Safa Park, Dubai.

Safa Park had not featured on my list of things to do during a trip to Dubai, but a series of failures left it as the favoured option for exploration.

It is a city park, much like any other park in any other city, in that it has extensive lawns, picnic areas and playgrounds for the children. A few tell-tale signs that it is located within the Emirate of Dubai are a Ladies’ Garden and the towering pinnacle of Burj Khalifa which is visible from anywhere in the park.

I was not in a positive mood this morning and had resigned myself to seeing only the common and conspicuous species. I had never heard of the park before and did not realise its potential.

Those who have ever gasped at the electric blue of a roller’s wing will understand how my day brightened when an Indian Roller flashed across the path and into a tree across the lawns. If ever a family of birds were designed to be conspicuous and to lift a mood, it is the Coraciidae.

Even at rest, they are impressive birds with turquoise, lilac and cinnamon plumage and they sit out on prominent perches to scan for insects. If that isn’t obvious enough, when they fly, patches of the most dazzling blue, separated by a swathe of indigo flash from the primaries, primary coverts and tail. It is enough to take anyone’s breath away. How I wish that I could have captured even a taste of the colour sensation that is a flying roller, but instead I must thank, Arjun Haarith for allowing me to use this wonderful photograph.

The camera was to hand now in the hope that I would get another chance, but instead a Graceful Prinia sat up in a patch of marigolds to give my colour receptors a work-out. A Bluethroat was flitting in and out of the hedge alongside the flowerbeds. How typical that I waited all year to find one, then saw them on two consecutive trips.

Common birds that were to be expected in a park such as this were White-eared Bulbuls, Red-vented Bulbuls and Common Mynas. I had decided that any corvids seen would be counted as Brown-necked Ravens, but had forgotten to take House Crows into account.

The Ladies’ Garden looked the birdiest area that I had seen so far, but signs barring entry to bearded birders, left me peering keenly through the railings in a manner likely to cause any ladies within some discomfort. Luckily there were none, but an Isabelline Shrike, Asian Pied Starling and a Song Thrush made me wish that I was bold enough to sneak in while no-one was looking.

In the centre of the park is a waterfall that feeds through a channel into a boating lake. A stocky-looking egret was a white form of the Western Reef Heron. The slight droop to the strong orange-based bill, yellow/green legs and occasional dark smudges on the white plumage sets this form of the species apart from the more elegant egrets. Normally it prefers the coast, but Safa Park is within a mile of the shore and the water here had a salty smell to it.

A Common Sandpiper and a Greenshank were feeding along the edge of the channel. The Greenshank seemed to be having trouble on the slippery stone and slipped twice, losing its footing and almost falling in.

A “Graaaak” above, caused me to look up. The grating call of the roller has prompted suggestions that they should be allied with the Jays. They must have spent too long in the ‘pimp my plumage’ line and missed out on the vocal training during the time of the Great Creation.

Rollers were rolling! Three birds were participating in the display over the boating lake. They rose to about 30 m, then, as if at the top of a rollercoaster drop, they folded in their wings, using their upward momentum to coast over the summit of the climb and plummeted, jinking and flashing their magnificent colours as they fell. They finished with a flare and a flourish, landing in a group of palm trees where, presumably, a female perched in judgement.

Back on the ground, in the realms of normal, muted colours, some Red-wattled Lapwings were sitting out the midday hours by the edge of the channel. The waterfall is artificial with the water pumped up a small hill to cascade back down into the foamy pool. Beyond the hillock, is a fenced freshwater lake that held a few ducks including, a Gadwall, some Common Teal and a few Northern Shovelers. I have no reason to think that the provenance of the ducks might be in question, but the Egyptian Geese were possibly from feral stock. Common and Wood Sandpiper were feeding on the banks and Black-headed Gulls were roosting on the grass and drifting on the water.

