Arabian Partridge – Raydah Escarpment

Whilst birding the Raydah Escarpment I came across a calling Arabian Partridge Alectoris melanocephala. Later on driving further down the escarpment I found some additional birds on the rocky roadside. This is a common resident of the south-west highlands, especially steep wooded hillsides of the western escarpment of Jebal Souda, the Raydah Protected Area, Tanoumah and the Al Baha area. They prefer juniper dominated habitats where rocky knolls & clearings occur.  It has also been recorded at terraced fields on the Souda Plateau and feeds mainly on plant material, seeds and insects. They are much larger than other Alectoris species with the sexes being similar, although females are slightly smaller. They have a black crown extending down the nape; a broad white band begins in front of the eye and extends to the back of the head. The chin and upper throat are also white and are separated from the white above the eye by a narrow black band that starts at the bill, extends to the cheek and forms a "V" on the neck. The sides of the neck are pastel brown and the rest of the plumage is bluish grey with pronounced barring on the sides.

Arabian Partridge – Abha area

Whilst birding recently in the Abha area I came across a pair of Arabian Partridge Alectoris melanocephala. Thisis a common resident of the south-west highlands, especially steep wooded hillsides of the western escarpment of Jebal Souda, the Raydah Protected Area, Tanoumah and the Al Baha area. They prefer juniper dominated habitats where rocky knolls & clearings occur.  It has also been recorded at terraced fields on the Souda Plateau and feeds mainly on plant material, seeds and insects. They are also common in the Tihama region at Jebal Aswad and Jebal Gaha and can be found from 250 – 2800 metres elevation. They are much larger than other Alectoris species with the sexes being similar, although females are slightly smaller. They have a black crown extending down the nape; a broad white band begins in front of the eye and extends to the back of the head. The chin and upper throat are also white and are separated from the white above the eye by a narrow black band that starts at the bill, extends to the cheek and forms a "V" on the neck. The sides of the neck are pastel brown and the rest of the plumage is bluish grey with pronounced barring on the sides. 

Birding the Raydah Escarpment near Abha – Bird records by Munzir Khan

Munzir went birding to the southwest of the Kingdom on 27 June and went to the Raydah Escarpment. This is a site near Abha and is the best place to see Arabian Partridge first thing in the morning along the roadside. Driving down the escarpment is good but the road is very steep. Common endemics seen at this site include Yemen Linnet, Yemen Thrush and Arabian Wheatear along the roadside. Arabian Serin can be seen at the farm and the village at the bottom of the escarpment. Munzir sent me some of his photos taken there and has kindly allowed me to use them on my website some of which are shown below.

Arabian Partridge

African Grey Hornbill

Blackstart

Cinnamon Breasted Bunting

Little Rock Thrush

White-spectacled Bulbul

Early morning down the Raydah Escarpment – Abha

Whilst in the Asir Mountains recently I went down the Raydah Escarpment early in the morning. This is the best place and best time to try to locate Arabian Partridge and as normal I was not disappointed with a number of birds calling and a couple seen on the roadside. A stop at the disused farm was relatively good with good views of Abyssinian White-eye and plenty of other resident species. Further down I had a party of four Arabian Waxbills an Arabian endemic species that is far from easy to see and several Laughing Doves.

Arabian Partridge

Arabian Waxbill

Abyssinian White-eye

Laughing Dove

Arabian Partridge

Arabian Partridge Alectoris melanocephala is a common resident of the south-west highlands, especially steep wooded hillsides of the western escarpment of Jebal Souda, the Raydah Protected Area, Tanoumah and the Al Baha area. They prefer juniper dominated habitats where rocky knolls & clearings occur.  It has also been recorded at terraced fields on the Souda Plateau and feeds mainly on plant material, seeds and insects. They are also common in the Tihama region at Jebal Aswad and Jebal Gaha and can be found from 250 – 2800 metres elevation. In 1987 it was a widespread and not uncommon species and there seems to have been little change in its status since then. They are much larger than other Alectoris species with the sexes being similar, although females are slightly smaller. They have a black crown extending down the nape; a broad white band begins in front of the eye and extends to the back of the head. The chin and upper throat are also white and are separated from the white above the eye by a narrow black band that starts at the bill, extends to the cheek and forms a "V" on the neck. The sides of the neck are pastel brown and the rest of the plumage is bluish grey with pronounced barring on the sides.

