Andalusia 8th-11th September 2006

In September 2006 we spent a long weekend in southern Spain with Brian Egan, Andrew Holden, Keith Langdon, Tom Lowe and Vicky Turner. The primary aim of the trip was to connect with Rüppell's Griffon Vulture, but other specialities such as White-rumped Swift, Iberian Green Woodpecker and Orphean Warbler, and the impressive raptor migration were also high on the agenda. We also targeted Black-headed Weaver and Yellow-crowned Bishop, species with healthy populations in Spain that are listed on Category C in neighbouring Portugal.

Literature
Trip reports by Richard Bonser, Roy Bottomley et al. and Ian Kinley et al. provided information on key sites and species and ‘Rüppell's Vultures in Spain’ by Dick Forsman in Birding World vol. 18, no. 10 provided essential information on the main target species. Dave Gosney’s ‘Finding Birds in Southern Spain’ was used on the trip and is referenced throughout this report.

Kris De Rouck, Hugues Dufourny and Graeme Joynt all provided useful information.

Itinerary
Friday 8^th: flew Liverpool to Seville arriving 20:45.

Saturday 9^th: Sierra de la Plata (Bolonia), Ciguena Negra Watchpoint (La Cazalla, Tarifa), La Janda, Jara Valley, El Algarrobo Watchpoint (Algeciras), Los Lances (Tarifa Beach).

Sunday 10^th: El Algarrobo Watchpoint (Algeciras), Laguna de Medina, Lagunas de Espera, Laguna de Mejorada.

Monday 11^th: Laguna de Mejorada, Brazo del Este, Trebujena Marismas, Algaida Pine Forest, Bonanza Salinas, Algaida Salinas, Parroso River. Flew Seville to Liverpool departing 21:10.

Site directions

Sierra de la Plata, Bolonia
White-rumped Swift cave: travel west from Tarifa for 14km on the N340 then take the turn signposted to Bolonia. After c7km turn right along main road just beyond the Bellavista Restaurant main road and continue for c3km through Bolonia. Park in layby 2km beyond ‘prohibido el paso zona militar’ sign and view cave with railings around it.

Arroyo de Alpariate: view by a stream that flows onto the beach in Bolonia, c150 metres before the entrance to the ancient Roman site of Baelo Claudia.

Ciguena Negra Watchpoint, La Cazalla, Tarifa
Heading from west, take track on left c2km after the final Tarifa turning on N340 up to a small satellite station.

La Janda
Take track off N340 midway between Tarifa and Vejer de la Frontera opposite easternmost Zahara de los Atunes turning and after c1km follow track along south side of canal.

Jara Valley
Take minor road north off N340 near Rio Jara mouth just west of Tarifa.

El Algarrobo Watchpoint, Algeciras
Driving west on the main road from Algeciras turn right c1.5km after the last roundabout onto a dirt track running off at 45 degrees from the road. Follow this to the concrete watchpoint.

Los Lances, Tarifa Beach
Take the westernmost Tarifa turning off the N340 and follow road around sports stadium to car park.

Laguna Medina
Located just east of C440, 10km south of Jerez. Most of the lagoons were dry during our visit, so we saw very few species.

Lagunas de Espera
Take N382 to Arcos de la Frontera off N-IV in Jerez de la Frontera then take C393 towards Espera. Go through village then turn left to Las Cabezas de San Juan and after 2km turn left towards Hondilla Lagoon.

Laguna de Mejorada
c2km north of Los Palacios y Villafranca on N-IV turn right just before canal and follow bank for c1km until road turns sharply left and crosses canal. Cross bridge and park just beyond. Rufous-tailed Bush Robins occur in the vineyards here, but we failed to locate any during our brief visit to the site.

To locate Western Olivaceous Warbler head back to the main road and turn left just beyond the canal then take the first right along a dirt road to the lagoon. We briefly saw two Western Olivaceous Warblers in the tamarisks that surround the lake. Rufous-tailed Bush Robins also occur at this location.

Brazo del Este
Gosney pages 14-15

Figure 1a: Google Earth image of Yellow-crowned Bishop and Black-headed Weaver sites, Gosney page 15 site 3.

Figure 1b: Google Earth image of Yellow-crowned Bishop and Black-headed Weaver sites, Gosney page 15 site 3.

Figure 2: Google Earth image of Black-headed Weaver nests at Brazo del Este, just north-west of Gosney page 15 site 1.

Trebujena Marismas
Between Trebujena and Lebrija on C441 between km 34 and km 36 (Gosney page 12 site 8).

