Western Palearctic Birding

Israel, September 2008 

Having seen the advert wanting volunteers for the annual Northern Israel Autumn Migration Survey I decided to take the plunge and sign up for the whole of September on the survey. My work contract had come to an end and it came at just the right time so I thought 'what the hell'. Lee had already committed to 6 weeks on the project so I knew there would be at least one other Brit there. Jonathan Meyrav, an Israeli birder who I'd met 2 years previously in Israel was running the survey and I was quickly accepted onto the team and arrangements were made for both me and Lee to fly out on 31 August. When we arrived at Tel Aviv we were picked up and driven cross contry to Kfar Ruppin where we met Pete Kinsella, a Scouse birder and the only other Brit on the team. Over the weeks Pete, Lee and I got on famously and had a real laugh.  

The survey has been running for about 30 years and is funded by the Israeli airforce. Indeed the survey is really done for them and has very little to do with scientific monitoring of migrating birds. This was something that surprised me as were quite a few other things about the whole survey - read on for details! 

For anyone else considering volunteering in future years I'd have the following things to point out from my 4 weeks of personal experience:

1) The survey wasn't particularly well run and the communication lacked a bit. This was partly due to the absence of the main survey manager for personal reasons but the project had the feel of being in its infancy with lots of teething problems. Only later did I discover how many years it's actually been running. Us 3 Brits weren't really briefed properly about what was required of us. We gradually picked up titbits of information and pieced them together over the first couple of weeks. There also doesn't appear to be a report produced at the end of the project. The manpower on the survey was woefully inadequate. On many days there were just 5 of us trying to cover the whole breadth of the country!        

2) The birding experience is awesome however. The opportunity to see raptors, storks and pelicans migrating in such vast numbers is something I'll never forget.

3) The accommodation provided at Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin is basic and not particularly clean (infestation by Pharoah Ants was a constant problem). The accommodation and food are provided free however so this should be borne in mind. The food was OK, mainly involving a bbq and salad most nights and a self prepared packed lunch for the long days out in the field. Generally we lived very frugally despite rumblings about the grocery bill being too high. I never want to eat hummus again though!

4) Another problem was the delay in paying monies. We were each told that we would receive reimbursement for the cost of our flight tickets and $500. After some chasing we were wondering if we'd ever get any of it. I eventually received mine in the form of bankers cheques about 3 weeks after I got back after several reminders. It took until December for Lee and Pete to be paid after many emails and phone calls. I feel anyone considering signing up for the survey in the future needs to be forewarned with this information. When a complete stranger turns up at your migration station and the first thing he says is 'from my experience don't expect to get paid without a fight' you know it's not going to be good!         

5) You work for 6 days a week from approx 08.00 to 17.00. Although we were told that we would often finish early and get plenty of opportunity to go general birding afterwards this didn't happen very often. On most days we only had an hour or two to spare before dark and thus had to spend it birding locally.

6) Remember that you are stationed at a watchpoint for the whole day. Although never at the same watchpoint on consecutive days this requires a great deal of patience. Scanning the skies from west to east all day does take its toll, especially during quiet periods.   

7) Apart from me, Lee and Pete all the other participants were Israeli. Whilst some of the other participants were friendly and helpful others weren't very forthcoming with information. The withholding of birding information, point scoring and reverting to speaking Hebrew (and even hiding themselves away in a separate room) whenever they didn't want us to know what they were talking about was really quite annoying. For a group of supposedly like-minded birders living in each others pockets for a number of weeks I found this incredible. 

We did meet some great people while in Israel though and I'd like to say a big thankyou to Tuvia Khan, Liron Ziv, Oz Horine and not least Ralph and Betty Salinger. Without you guys I'd have probably come home early!

 

Rather than go through each day in a diary format like most of the other trip reports on this website I'll first explain and bit more about how the projects works and then go through some of the highlights of my 4 weeks. I deliberately arranged things so I'd have a couple of days independent birding at the end of my survey stint so I'd be able to track down some much wanted species!

The survey watchpoints are strung out across northern Israel from Kfar Ruppin in the east almost up to Haifa on the coast to the west. The map below shows all the stations I got to know about. Each watchpoint faces north and is in a place which provides some shade so you don't have to sit in the baking sun all day! Some stations were nicer than others allowing some general birding in the immediate vicinity but most were just on farmland. Each surveyor is provided with a clipboard, recording forms, a plastic garden chair and a short-wave radio for communicating with the other surveyors.        

