Imagine thousands of birders across a country, all heading out on the same day with one goal: to record as many bird species as possible in 24 hours. That’s Global Big Day — and on 9 May 2026, Kenya delivered a performance that put it at the top of Africa.
The results
- Kenya: 824 species — 1st in Africa, 7th in the world
- Tanzania: 708 species — 2nd in Africa
- Uganda: 555 species — 3rd in Africa
- Colombia: 1,566 species — 1st worldwide
- India: 835 species — 6th worldwide, just 11 ahead of Kenya
- Worldwide: 8,023 species — a new record
To put Kenya’s score in perspective: 824 species is more than many countries record in an entire year.
What is Global Big Day?
Global Big Day is a worldwide birding event run through eBird, the citizen-science platform from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. Anyone can take part — from seasoned listers to complete beginners in their back garden. Every checklist submitted adds to a massive snapshot of the world’s birds on a single day, which scientists use to track where species are and how populations are changing.
There are two big days each year: one in May and the October Big Day in autumn.
How did Kenya score so high?
- Incredible habitat variety. Within a day’s drive you can go from coral coast to snow-capped mountain, from desert to rainforest, from soda lakes to papyrus swamps. Each habitat adds its own birds.
- A passionate birding community. Groups like Nature Kenya, Kenya Women Birders and local bird clubs spread out across the country, covering sites from Arabuko Sokoke to Kakamega Forest.
- Timing. May falls in the long rains, when many resident birds are breeding, singing and easy to find.
- Great guides. Kenya’s professional bird guides know exactly where to find tricky species — which is precisely what you need on a day when every bird counts.
How you can take part next time
- Download eBird (and Merlin, the free ID app) before the day.
- Pick your patch. A park, a garden, a lakeshore — anywhere counts.
- Submit complete checklists of everything you see and hear.
- Join a group or hire a guide to boost your total and learn faster.
- Add records to Kenya Bird Map, a national atlas project that tracks bird distributions across the country.
Plan your own Kenya “big day”
You don’t need to wait for May. On our Nairobi Birding Blitz we cover Nairobi National Park, Ngong Forest and the Athi River plains in three days — perfect for building a serious Kenya list fast. Read about Kenya’s top-ranked birding parks, or tell us your target species and we’ll design a trip around them.
Source: The Star; eBird Global Big Day.
