Nizzana stuff

This morning I spent some time with Amir in the Nizzana - Ezuz area. Our main mission was to photograph dancing MacQueen's Bustard. Of course we failed - we found three dancing males but they were all very distant and were impossible to reach - many of the tracks were washed away by the huge floods a couple of weeks ago. We had another bird not too far away, but still too distant for any reasonable photography. I apologize for the amateur level of photography I will demonstarte in this post - it was one of those days that nothing works.

The whole area was in beautiful desert bloom, and the smaller passerines were having a ball. Many of the breeding species seem to be in full activity already. Spectacled Warblers were present in good densities. This female-type was rather close:

Sardinian Warblers were present also in good numbers. This is a momus-type:

We were pleased to find a group of 150 Pin-tailed Sandgrouse feeding north of Ezuz. This is a good record for Nizzana during this time of the year - they're seriously declining in the Nizzana region and this record is a good indication that perhaps something positive is happening to their population. They are such cracking birds, for sure one of the best birds in Israel. This is the male:

And a female:

We had several pairs of Little Owls, of the desert race lilith:

Other good birds in the area were Desert, Finsch's and Isabelline Wheatears, and one Bar-tailed Lark heard singing.

A quick visit to Lahav reserve on the way back produced one Long-billed Pipit, some Finsch's Wheatears and again many Spectacled Warblers. This pretty male would not approach:

Ashdod ringing

Had a pleasent morning ringing at Ashdod. I had a guided group at 09:00, so I had plenty of time to enjoy the birds and the fine weather today, before the millions of screaming kids arrived.
Birdwise, it seems that winter has settled down, and most migrants have moved on. The commonest birds I ringed were Bluethroat and Chiffchaff, with a few other bits and pieces.
Sweetest birds were two Penduline Tits - part of a small group hanging around:

This Sardinian Warbler felt a bit paler and neater than our local birds - perhaps a migrant?

Other birds seen during the morning were a Bittern (my first for this site), several flyover Siskins and a Wryneck - most probably it will stay for the winter.