This is an account of a birding trip to Yemen from April 27 to May 4 2007 with my friend David Bradford. Our main aim was to see as many Arabian endemics as possible while also looking for summer breeding visitors from Africa. We recorded 117 species in seven days of birding at a fairly relaxed pace. Highlights included all the Arabian endemics, Arabian Golden-winged Grosbeak, Klaas’s Cuckoo and Nubian Nightjar. Major misses were Arabian Bustard, Arabian Golden Sparrow, Arabian Warbler, Hamerkop and African Paradise Flycatcher.
TRIP ORGANISATION AND GUIDE:
Our trip was organized by Arabian Eco Tours based in Sanaa and owned by Yousef Mohageb. Yousef was a keen birder and knew many good sites for most of the endemics.
ITINERARY
27/4/2007 Dubai – Sanaa by Emirates – Kawkaban - Overnight at Funduk Hamida , Shibam.
28/4/2007 Kawkaban- Mahweet - Overnight at Mahweet Hotel
29/4/2007 Mahweet – Hodeidah . Overnight at Ambassador Hotel , Hodeidah.
30/4/2007 Tihamah around Hodeidah – Bajil – Futay . Overnight at Ambassador Hotel, Hodeidah.
1/5/2007 Hodeidah – Taiz . Overnight at Taj Shamsan , Taiz.
2/5/2007 Taiz - Overnight at Taj Shamsan , Taiz.
3/5/2007 Taiz – Ibb – Sanaa - Overnight at Hilltown Hotel , Sanaa.
4/5/2007 Sanaa- Dubai by Emirates
JOURNAL
Day 1 - 27/4/07
We landed in Sanaa at 9 AM local time. An Alpine Swift seen from the airport bus was our first bird of the trip. Entry formalities quickly completed, we boarded the battered Land cruiser that was to be our transport for the next week and set off for Shibam 35 KM south west of Sanaa, only stopping briefly at a grocery where Yousef bought bottled water and fruits and treated us to some excellent fresh mango juice. House Sparrow and Laughing Dove were common in Sanaa city.
SANAA - SHIBAM
The drive from Sanaa to Shibam produced three lifers in quick succession: Two Fan-tailed Ravens in flight looking almost tailless, a Red-breasted Wheatear with its distinctive dark cap and upright posture and a female South Arabian Wheatear perched on the wall of a roadside house. We also saw two parties of Brown-necked Raven(eleven birds in all), another Fan-tailed Raven, several White-spectacled Bulbuls, Crested Lark, Arabian Babbler and four Black Kites including a juvenile with no discernible tail fork. In a walled orchard close to Shibam we had fleeting views of a pair of Yemen Linnet in flight, the white in the wings conspicuous and heard their sweet liquid flight call.
KAWKABAN (AM)
We found a pair of South Arabian Wheatears carrying food to their nest in a crevice two feet above the ground in a roadside cliff. The birds allowed a close approach. Tristram’s Starlings were common and their pleasant weeooo calls were heard regularly at Kawkaban. Up to twenty were seen mostly in flight. One party of six birds was seen by the roadside. The males were a brighter glossy black than the females. The endemic Yemen Serin identified by its streaked crown and indistinct moustachial stripe and its preference for rocky slopes was also common. Small parties of these drab, active birds (in excess of 50) frequented the rocky hill sides. The birds were easily located by their tinkling calls but were constantly on the move and obtaining good views was not easy.
Palestine Sunbird was also common with the male a brilliant iridescent purplish blue and the female a drab sooty brown. Five pairs were seen and the flushing call notes were reminiscent of Loten’s Sunbird . Abyssinian White-Eye was another montane speciality easily found at Kawkaban. Other birds seen included a pair of Blackcap, a Scrub Warbler, two Graceful Prinias, two Red-rumped Swallows, three African Rock Martins and a Black Kite. Fan-tailed Raven was numerous with over forty birds being seen. Several bright blue Yemen Agamas with orange tails were seen on rocks in the area.
