Whilst birdwatching in
the Tanoumah area, in the mountains of southwest Saudi Arabia, I came across a
very well camouflaged Anderson’s Rock Agama. This species is endemic to the
Arabian Peninsula, where it is found in west and south Arabia, from Taif (Saudi
Arabia) in the north to Dhofar (Oman) in the east. It is found to around 2,000
metres above sea level. It is common in Saudi Arabia where it is a rock
dwelling lizard mainly present in mountainous areas. Populations can be found
on vertical rocks, rock steps and amongst boulders where they appear to prefer
large boulders in the vicinity of water in precipitous wadis surrounded by
dense vegetation. They do not however require water, obtaining moisture from
their insect prey.
Jem's Birding & Ringing Exploits in the Eastern Province and elsewhere in Saudi Arabia
30 June 2017
28 June 2017
Cream Coloured Coursers – Jubail
Whilst birding Jubail
with Phil we came across two juvenile Cream-coloured Courser Cursorius cursor a locally common
breeding resident of all scrub desert areas, but a species not often seen due
to its habitat preferences. This was the first time I had seen the species in
Jubail although Phil had seen them there once before. They occur throughout
Saudi Arabia and in the Eastern Province, where I live, and breed in the
northern plains and on the Dibdibah north of 27 degrees N, preferring lightly
vegetated gravel and stony desert. During January and February a northerly
movement takes place across a broad front and in July to early September post
breeding dispersal occurs with juveniles accompanying adults in small flocks.
Nine were seen together at the edge of Dammam Airport Pools on 8th July 2011.
26 June 2017
Pied Avocet - Jubail
Whilst birding the Jubail area in
late June I found an adult Pied Avocet Recurvirostra
avosetta. Records at this time of year are scarce and always a pleasure to
see. The Pied Avocet is an uncommon migrant and winter visitor to all coasts.
Locally common along the southern Red Sea coast. Scarce inland but recorded at
Tabuk, Riyadh, Al Hassa and Abqaiq. Birds of the Riyadh Region (Stagg
1994) mentioned it as a passage migrant
and winter visitor in variable numbers. Passes March to mid-May and late August
to late October. Flocks of up to 40 have been recorded. Wintering groups of 10
plus now regular. In 1986 10 birds over-summered and two pairs nested in June
and produced young. In 1987 a pair again bred but the nest was preyed upon by
Brown-necked Ravens Corvus ruficollis. In the Eastern Province two pairs
attempted to breed at Abqaiq 1976 & 1982 and three pairs in 1983. Generally
a rather scarce visitor from August to March. Records throughout the year in
the Jubail area but records in summer less common.
24 June 2017
Striated Heron with Chicks in Bahrain – Record by Jehad Alammadi
Jehad Alammadi found the
first record of breeding Striated Heron for Bahrain when travelling offshore.
The bird was nesting between some poles in the seabed as shown previously.
Jehad went back to the site and managed to photograph both the eggs and the
eggs and chicks. Birds are uncommon in Bahrain and are vagrants to the Eastern
Province of Saudi Arabia. I thank Jehad for kindly allowing me to use his
photos and for informing me of this very important record.
22 June 2017
Egyptian Nightjar – Jubail
The Egyptian Nightjar Caprimulgus aegyptius is an uncommon
bird in Arabia although since 2006 birds have been located in the Eastern province
of Saudi Arabia near Jubail, every year in August with the highest count being fifteen
birds together in August 2015 & September 2017. Birds have been seen every
year since 2006 in Jubail with the earliest record on the 27 June 2014 until
this year when Phi Roberts and I found a bird sitting on the main track under a
bush on 16 June. There have been a number of early records this year including
in Dhahran in March and at Khafrah Marsh in April. Hopefully, birds will be
seen in larger numbers again through August and September as has occurred in
previous years.
20 June 2017
Collared Pratincoles – Jubail
Whilst birding the Jubail area, I
found and photographed three Collared Pratincoles Glareola
pratincola along the edge of a flooded area of Sabkha on 2 June 2017. This
is quite a late date for the species to be recorded in the Eastern Province of
the country. The Collared Pratincole is an uncommon passage migrant to the
Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, with a similar status in the Riyadh area
where they occur from late March to May and in August and September. During the
remaining summer months and in October it tends to be scarce and irregular. Records
are more common in the autumn than spring in Riyadh with autumn movement from
late July to late October, peaking late August to early September, when flocks
of 40 plus (mainly juveniles) are regularly encountered. In the southwest, west
and northwest of the country records are more common mainly at freshwater
inland areas where flocks of over 100 have been recorded at Tabuk.
