Morocco – Massa – 23rd March 2010 (part 1)

On our first full day we take the main road south out of Agadir and keep following the signs to Tiznit, before long we leave the hustle and bustle of the towns on the edge of the city and join the steady stream of buses, lorries and taxis going south, once through Sidi Bibi we know we are “out of town”.

We look for a sign to a camping site to the right. It’s some 15 or 20 miles down the road from Sidi Bibi and what’s more if you miss the first, there is a second less than a mile further on. We take the first right turn and enter bird land. The road is narrower and each side is scrub or crops. Both Thekla and Crested Larks are very common. Moussier’s Redstarts are frequent, as are Grey & Woodchat Shrikes.

Once we had gone through to the village of Arhbalou we started to see the effects of the recent heavy rain fall and in the flooded fields very close to the road are Greater Flamingo, Cattle Egret, Little Egret & Black-winged Stilt.

Life bird count: 389 Year bird count: 130 Month bird count: 95

Photo: Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus)