Chiffchaff

Phylloscopus collybita (Vieillot, 1817).

Length 11 cm. A small warbler; drab grey-green on the back and head; underparts are paler; has a white area under the eye and white eye stripe. The legs are always dark. The Chiffchaff spends the winter in parks, gardens, and scrub especially near water, feeding on insects and sometimes on fruits in late summer. It is a common winter visitor to parts of Egypt especially the Eastern Desert.

Cattle Egret

Bubulcus ibis (Linnaeus, 1758).

Length 51 cm. This is a short-legged, thick-necked egret. The plumage of the breeding adult is white with distinctive buff on the head, breast, and back; bill and legs are dull orange. The Cattle Egret is the most terrestrial heron and is known as the ‘farmers’ friend’ due to its habit of following farm animals such as cattle or camels and eating the agricultural pests that they kick up, including insects, grasshoppers, spiders, moths, and frogs. It is diurnal and gregarious; tending to roost in large colonies. It flocks to and from feeding, breeding, and roosting sites. Clutch size is usually 3-4 light blue eggs and the incubation takes 22-25 days. In Egypt, this bird is an abundant breeding resident and is distributed through the Nile Valley and the eastern Delta.


Brown-necked Raven

Corvus ruficollis Lesson, 1831.

Length 50 cm. An all-black bird with the back of the neck glossed brown, although this can hardly be seen except at close range and in a good light. The feet, legs, and stout bill are also black. The Brown-necked Raven lives in open and mountainous deserts, steppes, and wadis. It is omnivorous and feeds on small vertebrates, carrion, fruit, grain, and insects particularly beetles. The nest is constructed in a tree, on a cliff, or an old building. There are usually 4-5 eggs, which are incubated for 20-22 days. The young leave the nest in 37-38 days and can fly well in 42-45 days. This is a common and widespread resident in the Eastern and Western Deserts and Sinai.

Blanford Fox

Vulpes cana Blanford, 1877.

This is a beautiful small fox of 42 cm head-and-body length; the tail is 30 cm. The soft fur is brownish on the back becoming more greyish towards the rear; underparts are paler. On each side of the face, a dark stripe runs from the inner corner of the eye to the corner of the mouth. The long very bushy tail is black tipped; the ears are large. Blanford’s Fox lives in semi-arid steppe and rocky mountain areas; it is extremely agile and escapes danger by jumping to safety on rock shelves. It is strictly nocturnal and monogamous and is a solitary hunter. It is omnivorous and eats insects, including grasshoppers, scorpions, and small mammals; it is reported to be more frugivorous than other foxes and eats a variety of fruits. Breeding occurs between December and January, and after the gestation period of 50 to 60 days 1-3 young are born. This fox is rare in Egypt having only been discovered in the country in recent years and is distributed in parts of Sinai and the Eastern Desert. Its global distribution is from Egypt through the Middle East and the Arabian Peninsula to as far north as Uzbekistan.

Eyed Skink

Chalcides ocellatus (Forskål, 1775).

Length up to 120 mm. A medium-sized skink with moderately developed limbs and an elongated cylindrical body. The dorsal scales are smooth and the color varies from light yellowish-olive to yellowish-brown with irregular bands of black and white ocelli. The Eyed Skink lives in a variety of habitats from sandy deserts to the banks of irrigation canals. It is mainly crepuscular or nocturnal and is semi-fossorial, spending much of its time under dead vegetation or sand. It comes to the surface to hunt for its food of snails, spiders, ants, termites, and small lizards and, occasionally, to drink. It can ‘sand-swim’ very rapidly to escape from danger. In Egypt, it is ubiquitous and common throughout semi-desert areas, the Mediterranean Coastal Deserts, Sinai, and the Nile Valley and Delta.


Eyed Dabb Lizard

Uromastyx ocellata Lichtenstein, 1823.

