Desert Lark & Eastern Mourning Wheatear - Jabal Nayriyyah

At 04:00 hrs Phil Roberts and I set off 'up north' to look for a few desert birds as well as birds of prey that normally occur in this area in November and then throughout the winter. We arrived at Jabal Nayriyyah just after first light at about 06:15 hrs and the very first bird we saw was a male harrier quartering the desert below the jabals. The bird was a male Hen Harrier which is not a common species in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia or anywhere else in the country. This was a new species for both Phil and myself so it was a very promising start to what turned out to be an excellent days birding. This site has a number of quite large Jabals, which are large Limestone hills standing high above the desert, possibly 100 – 150 metres tall. They are excellent places for looking for some desert specialities which favour these sites over the flatter desert areas. The main species we thought may occur here was Eastern Mourning Wheatear and Abdullah from Bahrain told me last weekend he had seen quite a few in a desert area north of Dhahran when he came over, which was good news as the species has only just started arriving for the winter. As it turned out the next bird we saw was an Eastern Mourning Wheatear at the base of the smallest jabal and six birds were seen in total in the hour of so we birded this location. Whist looking around I flushed a Pharaoh Eagle Owl, details of which I will post tomorrow when I have more time, as well as seeing two Desert Larks, three Desert Wheatear, two Southern Grey Shrike (adult and juvenile) and a distant Eastern Imperial Eagle flying over one of the larger distant jabals. Desert Larks favour these rocky areas in the desert with Bar-tailed Lark favouring the flatter areas. On the way home we visited this site again for an hour to see if we could see the owl again but without luck. We did, however, see the Asian Desert Warbler I had seen briefly in the morning before being distracted by the Pharaoh Eagle Owl. We also got much better views of Desert Lark in better light which was a great way to end the days birding as now it was getting dark.

 Desert Lark

 Desert Lark

 Desert Lark

 Eastern Mourning Wheatear

 Eastern Mourning Wheatear

Southern Grey Shrike

A few winter birds arriving in Bahrain

Whilst out birding in Bahrain last week I took a couple of photographs of a Blue-cheeked Bee-eater at Jasra and a Northern Lapwing at the Chicken Farm. Blue-cheeked bee-eater where still around in quite good numbers but Northern Lapwing are only just arriving with this bird being the only one seen. Other good birds seen included a flock of 20+ Eurasian Skylark, 30+ Water Pipit, one Pied Wheatear, one Desert Wheatear, one Bluethroat, two Barn Swallow, three Ruddy Turnstone, four Cattle Egrets and a Eurasian Sparrowhawk that had just caught and killed a Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, which it was having difficulty flying with so landed nearby to eat its kill.

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater

Northern Lapwing

Hypocolius - Jasra Bahrain

Brendan showed me the main site in Bahrain for Hypocolius, usually treated as a monotypic family, Hypocolidae at Jasra near the Saudi Arabian Causeway entrance and said it held 200+ birds. The birds are present from late October to late January each year and numbers are increasing at this location as other locations are destroyed. These birds are arriving from their breeding grounds in Iraq and Iran with many of them heading onwards to Saudi Arabia to spend the winter. We saw at least 20 birds in the hour we were at the site and although they were very flighty we managed to see a couple of birds perched although at some distance. If we had stayed longer we would have seen the main flock of birds come to the site just prior to moving onto their roost site but we had to leave. They favour dense cover to rest in with nearby Palm thickets where they feed. Hypocolius has a very restricted range and Bahrain is one of the best places in the world to see the species. Birds should occur in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia but the limited access to suitable areas means they are seldom recorded by birdwatchers.

