Whilst birding the Sarrar area at then end of
February I found a smart Masked Shrike Lanius
nubicus. The bird appeared to be a freshly arrived migrant as there had
been a big fall of passerines in the area and it allowed close approach even
when on foot, although the timing suggests it may have been a wintering bird.
As a result I managed to get a few good photographs of the bird. The Masked
Shrike is an uncommon migrant to all areas of Saudi Arabia with a few birds
wintering in the southwest and rarely in the Eastern Province. Most birds are
seen on migration mainly in April, May and September although there are a few
summer records in June with early migrants in late March and late migrants in
early October.
