Silflay Hraka

Majestic. Stately. Impressive.

Also camera shy, easily spooked and difficult to photograph. The Purple Heron, Ardea purpurea and the Grey Heron, Ardea cinerea, are two of the most beautiful birds that I have seen in Iraq.

The Purple Heron, not to be confused with this Purple Heron, is widespread through the western Palearctic, Europe, N Africa, Kazakhstan and Iran and through sub-saharan Africa. Also present in Madagascar, southern and eastern Asia, Indonesia, Singapore and the Philippines. They are typical herons, nesting in colonies, building stick nests and eating heron food - frogs, fish and insects - often waiting motionless or slowly stalking prey, as opposed to the hunting antics of the Little Egret.

The Purple Heron tends to stick closer to cover than the Grey Heron, perhaps because he doesn’t like to share lunch. One reason for their shyness could be because Grey Herons (Ardea cinera) often steal the Purple Herons’ catch when they are hunting close to each other. Purple Herons become even more shy during breeding season, preferring to hunt near cover. Purple Herons defend their feeding territory from each other by aggressively puffing out neck feathers and raising crests.

The one I managed to see was certainly shy - I was only able to get a couple of distant pictures, and off he went.

The Grey Heron is a slightly larger bird, standing almost a full meter in height with a wingspan of 1.85 m, according to Birds of the Middle East.

Grey Herons generally nest in colonies. Preferred nest sites are tall emergent trees, even dead ones. Their nests are large (40-45 cm wide) platforms solidly built out of sticks and lined with grass or fresh leafy branches. The males find and bring nesting materials to the females: the giving and receiving of sticks is done with lots of ritual. It is the female who does most of the actual construction. (sounds about like the way it’s done around my house) They aren’t too picky about what they eat - nearly anything will do.

Their hunting tactics, like their menu, are more varied than those of the Purple heron. They usually wait on the mud or at the water’s edge to snatch passing aquatic prey. They can stand motionless for hours. Or they may wade slowly through shallow water or on mud freshly exposed by the tide. They may also stalk fish. They may even dive into deeper water. In Europe, some even follow farm ploughs to catch whatever is unearthed or flushed out in the process.

Thier range inlcudes all of Great Britain from Ireland across to Europe, Asia, Japan & south to the Mediterranean. Also India and northern China, southern Africa, Indonesia. Birds in northern Europe migrate, wintering south of the Sahara, and they can live for more than 25 years.

Previously: The Indian Roller

Next: The Pygmy Cormorant

Continue reading ‘Birds of Iraq: The Big Herons’ »

Way back on April 12, before Bigwig convinced me to do my own work instead of just snapping pictures and hitting the “forward” button to his email address, one of the prettiest of the Coraciiformes appeared here on Silflay in Bigwig’s post Birds Of Iraq: Fred’s Spotted Wonder Chickens. Prior to that, he also posted on two of the three kingfishers found in Iraq (Alcedinidae family) here and here, and mentioned that the Hoopoe (Upupidae family) had also been seen, leaving only the family of Coraciidae unaccounted for from the Order of Coraciiformes.

Now present for duty, the Indian Roller, Coracias benghalensis, is one of two species of the Coraciidae native to Iraq.

I actually saw one back in June, but I didn’t get a picture. As Bigwig noted at the very beginning of “Birds of Iraq”, seeing them is a lot easier than snapping a picture of them. I actually had a bead on one with my Canon, but two UH-60s came over just then, and scared off all the birds in the surrounding area. Fortunately, like the other Rollers, the Indian “often sits on prominent perch (wires, poles, dead branches) taking prey on ground in shrike-like manner,” (as Birds of the Middle East tells us), so to find him you don’t have to search thru the trees or brush like some of the other birds we have here. I just didn’t know the right place to look. Recently a pair of them has taken to sitting on the wires in the morning, near the guard shack on the way to BIAP.

