Ringing

A hot humid day, quieter than expected but still some interesting birds ringed including some more exotics.

Olivaceous Warbler

Scaly Breasted Munia

Yellow-crowned Bishop a male Euplectes afer

A busy weekend with a few surprises by way of a Great Reed Warbler, Pale Rock Sparrow and a Red-rumped Swallow adding interest to a steady flow of birds ringed.

Whimbrel

Sandmartin

Rufous Bushchat

Pale Rock Sparrow

Crested Lark - pic of a juvenile bird illustrating moult

A surprise for everybody was this female Black-headed Bunting Emberiza melanocephala - a scarce migrant normally seen in autumn unexpectedly turned up in the nets in early August

Yet another escape - Green Singing Finch or Yellow-fronted Canary Serinus mozambicus

We have now reach 3000 birds Ringed since we started this project -

Our target species were our migrant breeders - Olivaceous Warblers and Rufous Bushchats - we were not disappointed as we manged to catch some of each plus a single White-cheeked Bulbul a resident breeding species.

Friday we went out to Jarim Reef - on it in the late eighties three man-man islands were put in - two have since become home to thousands of breeding terns each summer - outnumbering all are the Lesser Crested at least 3000 pairs followed by Bridled 500+/- then White-cheeked around 200+/- besides these 15+/- pairs of Western Reef Herons, Kentish Plover and a small number of Saunders's Terns. Each Winter a few pairs of Caspian Terns have been noted as well as a single pair of Ospreys - who have now built a substantial nest - they have yet to successfully rear any young.

We ringed 350 Lesser Crested Tern Chicks and around a dozen White-cheeked Terns - we will revisit the colonies in three weeks when the Bridled and White-cheeked chicks are more numerous.

More pictures under Bahrain Obs.

the lads who joined in - the back of the boat

Khalifa who sat in the front with me

Brendan having a recce

If he can do it so can I