Photos with this report (click to enlarge) | |||
 Levant Sparrowhawk |
 Sinai Rosefinch |
 Balkan Wagtail |
|
 African Swamphen |
 Crowned Sandgrouse |
 Sooty Gull |
|
This trip, entirely done by public transportation and taxis, turned out to be quite successful. We covered quite a bit of ground, doing a loop tour from Hurghada on the Red Sea coast, through the Sinai peninsula, to Cairo and through Luxor back to Hurghada. This involved some lengthy bus journeys, and quite a bit of flexibility in our schedules. We saw both Red Sea endemic gulls, good numbers of White-cheeked and Great Crested Tern and Bridled Tern. Raptor movements were generally good too, with several Lesser Spotted Eagles, Greater Spotted Eagle and Steppe Eagle. Sinai birding was excellent, with two sandgrouse species, including fairly good views of Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse, many Sinai Rosefinch and great numbers of Sand Partridge. In the Nile Valley, we easily found Clamorous Reed-Warbler, African Swamphen and Nile Valley Sunbird. Some unexpected sightings also occurred, including White-breasted Kingfisher in downtown Cairo and Namaqua Dove in the Hurghada outskirts. Very good West-Pal birding!
Logistics
We used an Arkefly charter flight, straight from Amsterdam to Sharm-El-Sheikh/Hurghada. This flight was cheap (less than 200 euros p/p) and it showed: food service was a bit infrequent and snacks and drinks expensive. In Egypt, we mostly used buses, which were ok and generally on time. Taxis and tuk-tuks (motorized rickshaws) were usually good service too, outside the tourist areas. Taxi drivers in Luxor were generally a rip-off and even with hard haggling we didn’t manage to get prices down to normal levels. Shared taxis were always good value and didn’t involve any hassle. We bought first class train tickets for the Cairo-Luxor trip, but these were a rip-off; a slow, dirty train. Expats on board (tourists can only use specially designated tourist wagons) told us this is not the norm however.
Hassle and rip-offs were sometimes a real nuisance during the journey. Travel in Egypt by public transportation was rather adventurous and subject to unannounced schedule changes and cancellations. (Independent) travelers be warned! Most people were of course very nice and generous, especially away from the crowds and in Sinai).
Hotels were generally cheap to very cheap in the Nile Valley and in the non-touristy areas of Sinai, but moderately expensive on the coast (especially close to Sharm-El-Sheikh).
DAY 1: Hurghada 09/23
In Hurghada, we stayed at the relatively cheap but comfortable and newly renovated Cinderella hotel, with views of the Red Sea and located in Ad-Dahar (Old Town). The first day I woke up early and went for a walk around the Public Beach area. This area was being built up, but still offered easy views of the sea and some beach areas with rocks and some vegetation. In addition, I scouted out the Hilton hotel gardens and the jetty of the marina. A construction area near the Public Beach held Whinchats, as well as a Spotted Flycatcher and a few Wheatears. My first life bird was easy to find, as a small group of White-eyed Gulls flew by. This species proved to be common in Hurghada, with a large and easily approachable group usually resting in the marina next to the Hilton. On the jetty near the marina, I also found some Willow Warblers, as well as a nice male Eastern Black-eared Wheatear. Several falcons in the area got me very excited, as the local and very nice-looking Sooty Falcon is regular in and off Hurghada. All turned out to be Kestrels however, a species that I had not expected to see this far south.
As the day warmed up, the old town of Hurghada turned into a pretty good raptor watch point. Many harriers came drifting in over the sea, most being Pallid Harriers, but also including some Montagu’s and Marsh Harriers. They were joined by Booted Eagle, two Lesser Spotted Eagles and a Greater Spotted Eagle! Two Armenian Gulls were also seen flying high in the sky with some White-eyes.
A lazy afternoon on the Public Beach soon turned into good sea-watching, as several Lesser Cested Terns and a White-cheeked Tern flew by, albeit at a distance. To my surprise a Eurasian Kingfisher darted over the beach and the shallows of the ocean to land on a protruding rock, only to be joined less than a minute later by a Striated Heron, a good bird for the Western Palearctic. A few Western Reef-Egrets (all white phase) flew northbound at a bit of a distance.
DAY 2: Hurghada – Sharm as-Shaykh ferry trip + Na’ama Bay sewage ponds 09/24
In the morning there was some confusion as to if our ferry was leaving or not because of high winds. We decided it would be worth taking a taxi to the ferry dock to see if the ferry was leaving anyway. It was indeed leaving, but the ferry trip, leaving at 9 am, and supposed to take a maximum of 1.5 hrs, took almost 4 hrs because of rough seas. Bird-watching opportunities were limited because the small ferry does not have a deck and viewing birds is only possible from behind windows. I am not sure if the seas are normally a bit calmer, but during our trip getting to see birds through our binoculars was tricky because of the rolling waves and water splashing onto the windows. Most birds were seen during the first half hour of the trip, around the Red Sea islands, and during the last half hour, just before reaching Sharm. Most of these birds were White-cheeked Terns and White-eyed Gulls. A few Lesser Crested Terns were also seen, as well as a single Sooty Gull and two Bridled Terns just off the tip of southern Sinai. The views of the islands were not great, and for $50 (ferry ticket per person) I recommend taking one of the tourist boats out to the islands off Hurghada instead.