Algaida Pine Forest
Take the road through Algaida into the pine forest (Gosney page 11 site 4).

Bonanza Salinas
Head north from Bonanza then take track north northwest at sharp right bend in road (Gosney page 11 site 2).

Algaida Wetlands
Gosney page 2.

Parroso River
View trees either side of viaduct on A-436 between Cantillana and El Carbonal.

Figure 3: Google Earth image of site for Iberian Green Woodpecker along Parroso River.

Key species

White-headed Duck
Seen at Algaida Wetlands.

Black-shouldered Kite
Seen at La Janda.

Rüppell's Griffon Vulture
Since 1992 small numbers of this species have been regularly seen at a number of sites in southernmost Spain (Forsman, 2005). With the European Union recently implementing a ban on leaving cattle carcases in fields, locating gatherings of Eurasian Griffon Vultures on the ground can be challenging. Therefore, we thought that the raptor watchpoints at Algeciras and Tarifa probably offered the best opportunity of connecting with a Rüppell's Griffon, whether it be migrating over the Straits of Gibraltar or just moving between sites in the local area. After nearly two full days of of searching in the Tarifa area, we had brief views of a bird from the El Algarrobo Watchpoint near Algeciras. We failed to locate any gatherings of vultures on the farmland and plains.

After returning home, it transpired that better views could be gained at a more reliable site - Sierra de Inmedio, a small mountain situated west of the track to the Santuario de La Luz, itself starting where the "estacion ornitologica la cigueña negra" is situated. Soon after our trip, two roosting birds were observed with Eurasian Griffon Vultures on cliffs viewed from the 'Mirador del Santuario' in the mornings.  On of these birds, or possible another was also seen in the La Janda agricultural plain at a carcass.

Audouin's Gull
Several on Los Lances, Tarifa Beach.

White-rumped Swift
We failed to locate any White-rumped Swifts at the traditional cave at Sierra de la Plata at dawn, but we connected with several birds nearby by Arroyo de Alpariate soon after first light.

Iberian Green Woodpecker
One seen well at by the viaduct at the Parroso River.

Western Olivaceous Warbler
Two seen briefly at Laguna de Mejorada.

Western Orphean Warbler
One seen in Algaida Pine Forest

Azure-winged Magpie
Several near the viaduct at the Parroso River.

Black-headed Weaver
Several at Brazo del Este.

Yellow-crowned Bishop
At Brazo del Este.

Common Waxbill
Common at Laguna de Mejorada.

