tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-41228338121015684402024-03-14T03:02:05.903-07:00Birding Adventures around the WorldBlogs of some of my birding adventures in the UK Saudi Arabia and some other spots around the world.bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.comBlogger90125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-43418032562759643462023-12-26T05:31:00.000-08:002023-12-26T05:31:04.191-08:00Gambia 2019Well behind in posting this one as life has been a bit full on but here's pics from our trip to Gambia in 2019. Unfortunately there will be a bit of a gap in trips to that country for a while as the travel agent who organised most of the holidays down that direction went bust, taking a fair block of our cash along with them. However, life goes on. Hope you like the photos.<br />
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<br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-7741997737226916842023-07-26T07:04:00.000-07:002023-07-26T07:04:10.979-07:00Broad Meadow EstuaryHad a bit of time while over visiting my mother to visit an old haunt of mine from my youth, the Broad Meadow Estuary in North County Dublin. The Estuary has seen significant changes over the past 30 years not least of which include the new motorway extension which normally means the end for nature sites. However, in their wisdom the authorities recognized the site as being of importance for wildlife and instead of ploughing right through the middle of it they put a flyover instead. The resulting landscape means the area is a lot noisier but the Estuary largely remains unchanged. It certainly does not look like it has bothered the birds and wildlife too much at all. I must say well done to the Irish Authorities for this, I have seen in excess of 1000 Brent Geese on this a few years ago and it would be a great shame to lose it.
That said I had a couple of hours free last weekend (July 23) and headed down to see what I could find. I took as many pictures as I could but to be honest the weather was very dull and showery so the photos were not brilliant.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMd0dkSppilQpBxy3OWDK6g6c5TVJBAPq7cOT_i80JwCYSWtCbEQUv16hqwMcNMLYgW29_swhzHAtX-QAEWQPF8Mr804tmN8ZHisTcYhr0XGyAj09VAGSXfNPF4Eu6d3FyGvxjMdXSu4Ie-SZkGURyMThY_bFecfHV250sPvICqTVadFIbylJSmSN16oAc/s4608/P1190209.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhMd0dkSppilQpBxy3OWDK6g6c5TVJBAPq7cOT_i80JwCYSWtCbEQUv16hqwMcNMLYgW29_swhzHAtX-QAEWQPF8Mr804tmN8ZHisTcYhr0XGyAj09VAGSXfNPF4Eu6d3FyGvxjMdXSu4Ie-SZkGURyMThY_bFecfHV250sPvICqTVadFIbylJSmSN16oAc/s400/P1190209.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVfycfHPE3_0pce7HXmA8bh5ylSPvqPwkTE1hBiqczNumSgI7x0Bd4TSnYfPjwCxVHGcwysrEaFw43b_20vUbV6teYtW3wAhJiFhvdWQZYF1JKBJFLCQbsFu5rp_zogFGRwjc_P1L1XpXIhWsSWNTlvVTHYiD7yOqIvT1tK-Qbn8f4eCB-kTNTvauk81T/s4608/P1190213.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVfycfHPE3_0pce7HXmA8bh5ylSPvqPwkTE1hBiqczNumSgI7x0Bd4TSnYfPjwCxVHGcwysrEaFw43b_20vUbV6teYtW3wAhJiFhvdWQZYF1JKBJFLCQbsFu5rp_zogFGRwjc_P1L1XpXIhWsSWNTlvVTHYiD7yOqIvT1tK-Qbn8f4eCB-kTNTvauk81T/s400/P1190213.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjiVfycfHPE3_0pce7HXmA8bh5ylSPvqPwkTE1hBiqczNumSgI7x0Bd4TSnYfPjwCxVHGcwysrEaFw43b_20vUbV6teYtW3wAhJiFhvdWQZYF1JKBJFLCQbsFu5rp_zogFGRwjc_P1L1XpXIhWsSWNTlvVTHYiD7yOqIvT1tK-Qbn8f4eCB-kTNTvauk81T/s4608/P1190213.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Some Mute Swans</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAZFtljRZln4dDqq94ExQBZLZ3-BvLyrtfXg0TNlVmTr4Ak1dV-pHZM1zoOXxGkuVOtAa3c7AF4a3Mv-fFaAU-BK2wHg-9-kuohTfJXoS5lb49meHY5n8YfEfPvM_PBTGvw3PbW84hqUt50g4wypDZuVrxu3dxWskOhBjUET5vwSQAv5UPAsGq6SI-K9Rs/s4608/P1190219.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgAZFtljRZln4dDqq94ExQBZLZ3-BvLyrtfXg0TNlVmTr4Ak1dV-pHZM1zoOXxGkuVOtAa3c7AF4a3Mv-fFaAU-BK2wHg-9-kuohTfJXoS5lb49meHY5n8YfEfPvM_PBTGvw3PbW84hqUt50g4wypDZuVrxu3dxWskOhBjUET5vwSQAv5UPAsGq6SI-K9Rs/s400/P1190219.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB8gzqDp55KGzojQ-R1QQbNbY7yO7VdcC4CF91oMDIY6DGH263BBI7JFGkf06J365cuoQRBoPtZEalWYZCOs-2c_YX03nbK1Bl2QH3cKnxnYKolEkq-G-ys28OQ_27tLfKOAk9NCqSLnPLo2qNzGW-B4lF0BzyaSaEwQvvY-OSC5nu1L3EQOq7aRqr16Kw/s4608/P1190222.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Mallard</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB8gzqDp55KGzojQ-R1QQbNbY7yO7VdcC4CF91oMDIY6DGH263BBI7JFGkf06J365cuoQRBoPtZEalWYZCOs-2c_YX03nbK1Bl2QH3cKnxnYKolEkq-G-ys28OQ_27tLfKOAk9NCqSLnPLo2qNzGW-B4lF0BzyaSaEwQvvY-OSC5nu1L3EQOq7aRqr16Kw/s4608/P1190222.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB8gzqDp55KGzojQ-R1QQbNbY7yO7VdcC4CF91oMDIY6DGH263BBI7JFGkf06J365cuoQRBoPtZEalWYZCOs-2c_YX03nbK1Bl2QH3cKnxnYKolEkq-G-ys28OQ_27tLfKOAk9NCqSLnPLo2qNzGW-B4lF0BzyaSaEwQvvY-OSC5nu1L3EQOq7aRqr16Kw/s400/P1190222.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLxCouruwZiJX8MaRDlwgO5jZIjf5m8U2ahzfn1e3Hmktsy1NJWl5zubu7-BpLAnvLVquGpkYIgpzgaPeUfJe4-mOZCRnZXDx8Au5HoW9h_UrRiiWEHlorJ1viGOL0YzU4uDuqJQ6i89jMwj2yA9wVQhAYxzAkpHgXSfDKn8ZQGwfxuaZWLHokMjmM0nEy/s4608/P1190225.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLxCouruwZiJX8MaRDlwgO5jZIjf5m8U2ahzfn1e3Hmktsy1NJWl5zubu7-BpLAnvLVquGpkYIgpzgaPeUfJe4-mOZCRnZXDx8Au5HoW9h_UrRiiWEHlorJ1viGOL0YzU4uDuqJQ6i89jMwj2yA9wVQhAYxzAkpHgXSfDKn8ZQGwfxuaZWLHokMjmM0nEy/s400/P1190225.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVmMVA1jytcasYS-tfdR5ZXDDwaNXMs3jQjaOYL_70bl1Ljwm6dsHoPOuPKXQ8ecFYR5xp27XAQcUFsXwb3gMn3PKZa7637G5fyBMcel-fGt8wS_AxexSXn5Q9qXJrPX1U3XYtW7QcV8gC5gAxQiZxy_iSNxO1oPGCCIATMJkDIVqpurDrJExr70OvGgZm/s4608/P1190228.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVmMVA1jytcasYS-tfdR5ZXDDwaNXMs3jQjaOYL_70bl1Ljwm6dsHoPOuPKXQ8ecFYR5xp27XAQcUFsXwb3gMn3PKZa7637G5fyBMcel-fGt8wS_AxexSXn5Q9qXJrPX1U3XYtW7QcV8gC5gAxQiZxy_iSNxO1oPGCCIATMJkDIVqpurDrJExr70OvGgZm/s400/P1190228.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVmMVA1jytcasYS-tfdR5ZXDDwaNXMs3jQjaOYL_70bl1Ljwm6dsHoPOuPKXQ8ecFYR5xp27XAQcUFsXwb3gMn3PKZa7637G5fyBMcel-fGt8wS_AxexSXn5Q9qXJrPX1U3XYtW7QcV8gC5gAxQiZxy_iSNxO1oPGCCIATMJkDIVqpurDrJExr70OvGgZm/s4608/P1190228.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Grey Heron Hunting</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-IDkdSHXQ6VBaIfJCa7GsrjnOAkv3btaMdkTfUELWryk65vHn-RN5oz3tt8m1W_XsRDM2-QjQx0iv64E9gREZPNeXQWv56bqB-TWKZf7mnbHfdDpvEVfTc9Ra9a2kPLu2eThg4pmgfK-CwJBoqhx8PMDJECeqY6ElvhbTlwUPf9LXE2tKRhs29oNtcXY8/s4608/P1190229.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg-IDkdSHXQ6VBaIfJCa7GsrjnOAkv3btaMdkTfUELWryk65vHn-RN5oz3tt8m1W_XsRDM2-QjQx0iv64E9gREZPNeXQWv56bqB-TWKZf7mnbHfdDpvEVfTc9Ra9a2kPLu2eThg4pmgfK-CwJBoqhx8PMDJECeqY6ElvhbTlwUPf9LXE2tKRhs29oNtcXY8/s400/P1190229.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuc_ljcrST2xm-8SoNsSibtlzsTP8RXZLjqIK57wneQb1M_Gr_5B0hdKUJSqq4zKp0h8JUtboXI5noR29ZzC4R1X3SBQkRPkp-T9DvyK_fUgUDwjuJ6uM-CDLoprbKboP1qZWpn-8EFsZTFoVUU139vRyFi8W_3nRau-mUCF3UdavbhS1dCN4rRjw0Jnpc/s4608/P1190232.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuc_ljcrST2xm-8SoNsSibtlzsTP8RXZLjqIK57wneQb1M_Gr_5B0hdKUJSqq4zKp0h8JUtboXI5noR29ZzC4R1X3SBQkRPkp-T9DvyK_fUgUDwjuJ6uM-CDLoprbKboP1qZWpn-8EFsZTFoVUU139vRyFi8W_3nRau-mUCF3UdavbhS1dCN4rRjw0Jnpc/s400/P1190232.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiuc_ljcrST2xm-8SoNsSibtlzsTP8RXZLjqIK57wneQb1M_Gr_5B0hdKUJSqq4zKp0h8JUtboXI5noR29ZzC4R1X3SBQkRPkp-T9DvyK_fUgUDwjuJ6uM-CDLoprbKboP1qZWpn-8EFsZTFoVUU139vRyFi8W_3nRau-mUCF3UdavbhS1dCN4rRjw0Jnpc/s4608/P1190232.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Herring Gull</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQdAmCBUOkKEyug7OuXPpMgJ2Nsf4_4e7VsEv5nrimcD8Jdd2xSHvGCNhFduWwWNKs9zEKux1_EhXVZA8MYkHpYhsG7wWicJo8OL4OkRP9xaapdX8ExL95JHeXK2d3pXz_3goCr5AF6nOy41ma1hmnlVNuVranxcrZGY_YaDG61-FyAZuczafZQqnlqWcF/s4608/P1190234.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiQdAmCBUOkKEyug7OuXPpMgJ2Nsf4_4e7VsEv5nrimcD8Jdd2xSHvGCNhFduWwWNKs9zEKux1_EhXVZA8MYkHpYhsG7wWicJo8OL4OkRP9xaapdX8ExL95JHeXK2d3pXz_3goCr5AF6nOy41ma1hmnlVNuVranxcrZGY_YaDG61-FyAZuczafZQqnlqWcF/s400/P1190234.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8rdtXkWp9umF3QsqR7f2PD3qOl_g7QCS4jTi3jdJvzQiFKaZLtgXmc2lNfxY1pGUa7wo1g4HvkzCHU02awUxzN82MgkUvfMg_VGMVEjEDyzkKUmTrWsA6Qn_wZbo7CVq-sG-GIt--e_HbPmSnGh3J_XDUkvFm9UBDuf7AYuuvwDeuzYvY88kF6QHRyHZl/s4608/P1190238.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Black Headed Gull</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8rdtXkWp9umF3QsqR7f2PD3qOl_g7QCS4jTi3jdJvzQiFKaZLtgXmc2lNfxY1pGUa7wo1g4HvkzCHU02awUxzN82MgkUvfMg_VGMVEjEDyzkKUmTrWsA6Qn_wZbo7CVq-sG-GIt--e_HbPmSnGh3J_XDUkvFm9UBDuf7AYuuvwDeuzYvY88kF6QHRyHZl/s4608/P1190238.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8rdtXkWp9umF3QsqR7f2PD3qOl_g7QCS4jTi3jdJvzQiFKaZLtgXmc2lNfxY1pGUa7wo1g4HvkzCHU02awUxzN82MgkUvfMg_VGMVEjEDyzkKUmTrWsA6Qn_wZbo7CVq-sG-GIt--e_HbPmSnGh3J_XDUkvFm9UBDuf7AYuuvwDeuzYvY88kF6QHRyHZl/s400/P1190238.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNATMJTi7OpM0yhXIQiM7_tmY8epYElrQTAEzeuGWeZXdQrUlxdHFiZIP6_YKHYHcW4jxcCzMWU6ClmlsFejea9d14j4Oe0pJv9sNE6fQk6VXE7FlZPEzZzRbMQdwUAXSWkmBOECufRpRiOTa_LvwJmmsApU2KB2pGha-WB-7_YH3Gzj8bghNQ7sKtnTzj/s4608/P1190240.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNATMJTi7OpM0yhXIQiM7_tmY8epYElrQTAEzeuGWeZXdQrUlxdHFiZIP6_YKHYHcW4jxcCzMWU6ClmlsFejea9d14j4Oe0pJv9sNE6fQk6VXE7FlZPEzZzRbMQdwUAXSWkmBOECufRpRiOTa_LvwJmmsApU2KB2pGha-WB-7_YH3Gzj8bghNQ7sKtnTzj/s400/P1190240.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiNATMJTi7OpM0yhXIQiM7_tmY8epYElrQTAEzeuGWeZXdQrUlxdHFiZIP6_YKHYHcW4jxcCzMWU6ClmlsFejea9d14j4Oe0pJv9sNE6fQk6VXE7FlZPEzZzRbMQdwUAXSWkmBOECufRpRiOTa_LvwJmmsApU2KB2pGha-WB-7_YH3Gzj8bghNQ7sKtnTzj/s4608/P1190240.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Cormorant drying off</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHmLS262KlwbgVHNW9V7p-GlMMQrad9J2_No5gah_dEO3VPTQQ-XzcIQ_5mp6l4uK4AK-2f1IGmgDuGNlILHqx_haBns6WpaLRojxy3UJKaeSYkfrJmRtZJPh3Au_r0XwZahZKhcYj7eOxqKTkBrhJSAuIwMOBrTiY0AOsVQc84GCP6JI5qq7kAZaT2TbW/s4608/P1190244.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHmLS262KlwbgVHNW9V7p-GlMMQrad9J2_No5gah_dEO3VPTQQ-XzcIQ_5mp6l4uK4AK-2f1IGmgDuGNlILHqx_haBns6WpaLRojxy3UJKaeSYkfrJmRtZJPh3Au_r0XwZahZKhcYj7eOxqKTkBrhJSAuIwMOBrTiY0AOsVQc84GCP6JI5qq7kAZaT2TbW/s400/P1190244.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiHmLS262KlwbgVHNW9V7p-GlMMQrad9J2_No5gah_dEO3VPTQQ-XzcIQ_5mp6l4uK4AK-2f1IGmgDuGNlILHqx_haBns6WpaLRojxy3UJKaeSYkfrJmRtZJPh3Au_r0XwZahZKhcYj7eOxqKTkBrhJSAuIwMOBrTiY0AOsVQc84GCP6JI5qq7kAZaT2TbW/s4608/P1190244.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Barn Swallow Resting</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlK-Aym0f0A0jOqVwcG3joKHX8uhXc8BPmEO8n_UgvbeP7ZzeoPZfkBz49rztIjNQGmI3nI0udIdrvtAumtSnEX4O_JoTSQz0TqKCi6LewGYX4IZr1n2776w1gxmnxcjczxQXiQ0VEzg7MzWX5Y37XFljeHrwG01h_3hhpl9QUdfBEGvfVlni3YBxZxL6b/s4608/P1190245.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjlK-Aym0f0A0jOqVwcG3joKHX8uhXc8BPmEO8n_UgvbeP7ZzeoPZfkBz49rztIjNQGmI3nI0udIdrvtAumtSnEX4O_JoTSQz0TqKCi6LewGYX4IZr1n2776w1gxmnxcjczxQXiQ0VEzg7MzWX5Y37XFljeHrwG01h_3hhpl9QUdfBEGvfVlni3YBxZxL6b/s400/P1190245.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYUKzAtOKxA-HRRrRoHUbO1ZB82IokI8SS0UXYdWBRDLGxrO3B12eCv6W7AznckpyKIlDWUPQpSguNvy8nVZquz4eD58X_AshHQ7LmDBeezsX1rCT2RRfLVCd5QdflQdzjPrmgwje63pfsMpYWJvMs0Xldo9X4d-AEFsqb92lzf02Fq_IyIvuXw6J0JR8N/s4608/P1190249.JPG" style="display: inline !important; padding: 1em 0px;"> </a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB1tG6ShYnziaUEiHy5u8X9GkpSgHuiA-N1vh04hmVhwe3gzPh7LupqRIaxUjymDqdKFhQgQC4H4DdfBqyQQfIV4s76MwcOZApSoqJBnQDdbosVy0ZcRTI_O5ba6bvt1st2KpQjmTMevul7Y20PrWDOLv2m6MMv9r_VNFutx-flAZ1B-ScDnTNoTpGwqno/s4608/P1190250.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB1tG6ShYnziaUEiHy5u8X9GkpSgHuiA-N1vh04hmVhwe3gzPh7LupqRIaxUjymDqdKFhQgQC4H4DdfBqyQQfIV4s76MwcOZApSoqJBnQDdbosVy0ZcRTI_O5ba6bvt1st2KpQjmTMevul7Y20PrWDOLv2m6MMv9r_VNFutx-flAZ1B-ScDnTNoTpGwqno/s400/P1190250.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhB1tG6ShYnziaUEiHy5u8X9GkpSgHuiA-N1vh04hmVhwe3gzPh7LupqRIaxUjymDqdKFhQgQC4H4DdfBqyQQfIV4s76MwcOZApSoqJBnQDdbosVy0ZcRTI_O5ba6bvt1st2KpQjmTMevul7Y20PrWDOLv2m6MMv9r_VNFutx-flAZ1B-ScDnTNoTpGwqno/s4608/P1190250.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Pied Wagtail immature</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDHxiSnSvXDM7xXmMySzas7ui0r2aaL3Skh34Gnoo0W4Nyj6M_8uVJU8akWkqOy9odvwRClrOUXB2Nlx3jWRlY1s5bwYmnlIvDe7309Xq1M7FLVA0YYmkSU-Pa_MWDhpNr_lawk9QnzVj2ErkEJPuk5QIJraS0_DjunYgiPP-spHjXryBSpQ1W4J5mvvca/s4608/P1190252.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDHxiSnSvXDM7xXmMySzas7ui0r2aaL3Skh34Gnoo0W4Nyj6M_8uVJU8akWkqOy9odvwRClrOUXB2Nlx3jWRlY1s5bwYmnlIvDe7309Xq1M7FLVA0YYmkSU-Pa_MWDhpNr_lawk9QnzVj2ErkEJPuk5QIJraS0_DjunYgiPP-spHjXryBSpQ1W4J5mvvca/s4608/P1190252.JPG" style="display: inline !important; padding: 1em 0px;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDHxiSnSvXDM7xXmMySzas7ui0r2aaL3Skh34Gnoo0W4Nyj6M_8uVJU8akWkqOy9odvwRClrOUXB2Nlx3jWRlY1s5bwYmnlIvDe7309Xq1M7FLVA0YYmkSU-Pa_MWDhpNr_lawk9QnzVj2ErkEJPuk5QIJraS0_DjunYgiPP-spHjXryBSpQ1W4J5mvvca/s400/P1190252.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwKMH1VWb_YiMHAPUaUbia2-eK9V3Qwo1tmwPn0W7jQqDs5ynf9iQykuXhbqkVeDwZLGFCTSK78Wp_bR1_CB92AkmSK2kKQo3KFda84Cx3s0zXfhq6sSLwq-6HTc82ieHPyi8U8vhHHyHWuyO0cPdKq-QmRVjBPUVKhYkCfISApbKkGBB-b2eGv7hYme0T/s4608/P1190253.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Magpie</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwKMH1VWb_YiMHAPUaUbia2-eK9V3Qwo1tmwPn0W7jQqDs5ynf9iQykuXhbqkVeDwZLGFCTSK78Wp_bR1_CB92AkmSK2kKQo3KFda84Cx3s0zXfhq6sSLwq-6HTc82ieHPyi8U8vhHHyHWuyO0cPdKq-QmRVjBPUVKhYkCfISApbKkGBB-b2eGv7hYme0T/s4608/P1190253.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwKMH1VWb_YiMHAPUaUbia2-eK9V3Qwo1tmwPn0W7jQqDs5ynf9iQykuXhbqkVeDwZLGFCTSK78Wp_bR1_CB92AkmSK2kKQo3KFda84Cx3s0zXfhq6sSLwq-6HTc82ieHPyi8U8vhHHyHWuyO0cPdKq-QmRVjBPUVKhYkCfISApbKkGBB-b2eGv7hYme0T/s400/P1190253.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgwKMH1VWb_YiMHAPUaUbia2-eK9V3Qwo1tmwPn0W7jQqDs5ynf9iQykuXhbqkVeDwZLGFCTSK78Wp_bR1_CB92AkmSK2kKQo3KFda84Cx3s0zXfhq6sSLwq-6HTc82ieHPyi8U8vhHHyHWuyO0cPdKq-QmRVjBPUVKhYkCfISApbKkGBB-b2eGv7hYme0T/s4608/P1190253.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Sandpiper</a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNlfXLSd-WhyWMncn-DxCp_uVbfdXCWfJ9SSFb6XEUDF5a02VJ5QTbx44swV76Or9ChuFqRttB1j0KJ2nYi3eiQQIN8xnsz9SK4792hbNEjZUBiDXjuy-TDCHS3REYk1O7n0jsvO2P7tPu8ALyqAH88D0E9_Fz6qaL8-JbK3OjF4KkNNxoYiHHXHXZuGQN/s4608/P1190258.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgNlfXLSd-WhyWMncn-DxCp_uVbfdXCWfJ9SSFb6XEUDF5a02VJ5QTbx44swV76Or9ChuFqRttB1j0KJ2nYi3eiQQIN8xnsz9SK4792hbNEjZUBiDXjuy-TDCHS3REYk1O7n0jsvO2P7tPu8ALyqAH88D0E9_Fz6qaL8-JbK3OjF4KkNNxoYiHHXHXZuGQN/s400/P1190258.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnPZSmswm2j05sQgShbclabe1XPyxlGTW8EMz2w4qB2NrqmWkj9GpCnmR-RJSnNCnS8uRp_lPjY5l5CeYJ5QNaTeK0ugEgeRWEzTcESinKAVCrbkL0EAhFAcS9NtUeymNKsL4hBYqickpHcTzVC09VzfrOXdrGMcOqe_DT_93hVzILXqF0SS_m4a43h0rA/s4608/P1190265.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Hooded Crow with Mute Swan looking on</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnPZSmswm2j05sQgShbclabe1XPyxlGTW8EMz2w4qB2NrqmWkj9GpCnmR-RJSnNCnS8uRp_lPjY5l5CeYJ5QNaTeK0ugEgeRWEzTcESinKAVCrbkL0EAhFAcS9NtUeymNKsL4hBYqickpHcTzVC09VzfrOXdrGMcOqe_DT_93hVzILXqF0SS_m4a43h0rA/s4608/P1190265.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnPZSmswm2j05sQgShbclabe1XPyxlGTW8EMz2w4qB2NrqmWkj9GpCnmR-RJSnNCnS8uRp_lPjY5l5CeYJ5QNaTeK0ugEgeRWEzTcESinKAVCrbkL0EAhFAcS9NtUeymNKsL4hBYqickpHcTzVC09VzfrOXdrGMcOqe_DT_93hVzILXqF0SS_m4a43h0rA/s4608/P1190265.JPG" style="display: inline !important; padding: 1em 0px;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgnPZSmswm2j05sQgShbclabe1XPyxlGTW8EMz2w4qB2NrqmWkj9GpCnmR-RJSnNCnS8uRp_lPjY5l5CeYJ5QNaTeK0ugEgeRWEzTcESinKAVCrbkL0EAhFAcS9NtUeymNKsL4hBYqickpHcTzVC09VzfrOXdrGMcOqe_DT_93hVzILXqF0SS_m4a43h0rA/s400/P1190265.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB7xs9BOKl-xJJTe4FMPujLE_j7BxNFW0DoTkRE8aiE13izc3AxY5f2OG7GUSgurMzq5wuNSVyVsAeDsCl6QeP3hNcjcTtEZxn5DJx5UF9gpdkikPfwP9klRRrZTHooAIvHrYkTpuW7K0OSkyaBzxo36lBmSJ2B2vnoeFMISVzqnJ9KwbKkmqqQZVqCEr7/s4608/P1190269.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Small Flock of Starling</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB7xs9BOKl-xJJTe4FMPujLE_j7BxNFW0DoTkRE8aiE13izc3AxY5f2OG7GUSgurMzq5wuNSVyVsAeDsCl6QeP3hNcjcTtEZxn5DJx5UF9gpdkikPfwP9klRRrZTHooAIvHrYkTpuW7K0OSkyaBzxo36lBmSJ2B2vnoeFMISVzqnJ9KwbKkmqqQZVqCEr7/s4608/P1190269.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgB7xs9BOKl-xJJTe4FMPujLE_j7BxNFW0DoTkRE8aiE13izc3AxY5f2OG7GUSgurMzq5wuNSVyVsAeDsCl6QeP3hNcjcTtEZxn5DJx5UF9gpdkikPfwP9klRRrZTHooAIvHrYkTpuW7K0OSkyaBzxo36lBmSJ2B2vnoeFMISVzqnJ9KwbKkmqqQZVqCEr7/s400/P1190269.JPG" width="400" /></a></div><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYIRlr2iNliQE5o8bQMQhR6yBkZ9vcYU8k_Nq4vpokn1dUmvRPn8lHQYVakWDSy4X6DSixCCEueb8S8I2g39HX8cJNxC_dkN_S6Vq-WXKRWY8xA5AYWmyB3ifg8U0nq34DvN5YtygHfhlsHsG7Uw_TA_znp7HvYC41h7S6sADhcxuBfwMBj9EpwQv8uGMN/s4608/P1190284.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Pied Wagtail</a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYIRlr2iNliQE5o8bQMQhR6yBkZ9vcYU8k_Nq4vpokn1dUmvRPn8lHQYVakWDSy4X6DSixCCEueb8S8I2g39HX8cJNxC_dkN_S6Vq-WXKRWY8xA5AYWmyB3ifg8U0nq34DvN5YtygHfhlsHsG7Uw_TA_znp7HvYC41h7S6sADhcxuBfwMBj9EpwQv8uGMN/s4608/P1190284.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;"><img alt="" border="0" data-original-height="3456" data-original-width="4608" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYIRlr2iNliQE5o8bQMQhR6yBkZ9vcYU8k_Nq4vpokn1dUmvRPn8lHQYVakWDSy4X6DSixCCEueb8S8I2g39HX8cJNxC_dkN_S6Vq-WXKRWY8xA5AYWmyB3ifg8U0nq34DvN5YtygHfhlsHsG7Uw_TA_znp7HvYC41h7S6sADhcxuBfwMBj9EpwQv8uGMN/s400/P1190284.JPG" width="400" /></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiYIRlr2iNliQE5o8bQMQhR6yBkZ9vcYU8k_Nq4vpokn1dUmvRPn8lHQYVakWDSy4X6DSixCCEueb8S8I2g39HX8cJNxC_dkN_S6Vq-WXKRWY8xA5AYWmyB3ifg8U0nq34DvN5YtygHfhlsHsG7Uw_TA_znp7HvYC41h7S6sADhcxuBfwMBj9EpwQv8uGMN/s4608/P1190284.JPG" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0px; text-align: center;">Poor shot of a Little Grebe</a></div>
This time I also had my trusty smartphone to hand with the Merlin App loaded so I set it to work for a couple of minutes to see what bird species it could hear. Recordings were only a couple of minutes each but picked up Black Headed Gull, Common Sandpiper, Barn Swallow (of which there were dozens feeding) Herring Gull, Goldfinch, House Martin, Woodpigeon, Collared Dove, Pied Wagtail and there were some Robins in the bushes. A nice little selection of birds and a very pleasant outing despite the traffic noise.bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-10450816855098218982023-06-13T07:22:00.008-07:002023-06-13T07:33:21.429-07:00Bird recordings<p> Since being floored by Covid my old way of birding has had to change. I can't walk anything like the distances I could. So one area I have begun to explore is the world of audio recording. I started with a small digital Dictaphone which worked great but there was no way to transfer it to a computer for playback or analysis</p><p>I heard about a great tool, the AudioMoth, from an ornithologist friend, which although a little hard to get hold of is relatively cheap and can be configured to record over days or even weeks and having eventually gotten my hands on one worked really well.