We transferred to Shark Bay Bedouin camp, where we were to stay the next night. This camp is no longer a rustic Bedouin camp but a snorkeling paradise for mainly eastern Europeans and is quite busy. Good migration of Black Kite and Steppe Buzzard though, including one Long-legged Buzzard. In the evening I visited the Na’ama Bay sewage ponds by taxi. This turned out to be quite the challenge with taxi drivers not knowing the location even after showing a map. However, driving to Na’ama Bay and then just turning north worked, and I soon saw and pointed out the kettle of White Storks floating above the desert as the trip destination. The taxi driver immediately understood and then brought me to the sewage works (and picked me up too). For a good price it should be no problem to make pick-up arrangements. The sewage works are now surrounded by a large expanse of disturbed desert, due to ongoing construction activities. It is to be hoped that the sewage works will not be completely surrounded by construction in the next years. Making matters worse, it seems the area has been designated for off-road vehicles such as quads. These mostly stay in the desert around the sewage works but some also drove right over the levies separating the sewage ponds, just as it got dark. I cannot imagine what impact this may have on the birds, especially the disturbance-sensitive sandgrouse.
The sewage works were nonetheless excellent. Upon arrival, hundreds of White Storks were circling up on the thermals to continue south to their African wintering grounds. A juvenile Western Reef-Egret was foraging next to one of the sewage pools. This bird threw me off at first because of its stained-looking plumage. A juvenile White Pelican sitting next to one of the ponds was all dark-brown, partly because of the sewage it had been swimming around in. More birds had been foraging in the sewage and poisoning by the dirty sewage water was the most probable cause of death of the approximately 100 storks that I found around the pools. Some of the corpses were torn to pieces by raptors or predators. A juvenile Egyptian Vulture sitting by one of the ponds was likely to blame for this. Small numbers of Garganey were present on the water, and on the muddy banks there were small numbers of waders, including Marsh Sandpiper and Black Redshank as well as a few resting Whiskered Terns. Passerines on the waterside included a Red-throated Pipit, a Tawny Pipit and Yellow Wagtails were represented by the nominate and the Balkan feldegg subspecies, as well as by the Scandinavian thunbergi. A small group of Greater Short-toed Lark was foraging on the rocks. In the furthest pools, which were more vegetated (bioremediation pond) I found Squacco Heron, Glossy Ibis and a Water Pipit of the Middle Eastern coutelli subspecies. This last species showed poorly and I was not able to put a definite ID on it on the spot, but with help from others and of some rather poor pictures I was able to draw a firmer conclusion based on tarsal color (rather dark) and breast spotting (faint) and coloration (pretty buffy in parts). The reeds close to the pumping station revealed several Great Reed Warblers, always a nice bird. Some European Bee-eaters were hawking insects here as well. As it got dark a single Levant Sparrowhawk settled in the Eucalyptus plantation to the east, as well as a Black-crowned Night-heron. I waited exactly in the middle of the sewage works for it to get almost completely dark until I heard the bubbling sound of sandgrouse. Lichtenstein’s Sandgrouse! Some birds were calling one or two ponds further down and remained invisible. Soon however, a pair of sandgrouse came flying in over the water and settled in a few meters away from me. With my bincoculars I could just make out the white frontal patch and white eye-ring of the male and the mostly barred body of the female. I waited a few minutes and saw the birds moving down to drink and then take off again. Very satisfied I left Na’ama Bay, looking forward to returning in the morning.
DAY 3 Na’ama Bay to Dahab 09/25
Early morning found me back at the Na’ama Bay sewage works. The single Levant Sparrowhawk of the night before could not prepare me for what was going to come. Right after I arrived, at approximately 7 am, large groups of Levant Sparrowhawks started taking off from the tree plantation and spiraling upwards over the sewage ponds. In the next hour, over 2000 Levant Sparrowhawks came out of the plantation, as well as a few Eurasian Sparrowhawks. A substantial part of the world population! While I was distracted by this display, things on the ground were no less interesting. Among the hundreds of White Stork was one Black Stork, and several Black Kites were resting on the pool banks. European Bee-eaters, and one Green Bee-eater, were chasing insects over the ponds. A Barbary Falcon sitting on the pond edge watched all this action with great interest. At around 8 am I heard the bubbling sounds of sandgrouse again. From a distance I saw a group of sandgrouse flying in, only to pass right over me and settle not far from where I was. A quick glance revealed faces with black stripes: Crowned Sandgrouse! The birds walked across the levy and gave excellent looks! I waited and waited, but it took another hour before a second similar-sized group of Crowned Sandgrouse came in. Spotted Sandgrouse never showed up though. Other trip reports also indicate that this is the most erratic species at the ponds. Two species of this quintessential desert-adapted family was not bad however! Upon leaving the ponds, there was some more activity in the air, with a light phase Booted Eagle flying over at close distance and Lesser Spotted Eagle and two Steppe Eagles following at some distance! I decided to check out the plantation, but this did not yield any other good species. The plantation is now surrounded by a fence and the sewage plant guards are not happy to let you enter unless given the appropriate amount of bakhsheesh. My recommendation: not worth the hassle.
