Here are a few more shots of what was on offer the other morning. A complete list of the species is included below. I must make a special mention of three Eurasian Golden Orioles I saw flying overhead shortly after I had arrived. Unfortunately they did not alight anywhere to allow me to get images. I suspect they had overnighted in the trees near the staff accommodation and they were heading off again Steppe Grey Shrike Scorpion impaled in Shrike "larder" Turkestan Shrike This Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin was perched on a shrub with its wings held open and away from its body, allowing the prevailing breeze to cool it off A Greater Hoopoe-Lark caught in the act of swallowing a large grasshopper Whilst there were many Swallows there were only a few Sand Martins to be seen A Spotted Flycatcher working the trees in the Wadi for insects Species included: Blue-cheeked Bee-eater, Common Moorhen, Barn Swallow, Sand Martin, Purple Heron, Greater Hoopoe-Lark, Eurasian Golden Oriole, Greater Flamingo, Wood Sandpiper, Red-necked Phalarope, Spotted Flycatcher, Eurasian Hoopoe, Glossy Ibis, Black-crowned Sparrow-Lark, Crested Lark, Marsh Harrier, Black-winged Stilt, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Bar-tailed Godwit, Eurasian Coot, Steppe Grey Shrike, Turkestan Shrike, Ferruginous Duck, Yellow Wagtail, Common Quail and the rest
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I have not been out at the farm for a while so I was keen to see what was on offer. I was anticipating a few migrants and was not disappointed. Also below the farm is a new sewerage pond similar to Abu Nakhla which is now attracting more and more birds. Hopefully over time some reed-beds will grow to add cover and breeding habitat for the arriving birds. Unfortunately there are already spent shotgun cartridges to be seen lying on the roadway around the pond. A single Glossy Ibis was present. Seen here flying overhead. I also came across this single Red-necked Phalarope. It was feeding in the area where the water flows into the pond. I have only seen this species a couple of times in the two years that I have been here, so a good sighting for me Also seen at this spot was a Wood Sandpiper I have seen many Flamingos here before, but today there was only one juvenile to be found Flamingo Fly-by On the farm there were many Namaqua doves to be seen today. Here is a good looking male bird Barn Swallow numbers are picking up. Here is a juvenile bird By comparison an Adult Barn Swallow with the deep red face and long tail streamers The Common Moorhens are breeding well on the night storage dams on the farm.
In addition to the Purple Heron (see previous post) which was a new tick for the patch and brought the count to 109 species, there were also a few other interesting sightings on offer. Eurasian Curlew A Black-necked Grebe in winter plumage. Last seen here back in April My first Spotted Flycatcher of the season. Last seen here in May This looks like a Greater Sand Plover in winter plumage to me A juvenile Black-crowned Night Heron flies past overhead An Isabelline Wheatear in early morning light Other species included: Little Ringed Plover, Kentish Plover, Yellow Wagtail, Grey Wagtail, White Wagtail, Grey Francolin, Grey Heron, Little Egret, Black-winged Stilt, Lesser Sand Plover, Common Greenshank, Common Sandpiper, Little Stint, Little Tern, Eurasian Hoopoe, Crested Lark, Indian Reed Warbler, Graceful Prinia, Indian Silverbill, White-eared and Red-vented Bulbuls and the rest
This Purple Heron was blending in nicely with the clumps of grass on the upper banks of the pond and I only noticed it when it moved It made its way into the water to get closer to shoals of tiny fish that were breaking the surface every now and then Here it has just made an unsuccessful strike It then decides to move further along the waters edge to try another spot. For the 10 - 15 minutes that I sat and watched this bird, hoping for an image of a speared fish, it unfortunately did not catch anything. You can't win them all
It was a productive mornings birding and I managed to record 29 species. This equals a count I last achieved here back in April of this year. Of particular note were a Little Egret last seen here in September of 2014, a Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin and a Western Cattle Egret both last seen in April and an Isabelline Wheatear last seen in May of this year A Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin hops out of the cover and into the open A pale morph Western Reef Heron in early morning light A dark morph Western Reef Heron in close attendance on the same rocks A Western Cattle Egret doing some head-scratching A Eurasian Hoopoe. Still being seen in good numbers Other species included: Grey Heron, Little Tern, Arabian Grey Shrike, Greenshank, Black-winged Stilt, Common Sandpiper, Mallard, White-eared Bulbul, Red-vented Bulbul, Graceful Prinia, Indian Silverbill, Common Moorhen, Indian Reed Warbler, Grey Francolin, Rose-ringed Parakeet, Eurasian Curlew, Whimbrel, Yellow Wagtail and the rest.
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