Tuesday 2 October 2018

Robert Tovey

For those who have not heard, I am afraid I have some bad news to share. Rob, my brother, died suddenly at home in Mauritania from a heart attack on the 9th September. 

It is my intention to leave this blog as a memorial to his passion for birding

James

Monday 3 September 2018

Forty three species at the waste water site

Yesterday I went to the waste water site again. It is my "local" patch these days since the demise of F-Nord lake. The lake was pumped dry by overzealous city planners and a large fresh water magnet for birds was lost in a city in the semi-desert.

North Nouakchott waste water site does its best. Yesterday was a good day.


  • No fewer than ten types of warbler were seen:
    Western Bonelli's Warbler, Willow Warbler, Common Chiffchaff, Western Olivaceous Warbler, Melodious Warbler, Sedge Warbler, Eurasian Reed Warbler, Common Grasshopper Warbler, Western Orphean Warbler, Spectacled Warbler. All are migrants.
  • Other migrants included roller, nightingale, rufous bush-robin and  European turtle dove
  • Three different sedge warbler were photographed near each other.
  • A grasshopper warbler shown about 20 metres from where I saw one two weeks earlier
  • One of the European reed warbler felt so secure it was asleep during daylight. This presumed after a long migratory flight.


melodious warbler 1

melodious warbler 2

back of European reed warbler

juvenile woodchat shrike

partially hidden spectacled warbler

crested lark

grasshopper warbler

spotted flycatcher

namaqua dove

sleepy reed warbler

now alert reed warbler

young yellow wagtail

European turtle dove

western orphean warbler 1

western orphean warbler 2

European pied flycatcher

first sedge warbler

second sedge warbler

third sedge warbler

glossy ibis

blue-cheeked bee-eater

little stint

kentish plover


Species at Waste Water site. 2nd September 2018
European Turtle Dove  
Laughing Dove  
Namaqua Dove  
Black-winged Stilt  
Spur-winged Lapwing  
Kentish Plover  
Common Ringed Plover  
Whimbrel  
Curlew Sandpiper  
Dunlin  
Little Stint  
Common Sandpiper  
Green Sandpiper  
Wood Sandpiper  
Common Redshank  
Grey Heron (Grey)  
Glossy Ibis  
Eurasian Hoopoe  
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater  
European Roller  
Great Grey Shrike (Sahara)  
Woodchat Shrike  
Crested Lark  
Sand Martin  
Barn Swallow  
Western Bonelli's Warbler  
Willow Warbler  
Common Chiffchaff  
Western Olivaceous Warbler  
Melodious Warbler  
Sedge Warbler  
Eurasian Reed Warbler  
Common Grasshopper Warbler  
Western Orphean Warbler  
Spectacled Warbler  
Spotted Flycatcher  
Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin  
Common Nightingale  
European Pied Flycatcher  
Common Redstart  
Western Yellow Wagtail  
House Sparrow  
Sudan Golden Sparrow  

Saturday 1 September 2018

More August passage at the waste water site

Last Sunday I returned to the waste water site, just north of the city. 34 species were seen but that was actually slightly down on the bumper week before. It was down slightly both in terms of species and overall numbers of warblers. Sunday August 19th had been special.

Highlights were:


  • Four very early European roller which reminded unphotographed
  • Green sandpiper which is surprisingly uncommon in the Nouakchott area especially compared with common sandpiper and wood sandpiper
  • Plenty of western Bonelli's warbler. It is very much an August bird in Nouakchott though it winters not much further south.
  • Four great white pelican flying over head, thinking about landing and then wisely not doing so. I have seen this played out several times now.
  • A full list of species is at the bottom of the blog.