As I left the park, another “Graaak” made me look up to see another five rollers displaying from the road signs on the motorway into Downtown Dubai. I wondered if it was not a little early to start the courtship displays. Information that I can find suggests that February was the time for rolling. Perhaps it was excitement as 2010 drew to a close and a new year approached. The pyrotechnics from the Burj Khalifa were spectacular at midnight, but as 2011 dawned, the rollers’ day-time fireworks would continue without property crashes and bail-outs from neighbouring Kingdoms.

Birds species; 33

Little Grebe 6, Grey Heron 1, Western Reef Egret 1, Egyptian Goose 2, Gadwall 1, Eurasian Teal 14, Mallard 12, Northern Shoveler 5, Grey Francolin 3, Black-winged Stilt 1, Red-wattled Lapwing 4, Common Greenshank 1, Wood Sandpiper 1, Common Sandpiper 4, Black-headed Gull 150, Eurasian Collared Dove 15, Laughing Dove 20, Rose-ringed Parakeet 6, Indian Roller 11, Eurasian Hoopoe 3, White Wagtail 3, White-eared Bulbul 20, Red-vented Bulbul 12, Song Thrush 3, Bluethroat 1, Graceful Prinia 5, Willow Warbler 5, Purple Sunbird 3, Isabelline Shrike 2, House Crow 150, Common Myna 50, Asian Pied Starling 5, House Sparrow 200.

Safa Park is within easy reach of Downtown Dubai and about 10 mins in a cab from the Emirates Mall on Sheik Zayed Road, the main drag through downtown. In the perimeter railings, there are 4 gates which open 08.00 ‘til 23.00. There is a 3 Dirham entry fee. On Tuesdays, the park is restricted to ladies and children only. A fenced and hedged section at the west end of the park is reserved full-time for ladies and children.

A little known author, Charlie, from 10000 Birds was lucky enough to visit Safa Park in May 2005 and catch the migrants as they passed through. I must give him and his friend Steve James a nod for the Willow Warblers. I was really struggling until I saw Steve's ID info and Charlie's picture of the yakutensis form.
I also find that a site called http://www.uaebirding.com/birdingsites.html exists. Like Charlie's post, I didn't see it until after my return, but if anyone is thinking of a trip to UAE, this should be your first port of call for information about sites and birds that may be seen there.

Hong Kong Twitching Pt 2, Long Valley

I must confess to having doubts when the taxi driver dropped me outside the public lavatories in a remote village. Despite his insistence, it seemed unlikely that this would prove to be a birding hot-spot. Some confusion had arisen about the name of the site.

To the ex-pat birders that come here it is known as Long Valley, but the Chinese, who have a proprietorial interest and the advantage of numbers, call it Yin Kong. A Chinese birder that I had met in Tai Po Kau the previous morning had attempted to explain in a foreign tongue and sent me to Long Village, which is a big housing estate with no birds. Don’t go there.

I was still unsure as I took a tiny path that led down through the lettuces into an irrigated agricultural area. Ladies working the fields pointed and laughed (I find women do that a lot. Is it just me?). They cried “Look the birds. Look the birds”. Ahead was a wet paddyfield with Little Egrets, Chinese Pond Herons and Wood Sandpipers feeding in the shallow water. Before I could get my binoculars to my eyes, another birder came round the hut in front of me, putting all the birds to flight.

Another twitch was in progress as Hong Kong’s first ever Red-headed Bunting was reportedly on site, but far from the good-natured camaraderie of yesterday’s watchers, there seemed to be a competitive, edgy atmosphere this morning which did not show the birders at their best. I guess it is a little naïve to expect that with a ‘national first’ in the vicinity, birders would have much time to stop and exchange pleasantries or information. Still, at least I knew I was in the right place now. 

Long Valley is a broad flat plain dotted with irregular allotments growing lettuce, rice and watercress (I imagine that the produce changes seasonally) in well watered sections and the birds seem to love it here. A large flock of White-backed Munia were clinging to the seedheads in a rice field, while Little Ringed Plovers and Red-throated Pipits (PS in the photo above indicates that a bit of ugly scenery has been removed with a Photo-Shop type of software) fed in cleared patches. I caught up with the birds that had been flushed earlier and added Black-winged Stilt to the list as well.

