Hunting of migrant birds
Socotra Buzzard enters Guinness Book of Records!
A Guide to the Biodiversity of Deir ez-Zor Area
Socotra Governance & Biodiversity Project
News and information
Jordan Birdwatching Club on Facebook
Dr Fares Al Khoury reports that there is now a Facebook group called ‘Jordan Birdwatching Club’. He asks that if you are on Facebook and are interested in the wild birds of Jordan, to consider joining the group.
Hunting of migrant birds
There have been a number of recent reports of indiscriminate hunting of migrant birds passing through the Middle East, ranging from White Storks and White Pelicans to small warblers such as Blackcaps. Regrettably this happens both on spring and autumn migration. The vast majority of such hunting is not for food – as it may have been in a less prosperous past. These reports have appeared on internet forums and in newspapers – for example an article entitled ‘Massacre of tens of migrating storks’ published in the Lebanese newspapers AlAnwar (19 April) and AsSafir (23 April). Lebanon, Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Syria have all been mentioned as countries where hunters operate – illegally. Oman is one of the few countries in the area where there is anti-hunting legislation that is enforced. Regrettably the practice happens elsewhere – for example in Cyprus, Malta, Italy, France.
Local organisations are working hard to change or enforce laws and to raise public awareness of the issue. International organisations such as BirdLife Middle East are also striving to tackle this problem.
Socotra Buzzard enters Guinness Book of Records!
Adult Socotra Buzzard with centipede, probably Scolopendra balfouri November 2008. Photo: Richard Porter
The Socotra Buzzard Buteo socotraensis has just entered the Guinness Book of Records as the newest bird of prey in the world! After spending more than a century without a name, the Socotra Buzzard Buteo socotraensis was named officially in a paper by Richard Porter and Guy Kirwan in the June 2010 issue of the Bulletin of the British Ornithologists' Club (Studies of Socotran Birds VI: the taxonomic status of the Socotra Buzzard.)
http://www.boc-online.org/bulletins/bulletin130.htm
Juvenile Socotra Buzzard, February 1991. Photo: Richard Porter
Like all other members of the Buteo buteo superspecies, it is poorly differentiated genetically from most Old World buzzards, but it is closest to B. (b.) bannermani of the Cape Verde Islands and the comparatively widespread Long-legged Buzzard B. rufinus of the southern Palearctic.
Restricted to Socotra, Yemen, it has now been formally accepted by BirdLife International and given the Red Data status of 'Vulnerable'. Richard Porter reports that the work he has been doing on Socotra provisionally suggests a population of c250 pairs. He writes: “The naming of the Socotra Buzzard brings the number of number of endemic bird species on Socotra to ten – the island now ranks alongside the Highlands of Yemen as the most important area for bird endemism in the whole of the Middle East, Europe, Central Asia and North Africa.”
A Guide to the Biodiversity of Deir ez-Zor Area
The following photographs are of Ahmad Aidak (Syria) showing his book A Guide to the Biodiversity of Deir ez-Zor Area to interested rangers and officials in the field. This book, written in Arabic and using photographs taken mainly by the author, was published in summer 2010 with financial support from OSME, Avifauna and SSCW (the Syrian Society for the Conservation of Wildlife). It is proving to be a very valuable resource for familiarising the local population with the their natural heritage and is a wonderful example of what can be done to promote conservation and wildlife at the local level.
Socotra Governance & Biodiversity Project
As part of the activities celebrating the 2010 Year of Biodiversity and the Arabic Environment Day, the Socotra Governance & Biodiversity Project organised a series of environmental activities on Socotra. These included a drawing competition for schools, cleaning of Hadibo and Qalansiya, public events and planting fruit trees.
The week of events is summarized in a powerpoint presentation that you can easily download from here:
http://dl.dropbox.com/u/2458124/SOCOTRA%20ENVIRONMENTAL%20WEEK.ppsx
Trees planted have been registered on the UNEP Billion Tree Campaign website.
Abduljameel has been particularly praised for his support and pro-active approach as well as the team of Environmental Protection Authority specialists who participated on the programme.