Complete trip list
Common Teal Anas crecca crecca
Mallard Anas platyrhynchos platyrhynchos
Northern Pintail Anas acuta acuta
Garganey Anas querquedelua
Northern Shoveler Anas clypeata
Marbled Duck Marmaronetta angustirostris
Red-crested Pochard Netta rufina
Northern Pochard Aythya ferina
White-headed Duck Oxyura leucocephala
Scopoli’s Shearwater Calonectris diomedea
Balearic Shearwater Puffinus mauretanicus
Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutes minutes
Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax nycticorax
Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides ralloides
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis ibis
Little Egret Egretta garzetta garzetta
Great White Egret Casmerodius albus albus
Grey Heron Ardea cinerea cinerea
Purple Heron Ardea purpurea purpurea
Black Stork Ciconia nigra
White Stork Ciconia ciconia ciconia
Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus falcinellus
Eurasian Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia leucorodia
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
Little Grebe Tachybaptus ruficollis ruficollis
Black-necked Grebe Podiceps nigricollis nigricollis
Eurasian Honey Buzzard Pernis apivorus
Black-shouldered Kite Elanus caeruleus
Black Kite Milvus migrans
Red Kite Milvus milvus
Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus
Eurasian Griffon Vulture Gyps fulvus
Ruppell's Griffon Vulture Gyps rueppellii
Short-toed Eagle Circaetus gallicus
Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus
Montagu's Harrier Circus pygargus
Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipiter nisus
Common Buzzard Buteo buteo
Booted Eagle Aquila pennata
Bonelli's Eagle Aquila fasciata
Osprey Pandion haliaetus
Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni
Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus
European Merlin Falco columbarius
Peregrine Falcon Falco peregrinus
Red-legged Partridge Alectoris rufa
Moorhen Gallinula chloropus
Western Purple Gallinule Porphyrio porphyrio
Coot Fulica atra
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus
Collared Pratincole Glareola pratincola
Little Ringed Plover Charadrius dubius
Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula
Kentish Plover Charadrius alexandrinus
Sanderling Calidris alba
Temminck's Stint Calidris temminckii
Dunlin Calidris alpina
Ruff Philomachus pugnax
Common Snipe Gallinago gallinago
Black-tailed Godwit Limosa limosa
Common Redshank Tringa totanus
Common Greenshank Tringa nebularia
Green Sandpiper Tringa ochropus
Wood Sandpiper Tringa glareola
Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
Arctic Skua Stercorarius parasiticus
Black-headed Gull Larus ridibundus
Slender-billed Gull Larus genei
Audouin's Gull Larus audouinii
Lesser Black-backed Gull Larus fuscus
Yellow-legged Gull Larus michahellis
Little Tern Sternula albifrons
Sandwich Tern Sterna sandvicensis
Whiskered Tern Chlidonias hybrida
Rock Dove Columba livia
Woodpigeon Columba palumbus palumbus
Collared Dove Streptopelia dacaocto
Turtle Dove Streptopelia turtur
Pallid Swift Apus pallidus
Alpine Swift Apus melba
White-rumped Swift Apus caffer
Common Kingfisher Alcedo atthis
European Bee-eater Merops apiaster
Hoopoe Upupa epops
Iberian Green Woodpecker Picus sharpei
Great Spotted Woodpecker Dendrocopos major
Crested Lark Galerida cristata
Sand Martin Riparia riparia
Crag Martin Ptyonoprogne rupestris
Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica
House Martin Delichon urbicum
Yellow Wagtail Motacilla flava
Grey Wagtail Motacill cinerea
White Wagtail Motacill alba
Common Redstart Phoenicurus phoenicurus
Western Stonechat Saxicola torquata
Northern Wheatear Oenanthe oenanthe
Black-eared Wheatear Oenanthe hispanica
Blue Rock Thrush Monticola solitarius solitarius
Common Blackbird Turdus merula
Cetti's Warbler Cetti cetti
Fan-tailed Warbler Cisticola juncidis
Western Reed Warbler Acrocephalus scirpaceus
Great Reed Warbler Acrocephalus arundinaceus
Western Olivaceous Warbler Hippolais opacus
Western Orphean Warbler Sylvia hortensis
Western Bonelli's Warbler Phylloscopus bonelli
Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus
Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata
Pied Flycatcher Ficedula hypoleuca
Long-tailed Tit Aegithalos caudatus
Blue Tit Cyanistes caeruleus
Great Tit Parus major
Short-toed Treecreeper Certhia brachydactyla
Woodchat Shrike Lanius senator
Azure-winged Magpie Cyanopica cyanus
Western Jackdaw Corvus monedula
Spotless Starling Sturnus unicolor
House Sparrow Passer domesticus
Eurasian Tree Sparrow Passer montanus
Black-headed Weaver Ploceus melanocephalus
Yellow-crowned Bishop Euplectes afer
Common Waxbill Estrilda astrild
Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs
European Serin Serinus serinus
Greenfinch Chloris chloris
Goldfinch Carduelis carduelis
Linnet Carduelis cannabina
Corn Bunting Emberiza calandra

Chris Batty and Stuart Piner (March 2008)

adult Egyptian Vulture

Griffon Vulture

Short-toed Eagle

dark morph Montagu's Harrier

Booted Eagle

Audouin's Gull

White-rumped Swift

female Iberian Green Woodpecker

Orphean Warbler

male Black-headed Weaver

male Yellow-crowned Bishop

Photos by Brian Egan and Chris Batty

Kuwait 3rd-9th April 2007

Participants: Chris Batty, Richard Bonser, Andy Clifton, Andrew Holden

Introduction

Up until very recently it was difficult to impossible for foreign nationals to visit Kuwait in a tourist capacity. The visa rules changed a couple of years ago and in April 2006 a Danish and a Finnish birding group visited the country and opened our eyes to the potential of such a trip. A chat with George Gregory following his presentation at the 2006 OSME meeting further whetted our appetite to visit the country.

This trip report covers the observations and information gleaned during a birding trip to Kuwait in April 2007. The main purpose of the trip was to find some difficult to see species in the Western Palearctic as well as experience the birding that the country has to offer. Kuwait is the only place in the Western Palearctic where Socotra Cormorant, Lesser Sand Plover, Red-vented Bulbul and Bank Myna can be reliably found. Added to this several other target species that Kuwait is good for (and that we recorded) include Crab Plover, Red-wattled Lapwing, Crested Tern, White-cheeked Tern, Bridled Tern, Dunn’s Lark, Black-crowned Finch Lark, White-eared Bulbul, Grey Hypocolius and Basra Reed Warbler. Fortunately our visit also coincided with the first breeding record for Kuwait of Common Babbler and an over-wintering Long-tailed Shrike.
 

