Stonechat: Saxicola rubicola Wikipedia

Oct 29

4 p.m. 20.2 degrees C. wind WSW 13.9 kt, humidity 66% and rising, temp range today16-23 degrees C,

Small job up in the pines along central trail, repeated 'weet!' calls, constantly moving and calling, had a glimpse of yellowish underparts but couldn't get good view of head, still, based on season, behaviour, call and appearance I'd go with Chiffchaff Phylloscopus colybita, or another warbler of that genus. Might even have been a Hippolais warbler with that much yellow but I don't know their calls, and no good view of the head.

Black redstart at the bunker ruins again. Departed as we arrived, heard a high pitched sharp strident and hard to locate 'seet!' from various directions around the bunker. Finally turned out it was 'blackjack', (black redstart) came to middle of rubble, flicking his tail aggressively and calling continuously as if warning us off his territory.

House sparrows: small flock active cypresses next door late afternoon as usual

Hooded crows: some calls

Jackdaws: small group returning from north before sunset

Eurasian Jays:active as usual

Feral pigeons: active around buildings

Syrian woodpeckers: calls

Bulbuls: vocal around gardens, also on approach to look-out corner No gazelle today.

October 30 Temp range 15-23 degrees C, ~4 p.m. ~19 degrees. 70% humidity, winds from west, ~ 9 kt. Skies almost clear, some high cirrus.

Gazelle -1 adult without horns, edge of valley road almost 4.30 p.m. turned down east into the pines at our approach, then looked back at us from a few score feet away. then she made her way north east deeper into the wood.

We were delighted to see some scrap metal dealers load that abandonned vehicle onto their truck today, bless them! They often come down and cart off junk that irresponsible citizens tip, they play a great role tidying up the environment, especially the heavy bulky stuff. We've collected scores of bags of garbage over the last few years and I need to do some more work around look-out corner to clean up the small stuff

We were so distracted by the vehicle removal that we reached the bunker without looking in advance and apparently scared off 'blackjack'. After a short watch from there I decided to look for stonechats with the hope that he'd return, so we set off nonchalantly northward, and after a few score paces, looked back. I heard the bird's distinct whistle and sure enough, there was a black redstart at the corner of the ruins, but my ears told me that the bird calling was NOT the bird I was looking at. Checking the ruins again my suspicions were confirmed.. a second black redstart over at another corner of the ruins, and he was bobbing and flicking like anything as he called, no doubt asserting his territorial rights. The first bird had changed position and was now out of sight, I don't know where he went, either moving in closer for a face off, or avoiding it altogether . At any rate, light was fading and I'd heard some stonechat calls from yonder north east. Hubby spotted a couple moving about in the ragwort and scrub by the barbed wire fence and presently I saw a nice male perched on a lower roll of fence, just above the scrub. At least two others were about in the lower scrub, hard to tell numbers of birds that are very good at diving out of view, could have been many more about, I was hearing calls from a number of directions.

Sunbirds, back in action, one singing beautifully in the Bauhinia outside my window about 7.15 a.m. after some days of quiet. Also busy in the cape honeysuckle.

White wagtail, call heard from the street late morning and early/mid afternoon

House sparrows: active around the houses as usual

Hooded crows: small groups calling and winging their way south to their roost, a little earlier than usual

Jackdaws: Calls heard from the house several times today, so they're back haunting our rooftops more regularly. group of about 20 heading south.

Eurasian Jays: active and vocal as usual

Feral pigeons: quite a number around, in flight, apparently also heading back to their building roosts.

Blackbirds: heard alarm chacking in the pinewood, each side of central trail

Bulbuls: very vocal in the gardens

Great tits, Greenfinches, chukars, collared dove, stone curlews, Syrian woodpeckers, graceful warblers: quiet or absent today