18 June 2017
Breeding Striated Heron in Bahrain – Bird record by Jehad Alammadi
Jehad Alammadi found the first
record of breeding Striated Heron for Bahrain when travelling offshore. The
bird was nesting between some poles in the seabed. Birds are uncommon in
Bahrain a vagrant to the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia. Eastern Province
records include one remarkable inland record of a bird at Sabkha 40 on 30 May
2010 in the huge desert of the Empty Quarter. This is a species usually
associated with the coast of Arabia and had never been recorded this far inland
before and was the first record for eastern Saudi Arabia. It would have had to
be a migrant, but its position at Shaybah raises the interesting possibility
that it had travelled across eastern Arabia from the Arabian Sea en-route to
the Arabian Gulf. The only other Eastern Province records, were one in Al
Fanateer marina, Jubail on 15 February 2014 and one on 7 June 2015 at Sabkhat Al
Fasl, Jubail. The increase in records in recent years may mean that birds are
spreading northwards and the breeding record in Bahrain strongly supports this
theory.
16 June 2017
Little Terns – Jubail
Whilst birding the Jubail area I
came across a few Little Terns some of which had well grown young to feed. Some
were resting on the muddy edge of some sabkha and other flying around. I took
the opportunity to try to get a few flight shots of the birds as they flew
about with the best photos shown below. In the Eastern Province the Little Tern
is a common passage migrant and summer visitor that is scarce in the winter.
Care must be taken not to confuse it with the very similar Saunder’s Tern that
also occurs in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia in the summer and breeds on
offshore islands. It has bred in freshwater and brackish areas of eastern Saudi
Arabia and possibly the Red Sea also. Birds are scarce inland but have been
recorded in all areas including Riyadh.
14 June 2017
European Roller – Jubail
Whilst birding the Jubail area in
late May I came across two European Rollers of which one I was able to
photograph and is shown below. Saudi Arabia has three species of roller on the
country list. These are Indian Roller Coracias
benghalensis a vagrant, Abyssinian Roller Coracias abyssinicus a breeding resident of the southwest region of
the Kingdom and European Roller Coracias
garrulus a common passage migrant from March to May and again from mid-July
to late September when juveniles are also seen along with adults. Birds are
regularly seen in the Eastern Province in all areas but are not particularly
common in the Jubail area. They are seen almost every year in both spring and
autumn in very small numbers at this location but they are always good to see.
12 June 2017
Some late migrants– Jubail
Whilst birding the Jubail area in early June there
were still a few migrants around including over 30 Red-backed Shrikes, five
Spotted Flycatchers and a single late Pied Wheatear. Red-backed Shrike and
Spotted Flycatcher are typical late migrants with many records in June but Pied
Wheatear have normally passes by the end of May. I also saw a single
Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin a summer breeder, but a species rarely seen by me in
Jubail. Wader numbers have decreased markedly but a couple of Wood Sandpipers
were still about among the breeding Black-winged Stilts, Kentish Plovers and
Little Ringed Plovers.
10 June 2017
White-cheeked Tern breeding in Bahrain – Bird record by Jehad Alammadi
Jehad Alammadi found a number of nests of
White-cheeked Terns on the coast of Bahrain recently and managed to take a few
photos of the birds mating and sitting on the nest as well as of the eggs.
White-cheeked Terns breed in good numbers on offshore islands in the Gulf but
are less common breeding on the mainland. The island here we ring terns has
only five breeding pairs of White-cheeked Terns but 400-500 pairs of Bridled
Terns and 5000-6000 pairs of Lesser Crested Terns.