KAWKABAN (PM)
After a traditional Yemeni lunch in Shibam we stopped at Funduk Hamida, a roadside inn type accommodation where we were to stay the night. The room was tiny and the facilities basic but Yousef had chosen this place because of its proximity to Kawkaban. After freshening up, we returned to Kawkaban to look for the other endemics. Yousef took us to a stakeout for Yemen Accentor and Yemen Thrush, a well wooded gully, but we could neither see nor hear these species here. Instead we saw three Little Rock Thrush, thirteen Arabian Serin feeding on aloe seeds, a pair of Dusky Turtle Doves, two male African Stonechats (felix) in song, two Scrub Warblers, two Hoopoe, three Graceful Prinias, ten Yemen Serin, thirty Tristram’s Starling and two unidentified Phylloscopus warblers. A party of four Cape Rock Hyrax on the cliff was located by the shrill bird-like calls.
Day 2 - 28/4/07
KAWKABAN
We left Funduk Hamida early by 5.30 AM and drove up to the top of Kawkaban to look for the endemic partridges.We easily located the smaller and more elegant of the two species, Philby’s Partridge with its diagnostic black throat, at the usual stakeout- fields adjoining what appeared to be a cemetery.Up to fifteen birds were seen walking atop stone walls bordering the fields or feeding in the fields itself.A couple were flushed from rocky gullies.There was no sign of the other species Arabian Partridge which apparently prefers middle altitudes.Here we also had close up views of several parties of Yemen Linnet (up to thirty birds) with their attractive orange-brown backs. I also found a Yemen Accentor feeding by the roadside but the bird flew before David and Yousef could see it. Other birds seen in the area were numerous Rock Pigeon (wild birds), Fan-tailed Raven, Crested Lark and four Dusky Turtle Doves.
We drove on to the far end of the plateau summit almost as far as the famed ancient fortress city of Kawkaban. Here we fanned out in three different directions to look for Blanford’s Lark. David located a bird after an hour or so but the bird flew before Yousef and I could reach the spot. After two hours of systematic scanning and walking around the area I had almost given up. Yousef yelled out that we should be leaving when I heard the song of a lark. Looking up I could see the little lark in song flight against the backdrop of the clear blue sky. It finally landed in a field and I had good views of the diagnostic red cap. We had overlooked the fact that it was the breeding season for this species and therefore there were no flocks to be observed and the birds were difficult to locate except when in song.
Also in the vicinity were five Red-breasted Wheatear, Red-rumped Swallow, several Yemen Serin, Crested Lark, Fan-tailed and Brown-necked Ravens . A solitary Eurasian Griffon flew over the fortress city.
AL AHJUR
After taking some pictures of the fortress city, we drove to Wadi Al Ahjur. As we left the paved road and descended into the Wadi on a dirt track, we had close up views of a singing Cinnamon-breasted Bunting perched on a boulder.
Also seen on the drive down to Al Ahjur village were a pair of South Arabian Wheatear, three Palestine Sunbirds and a Chiffchaff. The village folk were very nice and friendly. In a depression immediately below the village was a plantation with fig and other fruit trees bordering a grove of acacia trees. The birdlife here was nothing short of fantastic. In a mature fig tree we found up to 100 birds of several species busily feeding on the fruit.
New birds seen here were a pair of migrant Gambaga Flycatchers, a pair of Arabian Woodpeckers no bigger than the Yellow-crowned Woodpeckers back home in India, a bright green Klaas’s Cuckoo that advertised its presence by its loud two noted call, three Brown Woodland Warblers (arguably the most attractive Phylloscopus)with olive yellow wings, four flighty yellow-billed Yemen Thrushes and a pair of dazzling Violet-backed Starlings.
We also saw twenty Tristram’s Starling high up on a telephone wire above the grove,several Abyssinian White Eye and White-spectacled Bulbul, numerous Blackcap, a confiding Little Rock Thrush, three Chiffchaff, four Palestine Sunbirds, a pair of Green Bee-eaters and a Shikra here.
We found a nest of the Arabian Woodpecker in the grove. The nest was a hole 4cm in diameter at a height of ten feet above the ground in a tree. Both sexes were seen to visit the nest at regular intervals disappearing into the hole and emerging after a few minutes. We presumed that there were young birds to be fed.
The Little Rock Thrush was very redstart like in size and behaviour, especially in the shivering of the tail.We felt that perhaps this taxon belonged in the genus Phoenicurus rather than Monticola.
After about three hours of great birding we left Al Ahjur and drove west to Al Mahweet stopping for lunch at a restaurant in a little town en route passing some outstanding examples of traditional Yemeni architecture.