  

I was stationed at the following watchpoints (then birded the areas in brackets after finishing for the day):

31 Aug (night drive Kfar Ruppin area)

1 Sept - Beit HaShita

2 Sept - Sede Nahum (Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin)

3 Sept - Neve Eitan (Tirat Zevi)

4 Sept - KY and Sede Nahum (Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin)

5 Sept - Neve Eitan (Kfar Ruppin Cemetery & fields between Neve Eitan and Jordan Border)

6 Sept - Beit HaShita (marsh at Maoz Hayyin)

7 Sept - Geva, Ginnegar and Kumi

8 Sept - Day off (area between Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin and Jordan Border)

9 Sept - Tirat Zevi (night drive Kfar Ruppin/Tirat Zevi) 

10 Sept - KY (Tirat Zevi fishponds)

11 Sept - Geva (fields to the north of Kfar Ruppin)

12 Sept - Beit HaShita

13 Sept - Kumi (Mount Gilboa)

14 Sept - KY (alfalfa fields to the west of Kfar Ruppin)

15 Sept - Day off (area between Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin and Jordan Border)

16 Sept - Shoonam

17 Sept - Geva (Tirat Zevi fishponds)

18 Sept - Afula (area NW of Kfar Ruppin)

19 Sept - Shoonam and Geva (area NE of Kfar Ruppin)

20 Sept - Ginnegar and KY

21 Sept - Afula

22 Sept - Day off (Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin incl cemetery)

23 Sept - Shoonam (Tirat Zevi fishponds and night drive along Jordan Border)

24 Sept - Gvat (Western Neve Eitan Fishponds and alfalfa fields SE of Maoz Hayyim)

25 Sept - Ginnegar (Western Neve Eitan Fishponds)

26 Sept - Gvat (Tirat Zevi fishponds)

27 Sept - Afula (Western Neve Eitan Fishponds, Kfar Ruppin/Tirat Zevi area incl night drive)

FINISHED ON THE SURVEY

28 Sept -  Tiberius Town, Wadi Salvadora, Ein Gedi, HaArava Junction, Shizaf Nature Reserve

29 Sept - Pardes-Hanna Town, Hayarkon Park Tel Aviv

30 Sept - Netanya and flight home

   

Survey Accommodation, Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin

Tools of the trade!

Jordan and the cemetry from Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin (showing the elevated position of the cemy)

Honey Buzzard passage was just starting to get going when I arrived with numbers only really starting to shelve off in the 3rd week of September. My peak counts were impressive to me but I happened to be quite unlucky in the stations I was placed at because I missed the really big counts. Still, 5083 on one day, 4459 on another 3397 on another and hundreds on most days can't be sniffed at! Stationed at Beit HaShita on 6 September on one of my big days and I was able to positively identify a superb black and white phase adult male Oriental Honey Buzzard right over my head. I had another rather different individual (this one being a pale orange adult male with dark throat patch) over Tirat Zevi on 9 September. In all approx 15 were seen on the survey but there must be many more that pass by un-identified at long range.

The 2nd main phase of raptor passage started on 12 September when I had my first Levant Sparrowhawk at Beit HaShita. The following day they started to pass in numbers with me recording hundreds on most days with personal counts of 1994 at Ginnegar on 20 September and 822 at Afula on 21 September. Lee had a flock of 2600 at Geva on 19 September of which I managed to see c2000 disappearing over Mount Gilboa as we bowled up at his station.

The 3rd main phase involves Lesser Spotted Eagles which tend to pass over the western stations rather than further east.  Passage was delayed in 2008 due to adverse weather conditions over Turkey and the Lebanon. Due to this I missed the main passage of this species but did manage counts of 227 and 294 including a low stream of 243 right over my head at Gvat on 26 September.

Other raptor species pass through in smaller numbers but add to the variety each day. In the rough order of the numbers I saw were Black Kite, Short-toed Eagle, Kestrel, Booted Eagle, Marsh Harrier, Montagu's Harrier, Sparrowhawk, Osprey, Red-footed Falcon, Pallid Harrier, Hobby, Long-legged Buzzard, Lesser Kestrel, Steppe Buzzard, Bonelli's Eagle and Steppe Eagle. 

Short-toed Eagle, Sede Nahum

Migration isn't restricted to raptors however. Storks and pelicans feature heavily too. After my first White Pelican (a juv on the deck amongst Black Storks near Tirat Zevi on the evening of 3 September) I saw loads of this most enigmatic of species. Several smallish flocks were eclipsed by an incredible 8600 at Afula on 27 September including flocks of 4500 and 3500! Storks are an ever present and sometimes difficult to ascertain if they are migrating or not. My biggest day total of White Storks was 12725 on 6 September at Beit HaShita including one stream of 8500 which stretched from horizon to horizon! Black Storks tended to be loafing about in fields and making local movements with flocks sometimes reaching 3 figures.

White Pelicans, Afula. Part of a flock of 4500!

  

The end of another day. Pete, Lee and Tuvia in the Beit Shean valley 

Away from the survey we managed some late afternoon and early evening birding in the limited time we had available. Due to the lack of time this was always within a few miles of Kfar Ruppin because we literally didn't have time to venture further afield. We had use of a vehicle but weren't insured so couldn't take it off the minor roads and tracks. We tried once but after spotting a police checkpoint in the distance had to turn back! Another feature of the evenings was a few night drives we did with flashlights which was a good way of extending the day and proved very fruitful for mammals and birds.

The highlights of our evenings are detailed below:

The first of several night drives around the Kfar Ruppin area was conducted on the first night Lee and I were there (31 August). Driving the tracks and ploughed fields to the north of the kibbutz revealed c10 European Nightjars and c12 Golden Jackals in the spotlights. A seemingly paler nightjar was seen once but couldn't be relocated.