<div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA9w88gX3RcCnoFQdK10QcX2GE-N2cbm6QMBO8CDu11Dm5_qidCkqCFp1J6sgbgz1rPudW6WzqW2LrnNobmf0aW3A4JQrQr8qxhoN3ghOAQydhQUMvsc8lJbjHyok5RPCRCOHE2tC_Y3fsVyy4pT5KVOXRwaddmte0XWqGeyBMBFcaS9tax0WzDj7w1w/s1080/audiomoth.jpeg" style="display: block; padding: 1em 0; text-align: center; "><img alt="" border="0" height="400" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="810" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA9w88gX3RcCnoFQdK10QcX2GE-N2cbm6QMBO8CDu11Dm5_qidCkqCFp1J6sgbgz1rPudW6WzqW2LrnNobmf0aW3A4JQrQr8qxhoN3ghOAQydhQUMvsc8lJbjHyok5RPCRCOHE2tC_Y3fsVyy4pT5KVOXRwaddmte0XWqGeyBMBFcaS9tax0WzDj7w1w/s400/audiomoth.jpeg"/></a></div>
I have been using this for almost a year now and am delighted with the results. I mostly set it up in my garden at home but also of late have been setting it up in the Cemetery Woods at Colne in Lancashire (SD 89770 439895)* and also at Greenfield Nature Reserve at the opposite end of the town from my place (SD 87225 39618). Early efforts were a bit frustrating as getting into wildlife audio recording you soon come to realize how much ambient noise there is about that our wonderful brain filters out for us. However, the AudioMoth's configuration tools are designed to help reduce this. </p><p>My first outing at Greenfield NR was was at the start of April and we had a total of 28 species including Wren, Chiffchaff, Great Tit, Robin, Bullfinch, Goldfinch, Blackbird, Carrion Crow, Dunnock, Oystercatcher, Jackdaw, Blue Tit, Chaffinch, Goldcrest, Grey Wagtail, Song Thrush, Mallard, Coal Tit, Wood Pigeon, Long Tailed Tit, Blackcap, Jackdaw,, Canada Goose, Greater Spotted Woodpecker, Magpie, Willow Warbler, Song Thrush and possibly Mistle Thrush.</p><p>I have been gradually learning bird calls and songs but also make use of a wonderful tool from Cornell University, the Merlin Application which can be downloaded to your smartphone. I have noticed that some calls, like the Ring Necked Pheasant and members of the Pigeon and Dove family cause occasional issues for Merlin, these are almost entirely in the lower frequencies. </p><p>Once the recordings are made I use yet another valuable tool to help identify the birds and that is Audacity which allows you to download the WAV files and analyze them via the sonogram, I have taken a screen shot of one of the files I loaded in the back garden recently;</p><p></p><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi8wkxtuZYHev-Va7BPS4-y34pApx9CKpDg-jvytqGccrYv2ocbyj9oKZGlRHbQZvASk-0JC-ixi-nmjjLEki60emnM6asbcwP9wKehF3mIzdQZ8PLlWdecFtK4HyFUEbRENdA9W0d03GVJes40_7xEk8iMiaNwRnucvuRJeCR9SpaVszHt8pSNjczEtw" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/a/AVvXsEi8wkxtuZYHev-Va7BPS4-y34pApx9CKpDg-jvytqGccrYv2ocbyj9oKZGlRHbQZvASk-0JC-ixi-nmjjLEki60emnM6asbcwP9wKehF3mIzdQZ8PLlWdecFtK4HyFUEbRENdA9W0d03GVJes40_7xEk8iMiaNwRnucvuRJeCR9SpaVszHt8pSNjczEtw=w640-h360" width="640" /></a></div><br />This was recorded at .4:26 in the morning in Mid May and has Wren, Ring Necked Pheasant, Curlew and Blackbird in this minute long image. No I was not up that time but the beauty of AudioMoth is you don't need to be. An obvious thing to say here is if the bird remains silent like many overflying and female ones do you don't know they are there but in combination with visual records this can show a lot more of what is around you, especially when the trees are leafed up and birds can hide easily.<p></p><p>On another front this could be a great way for the visually impaired to become involved in our great past time.</p><p>I now have two AudioMoths and am gradually getting the time to get out and place them in more interesting places. The latest piece of kit to arrive (sorry I'm a real sucker for a gadget) is a HydroMoth, which is the underwater version of the AudioMoth, but can be used out of water too. Can't wait to get a chance to try this out.</p><div class="separator" style="clear: both;"><br /></div><table align="center" cellpadding="0" cellspacing="0" class="tr-caption-container" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><tbody><tr><td style="text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinwDF6ku4GkhTOcqRoqStLKtbIZSO3lqB8LJJbVlB9eB2E12G_ZDZ9o_dC-fMQQ-VpmfYX_nQusGzvffWhAMrcixtOEM_r7pmO7bmHaanGU3_e_kqIISGNSuUycbD7qsZpnaiVpZ6YAee0HvA4Mi9v7ACAT09KjfZyxLuC9SpZFGkLqHTVA5Ty5NDbHw/s643/20230317_113121.jpg" style="margin-left: auto; margin-right: auto;"><img border="0" data-original-height="643" data-original-width="384" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinwDF6ku4GkhTOcqRoqStLKtbIZSO3lqB8LJJbVlB9eB2E12G_ZDZ9o_dC-fMQQ-VpmfYX_nQusGzvffWhAMrcixtOEM_r7pmO7bmHaanGU3_e_kqIISGNSuUycbD7qsZpnaiVpZ6YAee0HvA4Mi9v7ACAT09KjfZyxLuC9SpZFGkLqHTVA5Ty5NDbHw/s320/20230317_113121.jpg" width="191" /></a></td></tr><tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Parabolic Microphone</td></tr></tbody></table>I have also taken delivery of a parabolic Microphone with which to continue my journey into the audio side. I plan to use this most at migration time for some nocmig,ing but will be playing with it in the meantime to see how best to use it.<div><br /></div><div>More anon but it is certainly a facinating area to expand the birding experiences, In terms of cost the whole lot so far cost me less than a good mid range set of binoculars, so its pretty affordable. There are obviously other kit suppliers and no doubt these have a much better recording range but at over £600 to £700 they are unlikely to get in to my box any time soon.<br /><p>* for those not familiar with the location coding, this is the one used by the UK Ordinance Survey Maps to identify the location.</p><p><br /></p><p>© Bernard Bracken 13/6/23</p></div>bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-18203285879328982392020-02-15T13:25:00.000-08:002020-02-15T13:34:38.982-08:00Adventures in MexicoIn January 2020 we headed off to Mexico for some decent weather as the UK was looking very grim. After an 11 hour flight we landed in Puerto Vallarta and noticed it had just started to rain. It took about 2 hours to get through the airport (its a bit bureaucratic) only to find the rain had continued and there was flooding. As we made our way to the hotel it continued and on arrival the bus could not get near the property due to the floods, I am talking cars floating down the streets here folks!! Anyhow we eventually made it about 4 hours after landing. A bit of a crazy start. The next morning things had improved a lot and we cot out and about. Over the two weeks we went Whale watching and took a run out into the mountains on a 4x4 and on the final day I got out to do some birding with a brilliant group called ECO Tours, <a href="https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/AttractionProductReview-g150793-d14007514-Bird_Watching_Ecotours-Puerto_Vallarta.html">https://www.tripadvisor.co.uk/AttractionProductReview-g150793-d14007514-Bird_Watching_Ecotours-Puerto_Vallarta.html</a>. I would recommend these guys. Over the time I also birded a bit around the area and the photos below give a flavour of what was seen. Still working on some ID's but in time will find them all :)<br />
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On most days you could see Brown Pelican standing by the waterside or flying low over the tops of the waves. Very graceful for such a large bird.<br />
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These guys get everywhere lol. Nice to see large numbers of House Sparrow all around the area too.<br />
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Grey Breasted Martin congregated in large groups on the roof of the building opposite us and were a delight to watch in the morning as the heat began to rise, darting about the sky chasing insects.<br />
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A Great Kiskadee just perched on a fence waiting to be photographed on one of our beachside walks.<br />
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Golden Cheeked Woodpecker<br />
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This shot did not come out as planned but along the beach here are numerous turtle nest sites protected from being trodden on by these fences. To the north of the Puerto Vallarta bay there is a locally run charity which collects the eggs and raises the young. During the season they encourage visitors to come and help with the release of the young. By preventing the seabirds getting to the young they think the life expectancy goes up dramatically.<br />
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Beautiful Blue Grey Gnatcatcher<br />
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Colima Pigmy Owl getting camera shy. I had a fantastic shot of this guy looking straight at me but in the second it took to press the shutter he was dive bomber by some other birds and took off. Oh well I have the memory of it :)<br />
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Turkey Vultures were fairly common across the area as were Black Vultures, although the latter were always too high for me to get photos of.<br />
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The Great White Egret winters in this area, magnificent birds easily reach 3ft or more tall.<br />
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Black Bellied Whistling Duck were spotted in large numbers on a small inland lake we visited during our tour.<br />
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I think this is a Neotropic Cormorant as it has relatively little yellow on its face, happy to hear from anyone who can confirm or correct.<br />
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In the little lake we visited there were about 5 or 6 American Coot in among the Ducks, Cormorants and Egrets.<br />
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Some Cattle Egret, Black Bellied Whistling Duck a Neotropical Cormorant and a couple of Whimbrel hiding.<br />
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Grey Tailed Grackle<br />
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Some more Black Bellied Whistling Duck<br />
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One of our first views of the Humpback Whales in the bay. I was very impressed by the way the local tourist industry behave towards the whales which come to mate and give birth in the bay. Boats are not allowed to come closer that 60m (although the Whale may decide to come closer). Limited number of boats allowed in a sector at any one time, etc. These rules are enforced by a team of monitors.</div>
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A very nice photo of a Humpback breaching. This was taken by my wife on her phone while I was facing the other direction.. Good eh.<br />
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This was the closest to a breach I managed to capture, this guy only came up a few feet then rolled over and crashed back in.<br />
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Magnificent Frigate Birds were everywhere soaring waiting for a meal. This is a female with the white breast the male has a red throat but in flight mostly looks all black.<br />
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Another tail, the local experts have a database of all of the fin patterns and can identify most of the whales in the bay. When whaling was allowed the stock was almost totally eradicated and all of the current whales in the bay are young that were not taken during the dark days when their parents were caught. We had the pleasure of witnessing a mother and calf in a different area of the bay. Apparently there had been a couple of Killer Whales in the bay in the weeks before we arrived looking for calves.<br />
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Pretty sure this is a Heermann's Gull with a Tern behind, did not get a good look at the Tern so that's as far as I can go with that id.<br />
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Not a great photo of a nice Rufous Backed Robin.<br />
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A very elegant Masked Tityra, beautiful bird but not that easy to get close to.<br />
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A couple of Stripe Headed Sparrows. These were quite common outside of the villages and towns where their House Sparrow cousins reigned supreme.<br />
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Not sure about this, may be an escape but looking into it.<br />
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San Blas Jay is a fairly noisy occupant of the woods.<br />
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A Crested Guan, this is quite a large bird just a little smaller than a Turkey, impressive flyers considering their size. We also saw a pair of West Mexican Chachlaca at the Botanical Gardens but I did not get a good photo of them.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 16px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: left; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">Masked Tityra</span><b></b><i></i><u></u><sub></sub><sup></sup><strike></strike><br />
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Cinnamon Hummingbird was bloody difficult to photograph, they are constantly on the move and most of the shots you get are just a blur. We also saw a Plain Capped Starthroath but go no chance to photograph it.<br />
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An Ivory Billed Woodcreeper. This was the only useful shot I got of this guy as he scurried along that branch, mostly upside down.<br />
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A hanging nest designed apparently to prevent Racoons getting at the young.<br />
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The highlight of the day, especially for Michael our guide, this is a Black and White Hawk Eagle, they are very rare in the area and as far as is known this is only the second sighting of this in the Puerto Vallarta area. They are a bit more common on Mexico's east coast.<br />
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Citreoline Trogon has a gorgeous yellow breast but was not in the mood to show it today!<br />
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Orange Fronted Parakeet was happily munching on foliage in the trees around our site. Lovely bird to watch.<br />
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not sure about this yet!<br />
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A parrot from another land. Increasingly these days you find pet birds in the wild who have escaped from captivity, this Australian Parrot is one such example. Not local but escaped and liked what he found. By the way here were a pair of these in the area so I guess next time I go there may be many more!<br />
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Yellow Winged Cacique were seen in flocks landing on bushes and feeders to take their meals. Quite a noisy bird but lovely to watch.<br />
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Golden Cheeked Woodpecker.<br />
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Military Macaw were once pretty common around the area but thanks to people stealing eggs and removal of habitat their numbers have crashed. We saw two flying over at considerable height but this guy is a rescue which is being tended to at the Botanical Gardens. It is hoped it will pair in the future with a wild bird.<br />
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Blue Bunting, lovely bird but crap photo, had problems getting a good photo as there were so many people in the way!!<br />
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The very handsome Streak Backed Oriole are fairly common in the hills, surprisingly difficult to see well though.<br />
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A very beautiful Golden Cheeked Woodpecker was working hard to knock holes in the trees of the Botanical Gardens.<br />
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This I believe is a young Black Iguana which was spotted in bushes in the Botanical Gardens, Mexico has a good number of reptiles these being fairly safe to be around, unlike the crocodiles which were spotted in the town marina, proper big jobs too, 10 to 12 ft long!! They are apparently non aggressive but it does not do to upset them as they have been known to forget that fact!!<br />
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Not a great shot of a Varied Bunting. The female is typically brownish while the male has some fantastic colouring.<br />
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Had a wonderful day's birding with ECO Tours and will definitely do it again if I get the chance.<br />
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<span style="background-color: white; color: black; display: inline; float: none; font-family: "times new roman"; font-size: 18.06px; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: 400; letter-spacing: normal; text-align: center; text-decoration: none; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; word-spacing: 0px;">© Bernard Bracken 2020</span><br />
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<br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-61444911688922686872018-09-26T13:30:00.003-07:002018-09-26T13:33:19.894-07:00Masai Mara and the SerengetiWe moved on from Lake Naivasha the following morning (October 24th) and headed south for the famous Masai Mara reserve. This was really exciting for me as I have been reading about this place since my youth and am finally getting to visit. It did not disappoint.<br />
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The Mara comprises a very large grassland plain (1500 sq km)with small areas of trees particularly close to water sources. The area has been home to the nomadic Masai tribe for over 200 years and they still heard cattle and goats there to this day. The Mara stretches into the neighbouring Tanzania but the Masai can travel at will across the border in search of better grazing. During this trip we visited a small encampment and were shown around by a very aloof but friendly chief's son and I have to tell you that their homes are very basic indeed.<br />
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Anyhow more on that later, on with the photos.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF41BfzDxgcEsONqnQ0Abz6gUZp2WnAA2TGDoeXONY4FsFqkyvjIdA2nosPuUN1ZdohTnvgyhFe2QGLqvp29UxWk9XPKo7iXRiONp2fSXjvY8G_CzjiHeJ89BqNff_DyVjx5Ny9WYmNlPv/s1600/IMG_5000+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="425" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhF41BfzDxgcEsONqnQ0Abz6gUZp2WnAA2TGDoeXONY4FsFqkyvjIdA2nosPuUN1ZdohTnvgyhFe2QGLqvp29UxWk9XPKo7iXRiONp2fSXjvY8G_CzjiHeJ89BqNff_DyVjx5Ny9WYmNlPv/s640/IMG_5000+%25282%2529.jpg" width="640" /></a></div>
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A view across the Serengeti, at other times of the year this would be covered with Zebra, Wildebeest and other herbivores.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZo9mLACLPSZf3IW5NqbUbilZlNSGinaEDjTEdyp5NSK5bSzVORbtrKjghVWhXtdABxq6RDprJpp0z8H0Tpbuwo9da3NgMveS1c_LaDl8sAIfQ15VX-BjpUx03KqKi78fmou0gZXr-PFrC/s1600/IMG_4746+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgZo9mLACLPSZf3IW5NqbUbilZlNSGinaEDjTEdyp5NSK5bSzVORbtrKjghVWhXtdABxq6RDprJpp0z8H0Tpbuwo9da3NgMveS1c_LaDl8sAIfQ15VX-BjpUx03KqKi78fmou0gZXr-PFrC/s400/IMG_4746+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Hotel info with some geographical detail.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIOxDoSwk2Y93ANJFtBRrUc4O_Vr1dnzOTCpeP4Q49ukBbJoOWRmfSV23Yrk6zaKs399cwNZert8agyOc2EUMZtOuZzH51hNYeGvP5QOahxP7LiU9VKi-iQgwpqJbLDK79i0DobRsLksSd/s1600/IMG_4737+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1253" data-original-width="1600" height="312" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjIOxDoSwk2Y93ANJFtBRrUc4O_Vr1dnzOTCpeP4Q49ukBbJoOWRmfSV23Yrk6zaKs399cwNZert8agyOc2EUMZtOuZzH51hNYeGvP5QOahxP7LiU9VKi-iQgwpqJbLDK79i0DobRsLksSd/s400/IMG_4737+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Not a great photo of a paradise Flycatcher, he landed outside the apartment but by the time I got the camera I only got one shot</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXY3PwHfrsw7Or9Z7yzAnppccoowtRvbxq5nbOujHvWsqkBHeL482NZiq_QyRaSgy_YdFQYZLhBKHpietSDPtmpGWaOvJUFQuGIByfzO8mgD8JlKoWbV0Uc7TiZhL8_-P1RLJgQ0e64DH7/s1600/IMG_4740+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1308" data-original-width="1600" height="326" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXY3PwHfrsw7Or9Z7yzAnppccoowtRvbxq5nbOujHvWsqkBHeL482NZiq_QyRaSgy_YdFQYZLhBKHpietSDPtmpGWaOvJUFQuGIByfzO8mgD8JlKoWbV0Uc7TiZhL8_-P1RLJgQ0e64DH7/s400/IMG_4740+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE76-JwgFHVVz-zbWHJLrjfwnIb0PxCLxqOpWA5TBcuL8ZVU7rh3QEEc4QwiHWaN07sDhKV_s2qt1vzv71dRrzMZUnXAxDjyO2eDlX3KuQKe7QkNUp63D_wMYXKd26iiRbTGSV3awFGPWm/s1600/IMG_4767+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1219" data-original-width="1600" height="303" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgE76-JwgFHVVz-zbWHJLrjfwnIb0PxCLxqOpWA5TBcuL8ZVU7rh3QEEc4QwiHWaN07sDhKV_s2qt1vzv71dRrzMZUnXAxDjyO2eDlX3KuQKe7QkNUp63D_wMYXKd26iiRbTGSV3awFGPWm/s400/IMG_4767+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbkkx2VDmdtL4sOoJ9h5hFQsiPjMLlSESTF1Y4oOG3kcCDBSmy5OFYWRLsweJGyS7nViSh-RuzLK5a8X3XB1f05iv6d6EXKXfAWdFKyhFXYPt2HVWWbjz3-g4Wfw6G0Ca353JRHvnmUgGn/s1600/IMG_4774+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1239" data-original-width="1600" height="308" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjbkkx2VDmdtL4sOoJ9h5hFQsiPjMLlSESTF1Y4oOG3kcCDBSmy5OFYWRLsweJGyS7nViSh-RuzLK5a8X3XB1f05iv6d6EXKXfAWdFKyhFXYPt2HVWWbjz3-g4Wfw6G0Ca353JRHvnmUgGn/s400/IMG_4774+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG5wqVliJOroViDMFVcpKCucyqKZDb5ex3GEKGXAIk-Xn_J93h5MKwvm5-m15HX_01Br2tMQadskuvbRvMbWa4irwmXrJG-fGBVVc49_y6EAqmZgFS5fK7pUT-EE3P6uzjThjAgXqvo7zT/s1600/IMG_4793+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1192" data-original-width="1600" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiG5wqVliJOroViDMFVcpKCucyqKZDb5ex3GEKGXAIk-Xn_J93h5MKwvm5-m15HX_01Br2tMQadskuvbRvMbWa4irwmXrJG-fGBVVc49_y6EAqmZgFS5fK7pUT-EE3P6uzjThjAgXqvo7zT/s400/IMG_4793+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Green Bee-Eater </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4UVQHkdf1kwM11mv4PLpJ4S72vr01JWLW27H0Fq31WzWaN9iUZ2lxKf7HrFF2xkv_MmdTx5kVuYztxJTg8p_WT42YyO2t7984_gUZlnZ3PvpImCCnDta3z2okTzHmVu3oRht2w_a0ojnp/s1600/IMG_4852+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1233" data-original-width="1600" height="307" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi4UVQHkdf1kwM11mv4PLpJ4S72vr01JWLW27H0Fq31WzWaN9iUZ2lxKf7HrFF2xkv_MmdTx5kVuYztxJTg8p_WT42YyO2t7984_gUZlnZ3PvpImCCnDta3z2okTzHmVu3oRht2w_a0ojnp/s400/IMG_4852+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Lilac Breasted Roller </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBUi5cYyHP8rKWJ_yY7bGVv_ArNaTdPWxiil21oNeoLKo27J5v0m3F55kBUogfiiChdEsYHutPUG1AJw1AeqmuYM-ddVbFUyZyzB8RiLJyCwgKLoIyChm79QPKlLopwJHehIx8s-AQF-ah/s1600/IMG_4832+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1023" data-original-width="1600" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhBUi5cYyHP8rKWJ_yY7bGVv_ArNaTdPWxiil21oNeoLKo27J5v0m3F55kBUogfiiChdEsYHutPUG1AJw1AeqmuYM-ddVbFUyZyzB8RiLJyCwgKLoIyChm79QPKlLopwJHehIx8s-AQF-ah/s400/IMG_4832+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A small family of Egyptian Geese, these are pretty common all over Kenya from what I can see.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIeiHFk0Pdn7hGLsxcvnJbgSwqlafrpV-3ikM3EZlpaj1NNCSwCvM0T1SJAntnDZTTtqhdx6le8P4R0Us4WCbUR22YI3dkMzLCq6N8jb-OBMzCEKZwt5W822EpDGP2_lEMsH8ruJX_U_8h/s1600/IMG_4869+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgIeiHFk0Pdn7hGLsxcvnJbgSwqlafrpV-3ikM3EZlpaj1NNCSwCvM0T1SJAntnDZTTtqhdx6le8P4R0Us4WCbUR22YI3dkMzLCq6N8jb-OBMzCEKZwt5W822EpDGP2_lEMsH8ruJX_U_8h/s400/IMG_4869+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1-QK1IqsUdheJCZXfY6InpMvIkNXYO65YgGkXzN4HJS1rPhvua2dAVmwItHxrmzAxxoc29U8KC5r7xTYWwCrpyScem4GwMDEoPKpqJuVEJN0IlFS0di54BZlhTWmETA3wmhXMZG4nI4Lu/s1600/IMG_4882+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1054" data-original-width="1600" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1-QK1IqsUdheJCZXfY6InpMvIkNXYO65YgGkXzN4HJS1rPhvua2dAVmwItHxrmzAxxoc29U8KC5r7xTYWwCrpyScem4GwMDEoPKpqJuVEJN0IlFS0di54BZlhTWmETA3wmhXMZG4nI4Lu/s400/IMG_4882+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Our guide was very keen to show us some Cheetah lounging by a bush so I almost missed this guy. Its a lifer for me the Black Bellied Bustard. We did spot another the following day but it was deep in a bush so I was glad I got this pic.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8pGrEm3K0K1n9tYB0hs7dv63ytx6itY_1Gxp9a0qIWIqgpol6bwV3HsskoyY85hw-LXanzFsypM1IR-nz9sCVtEr2mNLst7TmdSRyDa2POwzkKFUbiQRXzfEAZCDVAUeQkY1fLmq8mQt8/s1600/IMG_4892+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8pGrEm3K0K1n9tYB0hs7dv63ytx6itY_1Gxp9a0qIWIqgpol6bwV3HsskoyY85hw-LXanzFsypM1IR-nz9sCVtEr2mNLst7TmdSRyDa2POwzkKFUbiQRXzfEAZCDVAUeQkY1fLmq8mQt8/s400/IMG_4892+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Not really giving any prizes for guessing the Common Ostritch (male). </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs31S_k79PYlLEgtVAlWslazAuoe0qbcLtKJy6Fm7HK15EtNxCJPHTF7xNKMx405dPHsqnrhFotDj_BAyh059PX5hO4e_EQkapwW84opijmh5FK76AebrIeYkVmLV_EsemV7Ty6lZP3dS0/s1600/IMG_4919+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1085" data-original-width="1600" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhs31S_k79PYlLEgtVAlWslazAuoe0qbcLtKJy6Fm7HK15EtNxCJPHTF7xNKMx405dPHsqnrhFotDj_BAyh059PX5hO4e_EQkapwW84opijmh5FK76AebrIeYkVmLV_EsemV7Ty6lZP3dS0/s400/IMG_4919+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I was surprised at how many Secretarybirds we spotted around the Mara. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdNjHeZI2Pw72UTKmAtinFFjTHAO8-lDHjnW5wjrgvtcUz9lQPr1sjXNb7nPnJsrGtrY8L1tuC1QwxuKEqnPYL-DR9R5A1fyZJgsr47TITVd4Bp-FM4gV3DsolRbgaDY1kYxpfn3TdugUj/s1600/IMG_4928+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgdNjHeZI2Pw72UTKmAtinFFjTHAO8-lDHjnW5wjrgvtcUz9lQPr1sjXNb7nPnJsrGtrY8L1tuC1QwxuKEqnPYL-DR9R5A1fyZJgsr47TITVd4Bp-FM4gV3DsolRbgaDY1kYxpfn3TdugUj/s400/IMG_4928+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXN_ARwQkgoe1MrgQhtd8CNM4ZT9AQmV5cAsChE4sotlDgnm83gyRfggPpLSroKSS-ohQmFgLmr-R9IX4RfWaIKKBUuBNGQqTONyQpCEkMfX_NruPM3GhNs6nuJpWlXHOdPrdpOEiLqZnB/s1600/IMG_4944+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXN_ARwQkgoe1MrgQhtd8CNM4ZT9AQmV5cAsChE4sotlDgnm83gyRfggPpLSroKSS-ohQmFgLmr-R9IX4RfWaIKKBUuBNGQqTONyQpCEkMfX_NruPM3GhNs6nuJpWlXHOdPrdpOEiLqZnB/s400/IMG_4944+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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These were once a nemesis bird for me, I seemed to miss them wherever I went in Saudi Arabia, but finally found a small flock of Hamerkop. This one and its partner were hunting by the roadside as we passed.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia5pXcpqMmZu3k_8I-MYni7Qgyj75zxuXnEbDQRL9pq2z0Gzr7AC7kxOc8cyws8Ju_rpN7RZAC-uPGGaF98QaPz5sJTZrFTspm5CzeiZjztkRaj4a5T3eh-w-H0BS8BhR6LS-gNcyfN0pz/s1600/IMG_4953+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1215" data-original-width="1600" height="302" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEia5pXcpqMmZu3k_8I-MYni7Qgyj75zxuXnEbDQRL9pq2z0Gzr7AC7kxOc8cyws8Ju_rpN7RZAC-uPGGaF98QaPz5sJTZrFTspm5CzeiZjztkRaj4a5T3eh-w-H0BS8BhR6LS-gNcyfN0pz/s400/IMG_4953+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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We were heading back after a long day and came across a couple of these Grey Crowned Crane. I had not seen one of these before and was surprised how big they are.