MAHWEET and HADIQAH (1500 – 1900 m)
We reached Al Mahweet at around 3 PM and checked into the Mahweet hotel. Exhausted from the longish drive, we rested for an hour or so before driving out to the Al Rayadi escarpment a short distance from the hotel to look at the resident colony of Eurasian Griffons. The view from the escarpment was breathtaking and we saw about fifteen Griffons apart from a male Common Kestrel and an Alpine Swift. A new hotel was being constructed right next to the viewpoint.
Roadside woodland in Al Mahweet produced a Yemen Thrush, several Violet-backed Starlings, an Arabian Woodpecker, two Bruce’s Green Pigeon and our first Ruppell’s Weavers. There was a nice waterfall created by water flowing down the Wadi but we were denied access to the area by a couple of local men who explained in Arabic to Yousef that as women and children of the village were in the area (as indeed they were) we could not go in there. This was the only occasion during the trip when we felt a bit threatened and we were disappointed at missing out on a chance to try for Hamerkop.
We therefore turned our attention to Wadi Hadiqah near the military base. This was a most picturesque locale with a water channel that was bordered by tall trees and dense stands of cactus. Here we had ten Yemen Thrush, four pairs of Arabian Woodpecker, fifteen Violet-backed Starlings, four Red-eyed Doves, ten Gambaga Flycatchers, two Bruce’s Green Pigeon in fast flight, a male Kestrel, a female South Arabian Wheatear, several Chiffchaff and Tristram’s Starling and a felix African Stonechat. Ruppell’s Weaver seemed ubiquitous and several suspended nests were in evidence.
After an hour or so , it started to rain and visibility dropped to a few feet. Although the sun played hide and seek for a while, it became rather gloomy and the birding was very poor. We searched long and hard for Yemen Warbler here but to no avail. We walked back to the vehicle in a steady drizzle and reached the hotel dead tired.
After dinner, we tried in vain for Spotted Eagle Owl from the terrace of the hotel. The building opposite and a tall communication tower mast to the immediate left of the hotel were known stakeouts for the owl and though David played the tape many times over, ‘Booma’ as this large nocturnal predator is known in Yemen did not oblige. Perhaps it was the cloudy weather or perhaps it was the noise from the street below.
Day 3 -29/4/07
MAHWEET - HODEIDAH
I awoke in the middle of the night to severe stomach pain, vomiting and diarrhoea and so too David. We later attributed this to the green salad we had eaten at dinner . We were not carrying anti-diarrhoeal tablets and after a sleepless night, both felt very weak and dehydrated. After a breakfast of dry toast and concentrated lime juice(Yousef’s suggested home remedy),we debated whether to scrap the morning birding session in favour of some sleep and rest.
After much persuasion from Yousef, however, we decided to continue birding. At 7.30 AM we drove 18 km to Wadi Sarie'e adjacent to the Mahweet rubbish tip to look for Arabian Warbler. The terrain was very rough and the road very steep and bumpy. By the time we reached the Wadi, we were both violently sick and thoroughly miserable. To add to our disappointment there was no sign of Arabian Warbler although we scanned the acacia thickets thoroughly for over an hour.
Nevertheless the birding at Wadi Sarie’e was fairly good. En route to the Wadi we had a male Red-backed Shrike, two Cinnamon-breasted Buntings, numerous Ruppell’s Weaver (some engaged in nest building activity),a pair of South Arabian Wheatear, over twenty Palestine Sunbirds including many sub-adults, a flock of twelve Little Swift and best of all a pair of African Grey Hornbills in the valley below seen well through David’s scope.
New birds at Wadi Sarie’e were a solitary Blackstart that spread its tail upon alighting at a perch and a calling Didric Cuckoo. Also seen were three Red-rumped Swallows, four Fan-tailed Ravens, six Black Kites, a male Blackcap, A party of ten Arabian Babblers (the race in Yemen has a lot of white in the face and a yellow bill), twelve Palestine Sunbirds, four Chiffchaff, two Hoopoes and five Little Swifts.