On 2 Sept both Eastern Olivaceous Warbler and Sardinian Warbler were around the station at Sede Nahum whilst a Chukar was flushed from the edge of the cemetry there. A very obliging Clouded Yellow was photographed in the cemetry too. A walk down to the Kfar Ruppin cemetry in the evening saw us notch our first Pygmy Cormorants (c30 coming in to roost), 1 Purple Heron, c15 Night Herons, Osprey, Masked Shrike and Eastern Olivaceous Warbler.

  

Clouded Yellow, Sede Nahum

Sede Nahum cemetry

At Neve Eitan station on 3 Sept the highlights were 6 Gull-billed Terns, Roller, Lesser Grey Shrike, c150 Ruff and both Common and Green Sandpipers.  A quick drive down towards Tirat Zevi later in the day yielded our first Black Francolins (and fem and a juv beside the track) and a single Glossy Ibis amongst the commoner species. Just before dusk and back at the kibbutz Lee returned to say there was a imm White Pelican sat in a field with storks beside the road down to Tirat Zevi. So about 10 mins later we'd squealed down there and I was watcing my first WP tick of the trip! 5 Squacco Herons, c10 Night Herons and both Golden Jackal and Mountain Gazelle were also seen.

Squacco Heron, Neve Eitan

White Stork, Neve Eitan

On 4 Sept the only birds of real note during the day were an 2 entertaining Eastern Olivaceous Warblers at KY station and a male Redstart in the cemetry at Sede Nahum.  The best sighting of the day was a fantastic Chameleon at Sede Nahum which allowed some real close up photography. Watching it subtely change colour was amazing.  Around the kibbutz in the evening was also very entertaining. A walk around the fields and bushes west of the kibbutz resulted in us failing to see a Rufous Bush Robin that Tuvia had seen the previous evening but managing 4 Rollers, 3 Woodchats, Nightingale, Tree Pipit, Montagu's Harrier and Hobby. Then back in the dining hall at the kibbutz we amazingly found a Rufous Bush Robin flying around inside, perching on tables and generally showing pretty well! It caused some amusement amongst the kibbutz residents and posed for photographs on a trellis at about 3 yards range! A Scops Owl was also calling after dark on the kibbutz.

Chamleleon, Sede Nahum

A probable Marsh Warbler was close to our accommodation block on the kibbutz in the early morning on 5 Sept with Sardinian Warbler, Eastern Olivaceous Warbler and 2 juv Rollers also present. 7 Marsh Sandpipers, 3 Crag Martins and another (this time green) Chameleon were the days highlights at Neve Eitan whilst 5 Desert Finches and a female Black Francolin were near Maoz Hayyim on the way back. c80 Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters and c40 Pygmy Cormorants graced the Kfar Ruppin cemetry area.

    

Chameleon, Neve Eitan

   

Me at Neve Eitan

Isabelline Wheatear, Neve Eitan

Eastern Wasp, Neve Eitan

Apart from ticking Oriental Honey Buzzard at Beit HaShita and making my peak count of 12725 White Storks 6 Sept was a pretty quiet day. A visit to a reedbed at Maoz Hayyim in the evening yielded c15 Marsh Harriers at their roost plus our first Great White Egret of the trip.

On 7 Sept I had the pleasure of manning 3 different stations at various times of the day - Geva, Ginnagar and Kumi. It was another quiet one with a pale juv Bonelli's Eagle at Geva, 50+ Yellow Wagtails at Ginnegar (including c5 pale grey birds showing no yellow, even on the vent) and a flock of c60 Ortolans and 2 Cretzschmars Buntings at Kumi being the highlights. My first male Black Francolin of the trip was seen well on the northern approach to Kfar Ruppin on the way back.

After 7 days of surveying 8 Sept was my first day off so I put it to use exploring the area of date palms, scrub and small fishponds just outside the kibbutz fence by the Jordanian border. I gave the area a good flogging and it proved very productive. Highlights included 2 Clamorous Reed Warblers, 2 Sardinian Warblers, 1 Eastern Orphean Warbler, 1 Ruppell's Warbler, 2 Eastern Olivaceous Warblers, 3 Cetti's Warblers, flocks of 50 and 20 Desert Finches, c15 Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters, Pied, Common and White-breasted Kingfishers, a juvenile Citrine Wagtail beside one of the small sewage ponds, 1 Chukar, Red-backed Shrike, Masked Shrike and a superb male Namaqua Dove across the track right in front of me. This was a major find this far north.

  

Date palms, Kfar Ruppin                         

9 Sept saw me stationed at the far southern station at Tirat Zevi. Despite being extremely hot due to the site being 800 feet below sea level the station was a popular one because it gave plenty of opportunity for a good day list. My day here proved that. It got off to a great start with a pale orange male Oriental Honey Buzzard amongst a sizeable stream of Honey Buzzards. Small groups of Short-toed Larks were moving south and 6 Indian Silverbills put in a brief appearance in reeds by the station. Other goodies in a big day total were 3 Pallid Harriers, 6 Ospreys, 1 Glossy Ibis, 5 Garganey, 1 Shoveler, 15 Whiskered Terns, 1 Spotted Flycatcher, c30 Willow Warblers,  5 Desert Finches, 1 Clamorous Reed Warbler and a Black Francolin. Pete had reported a probable Basra Reed Warbler in reeds 200 yards south of the station the previous day and I managed to locate the bird in question. Views were pretty good but I remained not totally convinced. 2 Plain Tiger butterflies were a new species for me.  That night we embarked on one of our night drives which turned out to be excellent with 2 Stone Curlews, an Eagle Owl sat in a ploughed field, c7 Golden Jackals and the amazing sight of 3 Wild Boars (a pair with a youngster) trotting through date palms alongside the car and then right across the road at really close range.

