Whilst birding the Jubail area on 22 April I cam across a late second
calendar year Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila
clanga sitting on a pylon. The species is uncommon throughout the world and
is on the IUCN Red List where it is classed as vulnerable. The Eastern Province
of Saudi Arabia is an excellent place to see it in the winter months when birds
are almost always associated with freshwater. It is a regular passage migrant
and winter visitor to the Arabian peninsula, with most records coming from the
better recorded countries of the United Arab Emirates and Oman. The number of
sightings of the species in winter is increasing in the Eastern province of
Saudi Arabia suggesting the wintering population is increasing, with more than
ten birds wintering each year in the jubail area in the last few years. Birds are
generally present from late September until late April with the birds recorded
in late April being quite late for migrants but Dick Forsman (pers comm)
mentioned young birds often linger in spring unlike adults, and late April is
not too late for juvenile Great Spotted Eagles to be seen on their wintering
grounds. It can be assumed that this bird will be one of the last remaining
wintering birds rather than a bird that is planning on staying through the
summer, although s few birds in the last five years have been noted in
mid-summer.
