Dubai 2013 - 13th March 2013

Today, we headed to Jebel Hafeet near Al Ain and a new area for me to experience. The desert drive from Fujairah was an experience and I was glad I was not behind the wheel. The road was 'straight as a die' and lined on both sides with beautiful sand dunes. You would think that one sand dune would look very much like another, but in fact there is no symmetry in both colour, structure, shape or visual appearance. The wind and nature has carved a habitat that is too easy on the eye.

As we approached Al Ain, we headed for the Green Mubazzarah an area whose's name and location has intrigued me. As we drove in, a Grey Heron flew out from the reeds and in a small creek a Squacco Heron was waiting for unsuspecting fish to swim by. The area is a large green corrider under the Jebel Hafeet mountain and a passage for birds to stop a find shelter, food and water.

We spotted the following birds for our list.
Desert Wheatear
Arabian Wheatear
Arabian Partridge
Blue Rock Thrush
Daurian Shrike
Hume's Wheatear
Crag Martin.

The Arabian Partridge and Hume's Wheatear were new species for me.

We left the Green Mubazzarah and headed up the mountain to the top to look for Desert Lark and the view. The view was magnificant as we looked down on Al Ain and Oman you felt on top of Arabia.

We left the Desert Larks to collect the last crumbs of the day and headed to the Mercure Hotel.

My room in the Mercure Hotel had a view of the gardens, so I spent a few hours standing on the balcony watching the sky changing from day to night. I spotted about six Egyptian Vultures circling near the summit of the mountain presumably looking for a place to roost. Then in the garden below a pair of Spectacled Bulbul were feeding, so I finished the day with a list total of 92 species.