The migration station at Tirat Zevi

Spotted Flycatcher, Tirat Zevi

Hooded Crow, Tirat Zevi

Yellow-vented Bulbul, Tirat Zevi

The following day I was located at KY (aka Kefar Yehezoel) in what proved to be a rather boring day. Highlights were a Golden Oriole, the usual 2 Eastern Olivaceous Warblers by the station, 17 Glossy Ibis, 1 Steppe Eagle, 2 Stone Curlews under the edge of an olive grove and my first flock of White Pelicans numbering 28. In the late afternoon we drove down to Tirat Zevi and found a large drained and muddy fishpond. It yielded a few new waders for the triplist, namely Avocet, Temminck's Stint, Little Stint, Ringed Plover and Little Ringed Plover. c12 Garganey and a male Black Francolin were the other sightings of note.

Black Francolin, Tirat Zevi (copyright Oz Horine)

 

Lee, Pete and Tuvia, Tirat Zevi

On 11 Sept , to help alleviate boredom we decided to have a mini bird race to see who could see the most species at their station during the day. Trust my luck to get Geva which is basically one tree in the middle of a field! Still, I managed to winckle out 41 species but stood no chance of victory against Tuvia who was based at Tirat Zevi! The days highlights were 1 Cuckoo, 14 Garganey, 1 Woodchat and 51 White Pelicans. On the way back to Kfar Ruppin we explored the area of fields to the north and close to the border fence. 7 juv Montagu's Harriers at close range were a great sight and we also notched up c12 Fan-tailed Warblers, Lesser Grey Shrike, 1 Little Owl on a nest box, c40 Chukar, 1 Black Francolin, an Ortolan, Roller and c150 Short-toed Larks. After dark on the kibbutz we had both Barn Owl and Scops Owl. 

Beit HaShita on 12 Sept was extremely quiet for most of the day with just 3 Tawny Pipits by the track. Masked Shrike and Red-backed Shrike to keep me amused. Honey Buzzards started to come through late on and amongst them a single Levant Sparrowhawk made my day! 79 White Pelicans and a Long-legged Buzzard were the only other noteworthy sightings.

Syrian Woodpecker, Beit HaShita

Salmon Arab, Beit HaShita

My station for the day on 13 Sept was Kumi where I had the luxury of a water fountain in which to wash tired and grubby feet! Birdingwise, 196 Levant Sparrowhawks were the highlight (including some great views), 1 Northern Wheatear, a family party of 4 Masked Shrikes, Sardinian Warbler, 4 Tawny Pipits, 1 Alpine Swift and the bunting flock still present and comprising c50 Ortolans with several Cretzschmar's Buntings mixed in. When I was picked up from the station mid afternoon I was keen to return to the station at Afula where Pete had found a Turkestan Shrike a bit earlier. Despite being only 15 minutes drive away and the fact that he, Lee, Pete and Tuvia had watched the bird well Uri was annoyingly reluctant to take me there. This became quite heated as he spent 20 minutes delaying things and being unnecessarily awkward. Yet another example of the unhelpfulness bordering on downright rudeness we frequently encountered from many Israeli birders. Eventually he gave in to pressure and I got some great views of the bird - a nice adult. Later that afternoon we ventured up onto Mount Gilboa and despite trying one site and failing we eventually drove down to the site I knew and once out of the car I located a Long-billed Pipit within minutes. The same area went on to produce 3 birds but after my initial sighting none were on the deck. A little further down the road we then found another perched up right beside the road in exactly the same spot as I'd had them 2 years ago. 1 Lesser Grey Shrike, 2 Northern Wheatears and a Rock Hyrax completed the picture as the moon rose over the valley.

Turkestan Shrike, Afula (copyright Oz Horine)

The gang, Mount Gilboa

Long-billed Pipit habitat, Mount Gilboa

Moonrise, Beit Shean valley

After an extremely slow and boring day at KY on 14 Sept we ventured out to the alfalfa fields to the west of Kfar Ruppin in the early evening. Here we found a huge flock of c4000 Short-toed Larks, 1 Tawny Pipit, several Yellow Wagtails, 2 Lesser Grey Shrikes, 1-2 Rollers, Osprey and 2 juv harriers. One of which was a Montagu's Harrier but the other a probable Pallid Harrier defied definitive id - even after consulting literature and Lee's photos of it!

