Pre-monsoonal Salalah

Salalah received the first rain of khareef (monsoon) season yesterday. It was heavy rain too.

I have tried to do some birding locally in the days running up to the monsoon. However it has been hot and extremely humid. These conditions are energy sapping.

This blog shows a few of the highlights. 

There was visit to Sahalnout farm a week ago. 

Ruepell's weaver

Ruepell's weaver were out and about and busy. Many of them have two breeding seasons: in spring and during the khareef.

Seven Namaqua dove

Looking over the fence, which is the only allowed birding at Sahalnout, I came across a group of 17 namaqua dove perched on three sets of dead branches. Namaqua dove is not common in Oman. This may be the largest number ever recorded in one place. it is a shame I got such poor pictures peering through a fence.

singing bush lark

Singing bush lark are easily seen in the fields or on the perimeter fence. Many more are heard and not seen.

common kestrel

Birds of prey are at there minimum at Sahalnout farm at this time of year. Though four kestrel were seen. A bonelli's eagle was perched way over the other side of the farm. The only other predictable bird of prey in June would be yellow-billed kite. None were observed that day.

rose-ringed parakeet

Rose-ringed parakeet meant the volume of noise was high. 

On another day I went over to Raysut to the lagoons and to the settling pools. The bad news is that all eight pheasant-tailed jacana present at the lagoons in early June have left. There will be no breeding of these birds in Salalah this year. 

common tern

I visit the lagoons in particular to look for spoonbills. The seven Eurasian spoonbill appear to be staying all summer but there was once again no sign of a vagrant African spoonbill which I meticulously look for.

red-throated pipit

At the settling pools, the drying piles of fertiliser have the most activity at the moment. Each time over the past six weeks, there have been a group of cattle egret browsing. However it is the other birds which are my interest.

I suspect this would be a good place for any lost passerines. Indeed three weeks ago there was a long-billed pipit there and last week was a red-throated pipit. The latter bird is very late for migration.

red-wattled lapwing

The odd couple of one red-wattled lapwing and one spur-winged lapwing have been at the settling pools on and off for well over a year. There can be found over the fertiliser piles at the moment and are very territorial.

Black-tailed godwit

There is a sprinkling of over-summering black-tailed godwit at several places in the Salalah area including at Khawr Rori where the one above was seen.

young yellow bittern

One of my best birding sessions was at West Khawr on Tuesday evening, the evening before the monsoon broke. In my opinion this is the best mangrove area in the south of the country.

There are yellow bittern there and they seem to have bred well.

adult yellow bittern

Both juvenile and adult birds were observed.

stalking yellow bittern

I checked all the moorhen for lesser moorhen. it seems to me the most likely place if that vagrant were present.

immature moorhen 1

The only candidate birds were small and swimming without obvious parental supervision. However I am confident they were just common moorhen. The bill on the bird above is too dark for that age of lesser moorhen. 

immature moorhen 2

Another candidate has too much red on the bill.

There were five types of herons on site. Two were purple heron.

squacco heron

There also at least four grey heron, two striated heron, eight squacco heron and one Indian pond heron. In addition, four flamingo were wading out in the water.

little grebe

Other water birds included nine little grebe and one red-knobbed coot. I wonder if the monsoon will bring any thing else there?

Dusky warbler and more at Mughsail

Bart De Schutter is visiting Oman to bird during November. On Monday afternoon, he and I were tipped off that one of the eastern leaf warblers had been seen at Mughsail.

Just after dawn on Tuesday morning we headed out to Mughsail and arrived at 7 am at where the leaf warbler was last seen.

We saw several interesting birds at the small pond where the bird had been. However the warbler itself was nowhere to be seen yet we heard several hard "check" sounds which we thought might be its call.

As we were about to leave, having searched for an hour, Bart sighted the warbler. It briefly settled in short reed before we lost it.

After another ten minutes, it was seen again a little away from the pool. We got lucky as it was flushed out into the open by a territorial spotted flycatcher.

Dusky warbler by Bart De Schutter

Bart obtained excellent pictures and I have permission to reproduce them here. I am very grateful. From these and Jens Eriksen's pictures from the day before, its habits and it's call, it can be identified as a dusky warbler.

Dusky warbler 2 by Bart De Schutter

The original finder thought it might be a Radde's warbler but expert opinion says there is not enough colour on undertail coverts, the bill is thin, the leg colour and white supercilium in front of eye all indicate Dusky Warbler.

Dusky warbler 3 by Bart De Schutter

This is only the third record of a dusky warbler in Oman.

yellow bittern 1

While we were at the pool a yellow bittern moved and it was seen where it landed. It is a juvenile bird. Most if not all adult birds have left for India by now. In Oman, there are very few records of any age group much later than mid-November in any year.

yellow bittern

It is nice to see a yellow bittern when you are not even looking for it. Mughsail, inland Khawr Rori and East Khawr are the best places for find it.

yellow bittern 3

The pool had more interest. Two Baillon's crake were observed and at one time both at once.

Baillon's crake 1

The pictures aren't wonderful mostly because the birds didn't completely break cover except for a few moments.

Baillon's crake

Sharing the pool with the crakes were moorhen and four garganey.

garganey

Citrine wagtail is probably the most common wagtail near water in Oman in winter.

citrine wagtail

The two back pools and rocks near-by at Mughsail area undoubtedly the best place to guarantee seeing striolated bunting in Dhofar.

striolated bunting

I find the wing colour is the easiest way to differentiate striolated bunting from cinnamon-breasted bunting.

two striolated bunting

I had to leave Bart to go to work. He told me he saw Verreaux's eagle after I left.

