Trip Report: Morocco (2025-02-18 - 2025-03-01)
Desert Horned Viper (Cerastes cerastes)
Marrakesh by Barbara
Marrakesh
Marrakesh
Oukaimeden Lake
Oukaimeden Goat Herding Village
Oukaimeden Snowman
Tizy N' Test Pass
Tizy N' Test Pass
Agidir Camels
Morocco Road
Bourmalne Dades Cliffs
Bourmalne Dades Gorge
Sand Dunes and Tree
Sand Dunes
Merzouga Oasis
Merzouga Coffee Stand
Morocco Scenery
Source of Esskhounate
Volubilis
Tangier Slippers
Desert Horned Viper (Cerastes cerastes)
Spotless Starling (Sturnus unicolor)
House Bunting (Emberiza sahari) - Male
Temminck's Lark (Eremophila bilopha)
Desert Wheatear (Oenanthe deserti)
Egyptian Nightjar (Caprimulgus aegyptius)
Barbary Macaque (Macaca sylvanus)
Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita)
Thick-billed Lark (Ramphocoris clotbey)
Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros) - Female
Red-rumped Wheatear (Oenanthe moesta) - Male
Levaillant's Woodpecker (Picus vaillantii)
Maghreb Magpie (Pica mauritanica)
Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia)
Desert Wheatear (Oenanthe deserti)
Desert White (Pontia glauconome)
Moroccan Hairstreak (Tomares mauritanicus)
Tawny Owl (Strix aluco)
Greater Hoopoe-Lark (Alaemon alaudipes)
Dumeril's Fringe-fingered Lizard (Acanthodactylus dumerilii)
Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni)
African Chaffinch (Fringilla spodiogenys) - Male
Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris) - Atlas
White-crowned Wheatear (Oenanthe leucopyga)
Striped Hawkmoth (Hyles livornica)
White-crowned Wheatear (Oenanthe leucopyga)
Red-knobbed Coot (Fulica cristata)
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Desert Horned Viper (Cerastes cerastes)
Marrakesh by Barbara
Marrakesh
Marrakesh
Oukaimeden Lake
Oukaimeden Goat Herding Village
Oukaimeden Snowman
Tizy N' Test Pass
Tizy N' Test Pass
Agidir Camels
Morocco Road
Bourmalne Dades Cliffs
Bourmalne Dades Gorge
Sand Dunes and Tree
Sand Dunes
Merzouga Oasis
Merzouga Coffee Stand
Morocco Scenery
Source of Esskhounate
Volubilis
Tangier Slippers
Desert Horned Viper (Cerastes cerastes)
Spotless Starling (Sturnus unicolor)
House Bunting (Emberiza sahari) - Male
Temminck's Lark (Eremophila bilopha)
Desert Wheatear (Oenanthe deserti)
Egyptian Nightjar (Caprimulgus aegyptius)
Barbary Macaque (Macaca sylvanus)
Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita)
Thick-billed Lark (Ramphocoris clotbey)
Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros) - Female
Red-rumped Wheatear (Oenanthe moesta) - Male
Levaillant's Woodpecker (Picus vaillantii)
Maghreb Magpie (Pica mauritanica)
Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia)
Desert Wheatear (Oenanthe deserti)
Desert White (Pontia glauconome)
Moroccan Hairstreak (Tomares mauritanicus)
Tawny Owl (Strix aluco)
Greater Hoopoe-Lark (Alaemon alaudipes)
Dumeril's Fringe-fingered Lizard (Acanthodactylus dumerilii)
Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni)
African Chaffinch (Fringilla spodiogenys) - Male
Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris) - Atlas
White-crowned Wheatear (Oenanthe leucopyga)
Striped Hawkmoth (Hyles livornica)
White-crowned Wheatear (Oenanthe leucopyga)
Red-knobbed Coot (Fulica cristata)
A trip to Morocco where we started in Marrakesh, drove around in the Sahara, continued to Fes, and finally took the ferry from Tangier to Tarifa, Spain.