The sun rose to my 2nd day off on 15 Sept and as well as catching up on laundry and having a dip in the kibbutz pool I also squeezed some local birding in. In the morning the cemetry revealed a nice Wood Warbler, c20 Willow Warblers, Reed Warbler, Sardinian Warbler, Spotted Flycatcher, Nightingale and 2 fly-over Green Sandpipers. In the afternoon I did soem more exploring of the area between the kibbutz and the border fence which was again fairly productive - my only Little Bittern of the whole trip, 18 Pygmy Cormorants, 1 Lesser Spotted Eagle, 2 Levant Sparrowhawks, 1 Clamorous Reed Warbler, Roller, Southern Grey Shrike and 2 Black Francolins.

Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin pool

On 16 Sept I spent the whole day at Shoonam with no opportunity for any other birding. Apart from 3397 Honey Buzzards, 5 Lesser Spotted Eagles and 196 Levant Sparrowhawks the highlights were 1 adult Egyptian Vulture, c40 Bee-eaters, 3 Fan-tailed Warblers and a Lesser Grey Shrike whilst in transit.

After 101 White Pelicans, 356 Levant Sparrowhawks, 1 Long-legged Buzzard and my first Steppe Buzzard of the trip at Geva we ventured out to the dried up fishpond at Tirat Zevi in the late afternoon. Again it was full of birds with c40 Little Stints, 1 Temminck's Stint, 1 Spotted Redshank, Green, Common and Wood Sandpipers, several Ringed and Little Ringed Plovers and an early Lapwing. Grey Heron numbers were huge and included 330 on just this one pond. Loads of Black and White Storks, c30 Night Herons, 1 Great White Egret, Montagu's Harrier, 2-3 Ospreys, Hobby, 8 Garganey, Clamorous Reed Warbler and Whinchat rounded off a good evening.

Storks at Sunset, Tirat Zevi

Violet Dropwing, Geva

Afula station on 18 Sept was memorable for 5 Red-footed Falcons, 5 Lesser Spotted Eagles and 1 Steppe Buzzard but little else. Still, the Turkestan Shrike was still present and a chat with Israeli birder Oz Horine broke the day up nicely. Later in the day we drove round the area northwest of Kfar Ruppin finding 4 Montagu's Harriers, 1 Great White Egret, 1 Woodchat (nilocipus race), 2000+ Short-toed Larks, 3 Tawny Pipits, 1 Cretzschmar's Bunting and 2 Rollers but the way we were driven around didn't really enhance the experience.

  

Crested Larks, Afula               

19 Sept saw me located at Shoonam for what was to be another mostly quiet day. Still, 451 Levant Sparrowhawks aren't to be sneezed at so all things are relative! As things were quiet I was picked up early and when we bowled up at Geva where Lee was stationed he'd just had an amazing flock of 2600 Levant Sparrowhawks go over him. We managed to get onto about 2000 of them as they disappeared over Mount Gilboa to the southeast. After that excitement we spend a while in the late afternoon/early evening exploring the area northeast of Kfar Ruppin. One cut alfalfa field held a huge number of Yellow Wagtails (c1000), 5 Tawny Pipits, 20 Isabelline Wheatears, Lesser Grey Shrike, Willow Warbler and Whinchat. The area also revealed Southern Grey Shrike, Roller, 4 Black Francolins, 3 Fan-tailed Warblers, Clamorous Reed Warbler and a fine male Cretzschmar's Bunting.

View from Shoonam raptor migration station

Lesser Fiery Copper, Shoonam

Alfalfa fields, Beit Shean valley 

Ginnegar on 20 Sept was excellent for Levant Sparrowhawk with 1994 as numbers really started to pick up across all stations. 11 Lesser Spotted Eagles was hardy a flood but a hint of things to come. My first Red-footed Falcon of the survey in the form of a nice male livened up the afternoon while 2 Wood Warblers in sapplings by the station showed at arm length (I'm not exagerrating!). The sewage pool along the fence held Green, Common and Wood Sandpipers together with Little Stint. A quick visit to KY on the way back was uneventful apart from 2 pale Booted Eagles and a feeding group c25 Bee-eaters. 2 other male Red-footed Falcons were seen that day - one at Shoonam and another just north of Kfar Ruppin.

I was at the semi-urban station of Afula on 21 Sept and despite 822 Levant Sparrowhawks and 413 Honey Buzzards was one of the quietest days yet. The Turkestan Shrike was still showing nicely but apart from a single Lesser Whitethroat, 28 Black Storks moving and c45 Glossy Ibis near Neve Eitan on the way out it was largely a day that won't linger in the memory.

Levant Sparrowhawks, Afula

I'd earned another day off on 22 Sept but with no transport options were, as ever, quite limited. After some domestic chores I ventured out birding around the kibbutz and cemetry. Willow Warblers were the most obvious migrant with c15 seen with the other highlights being 3 Cetti's Warblers, 2 Red-backed Shrikes, 1 Lesser Grey Shrike, 2 Hoopoes, 500+ Yellow Wagtails, 20+ Pygmy Cormorants, c120 migrating Black Storks and at last 8 Dead Sea Sparrows over our digs after 3 weeks of looking!  After dark we saw Barn Owl and heard Scops Owl on the way to the dining hall.