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisZvRQxQM3hNx8nUq5iQiOZ4bdGKiplK62But-LVsXN_MY7Y5dnSnEDL_HCHnZuBVijIRrG6kqaVSN0-bJBE1mnr6Sur0MuhsEi60Ch8Qzk7tueRDvGZ4DIxXD4RuzgiK43HzQIfRM-HTa/s1600/IMG_4988+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1188" data-original-width="1600" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEisZvRQxQM3hNx8nUq5iQiOZ4bdGKiplK62But-LVsXN_MY7Y5dnSnEDL_HCHnZuBVijIRrG6kqaVSN0-bJBE1mnr6Sur0MuhsEi60Ch8Qzk7tueRDvGZ4DIxXD4RuzgiK43HzQIfRM-HTa/s400/IMG_4988+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A silhouette of a pair of Sacred Ibis in the early morning.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6eXI_NMu_bVllVXJtJIU4812U-YlcKQ6-8smQuT2GLGTYLMGNp2NKdd7hCFwIE1rN5dAauAtDs-PvyShIhDQJwEQb2TxKcJydJHc8g_VHds9lwiit4mrsLwFoZmvZZ9pez-aqPXxPuvqx/s1600/IMG_4990+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1135" data-original-width="1600" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi6eXI_NMu_bVllVXJtJIU4812U-YlcKQ6-8smQuT2GLGTYLMGNp2NKdd7hCFwIE1rN5dAauAtDs-PvyShIhDQJwEQb2TxKcJydJHc8g_VHds9lwiit4mrsLwFoZmvZZ9pez-aqPXxPuvqx/s400/IMG_4990+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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White Wagtail </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFPx8ayq_cP4dsgQ1fSfsD4kZ-N7kNpZkdBZDhzrG9PgGbMw3jKKGxBzXsuXt35s1ja7EHPxKY6suPk10Wxhyphenhyphenh_pdRcH5KaxP14-ILkL1eB9pHthkTvvT3MtuxgrquGWf_qsvPo1nKJhf9/s1600/IMG_5059+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1068" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFPx8ayq_cP4dsgQ1fSfsD4kZ-N7kNpZkdBZDhzrG9PgGbMw3jKKGxBzXsuXt35s1ja7EHPxKY6suPk10Wxhyphenhyphenh_pdRcH5KaxP14-ILkL1eB9pHthkTvvT3MtuxgrquGWf_qsvPo1nKJhf9/s400/IMG_5059+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Distant shot of a Shrike but not sure which one.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9cHJhrwDVllovIeLg25t-MuIr44yNr_00qaiB1Hpkk4-yX4CAamBreMpGpxrkP9pv6VrXiDuiRH2Zv2nxB-kfSixuwuu8KWY7VMjWZDrqR1-6l8esVxccVkWLjU5fQDmlBMPCeQwQ_S-w/s1600/IMG_5098+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1133" data-original-width="1600" height="282" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9cHJhrwDVllovIeLg25t-MuIr44yNr_00qaiB1Hpkk4-yX4CAamBreMpGpxrkP9pv6VrXiDuiRH2Zv2nxB-kfSixuwuu8KWY7VMjWZDrqR1-6l8esVxccVkWLjU5fQDmlBMPCeQwQ_S-w/s400/IMG_5098+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A Pair of Yellow Billed Oxpecker perched on a Buffalo as we drove past.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCYagxp1AhJ8oeQ_JO9AKLA5ctgEVUk4HqjNuTxIOs0N9Alk2corOeFRaNagsNcmZsj7DZBYnRKzPkUtluCOlp8g4gzsIMuqViy9a241riyRSZsiON4aXIhvypgZIL_w1bCLZNBic8gWHt/s1600/IMG_5130+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1229" data-original-width="1600" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCYagxp1AhJ8oeQ_JO9AKLA5ctgEVUk4HqjNuTxIOs0N9Alk2corOeFRaNagsNcmZsj7DZBYnRKzPkUtluCOlp8g4gzsIMuqViy9a241riyRSZsiON4aXIhvypgZIL_w1bCLZNBic8gWHt/s400/IMG_5130+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A bit early in the morning for this shot but hopefully you can make out the jet black body with the bright red breast of the Scarlet Chested Sunbird.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYfQhI1UY6RoUrp5HurPnMGsYGD3XFXHwu9la2b81rlyxPjL-HdDPkKIxK23nHGFekAIJn8H03oPVpy3SNG5sJ2rv1AOb4EL8x7hL86tGs8Feo2ZOw_3gOz6OcCR3jmOkS5bJ3-EVSUL6p/s1600/IMG_5158+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1100" data-original-width="1600" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYfQhI1UY6RoUrp5HurPnMGsYGD3XFXHwu9la2b81rlyxPjL-HdDPkKIxK23nHGFekAIJn8H03oPVpy3SNG5sJ2rv1AOb4EL8x7hL86tGs8Feo2ZOw_3gOz6OcCR3jmOkS5bJ3-EVSUL6p/s400/IMG_5158+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA6EPLUQoPmAhRLgM13wzh0feI41hNYL83pMOVEAlGm_WKTBJtFaK2YAQzLjijESbq8eMOGdSk4CKtpIa6WQqgOnGH0QfXu0jLTSh_j7MUYi1XP8gr0N_z_THpyyal5jVPI_0Tq3JQOXJ0/s1600/IMG_5168+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1142" data-original-width="1600" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiA6EPLUQoPmAhRLgM13wzh0feI41hNYL83pMOVEAlGm_WKTBJtFaK2YAQzLjijESbq8eMOGdSk4CKtpIa6WQqgOnGH0QfXu0jLTSh_j7MUYi1XP8gr0N_z_THpyyal5jVPI_0Tq3JQOXJ0/s400/IMG_5168+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A White Browed (Heuglin's) Robin Chattaking a wash in the stream beside our hotel. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7MK2uyLZD-yVcuJknCWgW01hDZgasv24zLUCJYrT6WJOVcf7aGWGNMRhFy1INrHFXYbT_1RBwAFTmmqBrozZa8nWzg_pwV2qjT5agIu-rTU9T6g1wCXR2V1HTJtF6WDe-b87b7eIkRAB/s1600/IMG_5170+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1224" data-original-width="1600" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjv7MK2uyLZD-yVcuJknCWgW01hDZgasv24zLUCJYrT6WJOVcf7aGWGNMRhFy1INrHFXYbT_1RBwAFTmmqBrozZa8nWzg_pwV2qjT5agIu-rTU9T6g1wCXR2V1HTJtF6WDe-b87b7eIkRAB/s400/IMG_5170+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The Common Bulbul were just that, pretty common all over the country. They were particularly vocal in the morning.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcAG4Xhv9N4oY8pYK_1eNpTdzShnEcJ_jtTG7pws71Hmk-WsjAHvuIgpHBvqZLvmjS97x_8Lobs51ulFC7lstbwA2zzwLzFCY-hBpN8crZ24mrzF9nXXMELK6g_r1tGIfCBnyO6B0yuR43/s1600/IMG_5066+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1405" data-original-width="1600" height="351" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjcAG4Xhv9N4oY8pYK_1eNpTdzShnEcJ_jtTG7pws71Hmk-WsjAHvuIgpHBvqZLvmjS97x_8Lobs51ulFC7lstbwA2zzwLzFCY-hBpN8crZ24mrzF9nXXMELK6g_r1tGIfCBnyO6B0yuR43/s400/IMG_5066+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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I only spotted this guy at the last minute so did not get a good photo, but anyway nice to see a Hyena </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifoWXMn6ow1ktWGKvstjCkModtrfUP_Gc6VnUo2x9laqD3cFilzAY4-OFr3VGWjEXoGpx889X_vc3R1gH1Nxr35aOMVL337l2tFGjsjWM_Iu9j3G6m9E9UIyfGrMI0NeJP1Fn90BIt3c0H/s1600/IMG_4807+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1059" data-original-width="1600" height="263" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEifoWXMn6ow1ktWGKvstjCkModtrfUP_Gc6VnUo2x9laqD3cFilzAY4-OFr3VGWjEXoGpx889X_vc3R1gH1Nxr35aOMVL337l2tFGjsjWM_Iu9j3G6m9E9UIyfGrMI0NeJP1Fn90BIt3c0H/s400/IMG_4807+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
and not too far away was a Topi and youngster, This little one can't have been more than a week old as it was still a bit shaky on its feet.<br />
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There were a small number of Elephant wandering around in the Mara, I was surprised at how few there were.</div>
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A pair of young male Wildebeest sparring. This goes on quite a bit but is not serious at this time of the year. They are really just sizing each other up for the new years mating season.</div>
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A lone Wildebeest wandering across the plain. While the vast majority take part in the Great Migration a few do remain. Trouble is there are then a lot of carnivores and much fewer prey so I would guess life gets pretty precarious.</div>
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A small band of Lioness taking it easy on some rocks. It all looked pretty sedate but tey were constantly on the lookout for lunch.<br />
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A couple of Hartebeest and young grazing happily.</div>
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Spotted a few Cheetah around the Mara, unfortunately none were particularly active, there were two lounging about beside this bush.<br />
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Love was in the air here, shortly after I took this these two mated. Apparently he will stay with her for a week or more until she is ready and then about 110 days later the little ones arrive.<br />
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We came across this Mongoose family which I think were resident in the termite mound this guy is staring into.<br />
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A mother and young Thompson's Gazelle. There were not many of these about the place so little wonder that mum was very wary.<br />
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<strong><u>The Masai</u></strong><br />
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We visited a small Masai village and they were ok with me taking some photos which are below. They tend to move village every few months or depending on the conditions. At the time of our visit there had been little or no rain for quite a while so everything was a bit dry.</div>
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We had such an amazing time on safari and I doubt I will ever forget the experience. I don't have names for all of the creatures I photographed above but thought perhaps someone online might know. If you do drop me a note. Anyway hope this inspires you to get out and visit these amazing places.</div>
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-8866258887186720232018-09-26T13:14:00.004-07:002020-02-10T06:04:02.392-08:00Down House VisitIn mid September I was visiting my daughters and decided, as I had some free time, to try to visit Down House, the home of the famous naturalist Charles Darwin. I say try as this will have been my third attempt to visit the house but in each previous case I found it closed for the week or winter. Nevertheless I headed to Down village and the object of my pilgrimage. <br />
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I arrived shortly after opening time and spend several hours going through the exhibits on the first floor which has been laid out as a small museum of the great man's adventures and discoveries. I then went back downstairs and borrowed a headset which described in detail the different rooms on the ground floor where he worked. Unfortunately it was not possible to take photographs inside the building and reading many of his notebooks, now well faded, it is clear why this is so. However, I took quite a few photos outside the building, at the greenhouses where he conducted his work on Orchids and other plants and along the sandwalk where he walked in circuits while thinking.<br />
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The front of the house is just metres from the road and is pretty uninspiring to look at however the view from the gardens is of a pretty large property. Darwin was a pretty wealthy man and could devote is life to whatever objective he wanted without the pressing need for funds.<br />
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Another view of the house<br />
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The Glasshouses where he conducted some of his work on plants including Orchids. <br />
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Some extracts from his Orchid note book which can be found inside the glasshouse. Only a small part of the Glasshouse is open to the public but well worth a look.<br />
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At the end of the walled garden is a small pathway leading to the sandwalk.<br />
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The pathway leading to the sandwalk<br />
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A couple of photos of the sandwalk which I walked around. It basically follows a circuit around the edge of a small wooded area. I am not sure how many of the trees which are there now were there in Dawin's day as it is over 150 years since he trod this path.<br />
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Me doing the tourist selfie!! Sorry :)</div>
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The site is now run by the National Trust and is open all over the summer. It is open at other times of the year, mainly weekends I think, but you had better check before you travel if you are to avoid being disappointed. The Trust has produced an excellent guidebook which can be purchased onsite which gives details of Darwin's life and times. There is also a small gift shop and tea rooms.</div>
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I had a wonderful day but then the life and work of Charles Darwin is something I have been fascinated by since I got my first copy of The Origin of Species in my teens. I would highly recommend a visit.</div>
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-76361291529572257612018-09-22T15:07:00.001-07:002018-09-22T15:07:16.713-07:00Dr. Robert ToveyIt is with great sadness that I heard today of the sudden death of my good friend and mentor; Dr Robert Tovey. Rob was one of the first people I met when I arrived in Saudi Arabia and introduced me to the delights of birding in Saudi. His knowledge and enthusiasm was second to none and I am proud to have called him my friend. <br />
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His blog; <a href="http://birdingforalark.blogspot.com/">http://birdingforalark.blogspot.com/</a> will provide information about birding in some of the least birded areas on earth for many years to come<br />
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He died in Mauritania over the weekend aged 60 years old having added to the body of knowledge in Saudi Arabia, Oman, Libya, Mauritania, to mention but a few. <br />
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Rest In Peace Rob, we will miss you.<br />
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-75666355485305612662018-04-08T13:04:00.001-07:002018-09-03T08:36:30.070-07:00The Gambia 2018To start the new year we headed off to one of our favorite destinations, The Gambia. From our perspective this country got a huge amount going for it, my wife can sunbathe and generally relax while I potter off birding in what is arguably one of the best birding countries in the world. <br />
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As ever I met up with one of Gambia's top bird guides, Musa Jatta of Turaco Birding Expeditions. We did not go anywhere particularly exotic but in truth we really didn't have to as the birdlife in the Gambia is second to none. That said I hope to join Musa on one of his more exotic trips into the Senegal next time I visit. While I was there we visited Abuko, the Lamin Rice Fields, Brufut Wood and Tanji.<br />
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I have selected a range of photos of some of the species seen but there were many more yet to be see :)<br />
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Pied Crow</div>
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Pied Kingfisher</div>
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Spur Winged Lapwing</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMLGf4iNGTQYUOOdiYwwFJj82Nl4cPXorMm0m7FTkSNUgicTT53xm1R2Lw1VMEbhuOrwjznvFJHBx5WsLI1Sj1EbGLYzUUahvXGcrUoXSNsnDaqP2gCfOvoFV9rnIQKk3jvXze8DVDu-g/s1600/IMG_0052+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjvMLGf4iNGTQYUOOdiYwwFJj82Nl4cPXorMm0m7FTkSNUgicTT53xm1R2Lw1VMEbhuOrwjznvFJHBx5WsLI1Sj1EbGLYzUUahvXGcrUoXSNsnDaqP2gCfOvoFV9rnIQKk3jvXze8DVDu-g/s400/IMG_0052+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Western Reef Heron/ Egret</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs2ZidOD6RHhXuEK-Y1g9_G2rB2h1I-Ki9K125IJVCbD4WATx2kl9b4OpY9yzxDvHdDsClQ_7U21_kfvHRr3lz_VGAy9ZN9LWPKKJD-gALi8lfHTWGWmuOfm2LGpjLMu2PfrPXLA7BHbRZ/s1600/IMG_5413+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1029" data-original-width="1600" height="255" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjs2ZidOD6RHhXuEK-Y1g9_G2rB2h1I-Ki9K125IJVCbD4WATx2kl9b4OpY9yzxDvHdDsClQ_7U21_kfvHRr3lz_VGAy9ZN9LWPKKJD-gALi8lfHTWGWmuOfm2LGpjLMu2PfrPXLA7BHbRZ/s400/IMG_5413+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Little Egret, don't manage to get that many reasonable in flight shots so here you go :).</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-_en1curktRFs1BSzvg6T_Wcm2kW3Ka-1XaYicJ2khb4OwtI3xwO0V2VoM2RIpgvzgabJR33AqgsHRqCO4NT88It7gjBY5up80slApba3c10JVRZ86WnyL1bIqk9qqkUTEs6IVrXI_Zh1/s1600/IMG_0050+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1085" data-original-width="1600" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh-_en1curktRFs1BSzvg6T_Wcm2kW3Ka-1XaYicJ2khb4OwtI3xwO0V2VoM2RIpgvzgabJR33AqgsHRqCO4NT88It7gjBY5up80slApba3c10JVRZ86WnyL1bIqk9qqkUTEs6IVrXI_Zh1/s400/IMG_0050+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Grey Heron </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKYMgm8Hqabyhihp4lmejCQHenJCdL2TSS9ayzwPf0PmJY4uF4VI6VbB_NfU7EaFONbuvnt0VQirtlsu3IrWY8HW2n_PIGdhXOvodMpGmFxK3MEn6bzdgz7BICKV5q1J8fdNpzO8lUxYHd/s1600/IMG_0073+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1258" data-original-width="1600" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgKYMgm8Hqabyhihp4lmejCQHenJCdL2TSS9ayzwPf0PmJY4uF4VI6VbB_NfU7EaFONbuvnt0VQirtlsu3IrWY8HW2n_PIGdhXOvodMpGmFxK3MEn6bzdgz7BICKV5q1J8fdNpzO8lUxYHd/s400/IMG_0073+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Crested Lark</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBdUYXM-uIt_oQTCIPfC1F7g_SnTKt0Ah9aluYx38YOBV34v6IXIHHSIm6gUWIZLxHF98Kbslw8jYgRdtZa-30mVJfOasVqVuf4Q41nJYP0yADZyRDjlqW-h08BmdutvGkyN2uchysKiPH/s1600/IMG_0075+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiBdUYXM-uIt_oQTCIPfC1F7g_SnTKt0Ah9aluYx38YOBV34v6IXIHHSIm6gUWIZLxHF98Kbslw8jYgRdtZa-30mVJfOasVqVuf4Q41nJYP0yADZyRDjlqW-h08BmdutvGkyN2uchysKiPH/s400/IMG_0075+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div align="center">
Blackcap Babbler visited us at the hotel every evening. There was a leaking tap outside they took full advantage of.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbRxufd3lnw3jBWbAKhl8ki9W2WK6u5LHnnZMkP_Ybx4bIAdItzaZha8vpDTuzFIm7vEEnyeZGWwJ7BIYB7ncxC6zyPDIuyNl_GqVVqdRppp2yqT4DaUzqY5h9pr29uKYgga6BQIDValx7/s1600/IMG_0081+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1147" data-original-width="1600" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhbRxufd3lnw3jBWbAKhl8ki9W2WK6u5LHnnZMkP_Ybx4bIAdItzaZha8vpDTuzFIm7vEEnyeZGWwJ7BIYB7ncxC6zyPDIuyNl_GqVVqdRppp2yqT4DaUzqY5h9pr29uKYgga6BQIDValx7/s400/IMG_0081+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
White Crowned Robin Chat</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLxVg3eL-sV2JxuEL_6K_pfOZ0W1JLc0WByGn03PZ2FM7wzKetcRe6_VgIgQ_nrWUfrify5ioFy6Xb6iAbOt5z_3b7NWAyc__0BXeE3-NjjjDZEAm2IpkmfnN7jU3SugiCcDr9ajA0AYVr/s1600/IMG_0104+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiLxVg3eL-sV2JxuEL_6K_pfOZ0W1JLc0WByGn03PZ2FM7wzKetcRe6_VgIgQ_nrWUfrify5ioFy6Xb6iAbOt5z_3b7NWAyc__0BXeE3-NjjjDZEAm2IpkmfnN7jU3SugiCcDr9ajA0AYVr/s400/IMG_0104+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Bearded Barbet </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk7tdfsJHjUXh8IlB1LylOVd95f7KhTrC-4lRN2vO8SoQViDftbsU2o_apovYUqHvMjMLY3F0wbCMn5vXQ_w1bxWhMYiCs4LBz0_GHXECB9M2XNxEcj8Sf3KWk959XrsXNixf8ASopexj0/s1600/IMG_0114+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgk7tdfsJHjUXh8IlB1LylOVd95f7KhTrC-4lRN2vO8SoQViDftbsU2o_apovYUqHvMjMLY3F0wbCMn5vXQ_w1bxWhMYiCs4LBz0_GHXECB9M2XNxEcj8Sf3KWk959XrsXNixf8ASopexj0/s400/IMG_0114+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
While there we located a nest hole in a tree in the hotel grounds and after a little wait we discovered its owner.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pZ_BYxeg1Q-nb98l5zMdv0Pmu1FxwUq4LGLE6ZLa_3AmPVDnQ-sbkvqGSnufeCWpbsqgz6Pl7M8esYbzE6j6w5ajunfO9RuG4CiDjoGvYwtim5v4QVG3KYICEceSa69wyy5Q-1_OFoTq/s1600/IMG_0121+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi0pZ_BYxeg1Q-nb98l5zMdv0Pmu1FxwUq4LGLE6ZLa_3AmPVDnQ-sbkvqGSnufeCWpbsqgz6Pl7M8esYbzE6j6w5ajunfO9RuG4CiDjoGvYwtim5v4QVG3KYICEceSa69wyy5Q-1_OFoTq/s400/IMG_0121+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Hamerkop collecting nest materials</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOk_3HX-vfS6RZIGcNfQXg0FdJGV_DVDSzHQh9vQOljeI3IMQ3LiVitXpZLY76w9Zg_GUxDyj9l4OTux-I_qnfH461PR4greIQaouAqteDG35lEkFnmR6PvDunQR4VagcUN0fZ-Cc2FztY/s1600/IMG_0230+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjOk_3HX-vfS6RZIGcNfQXg0FdJGV_DVDSzHQh9vQOljeI3IMQ3LiVitXpZLY76w9Zg_GUxDyj9l4OTux-I_qnfH461PR4greIQaouAqteDG35lEkFnmR6PvDunQR4VagcUN0fZ-Cc2FztY/s400/IMG_0230+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A pair mating</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv3NUakg3JLHq4nFbg8WmcmS4czOCHJFccJYmnM7nQcfaZZRUTMTH43LSwAv6ossxsGrTRjUxuksav-hVOYHIVaYZnUtQcPG0Kl2zPkKcyu65hN34K3cuI5Bv2PXBCFdkpMUepyKLVNzpp/s1600/IMG_0237+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhv3NUakg3JLHq4nFbg8WmcmS4czOCHJFccJYmnM7nQcfaZZRUTMTH43LSwAv6ossxsGrTRjUxuksav-hVOYHIVaYZnUtQcPG0Kl2zPkKcyu65hN34K3cuI5Bv2PXBCFdkpMUepyKLVNzpp/s400/IMG_0237+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
And mating on top of the nest. I had no idea that this was such a noisy event, the noise could be heard all across the hotel grounds and from what I saw this was repeated several times a day for several days. The nest is a large rough affair but has an entrance hole at the side through which the birds enter.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFO-wkgaCxDWU_F4jw8P5vlz_Rn4O5umog-wdqcyB9JIhJY34E5fPboQ53GG2Su-MSYGudJmY4zvKQxQZll4ryhRjlvGWwih4HIjaMbueu1bMqfpy-8TRJaOkEwCLgE_WK3hUjSFpKrDRM/s1600/IMG_0190+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1061" data-original-width="1600" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiFO-wkgaCxDWU_F4jw8P5vlz_Rn4O5umog-wdqcyB9JIhJY34E5fPboQ53GG2Su-MSYGudJmY4zvKQxQZll4ryhRjlvGWwih4HIjaMbueu1bMqfpy-8TRJaOkEwCLgE_WK3hUjSFpKrDRM/s400/IMG_0190+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A pair of Yellow Billed Shrike</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD3QMlTHHNNzWpLvwLMC0PnuAnqU3Axsx2rG10YoMCB361DE2Ss2LJmZgjCbycWq20zOANiDFsxO_iCwulRQV5KlOlMzQibh-lwO0kCiz5f1Ff1OTb_b4Llgcl-VWT0gpER8pM1gpTAAIA/s1600/IMG_0211+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1119" data-original-width="1600" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgD3QMlTHHNNzWpLvwLMC0PnuAnqU3Axsx2rG10YoMCB361DE2Ss2LJmZgjCbycWq20zOANiDFsxO_iCwulRQV5KlOlMzQibh-lwO0kCiz5f1Ff1OTb_b4Llgcl-VWT0gpER8pM1gpTAAIA/s400/IMG_0211+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Blue Breasted Kingfisher </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCjCnyNLCqOJrEFJtFWm7tmI0PjeQ3vc4m1ES48uP6PcHh3KTRQBUm5ste7oLLbDq9bjJHaeNg67VwVB-bTW5OppW826HyRmdzXMx9wYxVZ0iWaBCTB71BgWDcWeSp7juHAFTWiRe5cV0g/s1600/IMG_5261+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1133" data-original-width="1600" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhCjCnyNLCqOJrEFJtFWm7tmI0PjeQ3vc4m1ES48uP6PcHh3KTRQBUm5ste7oLLbDq9bjJHaeNg67VwVB-bTW5OppW826HyRmdzXMx9wYxVZ0iWaBCTB71BgWDcWeSp7juHAFTWiRe5cV0g/s400/IMG_5261+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
African Wattled Lapwing </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhafuscWy1R24bE_w7AWHMvqHgpd8IfBO8iuFDZjRxiSw1fhXaQjg7V5bs6JpmSgc2closiCKWEYUXFPOtVs7g6g6QozRUS6UvWvr6cDQhx5iuMSHiUOL7Yqa-ti6CwKV7bpW11yH-NZqHZ/s1600/IMG_5264+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1179" data-original-width="1600" height="293" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhafuscWy1R24bE_w7AWHMvqHgpd8IfBO8iuFDZjRxiSw1fhXaQjg7V5bs6JpmSgc2closiCKWEYUXFPOtVs7g6g6QozRUS6UvWvr6cDQhx5iuMSHiUOL7Yqa-ti6CwKV7bpW11yH-NZqHZ/s400/IMG_5264+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Squacco Heron</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZTQSBgx7AtNg3ai404UxRAPIkW5YMSAJMux_Y5dYxJsMrwiE6OkHBhTq9Tw_l81c6IVem4RF9B26AyhTvs_lxVFmmhUnXUdVKdimStDo6782rmV6K6i47RhXS0352ogLtgOJXdPkj1MOQ/s1600/IMG_5275+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1047" data-original-width="1600" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhZTQSBgx7AtNg3ai404UxRAPIkW5YMSAJMux_Y5dYxJsMrwiE6OkHBhTq9Tw_l81c6IVem4RF9B26AyhTvs_lxVFmmhUnXUdVKdimStDo6782rmV6K6i47RhXS0352ogLtgOJXdPkj1MOQ/s400/IMG_5275+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Hooded Vulture</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit8bGe-3QtFg3eOWF4dBldtqwTAQ87gOiy-Sb9Y4YQ6x5hEKzzpIFYEjN35oXETX_Uw_7ByfolzAAn4f3apDRCqEQR4IY_G-dxti1y6n8Nzia6Bb6BDrPzJ7MAWFnI8ZyysM7xpXe74bEu/s1600/IMG_5327+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1107" data-original-width="1600" height="276" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEit8bGe-3QtFg3eOWF4dBldtqwTAQ87gOiy-Sb9Y4YQ6x5hEKzzpIFYEjN35oXETX_Uw_7ByfolzAAn4f3apDRCqEQR4IY_G-dxti1y6n8Nzia6Bb6BDrPzJ7MAWFnI8ZyysM7xpXe74bEu/s400/IMG_5327+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Black Scimitarbill</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRHM5Eyv87xuS8L5vmKVY6kSJ1BuuVWcjgIEQTbrm4Kv43kdrRTuEWd-9nlZ4bHOVVPs_KNcgacMG56vRa64DHEr-X8iOkXzgcoztBNIZo2DBIAazgtcmGz_cCrfScNiuulUvhkr7y0052/s1600/IMG_5331+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1143" data-original-width="1600" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiRHM5Eyv87xuS8L5vmKVY6kSJ1BuuVWcjgIEQTbrm4Kv43kdrRTuEWd-9nlZ4bHOVVPs_KNcgacMG56vRa64DHEr-X8iOkXzgcoztBNIZo2DBIAazgtcmGz_cCrfScNiuulUvhkr7y0052/s400/IMG_5331+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Senegal Coucal</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghYfrG0cb68WEKaw0p4RQNlcVDLT9hQ1RGxqL1WP0pKzejiaMsbBOn3lQqh1PQhnsx8AFTkGhRWrGzU28bEmUkSuC8lT8TMIx1xcZmxYPEiQgE2wZKJtHGkZGjsD8sm6tiIqlAiT5V1tGu/s1600/IMG_5340+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1091" data-original-width="1600" height="272" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEghYfrG0cb68WEKaw0p4RQNlcVDLT9hQ1RGxqL1WP0pKzejiaMsbBOn3lQqh1PQhnsx8AFTkGhRWrGzU28bEmUkSuC8lT8TMIx1xcZmxYPEiQgE2wZKJtHGkZGjsD8sm6tiIqlAiT5V1tGu/s400/IMG_5340+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Great Egret</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2MbcGZPyqeMLUs898Pr8nKtm99Rrnn9hR3wv6Ih7hNDvDrA35VEIUVcx2ZTzLlWs5nvnKLXBIQqTJ8TiQTQrBDdGtXlzfXw_eYSDLO2UAOJ08Sel8Y5wp61LNoiotthRbwviEVmuy4U6w/s1600/IMG_5361+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1146" data-original-width="1600" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2MbcGZPyqeMLUs898Pr8nKtm99Rrnn9hR3wv6Ih7hNDvDrA35VEIUVcx2ZTzLlWs5nvnKLXBIQqTJ8TiQTQrBDdGtXlzfXw_eYSDLO2UAOJ08Sel8Y5wp61LNoiotthRbwviEVmuy4U6w/s400/IMG_5361+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Vinaceous Collared Dove</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9h-cysvpKNPS3tXmdQ4GTOK0F20LpQSvGWFUc7SdekztkOE_LQex7lMacNrAE7HW4ilXzzKK7T3G_oIYzyQttlRmWvBBtge0lPoUNjrjqRi89lyG5n2gnVqc-6Qowl5V2rwXiJIgaLzqz/s1600/IMG_5374+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1118" data-original-width="1600" height="278" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj9h-cysvpKNPS3tXmdQ4GTOK0F20LpQSvGWFUc7SdekztkOE_LQex7lMacNrAE7HW4ilXzzKK7T3G_oIYzyQttlRmWvBBtge0lPoUNjrjqRi89lyG5n2gnVqc-6Qowl5V2rwXiJIgaLzqz/s400/IMG_5374+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Wood Sandpiper</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDVvFkm2icch1qprw8cFMGRtLNDP2LGzdjqDSrc0vCabu4Lnmr8QgYCn1Tb3g3ESPNn5EUxRCPht7N11YLeOdQYvRXC5oNhsPwqkebOvmCMrlHGyNd0T7jVGe98HNTz1xP2NvqiKxOtLYz/s1600/IMG_5378+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1129" data-original-width="1600" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgDVvFkm2icch1qprw8cFMGRtLNDP2LGzdjqDSrc0vCabu4Lnmr8QgYCn1Tb3g3ESPNn5EUxRCPht7N11YLeOdQYvRXC5oNhsPwqkebOvmCMrlHGyNd0T7jVGe98HNTz1xP2NvqiKxOtLYz/s400/IMG_5378+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Senegal Thick-knee </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0aV0OKgp8Tmt6nNcbipwAhhTuVyhCHfDjQgc3vRll9cPvqiWXq0Yeb1LnSDq-QF1vpxciR7T36bC5pAGTU2UmB7mTpvL4H-LmNP1nKA5O9o2AV1h4Fcxm8XDFqwD72zeRbwhbKfxgar5v/s1600/IMG_5393+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj0aV0OKgp8Tmt6nNcbipwAhhTuVyhCHfDjQgc3vRll9cPvqiWXq0Yeb1LnSDq-QF1vpxciR7T36bC5pAGTU2UmB7mTpvL4H-LmNP1nKA5O9o2AV1h4Fcxm8XDFqwD72zeRbwhbKfxgar5v/s400/IMG_5393+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Black Kite in Flight</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipwTJd6b1EM2zXFPNrVfeXPk3Ot7Eck77C6PuFSIKBI090K0kkQGTZlKEQbN2Het7KJ1tdXAbiTEX-LiYB4ROeu8kSyAtiVsLwGH73-31xouocOgz8B29nUUmbjo5lvPU0WSDiTc-K9WmG/s1600/IMG_5410+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEipwTJd6b1EM2zXFPNrVfeXPk3Ot7Eck77C6PuFSIKBI090K0kkQGTZlKEQbN2Het7KJ1tdXAbiTEX-LiYB4ROeu8kSyAtiVsLwGH73-31xouocOgz8B29nUUmbjo5lvPU0WSDiTc-K9WmG/s400/IMG_5410+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div align="center">
