Winter in Morocco (1 Viewer)

[jamesdee]

I'm spending most of Dec, Jan and some of Feb in Morocco 2024-25. I wonder if anyone has been at that time of year? I plan to explore relatively widely in my own vehicle during my time there, heading where the road takes me and using old ebird locations as a guide, make notes of all species seen and take photos where possible. Hope to make some useful notes, maybe discover some new sites en route. Can check areas suggested by other members if they have any points of interest as well.

 

[dwatsonbirder]

It's a while since I was last there, but winter birding is excellent. Here is an old trip report, a lot of the locations are probably still valid (you can check against newer reports) but hopefully it is a useful starting point. The Gosney guide is well worth purchasing if a bit long in the tooth, a lot of the sites are traditional.

 

[wolfbirder]

Look forward to reading your report , hopefully on here when you have finished your trek

 

[Welsh Peregrine]

I last visited Morocco in winter in the early 90’s; back when it was still possible to see Slender-billed Curlew. Plenty of other species still to aim for, including Marsh Owl and Northern Bald Ibis.

 

[jamesdee]

Is anybody going there this winter between Jan-March? We can exchange notes or team up where applicable/useful.

 

[jogresh]

Is anybody going there this winter between Jan-March? We can exchange notes or team up where applicable/useful.

I'm very seriously thinking about making my 4th winter visit. It's been a few years since my last one, in fact I've not been making foreign trips like I used to. But if work and other commitments allow I might be able to book a last minute flight late Jan/early Feb. I understand there's been rainfall in the desert.

One suggestion, which depends on a person's priorities - with that amount of time, you may like to consider the journey south to Khnifiss Lagoon and on to Dakhla Bay, and then Aousserd. There's plenty of reports on this site and Cloudbirders.

There's an excellent website called Go-south run by Patrick Bergier which is a huge source of info.

Enjoy your trip.

 

[jamesdee]

Hey! Nice to hear from you. I have made a note of Khnifiss Lagoon as a possible place to stay and bird, Dakhla may be a little too far but I'll decide whilst there if I want to head that far down. It's definitely an exciting prospect. I'll definitely plan to get south of Agadir. Thanks for the website suggestion, I'll be looking at that before I leave next week. Let me know if you decide to head down there, perhaps we can plan an excursion if logistics work.

 

[jogresh]

Yes it is a fair stretch. Even Khnifiss is a long haul and therefore off most birders itineraries. But it's an interesting area, definitely underwatched, and there are other areas in southernmost Morocco/northern W Sahara too, which are mentioned on go-south. I'd love to spend time bimbling that whole area one day when I have plenty of time! 🤔
I'll keep my fingers crossed for a late January hol and be in touch if we can team up. Meantime, keep us posted on your adventures! 🙂👍🐦