Point OF View With Eyes And Curiosity
THROUGH PHOTOGRAPHER EYES
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Birds of Palestine
HELLO.
Thats me .. MAHMOUD TAYEH , I was born in palestine AND Photography is my passion. In particular, I specialize in bird photography and Wildlife .
when i go to the wild & mountains I enjoying a lot, sometimes waiting the bird more than hours for taking a photo its just amazing moments. from time to time my experience and knowledge changing to the better , my camera eye opener for me a lot of ways it made me understand more about my hobby . At this time I met also other people same as me in this way and they are really active, they introduced me to birdlife. A lot happened in my life , people started to see my potential. i get the strength to believe that I can do everything and all is possible. Being from a conflict country restricted me , I felt that not all is possible. I am looking at the world through the lens of the camera , the world seems completely different and I seem to be a completely different person. I am myself.
birds of palestine.
Photography is my window to the world, to see and express myself and It become my daily life.
POINT OF VIEW
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Bird photography needs special equipment, And special clothes. Filming the bird needs to know the bird's behavior and its whereabouts. to spot him need to sit and wait long enough sometimes take more hours of waiting.
_____________________ Birds of
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Palestine a short story about me
Palestine sunbird
Syrian woodpecker
Alectoris
MAGAZINE
Contents
14-15 16-17 18-19 20-21 22-23 24-25 26-27
Spur-winged lapwing
Mourning wheatear
Griffon vulturewing
desert lark
Kestrel
European bee-eater
Laughing dove
Palestine sunbird (Cinnyris osea)
I
s a small passerine bird of the sunbird family which is found in parts of the Middle East and Sub-Saharan Africa. It is also known as orange-tufted sunbird, a name which is also used for the similar orange-tufted sunbird (Cinnyris bouvieri), found further south in Africa. In 2015, it was declared the national bird of the STATE OF PALESTINE.
It occurs in areas with high temperatures and dry climate from sea-level up to an altitude of 3200 m. It inhabits dry woodland, scrub, wadis, savannas, orchards and gardens. It is common in towns in some areas, and is a familiar sight in Cities of Palestine.
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In recent decades it has colonized the Sinai Peninsula in Egypt. Some birds reach Lebanon and Syria in winter and it has bred in Lebanon.
qwe lkjqwe k qwe lkjqwe The Palestine sunbird is 8 to The diet consists mainly of insects 12kpsad cm long with asd a wingspan of 14 asd psad asd asd and nectar. The tongue is long and to 16 cm. Males have an average
brush-tipped to extract nectar from weight of 7.6 g and females weigh Ibus 6.8 est g.porpor amendelflowers lesciis. tempell uparound The billautenis is fairly long, black andrehendi curves downwards. tatem comnisc ipidem The ipiscii scillestnest aborion purse-like hangs from a
niplumage demporr ovitibusmales imus ut ambranch dolorerrum se- It is 18 cm in a tree am, or bush. The of breeding longre, and 8 cmlabore wide at am, the base. It et et,butaliti dolorglossy sit etur aut cusae is quam, mostly dark appears is made leaves, grass and other nulparum re quam quioftem nulparum blue or green insum the light. Therefugia volo plant material which is bound arequatem orange tufts the sides of the pe volum vid at quates ipsamet que nem hillabotogether with hair and spider webs breast which are hard to see except ra endus voluptaquia volupta quat. and lined with wool and feathers. at close range.
Me veleste ditenis inctiur eprepud igniasi cus eiur, id One to three smooth, glossy quo blandis sanis es doluptatur? Labor sinvellenis do- eggs Females and juveniles are greyare laid. These are somewhat luptas vellenim quatur, velluptatur recatia epelend embrown above with pale underparts. variable in colour; often white periasped modit modipsa volum illiquam eum quam Non-breeding males are similar but or grey with faint markings at the diam, quis qui aliqui voluptatem qui occus, sumaresecest, broader end. They incubated for may retain some dark feathers. utempor mos eossit et ped quunt rem The resedi 13 pedi to 14 days. young are downy with an orange-red mouth and It has a high, fast, jingling song and various calls including a harsh alarm call.
fledge after 14 to 21 days.
Syrian woodpecker
(Dendrocopos Syriacus)
T
he Syrian woodpecker is a member of the woodpecker family, and It is an inhabitant of open woodlands, was first described as Picus syriacus by Wilhelm Hemprich and Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg in 1833, from a specimen collected on Mount Lebanon.