Returning to the hotel for a quick wash, we checked out by 11.30 AM and drove on to Wadi Sara. I slept through the entire drive. We had reached the entrance to Wadi Sara but David and I were still very sick and in no shape to continue. We therefore decided to skip Wadi Sara and instead chose to rest in the shade of some roadside trees. I immediately dozed off and slept fitfully until Yousef woke me around 2 PM.
Bird activity in the vicinity was good and we were soon seeing some excellent birds, all while still slumped up against a tree trunk. A brilliantly coloured and very noisy Grey-headed Kingfisher (harsh screeching and klip klip contact calls similar to White-throated Kingfisher) was at its nest hole in a earthen bank.Then two African Grey Hornbills flew across the road. A male Kestrel and three Egyptian Vultures were soaring overhead.
Above me, an Arabian Woodpecker tapped away. Two Blackstart, three Chiffchaff and two Green Bee-eaters were seen while Laughing Palm Dove, Crested Lark and Palestine Sunbird appeared to be common. Finally we had good views of a family party of endemic Arabian Partridges in rocky scrub just across the road. Larger than the Philby’s Partidges we had seen at Kawkaban, this species had a black crown contrasting with the white on the face and white throat bordered by a black half collar.
We drove on towards Hodeidah rueful at having missed Wadi Sara . With this went my last chance of finding Hamerkop and African Paradise Flycatcher although I was not to realise this until much later.
By 4 PM we had reached a cattle ranch near Al Dahni c 50 kms from Hodeidah. Yousef had seen a large flock of the nomadic Arabian Golden Sparrow here earlier in the year. It was extremely hot and humid. I had underestimated the scorching heat of the Tihamah and did not bring along either a floppy sun hat or sun screen lotion, both essential accessories for a birder visiting this area in summer. In the event I suffered severe sunburn.
We did not find any Golden Sparrows on the farm although we saw several other species typical of this farmland habitat. A Singing Bush Lark was seen in display flight and small flocks of African Silverbill and Ruppell’s Weaver were in the cornfields. An African Collared Dove was on a telephone wire while Cattle Egret, Laughing Dove, Crested Lark,Green Bee-eater, House Crow, House Sparrow and Black Kite appeared to be common.
The slim and graceful Namaqua Dove was easy to find and we saw five pairs. Two pairs of Black-crowned Sparrow Lark and a tiny Zitting Cisticola rounded off birding for the day. We checked into the Ambassador Hotel in Hodeidah after buying anti-diarrhoeal tablets and antacid syrup at a pharmacy in town. After an early dinner consisting of unpeeled fruit I went to bed.
Day 4 – 30/4/07
THE TIHAMAH
The tablet was effective and I awoke refreshed and completely cured. David however was still unwell.After an early breakfast, we drove east towards Al Futay reaching a village located in acacia dotted savannah.Yousef said that the immediate vicinity of the village was a favoured haunt of the elusive Arabian Bustard and some tour groups had seen the bird here. We scanned the area for the Bustard and walked around for about an hour speaking to local shepherds about the birds but could find nothing, not even tracks in the soft earth.
Birds seen on the plain included a Cattle Egret, two Red-backed Shrikes, four Lesser Grey Shrikes (indicating a recent fall) and two Green-Bee Eaters. We headed back to the village where some local lads showed us the resident pair of Spotted Thick-Knee. Birds seen in and around the village were two Rufous Scrub Robins, a Nightingale, two Willow Warblers,two African Collared Doves, four Arabian Babblers, a Brown-necked Raven and four Black Kites . A new bird here was a beautifully marked White-throated Bee Eater.
We passed Bajil and headed for the rubbish dump where the target bird Abdim’s Stork proved easy to find. Up to fifteen of these attractive storks were seen along with two Cattle Egrets, five Black Kites, two African Palm Swifts and several Brown-necked Ravens.
We drove back to the cattle ranch for a second attempt at finding Arabian Golden Sparrow. Two new species seen en route were Dark Chanting Goshawk and Abyssinian Roller, both typically perched on telephone poles. The Goshawk was pale grey overall with black primaries and finely barred under parts, orange-yellow bill and feet. If flew low over the ground ,sweeping upwards vertically as it neared a new perch. Abyssinian Roller was a slim and elegant version of European Roller with graceful elongated tail feathers. Also seen were an Abdim’s Stork on a telephone pole with eight more soaring overhead on thermals and a second Dark Chanting Goshawk.
