Bit of a rubbish day all round. The staff in this hotel come across as really arrogant and rude - I’ve never experienced it at this level before. So after my wife was conned out of some linen a few days ago at a store, we had a little confrontation with a receptionist who was totally out of order and aggressive. Amazing really. We even experienced a huge argument between staff at the breakfast buffet as well. So we couldn’t wait to leave Cairo and fly down to Luxor.
Well, we left it quite late and basically make the gate with a just a few minutes to spare and are the last ones to board! That was after traversing 3 (yes 3) X-ray/security machines during the airport fiasco.And so it was that we take off 40 minutes late anyway and after a 1h 40mins flight touch down in Luxor just before 7pm. We meet the Sixt rental agent out in the car park (they don't have an office at the airport) and find out they’ve switched our SUV for a saloon car – an upgrade apparently….. No doubt it’s another scam and judging by the poor state of the roads I really wish we had the SUV I had pre-booked.
We head to the hotel, a good one along the Nile, traversing numerous speed bumps, evading even more horse & carts, motorbikes without their lights on, as well as people randomly walking out in front of us to cross the street. Just a note about Sixt - very rude on WhatsApp messages with constant “hello?” If I didn’t answer them immediately! So you see how it goes in Egypt.
The drive to the hotel only takes 25 minutes and is pretty slow going despite it being a 9km journey. Traffic is relatively light thank goodness and once at the hotel we find the staff to be amazingly friendly, polite, helpful and…. Well, normal. Such a contrast to the Cairo hotel staff.
Not a bad view from the balcony of our hotel room
The following morning I get up late but refreshed and we head over to Karnak Temple after breakfast, during which there were 4 Eurasian Hoopoes feeding on the well manicured lawn right next to us. The temple is pretty cool, despite one of the guards trying to con us out of some money because he pointed out a few things in the ruins around us! I tell you, everyone wants something from you here. On the walk in we are accosted by someone purporting to be a guide and wants to take us around, saying “don’t worry about the money”… and he wouldn’t leave us alone for ages despite repeated “no thank you’s from us”. Oh and let’s not forget the numerous market stall vendors hassling us to buy their tat!
Karnak Temple
During the morning I get a WhatsApp message from Sixt Rental starting they had a report I’d been speeding at 176kmh yesterday, which apart from being utterly ridiculous there’s nowhere in the 9kms I drove from the airport to our hotel that would have been possible in the narrow, bumpy streets, with numerous speed humps, horse carts and mopeds without lights weeving erratically everywhere! So another scam and one I addressed with strong words and threats of the British Embassy.
After a break back at the hotel I drive 15 minutes downriver to Crocodile Island. Unbeknown to me this is a private island and I shouldn’t be here, but once across the bridge (where I have to leave the car’s driving license at a security checkpoint) I then realise the score here. The island is basically owned by the Jollie Ville (or something like that) Hotel and only for their clients to use.
No way i'm going to see any snipe here...
Anyway, I walk around it pretending I am staying there and actually have an enjoyable couple of hours in the late afternoon. I am particularly hoping for better views of Greater Painted Snipe but the riversides are covered in tall grass and reeds and I can't find anywhere that a snipe would venture out onto. Still, I see at least 4 Masked Shrikes, many African Green Bee-eaters, 4 Senegal Thick-knees, several White-throated Kingfishers, lots of Pied Kingfishers, Clamorous Reed Warblers, Graceful Prinia, lots of Squacco Herons and a few African Swamphens, plus more commoner species......
And then I'm escorted off the premises by security staff……!
I wake up bleary eyed, the taste of alcohol still alive and well in my mouth from last night’s revelry at our supposedly posh hotel! A quick, cool shower helps to wake me up, as does a Starbucks latte from the 24 hour mall next door. I’m being picked up and driven south to Faiyoum to meet local guide Ahmed Mansour and make my way outside the hotel at the appointed time of 4am. There are several security guards looking at me a bit perplexed but none of them stop me. Tourists are well protected in Egypt, sometimes it looks a little overbearing but they are here for our safety and I don’t have a problem with them so far. If you pick a hotel too close to an embassy, then the hotel security will ask you some questions about your optics, and that could well cause problems. Every hotel has security scanners in, but I simply walk around them here!
