Nothing unusual – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

Whilst birding the Waste Water Lake the last few weeks I have been seeing the same species and not much different. Flyovers include the winter first Crested Honey Buzzard and two Wester Marsh Harriers as well as a few Common Kestrel and Eurasian Sparrowhawks. Common species such as Common Myna and Rose-ringed Parakeet are seen daily as are House Crow. Birds on or over the lake include good numbers of Pallid Swift and Great Cormorant and increasing numbers of Grey Heron, Western Cattle Egret and Squacco Heron. The maximum number of Gull-billed Tern reached eleven and a single Isabelline Wheatear was seen on the edge of the pond one day. 

Common Kestrel

Common Myna

Common Sandpiper

Great Cormorant

Grey Heron

Gull-billed Tern

Gull-billed Tern

Pallid Swift

Pallid Swift

Pallid Swift

Squacco Heron

Squacco Heron

Western Cattle Egret

A few birds – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

Whilst birding Dhahran Waste Water Lake recently I have seen a few interesting birds. Waders have been passing through including Common Greenshank in small numbers and quite a few Common Sandpipers. Black-winged Stilt remains the commonest wader by far, however. Common Myna numbers are increasing with birds most often seen flying over as is the case with Eurasian Collared Dove. The normal species remain on the lake including the Ferruginous Duck but Eurasian Coot and Gull-billed Tern gave good opportunities to take photos of them.

Gull-billed Tern

Gull-billed Tern

Gull-billed Tern

Gull-billed Tern

Eurasian Coot

Eurasian Coot

Common Sandpiper

Common Myna

Common Myna

Common Greenshank

Common Greenshank

Common Greenshank

Common Greenshank

A few interesting species – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

Whilst birding Dhahran Waste Water Lake recently I have seen a few good species. Two Black-necked Grebes were with the fifty or so Little Grebes and were quite early for this wintering species. Wader numbers are building with up to thirty Black-winged Stilts, seven Common Sandpipers and a single Common Greenshank. Three Eurasian Coot are resident on the lake and five Grey Heron, one Purple Heron, three Squacco Heron and five Little Egrets were in the reed beds and flying around. Duck have just started arriving with six Northern Shoveler flying over and eventually landing on the lake as well as a single Garganey on the lake and several Gull-billed Tern were flying around catching fish.

Northern Shoveler

Northern Shoveler

Northern Shoveler

Northern Shoveler

Gull-billed Tern

Grey Heron

Eurasian Coot

Black-necked Grebe

Black-winged Stilt

Black-necked Grebe

Black-necked Grebe

Heron numbers building – Dhahran Waste Water Lake

Whilst birding the Dhahran Waste Water Lake in March it was very apparent that the number of herons were increasing. Six Great Egrets and more than ten Grey Herons were present with double figures of Squacco Heron also seen. A single dark phase Western Reef Heron was an unusual sighting. Great Cormorant numbers were also increasing woth around fifty birds present perched in the waterside trees and fishing on the lake itself. Three Ferruginous Duck were still around as were a single Gull-billed Tern and Common Black-headed Gull

Common Black-headed Gull

Common Black-headed Gull

Ferruginous Duck

Gull-billed Tern

Grey Heron

Grey Heron

Great Egret

Great Egret

Great Egret

Great Egret

Great Egret

Great Egret

Great Cormorant

Great Cormorant

Great Cormorant

Great Cormorant

Western Reef Heron