At the entrance to the cattle ranch we had a pair of lovely Nile Valley Sunbirds in a roadside mesquite bush. Birds in the fields included two Singing Bush Larks, Green Bee-eater, Ruppell’s Weaver and a male Black-crowned Sparrow Lark but we again dipped on the Golden Sparrow.
We drove to acacia woodland across the road from the ranch where Golden Sparrows sometimes roosted
according to Yousef. No luck again but we saw seven Black Scrub Robins (I had longed to see this amazing bird ever since I missed a vagrant solo in Mushrif Park, Dubai in March 2001), a pair of Nile Valley Sunbirds, a Willow Warbler, four Arabian Babblers, two Green-Bee eaters and Laughing Dove.
We returned to Hodeidah for lunch. While David rested, Yousef and I set out for the Hodeidah fishing port where I saw my first White-eyed Gulls. Also seen were Sooty Gull, Sandwich , Lesser Crested and Swift Terns.After about ten minutes here, we drove to a mangrove lined creek adjacent to the sewage dump where several waders and water birds were in evidence. The star birds for me here were Spur-winged Plover and Sacred Ibis.Other birds here were twelve Crab Plover, Greater and Lesser Flamingos, Western Reef and Striated Herons, Grey, Ringed and Lesser Sand Plovers, Common Redshank, Terek and Curlew Sandpipers, Large Egret, Bar-tailed Godwit,Slender-billed Gull, Saunders and Lesser Crested Terns and Eurasian Curlew. The sewage dump had over 200 Black Kites and many House Crows.
We returned to the hotel by 6 PM where David was ready and waiting and immediately set off for a date palm oasis 15 km south of Hodeidah about a kilometre inland from the coast. Within minutes, David managed to tape in our target species Nubian Nightjar. We had fantastic close up spotlight views of two small individuals with dark tails, conspicuous white throat patches and spotting on the wings and a call resembling the yelping of a puppy.
Day 5 – 1/5/07
HODEIDAH – AL TAIZ
Checking out of our hotel at 5 AM , we reached the cattle ranch at first light in the hope of finding Arabian Golden Sparrow in the corn fields. Our third and final try proved futile as well with David just glimpsing two distant birds in fast overhead flight. There was good bird activity overall and we had two Singing Bush Larks in song flight over the fields. Also seen were a pair of Nile Valley Sunbirds, a White-throated Bee-eater, six Green Bee-eaters, two Crested Larks, four Black-crowned Sparrow Larks including two males in song flight, an African Collared Dove, thirty African Silverbill, five Common Swallows,eight African Palm Swifts, a Namaqua Dove, a Cattle Egret, a Lesser Grey Shrike and several Laughing Doves, Ruppell’s Weavers and White-spectacled Bulbuls.
We drove to Wadi Siham bypassing Jebel Bura, a key site for Yemen’s mammalian fauna including Hamadryas Baboon. Birds seen included four Abyssinian Rollers, two White-throated Bee-eaters, three Abdim’s Storks and several Common Swallow. We failed to see Helmeted Guinea fowl and Harlequin Quail which were said to occur in the area.
We reached Wadi Siham at 9.30 AM and looked around for Hamerkop without much success but I did have a new bird – White-browed Coucals were calling from mesquite bushes in the Wadi and were easily located by call. The birds were seen walking around the edge of a fallow field or sailing low from bush to bush. Five pairs were seen. Also seen here were two Abdim’s Storks and fifty two Cattle Egrets at a small dam site, a Black Scrub Robin in mesquite scrub and party of ten White-throated Bee-eaters including two displaying birds. A few Common Swallows hawked insects over the Wadi.
Next stop was the coastal town of Kawkhah where we had lunch at the Moka Marine Village resort. Between the resort and the open sea there was a lagoon with several water birds. We could not find African Spoonbill here but saw five Pink-backed Pelicans, several White-eyed and Sooty Gulls, single Heuglin’s and dark backed fuscus Gulls, five Western Reef Heron, a Bar-tailed Godwit, nine Eurasian Spoonbills,a Crab Plover, Caspian, Sandwich, Swift, Lesser Crested and Saunders Terns, twenty three Curlew Sandpipers and a two Common Sandpipers.