Sites Visited
Species Seen
Kingdom: Animals (179 records)
Phylum: Arthropods
(11 records)
Class: Insects
(11 records)
- Order: Bees, Wasps, and Ants
(2 records)
- Family: Ants
- Bicolor Group Sahara Ants (Cataglyphis sp)
- Family: Thread-waisted Wasps
- Thread-waisted Wasp (Sphecidae sp)
- Order: Beetles
(2 records)
- Family: Darkling Beetles
- Darkling Beetle (Pimelia fairmairii)
- Family: Tiger Beetles
- Littoral Tiger Beetle (Calomera littoralis)
- Order: Butterflies and Moths
(6 records)
- Family: Crambid Snout Moths
- Crambid Snout Moth (Cornifrons ulceratalis)
- Family: Cutworm Moths and Allies
- The Bordered Straw (Heliothis peltigera)
- Family: Gossamer-winged Butterflies
- Moroccan Hairstreak (Tomares mauritanicus)
- Family: Sphinx Moths
- Striped Hawkmoth (Hyles livornica)
- Family: Whites, Yellows, and Sulphurs
- Desert White (Pontia glauconome)
- Greenish Black-Tip (Elphinstonia charlonia)
- Order: Grasshoppers, Katydids and Crickets
(1 record)
- Family: Shieldback Locusts
- Toadhopper (Batrachotetrix sp)
Phylum: Chordates
(168 records)
Class: Birds
(163 records)
- Order: Anseriformes
(10 records)
- Family: Swans, Geese, and Ducks
- Blue-winged Teal (Spatula discors)
- Common Pochard (Aythya ferina)
- Common Shelduck (Tadorna tadorna)
- Eurasian Wigeon (Mareca penelope)
- Gadwall (Mareca strepera)
- Green-winged Teal (Anas crecca)
- Mallard (Anas platyrhynchos)
- Northern Pintail (Anas acuta)
- Northern Shoveler (Spatula clypeata)
- Ruddy Shelduck (Tadorna ferruginea)
- Order: Boobies
(1 record)
- Family: Boobies and Gannets
- Northern Gannet (Morus bassanus)
- Order: Bucerotiformes
(1 record)
- Family: Hoopoes
- Common Hoopoe (Upupa epops)
- Order: Cranes, Rails, and Allies
(3 records)
- Family: Rails, Gallinules, and Allies
- Eurasian Coot (Fulica atra)
- Eurasian Moorhen (Gallinula chloropus)
- Red-knobbed Coot (Fulica cristata)
- Order: Doves and Pigeons (3 records)
- Order: Hawks, Eagles, Kites, and Allies (7 records)
- Family: Osprey
- Osprey (Pandion haliaetus)
- Order: Hummingbirds and Swifts (3 records)
- Order: Owls And Nightjars
(4 records)
- Family: Nighthawks and Nightjars
- Egyptian Nightjar (Caprimulgus aegyptius)
- Family: Typical Owls
- Little Owl (Athene noctua)
- Pharaoh Eagle-Owl (Bubo ascalaphus)
- Tawny Owl (Strix aluco)
- Order: Pelicans
(34 records)
- Family: Cormorants
- Great Cormorant (Phalacrocorax carbo)
- Family: Falcons and Caracaras
- Eurasian Kestrel (Falco tinnunculus)
- Lanner Falcon (Falco biarmicus)
- Lesser Kestrel (Falco naumanni)
- Family: Flamingos
- Greater Flamingo (Phoenicopterus roseus)
- Family: Grebes
- Little Grebe (Tachybaptus ruficollis)
- Family: Herons
- Gray Heron (Ardea cinerea)
- Great Egret (Ardea alba)
- Little Egret (Egretta garzetta)
- Western Cattle-Egret (Ardea ibis)
- Family: Ibises and Spoonbills
- Eurasian Spoonbill (Platalea leucorodia)
- Glossy Ibis (Plegadis falcinellus)
- Northern Bald Ibis (Geronticus eremita)
- Family: Oystercatchers
- Eurasian Oystercatcher (Haematopus ostralegus)