The woodpecker is a resident Europe east to Iran . Its range has expanded further northwest into Europe in recent years. The woodpecker is 23 cm long, and is very similar to the great spotted woodpecker, Dendrocopos major. It differs from the smaller lesser spotted woodpecker by the crimson on the abdomen. It is much harder to distinguish Syrian woodpecker from great spotted woodpecker. Syrian has a longer
bill, has more white on the head, and lacks the white tail barring of great spotted. The Syrian woodpecker's food mainly consists of those insects which bore into the timber of forest trees, such as the larvae of wood boring moths and beetles. often extracts its prey from crevices with the tip of its sticky tongue. Seeds, nuts and berries are eaten when insect food is scarce. Its actions are jerky, and it hops rather than climbs. Usually feeding in a vertically 'heads-up" position , it is not uncommon for the woodpecker to assume a vertically or horizontally upsidedown attitude while probing a tree for food. When a space is crossed the flight is easy and undulating.
A
lectoris is a genus of
partridges in the family Phasianidae, Members of the genus are known collectively as rock partridges (a name that also refers to one species in particular, Alectoris graeca). The genus name is from Ancient Greek: αλέκτωρ, romanized: alektor, rooster. These are non-migratory birds of dry, open and often hilly country. They nest in a scantily lined ground scrape laying up to 20 eggs. They feed on a wide variety of seeds and vegetation. Ants are a very important source of nutrition for the birds as are pine nuts, juniper berries and lichens.
appearance of being more rotund than they actually areTheir legs are red, with well-developed, ball-peen hammer-like spurs. When disturbed they run very rapidly, often uphill, taking to the wing if pressed. Their wings are long and fairly sharp, shaped rather like those of ptarmigan and spruce grouse, suggesting that the birds sustain themselves in flight over substantial distances to find food. This probably occurs most often during winter.
Some members of the genus, notably the chukar and red-legged partridge, have been introduced to many locations outside their natural range; there are now established As is typical of many galliform populations of chukar in western birds, Alectoris partridges are North America, Hawaii, and the relatively round-bodied and smallSouth Island of New Zealand, headed. They typically have a light and of red-legged partridge in brown or grey back, grey breast, the United Kingdom, the Azores, buff belly, and barred flanks. Several Madeira, and the Canary Islands. species have a whitish throat with a black border. Their specialized flank coverts give them the
Alectoris αλέκτωρ
Spur-winged lapwing Hoplopterus spinosus
T
he spur-winged lapwing or spur-winged plover (Vanellus spinosus) is a lapwing species, one of a group of largish waders in the family Charadriidae.
The spur-winged lapwing breeds around the eastern Mediterranean, and in a wide band from sub-Saharan west Africa to Arabia. The Greek and Turkish breeders are migratory, but other populations are resident. The species is declining in its northern range, but is abundant in much of tropical Africa, being seen at almost any wetland habitat in its range. The spur-winged lapwing is one of the species to which the Agreement on the Conservation of African-Eurasian Migratory Waterbirds (AEWA) applies. These are conspicuous and unmistakable birds. They are
medium-large waders with black crown, chest, foreneck stripe and tail. The face, the rest of the neck and belly are white and the wings and back are light brown. The bill and legs are black. Its striking appearance is supplemented by its noisy nature, with a loud didhe-do-it call. The bird's common name refers to a small claw or spur hidden in each of its wings. This species has a preference for marshes and similar freshwater wetland habitats. The food of the spur-winged lapwing is insects and other invertebrates, which are picked from the ground. It lays two blotchy yellowish eggs on a ground scrape. The spurwinged lapwing is known to sometimes use the wing-claws in an attack on animals and, rarely, people, who get too close to the birds' exposed offspring.
Mourning wheatear
(Oenanthe lugens)
The mourning wheatear (Oenanthe lugens) is a bird,
one of 14 species of wheatear found in northern Africa and the Middle East. It is a small passerine in a group formerly classed as members of the thrush family Turdidae, but now more generally considered to be part of the Old World flycatcher family Muscicapidae.
The mourning wheatear
The north African subspecies halophila, considered by some to be a separate species, western mourning wheatear, occurs from Morocco east to western Egypt. These birds differ from typical halophila in exhibiting less sexual dimorphism, and displaying a prominent white wingbar, and thus are closer to the nominate race.