Reading & Website Information

Much of the information gleaned prior to travel was from Andreas Hagerman’s excellent trip report from April 2006 and The Birds of the State of Kuwait by George Gregory (first published in 2005). We also used a trip report from a Finnish team (Rami Lindroos, Ilkka Sahi and Keijo Wahlroos) who visited the country at the same time as the Danish group.

A couple of threads on Birdforum (WP Rarities in Kuwait and Kuwait Bird News and Reports) have and hopefully will continue to provide useful information. Particularly useful files that can be found here include word documents containing the Kuwait Bird Reports for 2005 and 2006.

We were advised by George Gregory prior to our trip not to purchase a map until we arrived at the airport. This we did and we found the 1:500 000 Geo Projects/Arab World Map Library ‘Kuwait’ map to be more than sufficient during our stay.

Acknowledgements

Without doubt this is the most important section of the report as without the help of George Gregory this trip would certainly not have been as productive as it was. George went beyond what anybody would expect (and for other birding teams in spring 2007) organising access to otherwise inaccessible areas, taking us to birding sites and waiting countless hours at the airport to meet us all.

Brian Foster was also invaluable and also accompanied us in the field at times during our stay. The help and decent company provided by other Kuwait based birders, Pekka Fagel and Mike Pope, was also very much appreciated. Special mention as well to ‘the Norwegians’ Jarl Nystrom and Oivind Syvertsen who joined us on most days and were excellent company in the field and over evening meals. Sean Cole, Rob Thatcher, Don Sykes and Alex Parker also visited the country at the same time as us and provided decent company when we were in the field together.

And finally thanks to Tommy Frandsen, Andreas Hagerman, Jens Søgaard Hansen and Martin Poulsen for visiting the country in 2006 and to Andreas for writing the trip report – the format of which I have pinched for this report!

Other Information

Hotel

Like the Danes last year we stayed at the Hussa House Hotel (tel: 2560331 – 2520349) in Kuwait City, located behind The Continental. Due to the rather maze like structure of the road systems we took a GPS reading of the hotel so that we could get back to it each night! It seems that affordable accommodation is at a premium in the country with most hotels being rather more luxurious than the average birder needs. Therefore, at £16 per person per night, we would recommend staying at the Hussa House.

Car Hire and Travel

We hired a 4x4 for the duration of our stay. Many of the global hire car companies can be found at Kuwait airport. Many of the sites require travelling off road and from our experience a conventional car would not be appropriate. Travel is very easy throughout the country with good roads. Traffic can be heavy in rush hour in Kuwait City with the locals driving rather fast and close, but with a little time there is nothing different from travelling around any other major city. As Kuwait is an oil rich state petrol prices were extremely cheap – a few quid to fill up a gas-guzzling 4x4.

Eating/Drinking

The country is extremely westernized and therefore has what you’d expect in terms of McDonalds, Pizza Huts etc. Due to convenience we ate every night at a couple of restaurants in the vicinity of where we were staying. Food was reasonably priced, paying less than what you would in the UK. Supermarkets adjacent to petrol stations were well stocked and this is what we used for food during the day. Do note however that alcohol is, theoretically, illegal in Kuwait.

Hunting

The shooting of birds is evidently a popular pastime in Kuwait, particularly amongst young men. Having not experienced anything like this on our travels previously, it was rather disturbing. Although we of course could not ignore this as it was prevalent at a couple of sites we visited (particularly Al Abraq), it is something to bear in mind before you decide to go to Kuwait if you think it could completely ruin your trip. Casualties that we witnessed ranged from a Caspian Tern and calidrids to Sparrowhawks and Bee-eaters. It was, all told, pretty grim stuff.
 

Itinerary

An overview of our day-to-day itinerary is as follows. Note that although we were birding pretty much dawn til dusk, the small size of the country means that a lot of sites can be covered/re-covered on a daily basis.

3rd April Arrival Kuwait – Sulaibhikat – North Doha Nature Reserve – Doha Spit – South Doha Nature Reserve – Jahra East – Jahra Farms – Sabah-al-Salem

4th April Green Island – Sulaibhikat – Sabah-al-Ahmad (including Tulha) – Jahra East

5th April Jahra East – Abdaly Farms – Subiyah – Doha Spit – Jahra East – Sulaibhikat

6th April Pipeline Beach/Zour Port – Ras al Zour – Doha Spit – South Doha Nature Reserve – Sabah-al-Salem

7th April Green Island – Sabah-al-Ahmad (including Tulha) – Jahra East – Doha Spit – Jahra Farms – South Doha Nature Reserve

8th April Al Abraq Al Khabari – Sabah-al-Ahmad (including Tulha) – Doha Spit – Kabd

9th April Depart Kuwait

SITE DETAILS

George Gregory’s ‘The Birds of the State of Kuwait’ has a lot of information on specific sites and this section aims to document our experiences of birding at several of these sites. The map below illustrates an approximate layout of the country and the sites that we visited during our visit. To give you an example of scale, driving from Kuwait City to Abdaly Farms should not take more than a couple of hours.