In the afternoon we took a bus to Dahab through the Nabq Protectorate. No roadside birds seen in the hot and barren but beautiful landscape. At Dahab, heard a White-spectacled Bulbul before dark and saw a number of House Crows.
DAY 4 Ras Abu Gallum Protectorate to Saint Catherine 09/26
The Ras Abu Gallum Protectorate is a vast area of ‘protected’ land north of Dahab, on the eastern coast of Sinai. There is a trail leading from the northern edge of the Blue Hole, a diving spot north of Dahab where the many tourist jeeps can bring you, to the village of Ras Abu Gallum. This trail runs along the shore of the Red Sea and is bordered on the western side by rugged mountains. There is access to a few dry wadis. Seawatching was not interesting during our visit, with one Western Reef-Egret. Landbirds were few and far between also, but the species were quite interesting. The first bird was seen about a km north of the start of the trail and was very flighty. A mostly brown bird with whitish tail edges turned out to be the trip’s only Striated Bunting! The views of the bird were not very satisfying, but it seems that the species never really likes to give good looks to most birders. A large wadi with scattered acacia’s behind a small building further down the trail looked interesting. While walking up the wadi I flushed a nice male Sand Partridge from a bush. The bird flew up a few rocks and then showed its beautiful white cheeks and pink sandy color. Not a bad start for an area that is definitely not on the beaten birder’s track. The first White-crowned Wheatear was also seen in this park, although I had expected this species to be a lot more common in this area. The afternoon was spent snorkeling at the spectacular Blue Hole. In the late afternoon we arranged a taxi to Saint Catherine. Buses from Dahab to Saint Catherine no longer run, despite great demand, and we spent $50 for a trip through a spectacular landscape. The advantage was that we were able to stop occasionally along the way, giving me a distant Sooty Falcon hawking around a cliff. Desert Lark was also seen along the road, as well as a distant and not identifiable large Aquila eagle. The night was spent in the village of Al Milga, tucked away in the high mountains of the heart of Sinai, and pleasantly cooler than the coast.
DAY 5 Hike up to Mount Sinai through Wadi Arba’in, return through the monastery entrance 09/27
Saint Catherine National Park (5 euros access fee), in which the monastery of Saint Catherine is located, is now officially only accessible with a guide. Guides are $50 a day and apparently necessary to enter the park from the monastery entrance. We were able to hire a semi-official guide however, for $20. This not only allowed us to bird in peace and without a camel or horse, but also to enter the park from the back side, through Wadi Arba’in, a beautiful wadi with gardens adjacent to Al Milga. This turned out to be a good choice! We left in the dark, and through a jumble of dirt roads through the outskirts of Al Milga, we reached Wadi Arba’in. This wadi can be seen by looking due south from Al Milga, toward Mount Sinai, and can be accessed by just taking trails in the general direction of the wadi. The wadi slowly ascends for the first 1,5 km or so and then starts climbing steeply towards the left, and curls around Mount Sinai to join the zigzag trail to the top. The wadi was full of Sand Partridge, with about 15 seen on this day on a 2 km stretch and a similar number the next. In the early morning these birds were seen on the trail. Higher up, they were mostly replaced by Chukar, of which several were also seen displaying. One Sand Partridge was seen near the top of the mountain however, after the crowds had passed. It seems Wadi Arba’in is much better for both partridges and passerines than either the zigzag or the steps trail going up from the monastery. Only Sinai Rosefinch is more easily seen on the upper part of the zigzag trail, although two were seen flying over at quite a distance at Wadi Arba’in as well. In all, we saw several males and many more females and juveniles, again, after the early morning crowds had left. Desert Lark and White-crowned Wheatear were common all along the trail. On the top we were entertained by numerous Sinai Rosefinches, drinking water from a puddle made by Bedouin salesmen to attract the birds (and birders!). The rosefinches were consorting with many Tristram’s Starlings. A pair of Fan-tailed Ravens circled around the cliffs as well, being harassed by the Starlings. Streaked Scrub-Warbler was seen hopping over the carpets of the Bedouin salesmen, while its distinctive two-note call echoed between the cliffs! As it got hotter, we descended and the birds disappeared into their cool desert retreats. Few birds were seen until we reached the monastery gardens. Here, many warblers were seen, including the ever-abundant Lesser Whitethroat, but accompanied by the larger Eastern Orphean Warbler, a Garden Warbler and Chiffchaff. Common Redstart and Red-backed Shrike were also seen here. We did not see White-spectacled Bulbul here, a species many other birders notice at this spot.
In the afternoon we had a long and well-deserved nap. Just before dark we walked out to the wadi west of Al Milga, but other than the trip’s only Mourning Wheatear, which was seen inside the village, we did not see any birds. A search for owls was fruitless, but surprisingly a group of Black-crowned Night-Herons was heard in the distance, in the middle of the arid Sinai!
DAY 6 Saint Catherine and Wadi Feiran, 09/28
Another morning in Saint Catherine, we decided to take the trail through Wadi Arba’in again. We had not seen a soul there the previous day in the early morning, so we decided to go on our own. This proved to be no problem. More Sand Partridges were seen, as well as a pair of Streaked Scrub-Warblers in the wadi. In the gardens in and before the wadi more species were seen, including a nice Palestine Sunbird in eclipse plumage, a White Wagtail, a Masked Shrike sitting in a pomegranate tree, and several more Lesser Whitethroats and Eastern Orphean Warblers. We had good looks of most birds, and got some nice photos without being in a rush to make it to the top of Mount Sinai and the Rosefinches.
