Birds of Saudi Arabia: White-tailed Lapwings & Squacco Herons breeding at Tabuk?

14 June 2014

White-tailed Lapwings & Squacco Herons breeding at Tabuk? – Bird records by Viv Wilson

Viv sent me an update and a few of his photos from Tabuk taken last week that he has kindly allowed me to use on my website. Viv mentioned six White-tailed Lapwings were hanging around that he had not seen before and thinks they may have bred there? This would be a great record if proved as Mike Jennings Atlas of Breeding Birds of Arabia has the species as ‘Has bred eastern Saudi Arabia and UAE wetlands, otherwise a widespread but scarce migrant’. Tabuk is in the northwest of the country well away from the Eastern province. Viv also photographed a number of Squacco herons including some in full breeding plumage that may also have bred at the wetland site? Again this species has only been recorded breeding occasionally in the Eastern province and the Riyadh area but not in Tabuk. Viv saw Egyptian Nightjars here last year but failed to locate any this trip although it may be a little early in the year for them to be about in numbers as we normally see them in the Eastern Province in July and August.