Birecik

Calandra Lark

 On the long drive to Birecik lots of Calandra Larks were seen, also Lesser short-toed Larks, Black Headed Yellow Wagtails, Crested Larks, Short-toed Larks, Steppe Buzzard, Hoopoe, Black Headed Buntings and more.

Rock Sparrow

          If you ever go to Birecik this is the tea garden where the Pallid Scops Owls hang out!

 Opposite the tea garden there is an island in the River Euphrates that is home to 100s of roosting and breeding Herons, Little, Great White and Cattle Egrets, Night Herons, Squacco Herons also a dark Little Egret looking very like a Western Reef Heron. The island is also used by 100s of Pygmy Cormorants.

Iraq Babbler

 At the nearby gravel pits we found our main target bird for the area Iraq Babbler, we made a couple of visits to site seeing at least 8 Babblers, also Great Reed Warblers, Eastern Olivacious Warblers, Graceful Prinia's, c20 Desert Finches, Pied Kingfishers, Little Bitterns, Purple Herons, Bee-eaters, Rollers and more.

Graceful Prinia

 Behind the Bald Ibis centre there is canyon where some of the Ibises breed on the ledges.

See-see

In the canyon See-see were found, numerous Rollers, several Menetries Warblers, Upchers Warblers, Syrian woodpeckers, Eastern Olivacious Warblers, Rufous Bush Robins, Hoopoe's and more. The cliffs a few hundred metres from the entrance to the centre hold Little Swifts, Alpine Swifts and Common Swifts.

Chestnut Shouldered Sparrow

 In nearby fields Chestnut Shouldered Sparrows, Dead Sea Sparrows and more Bushchats were found

Dead Sea Sparrow

Eastern Rock Nuthatch

 We found Easter Rock Nuthatch near Halfeti with more Eastern Black Eared Wheatears, Isabelline Wheatears and Woodchat Shrikes.

During the trip White Storks were common in suitable habitat, Crested Larks were abundant as were Isabelline Wheatears. Red-rumped Swallows, Bushchats, Rollers, Spanish Sparrow, Western Rock Nuthatches, Black-headed Buntings were seen at most sites. Other birds seen include Kruper's Nuthatches, Olive Tree Warblers, Eastern Bonelli's Warblers, Masked Shrikes, Penduline Tits, Bearded Tits.
As we were rather late in the season some birds were very difficult to find and very skulking. The 40C+ temperatures did not help and caused havoc with our camera equipment.