In the afternoon we were going to Wadi Feiran, a fairly lush oasis half an hour west of Saint Catherine. Here, we were to spend the night in a Bedouin’s home. The experience was, apart from uncomfortable (mosquitoes, hard floor) also unforgettable. An evening trip to the local monastery revealed a different avifauna from Saint Catherine. White-spectacled Bulbul was common in the wadi, as was Blackstart. White-crowned Wheatear was omnipresent again, a few Palestine Sunbirds were also seen and interesting migrants included Gray Wagtail. A stop here may yield interesting birds, but bear in mind that Wadi Feiran is a very traditional town, with several clans of Bedouins, reputedly with different interests. We had the impression that it is not good to show expensive equipment and that appropriate dress is certainly required.
DAY 7, 8, 9, 10 Wadi Feiran to Cairo and Cairo, 09/29 to 10/02
Uneventful birdwise, very eventful otherwise. A visit to the Gizeh Pyramids yielded hardly any birds except Hooded Crow. Miscellaneous gardens and parks in and around Cairo revealed the presence of Common Bulbul, Lesser Whitethroat and Squacco Heron. The Qasr-an-Nil bridge over the Nile served as a vantage point over the Nile, from where migrating Black-headed Gulls and ducks, Pied Kingfishers and many herons were seen. One surprising area was the canal near the Nilometer, where several Eurasian Kingfishers were seen, as well as Pied Kingfisher AND White-breasted Kingfisher. A lone bird of this mostly Asian species was a great surprise, as it usually hangs out northeast of the city near the town of Abassa. Where the Nile and the canal become one, several Whiskered Terns were observed.
DAY 11 Wadi Natrun, 10/03
The first Yellow-billed Kite was seen on the outskirts of Gizeh. I saw this species 10 yrs ago in downtown Cairo by the Nile, but the species now seems to have disappeared there (almost?) completely. Arriving in Natrun City we first visited one of the beautiful Coptic monasteries a few km south of town. The monks are more than helpful to show you around. It seems that relationships between Coptic Christians and Muslims in Egypt have cooled down considerably after the government-imposed killing of all pigs to prevent the spread of the H1N1 virus. Everywhere we went, it seemed that the Egyptian government is not exactly embracing the cultural and religious variety in the country, as Bedouins, Copts and Palestinians consistently complained (in private conditions) about the majority Muslim Egyptian rulers. And this in spite of the promise that this variety holds for the development of tourism!
We hired a taxi and explored the wadis north of town. In this area, there were good expanses of rushes, where the voices of Graceful Prinia and Zitting Cisticola abounded. Occasionally a few could be seen flying over the marsh. The water’s edge seemed relatively quiet however, with just a few distant Stilts and Avocets. It seemed too much recreation (swimming) was going on here. There were no natron deposits to be found in this part of the wadi. For this reason, we headed down to the southern part of the wadi. In an area where natron was being excavated, there were a few birds, mostly Spur-winged Plovers, Coots and a small assortment of waders and ducks. No Charadrius plovers however. It took us another hour or two to locate a suitable area with mud, here and there some standing water and some rushes. Here, I soon found several small plovers, including two Kittlitz’s Plovers! I scanned the whole area for more plovers, but few were around, possibly because water levels were down. It seemed the plovers congregated around one of the few puddles. Other birds seen in the area included many Hoopoes, Crested Larks, Sedge Warbler and the trip’s only Hen Harrier.
DAY 12 Cairo to Luxor, 10/04
We took an overnight train to Luxor. The train, although we bought first class tickets, was fairly horrendous, with dirty, no reclining seats, dirty bathrooms, and a breakfast that was poor and overpriced. An Indian businessman on board complained he had never seen such shabby trains in his country. Needless to mention, not really a good choice for a good night’s sleep. In Luxor, we checked into one of the numerous small hostels downtown. It was still hot (40C+) in October and afternoons were definitely a good time to take a siesta. After our siesta we explored Luxor’s waterfront boulevard and Luxor temple. Everywhere we went, we were accompanied by hasslers, and we soon found that renting bicycles was the best option to avoid the street businessmen. Along the boulevard, we saw the trip’s first Little Green Bee-eaters, a few Yellow-billed Kite and our first Nile Valley Sunbird, a nice male, albeit in eclipse plumage.