Also known in India as the simple Blue Jay, “it is likely that the beauty of the bird is what inspired the Hindu belief according to which Vishnu (the Preserver of the universe) had once assumed the form of the Blue Jay thus making it sacred.” You can even name your son after the blue jay in India - not sure I would be pleased to have the title of “jay bird” affixed to me permanently, however.

And where does the “Roller” part come from?

“During mating, the males perform ornate sexual displays as they fly upward, then roll and fall through the air while wildly flapping their wings and screaming harshly. Rollers nest in trees or buildings using twigs and other vegetation to build its nest. In March or April a clutch of three to five eggs is laid. Frogs, when available, form a large proportion of the Indian Roller’s diet. It also eats larger insects such as grasshoppers and crickets. Butterflies and moths may be caught in midair. It ranges from Iraq and Iran through Pakistan, India, Burma, southeast Asia, Tibet, and parts of China.”

Stay tuned.

Previously: The Collared Pratincole

Next: Purple and Grey

It’s been a fairly calm week, so I have had time to add another bird to the page.

The Collared Pratincole, Glareola prantincola, is a member of the family of Glareolidae first described by Linneaus in 1766. Glareolidae are one of three Suborders in the Order of Charadriiformes, the other Suborders being Lari: gulls and their allies; and Alcae: auks. Glareolidae are one of fourteen families of the sub-Order Charadrii: the waders; are all Old World birds, and include coursers and pratincoles, with a total of 17 species.

They are shore birds, with slim, elongated bodies, and often long wings - Birds of the Middle East says the typical habitat for the Collared Pratincole is “sun-baked mud flats and flat, firm plains with low vegetation, often near water” which perfectly describes where they were seen here. The Collared Pratincole ranges from southern Europe to north and central Africa through central Asia, and winters south to southern Africa & India.

It is roughly the size of a dove, a “highly aerial wader resembling marsh terns in graceful fast flight, long pointed wings, deeply forked tail and short bill.” It feeds primarlily on insects, especially grasshoppers and beetles. Several of these birds passed thru Camp Victory in late spring/early summer, and were seen in the dry fields in the area. The Collared Pratincole looks like a souped up mourning dove, perhaps. It certainly gives the impression of being built for speed.

Also rather imposing from the front view…

More pics here.

Previously: The Spur Winged Plover

Next: The Indian Roller

The Spur-Winged Plover, Hopolopterus spinosus or Vanellus spinosus, depending on who you ask, is widely distributed across the north half of Africa, into Egypt and the near East. They are monogamic, and both male and female share in nesting activities. Unlike other Charadriidae, Spur Wings are determinate egg layers according to this study, and will not lay additional eggs in a nest if some are destroyed. The Spur Wings showed up here at Camp Victory in early March this year, and the pictures here are from 15 May 2005. Here is mom or dad - male and female have the same markings - a friend remarked that they could be called “Tuxedo Birds”.

Spur-winged Plovers normally lay a clutch of 4 eggs, so unfortunately it looks like two chicks were already gone by the time these two were sighted. The camoflage these guys have is incredible, they blend right in to the dry lake bed they were standing on.

Extremely cute little guys - although I think the Black-winged Stilt chick here is even cuter…

More on the Black-winged Stilt here.

Previously: The Black Francolin

Next: The Collared Pratincole

Our time in Iraq is thankfully coming to a close, but I will try and post a few more of the birds I’ve seen in the last few months before heading home to Ft Bragg.

The Black Francolin, Francolinus francolinus, also know as the Black Partridge, is widely distributed, from Greece thru India in this part of the world. In Greece, it even figured as one of the cast in The Birds of Aristophanes, with a place in The Chorus. You’ll notice a few other alumni of Birds of Iraq in that lineup, including the Hoopoe, which I finally saw here at Victory last week.

The Francolin was one of the toughest birds yet to get decent pictures of. As noted here, the Francolin. “does not fly up but tries to sneak away and reach cover in dense vegetation.” Understatement. Easier to get a picture of a wild turkey I think. Birds of the Middle East comments, “more often heard than seen, and very hard to flush.” That part I can also say is correct, as earlier in the year, you could hear the males calling early and late in the day, but would rarely see them. I finally managed to get this picture of a male, sitting on his little dirt perch, calling for a female.