In a section which has been left to go wild, reeds and long grasses held prinias and cisticolas. Plain Prinia was most numerous in the thinner vegetated areas while the Yellow-bellied Prinia preferred the thick cover of the grasses.

A couple of birders were looking very intently at the cisticolas. They were looking for a Bright-capped Cisticola. This bird is different from the far more common Zitting (Fantailed) Cisticola in having a longer tail which lacks white tips and a grey-cheeked, white-throated head with no noticeable eye-stripe. Its black and grey crown may be raised slightly. I had the red crayon ready to mark this one in, but found that I had seen it before under the name of Golden-crowned Cisticola in Papua New Guinea.

I cannot say if this rank area is part of a crop rotation scheme, perhaps it moves periodically. In any case, the higgledy piggledy nature of the plots is not conducive to a commentated tour. Have a look for yourself by copying and pasting the following coordinates into Google Earth; 22° 30’ 18”N 114° 06’ 43”E

A bunting caught my eye as it flew into a field beside me. Could it be the sought-after red-head, I wondered? With chestnut cheeks and a matching band across the breast, it proved to be a Chestnut-eared (Grey-headed) Bunting. It’s not a great picture, but it is a lifer.

Further towards the river, the ponds became bigger and apparently deeper. I suspect that they were for fish and the herons and egrets seemed to bear this out, but a Panoramia photo has Waterflea Pond as its title, anyway, this is where the Grey Heron and Great Egrets like to hang out.

Another battery of big cameras indicated that something exciting had been found and I crept up to join the crowd waiting for a Bluethroat to reappear. A branch had been propped up and baited with mealworms which kept the bird coming back again and again to a fusillade of shutters releasing.

There is a blue streak in the moustacial stripe and a trace of rouge in the otherwise blank spot that makes me assume this individual to be a first winter male ssp svecica.

As the day wore on, the birds became less active. In one small patch of taro (?), I spotted about 15 Common Snipe resting and clumsily flushed a further dozen or so more.

White Wagtails and the eastern, taivana, race of Yellow Wagtails also known as Green-backed Wagtail were active all day, common and conspicuous throughout the allotments. Pipits could be seen if they moved and I stayed still, otherwise, they were too well camouflaged against the earth. One flew over. Bigger than the red-throats, I am going to stick my neck out and put down Richard’s Pipit.

There is no shade or facilities at Long Valley/Yin Kong aside from the public lavatories. Bus 76K from Sheung Shui Station stops about 400m short of the turn off for Yin Kong (about 2kms along Castle Peak Rd). Continue under the footbridge and Yin Kong is signposted to the right. Walk another 400 (ish)m down a most unlikely looking road to the lavatories and find the allotments behind.

Sheung Shui is on the East Line. Buses 102 and 106 leave from just outside the World Trade Centre on Hong Kong Island (starting just after 06.00. For a really early start try the 24 hour bus N122 which runs every 15 mins from the first bus stop on Hennessey Road, opposite Sogo). They run through the tunnel to Hung Hom Station and a chap could be on an East Line (formerly known as the KCR, Kowloon Canton Railway) train heading to China in moments. Using the subway system would involve 3 changes of train to achieve the same result. Returning to the island, the buses run from the first stair off the footbridge out of Hung Hom Station.

Bird species 40;

Grey Heron 2, Great Egret 1, Little Egret 10, Chinese Pond Heron 15, Common Kestrel 1, White-breasted Waterhen 1, Common Moorhen 3, Black-winged Stilt 20, Little Plover 6, Common Snipe 30, Wood Sandpiper 15, Spotted Dove 6, Asian Koel 1, Common Kingfisher 1, White-throated Kingfisher 1, Richard’s Pipit 1, Red-throated Pipit 10, White Wagtail 25, Yellow Wagtail 12, Red-whiskered Bulbul 2, Light-vented (Chinese) Bulbul 8, Sooty-headed Bulbul 3, Bluethroat 1, Oriental Magpie Robin 6, Common Stonechat 3, Zitting (Fantailed) Cisticola 4, Golden-headed (Bright-capped) Cisticola 1, Yellow-bellied Prinia 2, Plain Prinia 2, Common Tailorbird 2, Dusky Warbler 2, Masked Laughing Thrush 4, Long-tailed (Rufous-backed) Shrike 3, Eurasian Magpie 8, Crested Myna 25, Black-collared Starling 12, Eurasian Tree-sparrow 6, White-backed Munia 300, White-headed Munia 2, Chestnut-eared (Grey-headed) Bunting 1.