Abdaly Farms A vast expanse of agriculture near the Iraq border that is good for migrants – we saw species such as Eastern Olivaceous and Menetries’s Warblers, White-throated Robin and Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin on our visit. The undoubted highlight was witnessing a family party of Common Babblers – the first confirmed breeding of this species in Kuwait. We located this species and Red-wattled Lapwing at 29”57’51N, 47”48’38E whilst another area (30”00’54N, 47”45’01E) visited produced little on our visit but is meant to be one of the best sites to see Shikra in the winter.

Al-Abraq Al-Khabari An enclosed farm (29”22’08N, 46”57’41E) isolated in the western desert. It is accessed off the main road at 29”25’58N, 47”00’37E. Just a couple of days before our visit it had played host to Kuwait’s first Radde’s Accentor. Although we had a good time here, this is where we experienced the most shooting and the devastating effects that come with it. Accipters seemed to be the main target and this was evident by a number of dead Sparrowhawks we found, but the most distressing sight was that of a Bee-eater being shot out of the sky. This is apparently the best place to see African Collared Dove in Kuwait but we failed to find this species here, although it was apparently seen whilst we were on site. We witnessed a wave of migrants moving through that included a couple of Barred and Menetries’s Warblers, an Icterine Warbler, a couple of Semi-collared Flycatchers as well as good numbers of Lesser Whitethroats and Redstarts.

Doha Spit and North Doha Nature Reserve The high tide roost at Doha Spit (29”22’39N, 47”50’17E) and the adjacent North Doha Nature Reserve (located just to the south near the sluice gates) are the best places in Kuwait to look for waders and terns. Much of the watching should be done from the car as once you get out flushing the roosting birds is quite likely. We saw half a dozen Crab Plovers here as well as large numbers of Lesser Sand Plover and Terek Sandpiper. One or two Crested Terns could normally be found with the Lesser Crested and Sandwich Tern flock whilst on one visit a White-cheeked Tern was present. Additionally, like Jahra East, this is probably a decent site to search for Saunders’s Tern as, with patience, you can get decent views of the Little Terns. The Kuwait Bay waders can also be viewed from behind the nearby Manchester Club.

Green Island A small promontory along the seafront in Kuwait City. This is the only place in the Western Palearctic to see Red-vented Bulbul and they can be easily located along with the more numerous and White-cheeked Bulbuls. Although we didn’t see too much here migrant wise this is possibly one of the best places to search for Grey Hypocolius – the Danish group had 24 together here in April 2006.

Jahra East The outfall (29”21’22N, 47”43’44E) can be accessed from several tracks off the main road. The adjacent reedy area adjacent to the outfall is probably the best site in Kuwait to search for Basra Reed Warbler – we located one bird here after a fair bit of searching and other teams in 2007 seemed also to have success in finding this species here. We also observed a couple of Little Crakes and a Moustached Warbler in the channel here. The whole area was full of Red-throated Pipits and flava wagtails as well.

If you walk/drive west from the outfall there is a good vantage point to look out into Kuwait Bay – this was a site recommended to us to search for Saunders’s Tern though, despite scrutiny of Little Terns, we were unsuccessful. During our visits we did see Black-winged Pratincole, Great Black-headed Gull and Isabelline Shrike here along with lots of terns and waders.

Jahra Farms An area of small agricultural farms in Jahra town. The main area (29”21’04N, 47”40’27E) can be accessed from the mosque car park on the opposite side of the road to Burger King. This is currently the only place where Bank Myna is found in the Western Palearctic – they were nesting in the well near the road at 29”20’54N, 47”40’25E during our visit. We also saw White-throated Kingfisher here as well as several migrants including Semi-collared Flycatcher and Eastern Imperial Eagle.

Kabd An agricultural farm where special access is needed to visit. Rather amusingly on our visit, we all had to dress up in rather fetching blue uniforms and wear masks to prevent the spread of avian flu! It is, however, probably the best site in Kuwait for Egyptian Nightjar but on our visit the windy conditions conspired against us. Pale Rock Sparrow and a handful of Isabelline Shrikes were the highlights of our visit.