Anyway, I find myself speeding through the relatively quiet Cairo streetsin the early hours (4am to be precise). Our route running parallel to the Nile… passing silhouetted pyramids at Giza… and continuing on into the desert. Sleep beckons and I drift off despite the large amounts of Starbucks caffeine coursing through my veins and we eventually reach Faiyoum at 6.15am where we meetAhmed.
He’s a jolly chap and is keen to get going and find Senegal Coucal, my main target here. He says they are easier in the spring and getting a little bit trickier this late in September! Uhho!! So we check roadside scrub and bushes at frequent intervals along a bery long straight road, with Ahmed doing a very good impersonation of the coucal’s call. The first few attempts draw a blank but I hear several White-throated Kingfishers calling around us. Shortly after we head away from Lake Qarun and follow a dirt track alongside a drainage ditch. We drive a few kilometres beside this waterway, seeing numerous Pied Kingfishers & Squacco Heron, a few Black-winged Kites and plenty of more common species, before turning around and driving back.
Black-winged Kite
Either side of us are olive tree orchards and scrub, which means plenty of cover to hide in for coucals… Another few minutes pass and then suddenly our driver spots a coucal in a palm tree and we stop. I jump out and put my bins on a pair of Senegal Coucal. Yes! A true Western Palearctic mega and one which you have to visit Egypt to see.The drainage ditch is between us and the birds and they aren’t moving despite of Ahmed’s coucal imitation… But then behind us another coucal is spotted quite close to the track we are stood on and we both walk around and get close views but the bird is always obscured by branches…. Until it decides to fly up onto overhead power cables and there it is in all its glory, with clear blue skies behind.
Senegal Coucal
I don’t normally like taking photos of birds on wires but what are you going to do? And I fire off shot after shot, way too many really and I know I won’t be editing many of them tonight! This bird then flies to a distant palm tree and then another bird appears and flies up onto a mini pylon. Again not the photo I want, so we walk over to the palm tree and that bird skulks behind foliage. But I’m happy and walk back towards the car but pause when yet another coucal begins calling from a small palm tree right beside me, and as I walk around toget better light on the subject it drops down into some sort of crop field.
Senegal Coucal in its natural habitat
So I wait a while and another bird appears on some tall stalks – and I think these are obviously the original pair we first spotted. And one bird flies up onto a different mini pylon and the other bird hops up onto a tall stem and also begins calling. This is the pose I wanted and in a much more natural setting and again I fire off numerous shots, hoping my settings are ok… They sort of are ok but it’s not until I return to my hotel room later this afternoon will I realise I haven’t been shooting in RAW. Idiot!
And they also seem to like vegetation too!
Anyway, I couldn’t have wished for better with these coucals, so we drive on and come across a pair of Senegal Thick-knees beside the track. But they fly off without giving me a chance of a record shot, so I have to make do with a close African Green Bee-eater posing right next to the car just a short way further along the same track. Three WP targets in the bag before 8am baby!
African Green Bee-eater
There’s more bee-eaters and thick-knees to follow, flocks of Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters flying around the clear blue sky, Common Bulbuls are everywhere, and the odd Eurasian Hoopoe appears. The 4th target, Indian Silverbill is next up and gives decent views from the car but is all too brief. And so we set off back towards the lake shore and some marshes where I’m hoping for Greater Painted Snipe.
The snipe marsh
At the first stop beside a reedbed with a small pond at least 2 Marsh Sandpipers are present, along with a Ruff & Green Sandpiper. Getting out of the car, everything flies off, including a male Greater Painted Snipe that jumps up from just a few metres away and shoots away to the far side of the marsh. Amazing!
