Around the Region continued

Summary for 1995

The overwintering flock of 16 Chaffinch Fringilla coelebs in Jubail, Saudi Arabia was last seen on 16 March, whilst the first Hawfinch Coccothraustes coccothraustes for Arabia also in Jubail, last reported on 8 February (Orn. Soc. Middle East Bull. 35: 73) remained into March. Single Bramblings F. montifringilla were at Hamraniyah on 16-17 November and Al Wathba on 1 December; the 16-17th records in UAE, whilst another at Sharm-el Sheikh, Egypt on 27 November was also noteworthy. A Yemen Linnet Carduelis yemenensis reported at Wadi Hinna, Oman on 16 September (Birding World 8 (8): 335) was not accepted by the Oman Bird Records Committee. One or two Syrian Serins Serinus syriacus were at Mujib Nature Reserve, west of Faqu', Jordan between 29 November and 22 December; the species is rare in winter here. The first autumn record of Pale Rock Sparrow Petronia brachydactyla in Jordan involved two north of Ras an Naqab on 2 July. They were overshadowed by over 400 near Sohar, Oman on 30-31 March. Two birds, thought to be Mongolian Trumpeter Finches Bucanetes mongolicus were seen east of Layla, on the northern edge of the Empty Quarter of Saudi Arabia on 26 March but could not be confirmed (The Phoenix 12: 17). There is a previous record from the Arabian Peninsula; in Bahrain in winter 1970-71 (Nightingale & Hill 1993). At least 30 Arabian Waxbills Estralida rufibarba were at Wadi The e Gazal, Taif, Saudi Arabia on 23 June, with at least ten, including some juveniles, in the same place on 7 July. Also in south-west Saudi there were three Golden-winged Grosbeaks Rhynchostruthus socotranus just north of Bani Yazid on 16 March, and four, including some singing, in Wadi Marhaba on 5 April. The status of both these species in this part of their range requires clarification. A Little Bunting Emberiza pusilla was on Das Island, UAE on 21 November; the ninth record. T here were two in the same place last autumn (Orn. Soc. Middle East Bull. 34: 44). The first Yellowhammer E. citrinella for the Bahrain archipelago was reported on 18 November (see Dutch Birding 17 (6): 262). Pine Buntings E. leucocephalos are now a regular winter visitor in very small numbers in north and central Israel, so three (including a male) c. 15 km north of Petra, Jordan on 14 December, although the first national record were not unexpected. At Shayitt Agri cultural Complex, 100 km west of Nuayriyah, Saudi Arabia two Corn Buntings Milaria calandra were singing on 5 March: only two to three breeding records in Arabia have been documented, one or two in UAE and one in eastern Saudi (Jennings 1995).

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