Jizan Corniche - Jizan

This site is one of the main birding locations in the region and has good wader habitat holding the highest concentration of shorebirds along the Saudi Red Sea coast. The site is easily viewed from the cornice road and in the early morning the sun is behind the observer allowing good viewing conditions. The weather was cloudy and this combined with the tide being out making the wading birds distant did not allow for good photographs to be taken. I went birding at first light and the previously good (July 2013) inlet had no birds at all. One very noticeable thing was the number of Black Kites sitting on the telegraph posts and flying about. In July 2013 I did not see a Black Kite but there were at least thirty birds present on this visit. They all appeared to be Black Kite rather than the resident Yellow-billed Kite.

Black Kite

I then went to the seafront and looked for birds here stopping to look at two Pink-backed Pelicans sitting on a lamp post and a Western Osprey on another. Other birds that were seen here included three Black-crowned Sparrow Larks, 20+ Common Myna and House Sparrow.

Pink-backed Pelican

Western Osprey

The extensive mudflats held small numbers of waders with 100+ Crab Plovers, five Bar-tailed Godwits, 10 Common Redshanks, one Common Greenshanks, 20 Lesser Sand Plovers, 10+ Greater Sand Plovers, five Kentish Plovers, one Eurasian Curlews, five Whimbrels, three Eurasian Oystercatchers, 50+ Little Stints, one Grey Plovers and four Marsh Sandpipers. Several Lesser Crested Terns & Swift Terns were flying about and five Greater Flamingos and several Sooty Gulls. Travelling further down towards the port we found a small fishing boat harbour near to the fish market that was full of gulls. Sooty Gull was common here with over one hundred birds seen, 5+ White-eyed Gulls, 3 Baltic Gulls, One Caspian Gull.

Bar-tailed Godwit

Crab Plover - adult

Crab Plover - juvenile

Sooty Gull