Length up to 175 mm. A large, strongly built lizard with a bulbous head; the neck and the flattened body are covered with small, uniform scales; limbs are strong; the tail is thick and short with whorls of spinose scales. The strong tail does not break off but can be used as a defensive weapon. The coloration varies considerably according to age, sex, and breeding condition. Dorsum of the adult breeding male is green, brightest on the head; the back has orange crossbars and black-edged white ocelli arranged in transverse bands; tail is yellowish-green; throat and underside of the neck are green with orange blotches; other ventral parts are whitish with a few greenish marks. The female is brownish with dark-edged ocelli on dorsum; throat is reddish. The Eyed Dab Lizard is a diurnal rock-dwelling lizard that is found in hot, arid, sparsely vegetated, mountainous desert. It is largely herbivorous but young animals feed on some insects in particular; acacia seems to be a favored food item. In Egypt, it is found in the mountains of the Eastern Desert and elsewhere it is distributed southward to Somalia and eastward to the western Arabian Peninsula. It is uncommon but widespread and is under heavy pressure from animal traders; it is probably one of the most sought-after reptiles in Egypt for the pet trade.

Egyptian Cobra

Naja haje (Linnaeus, 1758).

Length up to 2000 mm. The largest snake in the region; the head is depressed with a moderately broad snout and a large eye with a round pupil; the body is cylindrical and stout; the tail is moderately long. When threatened, it raises the anterior part of the body and flares its distinctive hood. The color is yellowish-grey. The Egyptian Cobra inhabits the cultivated fields and is most often encountered on a river or canal banks in the dense vegetation. It is both crepuscular and diurnal and feeds mainly on frogs and toads together with small birds and mammals. It is an aggressive snake and attacks viciously when cornered; it is venomous and dangerous. Eight to thirty-three eggs are laid and the incubation lasts for 48-52 days. This snake is found in the Nile Valley and Delta, Faiyum, and the Western Mediterranean Coastal Desert. It is widespread but uncommon throughout its range, which extends throughout North Africa and south to Kenya.


African Beauty Snake

Psammophis sibilans (Linnaeus, 1758).

Length up to 1440 mm. The head is elongated and distinct from the neck; its snout is moderately long; the eye is rather large with a round pupil. The body is cylindrical, long, and slender; the tail is long and tapered. The color is greyish-olive with longitudinal yellowish stripes; underpart is yellowish. The African Beauty Snake inhabits the agricultural lands and is found in cultivated areas such as gardens and on canal banks. It is diurnal; feeds on lizards, young birds, and small rodents; sometimes frogs and toads. This is a rear-fanged snake that is mildly venomous, but it is not dangerous. Up to 15 eggs are laid and the incubation period lasts for nearly three months. In Egypt, this fairly common and widespread snake is found in the Nile Valley and Delta; elsewhere it is found in Sub-Saharan Africa.


Black-shouldered Kite

Elanus caeruleus (Desfontaines, 1789).

Length 33 cm. This is a smallish bird of prey characterized by its grey and white coloring and a variably sized black shoulder patches; the wings are long and the tail is square; the bill and feet are small. The Black-shouldered Kite lives in open farmland with scattered shrubs and trees, eating small mammals and birds together with some insects that are caught on the wing. The nest is a platform of sticks and weeds, lined with grass, and built in a tree. Three to five eggs are laid at intervals of 2-3 days and are incubated for about 26 days. This bird had formerly decreased in numbers but has recently increased its range and density. It is found in the Nile Valley and Delta.


Black-headed Gull

Larus ridibundus Linnaeus, 1766.

Length 38 cm. A medium-sized gull with summer plumage of dark brownish-black hood, not extending to nape; grey back and wings. The wintering adult lacks the black hood but has a distinctive black smudge behind each eye. The bill and legs are red. The Black-headed Gull spends the winter on estuaries, coasts, and on inland lakes and rivers. It feeds on aquatic and terrestrial insects, earthworms, and marine invertebrates and to a lesser extent fish. This bird is an abundant winter visitor to the Mediterranean and Red Sea Coasts of Egypt.