Jordan 2013 - An Introduction

Jordan 2013

Over the last 4 weeks I've been fortunate enough to be working in the south of Jordan near to the Dana World Biosphere Reserve and Important Bird Area. The reserve is managed by the Jordanian Royal Society for the Conservation of Nature and I was lucky enough to stay at their Dana Guesthouse in the village of Dana. 

I was also lucky enough to meet many travellers whilst staying in Dana and the other bits of Jordan sound fantastic.  It a bit of a shame that I only saw the airport, desert highway, Dana and our works site.  Oh I did see Amman (once) but that was for a meeting so didn't really see anything to write home about (apart from some very crazy driving)!  By all accounts (and from the bits I saw) Jordan is an amazing country and well worth a visit and the birds (wider ecology and scenery) simply stunning. 

A full species list from both trips is  included at the bottom of this blog.  Total species seen  were 79 species (of high quality) including 20 species new to me (shown in red in the table). 

Best birds were -

Palestine Sunbird - this was one species I really wanted to see.  The males are little corkers - colours are truly amazing and they sound very Wren-esque (amongst other calls). 

Palestine Sunbird

Pale Rock Sparrow - this species was (according to our local expert) not regularly recorded in Jordan until about 2000 but this species is now well established.  The call is described in Collins as sounding like an insect or electric motor and once tuned in they were fairly easy to pick up.  One was finally obliging enough for a pic and was by far one of my best pictures of the trip.

 

Wheatears - Black-eared, Desert and Isabelline - two new and one I've seen before.  Dana was full of BE Wheatears and of both dark and pale varieties.  Lovely songsters too.  A selection of wheatear pictures will be posted shortly.

Doves - Saw both Laughing and European Turtle Dove.  Nice to see Laughing as it was a new species for me and so nice to see and hear lots of Turtles - it is just very sad that this species has all but disappeared from the UK.  Both species were in good numbers in the orchard at Dana.

Warblers - were cracking, but no pics are they were all a bit skulky (typical warblers).  Again mostly in the village in the orchards.

Raptors - the main focus of the trip.  Griffon Vultures breed in the Wadi Dana and other species were seen in the evening circling around the cliffs looking for somewhere to go and roost.  Good numbers of all species were seen with early numbers of Steppe Buzzards and eagles with 4 Bonelli's being seen  at Dana on one of the evenings in April.  Other eagles included - Imperial, Golden, Booted, Steppe, Lesser Spotted and Short-toed. 

The May trip was raptor-tastic with 3 days of fairly epic Honey Buzzard passage of over 10,000 birds over three days.

I will post a selection of other pictures soon.