Macqueen's Bustard, Jubail Area – Bird Records by Sander Willems

On Friday 11 November Sander Willems went for a drive with a Saudi falconer friend. Among other things he wanted to look for ‘karawan’ (Eurasian Stone-curlew) and ‘houbara’ (Macqueen's Bustard). First we drove (too quickly) through Al Fasl where besides the usual birds I saw a Common Redshank, a Common Kingfisher, Daurian Shrike, Marsh Harriers, Great Spotted Eagle and a small falcon, perched in the plains, with an unusual creamy-buff belly, making me believe it was a Lesser Kestrel. But I didn't get to see its back. Afterwards we drove north along the electricity masts (3 parallel rows) where we spotted an eagle which turned out to be an Eastern Imperial Eagle. We stopped at a couple of the tiny tents in the sabkhats where people try to trap falcons with a pigeon on a wire. We continued to a tiny fishing settlement north of Jubail, where we had coffee & tea with the local police and I saw cormorants and tens of large white-headed gulls. About half of them light grey, and the others darker grey. On the way back to the highway I spotted a Steppe Grey Shrike on top of a dry bush in a bleak landscape. We then started our search for karawan south-west of highway 85 (right next to the highway) in a fenced-off area where they had been spotted earlier that day. The area had demolished buildings with one building still standing, for the rest piles of rubble but also areas with shrubs in the lower areas. We weren't lucky with the Eurasian Stone-curlew, although I may have seen one speeding off, but it couldn't be relocated. However while searching through the shrubs I saw many Tawny Pipits, and on the piles of rubble Isabelline Wheatear, Pied Wheatear and then suddenly a striking Eastern Mourning Wheatear (lugens). After lunch in a beduin settlement where I saw two caged Brown-necked Ravens we drove to an area south of Jubail where a day earlier a Macqueen's Bustard was tracked down and caught by a Gyr Falcon. The Macqueen's Bustard was caught alive and the falconers used it again, which was a sad thing to witness, to train their falcons. Apparently nowadays up to SAR10,000 is sometimes awarded to the finder of a ‘houbara’. It was a beautiful male Macqueen's Bustard, which defended himself as well as he could (considering it's partly taped up wings), pumping up its tail, neck and head feathers to scare off several of the falcons, even hitting with the inside of its wing which apparently has a claw, and kicking the falcons. I was told that the ‘houbaras’ sometimes kill a falcon. I ended up having dinner in a tent camp close by where the guys kept three more ‘houbaras’ in a cage (2 male, 1 female) as well as some Common Quails.

Macqueen's Bustard - Tail

Macqueen's Bustard - Tracks

Macqueen's Bustard - Captive

Saudi Arabian Falconer

All the above photographs were taken by Sander Willems and are used with kind permission of the photographer.

Greater Spotted Eagles - Sabkhat Al Fasl

On the 10th November there were at least nine Greater Spotted Eagles present at Sabkhat Al Fasl. This is the best month for seeing the species at the site but nine in a single visit is still an exceptional record. Five of the birds were adults or sub-adult types and four where 1st Calendar Year birds (juveniles). They were spread over the entire site with two juveniles seen together eating a dead fish on the Sabkhat Area and three adults together in the water in the same area. Although there were a number of different sightings the birds would never allow close approach so the photographs taken are not of the best quality but show you the power of the species quite well. Greater Spotted Eagle is classified as vulnerable but wintering numbers in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, particularly Sabkhat Al Fasl are increasing. An interesting note by Brian Meadows on the species occurrence in the region is published in Sandgrouse 33 (2) 2011.

 Greater Spotted Eagle

 Greater Spotted Eagle

Greater Spotted Eagle (1st Calendar Year)

Pied Kingfisher at Sabkhat Al Fasl - Bird Records by Sander Willems

On Sunday 6 November Sander Willems went to Sabkhat Al Fasl for a long walk. The weather was very comfortable, mostly overcast and even some mid-morning rain. It was very quiet. No fishermen and no hunters until 10am. This time I was lucky enough to find a Pied Kingfisher, a Southern Grey Shrike, a Steppe Eagle and two Spanish Sparrows. Other birds I did not see last week were Common Ringed Plover, Indian Pond Heron, Great Cormorant, Wood Sandpiper, several Black-crowned Night-herons, and several large white-headed gulls, both imm & adult. Pied Kingfiher is an unusual bird in the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia but probably occurs annually in suitable areas.

Little Stint

Little Grebe
Greater Flamingo
Squacco Heron
Indian Pond Heron
Grey Heron
Little Egret
Black-crowned Night-Heron
Western Reef Heron
Great Cormorant
Western Marsh Harrier
Greater Spotted Eagle
Steppe Eagle
Common Moorhen
Purple Swamphen
Eurasian Coot
Black-winged Stilt
40 Pied Avocet
Kentish Plover
Common Snipe
Common Redshank
Little Stint
Slender-billed Gull
Gull-billed Tern
Caspian Tern
Common Kingfisher
Pied Kingfisher
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater
Daurian Shrike

