Birding Tour São Tomé and Príncipe: Endemic Birding Adventure

The scenically spectacular equatorial islands of São Tomé and Príncipe, situated in the Gulf of Guinea, boast 28 endemic birds and several distinct subspecies! Needless to say, they are a “must visit” location for any serious world birder. These islands are rarely visited by birders and give a big sense of adventure and can be combined with our equally adventurous (and just as exciting) Angola birding tour.

Sao Tome Fiscal is one of the many endemics that we will search for on this birding tour.

We no longer have to do any camping to stand a chance of finding our targets and will be birding with knowledgeable and experienced local guides. The rainforest-clad volcanic slopes of these islands make for amazing birding. Many of the endemics are nice and easy (e.g. Sao Tome Paradise Flycatcher, Principe Weaver, and Sao Tome Weaver), while some, such as the recently described Principe Scops Owl, along with Principe Thrush, Principe White-eye, Sao Tome Olive Pigeon, Sao Tome Shorttail, Sao Tome Grosbeak, Sao Tome (Dwarf Olive) Ibis, and Sao Tome Shrike require a fair bit more effort (both physically and birding) to get to grips with, but we will endeavor to see all 28 of the endemics during this comprehensive São Tomé and Príncipe birding tour. Two of the other endemic birds to get excited about include Giant Sunbird and Giant Weaver, which, as their names suggest, are both huge! Another interesting endemic is Dohrn’s Warbler (Dorhn’s Thrush-Babbler), which has an interesting taxonomical history.

São Tomé is the larger island and has a population of just under 200,000 people, whereas Príncipe is smaller with only 5,000 people. You will enjoy the friendly atmosphere and idyllic setting – a combination of stunning beaches and well-forested mountains. Both islands have decent tourist infrastructure (we recommend flying in from Lisbon, Portugal and out via Luanda, Angola if you plant to combine the tours). Accommodation is of a good standard on São Tomé and a very good standard on Príncipe. Food on both islands is excellent and adds nicely to the tour experience. We fly between the islands and take some boat trips to aid us getting around these remote islands.

Principe Scops Owl was only described in 2022 and we will hike into the forest while on Príncipe to look for this key and tough endemic bird.