The land is worked intensively with womanpower being the most apparent driving force. The rows of plants and fertilizer were so straight that I suspect some kind of apparatus was used, but no mechanical aids were seen. I was trying to get a candid picture of this lady working her watercress patch. It might have made a nice picture of traditional working practices if she hadn’t kept stopping to answer her phone.

I must give great credit to the workers who happily laughed and pointed as twitchers tramped through their crops looking for the bunting. They were very patient and accepting with seemingly no qualms about the presence of the birders. While obviously trying to protect their produce, they employed passive deterrents rather than aggressive scaring techniques.

Hong Kong Twitching. Pt 1, Tai Po Kau

Like all forests, Tai Po Kau, in the New Territories of Hong Kong, has its moods and multiple personalities. One moment, the forest can be alive with partying birds, the next it can be as quiet as the dead. Catching the waves is the key to a good day in any forest, but Tai Po Kau has a few spots where birds are likely to be found.

The easy way up to the Red Route

The access point to the forest is marked with a lay-by and a small commemorative garden. The casuarina trees and shrubs here are always worth checking before heading up the hill. This morning Yellow-browed Warblers and Japanese White-eyes were the first birds seen. If at any point during this post a list of two or more species is seen, please mentally note a few white-eyes and warblers with them as they were abundant and conspicuous members of each wave.

A Common Tailorbird tutted harshly at me as I looked over a piece of forest that had been thinned out beyond the stream. The first wave was passing through and I hurried up a ramp to the right to get into a good position. The party included Great (Japanese) Tit, Yellow-cheeked Tit, Rufous-capped Babbler, Silver-eared Mesia and Chestnut Bulbul. It looked as if the forest was in one of her good moods today.

I returned to the lay-by and took the more usual left hand ramp up into the forest and was dismayed to see that beyond the thinned area, a swathe on the other side of the valley had been cut for development. The steep road passes a couple of rustic residences whose open areas usually produce a few list bulking species. Today they held Grey Wagtail, Crested Bulbuls, Spotted Doves and the white-eyes and warblers. Occasionally, I thought I heard a soft “chew it” which may have been a Pallas’s Warbler (a Yellow-browed Warbler lookey likey), but I could not see one with a pale rump to confirm. 

There were some big guns in the forest today. Guys wearing camouflage and carrying impressive cameras on tripods were stomping up the slope with a determined look on their faces. I had stumbled onto a Hong Kong twitch. They had set up a battery in the corner of a small clearing in the Outdoor Centre. The object of their attention sat patiently in the shadows, pumping its tail, before flitting down to a stick projecting from a pile of rocks and grabbing a meal worm that had been secured there to tempt it.

I was told that the Red-flanked Bluetail was a very rare bird in Hong Kong, although my field guide described it as being common and widespread. Another birder told me that she regularly sees bluetail during the winter. Females and immatures, in their comparatively dowdy plumage “considerably outnumber adult males” (Viney, Phillipps and Ying, Birds of Hong Kong and South China, May 1994) who sport a more colourful outfit. Perhaps it was the striking appearance of the male that had attracted such an audience, or possibly it was his boldness in coming down to the baited post and the potential to capture a really good photograph that held the appeal.

I said "potential!"

Each time the bird dropped out of the shadows to grab the worm, the clatter of shutters releasing at 6fps was like an over-enthusiastic firing squad. I inadvertantly set off a burst of fire as 12 itchy trigger fingers reacted to my firing a test shot at the target stick. More cameras continued to arrive and mobile phones were ringing in the crowd. This is not my idea of a relaxing day, so I bowed out and tried to catch a picture of a Fork-tailed Sunbird in a very attractive, red-flowered shrub.

