A cracking adult Franklin’s Gull (Leucophaeus pipixcan) photographed at Dayet Srij, a small temporary lake near Merzouga. It was discovered yesterday by Marc Illa, Ivan Maggini and Georg Gruber. This is the 10th record of this North American species for Morocco. It’s also the first one found far inland, all previous records were found on […]
An adult Lesser Flamingo (Phoeniconaias minor) was observed at the estuary of Oued Souss on the 1 January 2019 by a Swiss birding group (K. Varga, D. Henseler, S. Werner and R. Wüst). This is the 16th record for Morocco, and the third in Oued Souss. The next day, the bird was still present at
Dunn’s Lark reappeared at Merzouga almost 7 years later. Dunn’s Lark was discovered at Merzouga in April 2010 by a group of Austrian birders (Ernst Albegger and his colleagues). Breeding of the species was confirmed next month by Martin Barry, Benoît Maire and Alain Mathurin. Almost every birder who visited the area during this spring
The last known Andalusian Buttonquail population is declining and its suitable habitats are shrinking according to a study published recently in Global Ecology and Conservation. The Common Buttonquail (Turnix sylvaticus) is widely distributed in Africa and South Asia and is currently categorized as ‘Least Concern’ in the IUCN Red List. However, the nominate subspecies –
Breeding of Golden Nightjar in the Aousserd region, southern Morocco finally confirmed. An adult protecting two young were found at Oued Chiaf located some 55 km NW of Aousserd. La reproduction de l’Engoulevent doré dans la region d’Aousserd au sud du Maroc est enfin confirmée. Un adulte protégeant deux jeunes ont été observés à Oued
Breeding of Golden Nightjar in Morocco confirmed Read More »
The split of the Subalpine Warbler complex (sensu lato) into three different species (i.e. Moltoni’s, Western and Eastern Subalpine Warblers) was proposed a few years ago. However, currently the Moltoni’s Warbler (Sylvia subalpina), which is the most divergent of the three taxa, is the only widely adopted split by different taxonomic authorities. Although the full
First records of Eastern Subalpine Warbler for Morocco Read More »
A presumed Cinnamon Teal x Northern Shoveler hybrid (Spatula cyanoptera x S. clypeata) was photographed at Dayet Srij near Merzouga, south-eastern Morocco. The bird was found by Frieder Klöpfer and Laura Lüdtke on 3 March 2019. The desert lake is full of water and birds. About 500 Greater Flamingos (Phoenicopterus roseus) and several species of
Presumed ‘Cinnamon Teal x Shoveler’ hybrid at Merzouga lake, Morocco Read More »
The elusive Sand Cat (Felis margarita) sighted in Merzouga region for the first time in almost three decades. The sand cat was observed and photographed on the evening of 23 February 2019 (photos below). According to the locals, the species has not been observed in the region of Merzouga since the 1990s. Exactly, the last
The 24th report of the Moroccan Rare Birds Committee (MRBC) has just been published. In 2018, the MRBC examined 168 new records of which 157 were accepted. These included the first Moroccan records of: Wood Duck (Aix sponsa), Smew (Mergus albellus), and Black-capped Petrel (Pterodroma hasitata). The report included also the 2nd Balearic Spotted Flycatcher
The Atlas Long-legged Buzzard is more closely related to Common Buzzard than to Long-legged Buzzard according to a new study. The taxon cirtensis should be treated therefore as an allospecies of the Common Buzzard superspecies. La Buse du Maghreb est une alloespèce de la Buse variable: Selon cette étude, la Buse du Maghreb (cirtensis) est
North African Buzzard is not a Long-legged but an allospecies of Common Buzzard Read More »