Species List

Common Name	Latin Name	Common Name	Latin Name
Chukar	Alectoris chukar	White Stork	Ciconia ciconia
Griffon Vulture	Gyps fulvus	Golden Eagle	Aquila cheysaetos
Imperial Eagle	Aquila heliaca	Lesser Spotted Eagle	Aquila pomarina
Steppe Eagle	Aquila nipalensis	Short-toed Eagle	Circaetus gallicus
Booted Eagle	Aquila pennata	Bonelli’s Eagle	Aquila fasciata
Black Kite	Milvus migrans	Pallid Harrier	Circus macrourus
Long-legged Buzzard	Buteo rufinus	Steppe Buzzard	Buteo buteo vulpinus
Common Buzzard	Buteo buteo	European Honey Buzzard	Pernis apivorus
Eurasian Sparrowhawk	Accipiter nisus	Common Kestrel	Falco tinnunculus
Lesser Kestrel	Falcon naumanni	Sakar Falcon	Falco cherrug
Rock Dove	Columba livia	European Turtle Dove	Streptopelia turtur
Laughing Dove	Streptopelia sengalensis	Common Cuckoo	Cuculus canorus
Eurasian Eagle Owl	Bubo bubo	Eurasian Scops Owl	Otus scops
Common Swift	Apus apus	Pallid Swift	Apus pallidus
Alpine Swift	Apus melba	Eurasian Hoopoe	Upapa epops
European Bee-eater	Merops apiaster	Crested Lark	Galerida cristata
Greater Short-toed Lark	Calandrella brachydactyla	Desert Lark	Ammomanes deserti
Calandra Lark	Melanocorypha calandra	Common Sand Martin	Riparia riparia
Rock Martin	Ptyonoprogne fuligula	Barn Swallow	Hirundo rustica
Common House Martin	Delichon urbicum	Tawny Pipit	Anthus campestris
Black Redstart	Phoenicurus ochruros	Northern Wheatear	Oenanthe oenanthe
Isabelline Wheatear	Oenanthe isabellina	Black-eared Wheatear	Oenanthe hispanica
Desert Wheatear	Oenanthe deserti	Whinchat	Saxicola rubetra
Rufous-tailed Rock Thrush	Monticola saxatilis	Blackcap	Sylvia atricapilla
Common Whitethroat	Sylvia communis	Lesser Whitethroat	Sylvia curruca
Sardinian Warbler	Sylvia melanocephala	Spectacled Warbler	Sylvia conspicillata
Asian Desert Wabler	Sylvia nana	Cetti’s Warbler	Cettia cetti
European Reed Warbler	Acrocephalus scirpaceus	Upcher’s Warbler	Hippolais languida
Olivaceous Warbler	Iduna pallida	Spotted Flycatcher	Muscicapa striata
Great Tit	Parus major	Lesser  Grey Shrike	Lanius minor
Red-backed Shrike	Lanius collurio	Woodchat Shrike	Lanius senator
White-spectacled Bulbul	Pycnonotus xanthopygos	Palestine Sunbird	Cinnyris osea
Brown-necked Raven	Corvus ruficollis	House Sparrow	Passer domesticus
Common Rock Sparrow	Petronia petronia	Pale Rock Sparrow	Carpospiza brachydactyla
Linnet	Carduelis cannabina	European Goldfinch	Carduelis carduelis
European Greenfinch	Carduelis chloris	Syrian Serin	Serinus syriacus
Ortolan Bunting	Emberiza hortulana

TOTAL – 79 species.  Additions to Life List - 20

Return to Blogging - 2013 - A Catch Up

After much pestering by a few I have decided to start blogging again and will try and keep up to date with it and post a bit more regularly.

This year has thus far been busy both with work and family with plenty more work lined up and hopefully much more international trips. So far I have had one trip out to Romania and two to Jordan.



Isabelline Wheatear - April 2013

I am also catching moths in the garden on my fairly recently acquired Skinner trap and will start to post updates on how this is going - although a slow start to the year would be an understatement and things will hopefully start to pick up soon. As part of the moth catching I am taking part in the Garden Moth Challenge which is a bit of good fun and is really great to be able to see and hear what other mothers are doing across the UK.

There is a lead table however I certainly won't be challenging for top spot! As of today I've only recorded 12 macro moth species this year, 1 micro and one butterfly - things can only improve!

Highlights of the year include -



The Herald



Early Thorn





Brindled Beauty

In addition to garden mothing I have been working in Jordan twice in the last four weeks or so.  My 'to-do' list includes sorting out a proper blog and trip list as well as a combined trip list to include all sightings from over 9 weeks of field work completed by my company.

 

Here's a little flavour of the future blogs of birds and wildlife from the UK and beyond.

 

Comments on pictures or content are always welcome and I hope you enjoy!

