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

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  

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  

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