Northern Bald Ibis breeds in Switzerland for the first time in 400 years

Northern bald ibis (Geronticus eremita) sitting on its nest built on the windowsill of a Harley-Davidson dealer in an industrial area near Zurich airport, June 2023 (Martin Meier).

First breeding of the Northern Bald Ibis in Switzerland in 400 years. A pair have chosen to nest in a very strange place: a windowsill of a Harley-Davidson dealer. The only remaining wild colonies of the Northern Bald Ibis are located in the Souss-Massa National Park and Tamri cliffs, south-west Morocco. Two reintroduction projects are …

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Golden Nightjar, Sudan Golden Sparrow at Aousserd

Golden Nightjar / Engoulevent doré (Caprimulgus eximius), Aousserd, Western Sahara, southern Morocco, 10 March 2023 (Zoltan Bajor).

The return of Golden Nightjar, Sudan Golden Sparrow, and other Aousserd interesting birds after they had been missing for the last few years. Understandably, their absence during the peak of the Covid-19 pandemic was due to travel restrictions. Some birders who visited the Aousserd region last year did miss some of the Western Palearctic rarities …

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Conservation of Double-spurred Francolin in Morocco

Double-spurred Francolin / Francolin à double éperon (Pternistis bicalcaratus), Central Plateau, Morocco, 31 December 2021 (Abdeljebbar Qninba).

A report on recent efforts to conserve the Double-spurred Francolin in Morocco through its reintroduction to its former historic range. Double-spurred Francolin (Pternistis bicalcaratus) occurs in two disjoint areas. The largest population is distributed mainly in West Africa eastwards to Cameroon and south-western tip of Chad in Central Africa. The second population, which is much …

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Status of White-rumped Seedeater in southern Algeria

White-rumped Seedeater / Serin à croupion blanc (Crithagra leucopygia), Tamanrasset, southern Algeria, 31 Jan. 2021 (Karim Haddad).

The White-rumped Seedeater was recorded in southern Algeria for the first two years ago by a group of Algerian naturalists. Karim Haddad visited the region again with his colleague Larbi Afoutni less than a month after their previous trip (when they recorded Blue-naped Mousebirds and Black Scrub Robins in the Wilaya of In Guezzam). In …

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Moroccan Red List of birds: request for information

Moussier's Redstart (Phoenicurus moussieri), a Maghreb endemic species (Brahim Bakass)

‘GREPOM/BirdLife Morocco’ in partnership with the Department of Water and Forests (the Government entity responsible for biodiversity conservation) are currently developing a Red List of birds of Morocco. Once finalized, this Red List will be an important tool to help inform conservation actions in the country in the years to come. To ensure the quality …

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Blue-naped Mousebirds and Black Scrub Robins in southern Algeria

Blue-naped Mousebird / Coliou huppé (Urocolius macrourus), Wilaya of In Guezzam, southern Algeria, 23 December 2021 (Karim Haddad).

During a recent trip to southern Algeria, members of EcoCirta found groups of Blue-naped Mousebird and two Black Scrub Robins. They are, respectively, the second and third records for Algeria. From 20 to 28 December 2021, the EcoCirta Environmental Association organized its sixth naturalist expedition to the far south of the Algerian Sahara in order …

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First White-throated Bee-eater, Village Indigobird and Cut-throat Finch for Algeria

White-throated Bee-eater / Guêpier à gorge blanche (Merops albicollis)

A recent birding trip to southern Algeria produced three new bird species for the country: White-throated Bee-eater, Village Indigobird and Cut-throat Finch. [See also the results of another group’s expedition: Blue-naped Mousebirds and Black Scrub Robins in southern Algeria]. A group of amateur and professional Algerian researchers organized a birding expedition in southern Algeria in …

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