Index of birding news that are of interest to Western Palearctic birders. These include, among others, ‘mega rarities’ found in Northwest African, potential vagrants to the WP from adjacent areas, and other interesting articles.
Other birding news and national rarities (including many “first national records”) are filed under their respective country.
Kordofan Lark (Mirafra cordofanica). The name sounds familiar to Western Palearctic birders because until recently the species was included in the WP list. However, Crochet & Haas (2013) suggested that the species should be deleted. Here is a (slightly edited) quote from this article: The distribution of Kordofan Lark as shown in Snow & Perrins […]
ID of Kordofan Lark: a potential Western Palearctic vagrant Read More »
Wahlberg’s Eagle (Hieraaetus wahlbergi) is an African raptor distributed south of the Sahara. It’s known as an intra-African migrant, but movements north of the range are very rare. Indeed, the first Western Palearctic record was obtained only on 3 May 2013: a bird photographed by Ahmed Waheed on the west coast of Gulf of Suez,
Second Wahlberg’s Eagle for the Western Palearctic Read More »
Tawny Eagle in Morocco is very rare, as there have been no documented breeding pairs for over two decades. The former breeding range of Tawny Eagle (Aquila rapax) in Morocco was much larger, however the known breeding areas in the past few decades are/were much more restricted as the species has already disappeared from the
Tawny Eagle in Morocco: current status and vagrancy potential Read More »
The Red-billed Firefinch (Lagonosticta senegala) was introduced at Tamanrasset around 1940. It’s also present at El-Goléa, northern Sahara, since at least 1972 (Isenmann & Moali 2000). Currently, the species still present at the known sites cited above. Tamanrasset, Tamanrasset Province: The species is still present in the town and it’s easily seen there in good
Expansion of Red-billed Firefinch in Algeria Read More »
White-throated Bee-eater at Dakhla Bay: second record for Morocco and the Western Palearctic. The White-throated Bee-eater was found at Dakhla Bay, Oued Dahab region on 28 February 2017 by Billy Herman and Annelies Jacobs. It’s the second WP record for the species. It should be remembred that the first record was observed at the site
White-throated Bee-eater at Dakhla: 2nd WP record Read More »
A nice male Sudan Golden Sparrow (Passer luteus) was photographed on 16 January 2017 at Djanet, south-east Algeria by Bilel Gueroui. The species hasn’t been observed in Algeria since decades, and Djanet is only the second site for the species in the country. The first observation of the Sudan Golden Sparrow in Algeria dates back
Sudan Golden Sparrow at Djanet, Algeria Read More »
A Pied Crow (Corvus albus) observed at 21 km north-east of Tarfaya on 9 January by Abdeljebbar Qninba, Abdeslam Rihane and their colleagues (photo 1). Today (23 Jan), a Pied Crow observed at Khnifiss Lagoon (exactly near Auberge Khnifiss) by Imad Cherkaoui and Leabid Ayach (photos 2 & 3). Probably the same bird observed north-east
Pied Crow at Khnifiss Lagoon, southern Morocco Read More »
At least four Golden Nightjars were located near the Aousserd road by the BIOME team (Dan Brown, Richard Moores and Martyn Owen) on 16 March 2016. Two birds were heard singing and one male had responded to song playback. This represents the first possible breeding of the species in the Western Palearctic. In early March,
Golden Nightjar song at Aousserd, southern Morocco Read More »
Excellent observations in the Western Sahara, southern Morocco. Peter Stronach and Bob Swann have just returned back from a birding trip to the region. They recorded Golden Nightjars and provided valuable details indicating the (highly probable) breeding of the species in the region. They also recorded a Sudan Golden Sparrow at Oued Jenna (first observation
4 Golden Nightjars at Oued Jenna, Aousserd: detailed report Read More »
A Pied Crow was photographed at Oulad Driss palm grove – located some 7 km east of Mhamid in eastern Sahara, on 1 November 2015 (Thomas S. Lahlafi). Brahim Bakass, who reported the news, said he will try to see the bird next day but without success (Brahim is a birder and bird guide who
Pied Crow at Mhamid, Morocco (2015-2020) Read More »