Blue Eyed Birder: Oman - An Arabian Adventure

Another early breakfast and off inland towards the famous Al Mutaqa landfill (although I wish I did not read what sort of landfill the raptors are descending on!). The odd Egyptian Vulture was noted as we headed into the dry foothills below the mountains but we were a little early and spied a wet looking track off to one side where lorries were sprinkling to keep the dust down.

There were a few puddles and an all-important sheep trough around which Striolated Buntings, House Sparrows and Laughing Doves were dropping in . A Kestrel spooked them but as we started to move off Steve spotted a pair of Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse creeping around under the scrub but they were tricky to see so we quietly got out to search for them. Somehow they simply melted away and did not even get up and fly unlike the pair of Arabian Partridges that clattered off!

Striolated Bunting

There was a troop of Arabian Babblers and a floppy Hoopoe and several Desert Larks before we moved along this unknown track. Arabian Grey Shrikes and Hume’s Wheatears watched our passing and a plain looking bird with one of the Hume’s was not a female but a Red-tailed Wheatear. Both on the way in and out, these two birds were shadowing each other. We sat by the trough again on the way out but nothing was coming down but a group three Crowned Sandgrouse circled before changing their mind.

Arabian Grey Shrike

Hume’s Wheatear

Red-tailed Wheatear

Hume’s & Red-tailed Wheatears

Red-tailed Wheatear

Red-tailed Wheatear and vista

With things warming up we continued our journey to the tip where a fine viewpoint saw us surrounded by Eagles and Vultures. We watched the birds drift from the ridges where they rested and over our heads to the tip. Egyptian Vultures were in the majority with about 400 or so across the view. Many were sat around where the diggers were working while other spiralled above us gleaming black and white against the blue sky. I had never seen so many at one time.

Egyptian Vulture

Egyptian Vulture - just as pretty

They are a big bird but then a Lappet-faced Vulture would glide into view and they shrunk to the size of Starlings. When the Lappets were sat up surveying the scene they seemed even bigger and even a Griffon alongside was dwarfed. A proper count gave us 16 Lappets and four Griffs. Fantastic. There were plenty of Eagles too with several Greater Spotted around and excellent views of various ages of Eastern Imperial and Steppe. This would serve us well for future days.

Lappet-faced Vulture

Brown-necked Ravens were with the scavenging mass and a pair of Namaqua Doves were quite distracting in the only bush. They are such tiny, delicate looking doves. Bubbling drew our eyes up and five Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse became our third species of the day.

Brown-necked Raven

Griffon

Griffon and Brown-necked buddies

Eagles and the Dinky

Steppe Eagle

Eastern Imperial Eagle

Namaqua Dove

From here we headed into the Al Mutaqa National Park collecting more good views of Blackstart, Desert, Hume’s and Red-tailed Wheatear, Desert Larks and both Daurian and Arabian Grey Shrikes. Another flock of Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse hurtled over the road ahead of us. Gazelles eluded us but some exploring up an empty wadi did give us a chuckling Menetrie’s Warbler and two subtle Plain Leaf Warblers. White-spectacled Bulbuls seem to like these remote wadis and their calls echoed off the walls. There were several One Pip Policeman on the Tephrosia flowers but no other insects and I do wonder what the little passerines are finding to eat.

The landscape was majestic but the birds were few and far between

Hume's Wheatear

The coast and a coffee beckoned and we aimed for Al Qurm beach once again. There was a good view from inside but a quick look around before we were served gave me a similar selection of waders as day one on the inland muddy river but with the addition of two Pacific Golden Plovers and a Bar-tailed Godwit.

Coffee done and over the road we went and this time walked down the beach (avoiding micro Hermit Crabs and scuttling Ghost Crabs) to get closer to the terns, gulls and waders. Our views of the three ‘sandy’ plovers were so much better and we started to get our eyes in on size, shape and even behaviour (Greaters are very territorial and seem to prefer the fresh mud closest to the sea that was washed by the wavelets. There were a couple of Grey Plover which seemed huge next to the Pacific Golden Plovers that had flown over the road.

Tibetan Sand Plover

Greater Sand Plover

Tibetan Sand Plover

Greater Sand Plover

Tibetan Sand Plover

Greater Sand Plover

Tibetan Sand Plover

Greater Sand Plover

Tibetan Sand Plover - I have deliberately jumbled up these images just to show how variable and subtle these waders are. We were constantly learning.

Grey and Pacific Golden Plover

Pacific Golden Plover

Grey Plover

Pacific Golden Plover

Grey Plover

Tom found a huge (he reckoned about 5lb) Pufferfish on the beach. It was about 50m from the sea but still alive so a valiant attempt was made to get it back to the sea. Hopefully it recovered once back in the water. It was quite a beast and covered in hundreds of sharp spikes.

Pufferfish

'Release the Pufferkraken!'

The light down there was superb and it was a pleasure to be amongst the pointy bills and shaggy crests of Sandwich, Crested and Lesser-crested once again.

Lesser Crested, Sandwich, Crested Terns, Black-headed and Slender-billed Gull

Crested Tern

Crested Terns - some adults were almost white headed

Lesser Crested Tern

Crested Tern - the juveniles look almost black in flight

Crested Tern

Caspian Gull taking off I reckon

Both Crested Terns

Lesser Crested Tern

Both Crested Terns and Black-headed Gull

Caspian Gull

getting confusing again - I think probably all Caspian

Now, this is not a Caspian Gull, I suspect a Steppe over Heuglin's

Caspian Gulls

Crested, Sandwich and Lesser Crested - useful upperpart comparisons

Confused again - bill like a big Caspian Gull but eyes very pale, legs do not look long enough and whole feel is more Herring Gull-like

Same big-un as above

A delightful Slender-billed Gull

Sooty Gull

Ghost Crab sp

Western Reef Egret

Common Sandpiper

With plans to visit the Omani Owl wadi well after dark, we headed back to the hotel to chill out for a while although the Muscat traffic was hideous and it took a wee bit longer than anticipated. Dinner at the hotel buffet included a fantastic BBQ and once fed we headed off back to the Showaddy Wadi for another attempt.

The moon was now full but the cloud was subduing the glow. Lamping in the way in gave us a cute, big-eared Blandford’s Fox half way up one of the rock faces but despite our best efforts in the dark we did not get a sound out of any owl species whatsoever. We left a moth trap running while we searched and at least that gave us something to look at before heading back a little before midnight. Steve has done a sterling effort in trying to name them. All the pics below are his.