However as I was leaving and walking towards the car I came across a cuckoo. I understand Bart saw it later.

We had the edge of cyclone Chapala hit the most westerly districts of Oman from about Mughsail westward. The dusky warbler could conceivably been a part of its effect. So I examined the cuckoo for features of oriental cuckoo more than I might normally.

common cuckoo from the back

Certainly the upper parts of the bird were blue-grey rather than ash-grey more typical of common cuckoo. However younger common cuckoo can also be bluer than full adults. 

common cuckoo 2

Oriental cuckoo also apparently has a proportionately heavier bill.

common cuckoo 3

I believe its bill is consistent with that.

common cuckoo 4

Oriental cuckoo often has a plain vent which is rusty-buff coloured. Again this bird fits. However no one characteristic is diagnostic. Furthermore, an idealised oriental cuckoo has bolder barring in the undertail coverts and, less but bolder bars on the breast.

When I placed the photos on birdforum's identification forum the two respondents both said it was a common cuckoo. I am comfortable enough with that to drop further enquiry.

Al-in-all that small area of Mughsail produced some special birding. 

Yellow bittern at East Khawr

Work is still very busy so midweek birding is at a premium. On Monday night, I snatched an hour to go round to East Khawr (Khawr Dahariz) which is close to me.

The highlight was an adult yellow bittern which remained fully exposed for a minute or so.

yellow bittern 1

A few minutes earlier I had seen a little bittern fly over the khawr. It appears both breed there.

yellow bittern 2

Elsewhere in the Khawr at the sandbar, I came across two black-tailed godwit along with the expected and local black-winged stilt.

black-tailed godwit 1

Both birds were in non-breeding plumage.

black-tailed godwit 2

There are very few migrant waders around at this time of year but they are especially worth looking at as the proportion that are rarities is often higher.

African sacred ibis

Mentioning rarities, an African sacred ibis was present which was associating with the flamingo.

One was present here from April 2014 until March 2015 then it or another started appearing ar Khawr Rori. I think it is likely the same bird and it seems now to be alternating between the two sites.

three greenshank

The only other migrant waders seen were three greenshank.

African silverbill

None water birds can also be seen at East Khawr though there are no really special breeders as far as I can tell. African silverbill is showing signs of breeding at the moment. The bird above has nesting material.

white spectacled bulbul

White spectacled bulbul is readily observed.

graceful prinia

In some ways it is quite surprising that no type of reed warbler breeds here. The niche is filled by graceful prinia whose nests can be seen often gangling quite close to the water's edge. There are many of the birds about at the moment so I assume breeding is finished and numbers swollen by first year birds.

flamingo

When I arrived in Salalah in early September last year, there were no flamingo. They started appearing weeks later. Yet some are still here now so I assume they will move on soon.

On the floating vegetation and often exposed right in the middle of the khawr were many adult and young moorhen.

Abyssinian white eye

On the west side of the khawr is a very narrow strip of mangroves whereas the middle and east side is reeds. The last birds I saw at dusk as I left were a pair of Abyssinian white eye.

Khawr Rori in May

The monsoon season in Dhofar begins in the third week of June. However May is not particularly hotter than April because it is much cloudier overall.

On Friday morning I visited Khawr Rori and it very cloudy and dull. It actually made birding easier.

I started out in the north west wing of the Khawr that can be approached from the main road. 

slender-billed gull

I was watching a large group of over-summering slender-billed gull from the far bank.

yellow bittern

To my surprise, three adult yellow bittern flew directly across the water in front of them.

common moorhen

On my side of the water, a common moorhen suddenly decided to break cover.

young moorhen

To my left, an adult moorhen called for its young to break into the open water to cross to another bank.

As I walked back to the car, I came across a small number of little green-bee-eater though I could hear but not see blue-cheeked bee-eater.

little green bee-eater

I drove the car round to the front gate where one has to pay two Omani riyals to enter the main site which has archaeological ruins as well as being excellent for birds.

Mostly Caspian tern and sandwich tern

It started to brighten up which also meant higher temperatures. In the area near the permanent exhibit of two dhows were several terns. I also counted 17 grey heron in small groups scattered around.

Unfortunately part of the site which leads to the sandbar and seaward (southern) end of the khawr has been closed for work for two months. This meant my next move was pretty much forced. I walked northward from the dhows up the khawr.

blue-cheeked bee-eater

I finally found a blue-cheeked bee-eater which may have contributed to the sounds I had heard earlier.

There then followed a sequence of observations of exotic birds.

Over the water to the west of the bee-eater was a lone red-knobbed coot swimming.

red-knobbed coot

On the east bank was a very flighty flock of western reef heron.

African sacred ibis

However one was the flock was a different species. It was an African sacred ibis. it was not as flighty as the reef herons and seemed to be reluctant to move on every time they bolted. The long-staying African sacred ibis which was at East Khawr for 9 months until recently was very passive towards the end. Of course it may well be the same bird.

African sacred ibis in flight

At one stage the whole flock flew all the way towards the flamingo on west bank but at the southern end. This area is completely inaccessible at the moment with the works blocking off all access.

It was while looking towards the flamingo and their new associates (western reef heron and an African sacred ibis), I could just make out two pheasant-tailed jacana.

distant pheasant-tailed jacana

The huge permanent body of water at Khawr Rori is very unusual in Arabia and so it has such an unusual summer mix of birds. It is worth watching what happens as the summer progresses.