Unfortunately, a temporary toilet had been set up just beyond it and a steady stream (sorry) of birders had to pass between me and my shrub to reach it. Eventually, this bird obliged and I was able to continue birding the Outdoor Centre area. This is another reliable spot and gave up an Olive-backed Pipit, Grey-chinned and Scarlet Minivets, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch and an Oriental Magpie Robin. 

There were a couple of odonata around today which was unexpected. The temperature was just reaching into the 20s. This is winter Hong Kong style and it is a very pleasant climate to be out in the forest. The Outdoor Centre has a small pond which had attracted the Common Blue Skimmer, Orthetrum glaucum (above). Below is a Common Blue Jewel, Rhynocypha perforata which was sunning itself on a dark rock beside the stream at the bottom of the steps leading up to the Red Route.

The steps are long and steep, but should not cause trouble to anyone who is young and fit. I do not include myself in either of the aforementioned categories and usually choose to take the gentler clock-wise slope and return down the stairs. Since the weather was so conducive to a bit of exertion I took the counter-clockwise option today. The day was pressing along now and although there was still quite a bit of bird activity, they were staying either high in the canopy or deep in the undergrowth and were proving difficult to find. The hours either side of midday were very quiet and I entertained myself chasing butterflies in the picnic area.

Tai Po Kau is a reforested area of about 460 hectares declared as a reserve in 1977. It is managed and maintains a good network of trails, picnic areas and an outdoor study centre. It has plenty of information boards and trail guides and maps at each major intersection.

The quiet forest, tiredness and hunger eventually drove me from the reserve, but not without a last goodbye wave. The bird party crossed the road as it sloped down from the reserve. A small, pale green, crested bird, the White-bellied Yuhina is delightfully described in my field guide. It “often hangs upside-down and behaves like a tit”. This phrase strikes a chord with me as my father often used a very similar one to describe the behaviour of a much younger yours truly. Whilst my days of hanging upside-down are now well behind me, I can still be caught acting foolishly after a few Tsing Taos.

The white-eyes and warblers featured heavily again, vying to be the species with the most sightings, but most eye-catching were the Grey-chinned Minivets. Earlier sightings had been distant and backlit, but now, both male and female were close. The female was elegant in her yellow, party best, while the male sported his dashing flame-red. Both sexes show an “inverted tick” on the wing in their respective colours. The grey cheeks and throat help to separate them from the Scarlet Minivet, which has a black hood for the male and yellow cheeks and forehead for the female.

The kiosk in the lay-by, which is so often a welcome relief with its supply of cold drinks for weary birders coming out of the forest, was closed today and looked as if it may have closed down permanently. There is no other source of refreshment so visitors should bring enough water and snacks to keep themselves going. There is a temporary toilet at the Outdoor Centre, but otherwise there are no facilities.

Buses 102 and 106 leave from just outside the World Trade Centre on Hong Kong Island (starting just after 06.00. For a really early start try the 24 hour bus N122 which runs every 15 mins from the first bus stop on Hennessey Road, opposite Sogo). They run through the tunnel to Hung Hom Station and a chap could be on an East Line (formerly known as the KCR, Kowloon Canton Railway) train heading to China in moments. Using the subway system would involve 3 changes of train to achieve the same result. Returning to the island, the buses run from the first stair off the footbridge out of Hung Hom Station.

Tai Po Market Station is on the East Line. Taxis are easily available from the station and cost $HK25 (@ $HK12 = £1) at the time of writing. Buses also run up the hill and stop close to the lay-by. Ask the driver for Tai Po Kau (pronounced How). There is usually a steady flow of taxis past the lay-by for return, unless it is raining.

The East Line connects to the rest of Hong Kong’s transport system at Hung Hom or Kowloon Tong.

