Birds of Bahrain

Category: Observation by Howard

2019-04-02

Catching up - but will be less pics than before

04:42:35, Categories: Observation by Howard

So April fools day has successfully passed - time to catch up

Masked Shrike

Pratincoles passing

Red Rumped Swallow
Redrumped swallow

Swallow
swallow

Northern Whaetear
Northern Wheatear

Pied Wheatear

Isabelline Wheatear

Willow Warbler

Chiffchaff
Willow Warbler

Barred Warbler

Rufous Bushcat
Rufous Bushchat

Stonechat

Whinchat

Upchers Warbler

Tree Pipit

Saunders's Tern

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2018-03-31

Good movement seen on the shore

22:06:55, Categories: Observation by Howard

March is that time of the year when the number of waders on the shore numerically starts to peak while in the gardens and desert areas its time to spend quality time looking out for the chance of a real rarity - luckily this month certainly lived up to expectations on both counts.

But to start with a reality check -

Early in the month young Ali better know on twitter as shaggy @sahggy1991 contacted me to inform me that a real rarity - a Black-winged Kite had turned up for sale in a village pet shop - together we contrived the means to acquire the bird and when done to pass it on to our friends at Tails Veterinary surgery to be chipped and checked out for subsequent re-release back to the wild. A wild single Black-winged kite had been observed across northern Bahrain from mid January through February our second or third record was this the same bird well that was hard to tell from the data presented but it certainly was a youngster and in beautiful condition. It appeared fortunately not to have been in captivity very long. For me this was a first - What a beauty - was love at first sight - I was amazed at just how small and elegant the species is and although friendly it made it known, it wanted out. Thus after its medical and a few days in isolation, well fed to ensure a successful transition back to the wild the bird was successfully released one evening in an extensive area of gardens along the west coast. Should it ever be recaptured being chipped will enable us to prove without doubt that it is indeed a wild bird and undertake a successful prosecution in the courts here.

Black-winged Kite

The Kite apart - the month also turned up another real rarity a male Finsch's Wheatear in Buri

Finsch's Wheatear

Fortunately during the period I also saw several Black-eared Wheatear always useful for making comparisons between the two species for identification but also was interesting in feeding behavior observed

Black-eared Wheatear

As epected on a large scale Pied Wheatear always dominate the early return of wheatear by numbers alone they seem to turn up everywhere - all ages both male and female

Pied Wheatear

Northern Wheatear never fail to impress at this time either as the first birds through are generally bigger and more colorful than later ones

Northern Wheatear

Desert Wheatear just one of many still around

Isabelline Wheatear still numerous

Isabelline Wheatear

Another scarcity was the Mistle Thrush seen at Buri in the same general location as the Finsch's Wheatear but it was never as obliging
Mistle Thrush

Mistle Thrush

A big surprise however was the White-tailed Plover that turned up at Hamalah over grass
White-tailed Plover

White-tailed Plover

Woodchat Shrike good numbers this year

Woodchat Shrike

Cinereous Bunting two birds seen keeping company with the more frequently seen Ortolan Bunting

Cinereous Bunting

Meadow Pipit

Collared Dove one of the many

Barn Owl a pair at their nest site at the Bahrain Fort

Barn Owl

Bluethroat

Bee-eater large passage mostly late evening with few seen down on the deck for good photography

Chiffchaff

Lesser Whitethroat

Redstart

Marsh Harrier

Desert Warbler a common wintering species

Glossy Ibis - 4 of the 12 wintering around Askar Marsh area

Now a resident breeder in my garden in Manama - one of my pair of Graceful Prinia

Grey Francolin now also regular in my garden

Great Grey Shrike

Hoopoe a now well established breeding species
Hoopoe

Hoopoe

Isabelline Shrike

Yellow Wagtail Fledegg

White Wagtail one of the thousands wintering

Crested Lark - remarkably resilient a locally breeding species of town and country

Water Pipit just one of the many

Tawny Pipit always a regular across agricultural areas and all desert fringes

Isabelline Shrike - Durian

Striated Heron at the northern Tubli outfall must now be regarded as a scarce but resident breeder

Striated Heron

Wood Sandpiper - wintering numbers this year have been better than in previous winters

Wood Sandpiper

Green Sandpiper good numbers wintering too

Common Sandpiper a regular often in considerable numbers

Marsh Sandpiper one of several wintering at Askar

Little Ringed Plover just the one at Askar

Little Ringed Plover

Pin-tailed Snipe at last one out in the open

Pin-tailed Snipe

Snipe
Snipe

Snipe

Cattle Egret coming into breeding plumage

Black Headed Gulls at Hafeera quarry site around the watering hole just one frame of a few of the tens of thousands at the location daily

