What follows is a brief account and commented birdlist of a 1-week birding trip to Southern regions of Morocco.
The itinerary and travel logistics were mainly organized by Josele J. Saiz from Boletas Birdwatching Center , the other participants being José María Canudo, Juan Carlos Albero and Ignacio Yúfera. Although December is not the best time of the year to look for birds in Morocco, the main objective of the trip was to find resident species in some areas a little off the beaten track, not usually included in traditional birding itineraries, particularly Guelmim and Tata. However, we also included some “classic” sites in order to make sure we saw some emblematic species such as Bald Ibis, Crimson-winged Finch, and Levaillant’s Woodpecker.

As main references we used Dave Gosney’s Finding Birds in Southern Morocco (Gostours Guides), the only guide we’ve found that covers the areas we were most interested in, plus A Birdwatching Guide to Morocco by Pete Combridge and Alan Snook (Arlequin) and A Birdwatcher’s Guide to Morocco by Patrick and Fédora Bergier (Prion), although these two concentrate on the more traditionally birded areas of the country.
As field guide we used the classic “Collins” Bird Guide by Mullarney, Svensson et al, and we also had with us Madge and Beaman’s Handbook of Bird Identification (Helm).

Bald Ibis, Tamri

We flew from Madrid to Agadir, using an offer from Travel Plan and Air Europa. There we lodged at the Le Tivoli hotel, where we were picked up by our driver, guide, translator and logistics coordinator Moha, from the “Atlas du Sable” auberge in Merzouga. For the next 7 days we travelled comfortably in his brand-new Toyota Land Cruiser, from Agadir to Tamri, then south to Guelmim and Tata. Finally, we allowed for a day spent at Marrakech as regular tourists, from where we ascended the Atlas mountains to Oukaimeden. The last day was spent birding at the mouth of Oued Massa.


During the trip the whole Southern area was virtually flooded with Desert Locusts (Schicocerca gregaria) forming a swarm that had originated in Mauritania the previous summer and had reached as far as the Canary Islands. It was the first living thing we saw when we landed in our first stop in Fez, and we kept finding them throughout the trip, especially around Guelmim and Sous Massa, where they reached amazing numbers. In some parts we saw mainly dead ones, presumably killed by the fumigating aircraft we frequently saw flying, but at Sous Massa they looked healthy enough, flying in huge clouds and being picked up in flight by Gulls, Kestrels, and even Coots!

Rainy weather near Tata

Throughout the trip we kept finding wintering individuals of migrant species that we didn’t expect to see at this time of the year: Woodchat Shrike (Lanius senator), Northern Wheatear (Oenanthe oenanthe), Montagu’s Harrier (Cyrcus pygargus), Tawny Pipit (Anthus campestris), taking full advantage of the protein bonus supplied by the locusts.   We had excellent weather throughout, except for some light rain on the third day near Tata. Nights were rather cool, and midday temperatures reached up to 28ºC.



Day 1: Agadir  - Tamri - Guelmim
We took an early drive to Tamri, where around the mouth of the Aitamr river Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita) nest and feed daily. This is one of the “classic” sites to look for this species, together with Oued Massa. We arrived at 7:00am, before the sun was up, and we found with concern that intensive construction works were being carried on the hills where Josele had seen the Ibis feeding the year before. We scanned the whole area, including the beach and marshes, for nearly an hour, without success. Almost giving up, we decided to drive towards the lighthouse at the other side of the estuary, past the village of Tamri, for a last try. As we drove we saw a distant flock of nearly a hundred large, dark birds that were identified by Josele and Juan Carlos as Bald Ibis. I must admit that I was sceptical: somehow it was difficult to imagine so many birds of such a rare species flying together. As we got closer I spotted a lone bird flying in the same direction as the flock, and this one was definitely a Bald Ibis. We parked the car by the road and started to walk down the scrub-covered hillsides that led to the beach, and we finally saw two flocks flying over us, providing a wonderful exhibition. In total we accounted for some 230 birds, almost all adults. An amazing number if one thinks that the estimated world wild population is around 300 birds! After following them we finally came upon a large group landed and feeding near the beach.
There we watched them at will for half an hour before leaving south towards Guelmim. It seemed clear that we had arrived at the area too early in the morning, before the birds had flocked and moved to their feeding grounds. However, it is possible that the works being carried on the hills have deprived the Ibis of at least part of their foraging areas.



Other birds at this site included Audouin’s Gull (Larus audouinii) at the beach, Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia), Grey Plover (Pluvialis squatarola) and Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus) at the marsh, and Black Wheatear (Oenanthe leucura) and Blue Rock Thrush (Monticola solitarius) on the cliffs. Juan Carlos spotted several Tristram’s Warbler (Sylvia deserticola) on the scrub that covered the hillside near the lighthouse.


