01 July 2015

Eurasian Griffon Vultures - Tanoumah Park

Tanoumah Park is positioned along the edge of the main escarpment and is reached by taking a left turn at the main junction in Tanoumah town. The park has a parking area with picnic tables and some trees and grass. The rocky edge of the escarpment has had Yemen Serin previously and is an excellent place to see Fan-tailed Raven and Eurasian Griffon Vulture flying over these cliffs. We had good views of two Eurasian Griffon Vultures flying over as well as locating a single bird sitting on the high rock face. This species is declining rapidly, with this location probably the best site in the Kingdom for seeing this species. The species is an uncommon, resident breeder, in the mountains of western Saudi Arabia with a few scarce records elsewhere in the Kingdom. In the Eastern Province where I live it is a vagrant with six records of seven birds.
Eurasian Griffon Vulture
Eurasian Griffon Vulture
Eurasian Griffon Vulture
Eurasian Griffon Vulture 
Fan-tailed Raven
Fan-tailed Raven