Raydah Escarpment – Abha

Whilst in Abha I went to the Raydah Escarpment a designated nature reserve run by the Saudi Wildlife Authority (SWA). This is a well-vegetated section of escarpment dropping down steeply from the top near the ranger’s station to a small village and a large wadi at the bottom. Most of the endemics occur in the reserve and I saw Arabian Waxbill, Arabian Partridge, Arabian Serin, Yemen Thrush and Yemen Linnet around the farm area near the top of the reserve. Other good birds seen include Dusky Turtle Doves, Palestine Sunbirds, Little Rock Thrushes, Little Swifts and Abyssinian White-eyes. At the bottom of the reserve near the village Shinning Sunbirds, Blackstart’s and Green Bee-eaters were all seen in good numbers. One of the rangers mentioned he had seen an Arabian Magpie in the reserve the day before near the mosque on the side of the main road. This is the first time I know of one being seen here since 2010. I failed to find Olive Pigeon, however, despite walking up and down many kilometres of road looking. This species is sometimes seen at this location but I am still yet to see it in Saudi Arabia. A few Fan-tailed Ravens and a Himalayan Griffon Vulture were flying over as were a couple of Common Kestrels.

African Stonechat

Arabian Partridge 

Arabian Serin

Brown Woodland Warbler

Dusky Turtle Dove

Fan-tailed Raven

Palestine Sunbird

Red-breasted Whearear

Shining Sunbird

Violet-backed Starlings

Yemen Linnet - male

Yemen Linnet - male

Arabian Partridge – Asir Mountains

I have recently done a couple of trips to the Asir mountains and seen plenty of Arabian Partridges including good numbers on the Raydah Escarpment. The Arabian Partridge is an endemic to Arabia and occurs mainly in the Asir Mountains. The subspecies occurring in Saudi Arabia is A. m. melanocephala from Madinah in northern Hejaz south to the Yemen boarder. They also occur in Yemen and  western Oman east to Dhofar. Differs from other Alectoris including Philby’s Partridge by larger size (including longer tail and deeper belly), grey tail feathers (visible in flight), much broader white supercilium and black crown. They occur in stony and somewhat better-vegetated ground in hills, mountains and upland plains, from near sea level to 3000 m, including montane juniper forest where they are locally common. They feed mainly on vegetable matter, seeds and invertebrates where they forage and drink in the morning and evening in small groups.

Arabian Partridge – Mount Soudah

The Arabian Partridge Alectoris. m. melanocephala is an endemic to the Arabian peninsula. In Saudi Arabia it occurs from Madinan in the northern Hejaz mountains south to the Yemen boarder in the Asir mountains. They are larger than other members of its genus reaching about 41 centimetres in length with sexes being similar in appearance but males are slightly larger than females. They occur on stony and well vegetated ground in hills, mountains and upland plains, from near sea level to 3000 metres, including montane juniper forest. They feed on vegetable matter, seeds and invertebrates generally in small groups of up to 10 and when disturbed or escaping predators generally runs uphill. Gives a distinct loud and deep call most commonly a "cuck, cuck, cuck, owk-owk-owk" which starts slowly but evenly and increases in tempo and volume. The best place for seeing the species in Saudi Arabia is the Abha area where they can be generally see in small numbers in the early morning often feeding on or by the roadsides.

Arabian Partridge – Al Mehfar Park

Whilst looking for Philby’s Partridge at Al Mehfar Park, Tanoumah, Phil spotted an unusual Partridge with a pale throat. It was a long way away on a hill top and looked superficially like a Chukar a bird that occrs much further north in the Kingdom near Tabuk but a species neither Phil nor I had seen. Philby’s Partridge has a black chin, cheeks and throat that differentiate it from all other members of genus, including Arabian Partridge which is mainly found at lower elevations. Philby’s Partridge also has a bright red bill and facial skin and rose-red legs and is otherwise very similar to Chukar including the presence of rufous in tail. Juvenile birds are overall dull brown, initially lacking face pattern that then appears as dusky, not black, with finely barred upperparts and duller legs. As a result the bird turned out to be an Arabian Partridge rather than a Chukar. Arabian Partridge occurs in arid rocky areas in montane regions and occurs on slopes with less bush cover than Philby's Partridge. 