From Kawkhah we drove north east to the busy city of Taiz. Five White-throated Bee-eaters were seen en route. We reached our hotel in Taiz at 4 PM and after a quick wash, drove across town to the 2750 m Jebel Saber.The winding road uphill was full of local holiday makers in their cars. We continued up to the military checkpoint where we stopped the vehicle and took a jeep track to the right that took us away from and out of sight of the military base atop the mountain. I decided to play it safe and left my camera in the car. This was unfortunate as we had close up views of some superb birds along the track that led to a couple of tiny hamlets. We passed picturesque terraces with dwarf juniper forest, rose and jujube trees. It was an absolutely fantastic experience to take in gulps of fresh mountain air after the baking heat of the Tihamah. The place had a quaint charm much like the quieter Himalayan hill stations.
The highlight here was the Yemen Accentor. We counted fifteen birds in the cultivated terraces and gardens and along the track. A few were in song and generally allowed a close approach. They appeared to be at home in this habitat. Yemen Thrush which is reportedly difficult elsewhere in Yemen was found to be common here.The birds were tame sometimes singing from rose bushes a few feet away . Five pairs were observed and we could finally get good views of the diagnostic red under wing.
We also saw Fan-tailed Raven, Blackcap, Hoopoe, Abyssinian White Eye, Arabian Serin, White-spectacled Bulbul and eight felix African Stonechats (including five juveniles).The light was fading and we were preparing to wind up when David spotted a Yemen Warbler in a juniper tree. We got good views of the long blackish tail and apricot under tail coverts.This warbler behaves more like a tit and has recently been placed under a separate genus Parisoma.
Day 6 – 2/5/07
AL TAIZ - WADI AL DABAB (c 1000 m)
We reached Wadi Al Dabab on the outskirts of Taiz by 7 AM. This heavily cultivated Wadi provided
some of the best birding of the trip. There were several mature trees of good stature among the
fields. It was a surprise to hear a few local farmers greet us in fluent Italian.
A Grey-headed Kingfisher perched on a telephone wire alongside a Red-Eyed Dove. A flock of the endemic Arabian Waxbill was easily located in a cultivated field and soon thereafter we had a mixed flock of Arabian and Zebra Waxbills. Both finches were common in the Wadi and we must have counted over a hundred birds of each species.
Bird activity was excellent and we also saw five Grey-headed Kingfishers, four White-throated Bee-eaters, two Violet-backed Starlings, three Bruce’s Green Pigeon, a pair of Yemen Thrush, ten Gambaga Flycatchers, three Black Kites and Five Common Swallows in about two hours. Ruppell’s Weaver, White-spectacled Bulbul and African Silverbill were abundant.
We then visited an acacia dotted hillside outside Taiz where we saw a Southern Grey Shrike feeding young. Birds seen included six Abyssinian White Eyes, two Shining Sunbirds, two Black Scrub Robins,two Blackstarts, three African Collared Doves, an unexpected Sedge Warbler and six Common Swallows. Didric Cuckoo was heard.
AL TAIZ SEWAGE LAGOONS
In the evening we visited the sewage lagoons in the hope of finding Hamerkop and possibly Black-headed Heron that had been recorded here in earlier summers. We could not find either species but perhaps the most exciting moment of the tour came when I sighted two Arabian Golden-winged Grosbeaks feeding on Euphorbia ammak flowers at the base of a hillock.
I was a bit confused initially as the diagnostic white cheek patches were indistinct although the birds had golden yellow in the wings. David rushed over to scope the birds and quickly confirmed that these were indeed Grosbeaks albeit juveniles. Cinnamon-breasted Buntings were in song. A pair of Shining Sunbirds, six Black Scrub Robins,three White-throated Bee-eaters, Graceful Prinia and Long-billed Pipit were also seen.The lagoons had two Little Egrets and thirty Black-winged Stilts.
At dusk we returned to the acacia hillock to try for Spotted Eagle Owl and Plain Nightjar. David played both tapes but there was no response. As we trudged downhill with the aid of flashlights, a large owl flew past on silent wings and could not be relocated. It was probably a Spotted Eagle Owl judging by the size. We also saw two Cape Hares.
On our way back to town, we stopped at Wadi Al Dabab and found our way to a clearing surrounded by tall mature trees. Here David played tapes of African Scops Owl and Spotted Eagle Owl but to no effect. There were no night sounds and we saw nothing barring a few bats.