On the way to Gulemim we had a brief stop at the village of Iminiki, where we visited a typical riad (guesthouse) for one of Josele’s future trips, and had Little Swift (Apus affinis) and our first House Buntings (Emberiza striolata) of the trip. Another stop at the Argan woodland area shortly before reaching Boufoulen produced our first Moussier’s Redstart (Phoenicurus moussieri) of the trip. White-crowned Black Wheatear (Oenanthe leucopyga) was common at the roadside.
We reached and traversed the small town of Guelmim, and followed Gosney’s directions to Oued Sayav, 6 km. south of the town on the road to Tan Tan. Following the oued to the left we found our first pair of Red-rumped Wheatear (Oenanthe moesta), a group of Fulvous babbler (Turdoides flavus), several Thekla Lark (Galerida theklae) and Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis). Two Black-shouldered Kite (Elanius caeruleus) were seen flying over the area. Shortly before dusk we saw a group of Common Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus) gathering on some poles at the road, and nearby an immature Long-legged Buzzard (Buteo rufinus) getting ready for the night. The whole area was littered by thousands of dead or dying locusts.

Southern grey Shrike ( ssp. elegans )

Before reaching Guelmim we had already seen many Southern Grey Shrikes (Lanius meridionalis), apparently of the algeriensis subspecies. South of Guelmim, the subspecies of most of the birds we saw seemed to be elegans , with much clearer colour and more white on the wings. This was possibly the most commonly species seen throughout the trip.

Day 2: Guelmim area
 Again following Gosney, we drove the road south towards Tan Tan. Shortly after Guelmim we saw two young Lanner Falcons (Falco biarmicus) perched on roadside posts. At km. 22, we searched the plains left of the road. Here we saw a nice assortment of desert birds: Desert Wheatear (Oenanthe deserti), Temminck’s Horned Lark (Eremophila bilopha), Bar-tailed Desert Lark (Ammomanes cincturus), and two very diurnal and confiding Red Foxes (Vulpes vulpes), near a small hill that lies near the road. Following a dirt track that led to a nomad’s camp, we found a group of 4 Thick-billed Lark (Ramphocoris clotbey) that landed very close to us. The track led to a small group of jaimas where we had a glass of tea, and where when asking for Sandgrouse were told that they were frequently seen a little further down the road, an area that matched Gosney’s indications. We scanned periodically from the road with no results; at km. 45 we took a dirt track that departed at the right of the road. Here Josele saw a large eagle standing on the ground. We flushed it as we approached, and it flew over us for a while offering splendid views. It turned to be an immature Tawny Eagle (Aquila rapax), a species that has previously been reported from the area. We walked over the hills that lie right of the road, and saw a flock of Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Pterocles orientalis) flying in the direction of a large adobe house that had a small well nearby. There we saw a large flock of Lesser Short-toed Lark (Calandrella rufescens).


  This whole area was full of Jirds (Merione spp); the desert ground seemed to be perforated in its entirety by their holes. According to Kingdon (Field Guide to African Mammals, A&C Black), these rodents can be either solitary or social depending on their numbers, and in this area they form large colonies. They are diurnal, at least partially, and tend to run about on open ground, offering such tempting targets to predators that it’s strange to find so few raptors in the Moroccan skies. Near Km 45 in the road to Tan Tan we saw a Long-legged Buzzard miss one by inches.

A different species of Jird, with larger ears and shorter ta

Back to the road heading to Tan Tan, around Km 40 we explored some cliffs to the right that created some very promising gorges, although at this time of the year all we could find was Black Wheatear, Moussier’s Redstart,  and Desert Lark (Ammomanes deserti); the whole area deserves a better look in Spring. Immediately past the cliffs we followed a dirt track that led to the point where two hills converged. The moment we left the main road we saw our first Hoopoe Lark (Alaudemon alaudipes), and a distant flock of Sandgrouse. We drove to the area where they had landed and after a brief search we found a group of 4 Black-bellied Sandgrouse together with a single immature Pin-tailed Sandgrouse (Pterocles alchata).
Driving in the same direction we arrived at the mouth of a wide and rather deep oued with water at the bottom, which we followed down to the village of El Abiar. Along the oued we saw Spectacled Warbler (Sylvia conspicillata), our first and only Scrub Warbler (Scotocerca inquieta) of the trip, and at the end of the oued, near the village’s cultivated orchards, Great Spotted Cuckoo (Clamator glandarius), and Green Sandpiper.
We took an early departure towards Tata. On the way we stopped at “site 5” in Gosney’s guide, a few meters before reaching the village of Tagoujgate at the right side of the road. There is a shallow oued at the opposite side of the road with numerous bushes, where we saw our first Tristram’s Warbler (Sylvia deserticola), and several Desert Lark. Further down the road, shortly before the village of Icht, we crossed an open Acacia woodland plain surrounded by mountains.
On top of a hill dominating the area lies the small camp of a warden employed by Gulf Arabs in order to watch and protect the few remaining Moroccan Hubaras. Excessive hunting has wiped out this species from most of the Middle East, and falconers from the UAE and other Gulf countries now look to Morocco for their hunting expeditions. We stopped and chatted with him trying to get some tips about the birds, but the man seemed unwilling to share any information. In fact he suggested that we shouldn’t be driving through the area at all.