In the evening, I took a taxi to the Movenpick hotel grounds, just south of town. Don’t pay more than about 20 pounds! A short talk to the guard let me in quickly and soon I found myself walking across the bridge, scanning the waterside for birds. Pied Kingfisher was fishing from the bridge. Two Senegal Thick-knees were standing on the bank opposite from the guard’s station. Common Reed-Warblers were everywhere, and initially I was confused about the absence of Clamorous Reed-Warbler, but soon I found a nice bird producing a warbly song in the thick reed stands south of the bridge. An African Swamphen showed itself, and its distinctive green back, from a small river island. Two Purple Herons flew up noisily and a few Glossy Ibis were wading in the shallows. Many large lizards gave poor looks (presumably Nile monitor Varanus niloticus). I met an Egyptian bird guide on one of the trails on Crocodile Island and we chatted for a bit about our sightings. He said White-tailed Lapwing and Little Crake had been seen in the area during previous weeks, so I definitely wanted to spend more time in this area. However, happy that I already found two target birds, Clamorous Reed-Warbler and African Swamphen, I continued towards the hotel grounds to look for migrating passerines. An area around some rose bushes and sprinklers was very productive, with Masked Shrike, many Lesser White-throats, several Hoopoes, Nile Valley Sunbirds and a calling Eastern Olivaceous Warbler of the nominate Nile Valley race. A rather long walk around the hotel gardens was not so productive, with more of the same species and the trip’s only Golden Oriole. By this time it got dark and many Senegal Thick-knees started calling loudly from near the bridge. Time to head to the hotel. In Luxor, more Senegal Thick-knees were calling from riverside rooftops.
DAY 13 Luxor, Crocodile Island and Karnak Temple, 10/05
The next morning I got up early to cycle to Crocodile Island (Movenpick) for another visit. When I got there, the guards let me through, but more reluctantly so than the previous evening, presumably because I was riding a bicycle instead of arriving in a taxi as most guests of the rather luxurious Movenpick do. I decided to check the area south of the bridge along the Crocodile Island shore a bit further for the birds that the local bird guide mentioned to me previously. The guide said he might also be on the trails today if I needed help. An area with water puddles (water levels here were also very low, as they had been elsewhere in Egypt) revealed a flock of Yellow Wagtails. These included a few birds of the Nile Valley pygmaea race, which is sometimes considered a separate species along with Italian Wagtail cinereocapilla. More recent genetics work has shown there to be only two species in the Yellow Wagtail complex (in spite of considerable morphological variation), Western (including all subspecies in Egypt) and Oriental in East Asia. Still nice to see some variation and to compare different Wagtail species side by side during this Egypt trip. Two more African Swamphen were also present along a small canal as well as a few more Clamorous Reed-Warblers. A juvenile Pallid Harrier was one of only few raptors present, along with the ubiquitous Kestrel and a few Black-shouldered Kites. The Nile Valley certainly was not as good for migrating large birds as the Red Sea coast, maybe because of the prevailing winds from the Western deserts. A Turtle Dove was cooing in a palm tree, this being the only one of its species of the whole trip. While I was looking for rails in the marsh, three men came walking towards me. These turned out to be the manager of the hotel with two guards. Apparently, there had been some sort of misunderstanding, where I had to go to the hotel reception after it opened and pay a guest fee (15 euros) to bird around the area. The Movenpick manager swore to report me to the police for trespassing after I refused to pay the unannounced fee and told him I’d just leave the hotel premises. He became quite difficult with me and the only thing that appeased him was the fact that I knew the hotel’s bird guide and had a paper with his name and phone number in my pocket. Future birding guests, please be warned for this man’s bad temper and the possible implications. Too bad that Crocodile Island is no longer the quiet safe haven for birders it used to be (although hassle by people other than management is still minimal…).
We spent the rest of the day cycling around Luxor and visiting Karnak temple, a beautiful but extremely touristy place. Reputedly, this temple holds a pair of Pharaoh Eagle-Owls, but I was unable to find it among its vast sculptures and rocks. I did see many Pale Rock-Martins, Lesser Whitethroat and Yellow-billed Kite.
DAY 14 Luxor – Valley of the Queens and West Bank, trip to Hurghada, 10/06
Today we got up before the heat and cycled to the ferry across the Nile, where we dodged the early hasslers and make it to the west bank of the Nile and the fee booth to the temple complex of Luxor. We decide to stick to the smaller less visited areas. A walk from the booth to the Valley of the Queens through the already hot desert yields great views of Little Green Bee-eater and one Trumpeter Finch with a bright pink bill. At the Valley, no birds are to be seen as it is getting very hot and dusty. Back near the fee booth, there is a small area with some trees and a recent excavation which held some birds, including Masked Shrike and, once more, the numerous Lesser Whitethroat.
Getting out of Luxor proved to be a bit of a hassle, as bus tickets that we had reserved two days in anticipation were canceled, presumably due to a bus being broken down. The bus going from the downtown area reputedly takes tourists now and then for a lower price than the one going from the bus station near the airport, where you have to take a fairly expensive taxi to get to it. However, some police don’t seem to like the ‘unsafe’ idea of tourists traveling from the downtown area. So we were able to make reservations for a bus (without paying, but they did write down our names, I even insisted on paying) but not actually get on the bus. It seems local businessmen once again outsmarted us and once again made sure tourists could only take the expensive route in the name of ‘safety’. Interesting that more or less the same thing occurs here as in airports (and other places) in North America and Europe. Except that in Egypt it actually takes half a day extra to take a bus to another town. Once on the bus, we pass through a dry desert and a small mountainous area to reach the shores of the Red Sea. Along the way several Brown-necked Ravens are seen, but high winds kept most other birds in hiding it seemed.