Pipeline Beach/Zour Port In 2006 this area seemed to be the Danes favourite site but it seems that on our visit migration was not quite as good and access more restricted. The hole in the fence that the Danes mention in their trip report is no longer and you are unable to access the beach (where they saw Socotra Cormorant and Egyptian Nightjar amongst other species) from the road. Our highlights in this area of sparse bushes and semi-desert included a male Turkestan Shrike and a Steppe Grey Shrike.

Ras al Zour A private army/oil base on the southern Kuwait coast with extremely difficult access – to put it into perspective this was a site that some of the resident Kuwait birders had not visited previously due to access issues. A sandy islet just offshore provided us with decent views of the target species – Socotra Cormorant – as well as good numbers of White-cheeked and Lesser Crested Terns. A single Crested Tern was also seen and at least a dozen Bridled Terns were present offshore. Birding around the base and the adjacent golf course produced several migrants including Pied Wheatear, Isabelline Shrike and several Lesser Kestrels.

Sabah-al-Ahmad Nature Reserve (including Tulha Oasis) A large area of steppe grassland, stony desert and rocky ravines located to the north-west of Kuwait City on the road to Iraq. The highlight of our visit were at least 6 Dunn’s Larks (including 2 juveniles) and a male Black-crowned Finch Lark attending a nest. Other species we found here included Bimaculated Lark, Hoopoe Lark, Steppe Grey Shrike and Lesser Kestrel. Though we were probably a bit too late, small numbers of Red-tailed Wheatear (chrysopygia) winter in the rocky ravines here (particularly that at 29”31’24N, 47”47’43E).

The reserve contains Tulha - an area of bushes that surround a small pool (29”35’07N, 47”47’01E). This site, the only area of greenery in an otherwise barren landscape, is extremely attractive to migrants. A pair of Grey Hypocolius were present on one visit, small numbers of Pale Rock Sparrow were seen and at least one European Scops Owl was found roosting on each of our visits. Other species we noted here included Eastern Orphean Warbler, Semi-collared Flycatcher and Steppe Grey Shrike as well as lots of common migrants such as Hoopoe, Wryneck, Redstart, Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin and White-throated Robin. Waders such as Wood Sandpiper and Black-winged Stilt were found on the small pond. As this is a gated nature reserve, the lack of shooters during our visits made the site even more enjoyable.

Sabah-al-Salem We visited this site, on the southern outskirts of Kuwait City, a couple of times. There is a small area of bushes that attract migrants and in recent times Egyptian Nightjar has been seen at dusk (though we failed to find this species). A small reedy area on the opposite side of the road is good for two introduced (though as yet not classified as ‘self-sustaining) species – Streaked and Black-headed Weaver.

South Doha Nature Reserve A couple of small pools fringed with reeds (29”19’37N, 47”47’33E) to the west of Kuwait City where seistanicus Purple Swamphen can be found. We also located Basra Reed Warbler and Clamorous Reed Warbler here. Note that this was the worst place we found for mosquitoes in Kuwait, particularly in the evenings (this being the best time to see the Swamphens as well!).

Subiyah A small enclosed area of bushes surrounding a farm at the north-eastern most point of Kuwait Bay (29”34’21N, 47”54’26E). We encountered hunters here who thankfully were not the best shooters and a cage full of birds here included 3 Grey Hypocolius that presumably had been caught locally. An Eversmann’s Redstart was present here for a couple of days in late 2006 but our visit produced little in the way of migrants; an Eastern Orphean Warbler the only bird of note.

Sulaibhikat A small area of rough ground and bushes on the shores of Kuwait Bay; located to the west of Kuwait City. An over-wintering Long-tailed Shrike favoured the palms by the wall on the southern side of the reserve during our stay whilst this area seemed to be a decent migration spot. Namaqua Doves were seen on all of our visits whilst other highlights included a female Grey Hypocolius, a couple of Daurian Shrikes and a male semenowi Cinereous Bunting. There is also a viewing platform where you can look out at the waders, gulls, terns and flamingos in Kuwait Bay.

DAILY SIGHTINGS

This section hopefully will give you a feel of what species we recorded at each site during each visit. One thing that was really enjoyable about our visit was you could visit sites time and time again and see a different variety of species on a day-to-day basis. This section is pretty much lifted from my notebook and arranged in a decent species order. Though I have tried to include all species, there may be occasions where commoner species have been omitted from some sites.

Particularly noteworthy species/observations are in bold and where the letter C is stated, this species was common at that site.