'Don't take the brown acid!' Art Garfunkel lookalike, Kibbutz Kfar Ruppin dining hall

The 23 Sept saw me back on the project for my final week and by now I was counting the days! 2 Golden Orioles over the kibbutz while waiting to get going in the morning plus 3 Hoopoes and a Sardinian Warbler kicked the day off nicely. From there it was all downhill though and the worst day of all for raptor movement - single figure counts of raptor species except a meagre 25 Levant Sparrowhawks. 3 Red-throated Pipits over Shoonam and a count of 196 Cattle Egrets and c50 Spur-winged Plovers around the farm sheds was as good as it got! Thanks goodness for an excellent afternoon/evening at Tirat Zevi with a  great variety of waders on our favourite muddy fishpond. A juv Kentish Plover was new for the triplist and joined by c50 Little Stints, 1 Dunlin, c15 Ringed Plover, single Marsh, Wood and Common Sandpipers, c15 Ruff, 1 Black-tailed Godwit and a nice Collared Pratincole. Passerines were well-represented in the vicinity too with c50 Desert Finches, c12 Greenfinches, Woodchat, Southern Grey, Red-backed and Masked Shrikes, Roller, Whinchat, 2 Tawny Pipits and 10 Yellow Wagtails. Black Kite numbers were building up to impressive proportions and c12 Great White Egrets were also noted. We also took a night drive that evening and scooped with some views of a Jungle Cat north of Kfar Ruppin. Those green staring eyes were quite a sight! c6 Golden Jackals,1 Red Fox and 2 Cape Hares completed the mammals whilst 2 Nightjars and a perched Barn Owl were the sole birds seen.

  

Pied Kingfishers, Tirat Zevi          

  

Various Storks and Herons, Tirat Zevi

A single Tree Pipit and a distant Purple Heron from the kibbutz heralded the start of 24 Sept. I was to be positioned at Gvat for the day and once again it was an extremely quiet one for raptor migration. Tree Pipits were evidently on the move with several over the station but other than my first Alpine Swift of the trip there wasn't much else to get excited about. A stop at Ginnegar on the way back and a look at the hitherto supressed reservoir revealed 400+ Little Grebes, 1 Black-necked Grebe, 5 Garganey and 1 Shoveler. That evening Pete, Lee and myself headed to the western Neve Eitan fishponds and found an very productive semi-drained pond. 100+ Little Stints, 5+ Curlew Sandpipers, 1 Marsh Sandpiper, 2 Spotted Redshank, c30 Ruff and several Little Ringed Plovers were the wader highlights whilst 3 Slender-billed Gulls, c80 Armenian Gulls and 5 Gull-billed Terns were loafing on the same mud. 38 Glossy Ibis, 18 Spoonbills and 3 Great White Egrets completed the picture apart from the large numbers of Black Kites now building up. A bit later the alfalfa fields near Maoz Hayyim gave us 2 Lesser Grey Shrikes, Red-backed Shrike, c6 Tawny Pipits, 1 Whinchat and 10+ Chukar.

 

Armenian Gulls, Neve Eitan

Slender-billed Gulls, Neve Eitan

Ginnegar on 25 Sept saw raptor passage get going a little. 227 Lesser Spotted Eagles were the main species moving whilst 3 Lesser Kestrels entertained in a pivot field behind the station in the morning. 20+ Tree Pipits moved through in small parties and a juv Masked Shrike was near the station. Nearby sewage ponds and reservoirs held 5 Marsh Sandpipers, 1 Spotted Redshank, 2 Wood Sandpipers, 5 Little Stints, a Collared Pratincole, c10 Garganey, c250 Shoveler and huge numbers of Little Grebes. Bearing in mind how productice it has been the previous evening we headed again to the western fishponds at Neve Eitan again in the late afternoon. Within a few minutes of arrival whilst scanning the waders Pete suddenly declared 'am I going totally mad or this a Lesser Yellowlegs?!' Sure enough he wasn't and we were all soon watching the bird and backing him up as we radioed the news to the other members of the survey team. Within just 20 mins everyone had arrived and despite some initial id doubts everyone was eventually convinced we were indeed watching Israel's 2nd Lesser Yellowlegs. Plans were already being made atround the country for a twitch the following day! For the record the other waders that night were 5 Wood Sandpipers, 2 Marsh Sandpipers, c5 Curlew Sandpipers, 1 Spotted Redshank, c5 Dunlin, 4 Temminck's Stints, 80+ Little Stints and 15+ Ruff. Spotted Crake and Water Rail were both seen at the edge of a reedy strip where a Citrine Wagtail and Sedge Warbler also lurked. 171 Glossy Ibis were also my best ever count.

Lesser Yellowlegs, Neve Eitan (copyright Lee Gregory) 

A happy Pete, Liron and Tuvia!