Bird species; 28

Great Egret 10, Little Egret 18, Black-eared Kite 8, Spotted Dove 4, Olive-backed Pipit 1, Grey Wagtail 3, Grey-chinned Minivet 15, Scarlet Minivet 1, Red-whiskered Bulbul 20, Light-vented Bulbul 10, Chestnut Bulbul 25, Red-flanked Bluetail 1, Oriental Magpie Robin 4, Common Tailorbird 1, Yellow-browed Warbler 45, Rufous-capped Babbler 20, Silver-eared Mesia 15, White-bellied Yuhina 6, Japanese Tit 5, Yellow-cheeked Tit 8, Velvet-fronted Nuthatch 4, Fork-tailed Sunbird 7, Scarlet-backed Flower-pecker 1, Japanese White-eye 65, Long-tailed Shrike 1, Large-billed Crow 1, Nutmeg Manikin 8.

Italicized species were seen en-route

Tawny Owls on Boxing Day

My brother and his wife played host to our parents and my family for the holidays this year. The kind of ideal Christmas that one might visualise, but which seldom lives up to expectations, had actually come to pass.

The brandy butter on the Christmas pudding came after a Boxing Day morning walk when I found a Tawny Owl roosting on a telegraph pole.

This is a bird that can hear a mouse’s heartbeat under 5 feet of snow from three-quarters of a mile away, so I wonder what made me think that I could creep up on it? Obviously, it knew that I was there and showed great tolerance as I approached and allowed me my best ever view of this species. Though I tried not to approach too closely in case I disturbed it, what I hadn’t registered was its mate in the holly tree between us. The second owl flushed from the cover of the holly and sparked the original bird, into responding flight. The reddish colour is the most common in British birds though they may be seen in a greyish-brown variation.

The flushed bird went deep into the wood, but the first owl settled again slightly further along the path. I am not in the habit of disturbing birds if I can help it, but the way back necessitated passing the owl again. This time it flew off the path and I was able to pass without bothering it any further.

And a happy Christmas to you whoo whoo.

Grey Hypocolius in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia

Riyadh (Google Earth ref; 24* 57' 002N 46* 41' 00"E) is home to approximately 5 million people and is the capital city of the Islamic Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. Wildlife photography is discouraged here as the image may be an attempt to imitate the perfection of God’s creation. To allay any such fears, I sent a few of my best photos with a request for permission. The authorities quickly realised that, given the evidence, the chance of a decent graven image was very unlikely and granted me a concession to use my camera discretely.

Laughing Dove

It was strange to leave the pre-Christmas frenzy in the USA and the UK and come to a country where the birth of Jesus holds no festive significance. Jesus is recognised as a prophet in The Koran, but his assumed position at the right hand of the Father is not accepted. The important status that he is accorded by the Christian faith is not recognised here and the lack of commercial driven madness to celebrate his anniversary is quite refreshing. In a culture with no Christmas and no images of living things or female skin, the advertisers find thin pickings and have taken their business to more hedonistic cultures.

White-eared (White-cheeked) Bulbul

But wait...., is that a snatch from ‘’Jingle Bells’’ coming from a date palm outside my hotel window? The accent is unfamiliar with a stress on the second syllable, ‘’JingGERRL Bells’’, a Collared Dove is doing its best to bring a little seasonal atmosphere, but cannot get past the first two lines.

For those of you reading this on Christmas morning, it must seem unlikely that on this web-connected world there is a country that could be ignoring the feast. The impression left by the Christmas promotion is so strong that in its absence, the brain teases itself by contorting any sound into something with a seasonal significance. Even the five syllable call of the Laughing Dove could be thought to be a cooed ‘’Walking in a Winter Wonderland’’. Contrived perhaps, but how much better than the sunken-eyed, teenaged carol singers trying to make a few quid to buy a value bottle of strong cider?

White-eyed (Yellow-vented) Bulbul

The grounds of the hotel had an early Christmas present for me. My colleague, G, had primed me to keep an eye out for Grey Hypocolius. The palms and bushes around the pool held about twenty of them among White-cheeked and Yellow-rumped Bulbuls and enough House Sparrows to start a re-stocking program for the UK if it should become necessary. The Saudi sparrows seemed a little paler than the British version.

