By Ken Sng
Ken Sng is an occasional birder based in Singapore. In recent years, he has included birding on his overseas travels. If you are visiting Singapore and need some tips on birding places, feel free to reach out.
Just before Dubai became a casualty of the current mid-east madness, I had the good fortune of spending half a day birding in the Al Qudra desert.
The good fortune was more than just being able to spot some lifers. I departed Dubai on Wednesday night 25th Feb and the war started on Saturday, closing the airport!
Al Qudra is roughly 40km to the southeast of Dubai city centre.
I hired a guide with a 4-wheel drive. When we drove into the area about 7am, the fog was pretty thick. I was a bit worried that I was going to miss the golden morning bird wave. Thankfully the fog lifted quite quickly within the hour.
In most places in the world, if you are a cyclist, you are pretty much resigned to the fact that you will have to contend with vehicular traffic. Not here at the Al Qudra cycling track which runs through the area where I was birding.
In this picture, the paved track is exclusively for cyclists while motor vehicles have to use the dirt track! Word has it that the Al Qudra cycling track was the brainchild of a cycling-mad Sheikh. And in Dubai, whatever a Sheikh says is law!
Most people, if asked what animals they can expect to find in the desert, will probably answer ‘nothing’ or ‘very little.’ I know a little bit better because years ago I came across the book “The Deserts of Earth” by Michael Martin. https://www.michael-martin.de/de/ueber-michael-martin/meine-buecher. He is an adventure traveller, photographer and geographer who brought deserts to life through his work.
But knowing the birds are there and spotting them are different things. Especially if you only have a few hours in an unfamiliar environment. That is when a guide comes in. It cost me a small fortune, but I was glad I did it.
Here are some of the bounties from that day.
Little Owl
Greater Spotted Eagle
Eurasian Thick-knee
Greater Flamingoes
Imperial Eagle
Crested Lark
Arabian Sand Gazelle
Isabelline Wheatear
Black-winged Stilt
Arabian Mountain Gazelle
If you find errors in my identification, feel free to point them out.
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