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News in Brief: Oman, St. Lucia, Portugal & the UK
‘Our recent tour to Oman, Naturetrek’s first to the country for several years, was a great success’, writes tour leader Andy Smith. ‘Starting in Muscat in the north we travelled the length of the country, across the edge of the Empty Quarter to the Dhofar Mountains and Salalah in the far south.
The birding was excellent too as we encountered an exciting range of regional specialities including Arabian Partridge, Socotra Cormorant, Arabian Scops Owl, Spotted Eagle Owl, Hume’s, Red-tailed and Arabian Wheatears, Arabian Babbler, Arabian Warbler, Yemen Serin and the enigmatic and rather gorgeous Grey Hypocolius.
The rich wetlands produced a wide variety of terns and gulls and an astonishing wealth of waders from Terek, Marsh and Broad-billed Sandpipers to both Greater and Lesser Sand Plovers, Great Snipe and the amazing Crab Plover. Raptors were outstanding too and included Eastern Imperial, Greater Spotted, Steppe and Bonelli’s Eagles, Pallid Harrier and Lappet-faced Vulture, whilst a highlight for many was the sight of a Verreaux’s Eagle cruising past a breathtaking viewpoint near Salalah.
One evening found us on a starlit beach with phosphorescent surf, watching nesting and hatching Green Sea Turtles, whilst a boat trip out from Muscat produced a fantastic half hour of bow-riding Bottlenose Dolphins, plus a very close Bryde’s Whale, Persian Shearwaters, Bridled Terns, a Red-billed Tropicbird and a sensational Yellow Sea Snake that spiralled down into the clear turquoise depths.
All this and lots more in good company and supported throughout by the warm friendliness of the Omani people – a great trip indeed.’
'Our group of eleven clients enjoyed fine Caribbean weather, plentiful wildlife and exceptional hospitality at the award-winning Anse Chastanet Hotel during our January tour' writes tour leader David Jackson.
'Daily excursions included birdwatching, an aerial tram ride through the rainforest and an amazing culinary experience at the hotel’s Emerald Farm, where two top chefs prepared our lunch as we sampled craft beers brewed on the premises.
All five official St. Lucia endemic birds were photographed including St. Lucia Warbler, Pewee and Black Finch. Other bird highlights were Rufous-throated Solitaire, Red-billed Tropicbird and all three hummingbird species.
Whislt dolphin sightings were fleeting, those lucky enough to be looking in the right direction were treated to leaping Dwarf Sperm Whale and Pygmy Sperm Whale, both very rarely seen at sea.
Leisure time was spent snorkelling, exploring the wooded surroundings or watching the comings and goings of Bananaquits, Lesser Antillean Bullfinches and Grey Tremblers from our room balconies.'
‘Our first afternoon in the Algarve yielded three species of egret, Glossy Ibis and gulls gathering to roost, a flock of Barn Swallows, beautiful Western Swamphens and lots of ducks, warblers and waders’, writes leader Neil McMahon. ‘The following day we explored the open plains and farmland east of Castro Verde finding wonderful Long-eared Owls, White Storks, both species of bustards, a flock of Common Cranes plus Spanish Imperial Eagles, Calandra Larks, Merlin, Hen Harrier and masses of passerines.
The salt pans and coastal areas at Tavira and Castro Marim brought us great views of Greater Flamingoes, Stone Curlews, Ospreys, Caspian Terns, Crag Martins and much more, while the next day's visits to two very special lagoons gave fabulous views of Little Bitterns, Bluethroats, Marsh Harriers, more Ospreys and Little and Audouin's Gulls. A Goshawk was an unexpected, if brief observation, and we enjoyed a close fly-over Booted Eagle, nectaring Painted Lady butterflies and a host of waders.
The latter part of the tour was based in Sagres and from here we found more Stone Curlews, a wintering Short-toed Eagle, Little Owls, Purple Sandpipers, Ring Ouzels, Blue Rock Thrushes, Thekla Larks and Red-billed Choughs. The summit above Monchique provided Dartford Warbler and Rock Bunting and the gorgeous west Atlantic coast around the historic capital of Aljezur brought cliff-nesting White Storks, passing seabirds, a distant unidentified whale and a very engaging Bonelli's Eagle. Little, furtive birds included Firecrest, Crested Tit and Short-toed Treecreeper and a single and awesome Eurasian Eagle Owl was found hiding in a coastal gorge.
Our comfortable hotels provided sumptuous food and this, combined with good weather, classic Naturetrek picnics and exciting wildlife, ensured a perfect Christmas getaway!'
‘This tour offers the chance to visit two of the country’s most popular wildlife-watching areas, the Forest of Dean and the Somerset Levels, with an interim day visiting the iconic grounds of WWT Slimbridge Wetlands Centre’, writes tour leader Tom Mabbett. ‘In amongst the stunning landscapes and sheer scale of the flocks seen at various moments across the tour, we were also treated to fantastic views of such iconic species as Hawfinch, Goshawk, Dipper, Eurasian Crane, Merlin, Marsh Harrier, Great Egret, Cattle Egret and Bewick’s Swan. The trip also produced some truly special birds, atypical for the tour, including Little Owl, Long-tailed Duck, Common Scoter, Snow Goose, Ross’s Goose and Whooper Swan. We also had two fantastic encounters with Wild Boar, as well as brilliant views of Red Fox, Roe Deer and Fallow Deer on our night drives.’
‘It truly was a winter wonderland in the Forest of Dean, with temperatures below freezing, snow on the ground and bright sunshine’, writes leader Marcus John. ‘We began with a walk up to Crabtree Hill. The scenery was beautiful, but birds were few. However, we did enjoy views of commoner species including Kestrel, Raven and Common Snipe – this last species flying out from next to the path with its characteristic scraping call.
We returned via Woorgreens Lake, which was completely frozen. As we made our way back towards Speech House, a mixed finch flock flew into the alders next to the path. We watched them feeding in the icy branches for about 15 minutes; approximately 70 Siskin with just a few Redpoll.
After a coffee break in Speech House Hotel, we drove on to Parkend, where we had close views of Redwing and Song Thrush feeding beneath the yew trees, where the ground was free of snow. We also enjoyed watching Long-tailed Tits feeding amongst snow-covered branches.
We finished the day with a walk around Cannop Ponds, where dozens of Mandarin Ducks were the most obvious and flamboyant residents! We found a Kingfisher, which we were able to watch through the scope, while close by was a Dipper, which we watched for about 20 minutes – a great way to complete a memorable day in the Forest of Dean!’
