Dubai Pivot Fields, UAE

I'm making the best of my last few days off before I leave to live in Saudi Arabia at the end of this week and paid another visit to my local patch this morning. The rubbish pit now hosts three wood sandpiper and a european stonechat. The smaller of the two pivot fields still holds the sociable plover and three pacific golden plover. There were also several Richard's pipit on the short grass and skylarks on the ploughed areas.

White wagtail

Starling

I also flushed a immature marsh harrier with its avian prey (I'm not sure what it is but it looks suspiciously like a lapwing's wing... the bird that has been present for a week or so didn't seem to be around today).

Marsh harrier

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_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ FULL LIST _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

10 Grey francolin

1 Marsh harrier

3 Wood sandpiper

60 Red-wattled plover

1 Sociable plover

50 White-tailed plover

1 Black-winged stilt

100 Collared dove

50 Laughing dove

1 Little green bee-eater

3 Indian roller

5 Hoopoe

50 Crested lark

8 Skylark

5 Richard's pipit

40 Water pipit

6 Yellow wagtail

50 White wagtail

8 White-cheeked bulbul

2 Isabelline wheatear

1 Graceful prinia

1 Daurian shrike

1 Southern grey shrike

2 Starling

30 Common myna

300 House sparrow

Dubai Pivot Fields, UAE

A visit to my local patch again today and there was another variety of waders on the rubbish pit with single greenshank, temminck's stint, common sandpiper, green sandpiper and wood sandpiper present together with a bluethroat (my first of the winter at the fields).

Crested lark

The sociable plover and northern lapwing were still present on the smaller pivot.

Northern lapwing

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_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ FULL LIST _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

10 Grey francolin

1 Temminck's stint

1 Common sandpiper

1 Green sandpiper

1 Wood sandpiper

1 Greenshank

60 Red-wattled plover

1 Sociable plover

50 White-tailed plover

1 Northern lapwing
1 Black-winged stilt

1 Black-headed gull

100 Collared dove

50 Laughing dove

1 Little green bee-eater
3 Indian roller

5 Hoopoe

50 Crested lark

8 Skylark

5 Richard's pipit

1 Tawny pipit

60 Water pipit

6 Yellow wagtail

40 White wagtail

8 White-cheeked bulbul

1 Bluethroat

3 Isabelline wheatear

1 Graceful prinia

1 Daurian shrike

1 Southern grey shrike

30 Common myna

200 House sparrow

Dubai Pivot Fields, UAE

While 31°c can hardly be considered hot chocolate and mittens weather the winter has begun here in the UAE on what is celebrated as National Day.

A quick walk around the pivot fields late this afternoon was rewarded with a few of the regular wintering birds. A pair of european stonechat have taken up residence by the rubbish tip and a small mixed flock of the less common plovers has now started to form with single sociable plover and northern lapwing together with three pacific golden plover.

Male european stonechat

Tawny pipit

The owners have dug out a large pit in the sand to take rubbish and as the water table is only about 1.5m down it has started to fill up and now hosts a few waders such as several red-wattled plover and white-tailed lapwing, thirteen little ringed plover, three wood sandpiper and a single common sandpiper. A moorhen was picking around the debris too.

Little ringed plover

I also noticed three badly oiled birds (black-headed gull, wood sandpiper and white-tailed plover). Perhaps there has been a recent spillage?

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_ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ FULL LIST _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _

10 Grey francolin

1 Moorhen

13 Little ringed plover

3 Pacific golden plover

60 Red-wattled plover

1 Sociable plover

50 White-tailed plover

1 Northern lapwing

1 Black-headed gull

100 Collared dove

50 Laughing dove

3 Little green bee-eater

4 Hoopoe

50 Crested lark

8 Skylark

6 Richard's pipit

2 Tawny pipit

60 Water pipit

8 Yellow wagtail

50 White wagtail

8 White-cheeked bulbul

2 European stonechat

3 Isabelline wheatear

1 Graceful prinia

2 Daurian shrike

1 Southern grey shrike

30 Common myna

2 Starling

200 House sparrow

Site details - Dubai Pivot Fields, UAE

The Dubai pivot fields is 18 kms east of downtown Dubai just off the Hatta Road at 25°09'52.58"N 55°25'51.80"E. It is an irrigated turf and camel fodder field of approximately 90 ha. and for the 12 years I have lived in Dubai it has been my 'local patch'. The current bird list is 232 and my list is 182.

Dubai pivot fields

In the summer it is a good site for blue-cheeked bee-eaters but in the cooler months it really comes into its own with egrets, waders such as white-tailed plover, pintail snipe and sociable plover, purple sunbird, oriental skylark, several species of pipit including buff-bellied and Blyth's, bank myna, shrikes and many more common birds. Raptors include lesser and common kestrel, marsh, pallid and Montagu's harriers. Fly over eagles such as booted, Bonelli's and greater spotted are not uncommon. The fields proximity to Al-Warsen lake also means that geese, ducks, gulls and terns can be attracted to the site during wet periods in the winter.

In recent years I have found black kite, corncrake, bimaculated lark, cream coloured courser, grey hypocolius and black-throated thrush. Other rarities found include moustached warbler, black-winged pratincole, brown shrike and little swift.

Anyone who visits the site should remember to be polite at all occasions and not to drive on the grass (preferably leave your car outside and walk in).

White-tailed plover

Black-throated thrush