Rashed had photographed a Grey Wagtail the first for this spring 1, a Southern Grey Shrike 1, Pied Wheatear 1 and a Common Quail 1.
Grey Wagtail.
Pied Wheatear.
Common Quail.
Southern Grey Shrike.
Barn swallow 60+, Greater-spotted eagle 2, Short-toed eagle 1, Long-legged buzzard 2, Common Kestrel 1, Harrier (ring-tailed) 1, Hoopoe 20+, Pied wheatear 2, Desert wheatear 1, Isabelline wheatear 30+, Northern wheatear 2, Grey heron 1, Little egret 1, Skylark 200 +, Short-toed lark 2, Crested lark 20+, White wagtail 50+, Starling 100+, Chiffchaff 1, Namaqua dove ca. 20, Stonechat 2, Southern grey shrike 1, Water pipit 150+, Tawny pipit 8, Pale Rockfinch 3.
Pale Rockfinch.
Another Pale Rockfinch.
Another Pale Rockfinch.
Geater Short-tailed Lark, it is the ssp. that I have seen Breeding in Northern Kuwait, with rufous crown and upperparts.
Short-toed Eagle.
Rashed at JEO had photographed a Red-rumped Swallow 1, Pied Wheatear 1.
Red-rumped Swallow.
Pied Wheatear.
Today Pekka Fågel tried to relocate the Purple Sunbird at Subiya but his efforts were in vain. As far as I know it was last seen by me on 10/02/2008.
Pekka Found a Desert Warbler 1, a Common Kestrel 1. The Kestrel was tied to a rope that was entangled by a Lycium shrub, he successfully untied the bird and let go.
Desert Warbler.
Common Kestrel.
Rashed at Khiran photograpohed a Mourning Wheatear 1, European Stonechat 1, Isabelline Shrike ssp. phoenicuroides 1.
Mourning Wheatear.
Isabelline Shrike ssp. phoenicuroides.
European Reed Warbler probably fuscus ssp. 1, Great Reed Warbler 1, Clamorous Reed Warbler 1, Little Crake 4, Cetti’s Warbler (only heard singing) 1, European Robin 2, Moustached Warbler 3, Water Rail (heard calling) 1.
At SAANR Pekka saw 11 Hoopoes, 2 Pied Wheatears and three Red-rumped Swallows.
My was car stuck in the mud, photographs by Pekka.
A help from a nice man.
Oh releived! finally my car was out of mud.
A Clamorous Reed Warbler photographed by Pekka.
A Moustached Warbler photographed by Pekka.
A Great Reed Warbler photographed by Pekka.
At Khiran Rashed had photographed a Red-tailed Wheatear 1, Mourning Wheatear 1, and Orphean Warbler 1 (first arrival).
Orphean Warbler.
A Mourning Wheatear, female.
A Red-taled Wheatear.
AT JEO I saw, European Reed Warbler probably fuscus ssp. 1, Unidentified Acrocephalus probably Clamorous 3, Little Craake 3, Savi’s Warbler 1, European Robin 2, Moustached Warbler 3, Common Chiffchaffs 5 .
Savi’s Warbler photographed by Abdulrahman.
Today 24/02 Rashed witnessed the first arrival of a male Northern Wheatear, and photographed a Blue Rock Thrush 1, Menetries’s Warbler 1.
Northern Wheatear.
Blue Rock Thrush.
Menetries’s Warbler.
In all (old area near our greenhouse) and in the new
area, I saw
3 Tawny pipits
4 Stonechats
20 + chiffchaffs (in our weedy grass field)
2 hoopoes
3 southern grey shrikes
2 kestrels
30 + barn swallows
3 house martins
5 Isabelline wheatears
4 pied wheatears (see photo – 1 chasing a dragonfly in
our shadehouse)
3 desert wheatears
1 male rock thrush (see photo)
2 female blue rock thrushes (see photo)
1 black redstart
7 Dunn’s larks
3 Black-crowned finch larks
Rock Thrush, male.
Blue Rock Thrush, female.
Pied Wheatear.
Water rail 1
Little crake 5 at least
Spotted crake 3 at least
Moustached warbler 1
Basra reed warbler 3 +
Yellow wagtail feldegg 10 +
White wagtail 20 +
Water pipit 1
Barn swallow 50 +
House martin 1
Moorhen 8 +
Common snipe 6 +
Short-toed eagle 1
Marsh sandpiper 1
Green sandpiper 2
Wood sandpiper 2
Stonechat 5
Tawny pipit 1
Little bittern 1
Squacco heron 3
Marsh harrier 1
Cetti’s warbler 1
Great-grey shrike 1
Chiffchaff 1
23.02.2008
Pool next to tarmac road near Jahra East outfall
Ruff 8
Desert wheatear 3 +
Green sandpiper 1
Little-ringed plover 1
Barn swallow 30 +
Little Crake.
Spotted Crake.
Water Rail.
Marsh Sandpiper.
A Great Reed Warbler.
