I found a breeding pair of Greater Painted
Snipe Rostratula benghalensis near Sabya in July 2017. Initially I found
an adult female at close range at a small wetland and took some photos of the
bird. The next day at the same location I saw a male with a small chick
indicating they had breed there, only the second confirmed breeding record of the
species in the Kingdom. Interestingly the female is the brighter plumaged bird
and the male the duller unlike most bird species where it is the other way
around. The species was only recorded in Saudi Arabia for the first time on 8
July 2010 when three were seen east of Sabya with at least eight their
(including 2-3 together) on 11 July 2010. There have not been many records
since although they have been seen in most years in the southwest of Saudi
Arabia. Two were flushed at Malaki Dam and two others seen well near Sabya with
a group of four at the same site 16 May 2013, which was the first confirmed
breeding of this species in Saudi Arabia. Birds were then seen in similar areas
in 2015 and 2017.
