The trip started with an afternoon gull watch from my balcony on the 9th floor of the hotel. Lesser Black-backed were the most numerous with a few Yellow Legged thrown into the mix. Once the heat had gone from the sun I had a wander around the beach and any area of scrub for the resident town birds.
The noisiest of them all were the Common Bulbul who were active in their small groups moving between the palm trees. House Sparrow were everywhere and a couple of Collared Dove were noted in the hotel grounds.
I chased a couple of Maghreb Magpie as they ducked in and out of a new development close to the beach. The flourescent blue patch behind the eye is a defining identification feature of this bird.
Pallid Swift were noted overhead and a bird was observed visiting a nest in a palm along the beach front. You can just see the darker hand on this bird. I tested Merlin out which didn't contradict my thoughts.
As dusk closed in there was a flurry of movement of passerines. Spotless Starling and White Wagtail the most numerous.
An afternoon that turned out ok having done the trip chores prior to setting out!
No comments:
Post a Comment