May - The raptor migration through the Eilat mountains had been so compelling in late April that I, for one, couldn't stay away in the opening days of May. Weather conditions were virtually perfect for migration in the first ten days, good news for Jonathan Meyrav and Daniel Gelbart our raptor counters from the Israel Ornithological Centre. They found themselves extremely busy, as they had been inlate April.

The Eilat Mountains provides a unique opportunity to observe the most concentrated migrations of Honey Buzzards anywhere in the world. Sadly, this truly great phenomenon passes largely unseen by most of Israel's birding visitors as many of them target their trips for other 'classic' periods of the year. Nevertheless, the quality of birding in southern Israel in May is often very, very good and this year was no exception.

During the last three years we've become aware of increasing numbers of Crested Honey Buzzards passing through our region, and this species became a major focus for the counting team. We were not disappointed as this former great national rarity was recorded daily for the first 11 days of the month with up to 17 individuals on the better days. By the end of the month 98 individual Crested Honey Buzzards had been recorded. Honey Buzzards poured through during the same period with a peak of 47, 085 on the 7th and a further 35, 619 on the 8th!

Perhaps the most intriguing bird of the month was a YELLOW-BILLED KITE of the form 'aegyptius' seen passing through Wadi Shlomo on the morning of 7th May. Currently, there is just one accepted record in Israel, so the digital images taken of the flying bird could serve to document an extremely important and unexpected find. The bird was first taken to be a Black Kite but on account of its odd appearance, quickly photographed. If accepted this would be the second record for Israel. A wide variety of other raptors featured during the migration including Levant Sparrowhawks, Lesser Spotted, Steppe and Booted Eagles, Eleonora's Falcons and even a few late Pallid Harriers.

On the Red Sea, Cory's and Sooty Shearwaters, Arctic, Pomarine and Long-tailed Skuas continued to be seen on many sea-watches from the north beach. A group of 25 Glossy Ibis that passed Lotan on 5th was a good local record and at least 103 Curlew Sandpipers and 7 Broad-billed Sandpipers were noted at Km 20 salt pools on the 7th, where there were 10 Red-necked Phalaropes on the 12th, but the best shorebird of the period was a Pacific Golden Plover at Km. 20 for several days from 16th.

Arrivals of passerines were not as large as we've seen in previous years, although Lotan remained a good place to see certain species in numbers such as European Bee-eatear, Golden Oriole, Nightingale and Thrush Nightingale, Redstart, Red-backed and Masked Shrikes, Spotted and Collared Flycatchers, Barred and Olivaceous Warbler and Ortolan Bunting.

Of the scarcer species there was a Temminck's Horned Lark at Lotan on 10th, several Olive-tree Warblers around 15th - 17th and a scatter of Black-headed Buntings on several dates. There was also a female Common Rosefinch in Eilat on the 17th.

Several interesting local records from Lotan included 2 Crested Honey Buzzards on 11th, a male Little Bittern on 12th and a very late Bluethroat on 14th. All in all it had been another superb month and the conclusion of a very interesting and exciting spring migration.

Good birding to all,

James Smith and the Birdlotan team.