Index of articles about bird migration, wintering and dispersion in Northwest Africa and adjacent areas.
An African White-backed Vulture photographed at Tarifa, southern Spain. October and November is the time of Griffon Vulture migration at the Strait of Gibraltar. Thousands of juvenile and immature birds cross the Strait at this time to winter in Africa. And their African cousins, Rüppell’s and White-backed Vultures, tend also to occur with them at …
Movements of two satellite-tracked Marbled Ducks (Marmaronetta angustirostris) from Spain to North Africa. One of them, made a spectacular round-trip in 24 hours. As part of the ‘Marbled Duck reintroduction project’ in the Valencian Community (SE Spain), 21 birds were fitted with GPS-trackers and released into El Hondo Natural Park (Some birds are of wild …
Two satellite-tagged Cinereous Vultures (Aegypius monachus) from France and Spain have been tracked to Africa. One has reached as far south as the Niger-Nigeria border, while the other is touring northern Africa after having first spent the winter in the Sahel area. These are the first individuals GPS-tracked in their breeding areas in Europe to …
European Cinereous Vultures wandering across Africa Read More »
A Pallid Harrier (Circus macrourus) named ‘Selja’ satellite-tracked from Finland died in southern Morocco last January. The cause of death is not electrocution as was feared initially. Selja was fitted with a satellite transmitter in central Finland in June 2018 as part of the research on Pallid Harrier carried out by Ari-Pekka Auvinen for the …
Satellite-tagged Pallid Harrier died in southern Morocco Read More »
Until recently, the Isabelline Wheatear (Oenanthe isabellina) used to be a rarity in Morocco. In fact, the species was only removed from the list of species that need to be submitted to the Moroccan Rare Birds at the end of 2017. At the end of February, Marc Illa and his colleagues arrived in Morocco in …
Abundant passage of Isabelline Wheatear in eastern Morocco Read More »
A total of 27 Marbled Ducks were satellite-tracked in south-east Spain, of these only three have survived by migrating to Algeria. Most of the birds that stayed locally were shot dead or are missing. The most threatened duck in Europe With a decreasing population, the Marbled Duck (Marmaronetta angustirostris) is classed globally as ‘Vulnerable’ in …
Spanish Marbled Ducks migrate to Africa to escape hunters’ guns Read More »
A Eurasian Dotterel equipped with a light-logger in Northern Finland spent almost half a year in the wintering areas in Libya. The Eurasian Dotterel (Eudromias morinellus) breeds in the arctic-alpine zone of Palearctic. Its wintering range is also sufficiently known: it winters in North Africa eastwards to the Middle East, with some birds reaching the …
Migratory connectivity of Fennoscandian Dotterels Read More »
This note presents unusual observations of the Eurasian Siskin in the North-East of the Algerian Sahara, specifically in the palm city of Ouargla, where the species is observed in winter 2017/2018. In the Algerian Sahara, the species is rarely observed except the following few records: at El Goléa and Ghardaïa oases palms in winter 1976 …
Le Tarin des aulnes (Spinus spinus) dans le Nord-est du Sahara algérien Read More »
The Cape Verde Shearwater (Calonectris edwardsii), as its name may suggests, is an endemic breeder to Cape Verde islands, and winters mainly in South Atlantic off South America (González-Solís et al. 2009). The species rarely ventures north of its breeding areas (or so we thought!). During the breading season, Cape Verde Shearwaters also frequently visit …
Cape Verde Shearwater in the Canary Islands and Morocco Read More »
A Pallid Harrier satellite-tracked in Finland spent the winter in the Guelmim region, southern Morocco. The area is very rich in preys but also very dangerous for raptors because of electrocution. This is the first proven wintering record of the species in Morocco. Westward expansion of the Pallid Harrier Pallid Harrier (Circus macrourus) breeds in …
Finnish Pallid Harrier wintered in Morocco in a rich, yet dangerous area Read More »