DAY 15 Hurghada beach, 10/07
A day of leisure again at Hotel Cinderella, a place we very much enjoyed during our previous stay in Hurghada. A walk along the beachfront boulevard to the marina in the morning reveals a large number of White-eyed Gulls resting on the marina grounds, along with one immature gull (presumably Yellow-legged) and a number of White-cheeked Terns were flying around just offshore. They are joined by a Great Crested Tern, of which I get great views as it flies right over the resting White-eyed Gulls. This made me very happy, because previous views of the species were poor at best. A lone Whimbrel flies by as well, to increase my rather small wader species list for the trip.
A late afternoon visit to the same area yields a very different scene. Hardly any birds around, just one distant resting gull on a rock. One lonely gull seemed strange to me, so I decided to take a closer look at the bird, and it turned out to be a Sooty Gull. Excellent bird! I get to watch the bird up close as it feeds on the rocks and it clearly shows a pink smudge on the lores. This must be the only gull in the world that looks as if it uses lipstick! A better ending to a day’s birding in Hurghada hardly exists.
DAY 16 Hurghada and Al Gouna, 10/08
Early morning I take a taxi to Al Gouna from the hotel. Just outside of Hurghada on the main road, I spot a very small, long-tailed, dove flying across the road: Namaqua Dove! During previous Middle Eastern birding experiences, I have also found this species at some very unexpected locations (e.g. far eastern Jordan) and this certainly is one of them again. The species must be semi-nomadic in the northeastern part of its range, as it seems reports of this species from the Middle East are inconsistent. Another great surprise is a Hooded Wheatear just a few km down the road in a place that looks like one of the numerous construction sites of coastal Egypt. Certainly a great way to start a morning and a strange place for a Hooded Wheatear!
In Al Gouna, it takes the taxi driver a while to find the golf course I wanted to go to, but after a while he finds it by asking around. There now seem to be two golf courses in Al Gouna, and the one I went to (Steigenberger), seems quite good. Access to the golf course is no problem. The greens are literally littered with hundreds of White Wagtails and Red-throated Pipits. Quite a sight! Among them I find the odd ‘different’ bird, including a Greater Short-Toed Lark, a few Northern Wheatears and a Black Redstart. In the bushes surrounding the golf course I find a juvenile Woodchat Shrike and a Whinchat. I decide to pay a visit to the mud flats I see in the distance, just beyond the Club Med hotel. I walk right through security ignoring them completely (after the last experience with Movenpick security and management I decided my best bet would be to pretend to be a hotel customer). The mud flats reveal several distant resting birds, including Eurasian Curlews, Caspian Terns, Redshanks, many Kentish Plovers, and, a life bird, a Greater Sand-Plover.
After seeing this bird, I decide to call it a day, and relax the rest of the day in Hurghada in anticipation of a nocturnal flight back home to the Netherlands. Taking a cheap taxi to the airport seems out of the question, and prices were about 3 to 4 times as high as two weeks before, probably because the Russian tourist season had started and taxi drivers did not have a shortage of clients in Hurghada. The hassle followed us all the way out of Egypt. But who can blame these people during the recession and with ever-increasing competition for the tourist euro?