Day 7 - 3/5/07
AL TAIZ – IBB - DHI SUFAL-WADI HAMMAM GAREF - SANAA
The little village of Dhi Sufal area lies south west of Ibb at an altitude of 1500 m. This well wooded area had some superb birds. Here we had good views of Black-crowned Tchagra and Didric Cuckoo. Brown Woodland Warblers were in song. Interestingly we saw both Palestine and Shining Sunbirds here. The ranges of these species in Yemen appear to be separated by altitude, the former occurring at higher elevations than the latter. The ranges of the two appeared to overlap at this altitude i.e. 1500m .
Again a similar overlap was observed in Dusky Turtle Dove (which occurs at higher elevations) Red-eyed Dove (which occurs at middle elevations) and African Collared Dove (a plains and foothills species). We saw all three species at Dhi Sufal as also the ubiquitous Laughing Dove which seems to occur at all elevations. Swifts and hirundines were plentiful with Alpine Swift, African Palm Swift, Common Swallow and Red-rumped Swallow being seen.Abyssinian White-eye, Arabian Babbler, Violet-backed Starling, Little Rock Thrush, Gambaga Brown-necked and Fan-tailed Ravens were some other species seen here.
We descended to the nearby Wadi Nabil but although there was a stream of running water there were too many people about and we saw no sign of Hamerkop. The area was very picturesque with a stone bridge over the Wadi channel, fruit trees on the slopes and Qat plantations in the valley. Arabian Serin was common here and we finally managed to get good views of the olive green rump. A pair of Grey-headed Kingfishers was nesting in the Wadi and we observed an Arabian Woodpecker flying across the valley. Bruce’s Green Pigeon,Willow Warbler, Green Bee-eater, Hoopoe and Ruppell’s Weaver were some other species seen here.
From Dhi Sufal, it was a long climb to the Nabil Sumara Pass and after spending a half hour here admiring the breathtaking vistas, we drove north west to Sanaa.Our last birding stop was Wadi Hammam Garef c 20 kms from Sanaa . This area had some magnificent Fig trees with and not surprisingly we saw over twenty Bruce’s Green Pigeon here. Shining Sunbird was also easy to find and we saw four pairs. A party of ten Arabian Waxbill flew overhead. Here we had our second Yemen Warbler of the trip in acacia scrub, a pair of vocal Jacobin Cuckoos, and a party of three Arabian Partridges flew low across the Wadi from one slope to the other. Grey-headed Kingfisher, Blackstart, Red-eyed Dove, Black Scrub Robin, African Palm Swift, Violet-backed Starling, Arabian Babbler, Blackcap and Abyssinian White-eye were also seen . This site was very promising and would merit a full day’s birding. As it turned out we had just over an hour here before it got dark and we had to head back to Sanaa where we stayed overnight at Hilltown Hotel.
Day 8 - 4/5/07
After breakfast with local birding ace David Stanton and his wife Sharon, Yousef dropped us off at the airport and we had a smooth flight back to Dubai
Pink-backed Pelican Pelecanus rufescens
Striated Heron Butorides striata
Cattle Egret Bubulcus ibis
Little Egret Egretta garzetta
Great White Egret Ardea alba
Western Reef Heron Egretta gularis
Abdim's Stork Ciconia abdimii
Sacred Ibis Threskiornis aethiopicus
Eurasian Spoonbill Platalea leucorodia
Greater Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus
Lesser Flamingo Phoenicopterus minor
Black Kite Milvus migrans
Egyptian Vulture Neophron percnopterus
Eurasian Griffon Gyps fulvus
Dark Chanting Goshawk Melierax metabates
Shikra Accipiter badius
Common Kestrel Falco tinnunculus
Philby's Partridge Alectoris philbyi
Arabian Partridge Alectoris melanocephala