Red-wattled Plover at Hafeera pool a potential breeding site

Kentish Plover chick

Kentish Plover - Dad provides shade and sanctuary

Dad

Mum

Rock Thrush

Rufous Bushchat

Just a hungry House Sparrow
$\Sparrow$

Ruff
Ruff

Ruff

Curlew
Curlew

Curlew

Purple Gallinule A breeding resident at Askar

Redshank at Askar

Greenshank at Askar

Grey heron at Askar

Namaqua Dove at Hafeera having moved south to breed

around Muharraq shore
Ringed Plover

Bart-tailed Godwit

Broad-billed Sandpiper

Mixed small waders

Curlew Sandpiper

Dunlin
Dunlin

Dunlin

Flamingo

Greater Sand Plover

Lesser Sand Plover

Little Stint

Little Tern

Sanderling in among the Sand Plover

Terek Sandpiper

Turnstone

Waders
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Grey Plover

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2018-01-31

January the bonus of a few rarities Part 2

21:23:05, Categories: Observation by Howard, Admin - Howard King

Close to Hamalah farm in adjacent scrub thanks to birding friends I was finally able to get up close and personal with a Great Spotted Cuckoo

Great Spotted Cuckoo

Not a lot seen at Adhari just too much disturbance at weekends but a visit did provide close-ups of a Spotted Crake and Clamorous Reed Warbler
Spotted Crake

Spotted Crake

Spotted Crake
On returning from the UK my first port of call had to be the Hypocolius morning roost adjancent to Jasra Water Pumping Sation - it was pleasing to see so many - probably well over five hundred birds pass through the site between 06:30 and 08:00 THE PEAK BEING AROUND 07:00 - this will creep earlier as the time passes keeping pace with sunrise.

Hypocolius

Male
Hypocolius

Hypocolius

Female
Hypocolius

Clamorous Reed Warbler

and Bluethroat

Bluethroat

At Hamlah Farm the problem was finding birds the site was relatively quiet and birds were often easily spooked
Richards Pipit is a species they I have been chasing for years I have seen dozens but could never get close enough for a decent phtograph well now I have and what a hind claw they have.

Richards Pipit

Meadow Pipit

Bluethroat female I believe

Isabelline Shrike

Isabelline Wheatear
Isabelline Shrike " alt="Isabelline Wheatear" title="Isabelline Wheatear" />

This rather weird looking Dove was keeping company with the Collared
dove

Collared Dove

Corn Bunting

Crested Lark

Curlew
Curlew

Kestrel
Kestrel

Lapwing
Lapwing

Namaqua Dove

Pallid Harrier

Red-throated Pipit

Graceful Prinia

Skylark
Skylark

Skylark

Tawny Pipit

Spanish Sparrow

Stonechats a mix of European and Siberian types

Stonechat

At the Jeble Dakhan
Desert Lark

the long staying White-crowned Black Wheatear

White-crowned Black Wheatear

Desert Wheatear

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2018-01-30

January was a busy month with the bonus of a few rarities Part 1

19:35:38, Categories: Observation by Howard, Admin - Howard King

After a late return from the UK the remainder of the month was really exceptional - not a lot of species around mind but what did turn up was exceptional, hence a rather long posting split into two parts

Starting at Askar Marsh
The White-tailed Plover seen in December was relocated keeping company with numerous Snipe, Sandpipers, Shanks, Stilts, Herons, Glossy Ibis and common Kingfishers
waders

White-tailed Plover

Snipe
Snipe

Snipe

Green Sandpiper

Marsh Sandpiper

Wood Sandpiper

Common Sandpiper

Kingfisher

Glossy Ibis

Pooping on the wing
Glossy Ibis

Little Grebe

Green Shank

Western Reef Heron now in breeding plumage

Squacco Heron

Purple Gullinule (SwampHen)

White Wagtail

Water Pipit

But the bird of month or rather the species of the month observered at Askar has to be the two Pied Kingfishers that turned up in the last week of the month however intitialy it was thought there was only one

Pied Kingfisher

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Pied Kingfisher

Pied Kingfishers

Manama Seafront at Bahrain Bay can provide some interesting opportunities for interesting shots of fishing or roosting birds

Caspian Tern

Slender-billed Gulls

Slender-billed Gull

Dunlin
Dunlin

Great Black-headed Gull

Steppe Gull
Gull

Gull

Greater Sand Plover

Socotra Cormorant

Whimbrel

Out and about at various locations
Marsh Harrier

Little Stint

Kentish Plover

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2017-12-31

December a short month for Observation

16:45:53, Categories: Observation by Howard

With Christmas and then the New Year- December is alsways a short month and also with January normorally fairly quiet but for a few the appearance of some Calandra Larks at Hamalah changed all that. With a single Observation in 1982 it was really nice to be able to get to grips with this species with a camera in Hand. Found in a mixed flock of hundreds of other larks conataining a few Bimaculated but mostly Skylarks it was hard work sifting through them to spot our wayward intoloper.

Calandra Lark

At Ras Tubli the Staiated Heron now resident showed briefly at the back of the mangrove at the same spot where the juvenile was last seen
Stiated Heron