Oman Day Six

 Today was mainly a travel day after a bit of shorebirding this morning. Highlights today included Great Knots, Broad-billed Sandpiper, Pied Wheatear and a few additional migrant trip ticks in various oasis/parks as we headed south.

Live trip report HERE. Now on 145 species for the trip.

Terek Sandpiper

Broad-billed Sandpiper

Great Knots etc

Pied Wheatear

Hoopoe

'Middle East Chiff'

Oman Day Five- Paddyfield Pipit

We had a great day today finding the first Paddyfield Pipit for Oman at Al Shamkaiah Park on Masirah Island. Full list from the park HERE. Other highlights there included Great Reed Warbler, Rosy Starling, Jack, Common and Pin-tailed Snipes and a good selection of other migrants. Thanks to Magnus Robb for confirming the calls of the Paddyfield. 

We then sadly had to leave Masirah island on the ferry HERE, flocks of Red-necked Phalaropes were the highlight on the crossing. 

We then spent an hour or so going for the gulls at Shanna HERE and managed to find a couple of Baltic Gulls amongst what was mainly Steppe Gulls and a few Heuglin's Gull and also loads of Sooty Gulls.

In the afternoon/evening we went to Filim and scored the Collared Kingfishers there which was basically a brilliant end to a brilliant day HERE

Paddyfield Pipit (above) and sound recording below

Paddyfield Pipit sonogram 

Rosy Starling

Red-necked Phalaropes 

Sooty Gull 

Baltic Gull 

Mainly Steppe and Heuglin's Gulls 

Collared Kingfisher 

Oman Days Three and Four- Masirah Island

Yesterday we travelled to Masirah Island and today we spent the day exploring the coasts and vagrant hotspots. Ebird list today from around our hotel HERE, Sur Masirah HERE, Al Shamkaiah Park HERE and Swasamuru Beach HERE. Highlights included Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse, Baillon's Crake, 3 Asian Koel, Pin-tailed Snipe, Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters, European Roller, Wryneck, Asian Desert Warbler, Bluethroat, Steppe Grey Shrike and stacks of Crab Plovers, Sooty, Heuglin's and Steppe Gulls and stacks of waders. 

Live trip report HERE. 120 species so far.

Crab Plovers (above)

Crab Plovers and Sandwich Terns etc

Adult Baillon's Crake

Pin-tailed Snipe (above and below)

Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse

Egyptian Vultures

Female/imm Asian Koel

Juv Cuckoo

Steppe Grey Shrike

Asian Desert Warbler

Blue-cheeked Bee-eater

Indian Silverbill

Indian Pond Heron

Temminck's Stint

Tibetan Plover

Male Bluethroat

Oman Day Two

Today we spent in the Jebel Al Akhdar area exploring for upland birds of the Al Hajar mountains. We cleaned up on all our targets which included Hume's Wheatear, Plain Leaf Warbler, Striolated Bunting, Scrub Warbler, Arabian Babbler and Persian Wheatear. We also had Hume's Warbler, Desert Wheatear and a couple of Griffon Vultures. Ebird list HERE

Hume's Wheatear (above and below) 

Plain Leaf Warbler (above)

Striolated Bunting (above and below) 

Persian Wheatear

Scrub Warbler

This White-breasted Waterhen was a bonus bird outside the hotel this morning- a local scarcity 

Purple Sunbird in the hotel garden 

Desert Monitor?- had this large lizard today. Also loads of small geckos. Will do seperate posts on the herps when I get a chance to work on id. Also a few decent leps about. Update: Probably something like Jayakar Lizard. 

Oman Day One

The Midde East has been a bit of a theme on this blog recently with two trips to Kuwait and Cyprus this year and several trips to Azerbaijan over the last couple of years. In the past I've also visited Turkey, Georgia, Syria, Jordon and Israel. Top of the wish list was to visit Oman and today we arrived at Muscat to begin a two week exploration of the country from north to south on a Wise Birding Trip HERE

It was a night flight and we arrived at 7am this morning so we had an easy day ahead of going out later tonight owling. So we visited Al-Qurm Park first HERE and then popped in to Al-Bustan Hotel HERE before heading over to our hotel, the Golden Tulip HERE. A nice little introduction with Red-wattled Lapwings, Indian Pond Herons, Grey Francolins, Greater Spotted, Short-toed and Imperial Eagles, Indian Rollers, Arabian Green Bee-eaters, Isabelline shrike, Delicate Prinia, Pale Crag Martins, White-eared and Red-vented Bulbuls, Eastern Black Redstart, Purple Sunbirds and Indian Silverbills. 

Northern Oman and the Al Hajar al Gharbi uplands have a decisive Indian feel to the avifauna. As we move south things will take on a more Afro-tropical vibe.   

Arabian Green Bee-eater

Indian Roller (above and below)

Red-vented Bulbul

Grey Francolin and Budgerigar- plastic overload 

Indian Pond Heron

Eastern Black Redstart

Juv Greater Spotted Eagle (above) and Eastern Imperial Eagle (below)

Delicate Prinia