08 June 2017
Yellow-spotted Agama – Record by Saud Randhava
Saud Randhava kindly sent me a photo of a Yellow-spotted Agama Trapelus flavimaculatus he took recently
and has kindly allowed me to use on my website and is shown below. Copyright
remains with Saus. Yellow-spotted Agama are a medium sized lizard about 30
centimetres in length and are also known as Blue-headed Agama for obvious
reasons. Their tails are very long and thin and make up over half their body
length and they move extremely fast over the ground. The Yellow-spotted Agama
is a common species of lizard found in arid regions of the Middle East from
Egypt: North of the Eastern Desert & Northern Sinai to the Arabian Peninsula
including Saudi Arabia. They are readily distinguished from the Sinai agama
Pseudotrapelus sinaitus by their heavier build, rougher scales and the presence
of a gular sac that is darkened and inflated as a threat display. The ear
opening is smaller and its dorsal margin is partially covered by pointed
scales. In the summer these lizards often sit atop Acacia trees or prominent
rocks as a territorial display and to regulate their temperature. They are
quite aggressive with a mainly carnivorous diet of small insects. Their skin
colour varies from reddish-brown to olive‐green, and is
covered in a pattern of heavy yellowish-white spots. Their tails are normally
pale yellow; however, male Yellow-spotted Agamas have the ability to go from
this drab coloration to something much more vivid and spectacular. The dull
reddish-brownish-green skin turns vivid blue, and the pale yellow tail glows
brilliant flaming orange. Sometimes a male Agama will only change partially
turning just the underside of his head blue, for instance. The colour change
happens in seconds and fades just as quickly.
06 June 2017
Rose-coloured Starling on Taif to Riyadh road – Record by Saud Randhawa
Saud Randhava a local birdwatcher from Taif
recorded an adult Rose-coloured Starling Pastor
roseus whilst driving along the Taif to Riyadh road on 22 April approximately
500 kilometres from Riyadh. Rose-coloured Starling is a rare winter visitor to the
northern deserts and the Gulf region. It has been seen in the Harrat al Harrah
Reserve in May as well as in the North-west where one was seen at Yanbu
wastewater oasis 18 August 2000. Birds of Thumamah 1988-1994 state it is a scarce
early autumn migrant. Two juveniles in alfalfa fields 13 August 1989. Juvenile
11-14 September 1989. Two juveniles on dairy farm 20-22 August 1990. Six
juveniles in alfalfa fields 19-21 August 1993. The Birds of the Riyadh Region
(Stagg 1994) state is was a vagrant. 5 records only. 2 on 21 May and another on
28 May 1982 at Mansouriyah. 40 at the same location on 26 January 1990 (DM).
One was at Kharj fish and turf farm, Riyadh. In the Eastern Province it is a
rare migrant with less than twenty records. It has been seen from August to
October with a well marked peak in the second half of August almost all being
juveniles and single birds. There has only been on spring record at Abqaiq 1
May 1981. Records from the Eastern Province have
been from Abqaiq, Dhahran, Dammam and Haradh. I thank Saud for allowing me to use his details and photos my website.
04 June 2017
Breeding Little Terns in Bahrain – Bird record by Jehad Alammadi
Jehad was looking for chicks or eggs for the
Little Tern close to the area where the White Cheeked Tern gathers in Bahrain
at the start of the breeding season. He found them in the beginning of the
mating season when they were laying their eggs. Despite extensive searching he
only found one pair of Little Tern with their nest. He kept well awat from the
nest but was surprised that the bird leaves the nest well before anyone approaches.
The birds remained away for a relatively long time and then returned close to
the nest as many as ten times without sitting on the eggs. Finally they returned
to the eggs in the nest, which consists of a small hole with two large eggs
relative to the bird's small size. Little Tern does breed along the coast and
inland but I have never seen a nest of one, although I do not search for them
as hard as other people. I thank Jehad for sending me the details and allowing
me to use his photos on my website.
02 June 2017
A pretty good morning at Jubail – Bird records by Phil Roberts
Phil Roberts went to Jubail in May and had a
pretty good day there. He mentioned that Red-backed shrikes were out in force
and he saw a total of 22 birds. In addition he had four Lesser Grey Shrikes,
five Turkestan Shrikes and a Daurian Shrike.
Other migrants included Willow Warblers, a female Blackcap, three
Whinchat, four Common Redstart (all female), 10 Spotted Flycatchers, five
Common Whitethroat, one Upcher's Warbler, one Collared Pratincole, a solitary
Yellow Wagtail (flava), 20 European Bee-eaters and a Red-throated Pipit. Other interesting birds included a solitary
Marsh Harrier, two Eurasian Spoonbill, seven Little Bittern, one Rufous Scrub
Robin, a flock of 21 Common Greenshank and the first returning White-cheeked Terns
(approximately 10).
Whinchat |
White-eared Bulbul |
Turkestan Shrike |
Lesser Grey Shrike |
Common Whitethroat |
Common Greenshank |
Red-throated Pipit |
Spotted Flycatcher |
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