I was as excited as a child at ...., well you know. Without even stopping to take my tie off, I rushed back outside to confirm the hypocolius with a good long look through the Bushnells and in doing so, cleaned up a whole genus with one stroke of the red crayon. Perhaps someone might like to comment on a couple of things. For example; in a genus with only one species, why does it need the ‘grey’ qualifier for the common name? And what is the plural form of hypocolius?

This female is showing the white primary tips which may have caused commentators to historically ally them with the waxwings. The black mask on the male makes it apparent why the description as a “slim Grey Shrike” is apt.

The minister in charge of the department that granted me permission to take photographs, would have been pleased to see that I was adhering to his proviso that I could use the camera as long as the images were of a ‘’sufficiently low quality’’.

I was feeling a little conspicuous by the swimming pool in my uniform with binoculars and camera trimmings, so I changed before setting out to explore the grounds. I was eager to seek G’s other suggestion. After having the hypocolius gift wrapped, the Black Bush Robin proved to be a little more elusive. There is a golf course attached to the hotel which would have been the perfect place to look, but Friday is the weekend and the course was very busy, so I was refused permission to walk there. Instead, I checked out the dry area that doubles as the golf practice ground. The trees were alive with House Sparrows. G had advised me to look out for warblers and the sparrows were becoming a little tiresome as they flitted through the acacias catching my eye.

A terrace overlooks the green practice area and a small clump of bushes. A palm tree was dropping tiny fruits which were attracting the birds.

On the lawns, a few White Wagtails were chasing insects and a Eurasian Hoopoe was probing with its long bill into the soft turf. In the shadows of the bushes, a dark shape skulked. Even in silhouette, it was clear that it was a Black Bush Robin. It has a long tail which it cocks to make a very characteristic profile. I was unable to see the markings on the underside until the bird turned away and flicked its tail high, revealing the striking white pattern beneath.

The minister contacted me personally to say how much he approved of this picture.

Eventually the professional, Anwar, allowed me to walk out onto the course, but don't tell anyone, 'coz the management have a policy not to let non-golfers on the course. To add to the list were a brace of Chiff Chaff, which I tried in vain to turn into a Dusky warbler without success. A couple of Red-vented Bulbuls were beyond their normal range and were probably escapees. They preferred the evergreen trees to the sparsely leaved winter acacias. The water hazards held a few domestic duck and a Little Egret. A Grey Heron that I had seen flying over had probably come from here. There were more House Sparrows and a snag just beyond the wall held 3 Little Green Bee-eaters.

I must assume that I am on the ‘nice’ list this year as naughty birders don’t get two lifers for Christmas do they? Unless of course, they have just read David’s post on 10000 Birds and have a hatrick of Troglodytes troglodytes wrens. My software has not yet updated, but I am looking forward to a glut of desktop lifers when it does.

Don’t feel sorry for me by the way (I know that you probably don’t, but just in case). If you pictured me holed up in an alcohol-free zone with no cards, presents, friends or family, fear not. I am scheduled to arrive home on Christmas morning, hopefully early enough to see my son wake and spend the whole day with my family dreading the knock that heralds the tipsy discordant youths.

I hope that today, wherever you are, whoever you are with and whatever your beliefs might be, that you can find peace and joy. The late Dave Allen, an old Irish comedian used to put it more succinctly,    ’‘Goodnight and may your God go with you’’.

Bird species; 15

Grey Heron 1, Little Egret 1, Eurasian Collared Dove 15, Laughing Dove 50, Rose-ringed Parakeet 50, Little Green Bee-eater 3, Eurasian Hoopoe 4, White Wagtail 3, White-eyed (yellow-vented) Bulbul 20, Red-vented (probably escapees) 2, White-eared Bulbul 40, Grey Hypocolius 40, Black Scrub (Bush) Robin 3, Common Chiff Chaff 2, House Sparrow 200