Black-winged Stilt Himantopus himantopus
Crab Plover Dromas ardeola
Spotted Thick-knee Burhinus capensis
Ringed Plover Charadrius hiaticula
Lesser Sand Plover Charadrius mongolus
Grey Plover Pluvialis squatarola
Spur-winged Plover Vanellus spinosus
Curlew Sandpiper Calidris ferruginea
Bar-tailed Godwit Limosa lapponica
Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata
Common Redshank Tringa totanus
Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinereus
Common Sandpiper Actitis hypoleucos
Sooty Gull Ichthyaetus hemprichii
White-eyed Gull Ichthyaetus leucopthalmus
Slender-billed Gull Chroicocephalus genei
Heuglin's Gull Larus heuglini
Caspian Tern Hydroprogne caspia
Swift Tern Thalasseus bergii
Lesser Crested Tern Thalasseus bengalensis
Sandwich Tern Thalasseus sandvicensis
Saunder's Tern Sternula saundersi
Chestnut-bellied Sandgrouse Pterocles exustus
Rock Pigeon Columba livia
Dusky Turtle-Dove Streptopelia lugens
African Collared-Dove Streptopelia roseogrisea
Red-eyed Dove Streptopelia semitorquata
Laughing Dove Streptopelia senegalensis
Namaqua Dove Oena capensis
Bruce's Green-Pigeon Treron waalia
Klaas's Cuckoo Chrysococcyx klaas
Didric Cuckoo Chrysococcyx caprius
Jacobin Cuckoo Clamator jacobinus
White-browed Coucal Centropus superciliosus
Nubian Nightjar Caprimulgus nubicus
Alpine Swift Tachymarptis melba
Little Swift Apus affinis
African Palm-Swift Cypsiurus parvus
Grey-headed Kingfisher Halcyon leucocephala
White-throated Bee-eater Merops albicollis
Green Bee-eater Merops orientalis
Abyssinian Roller Coracias abyssinicus
Eurasian Hoopoe Upupa epops
African Grey Hornbill Tockus nasutus
Arabian Woodpecker Dendrocopos dorae
Singing Bushlark Mirafra cantillans
Black-crowned Sparrow Lark Eremopterix nigriceps
Blanford's Lark Calandrella blanfordi
Crested Lark Galerida cristata
African Rock Martin Ptyonoprogne fuligula
Barn Swallow Hirundo rustica
Red-rumped Swallow Cecropis daurica
Long-billed Pipit Anthus similis
White-spectacled Bulbul Pycnonotus xanthopygos
Yemen Accentor Prunella fagani
Little Rock-Thrush Monticola rufocinerea
Yemen Thrush Turdus menachensis
Zitting Cisticola Cisticola juncidis
Graceful Prinia Prinia gracilis
Scrub Warbler Scotocerca inquieta
Sedge Warbler Acrocephalus schoenobaenus
Blackcap Sylvia atricapilla
Chiffchaff Phylloscopus collybita
Willow Warbler Phylloscopus trochilus
Brown Woodland-Warbler Phylloscopus umbrovirens
Yemen Warbler Parisoma buryi
Gambaga Flycatcher Muscicapa gambage
Arabian Babbler Turdoides squamiceps
Black Scrub Robin Cercotrichas podobe
Rufous-tailed Scrub Robin Erythropygia galactotes
Common Nightingale Luscinia megarhynchos
Blackstart Cercomela melanura
African Stonechat Saxicola torquata
Red-breasted Wheatear Oenanthe bottae
South Arabian Wheatear Oenanthe lugentoides
Nile Valley Sunbird Heydidipna metallica
Palestine Sunbird Cinnyris osea
Shining Sunbird Cinnyris habessinica
Abyssinian White-eye Zosterops abyssinicus
Black-crowned Tchagra Tchagra senegalus
Red-backed Shrike Lanius collurio
Lesser Grey Shrike Lanius minor
Southern Grey Shrike Lanius meridionalis
House Crow Corvus splendens
Brown-necked Raven Corvus ruficollis
Fan-tailed Raven Corvus rhiphidurus
Violet-backed Starling Cinnyricinclus leucogaster
Tristram's Starling Onychognathus tristramii
House Sparrow Passer domesticus
Ruppell's Weaver Ploceus galbula
Arabian Waxbill Estrilda rufibarba
Zebra Waxbill Amandava subflava
African Silverbill Euodice cantans
Arabian Golden-winged Grosbeak Rhynchostruthus percivali
Yemen Linnet Carduelis yemenensis
Arabian Serin Crithagra rothschildi
Yemen Serin Crithagra menachensis
Cinnamon-breasted Bunting Emberiza tahapisi