Dubai
A four-day business trip to India included an 8-hour stopover in Dubai, so the group and I went on a short tour of Dubai to see the place. We waited for the tour to collect us at the Le Meridien Hotel on the airport perimeter. While waiting I had a quick look in the courtyard in the middle of the hotel buildings.
Searching for food on the lawn was this Common Hoopoe:
It didn't fully raise it's crest, which is a shame, but you get a good idea anyway. Perched on a window ledge was this Common Myna:
As you can tell from the picture, it was very hot in Dubai, 45 centigrade, so all the birds were periodically trying to cool themselves, with their beaks open. Myna's appeared to be the most common bird in the city.
One stop-off on the tour was by the main water way, where I spotted this Laughing Dove:
And here the view across the waterway showing both the old Dubai - the wood fishing boats - and the new - in the form of the 'towers'. Dubai is in fact the largest building site on the planet, with literally hundreds of towers, either hotels or residential, under construction. It's amazing really as it is so hot that it's uncomfortable, really uncomfortable and it gets hotter. Why would people want to live in city plonked in a desert where summer temperatures exceed 50 centigrade?
The last sighting is what I believe to a juvenile Hoopoe, judging by it's beak shape and crest, but if you know what it is, please do let me know!
Searching for food on the lawn was this Common Hoopoe:
It didn't fully raise it's crest, which is a shame, but you get a good idea anyway. Perched on a window ledge was this Common Myna:
As you can tell from the picture, it was very hot in Dubai, 45 centigrade, so all the birds were periodically trying to cool themselves, with their beaks open. Myna's appeared to be the most common bird in the city.
One stop-off on the tour was by the main water way, where I spotted this Laughing Dove:
And here the view across the waterway showing both the old Dubai - the wood fishing boats - and the new - in the form of the 'towers'. Dubai is in fact the largest building site on the planet, with literally hundreds of towers, either hotels or residential, under construction. It's amazing really as it is so hot that it's uncomfortable, really uncomfortable and it gets hotter. Why would people want to live in city plonked in a desert where summer temperatures exceed 50 centigrade?
The last sighting is what I believe to a juvenile Hoopoe, judging by it's beak shape and crest, but if you know what it is, please do let me know!
Labels: bird identification, british birds, garden birds, gardening, walking
posted by Michael at 4:39 pm
2 Comments:
crested lark.... not juvenile hoopoe (they are VERY different)
you're ansolutely right. It's amazing what we 'see' when something different is right in front of us. Thanks for the correction.
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