 

 

 Crested Lark
 



Chiffchaff





Short-toed Lark

9th - 14th March 2011 Trip List

 
 

 
 

Combined Trip List

 
 

Common Name	Latin Name
Mute Swan	Cygnus olor
Ruddy Shelduck	Tadorna ferruginea
Mallard	Anas platyrhynchos
Red-legged Partridge	Alectoris rufa
Great Egret	Ardea alba
Black Stork	Ciconia nigra
Hen Harrier	Circus cyaneus
Eurasian Sparrowhawk	Accipiter nisus
Northern Goshawk	Accipiter gentilis
Common Buzzard	Buteo buteo
Common Kestrel	Falco tinnulnculus
Green Sandpiper	Tringa ochropus
Yellow-legged Gull	Larus cachinnans
Common Wood Pigeon	Columba palumbus
Black Woodpecker	Dryocopus martius
Green Woodpecker	Picus viridis
Middle Spotted Woodpecker	Dendrocopus medius
Great Spotted Woodpecker	Dendrocopus major
Sky Lark	Alauda arvensis
Woodlark	Lullula arborea
Meadow Pipit	Anthus pratensis
Winter Wren	Troglodytes troglodytes
European Robin	Erithacus rubecula
Common Blackbird	Turdus merula
Fieldfare	Turdus pilaris
Song Thrush	Turdus philomelos
Redwing	Turdus iliacus
Mistle Thrush	Turdus viscivorus
Long-tailed Tit	Aegithalos caudatus (Both Caudatus and Europaeus)
Blue Tit	Cyanistes caeruleus
Great Tit	Parus major
Marsh Tit	Poecile palustris
Great Grey Shrike	Lanius excubitor
Eurasian Jay	Garrulus glandarius
Black-billed Magpie	Pica pica
Hooded Crow	Corvus corone cornix
Common Raven	Corvus corax
Common Starling	Sturnus vulgaris
House Sparrow	Passer domesticus
Eurasian Tree Sparrow	Passer montanus
Chaffinch	Fringilla coelebs
Brambling	Fringilla montifringilla
European Goldfinch	Carduelis carduelis
Eurasian Siskin	Carduelis spinus
Common Linnet	Carduelis cannabina
Common Bullfinch	Pyrrhula pyrrhula
Hawfinch	Coccothraustes coccothraustes
Yellowhammer	Emberiza citrinella
Reed Bunting	Emberiza schoeniclus
Corn Bunting	Emberiza calandra

 
 

 
 

 
 

TOTAL FOR TRIP - 50

NEW SPECIES (EURO LIST) - 2

 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 
 

 

Bulgaria 2011

Embarrassingly this is my first blog since September last year. Things have been very busy with Turnstone Ecology and we have been out and about doing various projects ranging from watching briefs to field work. We have had plenty of winter bird surveys which are now all finished and the breeding season is looking very busy. Plenty of newt surveys too which is all promising a very busy Spring season.

Bulgaria 2011 - this trip was a site visit to a proposed wind farm project in north-east Bulgaria. The purpose of the visit was to set up spring migration vantage points as well as to identify breeding bird survey transects throughout the development area and within some control areas. The breeding bird surveys will continue post-construction so the control areas are important so we will be able to assess the impacts of the operational wind farm on the breeding bird assemblage. Surveys have already been completed on the site in Spring 2009 and 2010 and we (Turnstone Ecology) were involved in setting up the autumn 2010 migration vantage point surveys. A winter trip was completed in 2011 (not by me!) to set up winter transect and activity surveys; mainly to identify if the area supports large concentrations of winter wildfowl (geese).

The trip just completed was 7 days in total - 5 days in the field and a travel day either side.

March 9th Day 1

Late flight from Gatwick with planned landing (via Budapest) in Varna at 0200. On the little twin-prop from Budapest the pilot came on the tanoy and spluttered something about snow in Varna and on the run way. Didn't fully understand what he was saying until we came down through the clouds in to a mini-blizzard. On landing someone immediately started to clap as soon as the wheels had touched the tarmac but then the plane started to slide - bit of a back end twitch (and that was not just the plane!). All ended well - no major slippage but I did have time to remark to my colleague that the clapping may have been a little premature. It is an annoying phenomenon which I wish people would stop doing.

Quick transfer to the hotel through a very snowy Varna and then straight to bed. Full day in the field planned for Day 2 and we were due to be picked up in less then 6 hours.

