Around the Region continued

Summary for 1995

A River Warbler Locustella fluviatilis at Akamas Peninsula on 30 April has been accepted as the eighth record in Cyprus. Three Paddyfield Warblers Acrocephalus agricola at Armash, Armenia were considered to be possibly breeding: the species now appears well established in adjacent areas of eastern Turkey. A Moustached Warbler A. melanopogon at Ain al Faiydah, UAE from 17 November until the year end was the sixth country record. The first confirmed breeding of Gre at Reed Warbler A. arundinaceus in Arabia occurred at Sabkhat al Fasl, Saudi Arabia in May when two fledglings were found (The Phoenix 12: 19). The first Basra Reed Warbler A. griseldis on Cyprus, in June 1981, has recently been accepted, whilst a female trapped in Kuwait in April/May had a brood patch and egg in the oviduct. The first breeding in Kuwait seems probable. Two Booted Warblers Hippolais caligata, of the race rama which is occasionally considered a separate species Sykes's Warbler, were at Khor Kalba, UAE on 15 November. An Olive-tree Warbler H. olivetorum at Feinan ruins, Wadi Araba on 20 August was rare in Jordan. The fifth Desert Warbler Sylvia nana on Cypr us was at Akamas Peninsula on 24 March. Four Yemen Warblers Parisoma buryi at Raidah, Saudi Arabia on 7 April were noteworthy. Several claims of Greenish Warbler Phylloscopus trochiloides in Israel have been reidentified (Shirihai 1995): at Yeroham Reservoir on 11 April 1982 (Orn. Soc. Middle East Bull. 9: 8) - a Willow Warbler P. trochilus; at Jerusalem in April 1983 - a Hume's Yellow-browed Warbler P. i. humei and in northwestern Galilee on 21 April 1991 (Orn. Soc. Middle East Bull. 27: 45) - a Chiffchaff P. collybita. The second Raddes Warbler P. schwarzi in UAE and Arabia was at Bateen Gardens, Abu Dhabi on 17 October. The first was in Dubai on 19 October 1992 (Orn. Soc. Middle East Bull. 30: 47).

Spotted Flycatcher Muscicapa striata bred at Suwaylih, Amman, where young were recorded in mid-August: there are very few breeding records in Jordan. Although now well established in neighbouring Jordan (see Andrews 1991), a Blue Tit Parus caeruleus at Majdal Shams, Mount Hermon on 21 August has been accepted as the first record in Israel (Brit. Birds 89 (1): 42). Two Penduline Tits Remiz pendulinus at Sharm-el Sheikh on 16 November were the earliest ever in Egypt of this scarce and erratic winter visitor. An Isabelline Shrike Lanius isabellinus at Paphos Lighthouse on 6 May has been accepted as the third record on Cyprus; presumably it was the same as that previously mentioned in these reports (Orn. Soc. Middle East Bull. 35: 67). Common Starling Sturnus vulgaris rarely features in these reports; one or two remained in the Jubail area, Saudi Arabia from April until 25 May, but without evidence of breeding. There are very few breeding records from the Arabian Peninsula (Jennings 1995). In Egypt a juvenile Rose-coloured Starling S. roseus at Sharm-el Sheikh on 15 and 23 August was a rare find. A juvenile Wattled Starling Creatophora cineracea was at Salalah, Oman on 5 August, whilst Common Mynah Acridotheres tristis continued its north-westwards expansion from Muscat, with records from Barka, Sawadi and Sohar between September and November. Six Jackdaws Corvus monedula were at Pella, Jordan on 24 November where the species is a rarity whilst a pair of Ravens C. corvus at Shaubak in early December until at least mid-February 1996 was the first record since the 1960s.

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