16 - 26th June

Jumping spider on underside of blooming globe thistle. As I circled the globe thistles, (getting lots of histamine inducing pricks from all the blue tuft thistle foliage around it) the spider evaded me by circling away. They have good eyesight! However, since there are two of us it was a simple matter to hand the camera over to Akiva and he wasted no time getting this neat shot!

Thursday 16 June

Early morning garden: sunbird calls in the garden and calls of ring neck parakeet somewhere close in neighbourhood.

Peering through young pines by service road to field beyond, saw a number of bee-eaters skimming low over the grasses, also a hoopoe flew into tree

In the valley far end of Pistacia grove three sub-adult gazelle sproinging in a circle, frisky, taking it in turns to gambol about lightfooted , delightful to watch.

Hyraxes heard chittering up by pumphouse, calls similar in some ways to those of kestrel.
Fox sighting:

Also heard/seen: Graceful warblers, greenfinches, turtle doves, collared doves, Syrian woodpeckers, jackdaws, hooded crows, bulbul (calling loop /bridge area)

As night falls I hear a gecko not far off outside our window, as many evenings and nights lately.
No more luck with lampyrids since those found.

Saturday 18 th June

10 gazelle, all in east field.. adult male joined females in oat field near small olive grove, seemed to be almost herding them, nudged one that was low on the ground, made her get up and move on, then moved to another to move, in direction of windsurfer hill. Was he anxious about our proximity perhaps?

Graceful warbler lots of calls, greenfinches usual area, some Syrian woodpecker calls, jackdaws, hooded crows, bulbuls, bee-eaters,

hyraxes, some chukar like calls.

Sunday 19th June

4 gazelle in east field, adult male, indiv. with just one thin right horn and other female. Another nearby.

Several graceful warbler calls, greenfinches usual place, several hoopoes. Stone curlew calls direction of hidden watercourse, hobby in flight.

fox sighting.
Monday 20th June

8 gazelle : mainly eastern field.. two groups, one near fence usual area, other between olive grove and N/S dirt road. One male over there crossed into field from Pistacia grove, another male, limping, down in east watercourse pines down from valley road not far from sapling field, limping.

hyrax: 1 going into den up from pumphouse.. no other activity noted.

Bee-eaters: several low over north field or twice canopy level.. at least a dozen prob more.

hoopoes: several about east end of north watercourse dirt road and squatting on dust near cistern.

greenfinches singing in usual pine area, turtle dove coos in pines by north watercourse, collared doves, syrian woodpecker call, stone curlews, hooded crows, graceful warbler calls, jay calls

Tuesday 21st June

Graceful warbler calling repeatedly in cape honeysuckle about midday.
Walk: gazelles 4: adult male and another individual on skyline up on NE slope windsurfer hill. Another no visible horns in dry oat field betw small olive grove and cypresses. 4th edge field /dry area north of almond row.

collared doves active, no turtle dove coos today, some blackbird song, plenty syrian woodpecker calls, jay activity, bee-eaters active and vocal over both valleys, greenfinches calls and song in the usual areas.

Wednesday 22nd June

Gazelle: 8 east field windsurfer north slopes 4 indivs, females and well grown young running round to west slopes.. adult male big horns by thorny burnet near fence. On way up to east field three in cypresses, adult male slightly smaller horns with the one horn gazelle and another. 8th gazelle was at edge of young pines and north gazelle field, a female or well grown young.

Hobbies: cypresses by rock flats, at least one, very vocal, flew up and around, also one seen over north watercourse east end, same?

Hoopoes again near rock flats, north watercourse dirt road turn off.. at least two. Also Syrian woodpecker calls, blackbirds, great tits, collared and turtle dove coos, Jays incl. juveniles, jackdaws, hooded crows. In garden: house sparrows, bulbuls, sunbirds. Feral pigeons about as usual. No bee-eaters today, or swifts.. latter soon to leave.

Thursday 23rd June

Gazelle: adult male 'loser' moving from cistern area by Pistacias towards east field.
Hyraxes: a few of Shadiker colony and pumphouse colony active
fox: north watercourse, heading up opposite slope.

Hoopoes: at least two usual place beginning turn of north watercourse dirt road, flying from burnt area to pines and one taking dust bath on dirt road.

Syrian woodpecker calls, hobbies aloft, active, turtle doves and collared doves cooing, , graceful warblers calling, and also active around rock flats, some greenfinch calls in area, bee-eater calls, great tit calls.

garden: laughing doves coos, bulbul melodious calls, house sparrows.

Saturday 25th June

9 gazelle, mainly east field, bulbuls, stone curlews, hooded crows, hoopoes, Syrian woodpeckers, hobbies, greenfinches, jays.

Sunday 26th June

Gazelle briefly spotted up on windsurfer hill near top. Hyrax on wall of garden, back of buildings, top of bank, reaching up against fence to nibble tree leaves (fruit trees).. as we approached it ran surprisingly fast along wall towards tree on bank side, probably it's access to wall. Fox spotted at bridge just past pumphouse, jumped down into water channel under the bridge, (dry now of course)

Wind blowing briskly from west, coolish with that.. peak today just under 28 degrees C.
Great tit calls, Syrian woodpecker calls, brief hobby sighting, stone curlew calls from north fields and hillside, hooded crows about, Blackbird alarm, brief turtle dove coos, collared doves about. Bee-eaters heard just before we left the house .. at about 7 p.m. bulbuls.