Further detauils can be obtained from Bohdana Rambouskova, Communication Officer, UNDP Yemen, Sana'a. (967 711 33 66 28, 967 770 138 453 www.socotraproject.org)
News and information
Compiled by Dawn Balmer
AFGHANISTAN
Large-billed Reed Warblers discovered breeding
The breeding site of one of the world’s least known birds, Large-billed Reed Warbler Acrocephalus orinus, has been discovered in the remote and rugged Wakhan Corridor of the Pamir mountains of northeastern Afghanistan. The first specimen of the species had been discovered in India in 1867, with more than a century elapsing before the second discovery of a single bird in Thailand in 2006 first reported by BirdLife International. In 2008, Rob Timmins from WCS was conducting a survey of bird communities along the Wakhan and Pamir rivers when he immediately heard a distinctive song coming from a small, olive-brown bird with a long bill. Timmins taped the bird’s song. He later heard and observed more birds of the same species. Initially, Timmins assumed these birds to be Blyth’s Reed Warblers Acrocephalus dumetorum, but a visit to the Natural History Museum at Tring in the UK to examine bird skins suggested his birds were another species. In summer 2009, WCS researchers returned to the site of Timmins’ first survey, this time with mist nets used to catch birds for examination. The research team broadcast the recording of the song, a technique used to bring curious birds of the same species into view for observation and examination. The recording brought in Large-billed Reed Warblers from all directions, allowing the team to catch almost 20 of them for examination and to collect feathers for DNA analysis. Later laboratory work comparing museum specimens with measurements, field images, and DNA confirmed the exciting finding: the first-known breeding population of Large-billed Reed Warblers.“Almost nothing was known about this species and it was consequently listed as Data deficient by BirdLife on the IUCN Red List, so the discovery of a breeding population marks a major step forward”, said Dr Stuart Butchart, BirdLife’s Global Research and Indicators Coordinator. “This is great news from a little-known species from a remote part of the world and suggests that there may be more discoveries to be made here”, said Mike Evans, BirdLife’s compiler of the Important Bird Areas of the Middle East. (Source: Birdlife International)
ARMENIA
Bird of the Year
Within its ‘Bird of the Year’ annual campaign, the Armenian Society for the Protection of Birds (ASPB) has announced the Common Crane Grus grus to be the Bird of 2010 in Armenia. ASPB had carried out a public opinion poll, and respondents mentioned six bird species, namely Common Crane, Golden Eagle Aquila chrysaetos, Lammergeier Gypaetus barbatus, Eurasian Black Vulture Aegypius monachus, Caucasian Grouse Tetrao mlokosiewiczi, and Lesser Kestrel Falco naumanni. (Source: ASPB Newsletter Number 11)
Lesser Kestrel breeding success
Research into the breeding success of Lesser Kestrels showed that 28–30 pairs of Lesser Kestrels bred in Gorayk IBA in 2009. Ten pairs occupied nest holes in the new artificial breeding tower mounted for these birds by ASPB. The Lesser Kestrels nesting in the cavities in the roof of a local TV tower in Gorayk are poorly monitored due to their inaccessibility. In the 10 nests placed in the artificial breeding tower, 26 eggs were laid and 23 chicks hatched and later fledged successfully. Additionally, about 11 juvenile birds have been ringed using aluminum rings in order to find out whether they will return to their breeding grounds. (Source: ASPB Newsletter Number 11)
Black Vulture movements
In August of 2009 the ASPB and Alexander Gavashelishvili (Ilia Chavchavadze University, Georgia) fitted a three month old Cinereous Vulture Aegypius monachus with patagial wing tags and a PTT satellite unit. This effort follows up on the juvenile vultures tracking programme launched by ASPB in 2006 using wing tags and satellite tagging units. Up to now, a total of four Cinereous Vulture juveniles have been tagged. According to the data received via satellite, the juvenile vulture tagged in August of 2009 stayed within Armenia until November and then began migrating in the second half of the month, when it moved near to the town of Morvarid in Iran. (Source: ASPB Newsletter Number 11)
EGYPT
Birding Egypt on Facebook
Birding Egypt have opened a new forum on Facebook for all those interested in birds, birdwatching and bird conservation in Egypt. (Source: Mindy Baha El Din)
Lake Qarun under threat
Nature Conservation Egypt (NCE) warns
that the Qarun lake protected area in the
Fayoum oasis, one of Egypt’s richest and most
treasured natural landmarks, is at grave risk
of being destroyed. Rather than protecting
this natural treasure, NCE asserts that the
Egyptian government’s policies encourage
overdevelopment and other destructive
activities.
A wave of tourism development is
destroying the shoreline at Qarun lake,
animal and bird habitats are being ruined
and the water is being severely polluted.
Lake Qarun’s most prominent recent tourist
development is Byoum, a massive complex
of more than 120 villas, a five-star hotel and
hunting lodge. It is being built by well-known
Egyptian developer Samih Sawiris, chairman
of Orascom Hotels and Development.
According to Egypt’s law protecting
nature reserves, it is illegal to destroy, remove
or pollute a reserve’s natural resources—its
wildlife, plants, rocks, even soil. However, this
law is subject to a final clause that states “ . . .
unless permission is obtained from the relevant
authorities.” The Egyptian government has
given Orascom this permission at Qarun
lake.
During a recent meeting with NCE,
Orascom chairman Sawiris promised to work
with NCE to help protect the environment by
forbidding hunting, building a bird sanctuary,
restricting water sports and providing
fishermen access to the lake. To date, however,
none of these promises have been met.
The northern part of Qarun lake, around
Gebal Qatrani, contains one of the world’s
most complete fossil records of terrestrial
primates and marshland mammals, critical
to understanding of mammalian including
human evolution. The lake is also an
internationally designated Important Bird
Area, providing food, shelter and breeding
grounds for a wide variety of resident and
migrating birds, including several endangered
species. Despite all this, however, Egypt’s
Tourism Development Authority (TDA) has
plans to build on hundreds of acres along
the lake’s northern shore—even though this
area of rolling, untouched desert is protected
land.
On the southwestern shore, Orascom’s
Byoum development will cover around 300
acres of prime lake property. Already a huge
cement embankment protrudes into the lake,
covering the shoreline and destroying a key
bird habitat. Byoum’s promotional materials,
featuring a silver-engraved, antique, rifle,
promote hunting as a major activity, although
hunting is illegal in the protectorate. Byoum
also denies local fishermen access to the lake.
It has been suggested that letters of objection
should be sent to the following Egyptian
agencies: the Environment Agency (www.
eeaa.gov.eg) eeaa@eeaa.gov.eg and the State
Information Service info@etf.org.eg/etf@etf.
org.eg.
GEORGIA
Batumi Raptor Count 2010
Since 2008 the autumn migration of raptors at Batumi on the east side of the Black sea has been monitored by teams of volunteers. Over 830 000 raptors have been counted in eight weeks. More information about the results and the history of the project can be found on its website:www.batumiraptorcount.org. The 2010 counts will run from 17 August to 16 October and will also include a pilot count in Kazbegi. To register your interest please visit the website.
IRAN
Waterbird monitoring in 2009
In January 2009, a group from Foundation
Working Group International Waterbird and
Wetland Research (WIWO) and the Iranian
Department of Environment (DoE) took part
in the International Waterbird Census to
count birds in the most important wetlands
in Iran. The 2009 census covered eight of the
30 provinces of Iran and produced a wealth
of information, and the counters were lucky
enough also to find the first Amur Falcon
Falco amurensis for Iran. The full results have
been published by Amini & van Roomen
(2009 Tehran/Zeist 520pp) and summarised by
Winkel et al (2010 Dutch Birding 32: 171–188).
Prior to the fieldwork, a workshop covering
counting methods and identification issues
was held, together with the opportunity for a
fieldtrip in the south-central province of Fars.
Around Persepolis a wide range of species were
seen including Steppe Eagle Aquila nipalensis,
Eastern Imperial Eagle A. heliaca, Rock Martin
Ptyonoprogne fuligula pallida, Radde’s Accentor
Prunella ocularis, Finsch’s Wheatear Oenanthe
finschii, Hume’s Wheatear O. albonigra, Blue
Rock Thrush Monticola solitarus longirostris,
Eastern Rock Nuthatch Sitta tephronota
dresseri and Desert Finch Rhodospiza obsoleta.