We called in again at the site on the way out on 26 Sept just so we could say we'd been in one of the biggest ever Israeli twitches - all of 20 people! On arrival the concensus was that the Lesser Yellowlegs had moved on but almost the first bird I looked at was it! 4 Marsh Sandpipers, Water Rail and 2 Sedge Warblers were quuickly noted before we had to leave for the days work. My penultimate survey day was at Gvat and within the first few minutes I was treated to some great low views of a stream of 243 Lesser Spotted Eagles (out of a day total of 294), 16 Short-toed Eagles were noted moving together with 351 Levant Sparrowhawks, 2 Sparrowhawks, 2 Hobbies and a pale Booted Eagle. In the late afternoon we headed to the Kfar Ruppin cemetry were Pete had seen an Icterine Warbler. Sadly we couldn't find the bird again but did see 1 Eastern Olivaceous Warbler and c8 Willow Warblers. A quick spin down to Tirat Zevi followed with the pick of the usual bunch being 1 Little Tern, 2 Collared Pratincoles and 237 Black Storks. On a few visits to Tirat Zevi we'd been getting fairly regular sightings of an obviously blind Golden Jackal who we'd named Blind Pugh! Tonight he'd shown down to just a few yards although obviously aware of our presence showed no signs of being in poor health or wanting to run away!

 

Lesser Yellowlegs mega-twitch!

   

'Blind Pugh' the Golden Jackal, Tirat Zevi 

A quick wander around the kibbutz on the morning of 27 Sept was quite productive with juv Masked Shrike, Nightingale, 2 Spotted Flycatchers, my first Chiffchaff of the trip, Whitethroat, Sardinian Warbler, several fly-over Tree Pipits and 3 Spoonbills. In the hand back in our accommodation block Tuvia also had an Asian Racer snake which was nicely photographed. On the way out to the migration station we once again stopped by at the Lesser Yellowlegs site to check it was still there - and it was. The same waders were there too and I got some nice views of an female Citrine Wagtail as a Golden Jackal wandered past us completely oblivious to our presence!

 

Asian Racer, Kfar Ruppin

And so it was to Afula for my last survey day. In terms of raptors it was quiet once again with just 38 Lesser Spotted Eagles meaning I was destined to miss the major passage of this species. Apparantly poor weather further north had been holding them up for days. 4 Red-footed Falcons, 1 Lesser Kestrel, 1 Steppe Buzzard and a juv Pallid Harrier were the pick of the day until things really started to happen in mid afternoon. White Pelicans were the star of the show and proved a fitting end to my time on the survey. I saw no less that 8600 that afternoon in groups of 3500, 400, 110 and then a jaw-dropping 4500! Simply amazing! On the way back from Afula we stopped at Shoonam to pick Lee up and I managed to get a good look at a curiously rufous Red-backed Shrike. With the news back home of a Brown Shrike at Flamborough we were hopeful but unfortutately it was just an odd Red-backed. An extended drive around the Kfar Ruppin/TiratZevi area that eveing was rather productive with c5000 Short-toed Larks, c10 Red-backed Shrikes (including another odd one - this time dark brown!), 1 Lesser Grey Shrike, 1 Southern Grey Shrike, c30 Willow Warblers, Roller, 4+ Red-footed Falcons, c300 Levant Sparrowhawks, 1-2 Ospreys and mega views of a juv Bonelli's Eagle on the deck in an alfalfa field and then in flight.  Even better was yet to come though - on a night drive that night we scopped with views of Porcupine, a species I'd long wanted to see! 2 Cape Hares and c10 Golden Jackals were also seen. Later that evening I eventually managed to secure a lift to Tiberius in the morning. Liron was more than happy to take me on the 20 minute drive there but to say that Jonathan Meyrav was reluctant to agree was an understatement. I thought I was doing them a favour so they didn't have to take me all the way back to Tel Aviv but he still wanted me to take a bus! 

Freedom at last! Liron kindly gave me a very early moring lift into Tiberius on 28 Sept so I could pick up a hire car I'd arranged by phone a few days earlier. With an hour or two to spare before the Eldan office opened I watched a lovely sunrise over the Sea of Galillee and saw 2 Night Herons and both White-breasted and Pied Kingfishers along the lake shore too. A coffee in a cafe killed a little more time and I was soon on my way south in my car.

  

Sunrise, Sea of Galillee

  

Night Heron, Tiberius 

The drive south through the West Bank towards the Dead Sea was quick and uneventful. With the first serious use of my GPS I found the entrance to Wadi Salvadora and began the steep walk up the rocky wadi. In my eagerness to get going I took the wrong path and ended up having to do a bit of scrambling but on the way up I quickly scored with a female Sinai Rosefinch, Blackstart and a White-crowned Black Wheatear. Finally I reached the spot where a large bush grows by the spring and stared at by a group of c12 Nubian Ibex I located 2 Mountain Buntings without too much difficulty. The wadi was bakingly hot so despite the good birding and 2 Barbary Falcons overhead I made my way down the correct (and much easier) path and back to the car.

Mountain Bunting, Wadi Salvadora (copyright Lee Gregory)

Nubian Ibex, Wadi Salvadora

Wadi Salvadora

The Dead Sea from Wadi Salvadora

A lightening quick stop at Ein Gedi gave me the ultra easy Fan-tailed Ravens and Tristran's Grackles within seconds and after a petrol fill up I continued south.