3^rd APRIL 2007

Arrival late evening/early morning to Kuwait International Airport

Sulaibhikat Nature Reserve

Grey Heron 10+,  Greater Flamingo 400+,  Kentish Plover 10+,  Little Stint c.80,  Slender-billed Gull c.200,  Little Tern 1,  Namaqua Dove 4,  Hoopoe 1,  Bee-eater 7,  Swallow 10,  Crested Lark C,  White Wagtail 1,  Red-throated Pipit 3,  Redstart 1,  Bluethroat 1,  Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin 1,  Eastern Black-eared Wheatear 1,  Rock Thrush 1 (male),  Stonechat 2, Grey Hypocolius 1(female),  White-cheeked Bulbul C,  Graceful Prinia 12,  Lesser Whitethroat 2, Long-tailed Shrike 1,  Common Myna 5,  House Sparrow C,  Ortolan 1

North Doha Nature Reserve

Cormorant 1,  Teal c.50,  Pallid Harrier 1,  Ringed Plover 25+,  Kentish Plover 30+,  Little Stint 50+,  Dunlin 20+,  Curlew Sandpiper 50+,  Curlew C,  Redshank 100+,  Greenshank 50+,  Terek Sandpiper 150+,  Turnstone c.10,  Slender-billed Gull 50+,  Caspian Tern 10+

Doha Spit

Greater Flamingo 1,  Black Kite 1,  Pallid Harrier 2,  Oystercatcher c.50,  Crab Plover 3,  Kentish Plover C,  Lesser Sand Plover 200+,  Grey Plover 50+,  Sanderling C,  Dunlin C,  Little Stint C,  Ruff 3,  Curlew C,  Whimbrel 2,  Marsh Sandpiper 8,  Terek Sandpiper 30+,  Common Sandpiper 2,  Turnstone c.40,  Slender-billed Gull C,  Heuglin’s Gull 4,  Caspian Tern 50+,  Sandwich Tern 3,  Lesser Crested Tern c.75,  Crested Tern 1

South Doha Nature Reserve

Little Bittern 1,  Little Egret 2,  Purple Heron 9,  Steppe Eagle 1,  Purple Swamphen heard,  Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin 1,  Tree Pipit 2,  Chiffchaff C,  House Sparrow C

Jahra East

Cormorant 4,  Squacco 8+,  Western Reef Egret 1,  Purple Heron 2, Black-winged Stilt 2,  Black-winged Pratincole 28,  Collared Pratincole 1,  Grey Plover c.10,  Ruff 4,  Common Sandpiper 4,  Slender-billed Gull C,  Black-headed Gull c.30,  Great Black-headed Gull 1(2cy),  Heuglin’s Gull 3,  Caspian Tern 15+,  Little Tern 1,  Sand Martin 2,  Red-throated Pipit C, Yellow Wagtail 100s,  Isabelline Shrike 1(phoenicuroides)

South Doha Nature Reserve

Little Bittern 1,  Night Heron 1,  Purple Swamphen 2(seistanicus),  Moorhen 2,  Reed Warbler C,  Basra Reed Warbler 1,  Clamorous Reed Warbler 1,  Great Reed Warbler 2,  Sedge Warbler 1,  Chiffchaff C

8^th APRIL 2007

Al-Abraq Al-Khabari

Cattle Egret 1,  Squacco 2,  Pallid Harrier 2,  Sparrowhawk 2,  Turtle Dove 2,  Collared Dove 2,  Cuckoo 1,  Bee-eater 1,  Red-throated Pipit 5+,  Yellow Wagtail c.10,  White-throated Robin 2,  Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin 1,  Pied Wheatear 1,  Redstart 5,  Barred Warbler 2,  Whitethroat 1,  Lesser Whitethroat c.8,  Menetries’s Warbler 2,  Icterine Warbler 1,  Chiffchaff C,  Willow Warbler 2,  Semi-collared Flycatcher 2,  Woodchat 1

Sabah-al-Ahmad (including Tulha Oasis)

Lesser Kestrel 25+,  Montagu’s Harrier 1,  Common Sandpiper 1,  Wood Sandpiper 1,  Scops Owl 1,  Little Owl 1, Crag Martin 1,  Swallow C,  Tawny Pipit c.5,  Pied Wheatear 2,  Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin 1,  Redstart 4,  Southern Grey Shrike 1(pallidirostris),  Ortolan c.5

