Banc d'Arguin, which I visited earlier on this trip, and Djoudj Bird Sanctuary are crucial for conserving migratory waterbirds in West Africa. Banc d'Arguin is particularly important as a wintering site, while Djoudj is known for its breeding colonies. Another difference with Banc d’Arguin is that it isn’t coastal but an inland wetland centered around a lake. It is more focused on flamingoes and pelicans instead of waders.

I went there with a driver from Saint-Louis. The journey is best done with a 4WD as the road is mostly unpaved and has lots of potholes, but we encountered a few regular orange taxis as well (they will drive very slowly). We managed to reach the park entrance after 1h15mins. Along the way, the driver pointed out the rice fields (now dry but functional in the summer months), the Peul villages, and the Mauritanian fishermen crossing the Senegal River that forms the border. We also saw our first animals – a troop of patas monkeys crossing the road.

Upon entering the park we passed a lake with groups of flamingoes – we wouldn’t see this species again. After the park formalities (one has to pay for the car and for the foreign tourist), another 20 min drive remained to the boat landing. Here I joined two French couples and a bird guide in a small but covered motorboat. Our first pelicans were floating around this pool of water already. 

It turned out that the Great White Pelicans are the stars of the show in Djoudj. There are other species, of course, lots of cormorants (3 species), herons, and jacanas and we saw a fish eagle. A monitor lizard swam across the stream and underneath our boat, and warthogs could be seen on the dry land. But the Wow-moments came from the Pelicans. Twice. I have sort of a rule in rating WHS that if there is a Wow-moment, the site will get 4 stars – so here we go. They feed in large groups on the water and fly out again full-force in a V-shaped pattern. And they nest in their thousands on a smelly mudbank in the middle of the park. That’s really a sight to behold, all male and female Pelicans huddled together protecting their young (lower photo).