(Photo - The Bold House Bunting)

Birds of Essaouira

Essaouira is a wonderful place to bird watch and spring is the best time of year. There are many great places for bird watching in and round the city. You can see lots of birds from Essaouira Beach, Safi Beach and in the trees near the Bab Sba, but the best place, by far, is around the Ksab River in the early morning.

With the old Sultan's Palace as a backdrop, the River Ksab is a wonderfully scenic place to spend the morning. And with so many birds, and so much wildlife, it's really something not to miss while visiting Essaouira.

By far the most common bird in Essaouira is the Sea Gull. They circle the city day and night searching for food. My old Essaouira friend Chris Gilmore used to tell me that the gulls need to eat 10 time their weight in fish everyday just to fly. There is plenty of free space in the Isle de Mogador for nesting but many gulls still chose to nest on isolated roofs in the Medina. The chicks have just hatched and from the terrace of Dar Suki I can spot over 5 baby gulls. This can be a problem for residents because the birds get really loud and charge at you if you get too close.

The most famous bird in our area is the Eleonora’s Falcon that nests on Mogador. You can see them in the morning on the beach down by the lighthouse. I see them all day long near the river Ksab that flows to the sea near the castle in the sand.

The other morning I was surfing and saw over 9 of the falcons crossing over from the island to the mainland. The do not fish but feed on insects and smaller birds. They are a small predator, only about 30 - 40 CM long with a black tail and a white throat.

The falcons come to breed on Mogador and in the Canary Islands before making their return journey to Madagascar. The websight www.africanbirdclub.org says that the islets off Essaouira hold by far the world’s largest colony of Eleonora’s Falcons.

The House Bunting is my favorite bird in Morocco (see photo above). At least two of the little guys visit my apartment everyday. They fly right in my window and eat the bread crumbs from under my table. They are very bold and don't mind at all if I'm home. It's almost like having pets, except for the fact that these little buddies clean up after me!

There are also many other birds you can see around the city including Pink Flamingos, various species of Ducks, Morning Doves, Cormorants, Great Blue Herons, Snowy Egret and many many species of Sea Gulls.

The best Morocco birdwatching websight I can find is www.africanbirdclub.org which lists all of the species located in the country.

Other News:

May 16 marked the 4 year anniversary of the Casablanca bombings and to commemorate that terrible day the students of Essaouira held a march against terrorism. The march started in the Administrative Quarter near the Ocean Vagabond and made it's way to the Place Moulay Hassan. Over 1000 students and civic leaders attended the rally and ceremony in the Place.

Weather - It will be sunny and warm all week with big waves in the bay. Surf in the morning, windsurf in the afternoon.

Check the surf in Essaouira:

http://www.windguru.com/int/index.php?sc=26

Check the Weather in Essaouira:

http://www.wunderground.com/cgi-bin/findweather/getForecast?query=essaouira

 

Next Week: Best of Essaouira

Current Events:

The Alliance Francoise is hosting the exposition «From A to Z» by AHMED LEKHAL from May 5 - 19. He is from Oujda and uses lots of natural materials in his art ranging from Arabic symbols to floral calligraphy.

For full information and a schedule of events go to the Alliance Francoise website at:

http://www.ambafrance-ma.org/institut/afm-essaouira/index.cfm?num=948&archive...

The Alliance Francoise is located on Rue Laalouj not far from Dar Suki.

Upcoming Events

10th Annual Essaouira International Gnaoua Festival 2007 June 19 - 23. For all information go to the official websight at:

http://www.festival-gnaoua.co.ma/

Blog Posted each Monday by Ron Bauer, see you soon!

If you have any questions or comments contact me at ronny_bauer@yahoo.com