Black Kite<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1J0t_pkr8XJfALA0yVDx9pNZhJUUPeTJiao9OfvvuhvL1hEZ0yBOAsykZowhSGwabYJCjNZXkp2y12SARdARLiMjGOJn1XXBdOpqi54RQHGvmDlpPVGTtSWrwh1QBKdx0HhYw_8WQqbaQ/s1600/IMG_5419+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1147" data-original-width="1600" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg1J0t_pkr8XJfALA0yVDx9pNZhJUUPeTJiao9OfvvuhvL1hEZ0yBOAsykZowhSGwabYJCjNZXkp2y12SARdARLiMjGOJn1XXBdOpqi54RQHGvmDlpPVGTtSWrwh1QBKdx0HhYw_8WQqbaQ/s400/IMG_5419+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Did not get a good photo of this but I think it is a European Roller or possibly an Abyssinian Roller but I am fairly sire it is the former.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGsJCDryb6OJG_AFkk_l-fY4BUGCC9IUWy4xpzGYfHsoDJQXF4sCbneejY-hxAQ6RnPDbToMqvHUma8H55HDpI7xexSugb25uhI_g9Xae7xP58y-RystDsOiVhYp7je16_-f97rT0m1Egr/s1600/IMG_5437+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1122" data-original-width="1600" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhGsJCDryb6OJG_AFkk_l-fY4BUGCC9IUWy4xpzGYfHsoDJQXF4sCbneejY-hxAQ6RnPDbToMqvHUma8H55HDpI7xexSugb25uhI_g9Xae7xP58y-RystDsOiVhYp7je16_-f97rT0m1Egr/s400/IMG_5437+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Orange-cheeked Waxbill</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAZIsGfnXzwvxhAFcXRC5f82wXLjmkfriYxScLXgu5kSRpdX3BGzDJfH47hd_45gr5zt7qPibl4K2E8m9rA5sqjl1UrefFLQdTQZQ5UuqIfuKPrz_oRKGhChobgnqB-cMAMhs5IkrCzyN1/s1600/IMG_5466+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="900" data-original-width="1600" height="225" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjAZIsGfnXzwvxhAFcXRC5f82wXLjmkfriYxScLXgu5kSRpdX3BGzDJfH47hd_45gr5zt7qPibl4K2E8m9rA5sqjl1UrefFLQdTQZQ5UuqIfuKPrz_oRKGhChobgnqB-cMAMhs5IkrCzyN1/s400/IMG_5466+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Some Rose-ringed Parakeet flying by.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRYVGUzzIKK9J9btWsVg9I7QCtGXGXd5lHYBGouUg_Y4TKTMSvQgR-7tCU6yX4P2jj9F30wwypvSr2yb21PcXde8gv3pRn9Gt_GRUhZafBb1BD__M0oSnn7cmU3P_gyIhcX_4bwVll7xgb/s1600/IMG_5480+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1204" data-original-width="1600" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRYVGUzzIKK9J9btWsVg9I7QCtGXGXd5lHYBGouUg_Y4TKTMSvQgR-7tCU6yX4P2jj9F30wwypvSr2yb21PcXde8gv3pRn9Gt_GRUhZafBb1BD__M0oSnn7cmU3P_gyIhcX_4bwVll7xgb/s400/IMG_5480+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Black Heron</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoTQyvhMWdRhNLKb2lHstdPnpQawpWvAsKCtJSSI8kHhzfdB2Hg0qdVG8r8jkGGYcptbCWNrFt_Ya49OeAHByT7y49GAu8cQPjCX1-4P4ow89nYq9zGw9DkwaIeOLtUNyoOJdylypkixMB/s1600/IMG_5487+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgoTQyvhMWdRhNLKb2lHstdPnpQawpWvAsKCtJSSI8kHhzfdB2Hg0qdVG8r8jkGGYcptbCWNrFt_Ya49OeAHByT7y49GAu8cQPjCX1-4P4ow89nYq9zGw9DkwaIeOLtUNyoOJdylypkixMB/s400/IMG_5487+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Squacco Heron</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9zf5EOTiWKiwbzrPZiFmmt1G16K1neZqw8oUDZ2PjImzu-asuSddbsqx6ALwvsX69Qf9uA5Zwx73lA9jJ22yT1EGU99qCKWDRCEVNHHlS_QADoU8QxY2RjIXGPuu_tCE4ahH9C03ks5F9/s1600/IMG_5718+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1322" data-original-width="1600" height="330" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9zf5EOTiWKiwbzrPZiFmmt1G16K1neZqw8oUDZ2PjImzu-asuSddbsqx6ALwvsX69Qf9uA5Zwx73lA9jJ22yT1EGU99qCKWDRCEVNHHlS_QADoU8QxY2RjIXGPuu_tCE4ahH9C03ks5F9/s400/IMG_5718+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Hybrid Red-bellied x African Paradise Flycatcher (f)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbJHQ5EQEUMHFhuNm6Q6QmOeaiNBsrD1IdXU4oCIRHBhfsilfJy-cyex-66ZWZFl0_rAZA43Y2A-UBm4ibMmKz2kTvj0qm7UP9VOjKX1emtUgSus3B2srGqmRR7LZw_OwC837gynvHCF_Q/s1600/IMG_5532+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDbEwuMBzoPbAhu36QpKe4ErxN4ytmUAYUCvf8U1-zwUORxKqWAQ9S9LpC-o8Iw7Zd93pHk3D3DkDzsF8C7Dcq18ExMXJzSiuC8adSEYd2aov2vTd8r1dU9ZBmksiYeLZYWsk7XRuAdl0M/s1600/IMG_5790+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1600" data-original-width="1127" height="400" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiDbEwuMBzoPbAhu36QpKe4ErxN4ytmUAYUCvf8U1-zwUORxKqWAQ9S9LpC-o8Iw7Zd93pHk3D3DkDzsF8C7Dcq18ExMXJzSiuC8adSEYd2aov2vTd8r1dU9ZBmksiYeLZYWsk7XRuAdl0M/s400/IMG_5790+%25282%2529.jpg" width="280" /></a> </div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Red-bellied Paradise Flycatcher (m)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyUquxj-9cUbIq62sUZKIJuMRuLkLEB8SRPlfcRk80ATHjghmL0tnGjbWpy07QhE2jDyVThODJCQ662TA24WfRW5FrU5fijDQkW80U391DlxAGgVnWGlfPETmxrm9-JN46P2otWjTQLiaG/s1600/IMG_5540+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1159" data-original-width="1600" height="288" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgyUquxj-9cUbIq62sUZKIJuMRuLkLEB8SRPlfcRk80ATHjghmL0tnGjbWpy07QhE2jDyVThODJCQ662TA24WfRW5FrU5fijDQkW80U391DlxAGgVnWGlfPETmxrm9-JN46P2otWjTQLiaG/s400/IMG_5540+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Not a great photo of a Common Wattle Eye</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq4AgUbruUBIZTv2Xd4ELUMWxXicUuS3pZPrinGXPfrwX3tiyqUUrjbw1Th6lGj8-3bE9kG5DNZUq_UoQh1IaLwRuHNvAapS5pBHUEUdj7mxk2B_9_mCTBVqiWKDHpaJMIh9G5q72QlpRh/s1600/IMG_5550+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1304" data-original-width="1600" height="325" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiq4AgUbruUBIZTv2Xd4ELUMWxXicUuS3pZPrinGXPfrwX3tiyqUUrjbw1Th6lGj8-3bE9kG5DNZUq_UoQh1IaLwRuHNvAapS5pBHUEUdj7mxk2B_9_mCTBVqiWKDHpaJMIh9G5q72QlpRh/s400/IMG_5550+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Swallow-tailed Bee-Eater</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9okfItcV_z4PgZEn6lerXoP8FOwsncs78S8oA3anUHLWBCJ0jFp3aY1WDoUnkHpXK7-1mM0kTHW4tcv9v8x645QqOoRZN8Q8DDtk1Z7dordm45NPthx_eNPgUJrXStg3WFKHismgWHuFZ/s1600/IMG_5566+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1247" data-original-width="1600" height="311" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9okfItcV_z4PgZEn6lerXoP8FOwsncs78S8oA3anUHLWBCJ0jFp3aY1WDoUnkHpXK7-1mM0kTHW4tcv9v8x645QqOoRZN8Q8DDtk1Z7dordm45NPthx_eNPgUJrXStg3WFKHismgWHuFZ/s400/IMG_5566+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A Lanner Falcon high in a tree. My first clear view of one of these. Unfortunately he saw me too so I only got one photo.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnQHwCg9Ws3gstTDynmS1lvdyGaXNcjf1uO6X1dZQlgYbQzQG8PnI40pm-QfzTAae1MbGypKhx29nlu0KBGPEhBUHqjkeGXblxT4pvdhi0AeJNlH4l1KEzSTc_IAvYI4mS3eD9xgcJDb3k/s1600/IMG_5585+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjnQHwCg9Ws3gstTDynmS1lvdyGaXNcjf1uO6X1dZQlgYbQzQG8PnI40pm-QfzTAae1MbGypKhx29nlu0KBGPEhBUHqjkeGXblxT4pvdhi0AeJNlH4l1KEzSTc_IAvYI4mS3eD9xgcJDb3k/s400/IMG_5585+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Black Billed Wood Dove (f)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9BennriBihd5aMW7bzRvu5A0JlbI9ntKIpLpT_B0rhyphenhyphenEXROu5KuP50YtrOLJwf9RtQg18Q3iy7-VKcxcMAK4EWRpDYroejmjxPBNxLQi6O5CkgSvAHINtVqWpXE8f79MOrBd7fK5qbjia/s1600/IMG_5596+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh9BennriBihd5aMW7bzRvu5A0JlbI9ntKIpLpT_B0rhyphenhyphenEXROu5KuP50YtrOLJwf9RtQg18Q3iy7-VKcxcMAK4EWRpDYroejmjxPBNxLQi6O5CkgSvAHINtVqWpXE8f79MOrBd7fK5qbjia/s400/IMG_5596+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Laughing Dove</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMtraqn94zuwqOiVESUpbpDF32T_t1GaRPqtLFftCSl8XIza22Y8jSzrpYBjUvmbI3iSPr6dCuo3nqcJ-kerovR4XsnLBXVEzUhW3cJj2hRogZIwI9-z0Hvy2_zIP5cCY9aJIBXIwS4Ed/s1600/IMG_6391+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiXMtraqn94zuwqOiVESUpbpDF32T_t1GaRPqtLFftCSl8XIza22Y8jSzrpYBjUvmbI3iSPr6dCuo3nqcJ-kerovR4XsnLBXVEzUhW3cJj2hRogZIwI9-z0Hvy2_zIP5cCY9aJIBXIwS4Ed/s400/IMG_6391+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div align="center">
Speckled Pigeon</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzZyBIjtdR5UnNCTCIHuBccHP-zIv6dIOiuvDQ-tvei2_bYeo_GMhZ-hkQCiIr9w7-xzSxiFkWvaMa0oaKIEJS5wMhp3Q1c7kpKOZpcWgxvgVqwFzoY04XSNva38dwfW34LTmLwYYVV0o/s1600/IMG_5613+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1221" data-original-width="1600" height="305" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjYzZyBIjtdR5UnNCTCIHuBccHP-zIv6dIOiuvDQ-tvei2_bYeo_GMhZ-hkQCiIr9w7-xzSxiFkWvaMa0oaKIEJS5wMhp3Q1c7kpKOZpcWgxvgVqwFzoY04XSNva38dwfW34LTmLwYYVV0o/s400/IMG_5613+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Bronze Mannikin</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVedDQ0UjnZ_6r9T79F0v5K4f_7xaPzEBF4i0IqvcJLE8zi_q8I9GTZGmFN6KQjr8fWyGHYZF0ON2H2hc8mIbcFhGfQS44P2FQxQGyf5py6-KOIEXvS3Jx0AyzgSG77o5qLu7JhlhnaCk-/s1600/IMG_5617+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="978" data-original-width="1600" height="243" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVedDQ0UjnZ_6r9T79F0v5K4f_7xaPzEBF4i0IqvcJLE8zi_q8I9GTZGmFN6KQjr8fWyGHYZF0ON2H2hc8mIbcFhGfQS44P2FQxQGyf5py6-KOIEXvS3Jx0AyzgSG77o5qLu7JhlhnaCk-/s400/IMG_5617+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Red-billed Firefinch</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi9zf5EOTiWKiwbzrPZiFmmt1G16K1neZqw8oUDZ2PjImzu-asuSddbsqx6ALwvsX69Qf9uA5Zwx73lA9jJ22yT1EGU99qCKWDRCEVNHHlS_QADoU8QxY2RjIXGPuu_tCE4ahH9C03ks5F9/s1600/IMG_5718+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmaiAU1VQPKvdpKnt14G99VRGyqth3-dEfD2rof7bbJp4dUl4kAvqpzynWBlvjqYc36fzOcsHcfVWVEZkr8Faw1dzNMxMMwcA_0us-YYUiu4r-6MJEFzqK0hwZiMky4arf_vsbs8PRenYY/s1600/IMG_5728+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1076" data-original-width="1600" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgmaiAU1VQPKvdpKnt14G99VRGyqth3-dEfD2rof7bbJp4dUl4kAvqpzynWBlvjqYc36fzOcsHcfVWVEZkr8Faw1dzNMxMMwcA_0us-YYUiu4r-6MJEFzqK0hwZiMky4arf_vsbs8PRenYY/s320/IMG_5728+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
5</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Western Bluebill</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH18loIccpIryjalpZhLN8S8UunlevgvDK0jVtF8CcCl2vmzSWHNL4oh9eWoi2OaWGbFC9bwN-x9m0z62F6ZSZKbPnYefWWgkfB1pavRMI44PBxcaZnFGd1aKi1LlUcFC5NAG4K2cwLXve/s1600/IMG_5749+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1079" data-original-width="1600" height="215" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiH18loIccpIryjalpZhLN8S8UunlevgvDK0jVtF8CcCl2vmzSWHNL4oh9eWoi2OaWGbFC9bwN-x9m0z62F6ZSZKbPnYefWWgkfB1pavRMI44PBxcaZnFGd1aKi1LlUcFC5NAG4K2cwLXve/s320/IMG_5749+%25282%2529.jpg" width="320" /></a></div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Greater Honeyguide</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRzgfAVB3geERXhhA48WlxainXJaRlZfZ0Z_8rDpS_AbUaRZNoW6G2nyNNdywuR7mF2Yyrr09HIXia1FScLeOGWXms0yCwx7P5li0tMgImp4oz5mnSp966lGCGdzbUZhyphenhyphenfgY9s1NVPly6O/s1600/IMG_5784+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1260" data-original-width="1600" height="313" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhRzgfAVB3geERXhhA48WlxainXJaRlZfZ0Z_8rDpS_AbUaRZNoW6G2nyNNdywuR7mF2Yyrr09HIXia1FScLeOGWXms0yCwx7P5li0tMgImp4oz5mnSp966lGCGdzbUZhyphenhyphenfgY9s1NVPly6O/s400/IMG_5784+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Black Crake<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRdga_oq8BtYbEexCtA-O_-GlkM33aQFkB2PxGFvEfEvIfOO2qaEsIJGAH97NygrR3891aoq8aQrAOCXCjzsEfHT38hJAAmgg2p2scy6JFl_OTE8NK_x6qJhAiYyZtdc6xzPZpCMgo-fEe/s1600/IMG_5813+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1150" data-original-width="1600" height="286" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRdga_oq8BtYbEexCtA-O_-GlkM33aQFkB2PxGFvEfEvIfOO2qaEsIJGAH97NygrR3891aoq8aQrAOCXCjzsEfHT38hJAAmgg2p2scy6JFl_OTE8NK_x6qJhAiYyZtdc6xzPZpCMgo-fEe/s400/IMG_5813+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
</div>
<div align="center">
Grey Back Camaroptera</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmLNnY21dKOCWGln3qlPirC3Wxun9PeKx4gS8Ql1XW3dm-V1KRDCClTOVFaCwkUJn38w0mU98rYACcZss1J60J8I9FBlM4HKNpPKCuH-X5wR50NXKGMkjf-DRjyiFM2dNqWEiKMJjZ69Qs/s1600/IMG_5832+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1393" data-original-width="1600" height="347" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhmLNnY21dKOCWGln3qlPirC3Wxun9PeKx4gS8Ql1XW3dm-V1KRDCClTOVFaCwkUJn38w0mU98rYACcZss1J60J8I9FBlM4HKNpPKCuH-X5wR50NXKGMkjf-DRjyiFM2dNqWEiKMJjZ69Qs/s400/IMG_5832+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Shakira in the bushes</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRng51FVlbC8aumDjSJE_VwdXEiDL6AolwgbG9g2mNLlAB_rG9xvfOfYDo9uQ_BU1tK8oZM0RkRzRynMi_dtgiC4ffZfkF3LqLeafBV-X1iqLkXkPl6IMyFobIsCy3M3bHHLitKdxap9Uu/s1600/IMG_5866+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1315" data-original-width="1600" height="327" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgRng51FVlbC8aumDjSJE_VwdXEiDL6AolwgbG9g2mNLlAB_rG9xvfOfYDo9uQ_BU1tK8oZM0RkRzRynMi_dtgiC4ffZfkF3LqLeafBV-X1iqLkXkPl6IMyFobIsCy3M3bHHLitKdxap9Uu/s400/IMG_5866+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
A Black-shouldered Kite in the distance</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi36H7nTGDT1jv8zlQp-QLeBsa5cFd6TDRlPsm2p366cP1Kbaf3LRkAjsBdxh6IODWSI8kUHny3_K4gvqyMQBbrSnTxNj3lfsY7SYHc52_PSH3RoKiE-VeVyRfaZy8cbbZ7ZFWTmYAGRj-Z/s1600/IMG_5871+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1066" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi36H7nTGDT1jv8zlQp-QLeBsa5cFd6TDRlPsm2p366cP1Kbaf3LRkAjsBdxh6IODWSI8kUHny3_K4gvqyMQBbrSnTxNj3lfsY7SYHc52_PSH3RoKiE-VeVyRfaZy8cbbZ7ZFWTmYAGRj-Z/s400/IMG_5871+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Western Red-billed Hornbill</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgZVjnvMBdYz27wnNSP9Cu1nZlscy7plKyddx-W0dGQaZVgrVLfstGPlNcltEEPraiKAUlEXS7JxHDU_tg5MQhoFXxuHadoVa_wHSAYDvFwqgpBq4nXCk6_caPCkPiRav6JHx30sIHbwzZ/s1600/IMG_5890+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1019" data-original-width="1600" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjgZVjnvMBdYz27wnNSP9Cu1nZlscy7plKyddx-W0dGQaZVgrVLfstGPlNcltEEPraiKAUlEXS7JxHDU_tg5MQhoFXxuHadoVa_wHSAYDvFwqgpBq4nXCk6_caPCkPiRav6JHx30sIHbwzZ/s400/IMG_5890+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
African Grey Hornbill</div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbJHQ5EQEUMHFhuNm6Q6QmOeaiNBsrD1IdXU4oCIRHBhfsilfJy-cyex-66ZWZFl0_rAZA43Y2A-UBm4ibMmKz2kTvj0qm7UP9VOjKX1emtUgSus3B2srGqmRR7LZw_OwC837gynvHCF_Q/s1600/IMG_5532+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1129" data-original-width="1600" height="281" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgbJHQ5EQEUMHFhuNm6Q6QmOeaiNBsrD1IdXU4oCIRHBhfsilfJy-cyex-66ZWZFl0_rAZA43Y2A-UBm4ibMmKz2kTvj0qm7UP9VOjKX1emtUgSus3B2srGqmRR7LZw_OwC837gynvHCF_Q/s400/IMG_5532+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
African Pied Hornbill</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ1RNnkhyE4nqQ9N_v9tNkBJdXdl83dYdSsMVGF90-37CIu0NqMNShi5npQ9Cu9AazZeotGiDqWOTOgvf0YSb2BCHA5gXSzLUyPrUx70uHykQWxq5iHrVW3IYVBSzs6W35VYo2fQ-4TadP/s1600/IMG_5881+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1090" data-original-width="1600" height="271" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhJ1RNnkhyE4nqQ9N_v9tNkBJdXdl83dYdSsMVGF90-37CIu0NqMNShi5npQ9Cu9AazZeotGiDqWOTOgvf0YSb2BCHA5gXSzLUyPrUx70uHykQWxq5iHrVW3IYVBSzs6W35VYo2fQ-4TadP/s400/IMG_5881+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Fine-spotted Woodpecker </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT9T4UpP1_dvgBaOcnDY3_HiaUT2Jd9xcQXdbbW4xug67FKu03mJPIKlOS4jDGP71jq-w6WwuKG1jYoMxE38KEgVUdnSRTj6KD3SSolHK0m7bjhTUOBQK7P3RaundG4uCu3rI8sUoK-jhE/s1600/IMG_5932+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1071" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgT9T4UpP1_dvgBaOcnDY3_HiaUT2Jd9xcQXdbbW4xug67FKu03mJPIKlOS4jDGP71jq-w6WwuKG1jYoMxE38KEgVUdnSRTj6KD3SSolHK0m7bjhTUOBQK7P3RaundG4uCu3rI8sUoK-jhE/s400/IMG_5932+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Klaas's Cuckoo, a first for me, they were seen in places in Saudi Arabia but I never managed to see one.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLmFYX-dze7ISZMNLLXLPj0EvM7Gbt017qOmZwAk4SlVd139P9K1LdHVcVwQ4RHtuWDIRlRutySG2jhhQPKiWdkehTrS30YFbB4Gv2Q1nW5Srh9Q5p7oZ5vWfSfhTeIRW6hIo7jInM47cv/s1600/IMG_5996+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1103" data-original-width="1600" height="275" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjLmFYX-dze7ISZMNLLXLPj0EvM7Gbt017qOmZwAk4SlVd139P9K1LdHVcVwQ4RHtuWDIRlRutySG2jhhQPKiWdkehTrS30YFbB4Gv2Q1nW5Srh9Q5p7oZ5vWfSfhTeIRW6hIo7jInM47cv/s400/IMG_5996+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Little Bee-eater</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjoQuk4TBz5XepIrhdNui3_Ll99BO0v8tzHUaR6TlKvOWYWNEDxcEMJkhkoZzi-aSyegzlpfRQdBdqwYLE9tUZye8FX7ZeRaAEItQFu-LRV91rFhxiFRVkHMoguTanJT2xevxrrl_Qh4Ze/s1600/IMG_5998+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="972" data-original-width="1600" height="242" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhjoQuk4TBz5XepIrhdNui3_Ll99BO0v8tzHUaR6TlKvOWYWNEDxcEMJkhkoZzi-aSyegzlpfRQdBdqwYLE9tUZye8FX7ZeRaAEItQFu-LRV91rFhxiFRVkHMoguTanJT2xevxrrl_Qh4Ze/s400/IMG_5998+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Splendid Sunbird (m)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMxmag4Foj6C9qZMDnbB7SblETcxH82Xr6hIS2yBMQbTZKJKvaKl3omtO0w483dNuRP8kd8ddEtuLQq8xn6o7UQ23xfkpT7TUIkH_ipUas6WOK-hR1GghARGwFMioo3GZ5atNRmevCcAZF/s1600/IMG_6017+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1009" data-original-width="1600" height="251" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMxmag4Foj6C9qZMDnbB7SblETcxH82Xr6hIS2yBMQbTZKJKvaKl3omtO0w483dNuRP8kd8ddEtuLQq8xn6o7UQ23xfkpT7TUIkH_ipUas6WOK-hR1GghARGwFMioo3GZ5atNRmevCcAZF/s400/IMG_6017+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Variable Sunbird (m)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVv4fix-NDD-CP6nqi40YYBUnJvX1h1zsX-BaP_-TWjnOO0b7kQMMRsCBTsxV-C0AvG5kSRMIH-XMYSpSPLV-PvfDa7KTH_UM3ZR6hZxudynrjC3puQcvYA7aIw57ubdnDbrb4_nJzJlAN/s1600/IMG_6034+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1016" data-original-width="1600" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiVv4fix-NDD-CP6nqi40YYBUnJvX1h1zsX-BaP_-TWjnOO0b7kQMMRsCBTsxV-C0AvG5kSRMIH-XMYSpSPLV-PvfDa7KTH_UM3ZR6hZxudynrjC3puQcvYA7aIw57ubdnDbrb4_nJzJlAN/s400/IMG_6034+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: center;">
Long-tailed Nightjar</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQHnDNvLsbPrXCKRRN0ltF24ZkJ3CClFBUzD6_kth4AGdFGZZWp2McJ_Smg8Wjz6idp2drpfU9hyWCmhNmGMfoVp4S4z9t2oVnevZoausMuB4DmXyDOru8P5Zkue5Bpr0z3VdB3AWfOFMn/s1600/IMG_6039+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhQHnDNvLsbPrXCKRRN0ltF24ZkJ3CClFBUzD6_kth4AGdFGZZWp2McJ_Smg8Wjz6idp2drpfU9hyWCmhNmGMfoVp4S4z9t2oVnevZoausMuB4DmXyDOru8P5Zkue5Bpr0z3VdB3AWfOFMn/s400/IMG_6039+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
<div style="text-align: left;">
And another shot of a Long-tailed Nightjar. These amazing birds are almost impossible to see and full marks to the local guide who found them and shared the experience. I had never seen one of these before but in a small area of about 5sq m there were 4.</div>
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And another:)<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwSvZF7skXCMTlkrv4w5LcrMyA_XthR53lzQsVIXp_Mgvdo260i-yZC3OpGipbnRQwxL7c80YAU5N3cHzzRpfGCuSdatcfUjStd2n7ZR2eFRil5OeFmswyFoyFdVspV9J1VpJ8NFcOaA64/s1600/IMG_6093+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1028" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhwSvZF7skXCMTlkrv4w5LcrMyA_XthR53lzQsVIXp_Mgvdo260i-yZC3OpGipbnRQwxL7c80YAU5N3cHzzRpfGCuSdatcfUjStd2n7ZR2eFRil5OeFmswyFoyFdVspV9J1VpJ8NFcOaA64/s400/IMG_6093+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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A pair of Lavender Waxbill</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq6Bu_mgy83q_49YdeUpgnXDUjP_ycYYtbKQXrvD4fF60t1EAi8GEHlJFdnWJfKwYuciWBZ10Y-cNnivE_zBcuQh_ibf9muhp0o99fX3-tTMHn_O84X8rI4eihuXwB3Sv6lrfOnnhH_Wjz/s1600/IMG_6112+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="879" data-original-width="1600" height="218" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgq6Bu_mgy83q_49YdeUpgnXDUjP_ycYYtbKQXrvD4fF60t1EAi8GEHlJFdnWJfKwYuciWBZ10Y-cNnivE_zBcuQh_ibf9muhp0o99fX3-tTMHn_O84X8rI4eihuXwB3Sv6lrfOnnhH_Wjz/s400/IMG_6112+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Lavender Waxbills and a Village Weaver.</div>
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Western Plantain Eater.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAmqObtbvhGXw8szRx1Mgbv5yFmdrIoFIcc8T8lxlTyg3K83PZfe3JfitukDHB39pywyB0jFczm7YJ3AQTAKxY_6y8Gd2s77pNQCS3gN8aLfK3Hj8AlGegGSyIdJcB26IT-YWfMzayUBl1/s1600/IMG_5536+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1193" data-original-width="1600" height="297" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAmqObtbvhGXw8szRx1Mgbv5yFmdrIoFIcc8T8lxlTyg3K83PZfe3JfitukDHB39pywyB0jFczm7YJ3AQTAKxY_6y8Gd2s77pNQCS3gN8aLfK3Hj8AlGegGSyIdJcB26IT-YWfMzayUBl1/s400/IMG_5536+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Violet Turaco</div>
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Yellow Throated Leavelove</div>
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Common Bulbul</div>
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A couple of Ringed Plover</div>
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Bar-tailed Godwit.</div>
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</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Grey-headed Gull</div>
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<div style="text-align: center;">
Grey-headed Gull and a larger Lesser Black-backed Gull with fish supper :)</div>
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Caspian Tern</div>
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Glossy Starling</div>
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White-crowned Robin Chat </div>
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Black-necked Weaver</div>
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<div align="center">
Grey Woodpecker</div>
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Broad Billed Roller</div>
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<div align="center">
Perl Spotted Owlet perched in a tree</div>
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The same bird but facing away, odd how it appears as if they have eyes in the back of their head. Spotted another of these while birding in the forest. They are about the size of a little Owl and almost as active.<br />
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Female Black Necked Weaver</div>
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Still working on a couple of ID's which I will update as soon as I can</div>
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All in all I have only two days birding on this trip but was delighted by what we saw, in addition to the above we saw a number of Wire Tailed Swallows, Chiffchaff, a Green Woodhoopoe and a brilliant close up of a Malachite Kingfisher but as it often the case the battery in the camera had given up by then. We have already booked to return next year for a little longer and I am looking forward to getting a bit further afield to see some more of what this beautiful country has to offer.</div>
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<span style="font-size: medium;">© Bernard Bracken</span><br />
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-6364479266195030522018-02-17T12:09:00.000-08:002018-02-17T12:09:03.939-08:00Foulridge and Slipper Hill ResevoirsTook a walk out today (17/2/18) to get some fresh air and see what was about on my local patch. It all seemed very quiet to begin with but as the walk progressed things began to look up. There were quite a few Blackbirds, Great and Blue Tits, Magpies and Wrens. On all of the lakes were small flocks of Mallard Ducks. On lakesides and on the water there were some really interesting sightings about.<br />
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Perched on a fence post was this Song Thrush which sang loudly for a bit before popping down to the field for some juicy worms.<br />
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On a tree at the side of the Upper Reservoir was a small flock of Redwings. As it was getting late in the afternoon I think these guys may have been preparing to roost there for the night.<br />
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As I walked along the footpath by a small stream I heard a familiar sound but at first could not see where he was but soon located him beside the narrowest spot of the stream. I watched him for quite a while as he focussed on the water but eventually he decided to move on. An encounter with a Kingfisher on a cold damp day is always uplifting to the spirit :)<br />
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Further along the path a couple of Carrion Crows dropped down for a drink. There are quite a few of these about the area</div>
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But I must admit I had not seen very many Rooks around for quite some time. But there were about 15 in this field and a few fields further away about the same number were spotted.<br />
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On the water our old friend the Great Crested Grebe was watching my activities. There were only 3 or 4 of these on the reservoirs, there are usually a lot more.</div>
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In the distance on the Upper Res I spotted his cousin the Little Grebe. I think this is the same bird that has been here for most of the winter.</div>
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However there were a good number of Goosanders on Slipper Hill Res, I think there were 8 or 9 in total, can't be certain as they were in and out of undergrowth.<br />
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There were also a number of Tufted Duck on two of the reservoirs. </div>
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About half a dozen Golden Eye spent their time in the middle of the Upper Res. They seemed to be paired up as there were 3 males each with a female.<br />
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Some Teal were found on both the Slipper Hill and Upper Foulridge Reservoir.<br />
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and a nice pair of Mandrin Ducks, nice to see the male has fully molted from his winter plumage in readiness for the mating season.<br />
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It is rare to visit these areas of water without coming across a Grey Heron but it is nonetheless lovely to see. I did not see this guy before he flushed but clearly I didn't spook him too much as he only went a short distance.<br />
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The Oystercatcher is not a bird I have seen very much around. They are relatively plentiful around the area but not seen them much near the lakes. In any event there were 3 by the side of the Upper Lake today.<br />
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A regular in the area is the Moorhen and today I spotted about 12 of them across the lakesides.<br />
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And a couple of Coots on the upper lake. It had started rain so the photo is a bit rubbish but I think you can stiff see.<br />
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Along the south side of the Upper res was a flock of 80+ Canada Geese happily grazing in the field. <br />
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In addition there were a half dozen Cormorants which were seen flying over and at a distance but I did not manage to get a photo of them.<br />
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A great day out on my local patch after a while away. It did not disappoint at all despite high numbers of dog walkers and a fleet of sailing dingys on the main lake. Great fun.<br />
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© Bernard Bracken<br />