T
was first described by Martin he mourning wheatear Lichtenstein in 1823. It is found in is split from Abyssinian semi-desert areas in North Africa wheatear (Oenanthe lugubris), and the Middle East. It is sexually which is the species found south dimorphic with the females of the Sahara. sporting more subtle plumage. It has been recorded in the An intriguing dark morph of the following countries: Algeria, mourning wheatear (the soBahrain, Cyprus, Egypt, Iran, called basalt wheatear) occurs Iraq, palestine , Jordan, Kuwait, in the basalt desert of northeast Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Oman, Jordan. Pakistan, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Tunisia, Turkey, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen.
Griffon vulturewing Gyps fulvus
T
he griffon vulture is a large Old World vulture in the bird of prey family Accipitridae. It is also known as the Eurasian griffon. The griffon vulture is 93-110 centimeters tall, his wings are 230-269 centimeters long, and he weighs between 6 and 13 kilograms. feeding mostly from carcasses of dead animals and often moving in flocks. It establishes nesting colonies in cliffs that are undisturbed by humans. It grunts and hisses at roosts or when feeding on carrion. The maximum recorded lifespan of the griffon vulture is 41.4 years for an individual in captivity. It breeds on crags in mountains in southern Europe, north Africa, and Asia, laying one egg. Griffon vultures may form loose colonies. The population is mostly resident. Juveniles and immature individuals
may migrate far or embark on long-distance movements. Griffon vultures have been used as model organisms for the study of soaring and thermoregulation. Vultures in particular utilize more efficient flying methods such as soaring. Compared to other birds. Vultures use their bald heads as a means to thermoregulate in both extreme cold and hot temperatures. Changes in posture can increase bare skin exposure from 7% to 32%. This change allows for the more than doubling of convective heat loss in still air. old adults of Griffon vultures are more inclined to display aggressive behavior and signs of dominance in comparison to the other age ranges. In terms of comparing the male and female sexes, there are no observed differences in competitive behaviors.
desert lark T
he desert lark breeds in deserts and semideserts from Morocco to western India. surveys have shown that it is slowly increasing in numbers as it expands its range. It is resident non-migratory. Otriginally, the desert lark was classified as belonging to the genus Alauda. Alternate names include finch lark and sand lark. desert lark is a medium sized, big-headed and long-billed lark, growing to a length of 16 to 17 cm (6.3 to 6.7 in). The sexes are alike,It has a rather dull plumage which can vary from quite pale to rather dark.
(Ammomanes deserti)
It is similar in appearance to the bar-tailed lark but is slightly larger, has a less-domed head, a larger broader beak, stouter legs and a longer tail. The upper parts of the many subspecies vary in colour; most are pale greyish brown, similar to the bar-tailed lark, but the under parts are a pale pinkish grey and have much more streaking than that species, and the desert lark lacks the clearly defined terminal black band on the tail of that species.
The colour variation seems to mainly match the habitat, so sandy-coloured birds are commoner in sandy areas, greyer birds in rocky areas and the darkest birds in desert dominated by basalt. The desert lark is found from Mauritania, Western Sahara and southern Morocco in the west east through northern Africa south to Chad and Somalia through
south west Asia to western India. The desert lark is not very sociable and does not form large flocks. They are territorial when breeding, nesting on the ground under the shelter of a tussock or stone in a shallow scrape lined with plant material and having a rim of pebbles, which may surround the nest or be on the more exposed side of the nest. The clutch is 1-5 eggs and these are laid at different times in various parts of its range. The desert lark eats seeds and insects, the latter especially in the breeding season.
Kestrel crĂŠcerelle
T
he kestrel (from French crÊcerelle) are most easily distinguished by their typical hunting behaviour which is to hover at a height of around 10–20 metres over open country and swoop down on prey, usually small mammals, lizards or large insects. Other falcons are more adapted to active hunting in flight. Kestrels are notable for usually having mostly brown in their plumage.
Kestrels can hover in still air,
even indoors in barns. Because they face towards any slight wind when hovering, the common kestrel is called a "windhover" in some areas. Unusual for falcons, plumage often differs between male and
female, although as is usual with monogamous raptors the female is slightly larger than the male. This allows a pair to fill different feeding niches over their home range.
Kestrels are bold and have adapted well to human encroachment, nesting in buildings and hunting by major roads. Kestrels do not build their own nests, but use nests built by other species. Most species termed kestrels appear to form a distinct clade among the falcons, This seems to have diverged from other
Falco around the Miocene– Pliocene boundary (Messinian to Zanclean,). The most basal "true" kestrels are three species from Africa and its surroundings which lack a malar stripe, and in one case have— like other falcons but unlike other true kestrels—large areas
of grey in their wings. Approximately during the Gelasian age (Late Pliocene or Early Pleistocene, around 2.5–2 mya), the main lineage of true kestrels emerged; this contains the species characterized by a malar stripe. This too seems to have evolved in Africa and subsequently spread across the Old World until they reached Australia some time during the
Middle Pleistocene, less than one million years ago. This group contains several taxa found on Indian Ocean islands. A group of three predominantly grey species from Africa and Madagascar are usually considered kestrels due to their general shape and habits, but are probably distinct from the true kestrels as outlined above.
