Herons – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

Whilst birding at Dhahran Waste Water Lake recently I sat down and took a few photos of the Herons that were around. I saw my first returning Black-crowned Night Herons as well as ten plus Grey Herons. Some Grey Herons spent the summer here but this is the time for migrant birds as well. Little Egrets and Western Reef Herons were around in small numbers and a single Purple Heron was also seen.

Western Reef Heron

Grey Heron

Grey Heron

Western Reef Heron

Black-crowned Night Heron - Adult

Black-crowned Night Heron - Adult

Black-crowned Night Heron - Juvenile

Black-crowned Night Heron - Adult

Black-crowned Night Heron - Adult

Black-crowned Night Heron

Black-crowned Night Heron - Juvenile

Lesser Sand Plover – Al Uqair

I photographed a few Lesser Sand Plover in October at Al Uqair and as this species has recently been split by the IOC it is now named Tibetan Sand Plover. This is because a recent paper using genetic analysis of the sand plover complex has concluded that Lesser Sand Plover should be treated as two species, not one. Siberian Sand Plover Charadrius mongolus, with subspecies mongolus and stegmanni and Tibetan Sand Plover Charadrius atrifrons, with subspecies atrifrons, pamirensis and schaeferi. In the Eastern Province it is mainly a winter visitor and passage migrant. In the 1980s it was abundant along the coast from August through May with smaller numbers of non-breeding immatures in June and July but now it is less common although still seen in good numbers. A count in January & February 1986 was estimated at 28,000 with the ICBP/NCWCD Waterbird Survey (November to December) 1991 - Mainly in Tarut Bay, counting a maximum of 2332 at Zur on 26 November. Kingdom wide it has the following status: Common migrant and winter visitor to the Gulf coast where a few are present throughout the summer. Uncommon migrant and winter visitor to the Red Sea coast. The only inland records are from Riyadh and Tabuk.

Pallid Swift – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

An early morning trip to Dhahran Waste Water Lake in Early October produced more Pallid Swift, dropping down occasionally to drink from the lake. These birds have been about for several weeks now with over twenty present now The species is a common passage migrant and breeder, common from late January to May, uncommon after this and only recorded again in good numbers from November. Breeding takes place in the winter months from November to April. 

Egyptian Nightjars - Dhahran Waste Water Lake

Whilst birding the Dhahran Waste Water Lake 12 October 2024, I came across five Egyptian Nightjars. The Egyptian Nightjar Caprimulgus aegyptius is an uncommon bird in Arabia, with ‘The birds of the Western Palearctic’ (Cramp 1985) mentioning they winter in north-east Africa and migrate on a broad front across Arabia from September to early November & March to mid-May. These birds fit this pattern, and the fact I have not seen any around the lake in recent years also suggests they are migrants rather than early wintering birds. As I am on foot whilst birding this area it is difficult to get close to the birds as they fly when they notice you. I did manage to see one before it saw me and got the below photos before it flew off. This species has become regular at certain locations during the summer months where they now breed, but records during migration and winter and much less common.

White-tailed Lapwing - Dhahran Waste Water Lake

Recently I located a White-tailed Lapwing Vanellus leucurus flying over the Waste Water lake. The bird did not stop and flew off towards the percolation pond but I could not relocate it. The species is unusual in Dhahran and the first time I have seen at the Waste Water Lake although I have seen on the spray fields and percolation pond previously. Migratory populations breed from Turkey and Jordan to southern Kazakhstan and winter 4,000 km south and southwest in Sudan, Pakistan, India and increasingly Arabia. It is a rare breeding resident, scarce winter visitor and uncommon passage migrant. They prefer brackish coastal pools, shallow tidal inlets, rainwater pools and wastewater lagoons where they feed on mainly insects and other invertebrates.

Rose-ringed Parakeets – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

Whilst checking out the birds at Dhahran Waste Water Lake recently and I saw a two Rose-ringed Parakeets Psittacula krameria fly over calling. They landed in a nearby tree out of sight but flew off shortly after landing allowing a few photographs to be taken. The species is a locally common resident in larger cities in Saudi Arabia. They are relatively common in Riyadh but outside the capital it is less frequent and rather scarce in the southwest. They are also a common resident to towns and villages of the Gulf, including my local patch of Dhahran and in Jeddah. They are probably an introduced species that have become a self-sustaining resident breeder although this is unclear as record keeping on birds of the region has not been so good over the years. Even though I see the species almost every day they remain difficult to photograph.

Golden Grass Mabuya – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

I saw a Golden Grass Mabuya Heremites septemtaeniatus in Dhahran recently that ran across a track but stopped under the nearby vegetation allowing me to take a few photographs. I have seen this lizard a few times here over the years but only running fast across tracks and never allowing photographs until this sighting. This species is known from Eritrea, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Iraq, Armenia, Azerbaijan, Iran and Turkmenistan. I have also seen this species in Dhahran where I live but although common, they are rarely seen.

Grey-headed Swamphen – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

An early morning trip to Dhahran Waste Water Lake recently produced two Grey-headed Swamphens. This is the first time I have seen the species here in over two years so was a very pleasant surprise. The favoured location for this species is in Jubail and our last visit showed the water levels very low and reed clearance occurring so maybe the birds are moving around trying to find more suitable habitat. It will be interesting to see if the stay or are joined by other birds over the next couple of weeks. There were very few other birds seen with a few Grey Herons and Great Cormorants about the best.

Grey-headed Swamphen

Grey-headed Swamphen

Grey Heron

Great Cormorant

Great Cormorant

Yellow Wagtails – Dhahran Football Fields

Whilst birding the Dhahran Hills Cricket and football Fields in mid-September I found several hundred Yellow Wagtails allowing close views and photos to be taken. They varied in plumage considerably and there was more than one sub-species present but the most common appeared to be flava. The Yellow Wagtail is a common passage migrant with various subspecies occurring, but they are much commoner in the spring than the autumn. Autumn numbers are still relatively high with tens of birds generally seen during the migration period from late August until late October. This is the first time I have seen this high a number of birds together hopefully indicating a good autumn to come.