That was a birthday to remember yesterday. Up at 0130, out at 0205, and birding until after dark at 1940 or so. And we saw…well I’ll tell you more about this trip to Israel over the next few days.
Thank you to everyone who donated to the cause of helping the Hellenic Ornithological Society combat illegal bird killing in Greece.
Our team, the Birdwatch-Birdguides Roadrunners raised a very respectable £4500. Thank you.
I’m writing this on a hotel balcony in Eilat, wearing a Hen Harrier Day T-shirt (the sodden 570) after the awards ceremony after yesterday’s bird race.
Congratulations to the Finnish Arctic Redpolls team for seeing/hearing an amazing 174 species (Flying Dutchmen, 171; and a young UK team, Next Generation Birders third with 164 species). We are thinking of renaming our team the Past Generation Birders with our total of 138 species.
But there are some Steppe Buzzarda flying past so I’d better have a look at them.
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Nothing wrong with being past it Mark, I’ve been there for a while.
I was fortunate to bump into a load of Swedes many years ago there to share the hire car but not starting at your time but quite close to it and we set off into the Negev first seeing a Striped Hyena followed by a porcupine. Tried for the Houbara Bustards only to fined an Arabian Wolf crossing the lekking area and finished off with Dorcas Gazelle. The birds were what we were after even if it does not sound like it with large flocks of larks and sandgrouse getting back to Eilat to find a real mega in a Red billed Tropicbird. Such is the fun of birding! You never know what you might find! [until its gone! Joni Mitchell]