Glossy Ibis, Plegadis falcinellus
I thought I'd add a picture of the Zhakar Pools below - nestled in the dunes of the desert lapping up to Jebil Hafite and the grand Hajar mountains. Spot the Ibis ! Clearly these pools are a result of human activity. The water works for Al Ain have literally overflowed and the local municipality have taken an active decision not to plug the leak. They have now built a number of picnic benches and shades so they are obviously planning to keep things as they are despite a complaint that the desert is being spoiled. It is a shame to see so much rubbish. Any picnic spot here in the UAE the locals will just dump their rubbish - having been brought up with someone from the sub-continent to clean up after them most of their lives. I guess it is no different from home anyway. Plastic in the desert is dreadful though.
This spot has got a good list - I saw Teal, Shovelor, Common Sandpiper, Snipe, Pallid Swift - I was after a Cotton Pygmy Goose that I understood was overwintering there but I only had 20 minutes by the time I had found the place as my son had a game coming up. A place to revisit.
You can see the white mark at the base of the bill and light streaking on the head that confirms this as Glossy Ibis. Below - coots out on the lake - could be a park in Manchester minus any trees or grass or drunks.
Zhackar Pools, Al Ain, UAE
12 January 2013
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