Much later, I lucked out and got a picture of a hen as well; I happend to be sitting in the Explorer, watching for airplanes, and she ran right out in front of me.

The final coup was finding these chicks in the tall weeds near the old vineyards on Camp Victory (only one of three shown in the picture).
My sharp eyed young friend, CPT Vic, managed to spot it after we had flushed a hen from the area.

Next: the Spur-winged Plover

Previously: the Rufous Bush Robin

With the dry summer, the birding has really slowed down around Camp Victory-or it could be that I am less interested in watching birds when the temps are up around 112 or so. No worry, as you can watch airplanes instead - one of the advantages of living at the airport. And since I brought my scanner back with me from leave at Ft Bragg, I can sit in the Ford Explorer with the air conditioning running and listen till I hear something coming in.

Baghdad International Airport, (BIAP) formerly Saddam International, has military and civilian sides, and serves as the main air hub for Coalition Forces in and around Baghdad. Air traffic into Baghdad isn’t quite routine yet, as there is still a slight threat of missile attack. Both military and civilian aircraft spiral in and out of the airfield to minimize the threat. But that may not be any worse than going into the Basrah Airport, where the AIP lists “Potential for unexploded ordnance away from hard standings”. Interestingly, there are Iraqi air traffic controllers on duty at BIAP during the daytime, and the Americans take over at night.

Here on short final to the military side at BIAP is a C-12 Huron, which the military uses as a VIP aircraft. It is a military version of the Raytheon Super King Air 200.

Not sure which VIP this one was carrying, we have no shortage of generals here in Baghdad.

Civilian traffic continues to increase here as well. The US State Department says that there were 326 civil aviation flights in and out of Baghdad for the week of 7-13 August. When you add in the military flights, it makes BIAP a fairly busy airport. There are several “new” airlines flying in and out of the city, although I’m not sure I want to try Flying Carpet Airways just yet. Here is one example, an Iraqi Airways 727 taking off from Runway 33 R back in April.

This airplane has an interesting history; like many that end up in this part of the world, it flew elsewhere first. This one, #21483, was delivered to Delta Air Lines 31 May 1978.

Air freight is really the biggest traffic contributor here, with service from DHL to several cities in Iraq, among others. Here is a Phoenix Aviation An-12 coming in to the civilian side on 21 August 2005.

The An-12 is the Soviet counterpart to the Lockheed C-130, it is perhaps more ubiquitous than the C-130, as the An-12 has been pressed into freight service by numerous carriers.

Another photo from LTC Bob. The original Birds of Iraq entry on the Black-Winged Stilt can be seen here.

The latest from LTC Bob, a Rufous Bush Robin, aka Cercotrichas galactotes. Other than taxonomic changes to the genus to which the Rufous Bush Robin belongs (it’s now a type of flycatcher, where it used to be a thrush) and a study on the parasitization of the species by the common cuckoo, (The early bird may get the worm, but he’s more likely to feed it to the offspring of another species, it would appear) there’s not a lot about the species on the net save photographs, but said condition is one we are happy to exacerbate.

Birds of The Middle East says the species is similar in behavior to the Nightingale, but is a smaller, slimmer bird, identified by an often cocked, long and fan shaped rufous tail, one that shows a prominent black subterminal-band and white tips as well as a rufous rump.

Previously: The Masked Shrike

Next: Who knows?

See Also: Reptiles of Iraq, Arthropods of Iraq, Fishes of Iraq

One of my aspirations as a young birder was to see all three species illustrated on the cover of my Golden Guide to Birds. I’ve yet to see a Painted Bunting, so that aspiration is still unfulfilled.

LTC BOb doesn’t have that problem, as one of the 48 species he’s observed in and around Camp Victory, the Masked Shrike, graces the cover of Birds of the Middle East.

