My bird watching map over Middle East
Tuesday 27 th
of November 2018
and I was not happy when we left Radisson Blu, my Guide had been late and we took off 30 minutes late. We left Muscat behind on highway #17 going south towards Dhabab and the Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve. The sun was coming up behind the mountains when we drove down the mountains east of Muscat.
The sun is coming up over the mountains
Going south on highway #17
We´re on highway #17 when I spot 5 Egyptian Vultures sitting on the wires next to the highway. I ask my Guide to stop. We go back to see if we can come close enough to get any pictures.
We got pretty close but it was still not enough daylight for any good pictures. But I was happy when we continued our trip towards the south.
Time to leave highway #17
We leave highway #17 at the exit to the Bimmah Sinkhole and we came down to the coast. Reaching the coast and we turn right following a small road along the coast. We have a pick-up in front of us and the car start signalling to us.
The man in the pick-up tell us that we have a bird in our grill. My Guide goes out and he discover a dead Indian Roller in the grill. A very sad start of the day, a beautiful Indian Roller had been flying in to our car and hopefully the roller died instantly
Sad to discover the dead Indian Roller
Driving along the coast
Driving along the coast
We continue along the coat and we´re soon stopping as there are Egyptian Vultures. They escape when we try to come close and they fly across the road to sit down on the wires. There was a lot of Egyptian Vultures along the road and we tried to get close to them.
Egyptian Vulture
Egyptian Vulture
Egyptian Vulture
Egyptian Vulture
We drive along the coast and we spot a few vultures at the cliff edge over the water. We leave the road but the vultures takes off, but I see some vultures behind some rocks and we continue. I get out of the car and I will try to sneak up on the vulture.
The last vulture takes off when I get out of the car, DARN! But I discover a Crested Lark next to the car and I follow the bird towards the cliff edge.
I spot an Osprey sitting behind the rocks, just on the cliff edge overlooking the water. I take a few pictures and I turn to the car. I wave to the Guide for him to come here and he got out of the car and he came down to me. I had given him the internationally recognised sign for “Walk carefully and you have a chance to see a bird of prey”
He was happy to get to see the bird and when he had got his pictures we moved on trying to get close to the bird to get more pictures.
Egyptian Vulture
Western Osprey
Western Osprey
Western Osprey
Western Osprey
Western Osprey
Western Osprey
Western Osprey
We came very close to the Osprey before the bird took off. We returned to the car and we continued south towards Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve. We see a lot of Egyptian Vultures along the way. We see a group of Grey Francolins but they are very scared and as soon as I touched my camera they were gone.
The vultures was also scared and they took off as soon as we approached them.
Egyptian Vulture
Egyptian Vulture
Egyptian Vulture
Grey Francolin
Egyptian Vulture
We leave the beach road turning right driving up a road to a building. Check point at the Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve where we will pick up a guide that will be with us during the visit to Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve.
We will drive under the highway and we will drive up a canyon looking for the very rare wild goat. There should also be some of the Arabian wolfs in the area.
Driving up to the entrance to Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve
Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve
Passing a gazelle
Passing a gazelle
Driving north towards the canyon
Passing a group of Egyptian Vultures
Driving north towards the canyon
Passing a gazelle
Driving north towards the canyon
We reach the water draining tunnel under the highway
We reach the water draining tunnel under the highway
Driving under the highway
We reach the canyon on the other side of the highway
We reach the canyon on the other side of the highway
We reach the canyon on the other side of the highway
Driving up the canyon
Driving up the canyon
Driving up the canyon
Driving up the canyon
Driving up the canyon
Driving up the canyon
Driving up the canyon
Driving up the canyon
This is how they lived in Oman back in the days
Reaching the end of the road
Reaching the end of the road
Reaching the end of the road
We reach the end of the dust road and we cannot drive any longer in the canyon. We get out of the car and there are plenty cats in the area but not many birds. I see two Purple Sunbirds,otherwise nothing. We walk around for a bit before we get in to the car and drive out the canyon again.
We pass through the draining tunnel and we turn left do drive through the desert and we see gazelles and small birds. We drive down towards the beach road and I try to get some bird pictures, but none of them turned out any good. I got out of the car when we reached the beach road. I spotted a Desert Wheatear but I didn´t came very close before the bird took off.