Common kestrels are ultraviolet sensitive which allows them to visually locate the trails of voles. These small rodents lay scent trails of urine and faeces that reflect ultraviolet light, making them visible to the kestrels, particularly in the spring before the scent marks are covered by vegetation.
European bee-eater Merops apiaster
T
he European bee-eater (Merops
whilst the wings are green and the
apiaster) It breeds in southern
beak is black. It can reach a length of
Europe and in parts of north Africa and
27–29 cm (10.6–11.4 in),
western Asia. It is strongly migratory,
including the two elongated
wintering in tropical Africa. This
central tail feathers. Sexes are alike.
species occurs as a spring overshoot
Female tends to have greener rather
north of its range, with occasional
than gold feathers on shoulders. Non-
breeding in northwest Europe.
breeding plumage is much duller and
This species, like other bee-eaters, is a richly coloured, slender bird. It has brown and yellow upper parts,
with a blue-green back and no elongated central tail feathers. Juvenile
resembles a non-breeding adult, but
eggs around the beginning of June. Both
with less variation in the feather colours. male and female care for the eggs, which Adults begin to moult in June or July
they brood for about three weeks. They
and complete the process by August or
also feed and roost communally.
September. There is a further moult into breeding plumage in winter in Africa. These bee-eaters are gregarious— nesting colonially in sandy banks, preferably near river shores,
This bird breeds in open country in warmer climates. As the name suggests,
bee-eaters predominantly eat insects, especially bees, wasps, and hornets. They catch insects in flight, in sorties from
usually at the beginning
an open perch. Before eating a bee, the
of May. They make a
European bee-eater removes the sting
relatively long tunnel, in which they lay five to eight spherical white
by repeatedly hitting the insect on a hard surface. It can eat around 250 bees a day.
Laughing dove Spilopelia senegalensis
T
he laughing dove (Spilopelia senegalensis) is a
small pigeon that is a resident breeder in Africa,
the Middle East and the Indian Subcontinent. This small long-tailed dove is found in dry scrub and semi-desert habitats where pairs can often be seen feeding on the ground. A rufous and black chequered necklace gives it a distinctive pattern and is also easily distinguished from other doves
by its call. Other names include laughing turtle dove, palm
dove and Senegal dove. The laughing dove is a long-tailed, slim pigeon, typically 25 cm in length. It is pinkish brown on the underside with a lilac tinged head
and neck. The head and
It's a common and widespread
rarely in larger groups. Larger
underparts are pinkish,
species in scrub, dry
groups are formed especially
shading to buff on the lower
farmland, and in areas of
when drinking at waterholes
abdomen. A chequered rufous
human habitation, often
in arid regions. Small numbers
and grey patch is found on
becoming very tame. Its
assemble on trees near
the sides of the neck and are
range includes much of Sub-
waterholes before flying to
made up of split feathers. The
Saharan Africa, Saudi Arabia,
the water's edge where they
upper parts are brownish with
Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan,
are able to suck up water like
a bluish-grey band along the
and India. It is also found
other members of the pigeon
wing. The tail is graduated
in Cyprus, PALESTINE ,
family. Laughing doves eat
and the outer feathers are
Lebanon, Syria, the UAE,
the fallen seeds, mainly of
tipped in white. The sexes
and Turkey .They are
grasses, other vegetable matter
are indistinguishable in the
mostly sedentary but some
and small ground insects such
field. Young birds lack the
populations may make
as termites and beetles. They
chequered neck markings. The
movements. Birds ringed in
are fairly terrestrial, foraging
legs are red. The populations
Gujarat have been recovered
on the ground in grasslands
vary slightly in plumage with
200 km north in Pakistan and
and cultivation. Their flight
those from more arid zones
exhausted birds have been
is quick and direct with the
being paler. The chuckling
recorded landing on ships in
regular beats and an occasional
call is a low rolling croo-doo-
the Arabian Sea.
sharp flick of the wings which
doo-doo-doo with a rising and falling amplitude.
The species is usually seen in pairs or small parties and only
are characteristic of pigeons in general.