Senegal Thick-knee
Over the next hour or so we check out more marshy areas without seeing any more snipe but do find a pair of Senegal Thick-knees in some waste ground and get the best views of this species today. Moving on to the lake there’s many Little Stints feeding in company with 100+ Pied Avocets, along with some other common shorebirds and a flock of Slender-billed Gulls. And that is pretty much it for today. I did get a brief view of a tiny passerine flying away over the reedbed that could well have been an avadavat but I just couldn’t nail it. So with the temperature rising I have a quick coffee and omelette at a nearby hotel before heading back to Cairo in the early afternoon and have plenty of time to chill.
And to admire the extremely striking sunset over Cairo, beer in hand, from our balcony. It's looking rather like a scene from The Mummy!
Well that was a short night or so it felt as we are picked up at midday by local tour guide Alfred. Everyone seems to know him and he proved to be a very articulate, knowledgeable and fun guy. We drive maybe half an hour to Giza and our date with one of the last remaining Wonders of the World - The Great Pyramidof Giza. I’d always been fascinated with ancient Egypt from a young age and was excited to be here today. Normally, I’m culturally shallow but this is up there with the Taj Mahal & Angkor Wat.
The Great Pyramid of Giza
If you watch YouTube travelogs about this place, you’d be prepared like me for no end of hassle from beggars to street vendors attempting to sell you all sorts of tat. But that is no longer the case (mainly) as there’s a massive new entrance with a bus shuttle system that’s been in operation just for a few months and it is all very well organised. It’s a big site and there’s 5 stops along the way, but you can choose which ones you want to stop at. I was mesmerised by the whole thing and my first view of a pyramid as we drove to the site left me open mouthed. Am I really evolving? Anyway, with Alfred giving us his insight it was a very enjoyable couple of hours (even for me) and I took way too many photos on my iPhone.
The incomparable Sphinx
Yes I'm really here....
The Sphinx was incredible too, the weather spot on, and Alfred’s stories left us wondering just how 4,500 years ago the ancients were able to make such geometric calculations and such enormous constructions.I mean 100,000 workers were used in the making… maybe if Carlsberg did pyramids it would look something like this?
And that was it really. Back to the hotel by 5pm, food, cocktails, more food, wine etc etc… But I’m now looking forward to getting out birding tomorrow…..
A last minute change of plan sees me heading to Cairo with Mrs B, with an intention to check out the birding sites, meet some guides and have a stab at some really cool Western Palearctic megas! But first the airport and the main thing that scares most birders from visiting - getting your optics confiscated at the airport when you arrive. With that in mind I had arranged some help, and after getting our visas on arrival, which was ridiculously quick & easy, we are met by a local Mr Fixit at Baggage Claim and whisked out of the airport pretty quickly. No checks, no hassle, nothing! In fact it was one of the quickest journeys through an airport I have ever experienced. We hop straight into a private van and drive half an hour to a fantastic hotel somewhere in downtown Cairo along the banks of the Nile. It's pretty late by now, due to Egypt Air arriving nearly 2 hours beyond their scheduled arrival time but it doesn't matter. We are here, in what appears to be a city that never sleeps! There’s 25 million people living in the vast, sprawling metropolis that is Cairo and from our balcony the noise is incredible. Despite being nearly 2am it’s time for a beer and to wind down… with the bars here open to 4am it shouldn’t be a problem!
Following on from my recent ramblings and musings about Western Palearctic Birding I think this might be a good time to go public with something i've been working on.... I run the Zoothera Birding and Oman Birding websites solo and have now begun work on a brand new website, which is all about birding in the WP: www.westernpalearcticbirding.com
My idea is to create as much information as possible about all things WP:
a] Latest Rarity News
b] Country Profiles with links to birding tours from all companies, local guides and top sites to visit
c] A gallery with rare bird photos
d] Identification papers
e] News from the Greater Western Palearctic
f] Where to see the rare WP species
g] I'd like to post links to the various relevant blogs
And here's the thing.... It is a mammoth job and I need help! I'm looking for contributors to write articles, provide photos, links for i.d articles, magazine links, provide latest news, and anything at all that could help. My vision would be to make this a birding community-based website with contributions from as many people as possible. I've been told that is rather naive as there would be too many egos involved! So am I wrong....? I'd like to think that isn't the case.....
So, if you would like to be involved please send me an email to: birders@westernpalearcticbirding.com
So what is this all about....? Western Palearctic birding.... What is it that drives birders to seek out all the birds in this man-made boundary? As someone who has birded all around the world, admittedly as part of my job as a tour leader, I seem to be swept up in a wave of enthusiasm for this concept. What I mean by that is, having conducted a number of tours in Turkey where I met quite a few keen WP listers I may have caught the bug! Is that the right word? I've always had that twitching instinct and I used to be a very keen UK lister (admittedly up until the point I became a tour leader) and have always got a kick finding/seeing birds out of range. For instance, I took my group to see a Greater White-fronted Goose near Point Pelee, Canada once and got an adrenaline rush! We also saw a Ruff on the same trip and that was really cool too. I found or was involved in finding 5 new birds in The Gambia, the 1st Naumann's Thrush in Kazakhstan, the 8th (I think) Steppe Grey Shrike in Israel, and there's been others I can't think of right now. Oh and let's not forget all those rare birds from Oman. The point i'm making is that there's degrees upon degrees in birding. Our motivations fluctuate. We keep garden lists, local patch lists, year lists, county lists... and so it goes on.... So why not the WP. And alongside that there's the choice of increasing the interest to The Greater Western Palearctic - or not... And to be honest i'm not sure about that one.
Anyway, on a personal note my WP list is poor (667) and my GWP list not much better (791). And until relatively recently I was not interested/bothered in my own lists. By way of my job I have built up a moderately decent Life List of 7,557. And until my heart attack in August 2024 I was going to reach 8,000 inside a couple of years. But i'm not really bothered now about the 8K and my obsession with Oman Birding has been the major motivating factor in my birding. And this is where WP birding comes in. It may be a desire to increase my own WP list or it may be something inbuilt inside myself to be relevant or it may be just about understanding that WP craving of others. Or maybe it's a little bit of each? Whatever it is, the bottom line is I just love birding and this is all something sort of new but with shorter flights!!
So for Zoothera Birding we've got incredibly popular tours to Turkey, which we've done for a while now. And there's Egypt, Jordan & West Kazakhstan, that are heading the same way too. And there's quite a few more trips i'm planning in the Western Palearctic region in the future, so I wonder where this is taking us...
Can't even remember seeing Cinereous Vulture in the Western Palearctic!!!!
Definitely haven't seen Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse in the WP. Gotta go to Egypt for that.
I have seen Yellow-browed Bunting on the scillies. Time to get out there and get that list moving...
I have come to love Oman following 13 trips there over recent years. I am incredibly biased but I would like to explain why I believe it is so great and why nowhere else in the Middle East comes close to the appeal that Oman offers the visiting birder.
Oman offers the best seawatching in the whole Middle East
The only country in the region that comes close to Oman, in my opinion, is Saudi Arabia. I have been there several times as well, so can base my reasoning on personal experience. For the time being I am not going to compare other Middle East countries such as Bahrain, Egypt, Israel, Jordan, Kuwait, UAE and others. I am reflecting more about the two countries that host the Arabian endemic species and their veritable merits and trying to compare the two, with the view to which is the most appealing to birders. Admittedly, this is from my own rather partisan viewpoint. Others will undoubtedly disagree and I do not wish to offend the Saudi birding community in any way, and I'd like to reiterate that this is my own personal view.....
Raptors are also a very big deal with large numbers present during the winter months, such as Eastern Imperial Eagle.
So, you can see all the available Arabian endemics in Saudi, along with some other species usually found in Africa (Afro-tropicals as they have been labelled). And there's some decent migrants passing through as well.
However.... here's my pitch for Oman actually living up to its title as The Jewel of Arabia.....
