We spent our last day on this short trip dipping the Thick-billed Warbler again. We've spent half our time dipping that bird which has meant the trip list has suffered quite a bit! Final trip report HERE.
In fact we spent the whole day dipping. We ran out of time trying to find the access point to the United Poultry Pivot fields so gave up on the Oriental Skylark and then we even dipped plastic Bank Myna and Village Weaver at Al Jahra Farms.
Did pick up a few more nice species though including Steppe Eagle and Masked Shrike.
So in total 10 WP ticks and 3 world ticks (Crab Plover, Grey Hypocolius and Afghan Babbler, now on 3342) and one mammal tick (Libyan Jird). Now on 741 for the WP (80th in the rankings) and 953 for False WP list (41st in ranking). Not bad for a short little last minute job but becuase of all the dipping I missed getting Oriental Skylark, Red-vented Bulbul, Clamarous Reed Warbler and Bank Myna. A good excuse to go back when another mega turns up in this WP vagrant hotspot.
Masked Shrike- I can identify these!
Great Grey Shrike- another one to do some reading up on. Steppe Grey Shrike is one of defaults in the area but I'm only familiar with them in first-winter plumage. I'll do a seperate post on the Shrikes we saw as some interesting identification challenges in the Middle East and need to do some more reading up.
No trip to the desert would be compete without a photo of a Hoopoe Lark
White morph Western Reef Egret
The only plastic we found at Al Jahra Farms were two Senegal Parrots. There are lot of Category E species in Kuwait which have escaped from the widespread caged bird culture.
We ended the trip where we started it- with Crab Plovers
A couple of birding habitat shots (above)- the oasis at Abraq Al-Habari (where we spent a lot of time dipping) and Al Jahra Farms (below). To be honest from what Vince and I saw, most of Kuwait is trashed, heavily polluted and intensely disturbed but luckily there are little beautiful spots like these where the birds can find refuge. However driving between these spots we were literally stunned by how birdless and natureless it all was, vast areas of degraded desert, heavily disturbed by the local culture of desert camping this time of year.
This is the view from the foot bridge to Al-Shaheed Park in the downtown Kuwait City where we stayed. The Park is an amazing place with loads of migrant birds (and Pallid Scops Owls and Purple Sunbirds) in the heart of the city. Presumably there is a double effect of the city light and the oasis of the park drawing in the migrants. The city is built on the banks of Kuwait Bay which is absolutely teeming with waterbirds and Flamingos. Basically David Lindo, the Urban Birder would love it here!
On the other side of the coin of the trashed environment was the Sci-fi/Mad Max culture of desert life with scrap yards the size of towns and the only shops selling stuff literally out the back of lorries. Kuwait certainly has a unique appeal and hopefully will go back in the future. Seems like the migration out is here is epic and with a long list of vagrants, seems like a top destination to find an eastern mega.
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