- Family: Sandgrouse
- Black-bellied Sandgrouse (Pterocles orientalis)
- Crowned Sandgrouse (Pterocles coronatus)
- Family: Sandpipers and Allies
- Bar-tailed Godwit (Limosa lapponica)
- Black-tailed Godwit (Limosa limosa)
- Common Greenshank (Tringa nebularia)
- Common Redshank (Tringa totanus)
- Common Sandpiper (Actitis hypoleucos)
- Common Snipe (Gallinago gallinago)
- Dunlin (Calidris alpina)
- Eurasian Curlew (Numenius arquata)
- Eurasian Whimbrel (Numenius phaeopus)
- Green Sandpiper (Tringa ochropus)
- Little Stint (Calidris minuta)
- Red Knot (Calidris canutus)
- Ruddy Turnstone (Arenaria interpres)
- Ruff (Calidris pugnax)
- Sanderling (Calidris alba)
- Wood Sandpiper (Tringa glareola)
- Family: Stilts and Avocets
- Black-winged Stilt (Himantopus himantopus)
- Family: Storks
- White Stork (Ciconia ciconia)
- Order: Perching Birds
(78 records)
- Family: Bulbuls
- Common Bulbul (Pycnonotus barbatus)
- Family: Bush Warblers and Allies
- Cetti's Warbler (Cettia cetti)
- Family: Cardueline Finches and Allies
- African Chaffinch (Fringilla spodiogenys)
- Crimson-winged Finch (Rhodopechys sanguineus)
- Eurasian Linnet (Linaria cannabina)
- Eurasian Siskin (Spinus spinus)
- European Goldfinch (Carduelis carduelis)
- European Greenfinch (Chloris chloris)
- European Serin (Serinus serinus)
- Hawfinch (Coccothraustes coccothraustes)
- Red Crossbill (Loxia curvirostra)
- Trumpeter Finch (Bucanetes githagineus)
- Family: Chickadees and Titmice
- African Blue Tit (Cyanistes teneriffae)
- Coal Tit (Periparus ater)
- Great Tit (Parus major)
- Family: Jays and Crows
- Black-crowned Tchagra (Tchagra senegalus)
- Brown-necked Raven (Corvus ruficollis)
- Common Raven (Corvus corax)
- Eurasian Jackdaw (Coloeus monedula)
- Eurasian Jay (Garrulus glandarius)
- Maghreb Magpie (Pica mauritanica)
- Red-billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax)
- Yellow-billed Chough (Pyrrhocorax graculus)
- Family: Larks
- Bar-tailed Lark (Ammomanes cinctura)
- Crested Lark (Galerida cristata)
- Desert Lark (Ammomanes deserti)
- Eurasian Skylark (Alauda arvensis)
- Greater Hoopoe-Lark (Alaemon alaudipes)
- Greater Short-toed Lark (Calandrella brachydactyla)
- Horned Lark (Eremophila alpestris)
- Mediterranean Short-toed Lark (Alaudala rufescens)
- Temminck's Lark (Eremophila bilopha)
- Thekla's Lark (Galerida theklae)
- Thick-billed Lark (Ramphocoris clotbey)
- Wood Lark (Lullula arborea)
- Family: Laughingthrushes
- Fulvous Chatterer (Argya fulva)
- Family: Leaf Warblers
- Common Chiffchaff (Phylloscopus collybita)
- Willow Warbler (Phylloscopus trochilus)
- Family: Nuthatches
- Eurasian Nuthatch (Sitta europaea)
- Family: Old World Buntings
- Cirl Bunting (Emberiza cirlus)
- Corn Bunting (Emberiza calandra)
- House Bunting (Emberiza sahari)
- Family: Old World Flycatchers
- Black Wheatear (Oenanthe leucura)
- Desert Wheatear (Oenanthe deserti)
- European Stonechat (Saxicola rubicola)
- Mourning Wheatear (Oenanthe lugens)
- Red-rumped Wheatear (Oenanthe moesta)