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-56312248780584991792018-01-03T09:24:00.000-08:002018-01-03T10:04:44.179-08:00Lake Naivasha - KenyaOn leaving Sweetwaters we headed further south to Lake Naiviasha Sopa Lodge where we were scheduled to spend another night. The trip south was long and in parts we travelled along a very rough road which was exhausting. However, as with all the other sites, we could have spent the entire holiday in this one spot and not been disappointed. According to the blurb there are almost 600 species of bird found in this area but in the few hours we had available I was not going to get to see anything like that but it proved to be different and exciting in any event.<br />
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On first arrival at the Lodge we had a late lunch and went on a short boat ride around a small part of the lake. At this point I will hold my hands up and say I did not adjust the camera for the reflected light in the lake so a lot of the photos are not great, However, as we pottered along on our hour long ride we got to see a fair amount;<br />
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A distant little Egret was the first of many we spotted along the side of the lake.<br />
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As was our old friend the Grey Heron. Both of these species are pretty common in this part of the world.<br />
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Another bird I seem to encounter virtually everywhere is the Little Grebe or Dabchick. Although I only saw this one bird I am certain there are more about.<br />
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The Pink Backed Pelican is found all along the lake in small groups but the lake also hosts the Great White Pelican.<br />
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and lots of Cormorants, this one being the White Breasted Cormorant.<br />
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While this one is a Reed (Long Tailed) Cormorant with its yellow bill and red eye, unfortunately I only got a single shot of this one so we cant see the tail.<br />
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A little family of Egyptian Geese were none too happy with our boatman coming along.<br />
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As we drifted into a small alcove this Great White Egret came into view but he did not stay about for very long.<br />
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A god awful shot of a purple heron, for some reason I could not get focused in on it at all but at least there is enough to make a clear ID possible.<br />
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There were quite a number of the Pied Kingfishers working the lakeside.<br />
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The White-Fronted Bee Eater was a first for me, These are beautiful little birds with a bright crimson throat were quite common along the lakeside.<br />
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A second view of the White Fronted Bee Eater.<br />
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A couple of Yellow Billed Ducks.<br />
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A Sacred Ibis was one of many we saw fishing by the lakeside.<br />
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While we later spotted a couple of Glossy Ibis searching the hotel lawn for lunch.<br />
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A rather distant view of a Blacksmith Plover.<br />
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Yet another lifer for me was the Yellow Billed Stork.<br />
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While not too far away was a Marabou Stork, definitely not one of the prettiest birds you will see around the place :).<br />
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This juvenile Fish Eagle was difficult to get close to so unfortunately its a bit of a long shot. There were a few around the side of the lake but this is all I could get by way of photos.<br />
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A couple of Spoonbills feeding by the lakeside and the lower shot has some Spoonbills, a Grey Heron and at the back I think there is a Cattle Egret.<br />
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On the return trip I caught sight of this Giant Kingfisher perched on a dead tree.<br />
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Some shots of the Abyssinian Scimitarbill which landed on a nearby tree. I got to watch one of these up close while over at the hotel complex a little earlier in the day but as is always the case, I did not have a camera.<br />
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A distant shot of what I believe is a Nubian Woodpecker, this one appears to have a distinct black and white face which is indicative and I think this is female as it appears to have a red hindcrown.</div>
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Have quite a few photos of the Hippos in the lake but probably the more interesting ones would have been those at night (if I had them). we were warned not to come down to the hotel alone after dark because the Hippos come up onto the hotel lawn to graze. As we were being chaperoned by the security man later in the evening he shone his torch either side of the path and there they were about 20 feet away. A little disconcerting when you think these are among the most dangerous animals on the continent.</div>
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The Waterbuch heard wandered about the hotel lawns all day and all ran towards the dining room in the evening. I am not certain but I guess they are being fed there.</div>
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Giraffe wandered around some areas of the hotel grounds also.<br />
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And a small heard of Zebra were also present but a lot less approachable than some of the other animals.<br />
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We set off the following morning for the Masai Mara having only had about 6 daylight hours at this site but as with every other place we visited I would return here in a heartbeat and for much longer to see if I could get some more of that 600 bird list.<br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">© Bernard Bracken</span>bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-50894065398654595742017-12-30T12:41:00.001-08:002017-12-30T13:18:10.474-08:00Sweetwaters Game Reserve, Kenya.On October 21 we moved to the Sweetwaters Tented Camp for a night. While this was a tented camp it is very well planned and laid out with brilliant facilities. In addition to a game reserve (Ol Pejeta Conservancy <a href="http://www.olpejetaconservancy.org/about-us/our-story/">http://www.olpejetaconservancy.org/about-us/our-story/</a>) there is also a Chimpanzee sanctuary on the site which was set up in association with the Jane Goodall Institute. This houses a number of rescued Chimps and gives them a safe enclosure to live out their lives. While there are no native Chimps in Kenya this site was selected as they were able to provide sufficient space and facilities for the animals.<br />
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Our Cabin :).</div>
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We had less than 24 hours at Sweetwaters before starting the long trip south so I had to get out and abut quickly to try get to see some birds. Happily that did not prove to be very difficult. The afternoon after arrival we headed out on a safari around the national park which was wonderful and the 5am start to get to see some birds before departure was great too. Sweetwaters is located on the North west side of Mount Kenya and has some very different habitats, here it is very green and animals we saw were well fed and healthy. There are a lot of Rhino in the park and even more rangers about to look after them.<br />
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The Greater Blue Eared Starling was pretty common around the this area, a very beautiful bird.<br />
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All over the country you come across the Superb Starling but it never grows old, they are stunning little birds.<br />
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I think this is the endemic White Bellied Canary but got very poor views and only this shot so cannot be certain.<br />
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I spotted this little Cardinal Woodpecker scurrying up the tree and managed to get one clear shot before he vanished. These are relatively common around NE Africa and have a distinctive Black Moustachial Stripe.<br />
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The Eastern Black Headed Oriole is, I think you'll agree, is a lovely bird.<br />
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Perched on a tree and making quick forays to the ground was this Southern Black Flycatcher. A very pretty bird despite being mono coloured :).<br />
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A Northern Black Flycatcher, very similar to the southern but has a matt plumage and juveniles have a browner colour. I am thinking this is a juvenile moulting to adult plumage.</div>
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Red Cheeked Cordonbleu, without the red cheeks. This species is common across Africa, the female does not have the red cheeks.<br />
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But the male does. These two were busily feeding on the lawn close by our tent.<br />
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A pretty rough looking Dove which I think is one of the Turtle / Collared Doves but can't really work out exactly which. Any good ideas out there?<br />
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The White Browed Sparrow Weavers were very common around the area. Very strikingly patterned but tend to be found in small groups.<br />
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Dark Lored Babblers are endemic to East Aftica. As with most Babblers this one was in a small group which if anything like those encountered in Arabia are a small family group.<br />
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Not the best shot in the world as this guy was a bit far away but nonetheless I think you can make out the form of the African Pied Wagtail. Its similar to our Pied Wagtail but with more distinctive markings on the head and whiter body.<br />
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The Blacksmith Lapwing was not particularly easy to photograph because it never came near to vehicles at all but its a pretty distinctive bird anyhow do reasonably easy to identify even at a distance.<br />
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A nice shot of a Kenya Rufus Sparrow one of the countries endemic species. These are a bit larger than our sparrows but are very similar in habits. <br />
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The Crowned Lapwing was fairly common out in the open areas of the park, however unlike many waders it is not generally associated with water.<br />
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I will admit to being in two minds about this one as the photo is not perfect, however I am reasonably happy with Black-Winged Lapwing because of the darker band at the base of the bib. The other one it might be is the Senegal Lapwing but the more I look at it the more I doubt it. :)<br />
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Female Common Ostrich seen while out touring around the park, we also saw a male but at considerable distance.<br />
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Egyptian Goose were everywhere, or at least everywhere we had visited so far.<br />
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Just wandering back from looking at a blind Rhino when I spotted this Wire tailed Swallow perched on a gutter. It was getting late and cool so I guess he was getting settled down for the night.<br />
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As everywhere in this region there are the Bulbuls singing sweetly in the trees. This is a Dark Capped (Black eyed) Bulbul. <br />
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Just after dawn I came across this White Bellied Go-away-Bird which is another endemic to NE Africa. These are fairly large birds yet pretty adept at remaining hidden from view when they want to.<br />
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Believe it or not I was very happy with this photo of 4 African Sacred Ibis flying in the distance. Ok so not exactly an award winning photo but hell it was taken from the back of a moving car on a very bouncy piece of road :).<br />
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Another spur of the moment shot, I heard this Meyer's (Brown) Parrot in the trees above but could not get a clear view until this one clear shot. They are the most widespread of the Brown Parrot superspecies complex. What a delight though eh?<br />
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One of the Wood Doves but I have not been able to get any closer in my ID than that from the photo<br />
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Virtually everywhere we went the Pied Crows were about, generally in small numbers but always there.<br />
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With moments left before we had to set off I spotted this lovely White Browed Coucal in this bush by the entrance to the estate. Result :) !!</div>
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Not got a clue at the moment, will update if I find out what this is.</div>
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A nice little shot of mother and calf Rhino, but to be honest it was more to do with the Cattle Egret following them around, more mammal photos below :)<br />
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These two were making a lot of noise in the tree above the car park, I am reliably informed that they are both immature Tawney Eagles.<br />
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A Rufus Chatterer, endemic to NE Africa, a really pretty mini babbler.<br />
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My idea of an "atmospheric" shot, i.e. too dark and blurred but taken of the waterhole at Sweetwaters and including a couple of Sandpipers.<br />
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<h2>
Mammals</h2>
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We had the opportunity to visit a Chimp sanctuary while we were at Sweetwaters. This is run with the Jane Goodall Institute and all of the 30+ Chimps on site are rescued from all across the world. They have this enclosure which is about a mile square in which to live out their days, the habitat is scrub and wooded with a river and small island. There is no real way to know if they are happy or not but its certainly better for them than being kept in a tiny cage.<br />
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A few more of our close relatives at the sanctuary.<br />
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Eland are among the largest of the Antelopes weighing almost a ton.<br />
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A Common Waterbuck which we saw in a number of the locations we visited. They are generally spotted in a small heard.<br />
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A wandering Water Buffalo crossing the road ahead of us.<br />
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A Lion in the distance, shortly after this was taken another male came and sat behind this guy, </div>
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A Spotted Hyena in the scrub, I think this one was asleep and was startled by the car passing. I thought we would see more of these in Kenya but in all we only saw 2 individuals.</div>
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A couple of photos of a small heard of White Rhino on the plains in the Sweetwaters Parks. I understand that there may be some black Rhino about too but they are very rare. It is a pitiful thing that all around these animals are heavily armed guards, and all because some halfwits think it makes their little thingies bigger!!<br />
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A heard of Plains Zebra grazing in the park.<br />
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An Elephant I think ;))<br />
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The name was given to this Rhino in honour of a past American President who seems to be the focus of the current American President.<br />
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Baraka on his way over to meet with us. The black Rhino are a little smaller than the white but when your up close and personal they are still pretty big. This guy lives in a special 300 acre reserve within the park and is semi tame, Rhinos do not have the best eyesight anyhow so being blind is not quite the handicap it may at first seem, that said there is no way I would be where that guy is at the moment.<br />
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Our visit to Sweetwaters was very brief but it will remain in my memory forever. Definitely worth a visit and if you are looking for somewhere to support the associated charities are well worth considering.<br />
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<span style="font-size: medium;">© Bernard Bracken</span><br />
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-7881456533305235432017-12-20T12:57:00.000-08:002017-12-20T12:57:06.175-08:00Visit to the Parsonage, Foulridge and Slipper Hill Resevoirs.Decided to take a run down to my local reservoirs on December 18th to see what was about and later took a run down to Balckburn to the Parsonage reservoir as I had heard there was a Great Northern Diver seen there a few days ago. Ok now your all excited I can reveal that the Diver had moved on so a bit of a disappointment on that front but read on because I did get another bird that is a lifer. I went out at around 11am and took a walk around the upper Foulridge Res. I should say that all along there were a delightful little selection of Blue and Great Tits, Blackbirds and a variety of Corvids<br />
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But plonked in the middle of a frozen lake was a small band of Black Headed Gulls. They hung about for a bit then flew off to find something more liquid.<br />
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A largish flock of around 80 Canada Geese were feeding in a lakeside field but before I left they were joined by another 100 or more which arrived in from the lower reservoir.<br />
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Fast asleep on the far bank were a small flock of Teal with about 6 Moorhen scratching about in the field beside them. Unfortunately I could not get any closer to get a better photo but hopefully you can see them well enough.<br />
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Another distant shot of a Cormorant. In all there were 2 on the lakes but always a good distance off.<br />
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This was a bit of a surprise as I have not seen a Little Grebe around for a while. This one was right beside the lake on Brownhill Lane and very much alone.<br />
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I moved to Parsonage Reservoir to see if I could spot the Diver. Its a fairly small lake so did not take long to scan and note that the bird was not about, however I did get some nice views of a small flock of about 30 Lapwing and the same number of Black Headed Gulls. Out on the lake were about two dozen Canada Geese and a dozen or so Mallard. I guess I will just have to pop back again to see if the Diver returns :(<br />
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I returned to the lower res at Foulridge a little deflated but that soon evaporated when I got a great view of a small flock of about 18 Redwing. These are not terribly uncommon around the area but nevertheless were a lifer for me. Had something similar with Common Kingfishers, which I could not get sight of for years!!<br />
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Nice little view of a Chaffinch which perched on a tree for just long enough to get a photo.<br />
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Birding on the little lake at Slipper Hill was a bit disappointing as the entire thing was frozen solid, these two were not particularly happy with conditions and did not stay long. Everything else had already moved I think.<br />
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I am still trying to decide if this is a Mistle Thrush or Song Thrush but am reasonably certain it had whitish underwings as it flew off. Unfortunately by this time the light was getting very poor so can't be certain.<br />
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On the main Foulridge Lake was a resident Great Crested Grebe <br />
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And the Goosanders were putting in an appearance. Other birds seen included a Grey Heron and a roost of up to a hundred Black Headed Gulls on the main lake at Foulridge. There were a coupld e of Snipe which I got a fleeting view of but never saw them again after that. All in all it was a nice days birding, got a new one and visited a new site. Pity the light was poor but then we are nearing the shortest day of the year in these parts so good light is at a premium.<br />
© Bernard Brackenbernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-73228918293630795622017-11-27T11:43:00.002-08:002017-11-27T11:47:36.523-08:00Kenya, Samburu National ReserveAfter our brief visit to the Treetops we headed north to the Samburu National reserve named after the local tribe. Samburu National Reserve was first established as a reserve in 1948 though there have been some modifications over the year. Its southern boundary is the Ewaso Ng'iro river which apparently is a Samburu word for muddy waters, at the time of our visit it was flowing pretty fiercely and I understand it washed away one of the camps on the south side shortly after we left. Thankfully we had a couple of nights here to get a bit of time to take a look around. I have split the photos into three groups with the birds at the top so if you don't want to see mammals or reptiles then you can skip them. However, I think this may be one of the longest blogs ever :)<br />
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The shot below does not capture the sheer power of this river but at least you can see why it is called muddy waters lol. Its one of the weird things about Africa is that despite this being on the south border of the reserve and the north border of another one, both parks were struggling from severe drought and large numbers of the animals are dying due to poor rainfall.</div>
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From a birding perspective this area had so many firsts for me and many have taken ages pouring over the guidebooks to try identify what I had seen, hopefully I got them all right. </div>
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I believe this little bird is a Chinspot Batis. It has a very short white supercillium and a grey head which is difficult to differentiate from the black face mask.<br />
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The White-Headed Mousebird seemed to love the area around the lodge although they were a little camera shy.<br />
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African Mourning Dove were fairly common about the area, especially close to the lodge.<br />
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Tawny Eagle were about in good numbers, I think I saw a dozen in the area. I am not certain but it may be due to the high number of weak and dying animals that has the numbers high.<br />
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Definitely doing well at the moment are the White Backed Vulture were about is big numbers<br />
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As were the Marabou Stork, another fairly large scavenger of the plains.<br />
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Pretty sure this is another Tawny Eagle, this is one of those species that has several different morphs ranging from quite dark to fairly light coloured. </div>
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All over the reserve were small flocks of the Yellow Necked Spurfowl, these guys were quite noisy for their size and were often heard calling first thing in the morning.<br />
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There were also a good number of Crested Francolin to be seen around the area, though not that easy to spot at times due to their excellent camouflage<br />
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There was a few small Flocks of Vulturine Guineafowl around the riverbank and around the reserve.<br />
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I only managed to get a fleeting shot of this bird but I believe it is a Water Thick-knee which are apparently fairly common in the area although I only saw this one. I am basing my ID on the grey patch on the wing.<br />
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A real thrill for me was spotting the third largest Owl in the world. Well if I am honest I was the last person on the bus to spot him, the Verreaux's Eagle Owl has very distinctive pink eyelids which can just be made out on this photo.<br />
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Standing proud on his perch is the Superb Starling which were very common everywhere we went.<br />
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I did not expect to find an old friend in the centre of Kenya, although there is not real reason they should not be about,<br />
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The Spur Winged Lapwing were quite common along the river as they were in Saudi Arabia at times.<br />
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And another bird I had not expected to see here was the Common Sandpiper, although again at this time of year they will be heading south.<br />
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As we toured around the reserve we came across this lovely Purple Roller (Rufous Crowned) which is a much more beautiful bird than this photo shows.<br />
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A couple of Egyptian Geese were wallowing around the riverbank</div>
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Close by the river I noticed a number of White-Browed Sparrow Weaver searching for food on the ground </div>
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The White Bellied Go-Away Bird so named because it sounds like its telling the observer to go away, a nice member of the turaco family.<br />
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The Black-Faced Sandgrouse is endemic to NE Africa and is apparently fairly common although I only managed to see this one on my travels in the area.<br />
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These Chestnut Sparrows are endemic to NE Africa and were pretty common around the hotel where they seemed to be nesting very successfully in the lodge thatched roofs. The female is quite colourful for a sparrow but not quite as striking as the male.<br />
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All over the site were weavers busily tending to nests. This is a Speckle-Fronted Weaver.<br />
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The Black Capped Social Weaver are endemic to the NE of Africa <br />
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But are found in large numbers attending to their nests around the reserve.<br />
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All over the reserve were small flocks of Helmeted Guineafowl darting about as the van passed.<br />
