Report information
I have spent a week on the Khawr Al Amaya oil terminal and watched the weather carefully to determine which conditions resulted in the most bird and insect activity. There has been a great deal of unsettled weather recently, with winds bouncing around the points of the compass whipping up lots of dust. The result has been very little in the way of wildlife on the platform.
It appears that the birds and insects hunker down when the winds up and the visibility is down. As soon as the skies are clear the birds move by the light of the stars and insects stray out over the sea. It is during these calm periods that predator and prey converge on Kawr Al Amaya and at the end of the week, the migrants are still arriving.
As ever there are single Redstart, Wheatear and Pied Wheatear, numerous Red-backed Shrikes (seven at least), and a handful of Yellow Wagtails. It is now over 40 degrees and many birds are panting to lose heat, others have fared worse. I despatched a United States Navy patrol boat to rescue a male Lesser Kestrel that had ditched just metres from the platform. It transpired an Iraqi translator in our service is also a veterinarian and he tried to revive the bird but I chanced upon a corpse drifting on the tide the next morning and fear it was the same individual. I also spotted a Booted Eagle high on a mast, its head hung low. It later dropped off its perch and died.
These shocking realities were softened by the arrival of a beautiful Little Stint that I found having a nap. Sufficiently recuperated, it headed off again with some confidence. Another bird caught having a snooze was a fine Roller that the Royal Navy Captain in charge managed to photograph. I was treated to a glimpse of it in flight, its contrasting black wing feathers adding to this species hefty appearance.
The theme now seems to be the little green and brown jobs. Without uttering a sound, and unable to express any sort of habitat preference beyond a camouflage net it is a struggle to sort them all out. Regulars are certainly Reed, Great Reed, Sedge, and Upcher’s Warblers, but are there also Marsh and Savi’s Warblers amongst them? They are so flighty as they chase insects it is difficult to get a fix on them even as they dash right past your feet! Bee-eaters sporadically make a visit and I feel that the birds now seen those that will breeder in the Middle East.
The Hirundines are putting on quite a show, with Swallows, Red-rumped Swallows, Sand, House and Crag Martins all sharing the air together; it is as if the illustration on page 243 of my bird book has come to life. They need to watch out though; a Hobby showed up today and the food chain on this oil platform doesn’t stop with the insects. The life and death struggle enacted amongst us, and my presence with the binoculars has led my colleagues to conclude that I am on some kind of ‘safari’ out here!
Lieutenant Rolf Williams,
HMS Chatham
Further Reading:
Last Postcard from the Gulf: Murder mystery aboard HMS Chatham
ALL of Lt. Rolf Williams' stunning Postcards from the Gulf