When birding at Sabkhat Al Fasl 20 November 2015 with visiting birder Edward Pollard we found at least two Citrine Wagtails Motacilla citreola. This species was until the last few years a scarce winter visitor to the Eastern Province of Saudi Arabia, but more birds are now being seen making it an uncommon winter visitor and passage migrant.
Birds are mainly seen from September until March with some adult birds amongst those seen in early spring. Sabkhat Al Fasl is a good place to look for this species in winter with birds seen occasionally, but not on every visit, throughout the winter months.
They are normally quite secretive and appear to like shrubs near to the water, such as small Tamarisk bushes. Elsewhere in Saudi Arabia it is also a scarce winter visitor with records of summer plumage adults seen in late March but the majority of birds are first winters seen in August to October.
Jem Babbington
Jem Babbington is a keen birder and amateur photographer located in Dhahran, Eastern Saudi Arabia where he goes birding every day. Jem was born in England and is a serious local patch and local area birder who has been birding for almost forty years and has birded in more than fifty countries. Jem is learning to ring birds in Bahrain as a perfect way to learn more about the birds of the area. Saudi Arabia is a very much under-watched and under-recorded country.
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