Sunday and more easterlies

Range, 14-22 degrees C,

About 4 p.m. 18.4 degrees C, humidity 54%, wind 4.3 kt SE

Mostly clear, scattered high altitude clouds. More overcast at about 10 p.m.

~ 70 crows seen flying from Hizmeh hill to windsurfer hill. Later, shortly before sunset ~90 jackdaws joined them from the west. Hooded crows up there. hard to tell how many.

House sparrows in the garden as well as a 'tzeet' from a blackbird somewhere. Earlier heard tic tic, sounded like European robin but somewhat muffled. Sunbirds and bulbuls about. White wagtail heard from the street.

Along Valley road.. plenty hyrax activity. Couple of feral dogs by a path winding up the hill west, near the pumping station, barked at us but they were just resting on the ground. Feral pigeons and Senegal doves active. Great tits vocal in the pines as well as Eurasian jays and some Syrian woodpeckers. Sparrowhawk call to south, then saw it winging quite low over rooftops of Pisgat Ze'ev neighbourhood though it didn't put up the feral pigeons perched in some numbers on the rooftops up there. They probably felt too large game to be threatened.

Small finches about, calls, sounded like chaffinches but got no clear sightings. Other small passerines up there but didn't manage to find them in falling light and all the foliage, and hubby was eager to get to look-out corner for the gazelles so we didn't tarry. Frustrating though because I've been hearing a few unfamiliar calls in the woods lately. Some whistles I believe to be European redstarts but there are others. Blackbirds heard clearly though. Black redstart on the bunker ruins as usual. No sight or call of stonechats today.

Beautiful full grown hornless gazelle I take to be female standing at the edge of north valley forest. Seemed she was contemplating coming out to the favourite grazing spot, or perhaps had just come from there. Presently she turned and headed back into the shade of the pines. No others seen today.