A visit to Dasht-e Konar in the south of Fars
produced Macqueen’s Bustard Chlamydotis
macqueenii, Asian Desert Warbler Sylvia nana,
Plain Leaf Warbler Phylloscopus neglectus, Seesee
Partridge Ammoperdix griseogularis, Black
Francolin Francolinus francolinus bogdanovi,
Eurasian Stone-curlew Burhinus oedicnemus
harterti/indicus, Red-wattled Lapwing Vanellus
indicus, Indian Roller Coracias benghalensis,
Greater Hoopoe Lark Alaemon alaudipes doriae,
Radde’s Accentor, Graceful Prinia Prinia
gracilis and Levant Grey Shrike Lanius lahtora
aucheri, Pygmy Cormorants Phalacrocorax
pygmeus, White-tailed Lapwing Vanellus
leucurus and a juvenile Northern Goshawk
Accipiter gentillis (rare this far south). A search
for Pleske’s Ground Jay Podoces pleskei at
Bahram-e Gur in the east of Fars produced
just brief views of one.
After the workshop, the group split into
nine groups to cover eight provinces (two
teams covering Hormuzgan). In Gilan, in the
north, 263 350 waterbirds of 71 species were
recorded, with Anzali wetland proving to
be the most important area. Within Gilan,
there were impressive numbers of Dalmatian
Pelican Pelecanus crispus (1298), Whooper
Swan Cygnus cygnus (5530), Common Teal
Anas crecca (67 452), Gadwall A. strepera (36
335), Western Marsh Harrier Circus aeruginosus
(620), Black-eared Kite Milvus lineatus (440)
and Greater Spotted Eagle Aquila clanga (40).
Two Sociable Plovers Vanellus gregarius were
the first winter observation in northern Iran.
Mazandaran, along the southern coast
of the Caspian sea, is the most important
province for waterbirds, in terms of both
total numbers and species found. An aerial
survey was carried out over Miankaleh and
Gorgan bay areas and produced large flocks
of Eurasian Coot Fulica atra (778 970), Greater
Flamingo Phoenicopterus roseus (52 710), Great
Crested Grebe Podiceps cristatus (14 755) and
Smew Mergellus albellus (4880), the latter
mainly at sea. Elsewhere, counts of raptors
were impressive with 252 White-tailed Eagles
Haliaeetus albicilla and 573 Western Marsh
Harriers. At Fereydon Kemar Damgah there
was a sighting of the last wild Siberian Crane
Grus leucogeranus of the western population,
accompanied by a female from the Russian
re-introduction programme.
In Golestan, in the northeast of Iran, many
of the sites had suffered the effects of drought
over the last two years and in January 2009
only 174 000 waterbirds were counted (c230
000 in a typical winter). Eurasian Coot (78
484) and Greater Flamingo (45 461) were the
most numerous species. Also of interest, nine
White-winged Larks Melanocorypha leucoptera
and two wintering Chinese Shrikes Lanius
arenarius were at Bibi Shirvan fish pond (rare
this far north). Three White-winged Grosbeaks
Mycerabas carnipes were found in Golestan
national park.
In Sistan Baluchestan, in southeast Iran,
36 549 waterbirds were counted. Numbers
are lower due to few suitable habitats. There
is a large wintering population of Dalmatian
Pelicans (1523) which is about 11% of the
estimated world population. There were also
important counts of Great Black-headed Gull
Larus ichthyaetus (4501), Crab Plover Dromas
ardeola (82) and Great Stone-curlew Easacus
recurvirostris (54). The first Great Knot Calidris
tenuirostris for the province was also found.
The best bird was undoubtably a first-winter
Amur Falcon seen on 24 January at Lipar
seasonal marsh; the first record for Iran.
