Monday, November 17, 2008

Monday report: gazelle group, little owl, other stuff


Gazelles: 7, moving east behind and past the almonds end of 'gazelle fields', four moved on behind the large pine by the cistern, three vanished.. I suspect they went down into the water channel there or concealed by the old dry stone walls. Then one seen making its way back west.

hyrax: plenty active and scampering about in the colony just below the end of Shadiker, top of path leading down into north valley, one jumped down from a low cypress bough on our approach. It's a giveaway when we see the bough abruptly swing up in recoil.

A
fox crossed valley road right behind us last night, again coming down the bank and continuing down into the pines. We just caught sight of it in peripheral vision when we stopped to check out something by the roadside.

No luck with that kingfisher today but we did hear a
Little Owl Athene noctua calling just west and up from the pumping station.. possibly the locally famous one that lives in on a bluff up there which we photographed some months back, about that area.

white wagtail flying over, up north valley.
Black redstart calls eucalyptus grove area (?) but no sightings
House sparrows: houses and gardens as usual.
Hooded crows: calling over north ridge, a few dozen I think. As the other day, a group settling back into eucalyptus by lower valley trail. So they are using that roost.
Jackdaws: sizeable flock (100+)scavenging top of the hill to the north, 50+ birds headed south at sunset, calling.
Eurasian Jays: active in the pines as usual, occasionally glimpsed.
Greenfinches: come calls near look out corner
Blackbirds: One in the garden mid afternoon, 'tzeet' & 'chak chak' calls and a little song.
Collared doves: pair on a line over new pines east end north valley
Sunbirds: some song and activity in the Bauhinia outside my window early afternoon. This latest batch of cape honeysuckle flowers in the entrance are spent now, orange petals on the ground so they need new source of nectar.
white spectacled bulbuls: some calls

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