   

Fan-tailed Raven, Ein Gedi  

My destination was one I'd been looking forward to visiting for a while - a roadside site at the HaArava Junction and the only reliable breeding site in Israel that summer for a much wanted raptor. Tuvia had given me precise directions and they were spot on! I parked the car up in a layby and within minutes was watching a splendid adult Sooty Falcon hawking past and then sat on the cliff face. It was soon joined by another adult and a little while later I located 2 fully grown juvs sat lower down on the cliff. They entertained me for ages before I moved on. The only other species seen at this rather unlikely looking spot were 2 Brown-necked Ravens.

  

adult Sooty Falcon, HaArava Junction (copyright Lee Gregory)

  

juvenile Sooty Falcons, HaArava Junction (copyright Lee Gregory)

Sooty Falcon site, HaArava Junction

Next stop was the Shizaf Nature Reserve a short drive further south. This area of acacia scrub and a low line of cliffs is sadly thought to be the one remaining place in the whole of Israel that Arabian Warbler still occurs. Bearing in mind these birds here are of the endemic race 'negevensis' this is extremely worrying. I arrived at the site carpark and explored the area to the south. Walking about a mile south it took me some while to locate one of the birds but when I did it showed nicely. The whole area seemed to have a had a small fall of migrants and I also clocked up 1 Lesser Whitethroat, 2 Willow Warblers, 2 Blackcaps, 2 Spotted Flycatchers, 1 Redstart, 3 Blackstarts, Red-backed, Masked and Southern Grey Shrikes plus my only Little Green Bee-eater of the trip and c8 Sand Partridges. Bumping into a friend of Tuvia's who was leading a group I was offered the chance to join them which I declined. The offer of possible accommodation at the nearby field school that night didn't sound too promising either and as it turned out was the first of many failed attempts to find a bed that night!

  

Shizaf Nature Reserve     

Arabian Warbler, Shizaf Nature Reserve (copyright Lee Gregory)

After an extremely frustrating evening of driving long distances and trying numerous places for accommodation (no answer of the phone at the Ein Gedi Youth Hostel, no sign of anyone to help at Kibbutz Neot Hakkikar, news that a deserted hotel in Donona was 'full', and 2 attempts at other kibbutzim somewhere south of Tel Aviv) I ended up giving in and sleeping in the car in a field in the arse end of nowhere! The timing of my solo wanderings had coincided with the Jewish New Year which wasn't ideal.

Not wanting to linger and have a lay-in (!) I moved on early in the morning on 29 Sept. My destination was the pleasant town of Pardes-Hanna about 30 miles north of Tel Aviv. My target species of Black-hooded Parakeet eluded me (I wonder if they still occur here as there were never very many and other birders had told me I'd probably dip) but I did see c20 Ring-necked Parakeets, 3 Syrian Woodpeckers, 4 Jays, a single Willow Warbler and 3 Lesser Spotted Eagles overhead going south. A roadside coffee stall provided more than 1 welcome break and some caffienne energy after a poor nights sleep! A nice moment was also some smiling local school children handing out apple slices and honey as part of Jewish New Year celebrations.

I'd arranged to meet Oz Horine in Hayarkon Park, Tel Aviv the following morning but as I had time to spare I decided to make my visit that afternoon instead. Finding the park with a little difficulty I then spent several hours checking the huge riverside park for my target species of Vinous-breasted Starling - to no avail! I checked every single one of the 150 Common Mynas I saw but just couldn't find one. I did have one stroke of luck though. As I was sifting through the several Ring-necked and Monk Parakeets 2 parakeets with black heads flew past me - Black-hooded Parakeets! Despite the park having a bit of a zoo-like vibe there were plenty of other birds about - c5 Spotted Flycatchers, c5 Red-backed Shrikes, 1 Masked Shrike, 1 Wood Warbler, 1 Chiffchaff, 2 Lesser Whitethroats, all 3 Kingfishers, c10 Hoopoes, 1 Northern Wheatear, 4 Common Sandpipers and 2 Glossy Ibis. I bumped into another Israeli birder who helped me look for the starlings but I drew a blank with him too. He did take me to a willow-lined creek hwever where we got some good views of a striking male Lesser Masked Weaver albeit of presumed dodgy origin. I bid him farewell and wandered back to my car. I then got to within 100 meters of the carpark and found 3 Vinous-breasted Starlings in palm trees- typical but very very welcome! 

  

Hayarkon Park, Tel Aviv and the Vinous-breasted Starling spot 

I thought that driving north to the coastal holiday resort of Netanya would give me my best shot at finding somewhere to stay that night. It proved a good call as I hit it lucky at the 2nd place I tried although even there I got the last room! It happened to be in the same street I'd stayed in with Jus and Andy 2 years before. Being the Jewish New Year there was absolutely nothing open in the town so I ate supplies I already had in my room and had a long nights sleep!

In the morning I had a decidedly average breakfast in the hotel, a Quail that landed briefy in the street below the hotel and a single Common Myna on the south side of town before I drove the 20 miles or so to the airport.

It had been an interesting trip. Some great birding, a fantastic experience and some great people. For reasons already explained though I wouldn't do the survey again.

The final species count was 176 of which 6 were new ones for me. Jungle Cat and Porcupine were new mammals.