Last night,
1 June 2014, whilst birding the ‘patch’ Phil Roberts found a Red-wattled
Lapwing Vanellus indicus, a new ‘patch’ species for both him and me as well as a new species for
us both in Saudi Arabia. Luckily for me I was very close to Phil when he found
it so soon saw the bird myself before it flew off and disappeared from sight.
We went looking for it and I decided to look in the wet ditch and found it
there but again it flew immediately and disappeared off over the Dhahran hills
housing complex. Hopefully the bird will stay around and we can relocate it and
get a few decent photos. Phil managed one photo into the sun that he has kindly
sent me and allowed me to use that is reproduced below. The species is rare in
Saudi Arabia with the following records all the birds I know about. In Riyadh &
Central Arabia, birds were seen in January 1977, within the Riyadh city
boundary; one was seen 1 November 1985 near Mansouriyah; one on 2 December 1988
and another January 1989 on farmland adjacent to the lower reaches of the
Riyadh watercourse and another on 4 November 1989 at the Riyadh watercourse. One
was on Thumamah dairy farm 16-22 January 1994. One individual wintered at
Thumamah between 5 November 1999 and 17 February 2000 & from 27 January onwards
it was present at the old dairy farm. A second individual was seen at Al Safi
Dairy Farm on 25 January 2001. In the Empty quarter Up to five birds were seen on three
days at Sabkha 40 in 2010 where there was suitable breeding habitat present.
This species is resident at wetlands in eastern Arabia (United Arab Emirates),
and is gradually colonizing westwards. Although the minimum of two pairs did
not appear to be breeding (which would have been indicated by extreme agitation
and mobbing of intruders, the timing of this record suggests that it might
breed later in 2010 or in a future year. (The species tends to be present in
breeding areas for two or more years before attempting breeding). So far it has
not yet been recorded to breed in Saudi Arabia. In the Eastern province it is regarded as
a rare passage
migrant and winter visitor and there have been fourteen records prior to this
one of single birds from October to December (especially November), but also
January, April and July. Birds have been seen at Nayriyyah in the north, three
times at Haradh in the south with the last records being sixteen 24 November
1983, four times at Abqaiq and four times in Dhahran with the last record 13
December 1985. The most recent record for the Eastern province was a bird Lou and Brian found on a birding
trip to the Eastern Province at Sabkhat Al Fasl 15 February 2014.
