Phil Roberts and I visited Ushaiqer dump site 175 kilometres northwest of Riyadh at first light on 15 November 2019. We failed to locate the main track to the site so drove over the rough boulder strewn plain to the waste collection site. We saw little for the first three kilometres but then started seeing tens of Steppe Eagles and as we approached the main dump saw thousands of Steppe Eagles. We counted birds through a telescope and binoculars and came to a rough estimate of 6000 birds. We spent many hours driving around the site and also recorded 15 Eastern Imperial Eagles, four Greater Spotted Eagles and two Eurasian Black Kites. On the way out, down the main track they recorded 24 Steppe Eagles sitting on a single telephone mast showing just how common the birds were. It was a truly memorable experience seeing so many Steppe Eagles in a single place.