Let's compare the merits of these two excellent destinations:
Oman is home to Arabian Partridge, Omani Owl, Desert Owl (far easier in Oman than Saudi), Arabian Eagle Owl, Arabian Scops Owl, Arabian Babbler, Arabian Wheatear, Arabian Warbler, Arabian Sunbird, Yemen Serin and Arabian Grosbeak (much easier in Oman than Saudi). Add to this Sand Partridge, Socotra Cormorant, Lappet-faced Vulture, Persian Shearwater, Jouanin's Petrel, easy Saunders's Tern (in summer), Egyptian Nightjar, in recent years Sykes's Nightjar, Forbes-watson's Swift, Hume's & Persian Wheatears and Plain Leaf Warbler.
Sykes's Nightjar has been a recent discovery in Oman and been present for the past two winters - this is the 2nd record for Oman.
Saudi Arabia has a lot of the above, as well as Philby's Partridge, Nubian Nightjar, Arabian Woodpecker, Arabian Lark, Buff-breasted Wheatear, Yemen Thrush, Asir Magpie, Yemen Warbler, Arabian Serin, Arabian Waxbill and Yemen Linnet. Pretty impressive really. Also you can add White-eyed Gull, Plain & Montane Nightjars, Arabian & Rufous-capped Larks to the list of targets. Hardly anyone goes to the far north of Saudi for Sinai Rosefinch & Syrian Serin - and why would you when they are so much easier and reachable in Jordan...?
Sooty Falcon is present from April to early November
Both countries have Sooty Falcon (Oman gets Amur Falcon on passage in the autumn), Crab-Plover, Pallid Scops Owl, Asian Desert Warbler etc. But Oman also has a couple of superb sandgrouse drinking pools... For shorebirds Oman is unbeatable and the oh-so impressive Barr al Hickman is literally home to half a million shorebirds (at least) and is undoubtedly one of the most impressive birding spectacles on the planet. There's nothing in all of Arabia to compare with it. Plus the fantastic pelagic opportunities and land-based seawatching potential. And add to that the rarity finding possibilities in Oman......
Spotted Sandgrouse coming in to drink at Muntesar Oasis
Up to 1,000 Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse come to the drinking pool at Mudday
Barr al Hickman is a must-visit site
And that's the lowdown per species.......
Other considerations:
A. Oman is really easy to get to with daily direct flights with Oman Air, as well as Etihad, Qatar Airlines, Lufthansa, and many others. You can also fly down to Salalah in the far south of Dhofar if you don't fancy the 1000 km+ drive! But you'd miss so much birding by doing that!
B. The infrastructure is excellent with many freshly new tarmac highways and 'off-roading' or bad roads are practically non-existent now. You still need a 4-WD for some of the great birding wadis, i.e Wadi Mughsayl for easy Desert Owl, up in the Al Hajar Mountains around Jabal Akhdar, and to reach some out-of-the-way khawrs in Dhofar that require driving along loose sandy tracks that a regular two-wheel drive won't manage.
C. The food is great. Around Muscat & Salalah you have the full suite of Indian, Chinese and Italian restaurants (plus international fast food outlets), and between the north and south the local restaurants provide decent 'Indian-style' food.
D. There's an amazing diversity of habitats in Oman. From the mountains in the north, vast deserts of course, a long coastline, many lagoons (khawrs), lakes, marshes, reedbeds, even some reserves and offshore islands.
E. Oman has pelagics! If you've seen my recent posts about our ground-breaking summer seabird tour, then you can see the immense potential for finding some truly rare seabirds.
F. It's an extremely safe destination with practically zero crime, a friendly & welcoming population and you don't even need a visa if you're staying under 14 days. But it's also an easy e-Visa process for longer stays.
G. Oh and you can get beer in Oman. Mainly purchased from Duty Free at Muscat and Salalah airports and also many 4* hotels, and there's even a 'pub' in Salalah if you know where to look..!!!!
H. Masirah Island - the Fair Isle of Arabia. A phenomenal rarity magnet during migration and somewhere that you simply have to visit.
I. With so many birders visiting Oman, there is a really good camaraderie amongst birders and tour leaders. There's a lot of communication between everyone and it really is fun! I have also organised a WhatsApp group so that we can share latest sightings and bird news quickly, in order for everyone to see as much as possible.
Observing spectacles such as Rose-coloured Starlings congregating on migration at Shisr Fields is something worth seeing.