We continued nonetheless, and eventually were stopped, first by the warden himself and then by a Toyota full of unfriendly Arabs. Moha argued our case successfully, since these people had no official authority to prevent us from driving through an open track, and we went on, across the valley until the beautiful village of Tadakoust, lying at the foot of some dramatic cliffs with three peaks, on top of one of which there were the ruins of an old fortress. On the rocky cliffs we saw several Barbary Ground Squirrels (Atlantoxerus getulus). At the entrance of the village there is a river and an oasis where we had lunch, and leaving the village towards the main road we saw two Golden Eagles (Aquila chrysaetos), a pair formed by an adult and a subadult. Back on the same road, we saw a Barbary Falcon (Falco pelegrinoides) sitting on a roadside post. We traversed Tata, and drove to what we called “Trumpeter valley”, a wide oued where a small well concentrates a constant number of Trumpeter Finch (Bucanetes githagineus), plus Moussier’s Redstart, White-crowned Black Wheatear, Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita), and Tristram’s Warbler. We also had excellent views of a single African Rock Martin (Ptyonoprogne fulicula), flying at eye level.

Day 4: Tata area
In the morning we drove the road to Ouarzazate for 50 km until we reached a great basin surrounded by mountains. There is also a Hubara warden’s post here. Its occupants were more friendly and cooperative at this one, and we spent some time with them trying to get some information, but the only conclusion seemed that this wasn’t the right season to find Hubaras, or any other interesting birds for that matter. Desert Larks and White-crowned Wheatear were very confiding around the small camp. We took a dirt track and drove towards the oasis that lies past the low cliffs visible from the camp, traversing beautiful, excellent semi-desert habitat without results. All we saw were White-crowned Wheatears and Tristram’s Warblers, plus a Barbary Falcon. We spent hours driving around with little success, until we found a Mourning Wheatear (Oenanthe lugens) standing on top of a bush, noisily chasing a White-crowned and a Desert Wheatear.
Finally we reached an oasis formed by a small stream at the bottom of a oued, where Josele and Juan Carlos had seen Crowned Sandgrouse drinking the year before  in February. We waited all afternoon but no birds came to drink except for a constant flow of Trumpeter Finch; it is possible that the recent rains had created so many drinking points that birds don’t need to concentrate at a single spot. Doubtless the time of the year is essential to find this and many other resident species. Despite all our efforts we couldn’t find a single Cream-colored Courser, although they also had been seen around this area the year before in February.   We spent the night at the Renaisance Hotel in Tata.

Day 6: Marrakech - Atlas mountains - Oukaimeden
After a whole day spent at Marrakech, we took the road that leads southeast to Oukaimeden, from the dry plains that surround Marrakech into the wooded valleys of the High Atlas. After approximately 1 ½ hour driving the winding and very scenic road, when passing by a small village Jose María spotted a male Levaillant’s Woodpecker (Picus vaillantii) sitting on top of a roadside post. It allowed excellent views for a while, until flying to a nearby leafless tree, in which a female joint him. They both showed exceptionally well for several minutes as they seemed to wait for the sun to reach the valley and warm up. Other birds on the way up included Rock Bunting (Emberiza cia) and African Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs africana).   As we approached the ski station at Oukaimeden we saw that there was a good amount of snow near the mountain top, although not enough for skiing. There were large numbers of both Common and Alpine Chough (Phyrrocorax phyrrocorax and P. graculus), but it took us some time to locate the first group of Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris) on the grassy plain in front of the station, among Linnet (Carduelis cannabina) and Meadow Pipit. They seemed unusually nervous and didn’t allow close views. After scanning the rocky outcrops around the area, among a flock of Chaffinch (Fringilla coelebs) we found a single Crimson-winged Finch (Rhodopechis sanguinea), and also a Brambling (Fringilla montifringilla).   We drove to Agadir back to the Tivoli Hotel.

Day 7: Oued Massa
We left early in the morning for the entrance of Oued Massa, a reserve that comprises the mouth of the Massa river, as well as the beach and the surrounding dunes and scrub areas. As we scanned the river near the entrance we soon found a good number of Marbled Duck (Marmaronetta angustirostris), and in the bushes bordering the trail we heard Black-crowned Tchagra (Tchagra senegala) that would lately show well as it chased locusts among the bushes. Thekla Lark were also present along the trail. Locusts literally covered the ground along the way, and huge swarms could be seen flying over the whole area.   Species seen at the river from the trail also included groups Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus) and Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus). Near the mouth of the river a good number of Yellow-legged and Lesser Black-backed Gulls were having a feast of locusts, together with Kestrel and a single Marsh Harrier (Circus aeroginosus). At the beach we saw a number of Audouin’s Gull and Sandwich Tern (Sterna sandvicensis), Kentish Plover (Charadrius alexandrinus), Little Stint (Callidris minuta), and Sanderling (Callidris alba).   In the early afternoon we drove across the plains surrounding the reserve, where we saw a pair of wintering Tawny Pipit (Anthus campestris) and an immature Montagu’s Harrier (Circus pygargus), and shortly before leaving, a young Bonelli’s Eagle (Hyeraaetus fasciatus). Other birds in the Massa area included Wryneck (Jynx torquilla), Red Rumped Swallow (Hirundo daurica), a distant flying Bald Ibis, Pintail (Anas acuta), Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus ruber).