Bahrain Obs

Weekends for Saudi are Thursday/Friday - here in Bahrain Friday/Saturday - confused; so are we. But what it means is that AJ often comes over on thursday and if I'm not committed we spend the day looking for photographic opportunities, which was the case yesterday. What we didn't expect however was a dull, overcast day with further rain, especially as we have already had more than our usual share for the winter but this is exactly what we had this thursday. Finding our wintering species was not the problem but getting close enough to maximise the light was a real problem.
AJ lent me his 200mm vibration compensated lens so while he was closing down on the birds I snapped this distant shot - Red-tailed & Mourning Wheatear with Blue Rock Thrush on the Jebel Dukhan. The Mourning's and Blue Rock Thrush soon moved of but the Redtailed Wheatear held his ground to enable AJ to get a shot in (see his pages on his next update)

Having already spotted a flock of 23 Night Herons the evening before close to Asry Shipyards; they were in reeds surrounding a pool of brackish water left behind amonst the reclamation areas for the new port. we finished our day in the gloom trying to get some shots of the birds moving off to feed in the late afternoon.

Before flying off the coast some of the Night Herons joined the Black-winged Stilts, Gulls and Marsh Sandpiers out in the pool.

Before being totally defeated by the failing light we did find some Warblers - This one, you will have to take my word for it, was a Lesser Whitethroat.