1. White Pelican - Pelecanus onocrotalus, 1 at Na'ama Bay sewage
2. Black-crowned Night-heron - Nycticorax nycticorax
3. Striated Heron - Butorides striatus brevipes, 1 at Hurghada public beach
4. Cattle Egret - Bubulcus ibis, abundant west of Sinai
5. Squacco Heron - Ardeola ralloides, common
6. Little Egret - Egretta garzetta, around Nile
7. Western Reef-heron - Egretta gularis schistacea, several at Hurghada, Na'ama Bay
(inland!), Dahab
8. Great Egret - Casmerodius albus, a few at Cairo
9. Grey Heron - Ardea cinerea, scattered
10. Purple Heron - A. purpurea, 2 at Crocodile Island, Luxor
11. White Stork - Ciconia ciconia, 1000's at Na'ama Bay
12. Black Stork - C. nigra, 1 at Na'ama Bay
13. Glossy Ibis - Plegadis falcinellus, Na'ama Bay + Crocodile Island
14. Mallard - Anas platyrhynchos, Cair
15. Garganey - A. querquedula, 5 at Na'ama Bay
16. Egyptian Vulture - Neophron percnopterus, 1 imm. at Na'ama Bay
17. Osprey - Pandion haliaetus, Hurghada, Shark's Bay
18. Lesser Spotted Eagle - Aquila pomarina, several at Hurghada and Na'ama Bay
19. Greater Spotted Eagle - A. clanga, 1 at Hurghada
20. Steppe Eagle - A. nipalensis, 2 at Na'ama Bay
21. Booted Eagle - A. pennata, several at Hurghada and Na'ama Bay
22. Red Kite - Milvus milvus, 1 at Hurghada
23. Black Kite - M. migrans, mostly Hurghada and Na'ama Bay
24. Yellow-billed Kite - M. aegyptius, at Gizeh and Luxor
25. Black-shouldered Kite - Elanus caeruleus, several at Luxor
26. Marsh Harrier - Circus aeruginosus, Hurghada
27. Montagu's Harier - C. pygargus, 2 at Hurghada
28. Pallid Harrier - C. macrourus, common at Hurghada and Na'ama Bay, 1 at Luxor
29. Hen Harrier - C. cyaneus, 1 at Wadi Natrun
30. Long-legged Buzzard - Buteo rufinus, 1 at Na'ama Bay
31. (Steppe) Buzzard - B. buteo vulpinus, several at Na'ama Bay, 1 at Hurghada
32. Eurasian Sparrowhawk - Accipiter nisus, a few at Na'ama Bay
33. Levant Sparrowhawk - A. brevipes*, approx. 2000 at Na'ama Bay in one morning!
34. Eurasian Kestrel - Falco tinnunculus, everywhere in urban areas in small numbers
35. Lesser Kestrel - F. naumanni, 2 at Hurghada
36. Sooty Falcon - F. concolor*, 1 in St. Catherine Protectorate near Dahab
37. Barbary Falcon - F. pelegrinoides, 1 at Na'ama Bay sewage
38. Chukar - Alectoris chukar, 10+ at Mount Sinai
39. Sand Partridge - Ammoperdix heyi, approx. 30 at Mount Sinai (mostly Wadi Arba'in)+
Ras Abu Gallum
40. Eurasian Stilt - Himantopus himantopus, few at Na'ama Bay
41. Senegal Thick-knee - Burhinus senegalensis, 5 seen, several more calling Luxor+
Crocodile Island
42. Little Ringed Plover - Charadrius dubius, few at Na'ama Bay
43. Ringed Plover - C. hiaticula, few at Na'ama Bay
44. Snowy Plover - C. alexandrinus, Wadi Natrun + Al Gouna
45. Kittlitz's Plover - C. pecuarius*, 2 at Wadi Natrun
46. Greater Sand Plover - C. leschenaultii columbinus, 1 at Al Gouna
47. Eurasian Lapwing - Vanellus vanellus, few at Wadi Natrun
48. Spur-winged Plover - V. spinosus, common west of Sinai, few at Na'ama Bay
49. Little Stint - Ereunetes minutus, few at Wadi Natrun
50. Wood Sandpiper - Tringa glareola, Wadi Natrun, Na'ama Bay
51. Green Sandpiper - T. ochropus, Na'ama Bay
52. Redshank - T. totanus, Wadi Natrun
53. Black Redshank - T. erythropus, Al Gouna
54. Greenshank - T. nebularia, 1 at Na'ama Bay
55. Marsh Sandpiper - T. stagnatilis, 2 at Na'ama Bay
56. Common Sandpiper - Actitis hypoleucos, Wadi Natrun, Na'ama Bay
57. Eurasian Curlew - Numenius arquata, few Al Gouna
58. Whimbrel - N. phaeopus, 1 Hurghada
59. Eurasian Snipe - Gallinago gallinago, Wadi Natrun
60. Black-headed Gull - Larus ridibundus, Cairo
61. Yellow-legged Gull - L. michahellis, 1 at Hurghada
62. Armenian Gull - L. armenicus*, 2 at Hurghada
63. Sooty Gull - L. hemprichii*, 1 at Hurghada, 1 at Red Sea crossing
64. White-eyed Gull - L. leucophthalmus*, common Hurghada, 2 at Sharm-as-Shaykh
65. Common Tern - Sterna hirundo, Cairo
66. White-cheeked Tern - S. repressa*, several Hurghada, 30+ crossing Red Sea
67. Lesser Crested Tern - S. bengalensis, many Hurghada
68. Great Crested Tern - S. bergii velox*, 2 at Hurghada
69. Caspian Tern - Hydroprogne caspia, 3 at Al Gouna
70. Bridled Tern - Onychoprion anaethetus*, 2 crossing Red Sea
71. Black Tern - Chlidonias niger, few Cairo
72. White-winged Black Tern - C. leucopterus, few Cairo
73. Whiskered Tern - C. hybridus, 3 Na'ama Bay
74. Crowned Sandgrouse - Pterocles coronatus*, 2 groups of each 20 indiv Na'ama Bay
75. Lichtenstein's Sandgrouse - P. lichtensteinii*, 2 seen surprisingly well, few more heard
Na'ama Bay
76. Rock Pigeon - Columbia livia synoicus, 100+ Na'ama Bay + more Saint Catherine
77. Eurasian Collared-Dove - Streptopelia decaocto, common throughout
78. Turtle Dove - S. turtur, 1 at Crocodile Island
79. Palm Dove - S. senegalensis, abundant throughout