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The Crowned Lapwing were not so common around this park but saw a lot of them elsewhere on our trip.</div>
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I am looking into the ID of these and trying to get better photos but I am guessing some member of the Sparrow family. Will let you know. </div>
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Crowding the vultures space a little was a small flock of Fischer's Starling. Unfortunately the light was going a bit by the time I took this but hopefully you can see them well enough. </div>
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Not a great shot of a Fork Tailed Drongo which were pretty common around the park, although I was pretty unsuccessful at getting a photo of one.</div>
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Northern Red-Billed Hornbill were quite common around the reserve.<br />
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A bit less common were the Eastern Yellow Billed Hornbill (Male). These birds apparently pair for life and when either partner dies the other dies soon after.<br />
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Eastern Yellow Billed Hornbill (female)<br />
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Female Von Der Decken's Hornbill is endemic to NE Africa, the guide books say it is fairly common but we only managed to see this one.</div>
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A friend from my Saudi days was the Hoopoe which I only just managed to see as I was focussed on a Tawny Eagle which was just out of shot on the same tree. I also got some good sightings of a couple of Eastern Chanting Goshawk but never managed to catch them on film.</div>
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A couple of birds I am still trying to ID:</div>
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If you recognise any can you let me know, I will be chasing them up in the mean time :)</div>
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<strong><u>Mammals</u></strong></div>
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My wife wanted to see some Elephants so our guide parked up beside a small area of bushes. Within minutes we had a mother and her young reaching over the car to get to the bushes behind. I must admit having watched some of the movies, I was a little concerned especially when the young one walked around the car and we were between the two, but it was unfounded, both were very placid and just behaved like we were not there.<br />
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Impala were about the place in good numbers, their lyre shaped horns being very distinctive.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN2bxxTREydeD21M5nz_tZRUDpnfjryBnQ6AHys5VovjUcIbDZJvTpyxnNPDEV1HW6Tbpbxf1o4eNecZmApIsYOwEpj4S0_r7ZtWCXWx9CpMKyLPI83BKNYjQILgwSy-psqEX0cOtIZiZT/s1600/IMG_3531+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1050" data-original-width="1600" height="261" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgN2bxxTREydeD21M5nz_tZRUDpnfjryBnQ6AHys5VovjUcIbDZJvTpyxnNPDEV1HW6Tbpbxf1o4eNecZmApIsYOwEpj4S0_r7ZtWCXWx9CpMKyLPI83BKNYjQILgwSy-psqEX0cOtIZiZT/s400/IMG_3531+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
We came across a place which was absolutely surrounded by cars and vans so went over to investigate. in the near distance was a single Cheetah who, despite the forest of lenses trained on it, only looked up once or twice but sent most of the time asleep.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Z2QF6Hg9Xz6gGUeBT72htEGkDT9fV6ZTMogArpt2PVsUXMNrlBVdjTEtB9ZBLpt-Gr73OXw9u8DoNywqBGjuATO8sd4ox8ye9FNBYEl9aO0pEUlawA5NMWDrBpbaTHF1LT0hxiR-N0CY/s1600/IMG_3743+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1084" data-original-width="1600" height="270" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi2Z2QF6Hg9Xz6gGUeBT72htEGkDT9fV6ZTMogArpt2PVsUXMNrlBVdjTEtB9ZBLpt-Gr73OXw9u8DoNywqBGjuATO8sd4ox8ye9FNBYEl9aO0pEUlawA5NMWDrBpbaTHF1LT0hxiR-N0CY/s400/IMG_3743+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Warthog were everywhere around the place sometimes in small groups.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinyi-8MN8-dP2VQxSkNj8Ixgemo2D-7jOq1q8OcyJ2QxD3xgD_ZT5oUCp7ew4fH1P6nIF4KPbnp4mFb7e3u76y23GJAblXr8b7gskG6aXUBcyGMpjH7tUgR_NEuTOaSTiLOOpq8Rv1QI6p/s1600/IMG_3813+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1122" data-original-width="1600" height="280" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinyi-8MN8-dP2VQxSkNj8Ixgemo2D-7jOq1q8OcyJ2QxD3xgD_ZT5oUCp7ew4fH1P6nIF4KPbnp4mFb7e3u76y23GJAblXr8b7gskG6aXUBcyGMpjH7tUgR_NEuTOaSTiLOOpq8Rv1QI6p/s400/IMG_3813+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
We did not see all that many large animals in the park and indeed only spotted this one Zebra the entire time we were there. The drought had caused many to move or die. To our delight we discovered that this is a Grévy's zebra (<i>Equus grevyi</i>) and is a pretty rare sight as they endangered and really only seen around this park and some places in central Ethiopia. Apparently this particular species is not generally seen in groups.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZaWpS1uyJWbcpzmE__EVmRCIyebuCH_5a1aryU5S0x2H56WUBXkykFTcvpc24knevVz1TZPX5P1dRucQUXSMWeKV86k7TEoBjgmvkUNanjXMIEkill7i_4Cekt8NU-wtpZ0sxULARyQ66/s1600/IMG_3897+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjZaWpS1uyJWbcpzmE__EVmRCIyebuCH_5a1aryU5S0x2H56WUBXkykFTcvpc24knevVz1TZPX5P1dRucQUXSMWeKV86k7TEoBjgmvkUNanjXMIEkill7i_4Cekt8NU-wtpZ0sxULARyQ66/s400/IMG_3897+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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The area around the hotel was frequented by a troop of Baboons who sauntered through from time to time. They did not cause any real issues while we were there but have been know to be aggressive. It was a little disconcerting to discover when we were leaving that the hotel was not fenced and that they had security patrolling all night to watch for the more dangerous creatures :(</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVZ0Ls1LaD2aZu4sbzmCd4EAZARKIBmPIhfvMtmS2UavUtUueh4PEIVmBgVnLsx2uNdH_hITEq3y4ApxPu1u7qe39TJhI-K2AQECOL9i4mN-FdJc62goEzCoVYdtwW3S9DRICaixR3zh8W/s1600/IMG_3783+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1139" data-original-width="1600" height="283" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgVZ0Ls1LaD2aZu4sbzmCd4EAZARKIBmPIhfvMtmS2UavUtUueh4PEIVmBgVnLsx2uNdH_hITEq3y4ApxPu1u7qe39TJhI-K2AQECOL9i4mN-FdJc62goEzCoVYdtwW3S9DRICaixR3zh8W/s400/IMG_3783+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
This is not a particularly good photo but was the only usable shot I got of a small family of Mongoose I managed to snap as we passed.<br />
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The Ground Squirrel were all around the hotel and popped in and out of their burrows throughout the day.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4wowAJoels1MLmk4AFMxmcoZvoku3xkJy6ooSS6JphYSNoMSCe1MpCqq65Dw9kp9ioIe6u8c4Z71Qa958XpstfxCamLnEWEPwbbsbFep-mOK5sP70hhE0H68B9zt_J7YLUIFeKlz8Woih/s1600/IMG_3920+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh4wowAJoels1MLmk4AFMxmcoZvoku3xkJy6ooSS6JphYSNoMSCe1MpCqq65Dw9kp9ioIe6u8c4Z71Qa958XpstfxCamLnEWEPwbbsbFep-mOK5sP70hhE0H68B9zt_J7YLUIFeKlz8Woih/s400/IMG_3920+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Now did you know that the difference between a monkey and an ape lies in the tail? Monkeys have, Apes don't apparently. I'm not sure that is totally accurate but was told that by one of the rangers at a reserve for Chimps run by Jane Goodall's foundation, but more of that anon. This little guy is one of a troop of about 35 animals we encountered on a safari on our last morning in the area. The Vervet Monkey is a pretty common sight about the area.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi79fVGq0eFORJOED9GbHzHILDCmAOy_wR0iAv8V26cGhwTxK7vsw5s4GCvGFJivmcQIW3WTN8efU9bJXMIlOqxQWxFDVgd3XmJ2QBnl5jMWnATIwRPJP1q7BMIKVRqALRYVTP3oiYQYLb7/s1600/IMG_3937+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi79fVGq0eFORJOED9GbHzHILDCmAOy_wR0iAv8V26cGhwTxK7vsw5s4GCvGFJivmcQIW3WTN8efU9bJXMIlOqxQWxFDVgd3XmJ2QBnl5jMWnATIwRPJP1q7BMIKVRqALRYVTP3oiYQYLb7/s400/IMG_3937+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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No prizes for guessing what this is. We did travel about the park for quite a while before we came across one but as with the London bus, when you see one you will a dozen and shortly after this we found about 10 others. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWKHvxoGO9ReHH5tf3zxeX1EJ5TpiLIs6xjeqZf3FJQfyh8T4Exdw9a3dEQF5U30DPVrGzFMdGBTtMblWgYQUGSJofoUlMJorPR774VoHeDqsVvw1kofzmQdsG8Qshf2EYbYS6ftxGXeqP/s1600/IMG_3574+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiWKHvxoGO9ReHH5tf3zxeX1EJ5TpiLIs6xjeqZf3FJQfyh8T4Exdw9a3dEQF5U30DPVrGzFMdGBTtMblWgYQUGSJofoUlMJorPR774VoHeDqsVvw1kofzmQdsG8Qshf2EYbYS6ftxGXeqP/s400/IMG_3574+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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In one instance we came across a lioness with a very recent kill which was interesting but I'll save the photos as they are a little graphic.</div>
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We also came across a small herd of East African Oryx trying to graze on the dry grass, as you can probably see they are not looking particularly healthy as there is very little food about.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOvAwid0Xyy8tFYsLu2WOczThkn0cMPB7rAYfPK8TDBViZBwPSj3ytKIWUq_zxomLQrNBFraD4Mw7rvvPipQ4cKtjjOz_5IO6Id1nXW05PwlzIuh7ano0TBBC4skqCuzftm1RsQNG4GpaD/s1600/IMG_3902+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1186" data-original-width="1600" height="296" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOvAwid0Xyy8tFYsLu2WOczThkn0cMPB7rAYfPK8TDBViZBwPSj3ytKIWUq_zxomLQrNBFraD4Mw7rvvPipQ4cKtjjOz_5IO6Id1nXW05PwlzIuh7ano0TBBC4skqCuzftm1RsQNG4GpaD/s400/IMG_3902+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
This is a Reticulated Giraffe which occurs this region of Kenya, there are two other species, the Rothschild's and the Masai at least one of which we also saw but that's for a later blog. We spotted this one with a small herd of others in the northern half of the park.<br />
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One creature we were lucky to get good photos of was the African Hare which was along the roadside as we left the park. These are quite large and can live for up to 12 years. As with most hares they are very fast on their feet reaching up to 40mph when escaping a predator.</div>
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<strong><u>Some Reptiles.</u></strong></div>
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Apart from the Crocodile I don't know what these two reptiles are but thought I would include them as their colours are amazing.</div>
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We left the Samburu park after visiting a Samburu tribe village which was interesting but a little contrived. I guess you can't blame them for getting a few shillings from the tourists where they can.</div>
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This was an amazing place to visit and I would happily go back there for a longer stay if I ever get the chance. From here we moved to a larger reserve on the side of Mount Kenya which will be the subject of another blog.<br />
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© Bernard Bracken<br />
<br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-1345952385985450572017-11-01T15:07:00.000-07:002017-11-06T11:46:52.499-08:00Kenya Aberdares National ParkIn October I had the opportunity to make the visit of a lifetime to the safari lands of Kenya, ever since my youth I have been reading about these places and watching every TV program made about them. So it was with some excitement that the day to fly there arrived. <br />
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Our trip took us to Nairobi and from there north to the Aberdares National Park where we stayed at the Treetops hotel. This was originally a treetop hide for watching wildlife at a nearby waterhole which was gradually developed over the years. Guests reside on the top 3 floors and can watch the waterhole from their rooms, bar, restaurant or special viewing platforms. The rooms are pretty good but in reality the stars of the show are the animals.The hotel's main claim to fame is that Princess Elizabeth was staying there when her father king George VI died, thus becoming Queen Elizabeth II.<br />
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On arrival guests are informed of a buzzer system located in every room, overnight if any of the big 5 come through the staff buzz the room and if you want you can get up to watch (you can also turn it off ). They mentioned, Rhino may show, as might Leopard both of which I really didn't believe would. However, about 1am a pair of Rhino appeared and a little later a Leopard. We only managed to get a photo of the Rhino as the cat was too far off in the poor light. And yes the buzzer did go off :)<br />
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Also in the twilight I managed to get a (bloody awful) photo of the Blacksmith Lapwing (plover)<br />
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The second photo of the Blacksmith Lapwing but at a great distance.<br />
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Fairly common around the waterhole were Egyptian Duck, we spotted these most places we stayed during our travels.<br />
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The Water Buffalo were regular visitors to the waterhole while we were there, they came down from the hill in a heard of about 45 animals with a good few juveniles along with them. They are fairly cranky and there were constant fights within the heard.<br />
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Warthogs were also very common grazing out in the grassy areas beyond the waterhole.<br />
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On our way to the Treetops we stopped for lunch at the Outspan Hotel about 15km from the treetops site and I spent an hour or so birding around the gardens.<br />
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The hotel has a small house in the grounds where Baron Baden-Powell lived out his final years and ultimately died. In addition to having a distinguished military career, Lord Baden-Powell was one of the founders of the Scout movement.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAPxo-0dW8Yz4nbM0UN-555LAUZpx9qwuG2PnFxo8PxqrbHRuhWa5WnLB3W6Z_Lb1wFR408Z645VU2yL_YPsKGWOIcsttkJzs9S-7id34uzBCuYXbUcrvcmBNA0hPjmZGxpu89fJu-HUMR/s1600/White+Eyed+Slaty+Flycatcher.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhAPxo-0dW8Yz4nbM0UN-555LAUZpx9qwuG2PnFxo8PxqrbHRuhWa5WnLB3W6Z_Lb1wFR408Z645VU2yL_YPsKGWOIcsttkJzs9S-7id34uzBCuYXbUcrvcmBNA0hPjmZGxpu89fJu-HUMR/s400/White+Eyed+Slaty+Flycatcher.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
Wandering around the grounds I came across this beauty, a White-Eyed Slaty Flycatcher which posed nicely for photos. These sparrow sized birds are endemic to East and Central Africa.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja4y5rf9UxRc2UNEqaMG0KEO1PCY7EZZ-HmQkatsl9ug4QGQRQoIAQ28jgk_U-kubNR0Ap7GcgA6i_HsbmDLpwV96rY7zpkkZrYEVTXLQ4r4Sy4wl6AyjsalT5DkSsaHlozkIO5rOsHRNI/s1600/Speckled+Pigeon.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1028" data-original-width="1600" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEja4y5rf9UxRc2UNEqaMG0KEO1PCY7EZZ-HmQkatsl9ug4QGQRQoIAQ28jgk_U-kubNR0Ap7GcgA6i_HsbmDLpwV96rY7zpkkZrYEVTXLQ4r4Sy4wl6AyjsalT5DkSsaHlozkIO5rOsHRNI/s400/Speckled+Pigeon.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
Speckled Pigeons are pretty common all over central Keyna.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOc3JonEVVaNNSyloNGvhAk953d_vw7S1VJiWVz0g4OQGDH9sGP2jVXXurvXgjVFyfmWamhg34Oca0POAo4ArkQHT-ABjqwE8idElUWnc5Xkc_HDPUgKV95GT8wAJnG-uqMV2b18htSlxA/s1600/IMG_3175+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1061" data-original-width="1600" height="265" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgOc3JonEVVaNNSyloNGvhAk953d_vw7S1VJiWVz0g4OQGDH9sGP2jVXXurvXgjVFyfmWamhg34Oca0POAo4ArkQHT-ABjqwE8idElUWnc5Xkc_HDPUgKV95GT8wAJnG-uqMV2b18htSlxA/s400/IMG_3175+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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All around the grounds were little flocks of Speckled Mousebirds, these are a beautiful little bird and very active in the bushes and trees. The guide describes them as drab brown but I think that does them a dis-service.</div>
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Cute Huh :)<br />
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The bird below is a Streaky-Seed Eater which I managed to get a quick photo of before he vanished. A largish brown canary.</div>
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The Mountain Thrush (Turdus abyssinicus) below was very common around the area.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMwK9zX2LtiaoIYc8FMs8VLTUVbrpzI8NoA3LKU5tvZMqfPulNtX3UyaUy3iBTUbPkYXGNTclErA0xlFMQiOgiYKUpA2Db3lyhdh3sqzvg_tKrA6IIp2FwqdKQKdNqMSX8tjFyzbeZ0sYj/s1600/IMG_3211+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1143" data-original-width="1600" height="285" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiMwK9zX2LtiaoIYc8FMs8VLTUVbrpzI8NoA3LKU5tvZMqfPulNtX3UyaUy3iBTUbPkYXGNTclErA0xlFMQiOgiYKUpA2Db3lyhdh3sqzvg_tKrA6IIp2FwqdKQKdNqMSX8tjFyzbeZ0sYj/s400/IMG_3211+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
The bird below doing gymnastics under a child's trampoline is female Black Bellied Sunbird, I think. <br />
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I have been through the guidebooks a dozen times and am fairly sure of this and so far Birdforum has not provided any better ideas. I will update if I get any more definitive identifications.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi7At8o6UNLo2-nG2pJRJhqrihIJ50lC19acDDL8UPecOpLA7AmQED7rBdpSBWotzfWwPvNumK6KykQ8zfa1f0b4e1BkqkKQyxg5JbDiBMr7nqCAg_fYtbXpwN-Mhi_DXvJfy7OFxfddEPr/s1600/IMG_3255+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a><br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYZqreIMsNdID2w_Vf5n3g72KidK0AEgvIu1e45Y2tH2uQqeTbo276U_DLzje55f2O3OfJHm_cfK5vsRGdsVPEv5yqu2SgfmidqWd-2kRxCliMAgsdW-ebBcWHq5VFcnrB9eFya8kzqrgR/s1600/IMG_3190+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1018" data-original-width="1600" height="253" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgYZqreIMsNdID2w_Vf5n3g72KidK0AEgvIu1e45Y2tH2uQqeTbo276U_DLzje55f2O3OfJHm_cfK5vsRGdsVPEv5yqu2SgfmidqWd-2kRxCliMAgsdW-ebBcWHq5VFcnrB9eFya8kzqrgR/s400/IMG_3190+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
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Still trying to identify this little fellow. He is about sparrow sized and a seed eater but so far I have not managed to identify him. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinSqNk1KaSg_IwZEhFPqIWMYUJ5Tpv6E7oBCxGyTNgHRcVxBGLVcoVZynaQP41amdDl3NsebpVzyL9aN8FN_tZ8ng_77XXTkfBSPSjCx4k3PgG9e5hIZr2ZiaSFOqbCbGBV2afb8MSe6Fo/s1600/IMG_3265+%25283%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1166" data-original-width="1600" height="291" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEinSqNk1KaSg_IwZEhFPqIWMYUJ5Tpv6E7oBCxGyTNgHRcVxBGLVcoVZynaQP41amdDl3NsebpVzyL9aN8FN_tZ8ng_77XXTkfBSPSjCx4k3PgG9e5hIZr2ZiaSFOqbCbGBV2afb8MSe6Fo/s400/IMG_3265+%25283%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
A few African Green Pigeon along with a Rameron Pigeon (Olive Pigeon). There were a dozen or more of the African Greens roosting in a nearby tree.<br />
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Cape Turtle (Ring Necked) Doves were also about in good numbers<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhif_UHpGC0ZH4ElBmJR7WnSG3mzy3SrHwWvceR6EUL-I8xYaoF5cM60CsGoNOyg0WoCo2RWQ2aS_b2iAvZCdzrS1IZbobQwzoq2NNVhfXzjJN8KwdqTwrno7rdYqB_qrFQPXpEY7AT8uY1/s1600/IMG_3285+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1044" data-original-width="1600" height="260" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhif_UHpGC0ZH4ElBmJR7WnSG3mzy3SrHwWvceR6EUL-I8xYaoF5cM60CsGoNOyg0WoCo2RWQ2aS_b2iAvZCdzrS1IZbobQwzoq2NNVhfXzjJN8KwdqTwrno7rdYqB_qrFQPXpEY7AT8uY1/s400/IMG_3285+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
I could never get a good photo of these guys but there was a small colony of Little Swift nesting in the rafters of the hotel.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhlYTxHCF5OukdF8NYL2TaoiLYu83sTom5I1jJtt4Oh3bq3c6mE4PHZg4840y1qP2qB18Ihz9-VFkYhU02lF7TytFE2prR1f8osn3ARUvMD0IT8C4rH32DGPN_Qw0xFRMJqUItvpyCzCeDO/s1600/IMG_3347+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"></a> <a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi15-Lp04mtaY19yFqcvzRj16qk8P6X15ew_dgcN9X-Cw4ImDYMstJOZfVgWU6EeRUDAjII1lMGLaO07Jvq1W6fL5k6oKY3pJN7_cAwu3roR_CJ0QO7q_oodiD2c5rAnsRwfB01tLoFDdhT/s1600/IMG_3348+%25282%2529.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1067" data-original-width="1600" height="266" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi15-Lp04mtaY19yFqcvzRj16qk8P6X15ew_dgcN9X-Cw4ImDYMstJOZfVgWU6EeRUDAjII1lMGLaO07Jvq1W6fL5k6oKY3pJN7_cAwu3roR_CJ0QO7q_oodiD2c5rAnsRwfB01tLoFDdhT/s400/IMG_3348+%25282%2529.jpg" width="400" /></a></div>
A bird that I expect I will find all over the world, or at least its been everywhere I have been to date is the Grey Heron.<br />
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These curious birds are found almost everywhere in Kenya, the Helmeted Guineafowl can sometimes be found in fairly large flocks although at this site we only saw 6 or 7.<br />
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The Greater Blue Eared Starling were very common about the area and flocked in largish groups.</div>
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The Baglafecht Weaver at a distance. I really struggled to get a good photo of this bird as it kept disappearing into the tree about 30 yards away :(</div>
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Also spotted some Common Bulbul and Barn Swallos but I did not manage to get usable photos of these. This is an amazing place for birds and unfortunately I only had one evening there so did not get out into the surrounding areas, some day I will return.</div>
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© Bernard Bracken<br />
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-89819103791965831332017-09-13T06:55:00.000-07:002017-09-13T07:21:21.544-07:00First visit to Fairburn Ings RSPB reserveLast Saturday I had the opportunity to travel to Fairburn Ings in Yorkshire (SE451278) to spend some time at the nature reserve there. The trip was planned by my good friends at the East Lancashire Ornithologists' Club ELOC (<a href="http://www.eastlancsornithologists.org.uk/">www.eastlancsornithologists.org.uk</a>, Facebook <a href="http://www.facebook.com/groups/769823696506941">www.facebook.com/groups/769823696506941</a> ) and a group of 6 or 7 arrived for the walk. The weather was blustery with some very heavy rain showers so a bit of time was spent in the hides on the reserve. We first went to the western end of the reserve to the Lin Dike hide and had some nice views of a perched Osprey in the distance and a little later observed it being harassed first by crows and then by a single Peregrine as it flew off to the west.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhObYDHP_bqwY2EWkaqj_laFUoN7Z2DPdqvAFrW9WwKB5Aq94G4pOC29EMyoy7ucxF_CpFMW7CFKz4BNpgHRkj2rTkjmVQrX4knrDtWNWIo9eywjwqxNgTCfZh_O33vEw17EIZEjpH1vU5d/s1600/P1140982.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1591" data-original-width="1600" height="318" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhObYDHP_bqwY2EWkaqj_laFUoN7Z2DPdqvAFrW9WwKB5Aq94G4pOC29EMyoy7ucxF_CpFMW7CFKz4BNpgHRkj2rTkjmVQrX4knrDtWNWIo9eywjwqxNgTCfZh_O33vEw17EIZEjpH1vU5d/s320/P1140982.JPG" width="320" /></a></div>
Unfortunately my photos were very distant or the one below which was almost direct into the sun.<br />
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However, there are a few better ones on the clubs Facebook page.</div>
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Also as I passed along the path I spotted a Pheasant in the distance, he was huddled down clearly not liking the weather much either.<br />
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At the far end of the Moat were three Cormorants sitting on some poles<br />
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and a couple of Little Grebe fishing in the lake.<br />
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Towards the middle of the lake there were a number of Shoveler Ducks feeding in the shallows and a pretty large number of Greylag Geese resting around the shallows. Other ducks on site included Gadwall, Mallard and some Tufted Duck.<br />
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Scattered across all the lakeside edges on site were number of Lapwing, I think we counted around 50 in total.</div>
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There were also a couple of Mute Swans on site.<br />
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Just beside the visitor centre we were watching a little flock of Tree Sparrows at the feeders when we noticed this little guy popping in. There are a number of Bullfinch on site according to the warden but this juvenile was the only one we saw.<br />
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At a hide close by the visitor centre we got slightly better views of Moorhen<br />
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Grey Heron<br />
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Coot<br />
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Blue Tit and Great Tit although the Willow Tit and Bearded Tits which I understand are on site alluded us on the day.<br />
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There were quite a few Little Egret all across the site. Funny how these are now reasonable commonplace when a few years ago spotting one in the UK, especially the north, would have been cause for celebration.<br />
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I spotted a number of Greenfinch on site too but struggled to get any photos until this guy decided to do a little posing. Lovely little birds.<br />
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As are the Chaffinch which were also not particularly easy to photograph either. Other birds I was quite excited to spot included a pair of fighting Green Woodpeckers and a small flock of Swift. There were a large number of Barn Swallow about feeding frantically above the lakes. I guess they are fuelling up for their trip south. Along the edge of the lake we also spotted a Ruff and a single Common Sandpiper but my photos of both were terrible.<br />
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I really enjoyed my trip out to Fairburn Ings. Unfortunately it was cut short by some very heavy rain which caught me out and left me soaked through but it is definitely a place I will revisit.<br />
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© Bernard Brackenbernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-45727213190102025712017-08-08T12:35:00.000-07:002017-08-08T12:35:00.537-07:00Foulridge ReservoirTook a walk down to my local patch at Foulridge yesterday 7/8/17. The weather was a bit grey and there was the odd shower but we are used to those in Lancashire. There were not vey many birds around the area but its always a nice walk. As usual there were a lot of dog walkers about so any shy birds were highly unlikely to be easy to spot. That said there is always something to catch the interest.<br />
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As with virtually all waterways around here there were a large contingent of Mallards<br />