Lucky man.

Previously: The Little Egret And Common Snipe

Next: The Rufous Bush Robin

See Also: Reptiles of Iraq, Arthropods of Iraq, Fishes of Iraq

When Professor Khalaf first published Reptiles of Iraq, there was one gecko in the Phyllodactylus genus found in that country. Now there are none. Not because they are extinct, but because the Iraqi geckos have been reclassified as members of the Asaccus genus, aka the “Southwest Asian leaf-toed geckos,”

Lizards of Iran explains why.

The work of Dixon and various coworkers has resulted in the reallocation of several species formerly assigned to the genus Phyllodactylus. The pholidosis* of species now assigned to the genus Asaccus is similar to that of species of Phyllodactylus from the Western Hemisphere, and consists of enlarged tubercles arranged in longitudinal rows on the dorsum and tail, scattered randomly on head and limbs, and one large pair of terminal leaf-like lamellae on fingers and toes. The most striking character separating the two genera is the absence of cloacal sacs and postanal bones in Asaccus.

Always remember to check for a cloacal sac. Wouldn’t want to overlook it and embarrass oneself in the company of other herpetologists. Hence the famous song;

I’m taken aback by a Cloacal sac
That I overlooked before.
One tract for feces, and also sperm,
One tract for every need confirmed!
No need explaining, there’s only one sustaining
Every gecko on the floor.
I’m taken aback by a Cloacal sac
That I overlooked before!

Since Prof Khalaf’s day, not only has Phyllodactylus elisae become Asaccus elisae–though it still retains the common name of Werner’s leaf-toed gecko–it has been joined by two other species, at least in Iran; the Grey-spotted leaf-toed gecko, Asaccus griseonotus, and the Kermanshah leaf-toed gecko, Asaccus kermanshahensis. The location of both species along the Iranian border with Iraq would argue that it’s at least possible that they are found in that country, so I’ve scanned in the Key to ID from Lizards of Iran

Key to the Species of Asaccus in Iran

1a. 4 pairs of postmentals bordered by 21?24 granules - Asaccus kermanshahensis

1b. 2 pairs of postmentals bordered by 20 or fewer granules - 2

2a. Largest dorsal tubercles more than one-half height of ear opening; tubercles extending onto occiput and temporal area, much larger than surrounding granules; whorls of caudal tubercles separated by 3-4 transverse rows of small scales - Asaccus elisae

2b. Largest dorsal tubercles less than one-half height of ear opening; tubercles becoming much smaller on nape, usually not extending onto head, or if so, few in number, scarcely larger than surrounding granules; whorls of caudal tubercles separated by 6-7 transverse rows of small scales - Asaccus griseonotus

Notes: Prof’s Khalaf’s Reptiles of Iraq entry on the Iraqi Phyllodactylus/Asaccus geckos appears below.

Queries: In the comments section at Unidentified Gecko Emergency, a soldier stationed in Iraq writes in seeking information on the Baloch Rock Gecko.

I recently found a few of the Baloch Rock geckos here in Iraq that i gave a home. From looking at other gecko care information I would assume they eat crickets and such, but if you have any type of feeding/care information I would appreciate it

There’s not a lot out there on the care and feeding of Bunopus tuberculatus. Lizards of Iran says the only identifiable material found in one specimen’s stomach was beetles, so that’s an obvious choice as to food. They seem to prefer debris-strewn shorelines, so most arthopods found in a similar environment ought to be ok to feed them as well. Depending on the time the individuals were collected, you might also want to give them a fair amount of sand. From late August to January, female Baloch Rock geckos end to be carrying eggs. Lizards of Iran says it appears that they are unable to climb vertical surfaces, so that might make choosing a container somewhat easier.

Previously: The Rough-Tailed Gecko

Next: Geckos of the Pristurus Genus

See Also: Birds of Iraq, Insects of Iraq, Fishes of Iraq

Continue reading ‘Reptiles of Iraq: Geckos of the Asaccus Genus’ »