Viv Wilson a birder from Tabuk in the north west of Saudi Arabia sent me a few of his excellent photographs again last week. They contained many photographs for the wetland are he birds most of the time but also a few from the desert area he regularly goes to near Bajda. Viv regularly sees Sinai Rosefinch in this area, a bird with its entire Saudi Arabian range restricted to the north-west of the country. He managed to get a few good photos of the birds and mentioned the males are now in good red plumage. The birds seen in north-west Saudi Arabia are nominate synoicus who’s range is Sinai, north-west Arabia, Israel, and Jordan. They are small with the upper-part ground colour and sides of body rather dark drab-grey, with the pink and red of adult males being extensive, reaching the tips of both the upper and under tail-coverts.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgO1Tj75zbZ-75nCbP7U1jSBjwakGOR6_aARfsR3bBBamQa7NxMkPSrfMxWnXhSbINGbgOuUk2zKbTjssjkjBytd9SEtC1Oxf-TTWgtvfbB-AjzGIKAcVIeD_whVeIESXf0P5n5ncEe8JFq/s1600/Sinai_Rosefinch.jpg) |
Sinai Rosefinch - male |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgkNJPbiT6S38dW3BIwmoCkFc1qe3RW454_T0uNozKlbDFdw6SMn90kxf-wvzS6eR26GfHPPNuanf-ewP0zwZG_Ai___a4r9CG-Xrkfjh1q2WIvz1ESdXKli9mkfENnyrvdeWYQuHMEGwuX/s1600/Sinai_Rosefinch1.jpg) |
Sinai Rosefinch - male |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh2_1UnQXqZ4mc_SB-NkU0c5-Lh48McuM76YhKa8tckq1vefCiFLK27J4yUMOF61vUkhVlXL6QDoRBtiDWdhkrrV6ZWs24nD0nXDAv8t3LpOox4RvYWMtiDZgg3E6CljuOXKkVJor8Ndirn/s1600/Sinai_Rosefinch2.jpg) |
Sinai Rosefinch - female |
Whilst out there he also photographed a Montagu’s Harrier, a species I only saw for the first time in Saudi Arabia this spring and one I will be looking out for more carefully in amongst the few Pallid Harriers we have passing though each year. Viv managed to get a few very good photos of the bird, which if the two I saw were anything to go by is not an easy feat.
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEglh7HdUXf4UQKvCNzTsU48Yt_Uc_A6mv_0jpjuvG7DeSfI0EbMqgMF7pvmy4K8m6OI5ZiMAC0-0Z5as0JeZ0Dc-aTBUfdf5lC77EfXIl6MFcZChyAtbGvpTBLyzupwWj4DspvWjpRx7tFq/s1600/Montagu's_Harrier.jpg) |
Montagu's Harrier |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh0YEP3dMrZPjZ3bKNiXuiLef79IzFjS1_XEH4p7dKuM7yG6XpZlwHKlDoaWzF6cFMAksRPEIpC6E7Z2t7ViLFycIadckbwHT-97c7C9w41bbMdMQvXUWJ3vgkDAdn4yNEE-eL9GmyuJ6__/s1600/Montagu's_Harrier1.jpg) |
Montagu's Harrier |
![](https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh5fEwvdseC-LUCbIOzmaULB2fLbk7SZCWaZvbgLk0kDw3Yj4oV6SaYvDmpm_RWd8EEnGY5XLkHdD15drYM4s2p2CrvVg_IrDE5Qp-uiRlW1YawF-cfjZCfNZsFWd1RWeaSf5MLYaY9ibFH/s1600/Montagu's_Harrier2.jpg) |
Montagu's Harrier |