Whilst birding the Jubail area last weekend we came across three Great
Black-headed Gulls sitting on a flooded area of sabkha. One bird was an adult
in full summer plumage with the other two being second calendar year birds.
Jubail has turned out to be a good site to see the species in the last four
years with birds seen each winter. The Great Black-headed Gull is an uncommon
winter visitor to the Arabian Gulf and southern Red Sea coastal areas that is
also rarely seen inland. The first birds are normally not seen until December
or January, with March probably the best time to see the species. Apart from
Sabkhat Al Fasl the other good location for seeing the species is the causeway
to Bahrain where birds can often be seen hanging in the wind over the road and
up to two adult summer birds have been seen on recent crossings.