Inside a small farm at Wafra Farms there were 4 Mountain Chiffchaffs calling at different sites during 21 and 22 and 23/02/2008, a fourth bird heard making a call of tristis ssp.
At Kheeran area, together with Rashed, we found: Woodchat Shrikes 2, Desert Warbler 3, Pied Wheatear 1, Eurasian Hoope 3, Desert Wheatear 2, Lesser Kestrel 2, Red-tailed Wheatear 1, Isabelline Wheatear 6, Southern Grey Shrike 2, Menetries’s Warbler 1, House Sparrow 6.
Isabelline Wheatear
Two Isabelline Wheatears.
Desert Wheatear.
Southern Grey Shrike.
House Sparrow.
At JEO: Abdulrahman saw Common Chiffchaff 8 (no call of the wintering Chiffchaffs was heard), Moutached Warbler 2 (one heard then seen, the other in another location only heard calling but not seen), Black-headed Wagtail (feldegg) 3, Bluethroat 1, Marsh Harrier 1, Barn Swallow 10+, Little Crake 4 (2 females & 2 males), White Wagtail 10+, Water Pipit 4+, Common Snipe 2, Eurasian Skylark 6.
At Kabd: Dr. Gary saw Tawny Pipit 3, Common Chiffchaff 2, Eurasian Hoopoe 1, Southern Grey Shrike 1, Black Redstart 1, Menetries’s Warbler 1, Dunn’s Lark 8-10, Black Crowned Sparrow Lark 30, Lesser Short-toed Lark 1, Eurasian Skylark 80-100, Common Kestrel 1.
A Moustached Warbler photographed by A. Al-Sirhan.
A Menetries’s Warbler photographed by Gary Brown.
A common Chiffchaff, photographed by A. Al-Sirhan.
A Siberian Stonechat, variegatus ssp. photographed Gary Brown.
A Little Crake, male photographed by A Al-Sirhan.
Little Crake 3, Mountain Chiffchaff 1, Common Chiffchaff 2, Blyth’s Reed Warbler 1, Bluethroat 1, Pallid Swift 5, Common Swift 2.
Probably a European Reed Warbler of ssp. fuscus.
A Mountain Chiffchaff.
A Common Chiffchaff.
A Little Crake, female.
Dr. Gary Brown sent me his records and photographs for today as follows:
Eagles 12, including at least 6 Imperial Eagles,Greater Spotted Eagle 1, Long-legged Buzzard 2, Pallid Harrier 2 (females), Sparrowhawk 1, Water Pipit 100+, Eurasian Skylark 100+, Song Thrush 1, Eurasian Hoopoe 5, Isabelline Wheatear 20+, Desert Wheatear 5, Pallid Swift 25, Barn Swallow 1.
The Imperial Eagle photographed by Dr. Gary Brown.
The Siberian Stonechat ssp. variegatus photographed by Dr. Gary.
A Crested Lark photographed by Dr. Gary.
Buff-bellied Pipit 3, Eurasian Hoope 4, Greater Spottes Eagle 1, Steppe Eagle 1, Long-legged Buzzard 1, Tawny Pipt 4, Grey Heron 1, Cattle Egret 2, Marsh Harrier 1, Siberian Stonechat 1, European Stonechat 1, Northern Lapwing 12, White Wagtail 25, Namaqua Dove 2, Ruff 17, Water Pipt 17, Eurasian Skylark 8, Isabelline Shrike isabellinus ssp. 1.
The Buff-bellied Pipit photographed by A. Al-Sirhan.
On 14/02/2008 Rashed has photographed an Alpine Swift a scarce bird is usually seen in small number, the bird was foraging over Jahra East Outfall.
The Alpine Swift.
Another photograph of the Alpine Swift.
On 12/02/2008 Rashed found and photographed the Black-headed Wagtail Motacilla flava feldegg ssp., the abundant ssp. of Yellow Wagtail in Kuwait, one of the first arrivals to Kuwait after the breeding season. It breeds in SW of Iran c. 500Km from Kuwait, it is possible for it to breed in Kuwait in the future.
On 11/02/2008 Rashed found and photographed a Clamorous Reed Warbler, a wintering species in Kuwait, this bird is usually seen higher at reed stems. I had a talk with Rashed regarding the smaller bird that he had seen two days earlier, with short wings (suspected of being Blyth’s Reed Warbler) he noticed as I did as well, that this small skulking bird was always seen at or on stems near ground, it was noticebly small and can’t be a Clamorous Reed Warbler as suggested by some people. I think what ever that bird is, it can’t be a Clamorous Reed Warbler.
A Clamorous Reed Warbler.
Today at Subiya, Purple Sunbird 1, Desert Warbler 2, Desert Wheatear 2, Isabelline Wheatear 2.
Overgrazing soon will the destroy the new shoots of Lycium Shawii bushes that contains flowers, the main food for the Sunbirds reducing the bushes to just woody branches pointing upwards, another story of habitat destruction.
