The current monitoring work which was designed, is aiming to give some more specific insight about migration along the Arava but also to check target breeding species. Over the last 10 years numbers of Arabian Warblers have dropped dramatically in the Arava and in fact in the last breeding season, I could not locate even one breeding pair around the southern Arava.
One of my monitoring polygons is targeting this species, and yesterday while there, after a long disappearance (for me at least), I’ve found a pair hanging around the traditional breeding site. I could not get a proper photo, but a good sight indeed which gave me a big smile and a reason for hope once again – other that that it was very usual with Little Green Bee-eaters, Palestine Sunbirds, Crowned Sandgrouses, DorcasGazellesand all the otherregular/ common species for the season.
Lichtenstein’sSandgrousesare also being spotted coming to drink in K19 but also in other new sites, which once again gives some more reason for hope for the species.
On Wednesday I had an early morning in North beach and managed to find the Black-throated Diver flying and thanswimming far away from the coast and a distant Brown Booby which also hasn’t been around for some time now…
Stay tuned as more updates will follow soon.
Itai Shanni
Itai Shanni is the coordinator of the Eilat Birding Blog, which is jointly written by the Israeli Ornithological Centre (IOC) and the International Birding and Research Centre Eilat (IBRCE). Itai is working to promote bird and wildlife conservation throughout this area. As an Israeli A licensed ringer, he also gives support for the IBRCE staff when needed. Itai has also developed a real passion for Odonata watching and spends many hot hours chasing also Dragonflies and Damselflies.