia's bird population appears to be flourishing. Long may it continue to do so.
Emma Gregg is co-authoring the forthcoming Rough Guide to The Gambia. She has contributed to numerous guidebooks, including the Rough Guides to Kenya and West Africa.


The Gambia's Top Ticks

Yellow penduline tit It's minuscule - at under 8cm, this tubby little bird is one of the smallest in Africa.
Exclamatory paradise whydah It dresses to impress - the male grows extravagant tail feathers three times as long as his body during the breeding season (then drops them).
Egyptian plover It's a "must-see", inspiring keen birdwatchers to travel upcountry all the way to Basse. Between August and February, this distant stretch of the River Gambia is the easiest location in the world to find this unmistakable wader.
White-crested tiger heron It's rare - this impressively marked, secretive bird is not found outside West Africa and in The Gambia it has only ever been seen in a single mangrove creek.
Indigobird It's sneaky - the female lays her eggs in the nests of firefinches and the gaping beaks of the young mimic those of their nestmates so perfectly that the mother firefinch unwittingly feeds them as her own.
Blue-bellied roller It's flashy - when it spreads its wings it displays eye-catching bands of pale blue.
Osprey It's a master hunter - though rare in Britain, ospreys are relatively common on Gambian waters. The sight and sound of one splashing down feet first then soaring off with a fish in its talons is truly spectacular.
Greater painted snipe It's a rule-breaker - it's the male, not the female, that incubates the eggs and is therefore much drabber in colour, for camouflage; the female is strikingly marked and will mate with several males.
Yellow-crowned gonolek It's a diva - the male and female sing perfect antiphonal duets.
African finfoot It's elusive - tricky to find, because it's shy and favours quiet riverbanks and tangled streams, this bird comes top of many birdwatchers' wish lists.

Further Information
Bird Song of The Gambia and Senegal, a set of 3 CDs, is published by Mandarin Productions (www.mandarinproductions.com).
A Field Guide to Birds of The Gambia and Senegal (Barlow, Wacher, Disley) is published by Pica Press, UK (ISBN 1-873403-32-1).
Contact Clive Barlow: