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<\/a><\/p>\nThis morning I did more fieldwork in batha habitat north of Jerusalem. Weather was unstable and overcast, and bird activity was pretty low – birds were very quiet and kept a low profile. Still I managed to find breeding proof of most priority breeding species (Long-billed Pipit, Spectacled Warbler, Cretzschmar’s Bunting), saw both Rock Sparrows, and a mobile Upcher’s Warbler that was clearly a migrant. I did not photograph a single bird this morning, did a bit better with common butterflies:<\/p>\n Levantine Marbled White – male, super abundant<\/p>\n Clouded Yellow<\/p>\n On the way out I was surprised by a large, dark falcon flying low over the road. I pulled over dangerously, got the bins and camera out – dark morph Eleonora’s Falcon! I was really excited – not so rare in Israel, especially now, but this was the first individual I photographed. Light conditions were horrible, sadly.<\/p>\n 3cy (?) dark morph Eleonora’s Falcon<\/p>\n After a couple of flybys it headed north – unbelievably (for me) I managed to get a sharpish photo of it a mile away:<\/p>\n On the way home I made a quick midday stop at the JBO, which was actually whopping with birds, possibly due to the weather change. I was there just after the morning ringing session had ended, so unsurprisingly many of the birds present were ringed. Up till now it’s been an awful season for Olive-tree Warbler in Israel. While an average early May visit to JBO should produce double figures, this year only two were ringed so far. Yet I managed to see one – an important year tick… Sadly I forgot to change camera settings after my Eleonora’s encounter, so most images I took came out useless. Only few I managed to salvage.<\/p>\n Barred Warbler<\/p>\n Common Nightingale<\/p>\n Thrush Nightingale<\/p>\n Good to meet up with Avner and Shlomi.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n