- Western Black-eared Wheatear (Oenanthe hispanica)
- White-crowned Wheatear (Oenanthe leucopyga)
- Family: Old World Sparrows
- Desert Sparrow (Passer simplex)
- House Sparrow (Passer domesticus)
- Rock Sparrow (Petronia petronia)
- Spanish Sparrow (Passer hispaniolensis)
- Family: Old World Warblers and Gnatcatchers
- African Desert Warbler (Curruca deserti)
- Eurasian Blackcap (Sylvia atricapilla)
- Sardinian Warbler (Curruca melanocephala)
- Spectacled Warbler (Curruca conspicillata)
- Tristram's Warbler (Curruca deserticola)
- Family: Prinias and Apalis
- Scrub Warbler (Scotocerca inquieta)
- Zitting Cisticola (Cisticola juncidis)
- Family: Starlings and Mynas
- European Starling (Sturnus vulgaris)
- Spotless Starling (Sturnus unicolor)
- Family: Swallows
- Barn Swallow (Hirundo rustica)
- Eurasian Crag-Martin (Ptyonoprogne rupestris)
- European Red-rumped Swallow (Cecropis rufula)
- Plain Martin (Riparia paludicola)
- Family: Thrushes and Allies
- Black Redstart (Phoenicurus ochruros)
- Blue Rock-Thrush (Monticola solitarius)
- Common Nightingale (Luscinia megarhynchos)
- Eurasian Blackbird (Turdus merula)
- Mistle Thrush (Turdus viscivorus)
- Moussier's Redstart (Phoenicurus moussieri)
- Song Thrush (Turdus philomelos)
- Family: Wagtails and Pipits
- Gray Wagtail (Motacilla cinerea)
- Meadow Pipit (Anthus pratensis)
- White Wagtail (Motacilla alba)
- Order: Shorebirds and Allies
(15 records)
- Family: Auks, Murres, Guillemots, and Puffins
- Razorbill (Alca torda)
- Family: Gulls, Terns, and Skimmers
- Audouin's Gull (Ichthyaetus audouinii)
- Black-headed Gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus)
- Black Tern (Chlidonias niger)
- Lesser Black-backed Gull (Larus fuscus)
- Mediterranean Gull (Ichthyaetus melanocephalus)
- Sandwich Tern (Thalasseus sandvicensis)
- Slender-billed Gull (Chroicocephalus genei)
- Yellow-legged Gull (Larus michahellis)
- Family: Plovers
- Black-bellied Plover (Pluvialis squatarola)
- Common Ringed Plover (Charadrius hiaticula)
- Kentish Plover (Anarhynchus alexandrinus)
- Little Ringed Plover (Thinornis dubius)
- Pied Avocet (Recurvirostra avosetta)
- Family: Thick-knees
- Eurasian Thick-knee (Burhinus oedicnemus)
- Order: Turkey-like birds
(1 record)
- Family: Grouse, Turkeys, and Allies
- Barbary Partridge (Alectoris barbara)
- Order: Woodpeckers, Barbets, Toucans, and Honeyguides
(3 records)
- Family: Piculets and Woodpeckers
- Eurasian Wryneck (Jynx torquilla)
- Great Spotted Woodpecker (Dendrocopos major)
- Levaillant's Woodpecker (Picus vaillantii)
Class: Mammals
(1 record)
- Order: Primates
(1 record)
- Family: Old World Monkeys
- Barbary Macaque (Macaca sylvanus)
Class: Reptiles
(4 records)
- Order: Lizards and Snakes
(3 records)
- Family: Vipers and Pit Vipers
- Desert Horned Viper (Cerastes cerastes)
- Family: Wall Lizards
- Bosc's Fringe-toed Lizard (Acanthodactylus boskianus)
- Dumeril's Fringe-fingered Lizard (Acanthodactylus dumerilii)
- Order: Turtles
(1 record)
- Family: Tortoise
- Mediterranean Turtle (Mauremys leprosa)