Counts in central Hormuzgan, in southern
Iran, produced an actual count of 87 000
waterbirds and an estimated count of 154
000 waterbirds (69 species). One of the most
important findings was the number of Broadbilled
Sandpipers Limicola falcinellus (848
counted, 3621 estimated) which confirms the
importance of especially Khouran strait as a
key wintering site. Also of interest were the
numbers of Crab Plover (7222), Lesser Sand
Plover C. mongolus (3539 counted, 19 407
estimated) and Terek Sandpiper Xenus cinerea
(3271 counted, 9480 estimated).
In east Hormuzgan, a total of 72 248
waterbirds of 69 species were counted,
plus 22 raptor species. The most numerous
were Slender-billed Gulls Larus genei (9068),
Caspian/Barbara Gull L cachinnans/barabensis
(8833), Eurasian Curlew Numenius arquata
(4731), Heuglin’s Gull L heuglini (4337) and
Great Cormorant Phalacrocorax carbo (4115).
Important numbers of Dalmatian Pelican
(2255), Terek Sandpiper (2018), Crab Plover
(1262), Gull-billed Tern Gelochelidon nilotica
(282) and Broad-billed Sandpiper (121) were
also found. Away from counting waterbirds,
six Oriental White-eyes Zosterops palpebrous
were found (at Khoor-e Azini and Khoor-e
Neyzei), 29 juvenile Socotra Cormorants
Phalacrocorax nigrogularis at Khoor-e Kuh
Mobarak (rare winter visitor), Black-throated
Diver Gavia arctica at Jask and a Masked
Booby Sula dactylatra c 1km off the coast of
Khoor-e Chal (third for Iran).
Bushehr, in southern Iran, yielded 54 000
birds. Most numerous in 2009 were Great
Cormorant (13 000), Dunlin Calidris alpina (12
000), Common Teal (3700) and Greater Sand
Plover Charadrius leschenaultii (3000). A flock
of 26 Macqueen’s Bustards were at Mond
protected area.
In Khuzestan, just over 100 000 waterbirds
were counted, compared with nearly 500 000
in 2007. Only Greater Flamingo had higher
numbers than in 2007 (14 236 versus 1986).
Other numerous birds were Eurasian Coot
(18 391), Common Teal (12 614) and Common
Pochard Aythya farina (9634). At Bennynameh,
153 Marbled Ducks were counted. Seven Spurwinged
Lapwings Vanellus spinosus at three
different locations were notable (rare in Iran).
In Fars, only 42 980 waterbirds were
counted compared with almost 180 000 in
2007. The reduced counts, as in many areas,
were presumably a reflection of the extreme
drought. A group of 14 Greater White-fronted
Geese Anser albifrons on a lake behind Sivand
dam was a notable record.
New bulletin for Iran
A new bulletin, Balaban, aimed to encourage Iranian birders and ornithologists to publish results of their works in their native language and introduce a place to transfer ornithological papers, notes and news regarding Iranian birds and ornithology has been launched. This will complement Podoces. Although most of the texts are in Persian, summaries in English are provided. Small number of paper copies (30 pp, A4 sized) are available. Please contact Mohammad Tohidifar (mohammad_8463@ yahoo.com) or Abolghasem Khaleghizadeh (akhaleghizadeh@gmail.com) for further information.
KYRGYZSTAN
An excellent article on birding in Kyrgystan by Vincent van der Spek and Machiel Valkenburg was recently published in Dutch Birding (32: 10–20 2010).
Socotra (Yemen)
Prize for Socotra Project website
The Socotra Governance & Biodiversity Project website (www.socotraproject.org) has been awarded the gold prize in the Yemen Web Awards 2009. The SGBP website received first place within the second largest category of Projects & Government Websites beating the Official Yemen Tourism & Hadhramaut Governorate Website. Winning in Yemen Web Awards means that the SGBP website has qualified for the Middle East finals to be held in Oman in May 2010. OSME encourages them to host conservation stories and news items and provides bird checklists and relevant Sandgrouse papers. (Source: Bohdana Rambouskova, SGBP)
SYRIA
Mheimideh under immediate threat
Mheimideh is probably the best birding site
along the Syrian Euphrates; all who visit come
away astonished that such a rich site can exist
in the middle of a village. It has an outstanding
list of breeding species, notably three RDB
species of duck (White-headed Oxyura
leucocephala, Ferruginous Aythya nyroca and
Marbled Ducks Marmaronetta angustirostris),
White-tailed Lapwing Vanellus leucurus and
Citrine Wagtail Motacilla citreola, with good
numbers of Spur-winged Plover Vanellus
spinosus and Whiskered Tern Chlidonias
hybridus. But the pressure on it is massive
including illegal hunting and every year
more good habitat round its edges disappears
under houses. An application has again been
lodged for the whole site to be drained for
agricultural and housing purposes. On this
occasion the application is likely to be refused,
but at some stage soon it will be accepted
unless there is international pressure and a
long-term plan for its conservation.
