The last ten days of March saw some huge arrivals of spring migrants at Kibbutz Lotan and other hotspots along the Arava. The feeling amongst resident birders was of a migration on the scale of 'spectacular' rather than the norm. They settled down to enjoy the best spring migration in Lotan's young birding history. The 25th and 26th of March especially saw huge arrivals of migrants when a very cold, rain-bearing front deposited snow in the higher parts of Israel and thousands of North bound migrants in every green space in the southern desert. They ranged from concentrations of raptors through shorebirds, through larks, pipits, warblers, wheatears, redstarts and buntings. To put it quite simply - there wasn't a dull moment.

22/03
The great lark show continued on the Hiyyon Plain and at Zihor junction with numbers of Thick-billed, Temminck's Horned and Hoopoe Larks still being found, as well as Cinereous Bunting and Desert Warblers amongst the many other good birds present.

23/03
A Black Bush Robin showed very well on the western fence of Yotvata sewage pools from about 09:30 hours and was accompanied by a female Semi-collared Flycatcher. Both gave superb views.

25/03
At Ein Evrona salt pools there was a huge arrival of shorebirds on the stormy conditions as 183 Black-tailed Godwits, 52 Collared Pratincoles, 25 Marsh Sandpipers, 6 Red-necked Phalaropes (one flock) and a Greater Sandplover hunkered down for shelter!

In addition, nearly every green spot in the Southern Arava appeared to be 'heaving' with migrants such as the 600 Black-headed Wagtails in the Yotvata fields, 250 Blackcaps in Ye'elim Holiday Village, 500 Lesser Whitethroats and 90 Northern Wheatears at Samar. Phenomenal numbers of birds that had us all overwhelmed!

26/03
The Black Bush Robin continued to show very well in Yotvata plus the Semi-collared Flycatcher remained. There was also a rather late Oriental Skylark in the fields there.

At Lotan 12 Redstarts and 4 Savi's Warblers were present and spring's first Willow Warblers arrived, while Ralf Kladny reported 2 Blue-cheeked Bee-eaters as well as numerous European Bee-eaters from the Ein Evrona salt pools.

27/03
An exceptionally early Barred Warbler showed up on the grass by Lotan's clubhouse in the morning, about three weeks ahead of a 'normal' date and equaling the earliest date given in The Birds of Israel (Shirihai' 1996).

Also at Lotan, Jonathan Meyrav reported a Collared Flycatcher (male), 3 Nightingales, 2 Cinereous Buntings (males of the race cineracea) and 2 Turtle Doves. That afternoon 12 Thick-billed and 4 Hoopoe Larks showed exceptionally well at Zihor Junction. There were also 6 Eastern Bonelli's Warblers, Orphean and Ruppell's Warblers hoping around on the ground between the flowers, just to add a touch of the bizarre.

28/03
On the Hiyyon Plain an impressive 9 species of lark were recorded including 2 Bimaculated and 4 Lesser Short-toed, both of which appeared for the first time this season and least 5 Desert Warblers were still present.

29/03
Nizzana produced a huge number of Short-toed Larks, about 5,000 in total which were dotted about the plains and wadis. A Bimaculated Lark, 2 Temminck's Horned Larks and a Golden Plover were also found there. Pallid Harriers were present in good numbers with a female and 5 males present in the area, and again the Houbaras performed well.

A random check of Nahal Ashosh on the Barak Plateau produced some impressive numbers of migrants, just a small indication of an otherwise unseen migration through some of the more remote desert wadis. In just one afternoon 125 Cretzschmar's and 56 Ortolan Buntings, 11 Eastern Bonelli's Warblers and 5 Nightingales were recorded, as well as good numbers of breeding Trumpeter Finch.

A great day for migrant Pallid Harriers was rounded off by a male that graced Zihor junction in the evening.

30/03
Lotan: A very good morning of migration as 8,600 Steppe Buzzard, 660 Black Kite, 445 Black Stork, 400 Alpine Swift, 2,500 Swifts sp and 60 Bee-eaters passed north over the Kibbutz and nearby mountains. Ralf Kladny reported that the Barred Warbler was still present near clubhouse while 5 Ruppell's Warblers and a relatively late Cyprus Warbler were found in a tiny wadi 3km west of the Kibbutz.

More great birding came from the Samar fields with a Subalpine Warbler (male) and a Savi's Warbler, with the last light of the afternoon spent at Yotvata fields where a Cream-cloured Courser, Rufous Bush Chat, male Rock Thrush, female Pallid Harrier and 6+ Ruppell's Warblers were present amongst hundreds of more common migrants.

31/03
The day began well with 2 Cinereous Buntings found amongst 25 Cretzschmar's Buntings in lower wadi Barak. There were also good numbers of singing Arabian Warblers in the wadis south-west of Hazeva and a female Rock Thrush noted at En Shakhek.

This was quite possibly the best March that I've experienced in the Southern Arava having been present every year since 1994. April has a tough act to follow, but at least it will roll off to a very good start.

Do follow our progress through April. This is a truly amazing spring so far.

We present a picture gallery featuring the birds seen in and photographed for this report.

Enjoy and Good birding,

James Smith & The Birdingisrael Team