Crested Lark
Barn Swallow
Graceful Prinia

Great Reed Warbler
Clamorous Reed Warbler

Caspian Reed Warbler

Bluethroat
Yellow Wagtail
White Wagtail
Water Pipit

Desert & Isabelline Wheatear – Ringing in Bahrain at the Chicken Farm

Whilst Brendan and I were considering where to put up the nets on Friday at the Chicken Farm, Abdulla arrived and he had a couple of worms for the spring traps. He had mentioned to me some time ago he would catch a Great Grey Shrike (Steppe Grey Shrike or Southern Grey Shrike) and a Desert Wheatear for me to ring and had caught both types of Great Grey Shrike on previous outings so his job today was to try to catch a Desert Wheatear. In the meantime Brendan and I put up the nets. Abdulla is a real expert at catching wheatears in the spring traps and true to his word he quickly returned with a first year male Desert Wheatear for me to ring. After ringing this bird Abdulla and I went off to try to catch another wheatear and found an Isabelline Wheatear that was favouring a pile of rocks as a perch. Abdulla set the trap by the rocks and almost immediately the Isabelline Wheatear saw the worm and was caught. This bird was ringed by one of the Birdqust group who was a ringer and had not ringed Isabelline Wheatear before, whereas I have ringed a few before.

 Desert Wheatear (1st Year Male)

 Desert Wheatear (1st Year Male) - Tail

 Desert Wheatear (1st Year Male) - Underwing

 Desert Wheatear (1st Year Male)

 Desert Wheatear (1st Year Male)

 Desert Wheatear (1st Year Male)

 Isabelline Wheatear

 Isabelline Wheatear (tail)

 Isabelline Wheatear (underwing)

Isabelline Wheatear

Bluethroat & Water Pipit – Ringing in Bahrain at the Chicken Farm

On Friday I went ringing at the Chicken Farm with Brendan and Abdulla. Brendan and I put up three 18 metre nets, with two across an area of tall grass and one out onto a short cut area of grass. There were a lot of pipits, mainly Water Pipit as well as a flock of about 20 Eurasian Skylark in the area and we were hoping to catch a few of them. As it turned out we only managed to catch two Water Pipits as this was not the area where they are roosting at the moment. We are trying to locate this area as when we do we should be able to catch quite a few birds. The Water Pipits were caught at the same time and where an adult and a juvenile which allowed for comparison of the plumage features. The nets in the tall grass area only caught one Graceful Prinia although another three birds managed to fly into the nets but as they are so small also managed to wriggle free before we could get to them. Birdquest were in Bahrain for a couple of days and came to the Chicken Farm whilst we were ringing and saw the Water Pipits in the hand which was good. One of the Birdquest group ringed the adult Water Pipit as this was a new ringing species for him and I ringed the Juvenile which was a new ringing species for me. As we went to shut up the nets and take them down at the end of ringing Brendan managed to catch a first year male Bluethroat which was a great way to end the ringing day as Bluethroat was another new ringing species for me.

 Bluethroat (1st Year Male)

 Bluethroat (1st Year Male)

 Bluethroat (1st Year Male)

 Bluethroat (1st Year Male)

 Bluethroat (1st Year Male)

 Bluethroat (1st Year Male)

 Water Pipit (adult left & juvenile right)

Water Pipit (adult left & juvenile right)

Western Osprey - Sabkhat Al Fasl

This is just a quick post to show a superb flight shot of a Western Osprey taken by Phil Roberts at Sabkhat Al Fasl last Friday. The bird flew in whilst we were watching some Caspian Terns fishing and Phil managed to take a quick shot (only one) of the bird as it flew away with a catch of a fish which looks like a Tilapia. Phil has just sent the photo to me and kindly allowed me to put it on the website.

Western Osprey

Western Great Egrets - Dhahran Hills

Yesterday in the early morning I went to the spray fields and percolation pond. The spray fields are being used to drain the water from the percolation pond and there were a few herons on the wet fields. These included eight Western Cattle Egret, three Western Great Egret, four Little Egret and a Grey Heron. An Isabelline Wheatear and a single Daurian Shrike were present with five White Wagtails and seven Water Pipits. The pond had a single Little Egret and a single Western Great Egret side by side allowing good comparison of the size difference between the two species. Other birds on the pond included 17 Mallard, 41 Northern Shoveller and 84 Eurasian Teal although the duck were quite flighty in the morning compared to the evening. The only waders were one Kentish Plover and five Common Ringed Plover. A walk around the trees surrounding the pond produced a Turkestan Shrike, three Willow Warbler and a Graceful Prinia.

 Western Great Egret

 Little Egret (left) & Western Great Egret

 Little Egret (left) & Western Great Egret

 White-eared Bulbul

 Common Snipe

 Graceful Prinia

Turkestan Shrike