Raydah Escarpment

The Raydah Escarpment (18 12.374N, 42 24.613E) is a first class site 15 kilometres from Abha signposted off the Al Souda road and has been protected to some degree since the 1980’s. The site is a very steep west-facing slope with crags. The escarpment, approximately 12 square kilometres in size, supports a more or less intact forest of mainly Juniperus excelsa with Olea europa on the uppermost slopes. Lush more deciduous vegetation occurs on the lower slopes. In the foothills below 1,500 m vegetation becomes much more Afrotropical with numerous Ficus trees and genera such as Commiphora, Aloe, Ceropegia and Caralluma being well represented. These lusher habitats of the foothills soon give way on the tihama to arid sandy deserts interspersed with very fertile irrigated fields where water runoff from the highlands can be controlled or where water is close to the surface. These tilled areas usually have high bunds around them and grow a variety of crops, including sugarcane, millet and maize. It is located in the biologically rich Asir Mountains and is also an Important Bird Area encompassing strata of highland and foothill habitat from 2800 meters to Wadi Jaw at 1350 meters, including a succession of vegetation from juniper dominated upper regions, with olive Oleo europaea, through to the Afrotropical foothills at Wadi Jaw with Ficus trees and where coffee growing occurs. This is the premier site in Saudi Arabia for trying to find the Arabian Endemic species with ten Arabian endemic bird species recorded in this reserve, as well as the Asir subspecies of the Eurasian Magpie and there are numerous Afrotropical species in the lower altitudes. The contrast in climate can be tremendous with cool, damp, cloudy and temperate conditions at the top to hot, oppressive tropical conditions at the bottom. The tarmac road down the escarpment is extremely steep and quite dangerous with numerous sharp turns and is not for the faint hearted. There are a number of places to stop off-road to look for birds but the best plan for birding would be to walk down the road birding on the way and then hitch a lift back up with one of the locals who also infrequently use the road. Care would, however, have to be taken, as there are plenty of Hamadryas Baboons in the park along with Arabian Wolf. One of the best areas for birding is Raydah Farm (18 11.876N, 42 24.579E), which is approximately 300 metres down from the summit, and there is a small garden of less than a hectare beside a tiny perennial stream. You will see the terraced fields on the way down and can park in a pull off area by the left side of the road just by the farm and walk back up and into the interesting areas. We birded the Raydah Escarpment on the late afternoon of 4 and 5 July, in the company of Lou Regenmorter, as well as the morning of 6 July.

Yemen Thrush

Yemen Linnet

Little Rock Thrush

Palestine Sunbird

African Paradise Flycatcher

Abyssinian White-eye

Several good birds were seen at the Raydah Farm including a female African Paradise Flycatcher, 10+ Dusky Turtle Doves, five Little Rock Thrushes, one Cinnamon-breasted Bunting, one Arabian Serin, five Abyssinian White-eye, three Yemen Linnets, 5+ Ruppell’s Weavers, one Palestinian Sunbird, ten Violet-backed Starlings, two Fan-tailed Ravens and four Yemen Thrushes. All of the Arabian Endemics can be found in this area but despite our efforts we failed with the ones we were looking for; Philby’s Partridge, Yemen Serin and Arabian Waxbill. There were good numbers of the Arabian Endemic Arabian Wheatear, Yemen Thrush and Yemen Linnet on the way down to Raydah Village as well as a few Red-breasted Wheatears which are restricted to the highlands of Saudi Arabia. 

Arabian Wheatear

Grey-headed Kingfisher

Arabian Partridge

Arabian Partridge

Arabian Partridge

A very good dried up wadi was located on the left hand side of the road by Raydah Village that went towards a farm and then on down a dried up wadi. Here we had two Grey-headed Kingfishers, one African Grey Hornbill (Phil), 30+ Bruce’s Green Pigeons, 10+ Arabian Serins, one Palestine Sunbird, one Shinning Sunbird, one Green Bee-eater, one Eurasian Hoopoe, 5+ White-spectacled Bulbuls and one White-browed Coucal on two different days. A large number of Little Swift (50+) were seen flying over every visit and twice we saw Arabian Partridge here, the first time a group of six flew across the road and landed on the far side of the wadi giving reasonable views and the second on the last day whilst leaving the site we saw two on the roadside that gave excellent views as they moved away from us. Luckily their reluctance to fly aided in getting good views.