17 April. Dasht Arzhan
An hour or so west of Shiraz on the main road to Bushehr and Ahvaz, Dasht Arzhan is a convenient stop-over on route to the humid Khuzestan and the Iraqi borderzone. Situated in an upland bowl, this small wetland proved pretty productive on both my summer and winter trips, so I was keen to sample the spring glories, guessing it might well hold quite a good range of breeding and migrant species.
So it was, at about 8 a.m. I hopped off a westbound bus and wandered down through the tea stalls to the open grass meadows that surround the central marsh. Immediately impressed with the appearance of a flock of Lesser Kestrels, the eight birds hunting across the grasslands all day, joined on occasion by wandering Marsh Harriers and a single Montagu's Harrier. After dumping my bag in the depths of grassy tussocks, and waving to a shepherd tending goat herds, I set off to explore. With Red-billed Choughs tumbling in the skies above, a multitude of smart Yellow Wagtails squabbling in wetter areas and a splendid male Ferruginous Duck rising from the small stream trickling down through the meadows, I slowly meandered towards the central marsh. Much noise from assorted frogs, plus squeaking Water Rails and chattering Clamorous Reed Warblers, the walk was certainly a pleasant affair, all the more so for the Red-throated Pipits flushing up and for a pair of Ruddy Shelducks. At the last relatively dry patch of grass, with European Bee-eaters drifting over and Lapwings bombarding stray Hooded Crows, I paused to scan the central marsh - shimmering in the midday heat, some rather interesting blobs appeared to gravitating around one particular patch of distant reed. Squinted best I could, and was pretty sure of the some of the identities, but decided a little sloshing was in order, paddling through a few hundred metres of wet meadow to get a little closer. Lost my shoes more than once, and added European Reed Warbler and Sedge Warbler to the trip list, and then eventually got to a point where the blobs materialised into actual birds ...and nice they were, a small colony of breeding Spoonbills, one Great White Egret standing just in front and two Dalmatian Pelicans alongside. Just for good measure, Squacco, Grey and Purple Herons flew over and a Black Kite appeared over the marsh behind.
By late afternoon, I'd explored a good chunk of the site, so ambled back towards the road. Lesser Kestrels were still hunting the grasslands, large numbers of Common Swifts now also swooping low. With little desire to move on, I sunbathed a while and waited for dusk, pitching my tent to an almighty din of a million and more frogs competing for choral supremacy!
18 April. Dasht-Arzhan to Shush.
After the shock of waking to an ice-encrusted tent, a light mist from the marsh freezing my flysheet solid, I spent the first hour or so wandering around waiting for my tent to dethaw and then dry! Still, with Purple Herons and Red-rumped Swallows flying over and exploration of a small woodland revealing both Common Nightingales and migrant Marsh Warblers, it was certainly not a hardship.
With tent packed and a coffee downed, the rest of the day was effectively a travel day, the plan being to reach the historic city of Shush in the Dez Valley, a mere 680 km west. Hitched the first half, then got a free lift on bus for the next leg, finally swopping to a scheduled bus for the stretch between Dehdasht and Ahvaz, the latter the gateway to the Dez Valley. A petrochemical world of gas flares and pipelines zigzagging in all directions, bathed in a humid haze and sweltering under one of the hottest suns in all Iran, the industrial city of Ahvaz and its flat grey hinterland are a sight indeed, a pseudo post-apocalyptic vision that actually has some appeal in its total lack of attraction.
Pied Kingfishers on the river, Black-winged Stilts and Red-wattled Plovers on roadside pools, White Storks nesting on pylons quite some distance to the east, all was not devoid of birds, White-winged Black Terns and European Rollers also seen, but regardless I was not going to stay in Ahvaz! I navigated across the city and, to a setting sun, got in a savari for the hour-and-a-half ride to Shush. A pleasant town, fairly quiet with a river meadering through and historic sites rising from the centre, Shush would serve as base for the next couple of days, the Dez River area being one of the birding hotspots in Iran. Checked into a hotel with air-conditioning, a required luxury in this neck of the woods, and reviewed my strategy for the next day, I had high hopes for one very special bird.