The Ministry of State for Environment
Affairs and the Syrian Society for Conservation
of Wildlife are very keen to mount a campaign
to save Mheimideh and to develop it as an
educational nature reserve, ensuring that there
are significant benefits for the local people (in
terms of jobs, ecotourist income and prestige).
This will require major involvement by the
international conservation community and
significant funding.
Mheimideh has exceptional potential as
a flagship nature reserve that can serve as
a major education point for local people.
Illegal hunting is widespread along the Syrian
Euphrates and directly impacts many species,
notably the Critically Endangered Sociable
Plover Vanellus gregarius. Thus a conservation
presence at Mheimideh is very important. Dr
David Murdoch will be contacting potential
supporters in the near future to elicit support
for the Syrian stakeholders’ campaign. (Source:
David Murdoch).
OTHER NEWS
Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Arabia
The Atlas of the Breeding Birds of Arabia project reaches a very important stage this year with the publication of the Atlas. The last records were added to the Atlas in April 2010 and it will be published later this year. It will cover 273 proven breeding bird species in Arabia and a further 24 not-quite-proven breeders. For each of the breeding species there is a lengthy text arranged in four paragraph blocks. These cover the species and its taxonomy; status in Arabia generally and in each country, including population estimates; the species’ ecological requirements and finally breeding aspects. For each subject great care has been taken to ensure that only Arabian information is provided, thus avoiding the repeat of data from standard works. For each breeding species there is at least one map showing confirmed and probable breeding and presence records against two different time periods (by use of coloured symbols), up to and after 1 January 1984, and a line drawing. The evidence for breeding of the not quite proven species is given but these are not illustrated or mapped. There are lengthy introductory general chapters on bird distribution in Arabia, including several general maps and over 100 colour photos of habitats, conservation issues and about 50 birds. The Atlas will be published as volume 25 of journal of the Fauna of Arabia, a hardback A4 format journal published by the Senckenberg Institute in Frankfurt, and it will be approximately 750 pages long. Reaching this important stage does not mean the end of the ABBA project. The database will continue to be added to and records collected from all sources, including current and past observers, literature sources and museums and archives. It is intended to revamp the database in the coming months to reflect changes in taxonomy and nomenclature and to migrate it to more modern software, to enable the project to be completely re-launched, including a new website. However, in the meantime, observers are asked to email the project coordinator Mike Jennings (ArabianBirds@dsl.pipex.com) to obtain a set of the project instructions and forms to enable them to complete report sheets for the current breeding season. It cannot be emphasised enough that the project is not just interested in the new and exciting developments regarding breeding/resident birds in Arabia but is also interested in repeat breeding of common birds, population levels, conservation issues, land use and habitat details. All these aspects can be reported. Contributions on all aspects of Arabian birds are also welcomed for publication in Phoenix the project newsletter. (Source: Mike Jennings)
New satellite-tracking links between Europe and Africa
New links have been added to the satellitetracking pages of the West African Ornithological Society website ()http:// malimbus.free.fr/trakindx.htm) for Purple Heron, White Stork, Eurasian Hobby and Eleonora’s Falcon. There is also a link to a Wetlands International page that has satellite tracking and colour banding links from all over the world. (Source: Joost Brouwer)
Zoology in the Middle East
Congratulations to Zoology in the Middle East who publish their 50th volume later in 2010. It is one of the largest collections of zoological papers related to the Middle East (www. kasparek-verlag.de/ZME-allgem.htm).
Previous News: 0 1 2 3 4