western olivaceous warbler

partially hidden western Bonelli's warbler

green sandpiper

ruff

another ruff

spur-winged lapwing, little stint and common redshank


little stint

dunlin

little stint retaining summer plumage

34 species at the waste water site
Laughing Dove  
Namaqua Dove  
Little Swift  
Black-winged Stilt  
Spur-winged Lapwing  
Common Ringed Plover  
Whimbrel  
Ruff  
Dunlin  
Little Stint  
Common Sandpiper  
Green Sandpiper  
Wood Sandpiper  
Common Redshank  
Great White Pelican  
Glossy Ibis  
Eurasian Hoopoe  
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater  
European Roller  
Woodchat Shrike  
Crested Lark  
Barn Swallow  
Western Bonelli's Warbler  
Willow Warbler  
Common Chiffchaff  
Western Olivaceous Warbler  
Melodious Warbler  
Eurasian Reed Warbler  
Common Whitethroat  
Spotted Flycatcher  
Common Nightingale  
European Pied Flycatcher  
House Sparrow  
Sudan Golden Sparrow  

Friday 31 August 2018

A walk near the fish market

Last Saturday, I went for a walk with a new work colleague near the coastal fish market. This was not a full blown birding session. My colleague is not a birder and birding was not the main objective.

However, there were some sightings:


  • A European cuckoo was seen for the second week running in the Nouakchott area
  • Many black tern are obviously migrating south. Unlike the other marsh terns, they primarily migrate along the coast
  • a nice flock of little egret were earnestly flying south over the sea
  • In contrast a larger flock of great white pelican were flying north. There is much movement all year of resident great white pelican moving back and forth between Banc d'Arguin and the Senegal River Delta
  • Very few gulls near the lagoon.


blue-cheeked bee-eater

black tern

sanderling

dunlin

migrating little egret

black tern. Immature left

great white pelican

Laughing Dove  
Namaqua Dove  
Common Cuckoo  
Whimbrel  
Sanderling  
Dunlin 
Common Sandpiper  
Common Redshank  
Audouin's Gull  
Lesser Black-backed Gull  
Black Tern  
Royal Tern  
Great Cormorant (White-breasted)  
Great White Pelican  
Little Egret  
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater  
Crested Lark  
Barn Swallow  
Sudan Golden Sparrow  

Wednesday 29 August 2018

Heavy passage and a lifer

My first birding in the Nouakchott area since returning from my summer break was at the waste water site.

It was on August 19th and was much better than expected.


  • there was a large warbler passage: western Bonelli's warblerwillow warblercommon chiffchaff, western olivaceous warblermelodious warblersedge warblereurasian reed warbler, common grasshopper warbler, spectacled warbler
  • western olivaceous warbler, western Bonelli's warbler and melodious warbler were early passage last year.
  • common grasshopper warbler was a target bird. It is known to winter in West Africa and even south west Mauritania. However, it was lifer for me and number 306 on my Mauritanian list.
  • Though seen by me in country before, I photographed a European cuckoo for the first time here.
  • There was a good cross section of early waders including a curlew sandpiper
  • A full list of species seen is at the bottom of the blog


immature chiffchaff


western bonelli's warbler


common grasshopper warbler

hepatic female common cuckoo 1

hepatic female common cuckoo 2

redshank

spur-winged lapwing and other waders

rufous bush-robin

curlew sandpiper

glossy ibis

horses

common ringed plover

blue-cheeked bee-eater

spotted flycatcher 1

spotted flycatcher 2

pied flycatcher

nightingale

North Nouakchott waste water site, Nouakchott, MR
19-Aug-2018 09:45 - 13:45
36 species
Laughing Dove  
Namaqua Dove  
Common Cuckoo  
Black-winged Stilt  
Spur-winged Lapwing  
Common Ringed Plover  
Whimbrel  
Curlew Sandpiper  
Little Stint  
Common Sandpiper  
Common Greenshank  
Wood Sandpiper  
Common Redshank  
Glossy Ibis 
Osprey  
Eurasian Hoopoe (Eurasian)  
Blue-cheeked Bee-eater  
Great Grey Shrike (Sahara)  
Woodchat Shrike  
Black-crowned Sparrow-Lark  
Crested Lark  
Barn Swallow  
Western Bonelli's Warbler  
Willow Warbler  
Common Chiffchaff  
Western Olivaceous Warbler  
Melodious Warbler  
Sedge Warbler  
Eurasian Reed Warbler 
Common Grasshopper Warbler  
Spectacled Warbler  
Spotted Flycatcher  
Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin  
Common Nightingale  
European Pied Flycatcher  
Sudan Golden Sparrow