I spent yesterday in the Arava, with a few meetings and some limited time for birding in between. Started off early at Hazeva field school, in search of the Striated Scops Owl roosting there for the last few weeks. I met up with Oded and together we found the bird quickly, thanks Oded! We wathced it for a couple of minutes from a distance, but for some reason it flushed and disappeared into an off-limit section of the compound (there's a Vipassana-camp there...), before I had the chance to get my camera. But it's a good and sweet bird even without images...
My next very brief birding break was in a small wadi in the central Arava, that produced three rather shy Thick-billed Larks. What an amazing year for them!
It was nice to see a trickle of first spring migrants - Steppe Eagles, Isabelline Wheatears, Swallows and House Martins. Here we go!
I am happy to annuonce the birth of a new birding blog in Israel - http://eilatbirding.blogspot.com/ - the IBRCE's blog, written by Re'a Shaish and Itai Shanni, congratulations! I am sure it will produce great stuff this coming spring. Stay posted!
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