Doha Spit

Western Reef Egret 1,  Oystercatcher 12,  Lesser Sand Plover 300+,  Dunlin C,  Sanderling C,  Curlew Sandpiper C,  Whimbrel 1,  Bar-tailed Godwit 2,  Slender-billed Gull C,  Great Black-headed Gull 1(2cy),  Heuglin’s Gull 4,  Sandwich Tern 15+,  Lesser Crested Tern c.25,  Crested Tern 2,  Caspian Tern c.50,  Little Tern 5

Kabd

Hobby 1,  Lesser Kestrel 2,  Sparrowhawk 1,  Booted Eagle 1,  Namaqua Dove 1,  Collared Dove 3,  Bee-eater c.10,  Cuckoo 1,  Short-toed Lark 5,  Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin 1,  Rock Thrush 1,  Eastern Olivaceous Warbler 1,  Isabelline Shrike 5 (3 phoenicuroides, 1 isabellinus and 1 ‘karelini’), Pale Rock Sparrow c.10, Ortolan 2

9^th APRIL 2007

Departure from Kuwait International Airport early morning

SPECIES LIST (156 Species recorded)

Common Teal Anas crecca

Only seen in Kuwait Bay with highest count c.50 at North Doha Nature Reserve 3^rd April

Northern Shoveler Anas clypeata

6 Doha Spit near the Manchester Club 5^th April

Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo

Up to 4 noted in Kuwait Bay on several occasions and 2 seen with the next species at Ras al Zour 6^th April

Socotra Cormorant Phalacrocorax nigrogularis

In the Western Palearctic this species is restricted to the southern Kuwait coast. 5+ were noted on a sandy islet off Ras al Zour 6^th April

Little Bittern Ixobrychus minutus

Singles at South Doha Nature Reserve 3^rd and 7^th April, a confiding male at Jahra Farms 3^rd April and 1 Jahra East 4^th April

Black-crowned Night Heron Nycticorax nycticorax

1 over South Doha Nature Reserve at dusk 7^th April

Squacco Heron Ardeola ralloides

Seen in decent numbers at Jahra East on most visits and 1 at Tulha 4^th April

Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis

1 Al Abraq 8^th April

Western Reef Egret Egretta gularis

Singles noted at Doha Spit and Jahra East on several dates

Little Egret Egretta garzetta

Small numbers at sites in Kuwait Bay such as Jahra East and Doha Spit

Grey Heron Ardea cinerea

Commonly seen in Kuwait Bay at sites such as Jahra East and Sulaibhikat

Purple Heron Ardea purpurea

9 South Doha Nature Reserve 3^rd April and ones and twos at Jahra East on several dates

Glossy Ibis Plegadis falcinellus

17 Jahra East 4^th April and 19 there the following day

Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus

Common in Kuwait Bay with upwards of 400 seen from Sulaibhikat 3^rd April

Black Kite Milvus migrans lineatus

A handful seen during the trip; singles at Jahra East, Abdaly, Doha Spit (on two occasions) and Tulha. Individuals were of the eastern form lineatus or ‘Black-eared Kite’

Short-toed Eagle Circaetus gallicus

Singles at Sulaibhikat and Sabah-al-Ahmad 4^th April

Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus

2 over the reedbed at Jahra East 4^th April and a migrant over Ras al Zour 6^th April

Pallid Harrier Circus macrourus

Small numbers seen each day; the steppe areas at Sabah-al-Ahmad being particularly productive and migrants seen at sites such as Doha Spit and Pipeline Beach/Zour Port

Montagu’s Harrier Circus pygargus

Singles at Jahra East 5^th April and Sabah Al-Ahmad 8^th April

Eurasian Sparrowhawk Accipter nisus

1 Subiyah 5^th April, 2 Al Abraq and 1 Kabd 8^th April. Additionally 2 shot birds were unfortunately found at Al Abraq 8^th April

Common Buzzard Buteo buteo vulpinus

1 Tulha 4^th April and 1 Abdaly Farms 5^th April

Steppe Eagle Aquila nipalensis

1 over South Doha Nature Reserve 3^rd April

Eastern Imperial Eagle Aquila heliaca

1 2^nd calendar year bird over the Burger King car park at Jahra 7^th April

Booted Eagle Hieraaetus pennatus

1 dark morph Kabd 8^th April

Osprey Pandion haliaetus

1 Doha Spit 5^th April and 1 Jahra East 7^th April

Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni

Small numbers seen actively migrating over Ras al Zour 6^th April, 25+ grounded birds during inclement weather at Sabah Al-Ahmad 7^th April and 2 Kabd 8^th April

Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus

Seen in small numbers at most sites throughout our visit

Hobby Falco subbuteo

1+ at Kabd Agricultural Farm 8^th April