Algeria Jan - Feb 08 (1 Viewer)

My original plans to go to Mauritania for a week started to look less attractive after the murder of several French tourists by some Islamic fanatacists, so I decided to change my plans and go to Algeria instead, mainly to look at the amazing prehistoric rock art, around Djanet in the south-east of the country. But at the same time I was going to see what wildlife I could see in the desert. This wasn’t made easier by the refusal of the Algerian authorities to allow binoculars into the country (I took an old pair in the hope that I might get lucky, but ended up having to leave them at the airport). Anyway I had some success by looking through and taking photos with a 300mm Image Stabilising lens and my Canon SLR. So here’s an (inevitably short) list of what I managed to see on a two week wander around the Tassili n’Ajjer (basically a large rocky plateau) with an assortment of Touareg and Frenchmen:

Barbary Partridge Group of about six seen on rocky spur on the Tassili.
Eurasian Hoopoe In Palmeraie (palm grove) at Djanet
Little Owl One seen by daylight near the archaeological site of Sefar
Rock Dove Common in Djanet
European Turtle-Dove Djanet
Laughing Dove Very common in the Palmeraie
Crowned Sandgrouse Flock of about 20 seen flying into Djanet and back out again half an hour later on the morning of 28th Jan.
Lichtenstein's Sandgrouse Flock of about 20 disturbed by the side of the path in a rocky valley a short way out of Djanet.
Egyptian Vulture Two seen perched on rocks on second day, occasional individuals seen in the air.
Long-legged Buzzard One seen distantly in the evening from a site on the Tassili
Common Kestrel A pair in a valley above Djanet on 8th Feb, one in Djanet on 9th Feb
Lanner Falcon One over Djanet on 27th Jan
Little Egret One seen flying over Palmeraie
Southern Grey Shrike Seen twice in Djanet, and once in a Wadi out in the desert
Brown-necked Raven Common. Followed us during the day.
White-tailed Wheatear Common throughout.
Rock Martin Occasional in better vegetated areas
Barn Swallow One seen in Djanet
Common Chiffchaff Fairly common in Djanet.
Fulvous Chatterer Groups seen at several locations in the desert
Sardinian Warbler Abundant in the Palmeraie
Tristram's Warbler Occasional individuals seen in the desert, mostly in acacia trees
Desert Lark Common throughout.
White Wagtail One in the Palmeraie
Red-billed Firefinch Common in Djanet
House Bunting Common in Djanet

Cape Hare Seen on two occasions
Fringe-eared Gundi Seen on three occasions, always disappearing into the rocks.
Rock Hyrax Pairs seen at two locations.

So, one or two very interesting birds, but on the whole it would be hard to recommend for birding. The rock art, on the other hand, is another story.

Photos to follow.

If any of my IDs look suspect, don't hesitate to let me know.

Our main guide (who, though not being a specialist in birding, did seem to know what he was talking about) insisted that Lichtenstein's sandgrouse did not occur around Djanet and that the photo was of a crowned sandgrouse, but I can't see this.

Last ones.

Arbu said:

This wasn’t made easier by the refusal of the Algerian authorities to allow binoculars into the country (I took an old pair in the hope that I might get lucky, but ended up having to leave them at the airport).

Click to expand...

That is good to know in advance ...had intended a year back to go for the Algerian Nuthatch, but the general hassle led me to going to the Western Sahara instead. Well, if binoculars are not allowed, that pretty much crosses the country off for the foreseeable future

On reflection, I think I might have seen a Dunn's Lark too. There was a flock of seven or eight larks feeding on some flat ground on the plateau. They caught my attention because they seemed smaller than the Desert Larks and also because until then I had always seen Desert Larks in ones or twos on rocky ground. On looking at the photos I took of these it seems that they were Desert Larks. However there was one bird amongst them which flew away and appeared to show dark sides and a rufous centre to its tail. No photo unfortunately, but if anyone's heading out that way it might be worth keeping an eye out for Dunn's Lark.

Attached is a photo of one of the birds, which certainly seems to be a Desert Lark.