80. Namaqua Dove - Oena capensis, 1 at northern edge Hurghada, nice and unexpected
81. Pallid Swift - Apus pallidus, many Cairo, few Luxor
82. Alpine Swift - A. melba, few Luxor West bank
83. Hoopoe - Upupa epops, abundant Nile Valley
84. Eurasian Kingfisher - Alcedo atthis, Hurghada + Cairo
85. White-breasted Kingfisher - Halcyon smyrnensis*, 1 unexpected at Cairo near Nilometer
86. Pied Kingfisher - Ceryle rudis, common Nile
87. Eurasian Bee-eater - Merops apiaster, Na'ama Bay + Hurghada
88. Green Bee-eater - M. persicus, 1 Na'ama Bay
89. Little Green Bee-eater - M. orientalis cleopatra, common Luxor
90. Crested Lark - Galerida cristata, few Wadi Natrun + Luxor
91. Greater Short-toed Lark - Calandrella brachydactyla, 4 Na'ama Bay, 1 Al Gouna
92. Desert Lark - Ammomanes deserti, very common interior Sinai
93. Bank Swallow - Riparia riparia, Na'ama Bay
94. Crag Martin - Ptyonoprogne rupestris, 1 Na'ama Bay
95. Rock Martin - P. fuligula, common Sinai and Luxor
96. Barn Swallow - Hirundo rustica, common
97. (Egyptian) Barn Swallow - H. (r.) savignii, common Cairo + Luxor
98. Red-rumped Swallow - H. daurica, few Na'ama Bay + Saint Catherine
99. House Martin - Delichon urbica, few Cairo
100. Tawny Pipit - Anthus campestris, 1 Na'ama Bay
101. Water Pipit - A. spinoletta coutelli, 1 Na'ama Bay
102. Red-throated Pipit - A. cervinus, few Na'ama Bay, abundant Al Gouna golf course
103. White Wagtail - Motacilla alba, 1 Saint Catherine, abundant Al Gouna
104. Yellow Wagtail - M. flava, several Crocodile Island + Na'ama Bay
105. Scandinavian Wagtail – M. f. thunbergi, 1 Na’ama Bay
106. Balkan Wagtail - M. f. feldegg, 2 Na'ama Bay
107. Egyptian Wagtail - M. f. pygmaeus, 2 Crocodile Island
108. Gray Wagtail - M. cinerea, 1 Wadi Feiran
109. Common Bulbul - Pycnonotus barbatus, common Cairo + Luxor
110. White-spectacled Bulbul - P. xanthopygos, common Wadi Feiran, 1 Dahab
111. Common Redstart - Phoenicurus phoenicurus, scattered indiv Red Sea coast
112. Black Redstart - P. ochruros, 1 at Al Gouna
113. Eurasian Wheatear - Oenanthe oenanthe, common Red Sea coast
114. Isabelline Wheatear - O. isabellina, common in desert just north of Na'ama Bay
115. W. Black-eared Wheatear - O. hispanica, 1 at Hurghada
116. E. Black-eared Wheatear - O. atrogularis, 2 at Hurghada
117. Mourning Wheatear - O. lugens, 1 Al Milga near Saint Catherine
118. Hooded Wheatear - O. monacha, 1 between Hurghada and Al Gouna
119. White-crowned Wheatear - O. leucopyga, common Sinai
120. Whinchat - Saxicola rubetra, common Red Sea coast
121. Garden Warbler - Sylvia borin, 1 Na'ama Bay
122. Eastern Orphean Warbler - S. crassirostris*, 3 in Saint Catherine monastery gardens
123. Lesser Whitethroat - S. curruca, common throughout
124. Common Whitethroat - S. communis, 2 at Na'ama Bay bus station
125. Streaked Scrub-Warbler - Scotocerca inquieta*, 6 at Mount Sinai
126. Common Prinia - Prinia gracilis, commonly heard around Nile, especially Luxor
127. Sedge Warbler - Acrocephalus schoenobaenus, 2 at Na'ama Bay, 2 at Crocodile Island
128. Clamorous Reed-Warbler - A. stentoreus*, 2 seen well at Crocodile Island
129. Great Reed-Warbler - A. arundinaceus, 5 at Na'ama Bay
130. Common Reed-Warbler - A. scirpaceus, common Na'ama Bay
131. Eastern Olivaceous Warbler - A. pallidus pallidus, 1 at Crocodile Island
132. Zitting Cisticola - Cisticola juncidis, common Wadi Natrun + Luxor
133. Willow Warbler - Phylloscopus trochilus, common Red Sea
134. Wood Warbler - P. sibilatrix, 1 at Hurghada
135. Eastern Bonelli's Warbler - P. orientalis*, 1 at Na'ama Bay
136. Chiffchaff - P. collybita, common Red Sea
137. Spotted Flycatcher - Muscicapa striata, common Red Sea
138. Red-backed Shrike - Lanius collurio, fairly common Red Sea
139. Woodchat Shrike - L. senator, 1 Al Gouna
140. Masked Shrike - L. nubicus*, 1 Saint Catherine, 4 Luxor
141. Palestine Sunbird - Nectarinia osea, 1 at Saint Catherine, 1 Wadi Feiran
142. Nile Valley Sunbird - Anthreptes metallicus*, 1 Luxor, 6 Crocodile Island
143. Hooded Crow - Corvus cornix, common Nile Valley
144. Brown-necked Raven - C. ruficollis, scattered indiv. Sinai + Hurghada
145. Fan-tailed Raven - C. rhipidurus, 2 Mount Sinai
146. House Crow - C. splendens, common Dahab + Suez
147. Tristram's Starling - Onychognathus tristramii, 20+ Mount Sinai
148. Eurasian Starling - Sturnus vulgaris, few at Cairo
149. Golden Oriole - Oriolus oriolus, 1 Crocodile Island
150. House Sparrow - Passer domesticus, common
151. Spanish Sparrow - P. hispaniolensis, few Na'ama Bay
152. Common Serin - Serinus serinus, 2 Cairo
153. Sinai Rosefinch - Carpodacus synoicus*, 50+ Mount Sinai
154. Trumpeter Finch - Bucanetes githagineus*, 1 near Queen's Valley, Luxor
155. Striated Bunting - Emberiza striolata, 1 Ras Abu Gallum Protectorate