Sometimes there's a Brahminy Starling mixed in with the other starlings
Or how about a Wattled Starling...?
For me and countless other birders that regularly visit Oman, it's the rarity finding that sets Oman apart from most other Middle East countries. It is head and shoulders above all the rest in my opinion as the potential for rarity finding seems limitless.
I found the 1st Grey-tailed Tattler at Filim in February 20222
7th Blyth's Reed Warbler at Ayn Hamran, November 2021
5th Common Hawk-Cuckoo, Masirah Island January 2025
Species from Africa, India and the northern hemisphere (Western Palearctic) all descend to Oman and i've found and seen more than my fair share of totally unexpected rarities. For instance, since 2021 I have found the 1st Banded Martin, 1st African Openbill, 1st Grey-tailed Tattler, 1st Hudsonian Whimbrel (yet to be accepted by OBRC), 4th Dalmatian Pelican, 4th Hume's Whitethroat, 5th Common Hawk-Cuckoo, 5th Black-bellied Storm Petrel (yet to be accepted by OBRC), and 7th & 8th Blyth's Reed Warblers. I've also seen the 2nd Buff-breasted Sandpiper, 2nd Knob-billed Duck, 3rd Fulvous Whistling-Duck, 5th & 6th Eye-browed Thrush, 5th Lesser White-fronted Goose, as well as seeing/finding Caspian Plover, Sociable Lapwing, Pectoral Sandpiper, Swinhoe's Storm Petrel, Wedge-tailed Shearwater, Lesser Noddy, Asian Koel, Malachite Kingfisher, White-throated Robin, Green & Paddyfield Warblers, Wattled & Brahminy Starlings, and i've probably forgotten a few more!
1st African Openbill, Ayn Razat, November 2021
1st Banded Martin, Sahnawt Farm, November 2021
And i'm sure there's more rarities just around the corner. My predictions for the next couple of years are - Lesser Flamingo, Lesser Moorhen, Black-headed Heron, African Spoonbill, Sharp-tailed Sandpiper, Mongolian Sandplover, Lesser Striped Swallow, Ashy Drongo, Radde's Accentor, Eversmann's Redstart, Thick-billed Warbler, Arctic Warbler and Rustic Bunting.
I would love to find a Lesser Moorhen... Maybe East Khawr later this year...?
Although on a personal note, I would quite like Greylag Goose, Common Gull, Sooty Shearwater, Long-tailed Skua or a Spanish Sparrow to add to my Oman list, which currently stands at 326!!!
Swinhoe's Storm Petrel has become a more frequent sighting these days...
The all-round birding possibilities of Oman are the main reason, in my opinion, to state that Oman has the best birding in Arabia! I know Saudi Arabia has only been open to foreign tourists for a few years and will undoubtedly become increasingly popular as the years go by, whereas Oman has a long history of overseas birders visiting which does make a difference. I've been to Saudi Arabia 3 times and the birding is great, don't get me wrong. But it's not Oman my friends! I'd also love to go back to Israel as the migration is phenomenal, Jordan is potentially on a par with Israel for that same reason, Kuwait & UAE offer great birding, whilst Egypt (if you want to count it in this region) has mega Western Palearctic ticks, and Turkey is another of my favourite birding destinations. But this is all about Oman....
Arabian Grosbeak is the daddy of all endemics and seen at several sites in Dhofar.
And the final selling point of Oman.....
Omani Owl baby! Only found in northern Oman and Iran, it's the undisputed crown jewel of Arabian birding and still something of an enigma and tricky to find. It was only discovered in 2013 by the Sound Approach Team - what a bird!
If you want to find out more about birding in Oman, then I have created a new website to help visiting birders find their way around and get the best out of this most wonderful country. Please go to: www.oman-birding.com
Thanks for reading this. And don't forget.....
Oman Rocks!!
Spotted Thick-knee from one of my secret sites in Dhofar
Grey-headed Kingfisher is another Afro-tropical species you can see in Dhofar
And I will finish with the stunning Yemen Serin... Wow!!
