World and the Wild - Bird Watching and Wildlife Photography

This bird  still seen near the shores of the sea. Its been one month since seeing it at this spot. Single bird among some stilts and small waders.

 While birding today at the Halfmoon reeds where they are very few waders and one northern lapwing ,i spotted a White throated Kingfisher sitting on the pole. Upon approaching close the bird went inside the reeds in distance so the shots were not very clear. It was overcast since morning and the light was very poor but still managed to get good photos for the record. This bird tends to be a vagrant in the region and most probably first record from the city of Al Khober.

 While walking around the local park next to the South Corniche I came across a single Song Thrush foraging on the Ground. The bird was shy and coming back and forth to the ground from the trees. It's not the first time iv seen it here they are visiting every winter but last season I spotted there was a pair. Song Thrushes are regularly seen every winter in Deffi Park  in Jubail which is about 130 Km far from this city. There they are accompanied by Black Throated Thrush which is supposed to be a Rare sight. It's always a delight watching them every time and is considered to be one of my favorite Thrushes.  

Early morning this weekend on Saturday I tend to visit the south corniche in Al Khobar. Mostly waders all around with some flamingoes and Cormorants. Just aside from the sea is a beautiful park which I usually visit on my bird-watching trips. There I spotted a Rufous-tailed Scrub robin feeding on an insect. Now, this is an unusual sighting because the Rufous-tailed Scrub Robins don't winter in  Eastern Saudi Arabia with most of the birds exiting in September till 1st week of October. Although this had been sighted by me earlier as well and published on ebird but was not accepted.I saw it last in the year 2020 but was unable to take a photo. This time the bird was feeding on the ground and I was able to take good shots without disturbing its meal.

 This weekend on my usual spot for birding near Abu Hadriyah i:e Khafra Marsh, I saw Desert Wheatears. They are common winter migrants to  Eastern Saudi Arabia. Mostly found in Semi-arid deserts and scrubs. My all-over experience with this bird is good, taking a closeup and mostly the bird is not very shy and will allow pretty good shots. Desert Wheatear  sometimes breeds in very barren and infertile desert areas, where no other wheatear species occurs .

Yesterday while on my way to a weekend birdwatching trip near the coastlines i found single Northern Lapwing. The area is a marshy place kilometer away from the sea. The Northern lapwing is recorded herey by me twice. The last was in December 2020. It is an uncommon winter visitor of Saudi Arabia and very rare in the Eastern region.The numbers are large in Haradh and Riyadh in the pivot fields.

  Grey Hypocolius The bird was seen feeding on the dates. The area consists of several date trees and in the background, you can the bokeh of the reef and the shore The birds are easily seen during this  time of the season at the location

 Short Toed Snake Eagle seen perched on a pole around the fields in the eastern region of Saudi Arabia In October 2022