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I think I counted about 30 in all across the lake. Most of the Males have now lost their luxurious green heads and are looking a little drab at the moment but the females are still very pretty. There were two Canada Geese way out in the middle of the lake so did not get particularly good photos of these;<br />
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As always there were a good number of Great Crested Grebe around and a couple of young ones. The juveniles were swimming together but a good distance from any adults so I guess they are being left to their own devices.<br />
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As I walked around the other side of the lake I found a small flock of 6 Coot feeding among the weeds;<br />
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And among some more Mallards was a single female Mandarin Duck. These guys are fairly rare around these parts but I generally see one (not sure if it is the same one) on most walks around the lake. There was no sign of a male but I did see a pair in the spring and a couple of years back there was a female with 4 juveniles, I think I posted that here earlier.<br />
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In addition to these there was a Gull (Herring I think) with a couple of begging juveniles<br />
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Overhead there were a good number of Swallows and around the side of the lake were a number of Blackbirds, Wren, Magpie, Wood Pigeon, some Carrion Crow and Robins but I did not manage to get useful photos of these.<br />
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I moved up the road to the wood at Alkincoats and took a short walk around there. There were a good few Blue and Great Tits at all of the feeders and a couple of Dunnock. However, these had to grab what they could between visits from a couple of these guys;<br />
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They were very adept at taking food from the feeders, even those designed to prevent them from doing so :)<br />
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As I had the chance to get some photos of a couple of butterflies too I thought I would share them;<br />
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This is a Speckled Wood (<em>Parage aegeria</em>).<br />
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and this one is a Green Veined White (<em>Artogeia napi</em>), Although I am open to correction on these :).<br />
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A very nice couple of hours out and about.<br />
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© Bernard Brackenbernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-78343853567130380822017-08-07T09:27:00.002-07:002017-08-07T09:27:24.137-07:00Swinden ResevoirHave been back in the UK for a couple of months but got tangled up with work so unfortunately I have not really had much time to update the blog. However, as I am now a man of leisure again for a while I thought I would catch up a bit. I have been out birding around my home in East Lancashire in the UK and have also been spending time encouraging birds into the garden so the lazy side of me can get to watch birds too :).<br />
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Anyway, last week I took a walk around a reservoir which lies a little to the south of Burnley. The weather was not especially good but I thought seeing as I had not been to this site before I would do a kind of reconnoitre as a prelude to future visits. <br />
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The rain eventually stopped and I started off walking along a footpath to the south of the reservoirs which are located in a small valley and is mainly fed by Swinden Water, a small river flowing down from Extwhistle Moor. Somehow I strayed off the path and ended up trying to walk on some very wet and slippery fields towards the eastern end of the lake. The birding was not especially good on the day, there were plenty of Meadow Pipits about and on the way back I got a fleeting glimpse of a pair of female pheasants disappearing over the brow of a hill.<br />
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There were also some high flying Barn Swallow and Gulls (Black Headed I think). However as I walked past a small group of mounds, one of which had a small cliff of large rocks on one side, I noticed a rabbit in the valley and as I approached to take a closer look I flushed this little guy;<br />
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<tr><td class="tr-caption" style="text-align: center;">Little Owl</td></tr>
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He flew to the rocky area and disappeared into a burrow behind the rock on the left of the photo. I sat for a while to see if he would allow me another look and about 10 minutes later he bobbed out. He stood on the ledge for about 5 minutes bobbing his whole body while observing me closely. He flew off after those few minutes but I sauntered back to the car happy as anything to have shared that few minutes. This is the first Owl I have managed to spot in the UK and it confirms what I have aways said about birding, you should never give up even on what seems like a rubbish day, it could still surprise you at the very last minute :)<br />
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Happy birding Guys and Gals<br />
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As I was out there and he landed close by I thought I'd capture a Ringlet photo as well. There are a fair few different butterfly species around the area and I think I will try capture the images of a few while I am on my birding trips.<br />
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© Bernard Brackenbernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-55705037744406846232017-02-13T04:27:00.002-08:002017-02-13T04:27:28.917-08:00Wadi Hanifah in early FebruaryReturned to Wadi Hanifah for a short trip last weekend and had quite an interesting visit (4/2/17). The Wadi is close by the Diplomatic Quarter of the city and very much a manicured area. I started out about 6:30am with a small number of fairly common birds, but as I have said many times you never know what surprises are in store...<br />
The temperatures were well down on the norm for Saudi Arabia and I think this is the first time ever I had to wear a jumper while birding, although within an hour or so of dawn it was warming up nicely.<br />
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This area is a fairly popular picnic site for locals, although I have not seen many at the times I am there. They all tend to arrive in the evenings.<br />
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On each of the turrets that are spaced out along the wall of the Wadi were small flocks of Feral Pigeons. There are significant numbers of these around</div>
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Along with their cousins the Collared Dove and the Laughing Dove. These birds love to live in close proximity to city dwellers as the remnants of the picnics make for easy pickings.</div>
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Close behind the Pigeons and Doves are the Mynas' which also like the leftovers from our picnics.</div>
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The House Sparrow were present in good numbers, although not as many as I have seen here in the past.</div>
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and from time to time a few Spanish Sparrow appeared in the bushes.</div>
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One bird I have not seen in the area for quite some time is this Grey Hypocolius. On the day there were about 10 to 12 f them around the area in small groups</div>
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I did make several attempts to get a photo of the male birds to but they proved too quick and all the photos of those were blurred.</div>
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Our old friend the White Eared Bulbul were in most of the bushes and were busily feeding and I think pairing off, as I saw many getting together in pairs on branches.</div>
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However, there was also a pair of Spectacled Bulbul. So far I have seen a number of these at every site I have visited around Riyadh this year, in years gone by it was unusual to see one as they are more common in the south and west of the country. But maybe things are becoming more to their liking here in the Central Region.</div>
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One bird I have never come across in the Central Region before is this Ruppell's Weaver. These are fairly common in the south and west but not generally found here. Could this be a new development or simply a bird that has escaped from a cage somewhere?</div>
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In addition I flushed a Grey Heron early in the morning but it was still too dark to get a photo, later there was a Squacco Heron which also flushed. A number of Ring Necked Parakeets flew over screeching as they went and as we left the area I spotted a single White Crowned Wheatear.</div>
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See every day has its surprises even if it is a fairly short mornings walk!!</div>
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<span lang="EN"><div dir="LTR">
© Bernard Bracken</div>
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<br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-86027156334703882052017-02-06T02:20:00.000-08:002017-02-06T02:20:08.253-08:00Khobar 27/1/17As I will soon be leaving Saudi Arabia I decided to try to get around to visiting some of the sites I have been to over the past 4 years. This weekend we took the long drive towards the gulf coast to Khobar to see some seabirds. Unlike my last visit here last summer it was cold with temperatures only around 14 degrees centigrade when I arrived around 8:30 am. Not that I was upset, it is far easier to walk in 14 and 42!!<br />
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Al Khobar water tower is one of the main landmarks on this coast along with the King Fahd Bridge joining Saudi Arabia to Bahrain. This is an impressive landmark towering 90m above the city and hosts a restaurant and observation area along with its primary water tower function. Impressive eh?<br />
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Almost immediately after arrival I got some lovely views of Great Cormorant which were present in large numbers, some were molting to their breeding plumage. This one is in classic feather drying pose as unlike many water birds Cormorants do not have waterproofing and have to get out from time to time to dry off.</div>
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I think these are probably the avian version of a submarine swimming very low in the water. In addition to the Great Cormorants there were a small number Socatra Cormorants out to sea on the shallow water markers but I could not get any useful photos of them. </div>
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There were a small number of Grey Herons around the place today although as ever they were quite difficult to get close to.</div>
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The most common member of the Heron family seen around the place was the Western Reef Heron, a good deal smaller than the grey but nonetheless impressive.</div>
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The Western Reef Heron comes in a variety of colours, the Dark Morph and the light morph as seen here. There is an intermediate type also seen which I think is a hybrid of the two.</div>
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There were a small number of terns along the Corniche like the Lesser Crested Tern.</div>
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And rather a lot of Greater Flamingo, as always the Adults were segregated from the juveniles (above). </div>
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Common Redshank were pretty much all over the place today. Dispersed in small numbers but everywhere.</div>
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As were members of the plover family with the most abundant being the tiny Kentish Plover which is found in many areas of the Kingdom almost all year round.</div>
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Slightly less common but a handsome bird is the Grey plover. There were a couple of dozen of these about today.</div>
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And last but by no means least the Ringed Plover which was scurrying about the tideline in search on food.</div>
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The Black Headed Gull were on site in huge numbers. One of the many flocks I watched numbered a couple of hundred birds.</div>
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The Black Winged Stilt was another common sight today, I'm not sure why the gull in the background was giving one of them a ducking but it did not appear to bother any of the others too much.</div>
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A little fly by of some more Black Heads.</div>
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There were not that many land birds around today for some reason, I spotted a few Collared Dove and the ubiquitous House Sparrow were busy in the trees. I did have a flypast of 4 House Crows but they were gone before I got a chance to take a photo. </div>
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Along the pathway were a few Crested Lark picking at crumbs left by picnicking locals.</div>
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I am not certain about this gull. I think its a Caspian Gull although the yellow bill with black tip and small red spot suggests Armenian. The classification of many of the yellow legged gulls is far from clear with a number of different bodies either lumping or splitting the species. For those who are interested in the challenges of this I attach an interesting article on the identification of Yellow Legged Gulls from British Birds magazine.</div>
<a href="https://www.britishbirds.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/article_files/V90/V90_N01_02/V90_N01_02_P025_062_A004.pdf">https://www.britishbirds.co.uk/wp-content/uploads/article_files/V90/V90_N01_02/V90_N01_02_P025_062_A004.pdf</a><br />
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The cool conditions were much to my liking today and made life a lot easier for birding. That said there is never a dull day when your birding here, always loads to keep the interest.<br />
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<span lang="EN"><div dir="LTR">
© Bernard Bracken</div>
<br /></span><br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-14546896588567399902017-01-25T04:52:00.001-08:002017-01-25T04:59:26.361-08:00Al Hayer Bridge 21-1-17Spent morning around the bridge at Al Hayer. The plan was to spend an hour or so there and move on but as you will see I got side tracked by a nice bird.<br />
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Around the area there are the steep sided cliffs if the Wadi and all along these are considerable numbers of Rock Pigeon which circle about a lot first thing in the morning.</div>
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There were also good numbers of Eurasian Collared Dove. I am not that fond of these birds and their cousins the Laughing Dove because they flush noisily when you are still 40 or 50 meters away and disturb all the other birdlife in the process.</div>
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A single Blackstart sat on the wall of one of the factories close to the bridge. I may be imagining it but I wonder if this is the same one I keep seeing in the same place each time I visit, I doubt it but who knows. </div>
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One of the many Laughing Dove about the site this morning, beautiful bird but a pain for birders.</div>
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There are always a lot of White Eared Bulbul around this area as the bushes and trees are very much to their liking.</div>
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A little more unusual are the Spectacled Bulbul. There were two on site today but there were also a few at Salbuk and AlHayer fields over the past few weeks.</div>
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Last time I visited here there were 3 White Throated Kingfishers flying about, only one was found on this occasion.</div>
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Not sure if I should bother even showing this but you can just make out a Moorhen disappearing into the reeds.</div>
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And close by was a single Bluethroat which stopped for a short while then flew off along the river.</div>
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As I was walking back to the car a bird flew over which was a little different, it subsequently landed in a tree a short distance off. The Sparrowhawk is a young bird and I think is the same one I saw further up river towards the end of last year.</div>
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Another shot of the Sparrowhawk. </div>
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There were a small number of Grey Heron visible around the site today but I only got this flypast to prove it. This area is rapidly becoming overgrown with reeds so it is becoming more fifficult to spot birds along the river.</div>
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There was only a small flock of Common Myna around the place today, visits towards the end of last year found dozens of them. I assume they had moved off to other areas along the river.</div>
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A distant shot of a Graceful Prinia. As always there were dozens of these in the area though most were recognised by sound rather than sight.</div>
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There were good numbers of both House and Spanish Sparrow in the area.</div>
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And a single Marsh Harrier flew over literally as I was getting into the car (or maybe it is a Greater Spotted Eagle). The weather was very cool and overcast so distant shots were all a bit drab today.</div>
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As I said I meant to move to another area but spent quite some time looking at the Sparrowhawk. Also spotted was a single Kestrel which flew over very early.</div>
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Birding is always fun when you spot something that keeps your attention for a long while. :)</div>
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-1638137900978502322017-01-22T21:12:00.001-08:002017-01-22T21:12:16.671-08:00Al Hayer Lakes 14-1-17I took a walk around the lakes to the south of Al Hayer fields (see map in locations tab) this morning. The weather was clear but cold but it seemed not to bother the birds, especially he Herons, which were about in very large numbers today.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnqONU2iycNAgz66aqQz8DqUx-GO1xSLWJlRUr6Id4tbzTQXnEmV18WYxy9Tc-X8MzBRflacMMFKbOgCOcjxFAlu6okJ3byFW2Hqbtge1FodQ0JoB8wlkO8JYq2p_jU3lIroJUHTsbb8X/s1600/IMG_6148.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhLnqONU2iycNAgz66aqQz8DqUx-GO1xSLWJlRUr6Id4tbzTQXnEmV18WYxy9Tc-X8MzBRflacMMFKbOgCOcjxFAlu6okJ3byFW2Hqbtge1FodQ0JoB8wlkO8JYq2p_jU3lIroJUHTsbb8X/s400/IMG_6148.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
The morning sunrise was quite pretty over the desert this morning. Weather was quite cool for here at about 14 degrees. Yes I know from the snow based areas of the north that does not sound cool but believe me in the crisp dry air it is :)<br />
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Anyhow almost straight from the car I spotted this little Mourning Wheatear perched on a bush around 200m away.</div>
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A little further along perched on top of a local landmark was a single Purple Heron and a Grey Heron, as you can see they use it a bit for this purpose. All in all I think I will label this day, the day of the Herons as they were by far the most numerous bird around</div>
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A beautiful Purple Heron a little closer</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Viost1eKe6w6z6MhK4INaKqpwaP1DIWmIhRXXuOGd_zNtQQw8KiSbz3uApEV54hS3UuRFqADBrFrYsSoWTUOJUfzbEfroL4MLmVh5jbFQExIYSuojNS0XtktUwXwlG9lfzkoFhWNFJ3o/s1600/IMG_6185.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh_Viost1eKe6w6z6MhK4INaKqpwaP1DIWmIhRXXuOGd_zNtQQw8KiSbz3uApEV54hS3UuRFqADBrFrYsSoWTUOJUfzbEfroL4MLmVh5jbFQExIYSuojNS0XtktUwXwlG9lfzkoFhWNFJ3o/s400/IMG_6185.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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This photo did not come out as well as I had hoped but all the specks along the horizon are Grey Herons.</div>
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Luckily for me some of them decided to land a little closer to where I was and I got this photo which has 27, but that was only a fraction of what were about. In addition there about 10 Squacco Heron, 5 or 6 Little Egret and a dozen or so Purple Heron around the lakes.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh54ikQ7MZD0p2WDvDPqJ6k5221SiDS3odvO2QeI814NeIsxIyBL2hSIGmjZoI1TZXONG7oROUXbimDt8TUp-c3BaP20RUh9__95TbBn49vEMLw0UF6plz9Ekd-K8PcgDs59AoEnS9MsHYK/s1600/IMG_6180.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh54ikQ7MZD0p2WDvDPqJ6k5221SiDS3odvO2QeI814NeIsxIyBL2hSIGmjZoI1TZXONG7oROUXbimDt8TUp-c3BaP20RUh9__95TbBn49vEMLw0UF6plz9Ekd-K8PcgDs59AoEnS9MsHYK/s400/IMG_6180.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Will get back to you on this one, still researching this young gull. There were a few gulls about today but this one was by far the biggest.</div>
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All along the lake were small numbers of Black Winged Stilt, I think in total I saw about 20. They do breed on the lake so I assume some of them will be staying here to raise young.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaTrODY_b8SrRQAY8bfirUp0veSD5lJ8krOBJPvraAq3dnce2XYhcsgPG23jfBvRKWKIL0Ug_SaPd8VWcj8G9zFx-LfQLCBqZPX7CdQt5vs0jxwBKCDt2ome7rXJzAJZ3QcW2dr0SwLXcY/s1600/IMG_6194.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjaTrODY_b8SrRQAY8bfirUp0veSD5lJ8krOBJPvraAq3dnce2XYhcsgPG23jfBvRKWKIL0Ug_SaPd8VWcj8G9zFx-LfQLCBqZPX7CdQt5vs0jxwBKCDt2ome7rXJzAJZ3QcW2dr0SwLXcY/s400/IMG_6194.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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A single Bluethroat perched on top of a reed. Another couple of birders I met tell me that there were a couple more of these up around the fields area.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgymhFdQJkD-uwXNtSUQmvLQbJfpGxOJKX5qwSkrZ41MR31M5Kh1cwFcqRTnppe4ngyw2JQzzY1gXToOk1YeS5brNT0vM0zIQxOB0sVgLbPICtYcepEjAs0qZxf6R5US4IPRgGfV6u0dX-K/s1600/IMG_6214.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="256" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgymhFdQJkD-uwXNtSUQmvLQbJfpGxOJKX5qwSkrZ41MR31M5Kh1cwFcqRTnppe4ngyw2JQzzY1gXToOk1YeS5brNT0vM0zIQxOB0sVgLbPICtYcepEjAs0qZxf6R5US4IPRgGfV6u0dX-K/s320/IMG_6214.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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The lake area remains a good place to spot the White Throated Kingfisher and I spotted four here this morning. I found a pair of these breeding here last year and maybe they will do the same this year. They will not use the same burrow this year though, it was washed away by a recent flood.</div>
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The numbers of Little Grebe have been gradually increasing on the lake over the past couple of years. When I came here first there were only a couple about but this week I spotted 10 pairs. These also breed in the area so I expect the numbers will rise over the next few years.</div>
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A small group of Ferringous Duck were spotted flying overhead heading north. I managed to get this photo of them but this was the last I saw of them on the day.</div>
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And a single Spur Winged Lapwing on a flypast. </div>
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The White or Pied Wagtail were around in good numbers chasing each other across the tops of the sand banks.</div>
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This bird confused me, clearly a duck with a very large bill, although not really the colouring for a Shoveler. Perhaps a female. I am opting for Shoveler as there is nothing else with quite as big a bill, even if this photo does not show it very well. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7DzbrdkpTxxvzeLk-hu_OdUoakYyeKhnUD6KEK6M2MW5z-PmbHkjCLGttpCCwArdsSeBp97F7XRPhtzsYKPKa1aAwR8F4jnv0n720UI63hmXHJTUKZESMgUoSpziHRQ4EPEWVP2Yxyi3A/s1600/IMG_6317.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEh7DzbrdkpTxxvzeLk-hu_OdUoakYyeKhnUD6KEK6M2MW5z-PmbHkjCLGttpCCwArdsSeBp97F7XRPhtzsYKPKa1aAwR8F4jnv0n720UI63hmXHJTUKZESMgUoSpziHRQ4EPEWVP2Yxyi3A/s400/IMG_6317.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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There are not very many trees and bushes at this end of the river so its not really the best spot to be looking for Black Bush Robins, nevertheless two seemed to find enough to their liking o be in this area today.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2fEs50feCsHH2PiFKRxrSsRBzIgJabeGtK5XHzgIDxvZSSFNV2-H82aPc-V6NRKw_kB_uNFkM_1XvZ1wVDAiK0NOmLZFc9i5CrXlv2L6wYP2CQTPIpBL2ljDD3-kxAehU5Tyku9pZaYte/s1600/IMG_6356.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2fEs50feCsHH2PiFKRxrSsRBzIgJabeGtK5XHzgIDxvZSSFNV2-H82aPc-V6NRKw_kB_uNFkM_1XvZ1wVDAiK0NOmLZFc9i5CrXlv2L6wYP2CQTPIpBL2ljDD3-kxAehU5Tyku9pZaYte/s400/IMG_6356.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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This looked like a relatively young bird and there were three that I spotted in the area, the Greater Spotted Eagle is fairly common around here at the moment.</div>
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This certainly won't win any photography competitions but is clear enough to show a female Marsh Harrier perched on a rock. In all I spotted two of these around the lakes today.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKXkuXuU4O5SOJPX7IoZoR9HF7WjXjuDmdXQt5NK2DPOFpycedFUS0bHc2FC18gUjaOLzopPdbbgle8jVQumRXDBrXnb4H-V4Bqb9A_2ZKkYigbST0v6kweorvoyNfLUA4YZY9cFTyvPib/s1600/IMG_6363.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiKXkuXuU4O5SOJPX7IoZoR9HF7WjXjuDmdXQt5NK2DPOFpycedFUS0bHc2FC18gUjaOLzopPdbbgle8jVQumRXDBrXnb4H-V4Bqb9A_2ZKkYigbST0v6kweorvoyNfLUA4YZY9cFTyvPib/s400/IMG_6363.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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A small flock of 12 Cormorants were happily feeding on the far side of the lake, they are just starting to get their breeding plumage.</div>
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In addition to the big gull there were a few Black Headed Gulls about too, but only 3 or 4 in total.</div>
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For most of my walk I noticed a lack of Little Green Bee Eaters around, but as I drew closer to the fields I noticed a small flock of 5 or 5 in a tree together.</div>
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The Crested Lark is a constant around this area, you are almost guaranteed to see at least one and even if you don't see it you will certainly hear it as you walk along.</div>
