This week at the local patch I came across several Tree Pipits. I last recorded this species in Qatar in April 2014. It was good therefore to connect with them again Tree Pipit
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Here an obliging male Northern Wheatear allows me close enough for an image. I have only managed four or five of this species in my time here, one of which had me taken in for questioning by the prison services For comparison here is a female Isabelline Wheatear Here a Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin stays within the cover of the branches of the tree as it keeps a close eyes on me Of late I am seeing Rock Thrushes every time I am out and about. This male Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush shows the characteristic white patch on its back. Note the upright stance My first Common Redstart of the Spring. This male bird was perched in the shade of a tree and was flying out into the open to hawk insects
A lovely image of a Male Lesser Kestrel. Seen here with a Field Mouse it had caught Male Lesser Kestrel
Juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron. This individual flew in and landed as I was sitting scanning the small dam to see what was on offer Mallard Duck. This duck was present amongst all the domestic ducks and geese today A Grey Francolin out for an early morning walk in the sunshine Female Rose-ringed Parakeet. I often hear these birds calling or see them flying overhead. it was good to see one of them at closer range. It was busy feeding on the pods Great Cormorant. For the last couple of weeks there have been a few of these present at the small dam. There was one in attendance today
Recently there have been quite a large number of shrikes to be seen. These are obviously migratory birds over and above the residents. Here are a few comparative images Turkestan Shrike Masked Shrike Daurian Shrike female/juvenile tbc Mauryan Grey Shrike
A male Blue Rock Thrush, a fairly common passage migrant A female Blue Rock Thrush. Note the lack of rufous colouring under the tail as found in the similar looking Rufous - tailed Rock Thrush female A Whiskered Tern, a common passage migrant A Yellow Wagtail, a common passage migrant A male Pied Wheatear, a passage migrant A Large White Headed Gull species, possibly a Heuglin's Gull. My first such record on the farm.
As luck would have it I managed to see and photograph this Squacco Heron having photographed a rare Indian Pond Heron recently. It made it easier for me to see/understand the differences as explained to me earlier Squacco Heron. An adult in winter plumage Indian Pond Heron. An immature bird Look at the Indian Pond Heron first. It has a blue line running from the base of the bill to the eye which is absent in the Squacco Heron. It has a braided rope like marking running down from the throat to the belly also absent in the Squacco Heron. Thirdly the lower leg colour is paler in the Indian Pond Heron as compared to the Squacco Heron. Now you can understand why an amateur like me struggles with ID's of this nature. Once again thanks very much to Mike Pope for his assistance.
I came across this Marsh Harrier that had caught a snake. It pulled most of the skin off the skeleton in the direction of the tail and then tore chunks of meat and intestine off the snake to ingest them. Once it was getting towards the base of the tail it then picked it up and swallowed it whole Pulling skin off the skeleton Ingesting meat and intestines Ingesting the end of the tail A well fed Harrier
I drove down to Sealine resort early in the morning hoping to find some migrants on the menu. I was disappointed at how few birds were to be seen. A Rock thrush and a few Eurasian Hoopoes being the highlights. Perhaps all the renovations currently being carried out were a contributing factor. I salvaged my trip by filling my boots on their buffet breakfast, which as always did not disappoint. On my way back I decided to pop in and check out Al Sailiya as I had have not been there for some time. There is major work been done on the walls of the original ponds adjacent to the sewerage plant. Here is hoping they start to fill these with water again. On the other side of the sewerage works there is a large depression which is also full of water. There is an area of reed beds at the water inflow point which is offering some cover for the birds. Little Grebes, Coots, Moorhens, Swamphens, Cormorants, Flamingos, Great Crested Grebes, Grey Herons, Purple Herons, Squacco Herons, and Indian Reed Warblers were all to be seen here. I sat quietly adjacent the reeds until they forgot I was there and was able to capture a few images of the two species I most wanted to get Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush at Sealine resort African Swamphen African Swamphen Great Crested Grebe Great Crested Grebe
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April 2024
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