Day 2 - Thursday

First birds of the trip were Yellow-legged Gulls that were thinking about breeding on the building opposite the hotel - very very vocal and constantly flying around - even at night when walking the streets trying to find a restaurant.

Pick up at the hotel at 9am quick visit to the office and picked up some more detailed maps and we were off to site - about an hour and half from Varna. Our in-country support was driving a Range Rover which was certainly needed given that the snow on site was up to half a metre deep in places (with drifts much much deeper!). I was quite pleased about this as we were to self-drive after this first day and I was quite looking forward to having 3 days with a Range Rover!

The site - on the last day - note no snow now!! Water bodies still mostly frozen but managed to pick up a pair of Ruddy Shelduck on the lake together with a Green Sandpiper on the last day in the field.

Site was very snowy and bright and it was at this point that I was regretting my choice of gear that I had packed (good boots but known to leak!, lightweight spring trousers, no over-trousers and no sun-glasses!). In my defense I had checked the weather forecast and it was supposed to be sunny and warm but I obviously didn't pay attention to the fact that it had been snowing for the last few days!!

Day 2 was taken up with sorting out the vantage points for spring migration surveys, basically just wanted to switch the position of the autumn vantage points. We drove around the whole of the site and then headed back to Varna. The evenings were very cold and we popped out for dinner. I had never stayed in Varna before and it seemed quite nice but very empty - it is alot busier in the summer. This cathedral was just outside the hotel.

Day 2 was very sunny and the snow had melted very rapidly - in fact you wouldn't believe that it was so snowy in the morning. We were both nervous about how badly conditions on the site both underfoot and for the car were going to deteriorate in the rapid melt. I was expecting to have very wet feet for the next few days but as least we had the Range Rover!!

Day 3 to 5 - Friday, Saturday and Sunday

Major disappointment - no Range Rover but we got a i30 instead. A fair exchange is no robbery and this was therefore daylight!! To be fair we were probably safer in the i30 - I reckon that we could have been slightly over confident in the Range Rover and that could have led to us getting stuck with no way of rescue.

The work on the breeding bird transects started in earnest! We walked three of the transects per day through ever melting snow and very large puddles. The mud in the fields was very sticky and it was at times like walking with large muddy platform shoes - very hard work but the birding was steady but very good.

Highlights

Great Grey Shrike - we had probably up to three within the survey area and all would all soon be leaving for the their breeding grounds to be replaced by Lesser Grey, Woodchat and Red-backed which all breed on site.

A slightly confusing bunting as its behaviour was very wrong - stayed very close to the ground - skulking almost until it scuttled away and flew off. Initial thoughts were something nice but on closer inspection it turned out be a Corn Bunting - which were everywhere; together with flocks of 1000's of SkyLark and plenty of Woodlark in the fields and woodland shelter belts.

Woodlark were also fairly common and we saw quite a few in the open fields but also within the adjacent woodland shelter belts.

Marsh Tit (left) put on a very good display and was probably some of the best views I have ever had and we were both very pleased to pick up this nominate race (caudatus) white-headed Long-tailed Tit - he/she was looking very cosy with a European ('normal') Long-tail.

Bird of the trip and almost certainly of the year so far. The picture really does not do this bird justice as it put on a very good display - just a shame that it didn't sit on a tree for us. Black Woodpecker!!! Good views as it flew past us on three occasions - calling in flight and looking back at two amazed English guys eating lunch. We also had Middle-spotted Woodpecker in the same area which was also a new species for me.

On the final day in the field (Sunday) the warm weather and a nice gentle (ish) southerly had started migration off and we were lucky enough to see some visible migration - Common Buzzard, Hen Harrier, Northern Goshawk (including a local bird calling over one of the wooded escarpments) and Black Stork - the latter was a lifer for my colleague (who also needs to be mentioned as all the bird pics are his - many thanks SW). We also got reports of White Stork on the final day but unfortunately we were not lucky enough to pick one up on the way to and/or at the airport.

Trip List to Follow -