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This Turkestan Shrike was the only Shrike I spotted today but then I did not manage to get down into the fields very much as there were workmen all around trying to create some new drainage ditches.</div>
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Other birds I did not get useful photos of were a good number of Barn Swallows and Rock Martins plus the ever present White Eared Bulbul and Graceful Prinia which were everywhere. The number of Common Moorhen are increasing on the lakes as are the number of Coot. </div>
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Another lovely days birding at Al Hayer.</div>
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© Bernard Bracken</div>
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<br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-39896293642192523632017-01-12T02:50:00.001-08:002017-01-12T02:52:12.290-08:00Salbuk 7/1/17Decided this weekend to head north of Riyadh to Salbuk which has an area of wetland which is fed by a large cement factory. I have not visited here for over a year so was interested to see what had changed. Well the answer is quite a lot. The water feed from the factory has not been in use for a while and the water lorries continue to take the water so the water levels have shrunk considerably since I was here last. Large sections of the reeds have dies off and there is evidence of a fire burning all the bushes sometime in the not too distant past. In any event I took a walk along the side of the area to see if I could spot much. Almost immediately I spotted three Marsh Harriers sailing off into the distance. It was still too dark to get photos and I did not see them again.<br />
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Speaking of pictures, the first few are a bit washed out because there was not enough light when I first arrived but right by where the car was parked I spotted a couple of Spectacled Bulbul. Also spotted a pair of these in Al Hayer last week. Not sure if they are moving about a bit but not really seen that many of these around here before. Oddly I did not see any White Eared Bulbul here at all today.</div>
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An early visitor to he area is this Stonechat. It was deep in the stubble of the old reed beds so focus was difficult.</div>
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There were a small number of Squacco Heron at the site today but there were also a smaller number of locals with shotguns so the birds were very wary. I did manage to get a photo of them as they flew off as proof :)</div>
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I saw about a dozen Common Moorhen on my walk but there were certainly many times more on site as you could hear them in the reeds. I see these birds on virtually every birding trip I go on, including my recent visit to Cuba but they never fail to impress.</div>
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There was a small flock of Little Stint on site, though with the exception of this guy I could not get near enough to get any sort of photo at all. As I mentioned above there are a lot of shooters in this area so I guess the birds react to that to survive. They don't know its a camera!</div>
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I am going with green sandpiper for this one but will look again in a bit, never been particularly comfortable telling the different sandpipers apart.</div>
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The White Wagtails were out in good numbers today with quite a few around the exposed pools and even more spotted flying overhead.</div>
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I spotted about a dozen or so Crested Lark around the area they seem to like the areas of wetland bordered by desert.</div>
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A pair of Little Egrets flew overhead heading south. They did not stop in the area.</div>
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There were a couple of Daurian Shrike around today but I did not get close views of any of them</div>
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Another fleeting view of a bird was this Tree Pipit. I think there were a few of them about but again I did not get close enough to get any decent views.</div>
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The Black Winged Stilt by contrast were not too bothered by me at all. There was a small flock of 8 or 9 of these about on site.</div>
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I was not expecting these Rock Martins (or Pale Crag Martins) today and indeed almost missed seeing them altogether as they were swooping in to an area of sand hills which I would normally not spend much time looking at. A nice bird to see though a bugger to photograph as the lag on the camera usually means you get a screen full of blue sky!!</div>
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I was glad I came to Salbuk today but was sad to see yet another of the small wetland areas going the same way as the cricket club on the other side of Riyadh. I am not sure why the factory has stopped feeding the site with water but if it is not restarted then this area will return to desert in the not too distant future.</div>
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<br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-40784294154786879902017-01-01T10:52:00.003-08:002017-01-05T02:30:22.423-08:00Trip to Cuba November / December 2016 Part 1I had the opportunity to travel to Cuba on vacation with my lovely wife at the end of November 2016 and it proved to be a very interesting couple of weeks. The first thing that happened was the death of Fidel Castro the day we arrived which impacted somewhat or ability to go anywhere for the 9 days of mourning which were immediately declared. However I was able to get out and about in the Varadero area. Almost all of the birds I encountered were new to me so I will add pictures below but in some instances the ID will follow later once I work out what they are. The report will be in 2 or 3 parts as I have a lot of photos to share.<br />
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The first I was delighted to spot was my first wild Hummingbird, the Cuban Emerald. I had a number of opportunities to get a photo but it was either too dark in the early morning or the little thing was moving way too quick. Anyhow as I rummaged in the undergrowth one morning this guy perched on a tree beside me and allowed a few photos.<br />
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This shot was the best of the rest. The Cuban Emerald is not exactly endemic to Cuba but almost, its only found there and on some of the islands of the Bahamas. Its just under 4 inches long with a beautiful emerald green plumage, especially if seen in good light. The only other hummingbird found in Cuba is the Bee Hummingbird, unfortunately not on this trip!!<br />
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Found in large numbers on the islands is our old friend the House Sparrow. the species was introduced by man and has been rapidly expanding its range ever since.<br />
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Greater Antillean Grackle forms largish flocks and can be found pretty much all over the island. They are noisy and tame birds about the size of a Blackbird with a deep blue plumage which has a fabulous sheen when seen in the right light. <br />
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This cute little thing is the Common Ground Dove, around the size of a large sparrow they forage endlessly in open areas all over the island.<br />
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Unfortunately a pretty poor distant shot of an American Kestrel, the perch he was on was in an inaccessible place so I could not get any closer.<br />
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A grey Catbird came out of the bushes briefly while I was sitting on the balcony in my room. A scramble to get the camera ensued and I got a couple of nice photos. You can only just make out the black skullcap from this photo, similar to a make Blackcap. Their song is very endearing as they sound very like a cat meowing.<br />
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One afternoon as I walked along the pathway behind the hotel after a fairly heavy rain shower I was joined by this Little Blue Heron which apparently thought the pool of rainwater just off shot might provide a meal. This is in non breeding plumage, the breeding plumage is very pretty.<br />
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On a walk to a nearby headland with my wife we came across a small flock of Kildeer feeding. Subsequently I was to find these on every walk I made in the area.<br />
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On the same walk we were treated to a flypast by a small flock of a dozen or so Brown Pelican. These are fairly common around the coast in Cuba.<br />
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We were on a visit to a place south of where we were staying when something flushed from a bush close by. I managed to get this photo of a West Indian Woodpecker (Cuban Race) just before it vanished into the foliage.<br />
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A distant shot of an Anhinga, if you look closely you can just make out the characteristic yellow trim on the tail, plus of course the long snake like neck.<br />
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These guys get everywhere, the Common Moorhen could be found on virtually all of the waterways around the area.<br />
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Another distant photo but this time of the Magnificent Frigatebird, I saw quite a few of these while I was in Cuba but could never get any closer than this.<br />
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Ok not so much wild birds this time but a couple of peahen in a farm we visited!<br />
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Another bird that appears to be everywhere I go is the Cattle Egret. This one was in the fields of said farm but there were hundreds of them about.<br />
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The Turkey Vulture was absolutely everywhere we went. From mid morning it was possible to see dozens of them soaring around, especially alongside roads looking for road kill I expect.<br />
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I have a few photos of this Red Legged Thrush, some better than this which I will share in due course. what a beautiful thrush though..<br />
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This one I am still researching but I think its a Black Billed Cuckoo but I am not sure as there is no sign of the red eye ring. I will keep you informed.<br />
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These are Cave Swallows I think. They were spotted in a cave and the photos were taken with a pretty poor flash but the white throat and red patch on the head makes me reasonably sure.</div>
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As I mentioned I have rather a lot of photos from the trip and will share more when I sort them out. I also have some nice pics from visits to my patch at Al Hayer last weekend to share, should you get bored of the Cuban ones :)</div>
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© Bernard Bracken</div>
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<br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-84606819576368892422016-11-13T21:56:00.000-08:002016-11-13T21:56:05.579-08:00Buraydah for the dayDecided to head north for a day (11/11/16) to see what I could find, the weather has been a lot cooler these past few weeks so I am better able to spend time out in it. We set off around 4:15 and arrived on site a little before 8am. The place I started out was one I had visited with Rob Tovey a couple of years ago, just on the Riyadh side of the city ring road this is an outflow river which creates a swamp like area, when there is enough water. There was not so much water today as its been a long dry summer. There have been a lot of changes here since we first visited. The swampy area is almost completely choked by reeds, so much so that you cannot get very far into it at all. But there is still a dirt road along the side of it so I was able to use this as a vantage point to see what was about.<br />
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As it turned out this visit was to reinforce my belief that with birding, especially in Saudi Arabia, you should stick to your plan and not give up. Doing this brought me back to a spot I had been hours earlier and where I got a lifer;<br />
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A small group of 4 White Tailed Lapwing flew over my head as I walked back to the car and landed about 50 meters away. A bit difficult to photograph among the bushes, but they let me get a bit closer to improve things a bit. A lovely bird and even more impressive to look at in flight, with strongly contrasting white and black patches on their wings. These birds are seen during migration but usually a bit further north around Tabuk. A delight to watch.<br />
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Many of the other birds seen today were pretty run of the mill but you can never discount birds here for spectacular looks. This Blue Cheeked Bee-eater is a beautiful addition to any birders day and this one spent quite some time poised on this stick watching me. There were perhaps two dozen of these around the swamp area.</div>
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I only got some distant views of this Kestrel and this shot high up on the pylon was as close as I got. That said I am now pretty sure it is a Lesser Kestrel as its toe nails are light coloured rather than dark (thanks Rob for the second opinion there). Earlier in the day there were two Marsh Harriers coasting along over the reeds but they never came close enough for photos. </div>
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As always the Crested Lark were out in force with about 10 to 12 seen on the day. I am not sure if they are engaging in territorial battles at the moment but there seems to be quite a lot of arguments going on between these guys at the moment.</div>
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A good number of House Sparrows were to be seen in the area and some Spanish Sparrow, although not nearly as many.</div>
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I spotted a single Common Sandpiper on my walk today, a little unusual as you normally see a few together but who knows.</div>
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There were several Turkestan Shrike around the place all of whom seemed happy to pose for photographs.</div>
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The White Eared Bulbul were about in large numbers all over the area. If my memory serves these were nowhere near as common the last time we visited this area a few years back. They have been expanding their range in Saudi Arabia at an increasing rate over the past few years.</div>
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In all I spotter about a dozen White Wagtails feeding in the mud at the side of the river. I have not seen many of these at all this year around Riyadh, perhaps they find the more northerly route more to their liking.</div>
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Our old friend the Little Green Bee Eater was present along the side of the river although only in small numbers, its cousin the Blue Cheeked Bee Eater was far more numerous on the day, I thin I only saw 3 of these and mostly on the western side of the main highway.</div>
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There was a small flock of Cattle and Little Egret on site and I had some nice views of them from a distance as I walked east along the river. Unfortunately as I got closer there was some clown with a gun randomly taking pot shots which scared them off. I saw the guy walking away a bit later with his shotgun, it appears he made a lot of noise but did not manage to hit anything!!</div>
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There were about 8 to 10 Stonechat along the stretch of river I walked today, they were not very keen to have photos taken so I only got some bad pics.</div>
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As always there were quite a selection of Pigeons about and a few Collared Dove. The Namaqua dove were a little more scarce. I think in all I spotted maybe 4 whereas Pigeons numbered maybe 60+. </div>
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This is one of those shots I took thinking it was another picture of a bird I had photographed several times before during the day, but in truth it was not, a nice Spotted Flycatcher, I believe.</div>
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I moved to the opposite side of the Highway for an hour or so to see if I could see anything else and almost immediately spotted this lone Spur Winged Lapwing and a Collared Dove close by. The area behind some factories was very overgrown and hard to navigate but had a lot of White Eared Bulbul, Spanish Sparrow and a few more Little Green Bee Eater. I disturbed a Hoopoe and a small flock of Cattle Egret. </div>
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We returned to Riyadh at about 2pm. I very enjoyable day and a lifer to boot, hard to get better than that :)</div>
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© Bernard Bracken</div>
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bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-4122833812101568440.post-36858880500905687232016-11-01T05:28:00.001-07:002016-11-01T05:28:04.771-07:00AsSaad ah East of Al KharjHeaded south to Al Kharj to see what I could find and decided to look up river from my usual spot near the Livestock Market. As it was a new spot for me I was not at all sure what I would find but that's part of the fun of it I guess. The area is to the east of AlKharj and I selected a spot that was at the edge of a small built up area called AsSaad where the wastewater stream passed. On one side of the road there was the river, or to be more precise the reed bed, as very little open water remains that way for long in this region. There was a small drain immediately adjacent to the road which was partially wet and attracted a number of birds. On the opposite side of the road was pure desert, a good deal of which was powder sand as opposed to the rocky type desert which is more common around this region. Overhead there were a good number of Barn Swallow taking advantage of the insect life in the area.<br />
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoFEdlREZ9WjGtAwv7dZ2kysfpwE36s6tx0VH3DNEFJbTv7JGIv9WXrNyTCEAYjqBmtEhURntdP7J2Kf0WcBpW4glC61wHU76Xd5QwfrmzmTl-N_BF1dfWLFIgfKvs85MU1m0etdPU9C5-/s1600/20161015_094318.jpg" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="640" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjoFEdlREZ9WjGtAwv7dZ2kysfpwE36s6tx0VH3DNEFJbTv7JGIv9WXrNyTCEAYjqBmtEhURntdP7J2Kf0WcBpW4glC61wHU76Xd5QwfrmzmTl-N_BF1dfWLFIgfKvs85MU1m0etdPU9C5-/s640/20161015_094318.jpg" width="360" /></a></div>
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I am not really an architecture buff but AlKharj has a pretty impressive building on the main road from Riyadh. <span style="color: #1f497d; font-family: "calibri" , "sans-serif"; mso-ansi-language: EN-US; mso-bidi-language: AR-SA; mso-fareast-font-family: Calibri; mso-fareast-language: EN-US; mso-fareast-theme-font: minor-latin;"><span style="color: black;">This
the famous water reservoir tower which is a major landmark in the town. It is called
"Burj Alhkarj" which means Kharj tower. It has four levels in the
upper part of the tower for: operations and maintenance equipment for the
reservoir, another for clerks desks and administration and the other two for
visitors sight seeing with small shops and one level is a rotating restaurant
covering the sites around it. Pretty amazing I think you'll agree.</span></span></div>
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The area to the east of my location looked like this for miles with vegetation disappearing as you look further east. Walking on this stuff was hard work and anyhow there were very few birds on that side of the road. </div>
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Streaked Weavers were about in small numbers on site but only in small groups of 3 or 4.</div>
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A rather poor shot of the Graceful Prinia, perched in a bush by the roadside.</div>
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Very active around the area were a flock of a dozen or so White Wagtails. When I arrived they were chasing each other around a small group of bushes and occasionally catching bugs. A very noisy little group.</div>
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In a wet area close to the road was a pair of Black Winged Stilts, unfortunately I could not get close enough for a clear photo but at least there is a record :)</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3nl98Xj40JtWsRT5lywO_5-4ceV005sPLnoPWp2PvlpuDfqnFiFjImZnFZaodqn8Uo6uc9T5T-JsrsJp3UOhyK2710OtG4RFHdb4QFRBTJlNt2z_W5NaQxzRIarET-5ev3UFvYL-bRDRr/s1600/IMG_4537.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj3nl98Xj40JtWsRT5lywO_5-4ceV005sPLnoPWp2PvlpuDfqnFiFjImZnFZaodqn8Uo6uc9T5T-JsrsJp3UOhyK2710OtG4RFHdb4QFRBTJlNt2z_W5NaQxzRIarET-5ev3UFvYL-bRDRr/s400/IMG_4537.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Sandpiper by the edge of a little stream, again I could not get close enough for a better shot.</div>
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All over the site were small groups of Little Green Bee-eaters shooting up into the sky to catch bugs then gracefully gliding back to their perch. </div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEeC_Sfo01C7Gt35QZn67YLirdzA4j2llkSfFY9ykX8TPk26JgT_JG3aI_fgGttpT9jwbNEAchWaA7QmEFuUU_SkMYLyiTVoGjLMAeZdfhc7aO9M6WHylGTnIZhyphenhyphenF7JSFP4svbD03RXrcD/s1600/IMG_4556.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgEeC_Sfo01C7Gt35QZn67YLirdzA4j2llkSfFY9ykX8TPk26JgT_JG3aI_fgGttpT9jwbNEAchWaA7QmEFuUU_SkMYLyiTVoGjLMAeZdfhc7aO9M6WHylGTnIZhyphenhyphenF7JSFP4svbD03RXrcD/s400/IMG_4556.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Another distance shot of a pair of Spur Winged Plover and a Black Winged Stilt in the background. Trouble with this spot is here are few places with enough cover to allow you to approach closely.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizT1OLiJ7tIsOa9Z0oYTdvTDIU2L4stVRmSZXUh6yax8qmG7DnU0TW5VKrMLZ0P49K3-oePy4IUtS_XoqkLZ3NIN9dH2PqTa3E8Zz8gzBt3UM1-D_kRks8hIbeIujX-iv632N1waycaQDt/s1600/IMG_4566.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEizT1OLiJ7tIsOa9Z0oYTdvTDIU2L4stVRmSZXUh6yax8qmG7DnU0TW5VKrMLZ0P49K3-oePy4IUtS_XoqkLZ3NIN9dH2PqTa3E8Zz8gzBt3UM1-D_kRks8hIbeIujX-iv632N1waycaQDt/s400/IMG_4566.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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So as we are on a roll with long distance shots, this is the only member of the Heron family I saw all day. I think it is a Purple Heron gliding off into the mist but I guess It could be a Grey either.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3lyMSX6dVu9LanmKUXqy_g7JH5Ykdqwh2oAFcZKh7s4FtUD7vjSvIDrxKNPJnN8xxB1Be5uxY5OsnaV9-IjiDKiFTclO2j3ntZAzU4n3bcT0OKL_TQD2hSrIuPAl50sXGPhZbo4FJDxV/s1600/IMG_4567.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhC3lyMSX6dVu9LanmKUXqy_g7JH5Ykdqwh2oAFcZKh7s4FtUD7vjSvIDrxKNPJnN8xxB1Be5uxY5OsnaV9-IjiDKiFTclO2j3ntZAzU4n3bcT0OKL_TQD2hSrIuPAl50sXGPhZbo4FJDxV/s400/IMG_4567.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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As with many areas around the Kingdom, the White Eared Bulbul was much in evidence.</div>
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A couple of quick shots of one of the Reed Warblers, I am not sure which one as its not a very clear photo in either case but maybe someone out there is reader land will recognise i.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2VwaY3LcISGi4pawQMawxETTGWCqp0RHQ9vy3T0FMqR35lcp4ivYQcGhVq_b9Lbr3hN5IeYeWQl_OQ_0sSDfJ_qGvHf-1NS9d1EV-S3mqxQFEvGRuadiCvy9dtcqAD0qwFgE2vmhJT76G/s1600/IMG_4570.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj2VwaY3LcISGi4pawQMawxETTGWCqp0RHQ9vy3T0FMqR35lcp4ivYQcGhVq_b9Lbr3hN5IeYeWQl_OQ_0sSDfJ_qGvHf-1NS9d1EV-S3mqxQFEvGRuadiCvy9dtcqAD0qwFgE2vmhJT76G/s400/IMG_4570.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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Another shot facing the other way, if only the bush was not in the way.</div>
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A bit of a size comparison, the Indian Silverbill is a good deal smaller than its neighbour the Laughing Dove. There were quite a few of both about the place and I spent some time watching a small group of Silverbills feeding in a clump of long grass. Fascinating to watch.</div>
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Mallard making a run for it!!</div>
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Namaqua Dove, again there were a few about but not as many as the Pigeon and Laughing Dove.</div>
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<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLwclBVsRzboIqf-cRBFkWcW_jvOECVKWsxoNgjSYpd2flhaREpuGtkffWBR8f0npv1SGlGzQ4t_C8ULLsAqJTDKZRgX8f2L2E7INk5iUcVFV9kupOonQRmnELPmjI-Qz3To7yHmNRy_xj/s1600/IMG_4637.JPG" imageanchor="1" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" height="300" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgLwclBVsRzboIqf-cRBFkWcW_jvOECVKWsxoNgjSYpd2flhaREpuGtkffWBR8f0npv1SGlGzQ4t_C8ULLsAqJTDKZRgX8f2L2E7INk5iUcVFV9kupOonQRmnELPmjI-Qz3To7yHmNRy_xj/s400/IMG_4637.JPG" width="400" /></a></div>
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I was delighted to see this Trumpeter Finch perched on a branch. I think he was alone, which is a little unusual but at least I spotted him as I have not seen one of these for a while.</div>
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A closer shot of a Crested Lark, it was weird because this guy flew up close to where I was standing and perched on a branch looking at me. He stayed there for some time. Had an issue getting the camera to focus as the bridge cameras struggle with anything that small and that close, but got it in the end.</div>
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I spotted this bird and its partner about 2km away when I was at the far end of my walk and originally thought it was a pair of Marsh Harriers, they disappeared, but then I spotted one in a tree when I was making my way back and grabbed a couple of photos, there was clearly no head markings and a white base to its tail, so its no Marsh Harrier. A Greater Spotted Eagle, sub adult is my considered opinion.</div>
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This comes into the not a clue bracket. I am thinking another White Wagtail is an odd light but I am not sure. I only got one photo before it flew off so still not certain.</div>
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Thought it was about time I featured my accomplice on all of these trips. Akram is a great guy and quite knowledgeable about birding locations for a non birder.</div>
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Another great days birding overall. I was disappointed not o see a kingfisher, but there was never a great likelihood that they are in the area anyhow.</div>
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© Bernard Bracken.</div>
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<br />bernardhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/07029504899145006552noreply@blogger.com0