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24 February 2013

White-spotted Bluethroat – Dhahran Hills


A very early morning walk around the percolation pond looking for migrants turned up a few birds but nothing too spectacular. The best bird seen was an adult male White-spotted Bluethroat that is a scarce passage migrant through the area. This may possible be due to the fact that it is only safe to identify adult male birds in breeding plumage and these are normally only in full breeding plumage in the spring.  This is the second one I have seen this spring with another at the other end of the pond a couple of weeks ago, although there is a chance this may have been the same bird? Other migrants seen included ten Common Chiffchaffs, two Pallid Swifts and four Barn Swallows. A Lesser W hitethroat may well have been a migrant also, but a few birds winter in the area also. A Turkestan Shrike was a migrant as was its close relative the Daurian Shrike . Apart from these birds there was little else of note to be seen.
White-spotted Bluethroat
Common Chiffchaff
Daurian Shrike
Daurian Shrike