Gazelle
Driving through the desert
We leave the Desert Wheatear behind driving back towards the gate at the Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve to leave our Guide before we drive north towards the Bimmah Sinkhole where we will have a look for birds. We pass a group of Egyptian Vultures and we leave the road driving down to the water front to try our luck to get pictures.
The vultures takes of when we approach the birds. We managed to get a few pictures, not any quality pictures but better than nothing. Well, now I have enough pictures of the Egyptian Vulture and we left the beach getting back on the road driving back to the gate at Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve to drop our Guide.
Egyptian Vulture
Egyptian Vulture
On the way back to Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve
On the way back to Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve
We leave the beach road turning right to go up the road to the gate at Ras AlShajer Nature Reserve. I ask them to stop and I go out of the car. I tell my Guide to pick me up when he come back. I had seen some White-eared Bulbuls and I want to see if I can get a few pictures.
I get out of the car and I see a couple of the White-eared Bulbuls flying in to some bushes. I also see a Purple Sunbird feeding form a bush with flowers. The Sunbird is making some noises and I decided to try to make a recording for xano-canto.
Listen to the Purple Sunbird
Remarks from the Recordist
Recorded with my ZOOM H5 Handy recorder. High pass filter applied in Audacity
Bird feeding from a bush with flowers along the road. The bird was scared and when my car came I parked next to the bush and the bird came back after 5 minutes. Picture and recording from inside the car
The very same bird you can see on the picture below
Purple Sunbird
Male in eclipse plumage
We had the recording and pictures and we started to drive back up north on the Beach Road, next stop will be at the Bimmah Sinkhole. We pass two camels eating from a garbage bin and I ask my Guide to stop so I could take a picture.
We pass an Osprey sitting on top of a lamp post, so that makes it three Ospreys today. We spot a Whimbrel just before leaving the Beach Road turning in to the road leading to the Bimmah Sinkhole.
Camels
Camels
Osprey
Whimbrel
Whimbrel
Whimbrel
Whimbrel
Whimbrel
We left the Whimbrel and we drove the 100 meter up the road to Bimmah Sinkhole. We park the car and I spot two Desert Larks and I try to get some pictures. The birds flew away but I saw where the birds were landing and I followed the birds.
I was disappointed with the Desert Larks, I was not very happy with the pictures from earlier this morning. I was just about to turn around and go back to the entrance to the Bimmah Sinkhole.
I was just about to turn around when I discovered that I had run in to two White-eared Bulbuls sitting just two meters away from me.
I had never been so close to the White-eared Bulbuls before and I managed to get a picture before the birds took off.
White-eared Bulbul
White-eared Bulbul
White-eared Bulbul
Bimmah Sinkhole
(Arabic هـويـة نـجـم Hawaiyat Najm) is a water-filled depression, structurally a sinkhole, in the limestone of eastern Muscat Governorate in the Sultanate of Oman. A lake of turquoise waters, it is 50 m by 70 m wide and approximately 20 m deep. It is only about 600 m away from the sea, between the coastal towns of Ḑibāb and Bimmah.
The sinkhole was formed by a collapse of the surface layer due to dissolution of the underlying limestone. However, locals believe that it was created by a meteorite, ‘Hawaiyat Najm’, which translates to ‘The Falling Star’ in Arabic, and hence the name.
To preserve the sinkhole, the local municipality developed a park, Hawiyat Najm Park (Haweat Najm Park), around it, along with a stairway leading down to the lake.
We walk in to the Bimmah Sinkhole (Hawaiyat Najm Park) and I was soon running in to a group of House Sparrows and some other birds. I was chasing a Striolated Bunting and I took several pictures and none of them turned out any good.
Listen to the Common Myna
Remarks from the Recordist
Recorded with my ZOOM H5 Handy recorder. High pass filter applied in Audacity
One bird sitting in a tree next to the Bimmah Sinkhole. Making different sounds.
No picture taken as the bird flew away when I was ready with the recording
We left Bimmah Sinkhole and we started to drive back to Muscat. I asked the driver to drop me off at the Al Bahri Road along the port. I had been told that there were a lot of birds along the waterfront. Click HERE
to find out if I see any birds coming back to Muscat.
'What Is Going On With Sweden??'
Tucker Carlson REACTS To Situation In Sweden