Duration: 1 Day
Location: Oman
Price: $ 445 for Two Persons
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Overview

Oman witnesses huge swarms of migratory birds during their seasonal journey between their nesting habitats and the places where they spend winters, especially those birds migrating from Europe and East Asia. Many birds, especially waterfowl, migrate from faraway regions like northern Siberia and travel about five thousand kilometers. Visitors can see many species of birds in each of Oman’s different regions. Al Hickman Peninsula, Masirah Island, Al Wusta region beaches, the Lagoons, the beaches and springs in Dhofar are ideal places for bird observation. Many of these species live in Dimaniyat Islands and Musandam.
Destinations for Birds Watching :

  • Barr Al Hikman (Al Hikman Peninsula)
  • Al-Dimaniyat Islands Nature Reserve
  • Wadi At Ta`iyeen
  • Muscat

Highlights

Trip includes :

  • Instructor and full equipment
  • Transport to/from
  • Water / soft drinks
  • Picnic lunch

What to bring/wear:

  • Sun cream, sunglasses, hat, camera or case!
  • It is advisable to bring a medium-sized backpack so that you can carry your water
    A sense of adventure!

Itinerary

Day 1 :
After breakfast, you meet the guide. At 8:00 start Exploring to Al Ansab Lagoons its about 10kms west of Muscat where we stay there for 2-3 hours. In summer hardly any water can be spared for the ponds and water-level drops dramatically, exposing large muddy areas – ideal for waders. During the winter months when less water is needed for irrigation, the ponds fill up again. The lagoons have turned into the most interesting site for birds in the capital area. To date, almost 200 species of birds have been recorded here. A visit any time from September to May is likely to produce a list of over 50 species. Members of the Crake family are usually very hard to see as they tend to hide in reedbeds and other dense vegetation during the day. At Al Ansab Lagoons, however, we have often seen Spotted Crake and Baillon’s Crake completely out in the open in clear sunshine. During the autumn months, the number of Black-Necked Grebes gradually increases at the lagoons until a maximum of 30 to 40 is reached in December. The fact that the numbers build up slowly indicates that these birds regularly migrate through the area. The Grebes must just have continued unnoticed before the lagoons came into existence. Now the birds find the area to their liking and settle in for winter. Their cousin, the Little Grebe stay all year and a few pairs have nested in recent years.
Later will drive to Sawadi Islands and Fahal Island (about 4km off Ras al Hamra, in the Capital Area) hold breeding sooty falcons, with the latter site also having nesting red-billed tropic-birds; boat trips around Fahal Island can easily be arranged from Muscat. Al Ansab Lagoons (about 30km west of Muscat) and Qurum Natural Park in Muscat itself are good places to see typical Omani breeding species such as grey francolin, Red-wattled plover, laughing dove, little green bee-eater, yellow-vented bulbul, Arabian babbler, purple sunbird, and Indian silverbill – See more at the Farm when drive back to Muscat .

Times :
pick-up at 8 am (or to suit if 3+ guests)
drop-off by 6 pm