In search of the Med

Week 05 - 04 February 2102, Green Island and Sharq

A Med Gull had been found by Pekka and his group earlier in the week, while I was in South Africa. So, after my son Jaden's golf lesson we headed to Green Island for a look see...

It was a long shot and we were unsuccessful, nevertheless we enjoyed a stroll around this man-made island and I was able to try and teach Jaden some id features of the more common birds.

We found a small group of Great Cormorants on an exposed Sandbank

Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)

Then flushed a pale form Indian Pond Heron that was feeding on the bank.

Pale form Indian Reef Heron (Egretta g. schistacea)

Today, the Red-vented Bulbuls were a little more obliging

Red-vented Bulbul (Pycnonotus cafer)

and the male Ruppells Weaver made a statement in it's breeding plumage with a number of new nests hanging in a nearby tree

Ruppell's Weaver (Ploceus galbula)

At Sharq Mall, someone was feeding the gulls and quite a frenzy was created. The majority were Caspian and Common Black-headed Gulls, although I did check to see if there was a Med Gull lurking amongst them.

Caspian Gull (Larus cachinnans)

Caspian Gulls? and Common Black-headed Gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus) squabbling over scraps